Brief Summary
The story revolves around a person who takes a suspiciously cheap apartment and discovers a set of bizarre rules that must be followed to survive the supernatural entities within the building. The protagonist navigates terrifying nights, encounters a ghostly child named Thomas, and barely escapes with their life, ultimately leaving a new tenant to face the same horrors.
- Cheap apartment with hidden horrors
- Supernatural rules for survival
- Encounters with ghostly entities
- Cycle of terror passed on to new victims
The Ominous Apartment Offer
The narrator recounts working at Danny's Burgers when a coworker, Rick, offers them his apartment for an incredibly low rent due to his move with his girlfriend, Sarah. Despite the offer seeming too good to be true, the narrator, enticed by the prospect of financial relief, agrees to take the apartment. Rick's eagerness and strange demeanor during the offer raise suspicions, but the narrator overlooks them, blinded by the potential benefits.
Meeting Mr. Hoffman and Signing the Lease
The narrator meets with Mr. Hoffman, the landlord, at a coffee shop to sign the lease. Mr. Hoffman appears nervous and rushed, avoiding eye contact and providing vague answers to questions about the apartment and building rules. He mentions the previous tenant left due to a job transfer, but his evasiveness and eagerness to finalize the paperwork quickly make the narrator uneasy. Despite these red flags, the narrator signs the lease, eager to secure the affordable apartment.
Moving In and Discovering the Rules
Moving day arrives, and Rick helps the narrator move into the apartment on Maple Street. The apartment is clean but sterile, lacking any personal touches from previous tenants. After settling in, the narrator discovers a yellowed piece of paper taped inside a kitchen cabinet with a list of bizarre rules for living in apartment 3C. These rules include specific times to lock the door, avoid reflective surfaces, and instructions on how to respond to certain occurrences, such as hearing keys jingling or a child knocking.
First Night and Encounters
The narrator's first night in the apartment is filled with unsettling events. An elderly neighbor, Mrs. Liry, warns them not to "test the list." Later, the narrator hears a sharp click from the front door at exactly 9:31 PM, coinciding with the first rule. In the middle of the night, they hear keys jingling outside their door and turn off the lights, as instructed by the rules. A glimpse in the bathroom mirror reveals a dark shape behind them, and at 3:00 AM, a child's voice asks to be let in, following the specific three-knock pattern outlined in the rules.
Meeting Thomas and the Blinds
The next day, the narrator encounters a barefoot boy named Thomas, who claims to live in the building and warns them about the consequences of breaking the rules. Thomas mentions the importance of keeping the blinds closed, referencing rule number six. That night, the narrator sees a figure in a window across the street that mirrors their own apartment and actions, prompting them to close the blinds.
The Caretaker and the Reflection
The narrator experiences more terrifying events, including heavy knocking on the door and an attempt to unlock it, which is thwarted by the chain lock. Thomas appears and identifies the knocker as the caretaker, who doesn't like locked doors. Later, the narrator catches their reflection moving independently in a darkened window, solidifying the supernatural horrors of the apartment.
The Power Outage and the Elevator
On the third night, a power outage plunges the building into darkness, and the elevator begins to ding repeatedly, accompanied by a foul odor. The narrator remembers rule number four, which warns against using the elevator after midnight. They look through the peephole and see the elevator doors open to reveal nothing but an empty interior filled with the stench of death.
The Landlord's Wife and the Smoke
The narrator is faced with more terrifying events, including three knocks on the door, which prompts them to let Thomas in. Thomas warns of the landlord's wife and the importance of following the rules exactly. While in the bathroom, the narrator sees the landlord's wife in the mirror and is saved by Thomas, who helps them avoid looking directly at her. Later, smoke fills the apartment between 3:33 and 3:43 AM, testing the narrator's resolve to follow rule number nine, which forbids leaving the unit during that time.
The Final Night and the Escape
Thomas warns that the fourth night will bring everything at once. The fire alarm goes off, and Thomas instructs the narrator to follow him and not look back. They navigate through distorted hallways, encountering the landlord's wife and the caretaker in full form. Thomas leads the narrator down a path that goes down, and they eventually escape the building, emerging into the lobby as daylight breaks.
The Cycle Continues
In the lobby, the narrator encounters Sarah, Rick's girlfriend, who is moving into apartment 3C. Rick arrives and greets the narrator with feigned surprise. The narrator, exhausted and traumatized, chooses not to warn Sarah about the horrors of the apartment and walks away, leaving her to face the same terrifying cycle. As the narrator leaves, they hear Rick repeating the same words he used to entice them into taking the apartment, highlighting the cyclical nature of the building's curse.
