She felt for the lock in the dark

Melissa had dreamt about living in Rose Cottage ever since she was a child, when she'd walked past the house on her way to school. Every morning she'd stand on tiptoes to peek into the garden, which was always awash with colour. The whitewashed walls glimmered in the morning sun, the polka dot curtains hanging at the windows Greeted her cheerily and the neatly thatched roof normally had a bird or two sitting on it, twittering away. There was even an archway of roses around the doorway. In Melissa's eyes It was the perfect place.

And here she was, twenty years on, standing outside the cottage, about to become its latest inhabitant. She'd been idly browsing the local properties when she spotted it, looking every bit as cheery and homely as she remembered. She'd done a few sums and realised that she could just about afford it, at a pinch ... Finally her childhood dream was going to come true! Heart in mouth, she'd phoned the estate agent to arrange a viewing.

"Sorry love, it's already gone," the smarmy salesman had said. "Snapped up straight away. Buyer's going to knock that old place down and build some flats. Shame really."

Shame indeed. In the space of a phone call all Melissa's dreams burst like soap bubbles. But she was not going to be defeated. Rose Cottage was meant to be hers, it always had been - and nothing and no one was going to get in her way.

Sneaking a look over her shoulder to check no one was around, she walked up the path to the shiny red door. She felt for the lock in the dark, inserted a long tool, gave a sharp twist and pushed the door open. She was the live in tenant now, whatever anyone said. Squatters rights, she had ... And she wasn't going to move without a fight.