Arriving late at night was part of the plan. After
all the businesses had closed. After the owners had left. The windows facing the street were dark. The tall lamps staggered down the length of the sidewalks
highlighted nothing.
His was the only car disturbing the silence. It was a
time of rest. He understood that, yet he didn't feel at all like he was trespassing. Rather, he had just as much a right to be there as anyone who left in the late hours.
Almost to his destination, he drove slow, ignoring
every business front he passed. Looking ahead and slightly to the left, his head swiveled as he let off the gas, coasting this final stretch. He knew where it was as soon as he turned onto this street: one of these smaller two-lane roads fitted upon the grid of downtown, tucked away.
But he chose this building for a reason. There were
several to choose from throughout the adjoining blocks, even some farther into the newer part of town, yet he believed in this one.
Applying the breaks, he turned just enough to let the
tires scratch along the curb. Staring out the driver's side window, he had almost aligned himself perfectly with the building's entrance. The door was a dark tan color with a large rectangular window centered and positioned near the
top. Like all the other entrances along the street, it revealed nothing within. Unlike most of the other building fronts, the spaces to either side of the door weren't almost entirely made up of windows, giving passersby an unhindered view
of the interior. He liked how the entrance wasn't even centered in the building face. It was positioned near the left edge. And yes, there was an edge.
Some of the buildings were connected. Their doors
designated each suite, but this building stood by itself. The alleys on either side were a little wider than the sidewalk. Kind of like secret passages to the next street over. Both belonged to this building. That wasn't official, but he knew about the windows facing either passage. That might not sound ideal to
begin with, but there was a process.
He already knew it. Felt it the first time he stepped
foot inside that first room. That hadn't been the only time, and that feeling never lessened with each consecutive visit.
Tonight, it would feel just as potent.
Peeling his eyes away to turn to the passenger seat,
he grabbed the rolled-up sleeping bag and the small cooler underneath and pulled them into his lap. Chuckling at the sudden cramptness he hadn't intended, he found the handle to the car door and opened it.
Late night traffic sounded far away. The air was cool and light. Maybe it was because of the way he felt even before turning down this street. More than delirious. More than crashing after a sudden rush.
When he closed the car door, he let the clap and echo
jostle their way in either direction and across the fronts of all the other buildings. That would be the announcement, he supposed. He had to suppress another chuckle, having his back to all of them as he stood before the tanned door. There was only one thing he wanted. Sitting the cooler down on the
sidewalk, he was now free to find the right key on his keyring. Pinching it between his thumb and index finger, he slid it into the lock. Twisting it, his grin widened at the loud clack, wondering if that sound had jostled its way down the street as well.
He didn't turn the knob just yet. He wanted to do this a certain way. Putting his keys back into his pocket, he straightened himself and faced the door. Letting out a quick breath, he extended his hand again, but this time it was as if to shake the hand of another. Grabbing the knob, he turned it, and the door moved from its seal.
For those first few slow seconds, he pushed the door
open, but once his arm had extended all the way, he released the knob. Now he reveled in the whine of the hinges as the door swung further.
Here on this street packed away into the night, that sound might have been small, but he wasn't listening to that. He heard how large that whine sounded within the empty interior. Sure, he had stepped through this door before, but now, the whine of the hinges were the throes of new birth.
He waited until the door stopped, until the bare walls of the rooms within stopped shuttering, and the metal cry had ceased. His smile big, he reached down and grabbed his cooler. Letting out another breath, he stepped across the threshold.