Indifference

While enjoying a movie last night, around two in the morning, I heard what sounded like a muffled "help" coming from the apartment below. I muted the movie’s audio and listened…

Silence.

I laid down next to the air vent and pressed my ear against it…

Still silence.

I shrugged, and went back to my movie. About twenty minutes later I heard it again, and repeated the process of stopping the movie and listening at the air vent. And once again I was greeted with nothing but the muffled hum of the air, not a sound to be heard…but something seemed very wrong with the situation. While I am quite used to hearing random shouting and cursing coming from the apartments below, something about this didn’t sit right with me, and I contemplated going down there, or calling the police, but instead finished my movie, turned the fan on high, and went to sleep.

One thirty the next afternoon I heard the postman kick the door in downstairs.
A moment later an ambulance, a fire truck, and a police car arrived.
A moment later a dead and covered body was wheeled out on a hospital gurney .
A moment later the police knocked on my door, and asked me if I heard anything unusual the night before.

I said no.