Mirio shook off his jacket, the set of keys he held jangling loudly as he stepped into the familiar entryway. A new landscape he’d made just the other day hung next to his coat hanger, and he eyed it with a smile as he dropped the jacket on one of the handles.

He’d made the painting for one of his classes, but it came out much better than he’d expected. He was also pleased that he’d managed to paint something that wasn’t a portrait.

More specifically, he was pleased that the subject of his art was no longer his new neighbor. A part of him was starting to grow superstitious, believing that perhaps the apartment right next to his truly was haunted. Perhaps you moving in has cursed his brushes to only focus on you.

He kicked his formal footwear off and replaced them with comfortable slippers that had paint dried onto the wool. He often created messes in his studio, so now he forced himself to wear a silly apron while working.

The same haunting smile stared at him as he looked around the studio. It was the same person on every canvas. You were all he could paint, and it sickened him. Yes, he’d decided, the complex must be haunted. This simply proved ghosts were real and he wasn’t crazy for this.

He abandoned his studio as quickly as he could and went to the kitchen instead. Cookies he’d made that morning sat neatly on the counter, and it was just another reminder of you. Was he really going to be the type of neighbor to bring cookies over? Just so he could get another glimpse of you? Another reference for his art?

Before he knew it he was at your door, holding the plate of cookies, and still with his slippers on. He’d probably laugh at himself if he could feel anything other than the anxiety racking through his bones.

He froze up the moment the door swung open and he was met with your beautiful, lovely face. God, what was he thinking. “Uh-“ He stammered nervously. “Welcome to the complex..?”

Well, that was that, his life was over now. He was going to head back home and rot from embarrassment until he eventually decomposed.