1 Fresh out of college, I had an idea. “Let’s all rent a place together,” I suggested to my three roommates. The apartment I found was a steal—close to my new job, surprisingly cheap, and a world away from the cramped suburban box they were currently renting. It was a massive upgrade. For three months, everything was perfect. We were a happy little family. Then one day, I came home from work early and heard them talking in the living room. “I looked it up,” one of them said, her voice sharp with excitement. “Rent in this neighborhood is at least five grand a month. We’re paying two thousand for the whole place. What if we rent out the master bedroom for two grand? Then our three rooms would basically be free.” “Done,” another voice snapped. “Why does Anna get the master suite anyway? So what if she covers the utilities? How much can that possibly be?” “I’m so sick of her holier-than-thou attitude,” the third one chimed in with a spiteful laugh. “The thought of her, homeless and out on the street… I could die laughing!” I smiled to myself on the other side of the door. You want to see me on the street? Too bad for them. I’m the owner. … The voices inside continued, blissfully unaware. “Anyway, the lease is up in three days. We just tell her we’re not renewing with her.” “Haha, serves her right. Always bossing us around, acting like she owns the place.” “And that whole story about it being her ‘relative’s apartment,’ and that’s why it’s so cheap and we have to ‘take care of it’? Who buys that crap?” “I already contacted the landlord. He said we can have it for the next term, same price.” Just like that, my fate was decided. They seemed to have forgotten everything. How, fresh out of college, they were too broke to afford anything near the city. How they were crammed into a tiny place in the far-off suburbs, waking up at four in the morning for a grueling three-hour commute of buses and trains. It was me who couldn’t stand to see them suffer. It was me who lied, saying a relative had a cheap place available, and invited them to move in. The truth? This apartment was a graduation gift from my parents. A four-bedroom, two-bath prime piece of real estate right next to my office. A five-minute walk to work. I could have rented it out in a heartbeat. But my parents always taught me to be discreet about our wealth. So I never told them I was the owner. I charged them a token rent of five hundred dollars each and covered all the utilities and building fees myself. And this was my reward. My kindness, thrown back in my face like trash. Taking a deep breath, I pushed the door open. The laughter in the room died instantly. The air went still. Lily was the first to recover, stretching her lips into a fake, bright smile. “Anna! You’re home early. Have you eaten? We made some pasta, come have some.” She pulled me into a chair at the dining table. After clearing her throat, she began her little performance. “So, Anna… the landlord called. He was asking if we’re planning to renew the lease.” I just slurped my pasta, saying nothing. She watched my face, trying to read my expression, before continuing. “We’ve decided not to.” My hand paused. I looked up, feigning confusion. “We found a cheaper place,” she said, her eyes darting away from mine. “You only wanted to room with us because you couldn’t afford the whole rent on your own, right? So now that we’re leaving, you’ll probably move out too, won’t you?” My voice was flat. “It’s fine. If you guys leave, I’ll just take over the whole lease. I finished a big project at work, so I’m getting a nice bonus.” Lily’s smile faltered. “But… it’s such a big place for one person. Isn’t that a waste? Listen to me, you should find a small studio. You’d save so much money.” If I hadn’t heard their little scheme with my own ears, I might have actually believed she was concerned about me. “I’m used to it here,” I said simply. “Too lazy to move.” “Anna!” Jenna, who had been silent until now, finally exploded. She slammed her fork down on the table. “I was trying to be nice, but you’re just not getting the hint!” “So let me spell it out for you. We don’t want to live with you anymore. We want you to move out on your own, so don’t force us to get ugly about it!” I stared at her, my expression cold. “I found this apartment. I signed the contract. Why should I be the one to leave just because you say so?” Ava, who had been quiet the whole time, finally spoke. “Anna, living with you… it’s been really difficult. If we keep this up, I’m afraid we won’t even be friends anymore.” Ava was supposed to be my best friend. Her background was tough. Her mom left right after she was born, and her father was a gambling addict who’d beat her when he was