Keep it Down!

Chapter 1The thump of the bass had the walls of Eason Wickham’s apartment jumping. One day, he would push Nate Allen down the stairs, the f*****g i***t. It was past two in the morning on a Tuesday night, and Eason wanted to strangle someone. A girl’s shrill laugh sounded from out on the balcony, and he growled while pressing the pillow over his ear. He’d already been over and knocked on Nate’s door twice, but Nate had only smiled and nodded when Eason had snarled at him. The last time he’d asked if Eason wanted a beer. Eason had pushed the door shut with a bang. Another piercing laugh flew through the night, and Loki, his cat, jumped on the bed. Poor thing, he didn’t like Nate’s constant parties any more than Eason did. At least Loki could rest during the day, Eason had to go to work in a couple of hours, and he hadn’t so much as napped. When someone yelled yet again, it was followed by what sounded like a bottle smashing on his balcony, and Eason threw off the cover and grabbed the phone. It wasn’t the first time he’d called the cops, but this time he had more to complain about than noise. There was shattered glass on his balcony, the balcony Loki was lazing on when he was away working. It had him ready to tear someone’s throat out. He had a net around the entire balcony so Loki wouldn’t fall or wander off onto some of the neighbors’ balconies. Someone must have ruined the net. How else would a bottle get onto his balcony? They were on the third floor, and while cats were amazing climbers, he didn’t want Loki to hurt himself. The woman on the phone, Eason didn’t know if she was a cop, a dispatcher, or a receptionist, promised to send a car, which was good enough. He thanked her and went to inspect the balcony. Opening the door, he turned on the torch on his phone and slid the beam over the balcony floor. Brown glass shards glinted when the light hit them—a Budweiser bottle perhaps. He spotted a bit of a red and white label. The brand didn’t matter. What mattered was that someone deliberately had smashed a bottle on his balcony. He inspected the net but couldn’t see any damage. He’d fastened it by having several telescopic poles with metal plates in the ends and then used an adhesive strip on walls to keep it in place. It was a great construction. He’d twist the poles, and they grew longer and pressed against the floor and ceiling, and he hadn’t had to drill any holes or anything. They were enough to keep birds out and cats in, but they didn’t pass the drunk neighbor test. Cursing, he went back inside and closed the door. “Sorry, Loki, but you’ll have to stay in the apartment today.” No way was he cleaning it up now. His alarm would go off in an hour and twenty-five minutes, and he still hadn’t slept. Crawling into bed, he pressed a pillow against his ear. A few minutes later, the music was cut off, and people trickled out into the staircase. One day, he would strangle Nate Allen. He hadn’t more than drifted off before the alarm shattered the calm. It was worth skipping both shower and coffee for a few more minutes in bed. When the alarm sounded again, nausea rolled over him as it often did when he hadn’t slept well. f*****g Nate. Loki opened one eye to glare at him. “Sorry. You go back to sleep.” He ran a hand over the black fur and sighed. He did a quick wash-up in the sink in the bathroom before he put on his dark blue ticket agent suit and headed for the door. Before he exited, he went back into the kitchen, grabbed a Post-it note, and wrote: Keep it down in the future! with angry strokes of his black permanent marker. It wouldn’t help, but it made him feel a little better. Walking out the door, he closed and locked it behind him before placing the Post-it right over the peephole on Nate’s door. He eyed the doorbell, it was tempting to ring it, but he was an adult, and he was running late to the airport, especially since he had to stop for coffee on the way.