chapter 2

Justin's new flat was on the ground floor in a terrace of flats, no higher than two storeys. His flat was near the end of a tree lined street and was only one of several other similar looking tree lined streets.
At the crossroads nearest his flat was a post office, a Chinese takeaway, and a small supermarket. At the crossroads of the next street was a butcher's shop, a fish n chip shop, a sandwich shop and a housewares shop. Further over was a hairdresser, an off license, a newsagent and a wool shop.
He only had to walk to the other end of the street to catch the bus to work. If he walked a bit further in that direction, would pass a graveyard, but beyond that there was a bank, a pizzeria, an Indian supermarket and an Indian takeaway, another hairdresser, a launderette, church and two pubs.
He thought he had found the ideal spot to live.
The flat itself was bigger than his old one. He had a huge front room as his bedroom with a big bay window. The ceilings were high with elaborate plaster cornicing and ceiling roses.
The bedroom where his new flatmate slept was tiny. It only had enough room for a single bed, it was dark, dingy and uninspiring. The living room was small, but bigger than his previous flat. He wished he could have afforded to rent somewhere with central heating, but he couldn't. At least this has a gas fire. There was room for a small dining table and chairs and a three seater sofa as well as a comfortable chair.
The kitchen was beyond the living room with a door out onto the concrete yard with a washing line. It was spacious in comparison with his last flat, but still small. The only thing missing was a washing machine. But there was a laundrette nearby, so he did not see that much of an issue. Beyond the kitchen was a large bathroom with a huge cast iron bath. He supposed it would be very welcoming after a long day on his feet at work.

Most of the furniture in the house was mismatched Victorian brown wood. The walls were covered in boring white wood chip paper. His flatmate had done her best to jazz the place up a bit on a budget with some large posters on the walls. She'd bought a standing lamp for the living room for only five pounds. An absolute bargain! Apart from the fact that it never stood vertical and always looked like it was falling over. The telly was also a radio and could play cassette tapes and was rented from a different company than the one who ran the house.
His flatmate was a nurse who would be working peculiar shifts. She explained she would pay all the bills, just as long as he paid his share and kept the cummunal areas clean and tidy.
Justin thought this was ideal! It would be almost like living on his own. He had freinds in the next street. They could all go to the pub together!