The Girl Next Door

Creak…creak…creak…

It was the sound of a rusted bed creaking. That was the sound that woke me up from my little nap. Beside me, Tara was already blinking her eyes, with her naked body huddled close to mine.

"Alex?"

"Hmm?"

"That isn't us right?"

"Unless there is an invisible ghost riding my dick I heavily doubt that's us."

We both nudged our heads, looking around. The sound was definitely coming from the room next to us.

"It seems we aren't the only ones deciding to take a break from killing people," I said, slowly listening to the creaking increase its pace.

"There's free condoms inside the wardrobe for a reason."

My phone vibrated, and I picked it up to see a new notification. "Our food is here."

I had ordered food before sex, and I was in the mood to devour something.

I jumped down from the bed and picked up my underwear. I couldn't believe I lost my virginity inside a motel to my high school crush who became my girlfriend one day ago. Now that I did it, it didn't feel like a big deal. It was still better than wanking alone in my room though.

Tara dressed up along with me, muttering something about sweaty clothes, and by the time we reached the door, the creaking had almost stopped.

But the moment I opened the door, the door of the room next to us opened. Three men stepped out. They were all wearing white shirts and worn-out khaki pants. Each carried a cap that bore the sign of a bear, and just like old Ryan and his gang the two guys at the back were all muscles and physique while the one in the front looked like your average office worker who somehow managed to hit the gym once a week.

"New neighbor?" he asked.

I gave a nod. Then Tara stepped behind me, rubbing her sleepy eyes. The eyes of the men settled onto her.

Okay, this is bad.

"Must be hard for a pretty girl like you to be in a motel," the guy said. He had more shuffled hair and a half-cut beard. When he stepped close, we were equal heights.

Tara eyed him warily. "I'm doing fine. Thanks for asking."

He grinned, then looked at me. "You must be poor as fuck to keep her in a place like this. You know what lady," he rummaged his pockets and pulled out a nearly crumpled business card. "I help girls like you in need. Take this."

"What if I don't want it?"

"No disrespect for boss, bitch!" one of the men in the back stepped forwards, cracking his knuckles.

Okay, this is really bad.

"You can't harm people in Safe Zones," Tara said before I could reply.

The boss guy looked surprised. "So you are an Unet player too? Not much of a coincidence. But how do you know me?"

"Vincent Angelo," Tara said, leveling her eyes with him. "You loan money for people, and when they can't pay you, you fuck their lives. I've known about you for a long time."

"Huh, then you know why I like coming to places like this," he said, throwing his card to the floor. "No rich bastard would ever live in this cramped place. If you want my help, leave this idiot and come for me. We can discuss an offer."

He gave a snarky grin at me, then turned and headed out with the other men to a black Mercedes parked right next to our bike. Both Tara and I watched in silence as the engines revved, and the driver floored it as they dashed out of the car park.

"We should get the food," Tara said as the sounds of the engine faded. She didn't pick up the card and walked to the stairs. But I picked it up. The back was completely empty. But when I turned it front I found some faded-out words.

Vincent Angelo,

231A, Moswel Street

Contact me at XXXXXXX for all your loan needs

"I never knew you could loan money," I said, stepping beside her.

"You can. But you can't call guys like Vincent a lender. He is more of an investor. A cunning one. Instead of investing in property he invests in people then fucks their life up."

"Huh…"

The little interaction with the guy left a bad feeling in my mouth. It reminded me of the bullying years in middle school. It had been a long time ago, and the more I grew up, the more I forgot about it, but now the feeling returned. The feeling of being powerless.

"Alex," Tara nudged my arm. "You are looking down. Throw that stupid card away."

I didn't throw it away. I pushed it into my pocket.

That little shit…ignoring me and talking to Tara like that…

Tara was looking at me, concerned, but then her eyes drifted to the delivery man near the gate. I stood in the distance as she picked up the food, my mind wandering.

Investing in people…

"How do you invest in people?" I asked when Tara came back with a bag of wrapped cheeseburgers and cola cans.

"Aaargh," she growled. "You are still thinking about that guy?"

"I just want to know."

"You know what? How about I give you a good blowjob once we go to our room? That will clear the depression away. Besides, I need to pay for the food."

"The food's on me," I said. "Free of charge."

"Are you getting soft on me?"

"I-"

We were up the stairs, and the door of the room beside ours creaked open again.

Now what? Another investor?

But this time it was a woman. She was in her late twenties, wearing a long frock and a blouse with mismatched buttons. Her black hair fell down, and she looked into us with eyes full of dark ringlets. She looked like someone dragged her across town and then threw her back in.

"You two are new."

"A lot of people seem to notice that today," I grumbled.

Her eyes moved to the bag of burgers in Tara's hand. "Come inside. I have some beer."

Tara cocked her head. "Mother always told me not to go into rooms of strangers."

"If you ever listened to your mother you wouldn't be here in the first place."

She turned around and walked in.

"At least that explains where the creaking sound came from," I said, watching the woman nearly tumble near the door.

"So they were fucking her?" Tara bit her lip. "I think we're about to get into something nasty."

I looked at her. "You want to go in?"

"Well, beer is always better than cola…"

We both stepped in together.