drunk. She fought tooth and nail to get into college, but her dad wanted to marry her off to some old creep for cash. I was the one who helped her escape in the middle of the night, who walked her through applying for student loans, who split my allowance with her for four years so she could get by. After graduation, I couldn’t bear the thought of her tiny frame being crushed on the subway every day. That’s why I suggested we live together. I even invited the other two, just so she wouldn’t feel like she was accepting my charity. Ava bit her lip, her eyes pleading. “You always wanted what was best for me. Just agree to move out this one time. We can still be best friends.” I looked at her, my face a blank mask. Then, I smiled. “Fine,” I said. “I’ll move.” Their faces lit up. They started babbling about how we’d still be great friends, even after I was gone. I didn’t want to hear another word. I turned and walked back to my room. The moment the door clicked shut, I pulled out my phone and dialed my property manager, Mr. Henderson. “The rent is going up to six thousand a month.” It didn’t take long for a knock to sound on my door. I opened it to find the three of them standing there, their faces contorted with rage. Jenna shoved me hard. “You called the landlord and told him to raise the rent, didn’t you!” My back hit the corner of a desk, and a sharp pain shot through me. Ava’s eyes were red. “How about this,” she said, her voice laced with a false sense of compromise. “You go talk to your ‘relative’ and get him to keep the rent at two thousand. And you give us the master bedroom. If you do that, we’ll still be willing to live with you.” I crossed my arms, looking at her coldly. “And where would I sleep?” “On the couch, obviously,” Lily answered, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. “So I pay rent to sleep on the couch?” “Get it through your head,” Jenna sneered. “You’re the one begging to stay with us. You should be grateful we’re even offering you the couch.” Ava linked her arm through mine, her tone sickeningly sweet. “We’re best friends, Anna. Of course I’m looking out for you.” “I’ve already found you a new place. It’s fully furnished, you can move in right away. And the best part? It’s only thirty feet from the office. Perfect for a workaholic like you.” “Where?” She covered her mouth, stifling a giggle. “Rex’s doghouse.” “It’s right by the security guard’s booth at the office. How’s that for a short commute? And in the winter, Rex can keep your bed warm for free!” Jenna snickered. “Wow, Ava, and you call yourself her best friend? Sending her to a doghouse, that’s just cold! But hey…” Her eyes landed on me, a malicious grin spreading across her face. “Don’t forget to pay Ava a finder’s fee, Anna! A move-in ready place like that is hard to come by, hahaha!” Ava waved her hand dismissively. “Oh, it’s nothing. What are friends for?” I watched their little performance, my blood turning to ice. I didn’t say a word. Ava’s face suddenly turned serious. “Anna, living with you has been exhausting. You’re such a control freak. We can’t hang anything on the walls, we can’t decorate our own rooms, you even nag us if a single hair falls on the floor. We can’t take it anymore.” “You’ve practically given me depression. So, you should probably pay our rent for the next quarter. Consider it compensation for our emotional distress.” I almost laughed out loud. I didn’t want them putting things on the walls because the latex paint was a custom color; if it was damaged, it would be impossible to match perfectly. I didn’t want them “decorating” because their brilliant idea was to knock down a load-bearing wall to make their room bigger. And I complained about the hair because they never, ever cleaned the drain after showering. Their hair had clogged the pipes so badly it flooded the apartment below us, and I had to secretly pay a fortune to sort it out. In the six months they’d lived here, the money I’d spent fixing their messes and covering costs far exceeded the pittance they paid in rent. And now, they wanted me to pay them for emotional distress. Hilarious. “Either you move out, or I do and you can pay the full six thousand a month yourselves.” With that, I slammed the door in their faces. From the other side, I heard their furious shouts. “Anna, you’re pushing your luck!” “Don’t make us do something you’ll regret!” The next day, I didn’t get home from work until eleven at night. When I reached my front door, I froze. My belongings were piled in the hallway like a heap of garbage. I tried my key code again and again, but the door wouldn’t open. They had changed the lock. A hot wave of fury washed over me. I pulled out my phone and called my