Scratches

Mitsy and Jon were neighbors. They didn’t hate each other, but then again, they didn’t exactly like each other either. They were always polite to each other, but they weren’t the type of neighbors to borrow a cup of sugar from each other. They lived in an apartment complex in Los Angeles, California. Mitsy lived on the bottom floor in apartment number 5 and Jon lived on the floor above her in apartment number 6. They saw each other every day in the parking lot. They had assigned spots right next to each other.

Jon was a grumpy old retired man who liked to go to sleep early and Mitsy was a very outgoing and social person. She worked part time and she went to college full time to get a degree in business. She liked to have fun on the weekends.

One weekend during the summer, Mitsy’s friends decided to throw her a surprise party for her 22nd birthday. Her friend Jo invited all if Mitsy’s friends. When Mitsy came home from work that Friday night, she was so surprised when all of her friends were in her apartment. She was happy. Her friends turned the stereo up loud and then they got out the food and the drinks. They were all having a good time and some people were even getting drunk. Jo was the drunkest of them all though. She was noisily and happily singing happy birthday to Mitsy when the cops showed up.

At about 11:00 there was a very demanding knock on the door. When Mitsy answered the door and saw the cops standing there, one of her friends immediately turned the music down.

“Excuse me ma’am, but your music is too loud and you are disturbing the other apartment residents,” one of the cops said.

“Oh! I didn’t realize that we were being so loud,” Mitsy said.

“Alright then, this will just be a warning, but don’t let it happen again.”

“Oh, yes of course. Sorry!” Mitsy said nervously.

The police man just nodded “Good night ma’am.”

“Night,” she said as she closed the front door.

As soon as the cops left everyone started talking, “Who could have called the cops?”

Yet that was soon dismissed when the music was turned back on, only quieter this time. Mitsy still wondered who it was. She figured that it was one of her neighbors, but she didn’t know which one.

The next morning, after every one had gone home and she had woken up, she went outside to get her newspaper. On her way out she saw Jon walking back to his apartment with his paper in his hand. “Happy Birthday,” he said with a smug look on his face. At that moment Mitsy realized that it was Jon who had called the cops the night before. He most likely didn’t like their music so he had called the cops. Oh well, she though, he was just a grouchy old man who wouldn’t cause any real trouble. But that was when she saw her car.

Scratched into the side of her car was the words ‘HapPy biRTHdaY!” the same words that Jon had just said to her. She knew that it had to be Jon. She was so beyond mad.

She raced up the stairs to his apartment and knocked furiously on his door. When he answered the door she yelled, “What the hell is your problem?! I know that it was you who called the cops, but scratching my car? That is just too much!”

He didn’t say anything for a minute and just stared at her. “I didn’t scratch your car,” he said. “I called the police, because you and your friends were being too loud and I trying to sleep, but I didn’t scratch your car.”

“Well, if you didn’t do than who did?” she asked him.

“How should I know? Can you go away now, I was right in the middle or reading the paper” Jon said.

Mitsy miserably walked back down to her apartment. What was she going to do now? She had no idea who would scratch her car like that and she didn’t have any money to spare to fix it. When she was back inside she noticed that there was a message on her answering machine. She pushed the button to listen to the message.

“Hi Mitsy, its Jo,” the answering machine said. “I think that I might have dinged your car door last night when I left with Lulu. I was pretty drunk so she gave me a ride home. I don’t know if it left a mark or not. If it did, then I’m sorry and I will pay for it. Talk to you later. Bye.”

By the time that the message was done playing Mitsy knew who had scratched her car.