After getting off work the next day, it was already eleven at night.
When I reached my front door, I froze.
My luggage had been piled in the hallway like trash.
After entering the password several times in a row, I still couldn't open the door. It was obvious they had changed it.
My blood boiled instantly, and I dialed my dad's number. "Dad, call a courier and have something delivered for me..."
After hanging up, I began pounding hard on the door.
The noise echoed piercingly through the quiet night.
The noise annoyed the neighbors, who came out one after another to question why I was disturbing everyone, and someone even called security.
As more and more people gathered, there was finally movement inside the apartment.
With a click, the door opened.
Helen stood there in her pajamas with a face mask on, frowning. "It's the middle of the night, what are you wailing about? You're ruining my beauty sleep."
Forcing myself to remain calm, I pointed at the luggage on the floor. "On what grounds did you throw my things out?"
Wendy, who had walked over after hearing the commotion, glanced at me timidly. "Jessica, we really had no choice. Please, just show us some mercy and give us a break..."
As she spoke, she shot a look at Sharon beside her. Sharon immediately got the hint and shouted loudly at the neighbors and the security guard, "Come and take a look at this, guys! We're sharing this apartment, and she brings different men home every night. They're making so much noise in her room that we can't sleep at all!"
She then turned to me with a pleading expression. "We know your job is special and that you have business to do at night. We don't discriminate against your profession, but we still have to get up early for work the next day! Please, find somewhere else to live."
As soon as she finished speaking, the way the neighbors looked at me instantly changed, as if they were staring at something filthy.
Wendy bowed deeply to the neighbors with an apologetic look on her face. "I'm so sorry for disturbing everyone. Her lease has already expired, and we've made it clear that we won't renew it with her. Even the landlord doesn't agree to rent this place to her anymore. But she just refuses to leave. We really had no other choice but to do this... We're truly sorry for bothering everyone so late at night."
The neighbors began whispering among themselves. "That girl looks decent. How could she be a call girl?"
"Exactly. No wonder she comes back so late every day..."
"Living on the same floor as her is such bad luck!"
A middle-aged woman pointed directly at me and shouted angrily, "Were you the one blasting music and partying in the middle of the night a few days ago? The speakers were booming so loud I couldn't sleep all night!"
I had been on a business trip out of town all last week and had only returned yesterday.
A flicker of guilt flashed across Helen's face, but she still pointed at me. "Yes! It was her!"
Another neighbor stepped forward and questioned me, "Was it your hair that clogged the drain and flooded my apartment?"
Wendy, who had the longest hair and never cleaned the floor drain, froze for a moment, then frowned at me. "Jessica, I've told you so many times, you need to clean up your hair after having a shower. Why do you never listen?"
"And wasn't it she who wanted to smash a load-bearing wall, almost turning the whole building into a dangerous structure?"
Sharon, who had wanted to knock down the wall to make her room bigger, rubbed her nose. "That's right! It was her! We tried to stop her, but she just wouldn't listen!"
All the neighbors became infuriated.
"She's a menace! Kick her out of our community!"
"Security! Hurry up and throw her out!"
"Call the police and arrest her!"
Seeing this, the security guard grabbed my arm and tried to drag me away.
Panicked and furious, I shouted, "I'm the landlord! You have no right to drive me away!"
Helen sneered. "You're the landlord? If you're the landlord, then I'm the President!"
Wendy also put on a troubled expression. "Jessica, I've already contacted the landlord. He'll be here soon. If you leave now, you can still keep some dignity. Once the landlord comes and kicks you out, it'll be really embarrassing."
My whole body shook with anger. "Fine! Call the landlord! I'd like to see how he plans to kick me out!"
"Who's looking for me?"
