The smell of disinfectant permeated the hospital, and it had set a sense of unease in the pits of his stomach. Walking into the room, he set down his bag and sat beside the bed. On that bed lay a man of fifty, his skin was as white as a ghost and under his eyes were dark eye bags. He watched as the man slowly breathed.

The man opened his eyes tiredly and looked at the young man. “William.” he spoke, “I've left some stuff in my house for you. Use it wisely. Know that I’ll still be there for you even when I'm not there.” William smiled sadly as he watched the old man close his eyes and sleep again.

After thirty-something minutes passed a young nurse walked inside and dropped off food.

She could also hear the beeping of the machine slow but didn’t seem to care as she emotionlessly closed the door quietly behind her.

William knew there was nothing anyone in the hospital could do he had tried his best but still failed in the end. He could not save his grandfather, the one who had taken him in, his last living relative. As the old man took his last breath he felt his eyes sting.

He looked away, he didn’t know how long he sat there. It was hours after and the coldness slowly seeped into his bones with the setting sun.

‘I'm all alone now.’ this thought crushed his heart, it hurt with a dull ache.

After being persuaded by the hospital staff to leave, he went downstairs and signed himself out. He had to prepare for a funeral soon.

The beep of his phone snapped him out of his somber mind. Looking into his phone an Amber alert was sent. William read it for a second and shut off his phone. He walked into a park and sat down on a bench. Looking up into the sky he watched as the little dots of lights moved, after a few minutes he stood up dusted his pants, and headed home.

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As he made his way home the street lights slowly started to dwindle. The orange hue of the lights cascaded onto the streets and enlarged his shadow. The crisp air of spring seeped into his lungs and cooled his head.

Walking into his apartment complex, he made his way to the elevator and pressed the button for the 3rd floor. As the doors slowly closed his eyes did the same. He felt tired, so tired. It felt cumbersome even to breathe. He just wanted to lay in bed.

Before the doors had the chance to close a man stuck out his hand to stop them. “That was close,” he said breathlessly. Smiling, he went to press the button but stopped, “Seems we’re heading to the same floor.” he laughed.

William lifted his lips lightly to smile and say, “Looks like it.”

As the doors slowly started to close, he looked over and secretly stole a look at the man at his side. The man was wearing a hoodie that covered most of his face, it was designed with a ruddy color. ‘He must be my new neighbor’ he thought. After twenty-something seconds the doors opened, and he and the man walked out. The doors of the elevator silently shut behind the two of them as they walked down the corridor. Coming to the door with the plate number 304, he reached into his pockets and made his way into his small home.

The man that was beside him went into the door next to his. Both the doors quietly shut.

Kicking off his shoes he made his way to the kitchen to grab himself a drink, pulling a cold one from the fridge. As he sunk into the black leather couch in his living room he opened the beer with a snap. The night had set in.

William looked outside the window and wondered ‘What’s life?’ He knew a question like that was almost impossible to answer. All he could think of at the moment was what life was really about. People lived, and people died but what purpose did it serve? At the end of the day, it amounts to nothing.

He knew he should be sad, but inside all he felt was empty.

He could feel his eyes drooping so he turned off the lights and went to his bedroom, a single bed, a dresser, and a small office space.

After 3 hours of tossing and turning in bed, his stinging eyes finally closed peacefully.

Bang! His eyes opened and he sat up quickly, he could feel his heart pounding in his head. The neighbor in 305, was hitting the wall repeatedly. He would not get a peaceful night's sleep in the next couple of days and knowing this only enraged him further. Mouth tightly clenched he threw on a pair of slippers.

He stood up, went to the living room and sat on the sofa. He rubbed his bleary eyes and decided to turn on the television. ‘No point in sleeping now.’ he thought while reaching for the remote.

The loud sound of glass shattering transferred through the wall. “You son of a bitch!”