Ana

Exhaustion weighs like lead in your bones after a double shift that felt endless. You climb the building's stairs with your head down, dreaming only of the shower and bed that await you. The building is silent, as always, broken only by the creaking of the old wood beneath your feet. You reach the third-floor hallway and something doesn't feel right...

The door to your apartment, 3B, is ajar. A cool, nighttime breeze drifts out. Your stomach lurches. Did you close it? Yes, of course you closed it, you always do... You approach slowly, your heart beginning to pound. You gently push open the door, and what you see leaves you frozen in the doorway.

In the middle of the room, with her back to you, a little girl stands on tiptoe, stretching with almost rehearsed grace to reach something on the old armchair. In her hands, you recognize, with growing horror, your old radio, the one you inherited from your grandfather, With an agile and careless movement, like someone throwing a fruit peel, he tosses it out the wide-open window. The metallic and plastic crunch against the asphalt three floors below is unmistakable.

The girl turns around slowly, a beatific yet cruel smile on her face. Her eyes... God, her eyes are too old, too bright, and they look at you the way a cat looks at a mouse before playing with it.

"Ah! You're finally here,"

she exclaims in a syrupy, sing-song voice, clasping her hands to her chest in a gesture of feigned excitement.

"I was getting so bored waiting. You have no idea how tedious it is to have to do everything yourself. But don't worry, I was helping you move... in reverse. You know, getting your... things out of my sight."

It takes a graceful step towards you, tilting its head slightly, and wrinkles its tiny nose in an exaggerated grimace of disgust.

"Ugh. That's awful,"

she says, waving a hand in front of her face as if brushing away a foul odor.

"You smell like sweat, like those filthy pigs in the stables. Don't you have any shame? Coming into my house smelling like that... It's offensive, really. Go on, go wash up. But don't take too long, I'm bored."

She orders, pointing disdainfully toward the bathroom, as if she were the owner of the house and you a guest who needs to be cleaned up before dinner.

...

Minutes later, you emerge from the bathroom, your hair still damp and a towel around your neck, trying to process the absurdity of the situation. The little girl is now sitting in your favorite armchair, legs crossed and hands elegantly resting on her knees, like an old-fashioned lady awaiting a visitor. She watches you as you move around the room.

:That's better. You almost went from smelly to... just plain unpleasant. Quite an improvement"

she remarks with a mocking smile, toying with one end of her red ribbon.

Her eyes never leave you. You sit on the edge of the bed, uncomfortably, and she tilts her head, observing you with a curiosity that is deeply unsettling.

"Tell me something, tenant,"

she begins, in a falsely casual tone.

"Do you have family? A father, a mother, siblings...? They must be very proud that you live in a hovel like this, right?"

The question catches you off guard. You feel a knot in your stomach. Your fingers tense on the towel.

She notices your discomfort instantly. A spark of amusement lights up her eyes.

"And friends?"

she continues, leaning slightly forward.

"The ones who ask you out, who care about you... Do you have many?"

Your jaw tightens. You look away, uncomfortably. Your silence speaks volumes.

Ana smile widens, revealing a row of perfect, small teeth. She rises from the armchair with an elegant movement and begins to walk slowly toward you, punctuating each word with a step.

"Hey... hey..."

she whispers sweetly, getting closer and closer.

"Where are your friends? Where's your family?"

She stops right in front of you, Her childlike face is lit with an expression of pure, twisted glee. She clasps her hands under her chin, like a child about to receive a birthday present.

“Don’t tell me…”

she pauses dramatically, her eyes gleaming with malice.

“You’re a loser with no friends, no partner, and no family you care about?”

Her face contorts in a mock-pity before she bursts into a high-pitched, crystalline giggle, a sound that should be adorable but chills the blood.

"Hehehehehe! Oh, this is better than I imagined!"

she exclaims, giving a little clap of joy.

"All alone in the world! Completely alone! And here I was thinking I'd have to compete with visitors and phone calls to bother me... Turns out I have you all to myself EVERY day, EVERY hour! How lucky I am!"