Chapter 1 – Optimism

“Well….” He thought to himself “It isn’t terrible.”

He dropped the to-go bag & keys on the kitchen counter, surveying his new small slice of home. There wasn’t a whole lot of space, but then again it was only him.  What need did he have for more? 

“Less rooms, less to clean!” He said to himself trying to force a smile and some optimism. It worked, a bit.  

Though small as his new apartment was, there was still a mess of boxes and half unpacked things scattered across every surface. He’d get to it eventually he supposed, but there wasn’t really any rush.  

Right now all he wanted was to collapse into a chair and tuck into the dinner he’d trekked half way across the city to get. Well, maybe not half the city, but then again when your car breaks down halfway to the restaurant and you’re forced to abandon it to the tow company & some mechanic who tells you “it won’t be cheap,” well, enough said.

He sighed, that was tomorrow’s problem. 

He began to lay out his dinner for one on the kitchen table.  Scrabbling through one of the unpacked kitchen boxes in search of silverware to compensate for that which was missing from the bag. Unfortunately the ice machine was out of order, which was to say he hadn’t filled the ice cube tray earlier & so settled for tap water.  Could be worse. 

Everything ready, he sat down to enjoy his dinner.  Turns out the reviews weren’t wrong, cheap though it maybe, and only lukewarm, the food was still delicious. After a few ravenous bites he paused to wash it down with a sip of water.  

He hadn’t realized quite how hungry he was. Now having satiated the worst of his hunger pangs he leaned back in his chair, taking the moment to reflect on his day and current surroundings.

The one bedroom apartment was clean and sparsely furnished. Nothing fancy, but the ad had stated as much.  Lucky for him the elevator had even worked when he’d gone to move his stuff in.  The property manager had mentioned the elevator was old and not the most reliable, leaving him to dread he’d be lugging all his things up to the fourth floor by way of the stairs. 

“What had been that man’s name?” he mused “Lloyd. That was it.”

Lloyd had actually walked him up to the apartment earlier that week on account of the elevator being out of service at the time. Was fine by him, he’d needed the exercise, less that what he told himself. Optimism, it helps. 

Besides, the trek-up had given Lloyd the opportunity to go over all the usual terms and conditions, when rent was due, who covered which utilities, and so on and so forth. When they’d finally reached the fourth floor & Lloyd had shown him into his new home, he’d actually breathed a small sigh of relief. 

He hadn’t told Lloyd, but this was the only place he put in a call to before he’d moved, he didn’t know what he’d have done had the ad been a sham.  While that had probably not been the brightest of the ideas, it hadn’t really mattered at that point in time either.

“Sometimes” he thought “Sometimes, you just have to get up and go.”

And so off he went.  He’d made a decision, packed up his stuff, and left.  It hadn’t been easy, but sometimes right and easy didn’t coincide, and this had been the right decision. 

The one saving grace of his tiny apartment, he felt, cleanliness aside, was the view from the living room balcony.  While it wasn’t a million dollar view, it was a pleasant one.

Across from the tenement, stood a small park, ensconced on all sides by old sturdy trees.  They had been there so long the roots had pushed up the sidewalks in many places.  Though it hardly seemed to matter to anyone there, that was just how it was.  Looking past the trees, he could make out a patch work of green space in the center. Though not pristine, per se, it was clear the locals had a fondness for the park. 

As he watched people go about their business in the cozy park below, he savored the last remnants of sauce stuck to his spoon. He’d realized sitting at the kitchen table had only made him anxious.  All the boxes only reminded him of how much unpacking he had left to do. So, instead he’d moved his chair out to the balcony and put his back to the mess.  That, he’d decided, could wait till later. 

Though the sounds from below drifted lazily up to his floor, in this twilight hour it was mostly the quietness that kept him company.  It was peaceful he thought, at least for that moment. Wanting to avoid what lay behind him just a little bit longer, he sat there on his balcony as the last of the sunlight faded behind the buildings and the street lights started to cast their orange halos down the empty street. 

“Maybe…” He thought “Maybe this won’t be so bad”

Optimism…it helped.