Roomies #2
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Lovey asks.
The answer is no. I’m not sure at all. As I stand here, staring at this tiny, ugly room, I come to the conclusion that I’m ridiculously pampered. Growing up with a dad who makes ridiculous amounts of money means we’ve lived in nice houses and had nicer-than-average things.
I still had a part-time job as soon as I turned fifteen, because my parents wanted me to have the responsibility and to learn how to save money.
They also wanted me to be able to handle social situations without having an anxiety attack.
Granted, I’ve always worked in libraries, where quiet is key, and most of the time I’m either shelving or checking out books, but it was still a job and still some forced, controlled social interaction.
“Once I put some of my stuff on the walls, it’ll feel homier.” It also has a slightly funky smell I can’t quite put my finger on.
We spend the next hour unpacking. Even with my comforter and my personal effects, the room is still small and shitty, but it’s also away from Kodiak and my brothers, so that’s a win.
Lacey and Lovey have some project they need to finish, and I have a freaking economics assignment I need to work on before class tonight, so they take off, promising to check in on me later, and I pop in my earbuds and try to tackle the questions.
I get through most of them before I have to leave for class, but I don’t even have time to stop and grab dinner so I settle for a handful of Lucky Charms before I’m out the door.
By the time class is over, my head feels like it’s going to explode, and also, I’m starving. In addition, I have seven hundred messages from River that I’m not interested in answering. I return to my dorm, expecting that I might meet my roommate, but our common room is still an empty sty.
I toss my bag on the floor, grab my box of Lucky Charms since the cafeteria is closed, and flop down on my bed with my psych text. I must pass out at some point while reading, because I wake up with a jolt.
It’s dark in my room, and the clock reads after midnight.
It’s not uncommon for me to sleep for twelve hours after I’ve dealt with some huge emotional thing, so my passing out almost as soon as I got home from class isn’t much of a surprise.
The whole conversation with my mom about Kodiak and moving out of the house definitely qualifies as emotional.
A high-pitched, feminine voice filters through my door, followed by the low tones of a male voice, giggling and something falling on the floor. Soon the laughing becomes sighs and groans. Awesome. My new roommate is having sex in the filthy living room.
I pop my earbuds back in and crank the volume to drown them out. Every time a song ends, I get a snippet of their sexy times. It goes on for a good half hour before it finally ends. My dorm experience is starting off with a bang.
In the morning, my anxiety is at a nice, ridiculously high level.
At five thirty, the need to pee overrides my desire to never come out of this room in hopes of avoiding a dreaded run-in with my roommate and her boyfriend/fuck buddy.
I have to bring my room key with me to our bathroom because my door automatically locks behind me.
This isn’t super convenient, but I can see why it’s necessary.
In addition to the old-food smell, the common room now boasts the horrible odor of used latex and vagina.
I take care of business as quickly as I can and nearly slam into a bare chest on my way out of the bathroom.
“Lavender?”
I lift my gaze from the man nipples to a familiar face. As far as signs go, this isn’t a great one. “Oh, hey, Clarke.”
He looks super confused. “I didn’t know you lived in the dorms.” He runs his hand through his hair, eyes moving over me in a way that makes my skin crawl.
I’m wearing one of those bra tank things and a pair of sleep shorts. My nipples are most definitely saluting him. I cross my arms over my chest to hide them. “I guess now you do,” is my highly intellectual response.
His eyes flare, as though he’s connecting the dots. “Sorry about the noise last night.”
“Nothing a nice hard-rock playlist won’t drown out.
” Now would’ve been an awesome time for my words not to work.
“Anyway, bathroom’s all yours.” I slip past him, desperate to disappear before my roommate wakes up and this gets even more awkward.
Clarke is a hockey player, and I’m now concerned my roommate may be one of the bunnies I’ve had the misfortune of meeting before.
By the time I’m dressed and ready to leave, it’s quarter to seven.
I sneak out undetected and head for the cafeteria. It’s busy, and I’m not used to communicating with anyone but family this early—and that’s mostly in offensive hand signals.
The noise and sheer volume of people is more than I can deal with, so I grab a coffee and a muffin and head for the Arts Building.
My class isn’t for another forty minutes, so I find a quiet corner, pop my earbuds in, cue up a playlist, and settle in with my coffee and my homework.
I have a test at the beginning of next week, and unless I can master these concepts, I won’t have a hope in hell of passing.
