Through the Door Gap

The heavy front door swung open briefly for a parcel delivery, and I slipped under the rubber weatherstrip into the shared corridor. Outside felt vast and echoey. Following the baseboard past several closed doors, I reached the concrete fire stairs. The riser was too tall to clear in a single stride, so I looped my rubber band around the metal leg of a nearby umbrella stand, pulling the tension to hoist myself onto the first tread. From this ledge, I mapped the descent down the spiral railings toward the street-level exit.