devil himself.
I awoke to the alarm clock that buzzed relentlessly in my ears. I rolled onto my stomach hoping my arms could reach that annoying alarm clock so I can push it to the floor, so it breaks into pieces.
I reached over and smacked the alarm clock with my hand. It hit the floor but kept buzzing so I got up slowly, slid off of the bed, and pressed the off button. I walked over to the window and
moved the curtain to the side. The streets were filled with people and a slight mixture of rain and snow fell as the pedestrians walked quickly to find shelter under a warm, dry place. I needed to
get moving and drive down to the East Village to inquire about my apartment. I called Uncle Mike to ask him what I should do.
“Jenesis, how are you? It’s funny that you called. I just called the landlord. Your apartment has been ready for over a week now. He was actually going to rent it to someone else. What an asshole! Thank God, are you alright?”
“Yes, I slept well, I’m fine. Thank you.”
“Good. He said to go directly to his office and pick up the keys. I didn’t want you to be “assed” out during this holiday season. You don’t have any furniture Jen. What are you going to do?” “I’ll shop for it later. Where’s his office?”
“It’s on the same block as the apartment building, just ask for Rhaji.”
“Rhaji? Okay…I guess. Thanks and I’ll talk to you soon.” I hung up and started to freshen up as I prepared to leave the hotel room in a rush. I startled myself as I saw my mother’s car sitting in the
parking space, reminding me that she was no longer with me. I swallowed hard as the valet parking attendant sat in the driver’s side and drove the car towards me. I handed him a tip, got in, and
headed to the village. I used my cell phone GPS, and my battery was running low. I plugged it into the car charger, I didn’t know where the hell I was, and I didn’t feel like getting lost.
I met Rhaji at his office. As I entered the office, I noticed the stacks and stacks of files in every corner of his room. He wasn’t necessarily disorganized…you could say an organized mess. He was a tall, Middle Eastern man, with the biggest brown eyes I’ve ever seen and the bushiest
eyebrows sitting above his eyes like two Persian rugs. He wasn’t a bad looking guy…just a little odd.
“Please sit,” he said with a thick accent rummaging through the papers on his desk.
“Thank you.” I glanced around the office and noticed the door was shut. I was feeling uncomfortable. I needed to stand up and walk around.
“How long do you plan to rent?” He stared at my leg that was shaking up and down.
“A year maybe? Do you mind opening the door? It’s kind of stuffy in here.” I stood up and walked towards the door. I could feel a panic attack coming on.
“Sure no prob…” He didn’t finish his thought. He watched me carefully as I walked to the door, opened it, and stood in the doorway. I turned around and leaned against the door. “Are you okay?” he asked. “Here you go, sign here. Do you have cash or check?”
“I’m fine. Check…how much?” I asked taking a deep breath. My heart was sprinting out of my chest. I started feeling lightheaded. I walked over and grabbed my purse.
“Four-thousand-five-hundred,” he gawked at me to see the expression on my face.
“Here you go.” I grabbed my checkbook from my purse and wrote a check, and handed it to him.
“I really don’t take personal checks, but you seem honest enough.” His face was serious, but he tried to crack a smile.
“Excuse me?”
“People write checks all of the time, and they bounce. It’s really bad for business.” He lowered and shook his head in disappointment.
“Oh, I see.” I felt stupid. I automatically assumed he didn’t trust me. “Anyway, here are your keys, and here’s a copy of your lease. Welcome to
New York.” He smiled and handed me an envelope.
I nodded and smiled.
I awoke to the alarm clock that buzzed relentlessly in my ears. I rolled onto my stomach hoping my arms could reach that annoying alarm clock so I can push it to the floor, so it breaks into pieces.
I reached over and smacked the alarm clock with my hand. It hit the floor but kept buzzing so I got up slowly, slid off of the bed, and pressed the off button. I walked over to the window and
moved the curtain to the side. The streets were filled with people and a slight mixture of rain and snow fell as the pedestrians walked quickly to find shelter under a warm, dry place. I needed to
get moving and drive down to the East Village to inquire about my apartment. I called Uncle Mike to ask him what I should do.
“Jenesis, how are you? It’s funny that you called. I just called the landlord. Your apartment has been ready for over a week now. He was actually going to rent it to someone else. What an asshole! Thank God, are you alright?”
“Yes, I slept well, I’m fine. Thank you.”
“Good. He said to go directly to his office and pick up the keys. I didn’t want you to be “assed” out during this holiday season. You don’t have any furniture Jen. What are you going to do?” “I’ll shop for it later. Where’s his office?”
“It’s on the same block as the apartment building, just ask for Rhaji.”
“Rhaji? Okay…I guess. Thanks and I’ll talk to you soon.” I hung up and started to freshen up as I prepared to leave the hotel room in a rush. I startled myself as I saw my mother’s car sitting in the
parking space, reminding me that she was no longer with me. I swallowed hard as the valet parking attendant sat in the driver’s side and drove the car towards me. I handed him a tip, got in, and
headed to the village. I used my cell phone GPS, and my battery was running low. I plugged it into the car charger, I didn’t know where the hell I was, and I didn’t feel like getting lost.
I met Rhaji at his office. As I entered the office, I noticed the stacks and stacks of files in every corner of his room. He wasn’t necessarily disorganized…you could say an organized mess. He was a tall, Middle Eastern man, with the biggest brown eyes I’ve ever seen and the bushiest
eyebrows sitting above his eyes like two Persian rugs. He wasn’t a bad looking guy…just a little odd.
“Please sit,” he said with a thick accent rummaging through the papers on his desk.
“Thank you.” I glanced around the office and noticed the door was shut. I was feeling uncomfortable. I needed to stand up and walk around.
“How long do you plan to rent?” He stared at my leg that was shaking up and down.
“A year maybe? Do you mind opening the door? It’s kind of stuffy in here.” I stood up and walked towards the door. I could feel a panic attack coming on.
“Sure no prob…” He didn’t finish his thought. He watched me carefully as I walked to the door, opened it, and stood in the doorway. I turned around and leaned against the door. “Are you okay?” he asked. “Here you go, sign here. Do you have cash or check?”
“I’m fine. Check…how much?” I asked taking a deep breath. My heart was sprinting out of my chest. I started feeling lightheaded. I walked over and grabbed my purse.
“Four-thousand-five-hundred,” he gawked at me to see the expression on my face.
“Here you go.” I grabbed my checkbook from my purse and wrote a check, and handed it to him.
“I really don’t take personal checks, but you seem honest enough.” His face was serious, but he tried to crack a smile.
“Excuse me?”
“People write checks all of the time, and they bounce. It’s really bad for business.” He lowered and shook his head in disappointment.
“Oh, I see.” I felt stupid. I automatically assumed he didn’t trust me. “Anyway, here are your keys, and here’s a copy of your lease. Welcome to
New York.” He smiled and handed me an envelope.
I nodded and smiled.
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