dad. “Dad, can you call a courier service? I need something delivered here, right now…” After hanging up, I started pounding on the door. The loud bangs echoed through the quiet hallway. It didn't take long for doors to open. Neighbors, annoyed by the noise, poked their heads out, demanding to know what was going on. Someone even called security. As a crowd gathered, the door finally clicked open. Jenna stood there in her pajamas, a face mask on, frowning. “What the hell are you screaming about? I’m trying to get my beauty sleep.” I clenched my fists, forcing my voice to stay even. I pointed to the mountain of my things on the floor. “What gives you the right to throw my stuff out?” Ava appeared behind her, casting a timid glance in my direction. “Anna, we didn’t have a choice… Please, just give us a break…” She then shot a look at Lily. Lily immediately understood. She turned to the growing crowd of neighbors and the security guard, her voice loud and dramatic. “Uncles, aunts, everyone, please, be the judge! We all rent this apartment together, and she brings different men home every single night! The noises they make… the things they do… it’s so loud we can’t get any sleep.” She turned back to me, her eyes pleading. “We know you have a… special kind of job, that you have to work at night, and we don’t judge you for it. But we have to get up early for work! Please, we’re begging you, find somewhere else to live.” The moment the words left her mouth, the way the neighbors looked at me changed. Their curiosity turned to disgust, as if I were something filthy. Ava bowed deeply to the crowd, her face a mask of apology. “We’re so sorry to disturb you all. Her lease is up, and we already told her we wouldn’t be renewing with her. The landlord doesn’t want her here either. But she just refuses to leave. We had no other choice… We’re truly sorry for waking everyone.” Whispers rippled through the crowd. “She looks like such a nice girl, I can’t believe she does that…” “No wonder she comes home so late every night…” “How unlucky to live on the same floor as her!” A middle-aged woman pointed a finger at me, her voice shrill with anger. “Was it you who was blasting music and jumping around the other night? The bass was shaking my whole apartment! I didn’t get a wink of sleep!” I was out of town on a business trip all last week. I had only just gotten back yesterday. A flicker of guilt crossed Jenna’s face, but she quickly pointed at me. “Yes! That was her!” Another neighbor stepped forward. “And was it your long hair that clogged the drains and flooded my bathroom downstairs?” Ava, the one with the longest hair who never cleaned the drain, froze for a second before turning to me with a frown. “Anna, I’ve told you so many times to clean your hair out of the shower. Why don’t you ever listen?” “Was she the one who wanted to knock down a load-bearing wall? She nearly turned the whole building into a death trap!” Lily, who had dreamed of expanding her room by smashing through a wall, just nodded grimly. “That’s right, it was her! We tried to stop her, but she wouldn’t listen!” The neighbors’ anger was fully ignited. “She’s a menace! Get her out of our building!” “Security! Throw her out!” “Call the police! Get her arrested!” The security guard, seeing the mob mentality taking over, grabbed my arm and started to pull me away. I was furious, desperate. “I’m the owner of this apartment!” I yelled. “You have no right to throw me out!” Jenna let out a derisive snort. “If you’re the owner, then I’m the Queen of England!” Ava looked at me with pity. “Anna, I’ve already called the landlord. He’s on his way. If you leave now, you can still keep a little dignity. It’s going to be much worse when he gets here and kicks you out himself.” I was shaking with rage. “Fine! Get your ‘landlord’ here! I’d love to see how he plans on kicking me out of my own home!” “Who’s looking for me?” I turned to see a blond punk, radiating cheap arrogance, swaggering through the crowd. “I’m the landlord. You got a problem?” he asked, his eyes raking over me dismissively. “Where’s Mr. Henderson?” I demanded, frowning. My property had always been managed by him, and he was nothing but professional. “So you did your homework, huh? You even know my uncle’s name. Well, I’ll tell you. My uncle’s out of town. This place,” he jabbed a thumb at my apartment, “is my responsibility now.” He pointed a finger in my face. “I’ve heard all about you from these lovely ladies. I don’t rent my property to filthy, immoral people like you! If you know what’s good for you, you’ll grab your junk and get lost!” I stared him down. “Do you even know whose name is on the property deed? And you have the nerve to tell me to get lost?” “It’s my uncle’s place, so of course his name is on the deed! Whose else would it be? Yours?” the punk scoffed. Ava stepped forward. “Anna, just stop. The landlord is here. It’s over.” The punk ignored me, strutting into the apartment. He did a quick tour and came back out, his face twisted in a snarl. “Hey! Where’s that big Lego set that was on the TV stand? Did you steal it?” “That was a limited edition set! Worth twenty thousand dollars! You better hand it over right now!” That Lego set? My little niece loved it when she visited last week, so I gave it to her. “It was my property. Do I need your permission to give away my own things?” “Your property? That belongs to the landlord… my uncle!” the punk sputtered, practically hopping with fake rage. Lily immediately jumped in to support him. “We can vouch for that! That Lego set has been there since we moved in. How could it be yours? It obviously belongs to the landlord!” Ava frowned. “Anna, you should really try to get it back. Stealing is a crime. If the landlord calls the police, you’ll be in serious trouble.” I watched them, a symphony of lies, and felt a wave of disgusted disbelief. “Then call the police,” I said. My calm indifference was the final straw. “You bitch! Stealing and you’re still this arrogant!” His hand flew out, and a sharp sting exploded across my cheek. A loud smack echoed in the hallway. My ears rang, and I could taste the metallic tang of blood in my mouth. Ava stepped in, stopping the punk from hitting me again. “Let it go, let it go. It’s probably hard to get back something you’ve already given away. Anna, why don’t you just pay for it? Since the landlord says it’s worth twenty thousand, just give him the money. You… you make money easily, right? A little sum like that is nothing to you. Just pay him and this will all be over.” I had to laugh. The Lego set looked impressive, but it was a model kit I bought for three hundred dollars. It all clicked into place. The glances between them and this punk. This was a setup. They were in this together, trying to extort money from me. Seeing my lack of reaction, the punk shoved me again. “Hey! Did you hear me? Pay up! Or I’m calling the cops and having you thrown in jail for a few years!” “I told you, it was my property!” “Goddamn it, you just don’t learn!” he snarled, raising his hand to slap me again. He hit me so hard I stumbled and fell, my vision swimming with black spots. Jenna’s eyes darted around, then she pointed at my luggage. “She’s a thief! I better check my things, make sure she didn’t steal anything of mine!” She crouched down and started rummaging through my suitcase. She pulled out a gold necklace, a flash of envy in her eyes. She held it up for everyone to see. “Oh my god! My gold necklace! I’ve been looking for this for ages! I can’t believe it was in your suitcase!” “Ava, Lily! Come look! I bet she stole a ton of our stuff!” At her words, Lily’s eyes lit up, and she joined the plunder. Like vultures, they tore through my belongings, pulling out jewelry and brand-name makeup, claiming each item as their own and stuffing them into their pockets. The other neighbors, seeing this, started to get restless. Ava smiled sweetly at the crowd. “Uncles, aunts, maybe you should all have a look too. See if she’s taken anything of yours.” That was all it took. The crowd swarmed forward like a plague of locusts. CRASH! The trophy I won in a college competition was knocked to the floor and shattered. RIIIP! The sweater my mother had hand-knitted for me was torn apart. My down jacket was slashed open, and feathers filled the air like a bizarre snowstorm. I even saw a greasy-looking man pick up a pair of my underwear, take a deep, disturbing sniff, and shove it into his pocket. “Stop! All of you, stop!” I screamed and lunged forward, only to be shoved back to the ground. Ava stood over me, a look of pure, innocent malice on her face. “You know,” she said conversationally, “I wonder if she’s hiding the rest of the stolen goods on her person.” Every eye in the hallway swiveled to me. The blond punk licked his lips. “Strip her! Let’s see what she’s hiding under there!” “You touch me,” I snarled, “and I swear I will make you regret it for the rest of your life!” “Ooh, I’m so scared,” he mocked. “Let’s see what you’re gonna do.” He reached for the collar of my shirt. I fought back with everything I had, but Jenna and Lily pinned my arms and legs down. Ava raised her phone, capturing me at my most broken and helpless. She mouthed two words at me, a silent, vicious curse. You. Deserve. This. In that moment, a tidal wave of regret crashed over me. I had invited these wolves into my home.
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