Expelled. Expelled like an undesirable from my own home. Finally, the house that had become mine, by dint of living there daily for nearly 13 years already. I am sure houses hold souls. They are independent individuals, who have forged their own personalities through the accumulation of time and memories. I often spoke to this house. And it always seemed to welcome me there. From the very beginning, in fact, when I first came to visit it… It seemed familiar to me, with its tiled kitchen, old-fashioned stove, and mosaic flooring. From the outside, it might not have looked special. A two-story house, with a small garden. But inside, it had that certain warmth, a kind of quiet beauty… Perhaps it was due to its huge living room, but also to its wooden floor and large windows overlooking a quiet street.

Yes, from the very beginning I had felt safe there. Me, the homeless guy who had been kicked out of his parents' house. Oh, of course, he hadn't expressed their intentions openly, but my father made sure I felt unwelcome. That I was a nuisance. So he started despising me by pretending I didn't exist… Just like in my teenage years, when I was already too much over there.

Then one fine day, I packed my things and headed back to Verona. Oh, I hadn't taken all my belongings, far from it, but never mind ! They could keep them. Those who, behind a libertarian and vaguely anarchist appearance, were still stingy, even with their children.

Me, the homeless person who had bargained with the owner to sublet a room, found myself once again… homeless, just because he decided to sell the house which, given the real estate boom in Verona going on, had become quite valuable ! Overnight, I therefore found myself back at square one, except that I now had a well-paying job as well as a network that made others envious. It must be said that during all these years, I had not been idle ! I had already climbed many rungs by the strength of my work, and one must also admit, by my communication skills. Having started in a waste disposal site, I had the opportunity to work for the metropolitan budget administration in record time ! I am not ashamed to say that I used a few tricks to get there… But whatever it takes is necessary if you want to succeed.

In any case, I still wanted to continue living in a house. I wanted to continue living in a community, sharing meals, celebrations, and confidences in the evening around the fire and a cup of tea, even the hardships... And God knows there had been plenty of them in that house. But this was nothing compared to what awaited me in the next one...

It was on a gloomy day that I landed in this real estate agency. I didn’t just want a house. I wanted MY house. Even better, I wanted to be at the root of this new flatshare, you know, not just a cog in the machine.

5500 euros monthly rent, 7000 euros… I couldn’t come up with such an amount. Also, nobody would agree to pay 900 euros in rent, even with a large living space. After an hour of discussion, I was ready to reconsider when the agent took a bold approach : “And why not this one, at 3500 euros a month, all charges included ? Well, it’s a bit out of the way and the condition isn’t fantastic, but it’s fitting your budget, right ? ”

I wasn’t convinced at all, but nevertheless curious. What did I have to lose after all, except maybe an hour at most, the time to make a round trip ? Also, something was pushing me to go see, I who had always relied on instinct and intuition…

Once parked right in front of the gate (it was impossible to park anywhere else anyway), I stepped back to inspect the reason for this visit : the house. A large pale yellow Mediterranean-style house. Thorns as far as the eye could see. Plants were climbing along the cracked paint of the house, ivy sneaking through the cracks of the fence, clever as it was, running along the stone edges of what looked like a pool… Palm trees lined the property, managing to push their long leaves out of the undergrowth and other bushes of all kinds that now covered nearly three-quarters of the land. The land was large, that's for sure, but nothing could be seen because it was so overgrown. Potential without really being any !

And there I was, trying to get a better understanding of the extent of the disaster, when I stumbled, narrowly avoiding falling headfirst into the empty pool at the same time. A shrub had grown right in the basin through a large crack, making it hard to see it. The real estate agent caught me just in time by the right sleeve.

- C’mon, don't fall ! I see this house has an effect on you, but still... He joked.

I didn’t answer, too focused on the house. It was still huge… Good 800 m². Then my gaze was drawn to the huge bay window overlooking Verona. The villa was built on a kind of small hill and overlooked a pond. Two wrought-iron balconies adorned it like crowns, their edges forming waves that were dancing around the house. Needless to say, this beautiful stone creature seemed simply to be calling out for help, crying out in abandonment ! 

- How much per month did you say ? 

- 3,500 euros all-inclusive…

- But that’s not serious, look at its exterior condition, overgrown with brambles ! And I’m sure there’s just as much work inside, if not more ! Not to mention the roof, I can see it from here, it’s…

- Listen, I’ll stop you right there, it’s going to be hard to negotiate, Mr. Benchetrit is tough in business, you know. By the way, he’s a businessman, he lives in Bangkok. Whether you take the house or not, it won’t change anything for him, you know ! 

- Yes, well, we’ll see about that. I’m submitting an application.

- Very well, all the documents should be sent to this email address, on the card. Replied the young agent, without blinking. Despite his young age, it seemed as if he was already disillusioned. He handed me a light blue card, sprinkled with silver letters. 

- You’re not even going to show me the house ? 

- You were so sure of yourself that I thought the deal was closed ! And besides, I still have quite a few appointments... 

- Excuse me, but I still want to know what I’m getting into…

The agent gave a sly smile and promptly headed toward the house, hastily pulling a large bunch of rusty keys from his leather bag. Anyway, it was true that I didn’t even need to visit this house. I knew, deep down, that I was going to take it. Thorns or not. Businessman or not. And indeed, seeing it from the inside confirmed it for me: This house, too, had a soul. Something warm and benevolent that seemed to invite me to get to know it. To know its past and the reason for its existence. It also felt incredibly familiar to me. The rooms were all generously sized, and the huge bay window was like its showcase, giving it the air of a palace. The living-dining room in particular was immense, with its brick and stone fireplace standing in the center, seemingly waiting for guests. The bedrooms were nothing extraordinary, but the bathrooms, with their sculpted bathtubs and wooden vanities, were charming. They would delight the future women who would move in here, because of course, this shared apartment would be mixed and full of diversity.

- I’m sure I’m the only applicant for this. The land is too overgrown and the house hasn’t been renovated for at least 15 years ! 

- 13, to be exact. But you have a good eye… However, as I was telling you, Mr. Benchetrit doesn’t bother with peanuts… He has plenty of properties, you know. And he’d rather not rent at all than rent for low prices. 

- That’s what we’ll see. I’m telling you I’m submitting an application ! Me and 4 other people… 

- You mean you want to set up a co-tenancy application? That just complicates things even more ! 

- It seems like you don’t want to rent me this house ! What’s your problem, in the end ? 

- But I have no problem with you, sir, I’m just trying to be realistic about the situation, that’s all. He adjusted his jacket, as if to give himself more credibility. Especially since we’ll need to convince Mr. Benchetrit that you won’t damage the property.

- So you are implying that living in a shared apartment is synonymous with chaos, if I understand properly ?

- No. Only that we already have to manage shared apartments here at the agency and that it has never proven to be positive…

Certainly, things were looking bad. But even if everything suggested that I would never set foot in that house again, something, against all odds, seemed to push me to take these steps.

And it didn’t fail because less than a month later, I moved in. With a rent only 150 euros lower than announced and no guarantee that any work would be done or that my roommates would stay, but I moved in.