Eight Days in the Spare Room

A spare-room key arrives in Daniel's mailbox, tagged in Ruth's handwriting. It opens the door to an apartment he left, and to eight days he cannot explain.

Spare Room

The spare-room key appeared in Daniel’s mailbox one wet March Tuesday.

It lay between a grocery-store flyer and an envelope from his divorce lawyer, tied to a faded blue ribbon he recognized at once. The key was small and brass-colored, with a shallow bend near the teeth. On the paper tag, in Ruth’s careful handwriting, were four words:

You should have this.

Daniel stood in his friend’s hallway while rain clicked against the stairwell window. Someone downstairs was frying onions. He turned the key in his palm and felt the weight of the apartment he no longer lived in.

It had been a modest place outside Providence, in a brick building that leaned toward the road. The kitchen faced a laundromat whose red sign blinked through the blinds: OPEN, PEN, OPEN, as if the first letter kept changing its mind.

Daniel and Jenny had moved there six months after their wedding. They had chosen it for the second bedroom, imagining a desk, bookshelves, perhaps a crib someday. Instead, the room collected unopened boxes, a drying rack, and an old wooden dresser that smelled faintly of cedar.

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Quick answers about Eight Days in the Spare Room

What is Eight Days in the Spare Room about?

A spare-room key arrives in Daniel's mailbox, tagged in Ruth's handwriting. It opens the door to an apartment he left, and to eight days he cannot explain.

Is Eight Days in the Spare Room free to read?

Yes. Every story on RapidTale is free to read in the browser, with no sign-up and nothing to install.

How long does it take to read?

This story runs 1 chapter — most readers finish in one sitting, and you can stop and return to any chapter using the contents list.

Who wrote it?

Nimra Khan — original fiction published on RapidTale.