(no subject)
A friend had asked me to purchase a used textbook from someone. I had heard some negative things about the area where the seller lived, though I had never been there.
We arrived there late at night. [je] was driving. I had brought the exact purchase price ($7.50) so that we'd be able to make the transaction and quickly leave.
Although the place seemed to be densely populated, we saw no one outside. After driving along several of the unfamiliar and poorly-lit roads, we turned down a very narrow street. On both sides, the apartments seemed to form a solid dirty white wall with no windows. Doors and mailboxes were surprisingly close together all along the wall. I noticed that we had passed the address we were looking for, and we backed up to the spot where it seemed likely to be.
I left the van and and walked the few steps to the building. I hadn't noticed from the van that the doors also included round manhole-like entrances in the road itself. I found the number I sought on one of these. The hole's cover was ajar and I could see down into the apartment. In dim reddish light, a tall blond man paced the room. He appeared to be dressed only in white feathers or cotton, which covered him haphazardly. I didn't know whether this man was the seller of the textbook, and I hesitated, not sure I wanted to get his attention. My view of the room below was limited, and he soon left my field of vision.
Not sure what to do, I stood to see the feathered man emerging from a doorway several yards away. He walked in a straight line, a dazed expression on his face. I returned to the van, sensing others watching me from somewhere, and we left without the textbook.
We arrived there late at night. [je] was driving. I had brought the exact purchase price ($7.50) so that we'd be able to make the transaction and quickly leave.
Although the place seemed to be densely populated, we saw no one outside. After driving along several of the unfamiliar and poorly-lit roads, we turned down a very narrow street. On both sides, the apartments seemed to form a solid dirty white wall with no windows. Doors and mailboxes were surprisingly close together all along the wall. I noticed that we had passed the address we were looking for, and we backed up to the spot where it seemed likely to be.
I left the van and and walked the few steps to the building. I hadn't noticed from the van that the doors also included round manhole-like entrances in the road itself. I found the number I sought on one of these. The hole's cover was ajar and I could see down into the apartment. In dim reddish light, a tall blond man paced the room. He appeared to be dressed only in white feathers or cotton, which covered him haphazardly. I didn't know whether this man was the seller of the textbook, and I hesitated, not sure I wanted to get his attention. My view of the room below was limited, and he soon left my field of vision.
Not sure what to do, I stood to see the feathered man emerging from a doorway several yards away. He walked in a straight line, a dazed expression on his face. I returned to the van, sensing others watching me from somewhere, and we left without the textbook.