It was a gift from Nana. Swimming in his circular tank of water, the fish was clumsy, fat, and orange. It was the only orange thing in his simple apartment, with white walls and white furniture. Just as he liked it. Only this time, his home was infested with the presence of a slimy, dirty fish. Before leaving into his bedroom he stopped and looked down at the fish “You will only disturb the cleanliness in this apartment,” he said while tapping the clear glass. He walked away grumbling, swept his white marble floors, and just like that, he tried to fall asleep. There were usually little things that he did before going to sleep. He forgot to wipe a stain off the glass window, one of his shirts need ironing, or his room wasn’t the right temperature. When these problems occurred, the solutions were simple. Get up, fix the wrong, admire the clean home, go back to sleep. This night was nothing compared to the rest. Something was making his home dirty. “It’s that clumsy fish. It has to be…it cannot be dirty!” he whispered to himself. In the living room, the fish swam. Its orange gills extended towards the man as he slept. The man found himself drowning in fish food. Smelly, dirty fish food. The sweat on his body didn’t make anything better. When did he ever sweat? He was in desperate need of a shower. Breathing heavily, the man got up from bed. His hair was plastered with sweat, his room was a disaster. Without thinking, he stuck his hand into the tank. The fish was caught between the man’s fingers, left no form of escape. Laughing, he stepped into the bathroom and grinned at fish. He let it slip from its fingers. The fish plopped into the toilet, splashing water all over the man’s face. Overcome with excitement, the man paid no attention to the water. He flushed the toilet and said goodbye to the fish. Before heading back into bed, the man washed his face three times. “It is clean now,” he said smiling. Repeating his nightly routine, the man got up, fixed the wrong, admired his clean home, and went back to sleep. That night, the man slept in comfort. His home was quiet, clean, and lonely… just as he liked it.