“There’s plenty of room,” Zoe insisted.
Easy for you to say, Dana sniffed. Zoe was five foot nothing in heels and reed thin. Dana sat on planes with knees bumping her chin.
Zoe slunk between people like an oiled spaghetti, unlatched a gate, and scampered down metal stairs.
“Wait!” Dana bumbled in her wake, apologetic. She must have stepped on five pedestrians’ toes and hit another with her bag.
The basement studio was airless, dark, and smelled of garlic and Bok choy. Dana was sure she could touch both walls with outstretched arms.
“Welcome, Roomie!” Zoe announced. “Home, sweet home!”
For Rochelle’s Friday Fictioneers
Photo prompt: © Roger Bultot
Oh how I hope this is a vaca or temporary arrangement! I fear Zoe will be suffocated in her sleep one way or another…
LikeLiked by 1 person
That is a distinct squashed possibility … 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m suffocating just reading this!! I feel for Dana.
Zoe could not even come close to understanding!
Well done, you!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, my dear. Some NYC ‘studios’ (AKA matchbox ‘apartments’ or ‘economy basements’) are really that small. It is quite remarkable. Zoe, though, seems peppy enough to levitate and leave the floor/bed/futon to Dana … 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, I believe it! And you have to give your first born as a deposit!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yeah, AND a month’s security, AND you need to have a credit check and you used to pay the agent a month’s rent in fees (that’s no longer legal, I think).
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh joy, oh bliss!
LikeLiked by 1 person
LOL! I mean, some of the ‘apartments’ I’ve seen … I can tell stories … (oh, wait … 😉 )
LikeLiked by 1 person
LOL! Yeah… do so 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
😀
LikeLike
I loved the oiled spaghetti
LikeLiked by 1 person
😀 I’m glad the sensory data worked … 😉
LikeLike
I love the dynamic you’ve created between the two characters. The difference in size is explicit, but you’ve implied so much more about them, especially Zoe (I expect you chose the name Zoe deliberately for its meaning…?). I really hope we see these two roomies again!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad the layers of dynamics found their way home in the reader … 😉
I rather to like these two. Maybe they’ll show up again. I never know when characters revisit …
LikeLiked by 1 person
I feel plenty of claustrophobia setting in. Good story.
LikeLiked by 1 person
LOL, Mason! I recommend getting outta there and into more open space … 😉 Thank you for the comment and I’m glad you liked! (disclaimer: no responsibility claimed for medical emergencies resulting from reading …) 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
Haha! Indeed. I’ll stick with my little dairy in the countryside.
LikeLiked by 1 person
😀 Sounds good! Do you have room to let out? 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hmm, no. but I do have a trailer tent in the barn.
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂 I’ve napped amidst goats before. 🙂
Thank you for the comment and may the open spaces be there for all of us who need them.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Me too, they’re nice and warm arent they lol.
Amen to that.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Nice, warm, and they eat any paperwork you leave unattended. So … 😉
LikeLike
No kidding! The little buggers eat everything in sight if you aren’t careful! So cute though.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Totally! Adorable to the ninths! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Na’ama Y’karah,
Of course I don’t relate well to Dana. 😉 Although I’ve had some very tall friends and I know it’s hard for a woman to be that tall. And I’ve seen some studio apartments, my middle son lived in one in LA. It would be hard for a tiny person to breathe let alone a tall one. 😉 Love the dynamic between the two. You created two vivid characters in only 100 words. Well done.
Shalom,
Rochelle
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you my friend! Yes, some NYC apartments will be cramped for a tadpole, let alone a human of any stature … But tall people (which I’m not – I’m blissfully average) often face yet another level (no pun, or, oh well … let’s pun) of squeashed … 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
I can so relate to poor Dana. This situation sucks and has potential for trouble. I see bloody murder… 🙂 And you describe them so well.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad you liked it … and yes, poor Dana may not be able to tolerate this … even if Zoe seems quite happily oblivious to sardine-lodging … 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Na/ama,
I ❤️ the descriptive prowess you show off here, like: “Dana sat on planes with knees bumping her chin. Zoe slunk between people like an oiled spaghetti” — simply magnifico! As for Dana, I think she’ll keep looking for home sweet AND comfortable home, lol. 😀
~🕊Dora
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, Dora! Love the comment and appreciate the generous feedback! 🙂 And, yes, I think that Dana will do better looking a bit more … um … broadly … 😉 (the reality of some NYC ‘apartments’ is that this is rather realistic, in some locales in the city … Broom closet apartments aren’t for all …) 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love the line about “oiled spaghetti.” Perfectly descriptive. Great story!
LikeLiked by 1 person
😀 Glad you liked it … Sometimes that is the most effective way through crowded city sidewalks … Some people perfect it. 😉
LikeLike
Sounds like a perfect match.
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂 One hopes so … or, no size place will be big enough … 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
i suppose you get what you pay for. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
In NYC, often times you make do with what you CAN pay for … 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
reminded of my time brooklyn. i slept in the dining room with the bed hidden behind a bookcase. those were the days. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂 Sounds like NYC sleeping arrangement to me.
LikeLiked by 1 person
i worked for a while. 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
I just love the way you’ve described them! Sounds a little claustrophobic to me. Nice one Na’ama.
My story!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ah, Keith, claustrophobia is all in the mind … 😉 But, yeah, TOTALLY! Sounds kinda smallish, as apartments go … 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sounds a welcoming place to me
LikeLiked by 1 person
Welcoming TIGHTLY! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
Oh my. Poor Dana. She’s going to develop claustrophobia, if she doesn’t already have it!
LikeLiked by 2 people
LOL, yes, I suspect you are correct …
I don’t think that’ll be a viable long term solution … 😉
LikeLiked by 2 people