Chapter 1: A New Beginning in Silence

The air smelled of dust and cheap disinfectant. Ethan stood in the dimly lit hallway of his new apartment building, gripping a single brass key in his hand. The fluorescent lights above flickered, buzzing like a dying insect. The wallpaper, once white, had faded into a dull yellow, peeling at the corners, revealing years of neglect beneath.

He shifted his duffel bag on his shoulder, exhaling slowly. This was it.

A fresh start.

Or at least, that was the plan.

The hallway stretched before him, lined with identical wooden doors, each bearing a tarnished brass number barely clinging to its surface. Apartment 3B—his new home—stood just a few steps away. As he approached, he passed by an elderly woman sitting on a rickety folding chair outside her door. Her wrinkled fingers cradled a cigarette, her sharp gaze flickering toward him as she exhaled a slow puff of smoke.

“New tenant?” she rasped, her voice like crumpled paper.

Ethan hesitated, adjusting his glasses. “Uh… yeah. Just moved in.”

She snorted. “Hope you like thin walls, kid.”

Before he could ask what she meant, she turned away, as if she had already lost interest in him. The cherry of her cigarette burned faintly in the dim light, casting an eerie glow against her weathered face.

Ignoring the strange welcome, Ethan slid the key into the lock and twisted. The door groaned in protest as it swung open, revealing a small, almost suffocating space.

It wasn’t much.

A faded couch sat in the corner of the living room, its cushions worn from years of use. A tiny kitchenette occupied the far wall, its white cabinets stained yellow with age. A single window overlooked a rusty fire escape, and beyond it, the city stretched into the distance—gray, cold, and endless.

To most people, this place would be pathetic.

To Ethan, it was perfect.

He stepped inside, dropping his duffel bag onto the scuffed hardwood floor. The silence pressed against him, unfamiliar but welcome. No nagging parents. No fake friends. No expectations.

Just him, in a space that was entirely his own.

He wandered toward the window, pressing his palm against the cold glass. The view wasn’t spectacular—just another apartment building across the alley, its brick exterior covered in graffiti. A few floors below, a couple argued in hushed voices, their silhouettes illuminated by a neon sign from a liquor store down the block.

City life.

He wasn’t used to it. But then again, he wasn’t used to much of anything outside his own world of books, computers, and solitude.

Ethan exhaled, rubbing the back of his neck. New place, new life.

Or at least, that was the plan.

He turned away from the window, his stomach growling in protest. He hadn’t eaten since the morning. He opened the fridge, half-hoping to find something inside, but all it contained was a single, half-melted ice cube in the tray. Great.

He sighed, already regretting not stopping for groceries.

Then, just as he was about to grab his wallet and head out, he heard it.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

A steady rhythm against the wall.

At first, he thought it was just the pipes or the old building settling. But then came the laughing—a soft, melodic giggle followed by a deep, masculine murmur.

Ethan stiffened.

It didn’t take a genius to figure out what was happening.

He swallowed hard, his face heating up as the rhythmic sound continued. The laugh—it belonged to a woman, light and playful, but there was something deliberate about it. Teasing. Seductive.

His grip on the fridge handle tightened.

Thin walls.

Now he understood what the old woman meant.

Ethan turned away from the noise, forcing himself to focus on something else. Anything else. Not my business. He had moved here for solitude, not to eavesdrop on his neighbors.

Yet, as he walked toward his bedroom, his feet hesitated for just a moment outside the wall separating his apartment from hers. The giggle came again, followed by a low moan that made his pulse jump.

His ears burned as he clenched his jaw. He had never been in a situation like this before—never experienced this kind of exposure to someone else’s intimacy, let alone so close. It was intrusive. Awkward. And yet, his body remained frozen in place, his thoughts clouded by curiosity.

He quickly shook himself out of it. Jesus. Get a grip.

Forcing his legs to move, he stormed into his bedroom, shutting the door behind him.

The bedroom was small, just big enough for a mattress, a desk, and a rickety bookshelf. He threw himself onto the bed, staring at the ceiling.

This was supposed to be his escape. His quiet.

But as he lay there, listening to the muffled sounds filtering through the walls, he realized—

Maybe this place wasn’t as quiet as he thought.