A suspicious neighborhood (SUNG)

When I first decided to live in off-campus, I searched on Craigslist for a week, and finally found a fantastic house. I and my former roommate visited the house, and immediately fell in love with the house. At the same day, we met an old gentleman in front of the house. He was living next the house, and he kindly introduced a satellite TV when we said we came from Asia.

 

After moving the new house, I named the old man as “Walking Man”. The reason was that he always walked in front of my house for exercising. I could see him almost every day except rainy days. His walking route was very simple; starting from his house, passing our house, arriving at Chase bank, and coming back. It was just two block distance, and he came and went many times a day.

 

 

I cannot say that we are so familiar, but at least we say hello each other. Especially, when I bought a car, he showed a great interest in my car. Sometimes, he made a joke, “I have a date. Leave your car key at my house!” I considered him as a good neighborhood and an old gentleman. He always dressed up when he was walking so I guessed him as a retired businessman.

 

This summer, I had an unexpected visitor. A woman visited my house, and introduced herself as a detective. She showed a picture and asked me I could recognize a man in the picture. He was my neighborhood “Walking Man”. I couldn’t 100% understand what she said, but he had some problem in other State, and moved here without permission. I couldn’t figure out what was the exact problem, but he was kind of a former criminal. I was shocked because I thought him as a really nice man. Next day, I was afraid he would be arrested, but nothing was happed.

 

He is still living next my house, and I say hello when I see him. However, I and my new roommates sometimes make a joke about him. “Maybe he has a private jail in underground”. “He tries to find a new victim. That’s why he is always walking around”.

Maybe I cannot know what was his problem in other State forever. However, I became suspicious about my neighborhood. Don’t judge a book by its cover.