Room for rent / Se alquila habitación - The Ink Well Prompt #35

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This is my entry for The Ink Well Prompt #35: full moon

"Hello! Welcome!" greeted the owner jovially. Her build was petite and a bit thin; under her tired eyelids a dark hue was demarcated. Possibly suffering from insomnia, most likely this delicate little flower couldn't stand living in a city that never slept.

"My name is Erika," she said. "You don't know how happy I am to share my apartment with another girl," she added amused.

"However," she furrowed her brow and changed her tone of voice, as she stroked her pearl necklace; for some reason, it was like watching a little puppy trying to growl for the first time, "as a roommate, according to the agreement you signed, there are two primary rules you must abide by to the letter: never eat duck meat and for no reason should you come near my room on a full moon."

I know that the last one set off a red alert inside me but I had already tried more than a dozen apartments and their strange landlords. From perverts with hidden cameras in the bathrooms to trying to get abducted by a satanic cult.

On the other hand, I had never tried duck meat, not that I was a vegetarian or anything; I just didn't feel like it and I didn't mind making that exception.

I had only been living in the city for a short time and after a few terrible months of waiting and anguished patience, I had finally found a good job; it was essential to have a place to live harmoniously while I gathered enough money to have my own apartment.

Besides, the rent was cheap, the apartment was quite spacious, and had a beautiful balcony where you could still appreciate the picturesque sunsets of the city. Another plus was that it was in a good area, i.e. close to pharmacies, hospitals, and markets. What could go wrong?

In a city as big as this, anything can happen.

It all happened one night when I came home late from work, I usually try to keep my distance from roommates, however, I missed the pleasant personality that Erika had; every time I came home from work, even though it could be a crappy day, her attitude brought back my love for humanity.

That night, she wasn't there to greet me. There was no message on the fridge about her whereabouts and she wasn't answering her cell phone either; it was past 12 o'clock at night and I had no idea where the girl was. I thought about knocking on the door of her room. That's when I remembered the signed agreement.

My gaze was fixed on the glare that was filtering through the balcony drawing a perfect rectangle over the dining room.

"What the hell, it's a full moon today!"

Despite my curiosity, I decided to respect her personal space and obviously the signed agreement. I went to sleep to avoid getting in trouble.

The noises emanating from that room grew louder and louder, floating into my room. Scratches, growls, and even creepy squawks crept under the door. The situation was already getting on my nerves.

Part of me was reluctant to knock on my roommate's door and find out what was going on. But I remembered her big puppy dog eyes and it pricked my conscience.

"Damn it! This is a big city, the less I meddle the better off I'll be," I said to myself and closed my eyes, covering my ears with my pillow.

Suddenly, there was an awkward silence that died after a crash that shattered Erika's door.

I grabbed the baseball bat I kept under the bed and got up quietly. The icy floor reminded me that I was barefoot but I didn't have time to look for my slippers. I could only hear my breathing heaving and the pounding of my heart against my chest. I carefully opened the door to my room and the coolness of the balcony crept in under my robe, shivering my skin.

In situations like this, never turn on the light, you'd be an easy target for any intruder. I slipped into the living room and in the gloom, I could see the door to Erika's room smashed to pieces.

"Erika are you okay?", I whispered as quietly as I could.

A pair of eyes flashed from a corner and a gurgling sound, which chilled my blood, answered my question.

I had read, some time ago, about a great master who was confronted by a pack of dogs coming at him. He charged at them in a rage, making a lot of noise and drooling, and the confused dogs fled in terror. The guru had come to the conclusion that the only way to deal with fear was to face it.

So I closed my eyes and lunged at the beast screaming and swinging the baseball bat. After a couple of swings, a vase and other broken ornaments, the sound of a thud gave me to understand that I had hit my goal.

White plumage shimmered in the moonlight as it landed on the balcony. Had I struck an ostrich? It let out another spooky squawk and fled. For a moment I was grateful it was gone, but suddenly I felt a bad feeling. Perhaps it was my imagination, but just before it left, I could see the glint of a pearl necklace around its neck.

After confirming my suspicions, I spent the whole night following the trail of feathers and surprised people left behind by the strange bird. Finally, I managed to find her whereabouts, she had sneaked into the city zoo and after a long night, the bird had finally laid down to rest.

