El Andalous - Rats, Sixth Night

Sunken City, Land Portion - With Pier Behind

I woke up feeling happy. Maybe my rodent friends had deserted me at long last. After all, eating a wooden door surely can’t be so interesting.

My day passed unremarkably. I happily watched TV in the evening, well apart from the fact that everything is on very late here because of the time difference. I decided to go to the toilet and brush my teeth in the adverts. As I sat there, I thought I could hear a squeaking and hissing sound. My first thought was that it was a mouse or rat; I looked around, but couldn’t see anything. I wondered if it was the TV or maybe even coming from next door. I couldn’t really work it out, but decided it was probably the TV.

As I went to open the bathroom door, I suddenly spotted the rodent just there in front of me. I let out a scream, but the mouse/rat didn’t move and didn’t look at me. I think it was just hoping I wouldn’t see it. For the first time, I really understood that it was as scared of me as I was of it. I almost (only almost) felt sorry for it. I guess the hissing and squeaking was probably its equivalent of screaming and in my ignorance, I’d just overlooked it.

I had no option but to go out of the bathroom and past the rodent. Of course, I can’t do this as quickly as I may like, but I suspect it may have been my speediest exit since I’ve had my crutches.

So, it was another night of blocking my door with plastic bags, sleeping with the light on, and lying there with my eyes wide open, waiting for a rodent to appear. I listened out and couldn’t hear anything. I suspected I may have scared it away, but of course there was no guarantee. It did strike me as a bit daft that it may be in the bathroom too scared to move because of me, and I was in my bedroom, too scared to move because of it. But that realisation still didn’t help me to relax.

I longed for the time when I could go back to a normal life.