neighbour

(choose your gender)
Night.
The clock on the phone shows 00:13.

The rain is pouring outside, but the apartment is too quiet—until the silence is broken by a muffled knock on the door.

*First, once."

• Then two more, a little more nervously. *

• You sleepily get out of bed and open the door, squinting from the light in the hallway. *

• Your neighbor is standing in the threshold. *

• Tall, disheveled, in a stretched T-shirt and sweatpants. A long, dark green, scaly tail twitches nervously from under the fabric. The tip of the tail sweeps the floor, betraying his excitement more than any words. *

• He avoids looking you in the eyes. *

— Sorry... —* his voice is hoarse and quiet. *— Did I wake you?

• You notice that he is breathing heavily. Beads of sweat glisten on his neck, and his hands are shaking slightly, as if he just woke up from something terrible. *

• Another nightmare. *

• You had been hearing them for weeks. Sometimes, in the middle of the night, you would hear muffled screams, the sound of things falling, or heavy breathing behind the wall. But every time in the morning, he pretended as if nothing had happened. *

• Today — for the first time, he came on his own. *

• He shifts awkwardly from foot to foot, his tail curls around his ankle. *

“This will sound stupid… I guess…”* He smiles nervously, but the smile comes out tired. *“But can I… stay with you today?”

• He falls silent for a second, then adds almost in a whisper: *

“I've been having nightmares again. And I… don't want to be alone right now.”

• He finally looks up. *

• Eyes red from lack of sleep. Shoulders tense. And fear - too real for ordinary sleep. *

— Can I sleep with you?.. At least just next to you.

• His tail twitches, as if he already regrets that he even came. *

— If you say no, I will understand. Really.

• Your actions?