//------------------------------//
// Chapter 1 - The Stranger in the Storm 
// Story: The Thirty-Moon Roommate 
// by Lux 
//------------------------------//


The Thirty-Moon Roommate
By Lux


Chapter 1 – The Stranger in the Storm

You stood at the window of your loft apartment, looking at the street below. It wasn’t the familiar scene that attracted your attention this night but the raging storm outside. This was bigger than just a simple rain storm that you had the misfortune of being caught in, ironically oftentimes without an umbrella to shield yourself. This was a monstrous storm in which the skies seemed to pour down oceans of water, lashing at the windows of the apartment like an animal trying to claw its way in, while turning the street below into a swiftly flowing river of water. A flash of lightning and a rumble of thunder that shook the very place you were in made you realize how close the center of the storm was and the fury brought with it. 

You were glad on a night like this to be here in this apartment rather than out there fighting against the elements. Sure this loft apartment was once an old small second story warehouse now made new with partitioned walls, a kitchen, and the all-important bathroom, but it had its charm. You were thankful to have this place, storm or not, just like you were thankful for everything you had going in your life. Sure life wasn’t perfect, but you were now in a state of comfort and security that some would give anything to have. There was, however, something missing in your life. Maybe it was the desire for a change in your life, something to break up the monotony that the daily routine had so ordered your life. 

Maybe it wasn’t something in your life you wanted to change but someone new to enter into your life. It was no secret that while many things in your life seemed to work out, a romantic relationship wasn’t one of those aspects. You had girlfriends before, but none seemed to be “the one and only” and as quick as that flame of passion was ignited it soon flickered into nothing and you were back to where you were now. There were times you wished for your special someone to just appear at your door, but that was a wish you knew would be as likely to come true as being struck by lightning. 

Through the endless pouring streams of rain, you watched a taxi pull up to the house next door. A man dressed in a suit hurried from the cab and up the steps to the apartment, trying desperately not to drown. This was certainly a night where no one should be out on the street for long. Having enough of the view of the storm, you settled onto the couch that dominated the main part of the apartment and resolved to find something interesting to watch of the television. You didn’t know how long you spent flipping through the channels, but soon you heard something that sounded like a knock at your door. You ignored it at first, thinking it was a sound from the TV, or something like a garbage can caught by the wind smacking up against the apartment, or even the rumbling thunder outside. No sooner had you ignored the noise, the knock happened again, this time louder and more urgent than before. 

“I wonder who that could be?” you said looking at the clock that read nine o’clock. Maybe it was a friend who needed help, although it was not like your friends to drop by unannounced. You slowly got out of your couch and headed towards the stairs, feeling a little perturbed at the intrusion. As you reach the stairs, another knock was heard, followed by the ominous boom of the thunder outside.

“Hold on. I’m coming,” you said making your way down the stairs. You weren’t sure if whoever was at the door could hear you with the pouring rain and thunder outside, but whoever it was certainly wanted to meet you. As you reached the halfway mark of your descent down the stairs, you stopped as you heard a faint female voice. It wasn’t any voice you heard before, having an interesting quality. He couldn’t tell what the voice was saying in its entirety, but it almost sounded confused and desperate.

You drew closer to the landing of the stairs hearing the voice say, “Oh no! What am I going to do? I can’t go back to the park now when it’s raining. I hope whoever is here will let me in.” Before you could even say anything to the woman at the door she said, “Hello? Is anyone there?”

“Um…hello?” was the only thing you could think to say to a total stranger. 

“Oh, someone is here,” the voice said surprised and a little hopeful. “Listen, I know you don’t know me, but can you please let me in? It’s storming like cray out here!”

“Who are you?”

“I’m Prin…” she began before pausing and saying, “Err… I’m Twilight.” 

You were surprised. Who would name their kid Twilight, unless it was some kind of fake name the girl went by like those celebrity types? That and the fact that you could swear that she was about to say Princess made you question who was at the door. You didn’t like those people who led a fake life acting like a celebrity who deserved everything for free in the world. But this Twilight didn’t sound like that stereotypical person and in fact nice like the girl next door. 

“Twilight? Um…look, you sound like a nice person, but I don’t really know you. How did you find me?”

“You place was one of the few with their lights on so I came here. Please can you help me? I don’t have anywhere else to go and I’m cold and soaked. I wouldn’t ask this unless I needed to. Can you let me in just so I can warm up and dry off?” 

You pondered for a moment about letting this stranger into your house. While you were always willing to help someone out, this was a little beyond your level of helping. To you the apartment was your personal sanctuary, one not to be entered except for friends and family and of course yourself. The last thing you wanted was someone you put your trust in and offered inside to steal from you or worse. There was something about this girl’s voice, but you just couldn’t put your finger on it. It was like within her desperate plea there was an underlying voice saying, “Please trust me. I mean no harm, but I really need your help.” 

“Ok, let me get this door open,” you replied with a sigh as you unlatched the lock on the door handle and the deadbolt before slowly opening the door. What you saw on the other side gave you a shock. This Twilight was around your age, maybe a year or so less. She was taller than most girls you knew, in fact as tall as you were. She was no Plain Jane having the right curves and perfect creamy colored complexion that other girls would kill to have while not looking over the top or fake. Her curves were accentuated by what she was wearing, a purple pair of shorts and a light blue t-shirt that now clung to her body having been soaked by the storm.

What really caught your attention was her long hair that reached the small of her back that looked not black but a deep blue with pink and purple stripes running down the length of it. You could swear it was some elaborate dye job, but despite the pouring rain outside soaking her hair like a long towel, the unique coloring didn’t look washed out at all. The other thing that was interesting was her purple eyes that seemed to glow a little. You couldn’t help but to stare at her as she stood there in the rain.

“Err… are you going to let me in?” Twilight said noticing that you were looking her over like you never saw a girl like her before. 
“Oh, right sorry,” you replied as you turned and let her into the small landing. The space was cramped; definitely not one where two could easily fit, and no sooner had she stepped over the threshold she tripped.

“Gah!” she exclaimed as she fell towards you. You quickly reached out on instinct and grabbed her by the shoulders to break her fall, but while it slowed her it didn’t stop her from colliding with your body. Soon you found her well-proportioned chest smooshed up against yours and her face mere inches away from yours. It was then that you felt the gentle but strong touch of her hands wrapped around your shoulders as she too tried to break the fall and not hurt you. To you it felt like a warm surge of electricity passing from her to you, making you relax a little.

“Sorry,” you both said in unison as Twilight righted herself before she said, “Wait, why are you sorry? It was me who fell into you.”
“I don’t know. I thought that you tripped over my foot or something.”

“I don’t think so. Guess I’m not used to this yet.” 

You didn’t understand what she meant by that as she shook her head like she was trying to dislodge something from her mind. You wondered if there was something else going on with her, like she was sick. She looked and sounded fine, albeit a little confused. It was also as if she wasn’t comfortable in her own skin. 

“Well, that was an awkward introduction,” she said blushing a little. “Thanks for letting me get out of the rain.”

“You’re welcome,” you said. “Do you want to come upstairs to dry off? No pressure.” 

“That would be great, thanks,” Twilight said, “lead the way.” 

You walked up the stairs with the strange girl caught in the storm following closely behind you, wondering what the rest of this once peaceful night would bring and who she really was.