there was a new person living in the building. henley only knew this because the blank slot on the mail boxes now had a name on it. a. cruz. she hadn't seen who it was yet, but it was only a matter of time. it was about a week after the apartment had been moved into that she met him. the most beautiful man in the world. he was taller than her, dark, messy, curly hair, glasses, and freckles for days. he was getting his mail and she was just coming back from a hectic day at work. she'd been thrown up on not once, but twice, didn't have any extra clothes to change into so she had to wash them the best she could in the bathroom sink and spray herself down with body spray. the stains remained and she was pretty sure there was still a faint smell there, too. on top of that, during lunch, one of the kids spilled his juice on her top. so needless to say, she was a goddamn mess and she didn't want to meet him for the first time while looking like this. he saw her, though, and smiled and for a second, all the breath in her lungs escaped her. instead of smiling back, though, or even saying hello, she bolted for the door to the stairs and took them two at a time until she reached her floor. he was beautiful and she was determined not to look like a fucking disaster when she finally met. she did not get her wish.