Another semester's about to kick off, and just thinking about that soul-crushing commute from home makes me want to crawl back into bed. Getting my own place? Yeah, right. My bank account would literally laugh me out of the room.

That's when fate intervened in the form of a crumpled flyer stapled to a telephone pole.

The boarding house in the photo looked like something straight out of a cozy movie—a weathered two-story house with character written into every brick. Sure, it showed its age in places, but there was something undeniably warm about it that jumped off the page. And the rent? Almost too good to be true.

Before I could second-guess myself, my feet were already carrying me toward that address.

I found myself standing at the front door, the address from the flyer matching perfectly.

Warm laughter drifted through the walls, painting a picture of life happening inside.

I took a breath and pressed the doorbell, listening to footsteps approach from within.