Chapter 4
Lane (March 2023)
...
When Lane arrived at the door of their new apartment, they noticed the shiny apartment number in the middle of the white door. C7. Floor C apartment 7. They were a little out of breath from climbing the stairs but they knew that what would be waiting for them would be worth the brief hassle. The lettering seemed to glow as Lane unlocked the door and pushed it open. They were met with a quiet room; one with clean walls, carpeted floors (except for the kitchen and bathroom), high ceilings, and nice windows. Lane set down their backpack and looked around at the one-bedroom one-bathroom place they now called home. They took off their coat and promptly dropped it on the floor next to the front door that they locked shut. Beads of water rolled off of the coat and soaked into the carpet. Lane looked up at the high ceiling and with every step, there was a slight squeak from the carpet-covered floorboards, but it was nothing to be worried about. Lane went over to the window to look outside and noticed that the window led right out to the fire escape. That was a comforting thought to them; not the thought of a fire happening in the building but to know there would be a way out if there was. Lane yawned and rubbed their eyes. It was so late. They took out their phone from their pocket and looked at the time. 3:46 a.m.
"Oh shit."
Lane looked over to their bag and went over to grab it. After picking up their bag, and after double-checking that the front door was locked, Lane went into the bedroom and looked for a wall outlet. There were a few in the bedroom and Lane sat on the floor to dig through their bag to retrieve their phone charger. The phone's battery was at 11 percent when Lane plugged it in to charge. Lane looked through the bag to see what else they could take out. Most of the bag's contents were clothing and hygiene products. A laptop that was in the bag took up a chunk of space but Lane couldn't leave the laptop behind. That was the one nice thing that they had and it was something that Atlas had gifted to them. They took the laptop out of the bag and slid it towards the wall next to their charging phone that rested on the floor. Lane pulled two paperback books out of the bag and set them aside. They were quick enough in the last moment before leaving the house to pack things like their wallet, important documents such as their birth certificate and social security card, along with some other sentimental trinkets, and of course some of their clothes. Lane was sure they grabbed everything important from the house while Atlas was drunk and passed out in the living room. They accepted that whatever they had to leave behind were long-gone items. Lane would never get that stuff back but it would be okay.
Lane zipped up the bag that was still filled with softer items (clothes and papers) and set it behind them to use as a pillow. They leaned back on the floor and reached for their phone, noticing the new string of unread text messages from Atlas. There were new missed calls too. Lane wasn't ready to read any of those texts but they remembered that Atlas also left a voicemail. Their heart started to heave out of their chest when they opened their voicemail box on the phone. Lane reluctantly pressed play.
"Lane!" Atlas' voice boomed through the phone. Lane almost dropped the device. He sounded tired and enraged. Lane felt a cold sweat break out over their body. "Where the fuck are you? It's fucking late and you're acting crazy! Some of your shit is gone, why? You wanna tell me why? Why aren't you answering your phone, Lane? You can't do this to me. You can't! After everything I've done for you, after everything we have gone through together, you can't fucking do this. Come home and let's talk. I love you. You better come home in the morning."
The voicemail ended and Lane rolled over on their side and began to sob. They pushed their phone away from them and curled up in a ball. Lane wiped their tears with the sleeve of their hoodie but the tears kept pouring out, staining the carpet and the bag they were using as a pillow. It felt like a long time that Lane was in tears but after the tears dried up, Lane kicked off their wet sneakers, not realizing they had never taken them off at the front door, and rolled back over to stare at the ceiling. The paneled ceiling looked so far away and in the dark, it slightly looked like an endless void; ready to consume Lane and make them disappear forever. But that is what Lane needed to do. Not disappear forever from everything but disappear forever from Atlas specifically. To come out on the other side of the scary black hole as a new person. Someone who was free from the control that overtook their life for years.
Lane's breathing had finally calmed down and they reached for their phone once more to text their best friend. Ophelia had been friends with Lane since they were small and the two did everything together. Ophelia had spent years trying to convince Lane to leave Atlas. She saw the destruction from the beginning and when they were finally ready to take her advice, she supported them a million times over.
"I did it. I'm here," Lane's text read.
Ophelia texted back almost immediately. She knew that tonight was the night Lane would escape. "I'm so proud of you! How is the place?"
"Empty."
"We'll fix that."
"He called and texted me a hundred times. Left a voicemail too."
"Did you respond?"
"No. But I listened to the voicemail. He's pissed."
"Good. Let him be pissed."
"I am happy I did this. But I still love him."
"I know. It's gonna take time but you made the first step."
"Come over soon? To this sad and empty place?"
"Of course. We'll turn it into a home for you, love."
"Goodnight."
"Night. Get some rest. You deserve it."