A new start

The taxi driver eventually dropped them off at the address on the paper—an exquisite house with a red brick façade, a charming garden adorned with a grand tree, and a driveway leading to a blue-painted house with a dark brown door. Seeing the house filled Alex with optimism. The driver helped with their bags, and Alex, as always, left a generous tip along with the fare.

Jane opened the mailbox, retrieving three letters and the door key, as instructed by the landlord. She unlocked the door to find the house fully furnished and warm, with a fireplace gracing the center of the living room and a beautiful oak-wood kitchen. There were two comfortable Paige sofas and a welcome surprise from her old orphanage friends.

Alex brought their bags inside and ascended the stairs to inspect the second floor, which consisted of two bedrooms, a spacious bathroom, and a well-equipped office. Upon seeing the office, Alex immediately recognized it as Jane's workspace, marked clearly as a red "forbidden zone" for him. Moving to the next room, he found his own, a simple space with wooden walls, a window overlooking the garden's grand tree, a neatly kept bed, a well-organized closet, a study desk, and a bookshelf housing three books. He began unpacking his bag into the closet, ignoring Jane's usual insistence on sorting his clothes by color.

Outside, Jane explored the garden and the garage, which boasted a large tree with a swing, and a pleasant, blocked car road. Jane followed Alex outside, wrapping her arms around him from behind, squeezing tightly. "This is our new home."

Alex clasped her hands. "I hope it's the last."

"I hope so too." She released her arms and returned inside with him. Both began arranging their belongings in their respective rooms. Alex worked hastily, his room quickly coming together in contrast to Jane's meticulous approach. Alex finished in an hour, while Jane still had four bags to unpack. Exhausted, they ordered food, which arrived promptly, and they fell asleep to the soothing sound of raindrops.

The following day, their neighbors from across the street came to welcome them. Jane answered the door, surprised to find two slim women and a third, larger woman.

"WELCOME!" the three of them chimed in unison, walking right in without invitation. Jane stood at the door, taken aback by the unexpected intrusion.

They introduced themselves as Bella, Nelly, and Katharine. Bella seemed to be the spokesperson, doing all the talking while the others simply nodded in agreement. Jane, not wanting these women to meddle in their lives, politely asked them to leave. However, as they made their way to the door, they heard Alex calling Jane as he descended the stairs.

Bella looked at him and complimented his help with their move. "So, when is Mr. Smith moving in?" Nelly inquired before receiving an elbow jab from Bella. "I apologize; that was inappropriate," she said, turning to Jane with a smile. "Please, disregard her."

Jane smiled back, trying to ease the awkwardness. "It's alright. My husband passed away on duty a long time ago."

Alex sometimes found it difficult to keep up with his mother. She often told everyone that his father had died on duty but assured Alex that he would meet him soon.

Bella opened her mouth, breaking the silence. "What a coincidence! Now we have two heroes in the block."

Alex looked at them in confusion. "Two?"

Bella gestured towards the house across the street as she opened the door. "That's Dr. Mordor's house. His wife also died on duty a long time ago."

Jane hastily went outside to inspect the house Bella was pointing at, thanked their new neighbors for their quick visit, and then slammed the door shut with force.

"They seemed nice," Alex commented.

"Not even close."

Shortly after, Jane ventured outside to buy ingredients for dinner; she was the designated cook. Alex took the opportunity to rest in his room, but sleep eluded him. He tossed and turned, eventually giving up and sitting in a chair by the window. He noticed a young woman, Ashe, sitting on the roof of her house, engrossed in a book. Glancing at the books on his shelf—filled with cooking and gardening books—it was evident that a woman had chosen them.

Descending the stairs, Alex turned on the TV and, as usual, fell asleep while watching a car racing movie.

At midnight, Alex was awoken by a whisper in his ear. He opened his eyes, scanning the room, but found no one. Glancing at the clock, he realized it was midnight. Concerned, he called Jane multiple times, but she didn't answer. He hurried upstairs to check on her but found her room and office empty, so he went back to his own.

As he prepared to lie down on his bed, a bright light pierced through his window. Alex couldn't ignore it, so he looked outside and saw a fire blazing in Ashe's house. He rushed to the phone and dialed double nine one.

"Please help, my neighbor's house is on fire," Alex told the operator urgently. "I don't know the street name; we just moved in yesterday. Please hurry." He slammed down the phone and sprinted outside.

Arriving at Ashe's house, he began desperately kicking the door, drawing the attention of bystanders. He yelled, "Help!" until he heard the distant sound of sirens.

