The Box, Chapter 5

The Box is a short story I wrote in 2020. It inspired my second novel, Can You Be.

This is Chapter 5.

The Battery, Charleston, SC

Read below or watch/listen to the video at the bottom of the page:

Naina heard a knock on the door the next morning. It was Thursday. She froze in place. No one other than her landlady knocked on her door, and the landlady only did that after checking with Naina that she could come by. Naina wanted to make sure the knock was not on her neighbor’s door. She waited and sure enough, it came again. It was definitely on her door.

She enjoyed living in her apartment. She spent hours staring at the exposed brick wall and hardwood floors that had been there since the mid-1800s. When the building was converted into apartments in 2008, the owners kept the exposed piping in the high ceilings. It made her one-bedroom apartment feel spacious. She loved living there even more when they installed a double-stacked washer and dryer in the unit. She cherished no longer having to spend time going back and forth to check on her laundry or washing her clothes in the same machines as the other tenants.

At that moment, she hated that her door didn’t have a peephole and she couldn’t see who was knocking. She opened the door slowly, peering with one eye before committing to engage.

“Hey, there neighbor. Remember me? We met yesterday.” It was Raiya. He smiled.

Naina was unsure of what to do.

“Hi,” Raiya said.

“Hi,” Naina said back. Again, she waited.

“Can I come in?”

“Oh.” Naina weighed her options. The last time she had visitors was soon after she moved in. Her father and stepmother didn’t stay with her. They stayed at the Belmond Charleston Place and walked over to see her place before they took her out to dinner at Halls Chophouse. They did not come back to see her again. Nor did anyone else.

“Can I borrow some milk?” Raiya asked.

“Will you give it back?”

“I can bring you some back when I go shopping next.”

“Ok.” She walked towards the fridge and was surprised Raiya followed her.

“I thought you said you lived here for a long time? This looks so bare…” Raiya looked around.

“I don’t like to own a lot of things.”

“How come? Do you travel often?”

“I don’t like to travel. The last time I got on a plane was four years ago.”

“Oh. I love to travel. I did e-commerce for a hotel company in New York City and I was on the road constantly. Since joining the start-up here, I haven’t gone anywhere. I miss it. But then again, it’s my first time in Charleston and I am eager to explore. It’s a challenge because I don’t have a car.”

“Neither do I.” Naina didn’t like that Raiya picked up the Special K and read the ingredient list. Or that he helped himself to the milk before Naina got a chance to hand it to him. He was clearly in shape, with defined arm muscle protruding through his fitted white T-shirt.

Raiya looked at Naina as if waiting for an answer.

“I like to know that I can leave. I don’t actually have to do it,” she offered.

“That’s odd. Are you on the run or something?” He chuckled.

“I’m not on the run. I like to be ready for anything. Life can change at a moment’s notice.”

“Huh…Right…So…I’ve been dying to try 167 Raw. Want to go with me? Maybe Friday after work?”

“I work until 5 pm,” Naina said, hoping it would deter him. She didn’t want him to think she was into him. If he was into her, she didn’t know how she would handle it.

Naina had never been on a date before. She didn’t have anyone to go to for advice. Alice was too patronizing. What would she wear? She always wore black slacks and a white button blouse during the colder days and a black sleeveless dress that fell right below the knees for the warmer days. She had five of each, one for each day of the week. On weekends, she wore black yoga pants and a white t-shirt.

“Great. Let’s meet back here after. We can walk over together.”

Just like that Raiya walked out of her apartment with a cup of milk and a promise to meet on Friday.

Watch or listen along below: