them to disappear.
“Vanessa,” I said the first time, trying to keep my tone neutral. “Can you clean up after you cook?”
“Yeah, yeah,” she said without looking up, already scrolling her phone. “Later.”
Later never came.
The apartment smelled like garlic and stale food. The kitchen, once my calm corner where I meal-prepped on Sundays, became a place I avoided.continue reading …