On the screen, Tiffany yanked the door handle again and glared directly into the camera lens with a look of pure fury. “Ethan, if you can hear me right now, I need you to stop being childish and let us into the apartment,” she said loudly.
My mother immediately typed into the chat that I should just give them the code and that we could talk about boundaries at a later time. Her request for access now and boundaries later was the unofficial constitution of our family that I had lived under for decades.
My heart was hammering against my ribs, but when I pressed the microphone icon to speak, my voice came out surprisingly calm. “The apartment is not available for guests this weekend, so you will all need to find a hotel,” I said through the speaker.
Everyone in the hallway jumped in surprise and looked up at the small camera like the building itself had started speaking to them. Arthur blinked in shock while Martha pressed a hand to her chest, and Cody pulled one of his headphones out to listen.