At dawn, a naked Erika, full of scratches and bruises, woke up in the bushes under the warmth of my jacket.

She wanted to know if she had hurt anyone. My gaze was softened by the sight of her huge, worried puppy eyes.

"It's okay. Nothing happened. I don't think it's the worst this big city has ever seen," I told her.

"For what it's worth, it's not a duck it's a goose, and by the way, you're possibly pregnant by an ostrich," I added.

Her big eyes widened even more.

"Just kidding," I commented, smiling.

See you next time...




Esta es mi entrada para The Ink Well Fiction Prompt #35: luna llena

“¡Hola! ¡Bienvenida!”, saludó la propietaria jovialmente. Su contextura era diminuta y un poco delgada; bajo sus párpados cansados se demarcaba una tonalidad oscura. Posiblemente sufría de insomnio, lo más probable era que esta delicada florecilla no soportaba vivir en una ciudad que jamás dormía.

“Mi nombre es Erika”, dijo. “No sabes cuánto me alegra compartir mi apartamento con otra chica”, agregó divertida.

“Sin embargo,” arrugó su entrecejo y cambió su tono de voz, mientras acariciaba su collar de perlas; por alguna razón, era como ver un pequeño cachorro tratar de gruñir por primera vez, “como compañera de piso, según el acuerdo que firmaste, hay dos reglas primordiales que debes cumplir a cabalidad: jamás comer carne de pato y por ninguna razón deberás acercarte a mi cuarto en luna llena”

Sé que eso último encendió una alerta roja dentro de mí, pero ya había probado con más de una docena de apartamentos y sus extraños arrendadores. Desde pervertidos con cámaras escondidas en los baños hasta tratar de ser abducida por una secta satánica.

Por otro lado, jamás había probado la carne de pato, no es que fuera vegetariana ni nada por el estilo; simplemente no me apetecía y no me importaba hacer esa excepción.

Tenía poco tiempo viviendo en la ciudad y tras unos terribles meses de espera y angustiosa paciencia, finalmente, había encontrado un buen empleo; era indispensable tener un lugar donde vivir armoniosamente mientras reunía lo suficiente para tener mi propio apartamento.

Además, el alquiler era económico, el apartamento era bastante amplio y tenía un hermoso balcón donde aún se podían apreciar los pintorescos ocasos de la ciudad. Otro punto a favor era que se encontraba en una buena zona, es decir, cerca de farmacias, hospitales y mercados. ¿Qué podría salir mal?

En una ciudad tan grande como esta, cualquier cosa puede pasar.

Todo sucedió una noche que llegué tarde del trabajo, generalmente trato de mantener distancia con los compañeros de cuartos, sin embargo, extrañé la agradable personalidad que tenía Erika; cada vez que yo volvía del trabajo, aun cuando podía ser un día de mierda, su actitud me devolvía el amor por la humanidad.

Esa noche, ella no estaba para recibirme. No había ningún mensaje en el refrigerador sobre su paradero y tampoco respondía a su celular; ya eran pasadas las 12 de la noche y no tenía idea de donde estaba la chica. Pensé en tocar la puerta de su cuarto. Fue cuando recordé el acuerdo firmado.

Mi vista se fijó en el resplandor que se colaba por el balcón dibujando un rectángulo perfecto sobre el comedor.

“¿Qué demonios? ¡Hoy es día de luna llena!”

Pese a mi curiosidad, decidí respetar su espacio personal y obviamente el acuerdo firmado. Me fui a dormir para evitar meterme en problemas.

Los ruidos que emanaban de aquel cuarto fueron incrementando su volumen, flotando hasta mi cuarto. Arañazos, gruñidos y hasta graznidos escalofriantes se colaban por debajo de la puerta. La situación ya crispaba mis nervios.

Una parte de mí se negaba a tocar la puerta de mi compañera y averiguar lo que sucedía. Pero recordaba sus enormes ojitos de cachorro y me remordía la conciencia.

“¡Demonios! Esto es la capital, entre menos me inmiscuya mejor me irá”, me dije a mi misma y cerré mis ojos cubriendo mis oídos con la almohada.

