The nosy neighbor
16.12.2024
The door swung closed behind her, and Rachel stood at the entrance of her flat, drinking in the scene. Already, she was in love with her new place: 400 square feet, lots of big windows, a full-sized kitchen, a bathroom that actually had a bathtub, and, of course, furnished just to her liking.
She was going for a mix between, luxury and old boho vibes which, thanks to a few plants and woven chair juxtaposed with the glass coffee table and chandelier, definitely came through.
Rachel showered and washed up, eager to sleep in the soft, cushiony bed for the first time. Maybe the breakup and moving was just a new chapter of independence.
***
Rachel jolted awake. She immediately grabbed her phone to look at the time: 2:45am. What had woken her up?
She rubbed her eyes for a moment.
A chill ran through her body upon hearing the screams.
“Why is it that every time I come home, the house is a mess, and my dinner is cold?!” screamed a male voice.
“The house is a mess because you stumbled in here and knocked shit over!” a woman hollered back. “The dinner is cold because you have been at the pub for the last six hours!”
Stomping. A cry.
“FUCK YOU, WOMAN! HOW DARE YOU TRY TO BELITTLE ME LIKE THIS.”
“I’m not belittling you, you asshole! I’m telling the truth!”
Rachel shook, whether from fear or shock she wasn’t sure. Should she call the police or let them work it out themselves? But it was nearly 3 in the morning, and she didn’t want to get involved in whatever domestic dispute this was.
She put on her sound cancelling headphones and managed to fall asleep.
***
“You can’t just piss away all of our money on alcohol and cigarettes.” This time the woman was sobbing rather than yelling. “How on earth are we going to manage when the baby comes?!”
Rachel had woken up just seconds before. She immediately grabbed her green leather notebook and checked the clock: 2:05am.
It had been three days since her neighbors first graced her with their loud, obnoxious presence. She marked down the date, time, and added notes:
Woman pregnant. Man drinks, smokes.
“I’m not p-p-pissing away out money you whore,” the man slurred. “We’ve got plenty of money. Do you know how hard I work? I should be able to enjoy the fruits of my labor!”
Rachel added a note: wealthy?
She heard a bam. Sounded like the woman slammed a drink down on the counter.
“NO YOU IDIOT!” said the woman. Her voice was hoarse. “YOU WERE FIRED LAST WEEK, REMEMBER?!”
“There you go again, belittling me!” the man spat back.
Rachel nodded solemnly.
Man recently fired. Maybe the drinking is a new thing?
***
Rachel lay awake in bed. Usually she could pass out in seconds, but now that she had a brand new soap opera at her fingertips, she found herself eagerly staying away for the next installment.
Sure enough, a new episode dropped tonight.
As soon as the woman snapped, “About time you got home,” Rachel dove across her bed in search of her notebook.
“Where the hell were you?” she hissed.
“Just at the pub, darling.” The man’s voice was strangely calm tonight.
A pregnant pause.
“LIAR!” the woman screamed. “I CAN SMELL THE PERFUME ON YOU AGAIN. YOU WERE WITH HER AGAIN, WEREN’T YOU?!”
Again? Rachel wrote, shocked. She must have missed these critical developments that week she visited her parents.
“You’re deluded,” the man scoffed.
“I’ve already caught you once with that skank secretary.”
Her pen flew across the paper in a near indecipherable scrawl.
“And yet you’re still here,” he exclaimed. “You know why you’re too scared to leave me?”
Another pause. Rachel could practically feel the woman staring daggers through the wall.
“My money! And the prenup.” His voice lowered, and Rachel had to strain to hear them. “You need me.”
***
Nowadays, the arguing wasn’t the only thing keeping Rachel awake at night: the wail of the couple’s newborn was, if possible, even more earth shattering.
Still, the addition of the baby did not keep the piranhas at bay; if anything, the baby exacerbated their altercations.
“You never help me with him,” the woman yelled.
“He’s your responsibility, woman,” the man shot back. “You know how busy–”
“This new part-time freelance shit is absolutely not keeping you busy enough to neglect me! I’m taking care of him twenty-four seven!”
Sprawled across her bed on her stomach, Rachel frowned realizing that she was nearing the end of her notebook. In her distraction, she missed a few vital exchanges between the couple.
“Why don’t you praise me for how far I’ve come these last few months instead? I’ve nearly quit drinking, I am working again, and I – I’ve been loyal!”
“Oh yeah, silly me for not congratulating you for dumping that whore you were sleeping with. How RUDE of me.”
“SHUT YOUR MOUTH.”
“MAKE ME, YOU BAST–”
She heard the distinct sound of a slap. Or a hit. A thump against the floor. The woman had fallen.
Rachel lay paralyzed in shock. This had never happened before. Was now the time to finally call the police and report it? The woman was now being physically abused.
But no, Rachel just wanted to see how this drama would unfold. She couldn’t intervene. She couldn’t influence the plot.
The woman now wailed alongside her child.
***
It was a Saturday. Following her friend’s party, Rachel had returned home later than usual and drunker than usual. The screaming across the hall certainly sobered her up enough to whip open her notebook and turn to the very last blank page. Thankfully, she returned right at the climax of her favorite show. Rachel wasn’t even sure what the context of this fight was; they were throwing around all the usual vague insults.
“I cannot believe I married you, I want out of this relationship.”
The woman had made this threat at least seven times before. Rachel knew these were all empty words because of the prenup. Still, she jotted down the transcript anyways.
“You know what, I want out too!” the man replied.
Rachel frowned. This was the first time the man made such a threat.
The baby was crying and the beer in her gullet was still simmering, so Rachel had to concentrate for the next few moments.
“You want to leave the relationship? Then go! LEAVE YOU ASSHOLE!” she cried.
“No, I won’t be the one leaving,” the man hollered. “That’ll be you.”
A few moments pause.
A bloodcurdling scream.
The sound of a gunshot.
Rachel gasped. The pen and notebook tumbled out of her hands.
No more noise came from her neighbors. For once, they had finally quieted. Even the baby seemed to be grieving.
Heart pounding, Rachel calmly picked up her phone and dialed the police.
***
The sun was just rising, but the police officers were still busy inspecting every inch of a couple’s home. They had already taken photographs and removed the body. The baby was now in the care of his godparents.
“Damn, how are we going to find this guy,” muttered the chief. “He might be halfway across the state at this point.”
“Wait, chief, take a look at this!” a younger officer trotted up beside him. “We found this in their mailbox. You should take a look.”
The chief furrowed his brow and carefully opened up the green leather notebook. His frown deepened as he flipped through the pages. “Well I’ll be damned.”