8. Could You Find A Housemate?
JAKE
8
Friday night rolls around, and I’m heading back to Brisbane. I have been looking forward to this exact moment all week.
My phone buzzes just as I climb into the car, and I pull it out of my pocket while I start the engine, letting it idle for a moment while I read the message.
Stacey
Got plans tonight?
I stare at my phone for a few minutes, contemplating my response.
Stacey and I had been hooking up for a few months, ever since a drunken tumble in the sheets after the pub one night, but it hadn’t gone any further than sex until recently when she started hinting at wanting more. I have been avoiding her since I won the apartment, something I’m not proud of, but I haven’t been sure how to let her down gently. As much as I’m not interested in a relationship with her, she is still a nice girl. I just don’t feel the connection I’ve been searching for with her. I had thought that maybe Beth might have been the one a few years ago, but she hadn’t been able to handle country life, and that is kind of a deal breaker when my work is out here.
Jake
Yeah, sorry. Headed back to Brisbane.
I leave it at that, feeling like a dick, but I don’t want to end it via text, either. I’d really like to avoid an awkward ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ conversation, which I kind of suck at. I hate hurting people and have never really perfected the art of letting people down gently. I’m not really suited to the ‘hook-up’ life.
I scroll to my favourite playlist and head off.
As much as I try to avoid it, it’s not long before my thoughts turn to Bri.
I’ve been texting her all week, and I am choosing to ignore that this may have contributed to how excited I’ve been to return to Brisbane this weekend. I am still trying to come up with a nickname for her that will stick as well as Just Jake seems to have. She has now officially shortened it to JJ, claiming Just Jake was too long. I’d spent far too much time this week focussing on making her smile while I tried to think of one that wasn’t terrible for her.
As I pull into my street, Chris texts to say he’s on his way over for dinner, so I head upstairs for a shower. When I come out of the master bedroom, I find him letting himself into the apartment with two pizzas and a six-pack of IPAs from his local brewery. I’d given him and Will spare keys for the apartment, figuring if any of them wanted to use the place while I was away, at least the view wouldn’t be going to waste.
“Hey man, how’s it going?” He nods toward me while he puts the pizza on the bench and the beers in the fridge. When I join him in the kitchen, he pulls two from the carrier and hands me one.
“Good mate. Thanks for grabbing the food. I’m starving.”
We head for the couch, and Chris turns on the NHL game from earlier today. Chris is a recent convert to ice hockey and has been trying to get the rest of us on board. I’ve slowly been working out the rules, and I have to admit, it’s fun to watch.
“It feels so weird getting to see you twice in two weeks. Do you think you’ll keep this place as your Brisbane base now?” Chris asks at the end of the first period while we start our second beer.
“I want to. It’s definitely been convenient to have. I was only thinking earlier how much more I was looking forward to the weekend this week than I normally am. But, I’ve got to work out how I can afford the upkeep of this place. I don’t want to pay two electricity bills, water bills, rates and all that shit. Not to mention paying for someone to clean it.” I shrug and take a mouthful of beer, looking around.
I’d done an okay job tidying it up last weekend after the party, but I would have to do some cleaning in the morning.
“Given we don’t even own one house yet, I can see how that would be a pain in the ass. What about AirBnBing it? Surely, a place like this would go well on there?”
“I’ve thought about it, but I want to stay here whenever I want, which’ll be on the weekends. Probably the time it would be in most demand. And most people would want to party it up here, which I doubt the neighbours would be into. Actually, I think there might be something in the body corp rules about excluding AirBnB. I vaguely remember the lady from the charity saying something about that. I probably should read those properly.”
Chris shakes his head and huffs a laugh at me.
“Mate, I don’t do paperwork, you know that.” I shrug.
“Still, you probably should check that out before you do something to piss off the neighbours.” Chris works in insurance and spends all his time reading the sort of paperwork that would put me to sleep in minutes.
“Yeah, yeah.” I wave him off.
“Give it to me, you lazy bastard. I’ll read through it all and give you the highlights.”
“You truly are a hero, mate.” I get up and fish the pile of paperwork out that I’d at least had the foresight to print out a few weeks ago and shoved in the desk in the study nook last weekend.
“Whatever. Just expect to be doing all my electrical work on your weekends when we finally get our place.”
I give him a thumbs-up, and he starts reading through the documents while the game starts back up.
“Okay, so it does mention no parties over twenty people. Luckily, we were under that last weekend anyway, or that would have been a fun conversation for you. And you’re right - it notes that the properties are only for long-term tenants or owners, so that excludes AirBnB.” Chris has gone all corporate speak on me, which I have always found humorous.
But what he’s saying makes keeping this place even more complicated to figure out.
“Could you find a housemate for here? One who is cool with you popping in and out whenever you want?”
“That’s probably going to have to be the solution. But, it needs to be someone I know ’cause I don’t want to be dealing with some rando who is into drugs and shit.” I have never had a roommate, and I’m not keen on this idea, but it seems like the only option.
“What about Kylie and Tara?”
