Both Shirley and Mike froze on the spot.
Mike then burst into tears.
Shirley's expression darkened instantly. "Apologize to my son! And pay for that sword! Right now!"
I turned around and walked away.
Honestly, I could've just dropped to the ground and accused them of attempted assault. They should've packed it in and counted their lucky stars.
How dare she still expect me to apologize?
That was not happening.
I figured after the last incident, things between us were already beyond repair.
Shirley was more thick-skinned than I thought. She acted like nothing had happened and kept shamelessly trying to cozy up to me.
What I didn't expect was that things were about to get even worse.
Early the next morning, I woke up to a disgusting smell of rot and sour decay.
Frowning, I searched the apartment until I ended up standing at the front door.
The smell seemed to be coming from outside.
The second I opened the door, the stench nearly knocked me unconscious. I immediately covered my nose.
Four green garbage bins were piled outside my door.
One was filled with moldy grains clumped into solid chunks and covered in colorful fuzz.
Another contained pale gray meat of some kind, and it was crawling with fat white maggots.
I instantly felt nauseous.
The third was stuffed with rotten vegetables, shriveled corn, and mold-covered sweet potatoes.
The last one was the absolute worst. Rotting fish and shrimp overflowed from the top while swarms of flies buzzed around it.
I couldn't hold it in anymore and gagged against the wall.
What the hell was Shirley up to this time? Why was she saving up garbage for days without throwing it away?
She'd secretly piled all of it outside my door too. Was she expecting me to take it out for her?
Fine. If she wanted to leave it at my doorstep, then she couldn't blame me for what happened next.
I raised my foot and kicked the bins over one by one.
Clang!
The moldy grains, maggot-covered meat, rotten vegetables, decaying fish and shrimp, and black foul-smelling sludge at the bottom spilled everywhere. Some of it even splattered onto the door across my unit.
Another wave of stench hit instantly.
I couldn't possibly stay at home after that, so I headed out for breakfast instead.
I'd barely taken two mouthfuls of oatmeal when my phone started vibrating nonstop.
The residents' group chat was filled with messages.
Unit 202's tenant was Shirley.
Unit 202 sent the first message.
[Who kicked over the food outside my door? Own up to it now. That was my family's food supply for the coming month.]
Food supply?
The moment I recalled the disgusting smell and those squirming maggots, my appetite disappeared completely.
Had Shirley lost her mind?
Was she eating food out of the trash?
The messages kept coming.
[If nobody admits it within thirty minutes, every resident in the building will split the damages. Each household owes me 100 dollars!]
[Also, whichever apartment pays last has to hire cleaners to scrub my doorway. @Everyone]