De pronto, se hizo un silencio incómodo que murió tras un estruendo que hizo pedazos la puerta de Erika.

Tomé el bate de béisbol que guardaba bajo la cama y me levanté sin hacer ruido. El helado suelo me recordó que estaba descalza pero no tenía tiempo para buscar las pantuflas. Solo podía escuchar mi respiración agitada y el golpeteo de mi corazón contra mi pecho. Abrí cuidadosamente la puerta de mi cuarto y el frío del balcón se coló bajo mi bata, estremeciendo mi piel.

En situaciones como esta, jamás se debe encender la luz, serías presa fácil para cualquier intruso. Me escurrí hacia la sala y en la penumbra, pude ver la puerta del cuarto de Erika hecha pedazos.

“Erika ¿estás bien?”, susurré lo más bajo que pude.

Un par de ojos brillaron desde un rincón y un gorgoteo, que heló mi sangre, respondió mi pregunta.

Había leído, hacía un tiempo atrás, sobre un gran maestro que se enfrentó a una jauría de canes que venían hacía él. Este se lanzó contra ellos enfurecido, haciendo mucho ruido y soltando baba, los perros confundidos huyeron despavoridos. El gurú había llegado a la conclusión de que la única forma de lidiar con el miedo era enfrentándolo.

Así que cerré mis ojos y me lancé contra la bestia gritando y balanceando el bate de béisbol. Tras un par de swings, un florero y otros adornos rotos, el sonido de un golpe seco me dio a entender que había dado en el blanco.

Un plumaje blanco brilló con la luz de la luna al posarse sobre el balcón. ¿Acaso le había asestado un golpe a un avestruz? Emitió otro graznido espeluznante y huyó. Por un momento agradecí que se marchara, pero de pronto sentí un mal presentimiento. Quizás era mi imaginación pero justo antes de irse, pude ver el destello de un collar de perlas sobre su cuello.

Tras confirmar mis sospechas, pasé toda la noche siguiendo el rastro de plumas y de personas sorprendidas que dejó atrás la extraña ave. Finalmente, logré dar con su paradero, se había colado en el zoológico de la ciudad y tras una larga noche, por fin el ave se había echado a descansar.

Al amanecer, una Erika desnuda, llena de arañazos y moretones, despertaba entre los matorrales bajo el calor de mi chaqueta.

Quiso saber si había lastimado a alguien. Mi mirada se enterneció al ver sus enormes ojos de cachorro preocupados.

“Tranquila. No ha pasado nada. No creo que sea lo peor que esta gran ciudad haya visto”, le dije.

“Si de algo sirve, no es un pato es un ganso y por cierto, posiblemente estés embarazada por un avestruz”, agregué

Sus grandes ojos se abrieron aún más.

“Es una broma”, comenté sonriendo

Hasta la próxima.



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13 comments
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From the beginning you could tell it was a comic narrative, you made me laugh with the descriptions or dialogues between the characters. It's a good story to collect, a werewolf girl. Very good, very good.

Cheers.

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I'm glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for coming by.

Maybe it's a weregoose girl 😉👍

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If the rest of the story had been dull, readers were rewarded by this hilarious line:

it's not a duck it's a goose, and by the way, you're possibly pregnant by an ostrich,

But, the story was not dull. It was actually gripping, in a weirdly comedic way.

Great job. I enjoyed reading this very much.

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Great job. I enjoyed reading this very much.

I'm glad you liked it. Thank you.

I appreciate your kind words 😃👍

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You take the cake for comedy today. This was delightful, original, quirky. The first story to feature a goose in the light of a full moon ;)

Thank you for sharing this entertaining story with the community, and thank you for engaging with other writers.

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It has been a pleasure for me to write it. I had a lot of fun. There are moments when the muse of the stories emerges and gives me an unexpected twist. Thanks for the opportunity.

Now it's time to comment on the other writers' stories.

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Interesante versión de una historia de transformación a la luz de la luna.

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Un giro a la imaginación. Gracias por la visita

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This is a great entry, I love how you glued the reader's mind to your story, a nice comedic piece. I have learnt from you. I love this

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Thank you for your kind words. Glad to have helped 😉👍

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