I cock my head to the side while I think this option over. “That could work. Or maybe you guys or Will and Lis?” I shoot him the puppy dog eyes.
“Not us, man. We’re not far off starting to look for our own place. Will and Lis might be a go, though. You should ask them tomorrow night.”
I could get on board with this. “Yeah, that’s a great idea. Are you guys still good for tomorrow night as well?”
“Yep.”
He hands back the documents and gives me an overview of what’s in them. Thankfully, the rest of the rules all seem fine.
“Oh, wait. Was there anything in there about pets?”
“Just that they only allow pets under 10kg. Why?” he asks, raising an eyebrow.
“Bri asked if it was okay to bring Maddie tomorrow night. Didn’t want her to get the third degree in the elevator if there’s an issue with pets in the building.”
Chris pauses for a moment before answering. “I didn’t realise you and Bri had been in contact. Is there something going on I should know? Morgan mentioned she saw Bri come out of your room on Sunday morning.”
His big brother voice is starting to come out now.
I shake my head with a laugh. “Nothing happened. She wanted to go to sleep early, and with Kylie being drunk, I didn’t think it would be fair to make her share a room with them, so she slept in with me. I didn’t go to bed til hours after her anyway, and the bed is massive, so there was no touching.”
From the messages we exchanged this week, I get the feeling Brianna hasn’t mentioned anything to anyone about the spooning that had occurred in our sleep. When I’d awoken to find myself wrapped around her, I’d been both shocked and thrilled. Stacey and I had never progressed to sleepovers, so it’s been a while since I shared a bed with anyone else, and waking up to a warm back pressed firmly to my chest had felt so good. I wasn’t sure if it was because I’d missed intimacy or because it was Bri. When she’d stirred, though, I’d moved away and immediately felt the loss of her touch. I’d messaged her to apologise the next day, but I wasn’t actually sorry. It had felt too right to feel like I’d done something wrong.
“Good. Keep it that way,” Chris says, sounding like an overprotective father, which pisses me off.
“Hold up, since when do you decide who I sleep with anyway?” I ask.
“Do you want to sleep with Bri?” He shoots back.
I’m unsure if we are entering dangerous territory with this conversation. “Mate, she just broke up with her boyfriend. Even if I did want to sleep with her, I’m not interested in being anyone’s rebound.”
I can tell this is the correct answer when Chris relaxes back into his seat a little.
“Good. Because aside from the fact that she’s Morgan’s little sister, with you being out west most of the time, I don’t think it would work. And Morgan would blow a gasket.”
I hold my hands up. “Honestly, I have no intention of making a move on her. We’re just friends.” I narrow my eyes while I give him a stern look. “Like we were back in school, remember?”
He finally relaxes fully, and I let out a breath. I’m not used to being on this side of Chris’ overprotective nature, and I don’t like it much.
“That was a bit full on, mate.”
Chris has the sense to realise he overreacted. “Sorry. She’s just pretty vulnerable at the moment. Morgan mentioned she’s refusing to cry or anything about her breakup, and I know full well how hot she is, so the last thing she needs is to be jumping into bed with anyone else.”
“You do realise it’s me you’re talking to, right? Since when have you ever known me to take advantage of anyone, much less Morgan’s little sister? I’ve known Bri since she was born, remember,” I say pointedly, although I feel my chest tighten a little at the idea that Bri is refusing to deal with her feelings.
She’s always been one to keep her feelings close to her chest, but from my observations and what Chris has just said, it’s clear that she’s withdrawn into herself even more over the years.
“True. Sorry man. I wasn’t thinking.” He runs a hand through his hair and gives me a slight grin.
“Damn right, you weren’t. Cut that bullshit out. I don’t want to have to kick your ass.” I grin back at him, glad that the shit part of the conversation is over now.
Chris rolls his eyes. “You could never kick my ass, asshole.”
“I can, and you know it. In fact, let’s settle this right now.”
I get up, and he looks at me with raised eyebrows, opening his mouth to speak until he sees me heading for the Nintendo Switch controllers and laughs. I throw him one and turn it on before returning to the couch, holding the second controller in front of me.
“Mario Kart. Prepare to be beaten, my friend.”
We play a few rounds, and I do, indeed, kick his ass. It shows I have far more time to play video games than he does. I’m pretty sure that’s not something I should be happy about, though.
“I surrender!” He drops his controller in defeat, and I do a little victory lap around the couch before putting the controllers back as he flicks the TV back to the end of the game.
“Actually, back on the subject of Bri.”
I groan and throw my head back in frustration, and he puts his hands up.
“Not that, idiot. What about asking her if she wants to live here? She needs to get out of her parent’s house, and this place would kind of be perfect for her,” he says, looking around the apartment.
I have to admit, it’s not a bad idea. “Yeah, I guess that could work. I’ll chat to her about it tomorrow night. Can’t hurt to ask.”
It’s the last we speak about Bri for the rest of the night. When Chris leaves, and I head to bed, my thoughts drift back to focus once more on a certain gorgeous blonde, and I have to admit that the idea of having Bri staying here made me a little happier than it should.
It could also be a recipe for disaster.