Cover by teenagerebel- thank you for the beautiful cover ;-)

* Edited 4/10/15

Dick drops me off in front of a rundown building. The grass is long and I feel it rub against my bare legs, making me itchy. There's a fence separating the apartment from the vacant lot next door. In front of the fence is a box with someone sleeping in it.

Dick looks at me. "You better hurry inside. You don't know what type of creeps are hanging around here. Oh, before I forget these are the keys to your new place and car."

I look at the keys one has a red tag on it, and the other a blue. "Which one is for the apartment?"

He looks at the keys. "The red one. Do you need anything else?" I shake my head in response.

"Go upstairs and lock the door. Enjoy your 90 days of hell, princess." He laughs, getting into his car and driving away, leaving me alone with my worst nightmare.

I sigh.

I suppose it's time to take a look inside.

The door to the apartment block squeaks as I open it. I look at my key to find out which one is mine. I climb three sets of stairs, and the first door on my right is mine. I put the key into the lock. My hands start to shake and I turn it. I can't do this. I push the door open and I get hit by a musky smell. "This sucks."

In the centre is a lounge with holes in the upholstery, with a ten year old television on a stand across the room from it. The kitchen is open spaced, and equipped with an old white fridge, and a cabinet that is holding on by a single screw. I move toward the bathroom and find hair in the drains and the toilet is worse. There's skid marks left in it and it reeks. I have a lot of work to do to make it presentable.

I walk to the bedroom and it's the only room that has furniture. I move toward the bed and find a piece of paper on it. I read the letter;

Dear Ashton,
     This is the Apartment I used when I did this test many years ago. The reason for this test is to see how you can deal with real world situations. Your experience will be different from mine. I believe this might be the way you find a man that will love you for you and not the money you were born into. You start work at Martinez Enterprises tomorrow 9am. You should get some sleep.

Love Dad

xoxoxo

I crumple up the piece of paper and through it in the bin. Three months is too long. I look through the cupboard and put on a pair of shorts and a tank. I climb into bed and think about how much tomorrow will suck. I'm going to get up early and change my hair colour.

***

The alarm goes off at 6, and I climb out of bed. After doing my daily routine, I grab my purse and walk out the front door. I lock the door and head downstairs.

The homeless man steps out of his box. "It's rude to stare."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I was just wondering can you tell me where the closest pharmacy is?"

"Follow this road and turn to your left and then you'll see it."

"Thank you." I follow the directions. It's an easy walk from the apartment. I buy brown hair dye and take it back home. I can't believe I've been in that house for twelve hours and I'm calling it home.

I head towards the bathroom and put the dye in my hair. I set the time for 40 minutes. I also can't believe I'm dying my hair.

***
The timer goes off and I step into the shower to wash it out. I see the dye run down the drain. I have to wait for the water to run clear. The water is clear and then I put the conditioner in my hair and wait for a little while longer. I wash the conditioner out of my hair, then wring my hair and put it in a towel. There's a bar in my handbag and I eat that for breakfast. It's 8:30, when I step out of the house.

A green Toyota is in the parking lot. I approach the car and put my key into door. It unlocks and I climb inside. I put the key into the ignition and start it.

Click, click, click.

Cars aren't supposed to make that noise. I turn the key again.

Click, click, click.

The battery must be dead.

I see a guy standing next to a truck. "Hey."

He turns towards me. "Hey, baby. What do you need?"

"A jump?"

He laughs. "Baby, I don't fuck girls like you. Too nerdy for me."

I shake my head. "I need a jump start. My battery's dead."

"Sorry, I can't jump start your car. It's a piece of shit." The guy's right, it is. Looks like I'm going for an hour hike through the neighbourhood.

I start my walk toward the City. The streets are bustling with people and cars. People crash into me while they are using their phones. A little girl points at me, but I just ignore her. I see a huge glass building with my surname in the side of he building.

A security guard stops me on the way inside. "You can't go in there without an ID badge."

"I'm new. I was told that you would have the badge for me. My name is Daniela Waters."

He shuffles through the badges and comes across mine. "You'll have to get a photo taken for this badge. Follow me to the booth."

I follow the guy to the photographer booth and sit on the chair. A white light flashes in my eyes.

The security guy gives me the badge. "Enjoy your first day at Martinez Enterprises Ms. Waters."

"Thank you." I step into the office. People are moving around the room and stopping at each other's desks. I take a deep breath and walk towards HR. The guy can show me to the mail room.

I knock on HR door and the door opens.

"You're late." He shakes his head. "I'll show you to the mail room."

My nerves are already shot. There are stacks upon stacks of mail to sort, and the printers are still printing. "Hey, I'm Sandra." She extends her hand.

I shake it. "Daniela."

"It suits you. I wish my parents came up with a better name."

"So what do you want me to do?"

She points at the mail. "Sort out the envelopes and stick them in a pile. If someone has more than one letter stick them together. I have to run upstairs." She leaves, and so I start digging into it all.

***

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