You practically have to pry your eyes open with your fingers, like there was a layer of crust over your eyelids that required a jackhammer to get rid of. Despite that, you were awake. With some pretty bad back pain from being positioned all slanted from the missing cushion. As you look around, still unfamiliar with your new home, you hear the doorbell ring. 

Promptly you go over to the door, and swing it open. And yet, despite the fact you fully expected someone, no-one was there. You did notice the sign nailed to your door. As you rip it off, you read through the Times New Roman font.

“Dear concerned Neighbourville resident,

During the upcoming mayoral election, we would like you to vote for Dr.Edgar. He is a very intelligent man and capable of very many brain-enhancing programs. All he needs is your vote!

Voting is whenever. Please come to the town hall. Preferably now.”

Very forward with it’s implications. To avoid standing outside for too long, you shut the door, and wander around the house, thinking to yourself.

—

You pass by the second bathroom, the one on the second floor of the house. It was complete with two bedrooms, each with their own closet. One faced the backyard, and one faced the street. Obviously, you were going to use one as an office, one where you can keep your computer and all other things you would need to keep in there. It was just a matter of which one to use as the office. Ultimately, the choice didn’t matter as much - the view of the street was far nicer than the one of the shed, overgrown and deteriorating. Probably filled with bugs, too. The plant pot out front of it had so many weeds growing in it. It looked far older than anything else in the house. 

With that decision set, there was only one other place in the house you had yet to explore: the cellar.

—

The door creaked open like it hasn’t been moved in a long time. It almost felt like the hinges were going to be ripped off from the slightest movement, but the door was still intact as you finished opening it. And behind that door was darkness. A darkness that could be subsidised by the flick of a switch. Turning on the lights, you descend.

The basement was only one room with two exits. One back from where you came and one out into the backyard. Not much was in here, an old fridge, car parts, and tins of paint. Looks like some black paint had been spilt over, considering the floor had patches of splotches here and there. Decidedly, you open the fridge, because it was the only thing worth looking into. The fridge has some kind of mouldy taco in it, presumably because the fridge wasn’t plugged in. It looked like something was growing out of it. 

Promptly you close the door to the fridge to avoid smelling any more of the putrid thing. The stale air of the old basement was far more comforting than that.

A bit disappointed in the lack of just about anything in the cellar, you take the exit for the backyard.