I’m deep into unemployment rates and struggling to understand percentages when a shadow appears in front of me and doesn’t move.
I lift my head and am relieved to see it’s not my brothers, or Kodiak, or one of my cousins.
“Hey, Josiah, how’s it going?” He has a hickey on his neck that he’s trying to hide with a collared Harry Potter polo.
“Good. You?” He flops down in the chair next to mine.
“That, sir, is a loaded question.”
“Uh-oh. What new drama has unfolded in the House of Jocks?”
Josiah lives in an apartment off campus with a roommate named Ali who’s in the engineering program and is pretty much always studying at the library or over at his girlfriend’s place.
I give him the pared-down version of events—i.e., me being tired of the bullshit. “I moved into the dorms yesterday.”
His eyes flare. “Brothers still being overprotective, then?”
“Yup.”
“That Kodiak guy still being an ass?”
“Also yup.”
“Dude needs to get a clue. How was your first night in the dorms?”
“My roommate brought a hockey player home and banged him in the living room.”
“Classy. Wait, how do you know it was a hockey player?” His eyes light up. “Did he say things like let me show you my stick-handling skills?”
I snicker. “No, I ran into him in the bathroom this morning. He’s been to my brothers’ parties before.”
Josiah makes a face. “That’s awkward.”
“Truer facts have never been spoken.” I know my roommate’s sex sounds, and I haven’t even met her. I poke his neck. “This looks fresh. Potential relationship material or a hookup?”
“Probably a hookup. He’s still in the this-is-just-a-phase style of thinking.” Josiah rubs the spot and looks away. Obviously there’s more to it, but I don’t want to push. “How’s math going?”
I flip the book shut. “I currently have 48 percent in the class and a big test next week that I’m hoping to pass. But unless I can get a handle on this stuff, there’s no way that’s going to happen.”
“Want me to have a look?”
“Sure.” I pass him the textbook and flip to the review section for the upcoming test. “I have a ton of practice questions, and every single one is wrong.”
He skims through the pages. “I thought when you said you had a math course, you meant actual math, not macroeconomics. I took this last year, so I can probably help you out if you want.”
“Are you sure you have time for that? I’d like to say I’ll pick it up fast, but I probably won’t. Me and numbers have a hate-hate relationship.”
“Yeah. For sure. I need to keep my mind off this.” He taps the hickey. “And helping a friend would be a great distraction.”
I hug his biceps. “I am super willing to be your distraction, but you may regret offering to help me.”
He chuckles. “You can’t be that bad. And I would’ve offered sooner if I’d realized I could actually be of some help.”
“You underestimate me, my friend, and you may very well be glad you didn’t offer sooner.”
We gather our things and head to costume and set design class. Since I’ve already handed in my costume project, I’m working on some of the set design pieces for the fall play. I’m mindlessly painting a brick wall, listening to music, when my professor drops into a crouch beside me.
I pop my earbuds out. “I’m sorry. I was totally lost in my own world.”
“No need to apologize, Lavender. Do you have time to meet with me after class?”
“Uh, sure. Is everything okay?” My mouth is suddenly dry, and I have the urge to wring my hands. I hope I didn’t screw up my costume project. Maybe it’s not as good as I thought.
She gives me a reassuring smile. “Nothing to worry about. But there’s an opportunity I’d like to discuss with you. It won’t take long, and I think you’ll be pleased.”
At the end of class, Josiah and I make plans to meet later in the afternoon for tutoring, and I let Lacey and Lovey know I have to bail on lunch, but I’ll catch up with them later.
My palms are sweaty by the time I reach Professor Martin’s office.
I pop a mint and take a deep breath before I knock on her door.
“Lavender, come on in.” She motions to the empty chair beside her desk.
Posters cling to the walls, books line the shelves, and costume pieces hang from a rack in the corner. It’s chaotic and visually overwhelming, but I love it. Kodiak would lose his mind in here. I tell my brain to shut up, because he’s the last person I’d like to think about right now.
I take a seat and clasp my hands in my lap so I don’t do what my mom always calls the “otter rub,” where it looks like I’m trying to warm up my hands by rubbing them over each other incessantly.
She gives me a reassuring smile. “I’m sure you’re wondering what this is about.”
I nod and manage a quiet yes.
“I wanted to talk to you about your costume project.”
“Oh.” A million worries rain down on me.