Revisited

This is based on myself from four years ago. Let me know if the narrative is too vague or there're not enough details to deduce the entire picture. I was hoping to hint at the setting rather than tell it outright.

It was evening when she took the path from the road, across the small field where some children ran about squealing in delight. She crossed the car park, dodging some haphazardly parked motorcycles. She stooped for a moment to pet a cat before moving on, towards the block of flats.

She stopped under a familiar window and looked up. A simple, unremarkable window, closed and dark. But she knew if it were open, she’d see brown diagonal window grills, and possibly a clothes hanger dangling from it on the inside. Today, the window was closed. Her heart began to ache.

She tried to remember the last time she had passed beneath that window, but found that she couldn't. It must have been, what? Four years ago? Almost. She’d passed under it so many times before, while her love was young and the world brand new, always turning to look up and often pleased to find she had someone to wave goodbye or hello to.

Suddenly afraid that she’d be seen, she hurried past. She entered the void deck and made a sharp turn to the right where she took the stairs up, emerging on the second floor. She paused in front of the first door she saw. That unremarkable, familiar door. She momentarily checked if anyone was near by, but the corridor was empty and silent. She then regarded the door before her, and the small, multi-paned window next to it.

The dark brown door stood closed and uninviting, but she almost expected it to open then, and she would see a soft smile beneath tousled hair. He’d probably be holding his violin in one hand and opening the door grill with the other. She’d walk in and take in the smell of the house in a deep breath as she’d always done. She’d walk past the foyer and into the living room where the curtains would be wide open, letting in a flood of light. The piano would be sitting expectantly against the south wall, waiting for her to open its lid, fold away its long, narrow blanket, and run her hands over its keys. She’d then pause and wait for him to come to her.

But no one opened the door. Presently, the doorstep was emptier than she remembered. His mother’s usual slippers were not there – in their place was a dilapidated pair of flip flops tucked as far into the corner as possible. She wondered at this.

She didn’t want to ring the doorbell, and hadn’t intended to at all. Her plan was to discreetly slide the gift under the door and slip away. She looked at the gift again. It was a large poster with cardboard backing. On it was a breathtaking photograph of a serene lake at sunset. A jetty reached out a short way and a small, white boat sat waiting at the end. It was the sort of scene he’d always liked. Her card was taped onto the back.

But now, she saw that gap under the door was too narrow. Dismayed, she examined the window, but found that its gap was too small to fit the poster. What was she going to do? She pressed her ear against the door, listening for any movement inside, but there was none. She tried to peer into the slit of the window, but it was dark inside. She decided to leave the gift leaning outside against the door, hoping it would be retrieved soon.

Then, she thought about the silence of the house, the darkness in the windows and the dusty slippers in the corner, and it dawned on her. He must have moved away.

Disappointment washed over her, but, unexpectedly, there was also muted relief. Undecided, she stood there for several minutes, wondering what she should do. It didn’t seem like the flat had been sold yet. Should she leave the poster there propped up against the door, hoping he'd see it when he came back to maintain the flat? Should she leave it with a neighbour? Should she try another day?

Should she leave with it and never come back?

She thought about this last one for a moment. Then she picked up the poster. Tucking it under her arm, she started to walk away. She paused, then turned around to look at the door once more. She let her breath out in a sigh and turned away resolutely, trotted down the stairs, made a sharp left turn and exited the void deck. Not looking up this time, she passed under the window, crossed the car park and the field, and went away without looking back.