Page 23 of The Jerk in Apartment 1B

“Hi, are you the landlord?”

“I’m the property manager.”

“What’s the difference?”

“The landlord owns the building. I just manage it. I handle all the maintenance and other issues. So what do you need?”

“Oh, um, I just moved into apartment 1A and my neighbor had a party last night and the music was so loud I couldn’t sleep. It didn’t turn off until after three in the morning. I get that it’sthe weekend, but some people actually have to sleep and there’s no way I could sleep with all that noise.”

“And who is this complaint about?”

“The jerk—I mean, the tenant in apartment 1B.”

“Have you talked to him about this?”

“No. He’s completely unreasonable. If I talked to him, he wouldn’t listen. That’s why I’m calling you. And actually, could we make this an anonymous complaint? I don’t want him knowing I called.”

“And why is that?”

“He’s very immature. If he found out I complained, he’d probably do something to retaliate.”

“I see.” The guy pauses. “Would you mind if I stopped by so we could discuss this in person?”

“Um, I guess that’d be okay.”

“How about right now? Are you home?”

“Yeah, I’m here.”

“Great! See you soon.”

That’s weird. I thought I’d just report the complaint. I wasn’t expecting him to come over.

There’s a knock on the door.

“Who is it?”

“It’s Cole.”

Cole?What does he want?

I open the door. “Hey, I’m kind of busy right now so—”

“I thought you wanted to discuss this.”

“Discuss what?” I ask.

“Your neighbor.” He glances at the apartment next door. “And your complaint about the noise?”

“Wait—what? How do you know about that?”

Cole smiles. “I’m the property manager.”

“No, you’re not.”

“Actually, I am. Jenna didn’t tell you?”

“She gave me a number to call, but didn’t give me a name.”

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