Two fire trucks and a police car arrived on the scene. The firemen jumped out of the trucks but remained stationary, perplexing Alex. He shouted at them, "What are you waiting for?"

One of the firemen looked at Alex and asked, "Where's the fire?"

Alex rushed toward the fireman and pointed to Ashe's house. "What, can't you see? She's on fire!"

Ashe opened her window to see the commotion outside. She spotted the fire trucks and the police car, along with Alex pointing at her.

"See, she's burning!" Alex shouted.

Ashe scanned the scene but didn't see any fire or flames. Alex, on the other hand, continued to see Ashe burning, her body seemingly ablaze.

The policeman pulled Alex away and spoke into his radio. "False alarm, I repeat, it's a false alarm."

Jane pushed her way through the onlookers and reached Alex, hugging him tightly. "What's going on, officer?"

The officer explained the situation to Jane, how Alex had reported a false alarm. Jane glanced at Alex, who kept insisting that Ashe was on fire. She didn't believe him but didn't chastise him either. She apologized to the officer and assured him it wouldn't happen again, then went inside.

Jane tossed her bag onto the sofa and entered the kitchen without uttering a word to Alex. He expected her to reprimand him but was surprised by her unusual calmness.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" Alex finally asked.

She looked at him and shook her head, signaling a negative response. Closing the fridge door, she began ascending the stairs. "You saw something and reported it. It's a good thing. But please, next time, keep it to yourself. Most of the people here are irrational and oblivious."

With that, she continued up the stairs, leaving Alex with a multitude of questions but also a sense of relief that he hadn't been reprimanded. He returned to his room and glanced out of his window at Ashe's house. To his surprise, she was still there, looking back at him. He turned off the light and went to bed, occasionally peeking out of the window to see her still standing there, gazing at his window.

The next morning, at Jane's request, Alex went outside to check the mail.

"Hi," a girl's voice came from behind. Alex turned and saw Ashe riding a bicycle.

"What do you want?" Alex asked, wary of her presence.

"Yesterday was a strange day, wasn't it?" Ashe inquired.

Alex didn't particularly like the idea of having her as his neighbor. He began to lift the bags from the garden, stacking them in front of the door, paying little attention to Ashe's presence.

"Look, I'm not here to talk to you. Go get your mother," Ashe said, frustration creeping into her tone.

"And who do you think you are?" Alex retorted with equal annoyance.

"Excuse me!!!" Ashe replied, taken aback by his response. She hadn't expected him to answer her with such a tone.

"It's alright, Alex; I will see what she wants," Jane said as she tossed empty boxes into the garage.

The two exchanged glances as Jane approached them. "Guess I will see you around," Ashe said sarcastically.

"Let's hope not," Alex replied, and then he walked inside.

Alex went upstairs and laid on his bed, attempting to relax. However, at that moment, thoughts of Annalina resurfaced. If it weren't for her, he wouldn't have gone to the hospital and crossed paths with the arrogant Ashe. Yet, he couldn't help but wonder if they might meet again at school and maybe even develop a better relationship. Annalina's voice echoed in his mind, "Let go."

Alex put on his headset and cranked up the volume on his iPod, trying to drown out Annalina's voice. But no matter how loud he played the music, he couldn't silence her. The more he tried, the more his head throbbed with pain until he couldn't bear it any longer.

"Enough!!" he screamed.

Suddenly, the room began to shake, the intensity of his screams matching the violence of the tremors. After a few seconds, the headache subsided, and he opened his eyes to a chaotic room, with items scattered all around. Clothes were strewn about, books had fallen from the shelves, and Alex had no idea what had just occurred.

"What are you doing?" Jane asked, standing in the doorway, her face registering shock at the state of Alex's room.

"It wasn't me; it was an earthquake," Alex explained, still trying to make sense of what had happened.

"What earthquake?"

"You didn't feel it?"

"No, I'm pretty sure there wasn't any earthquake."

"I'm not lying."

"I'm not saying that you're lying, but the doctor said you might imagine stuff."

"Okay, whatever," Alex said, unable to shake off the bizarre experience.

Jane sat down on the bed beside him and held his hand. "Everything is going to be alright; we will make it work."

Alex looked into her eyes, sensing that she was hiding something from him. However, he decided not to press her, appreciating her efforts to comfort him.

"I will tell you what, you clean your room, and you can pick what we eat for dinner."

Alex couldn't resist the offer of food. "Alright," he agreed, realizing that his mother had a way of persuading him with the promise of a good meal.