Chapter 3
Chapter Three
Derek
Remi was back. Not really, but he had been.
I could still smell him in our dorm room.
When I came back to our room yesterday, I’d been hit with his calming scent as soon as I stepped inside the room.
It had been such a relief that I almost sagged against the doorframe.
He had been fast asleep, so I’d gotten in bed too, not daring to work on my app and risk waking him.
I still had no idea why he’d left, but now that he was back, I was determined to be the best roommate ever.
My sleep depended on it. My sanity, too.
I needed Remi to never leave again. So, no loud noises.
I was almost giddy with excitement as I snuggled into bed, hoping I could finally get some undisturbed sleep without my nightmares creeping up on me.
I didn’t have any classes today, so I’d dedicated the whole day to my app.
A knock on the door disturbed that. It also reminded me that I’d forgotten to eat lunch.
It wasn’t until I stood up to open the door that my stomach gave an angry growl at me.
I hoped whoever it was wouldn’t stay long; it was humiliating having a roaring belly, and I needed to find something to fuel it soon.
Opening the door, I tilted my head in surprise. A guy I’d never seen before stood there with a beaming smile and the bluest eyes.
“Um,” I began, trying to do the whole conversation thing, but then his scent hit me and I almost groaned. He smelled just like Remi, well not identically, but he had the same soothing effect somehow, like his natural scent calmed me.
“Hi,” he said, waving a little. I couldn’t help but smile at that. He seemed really friendly, and combined with his scent I felt myself relaxing in his presence. “Does Remi live here?”
Remi?
“Yes? Are you a friend of his?” I asked, not really knowing if Remi would get mad at me for telling this stranger where he lived. But said stranger had found our dorm himself, and he seemed so trustworthy. And I didn’t trust people easily, so that said a lot.
He seemed to mull over the question before he answered with a shrug. “Hopefully more than friends,” then he winked and shot me an easy grin. “Do you mind if I leave a note for him? He doesn’t have my number.”
“Oh, sure.” I stepped over to my laptop where my notebook was and handed it over to him along with a pen. He quickly scribbled something down and handed it back.
“Thank you. I hope we’ll see each other again someday.” And then he left. I stood for a few seconds to process this whole encounter when my stomach made an angry sound, reminding me I still needed to get some lunch.
I put the note down on my desk and left the room, hoping I would be back before Remi returned.
“Hi, Derek.” Remi’s sudden chipper tone startled me. I hadn’t even noticed the door opening, too focused on my work to pay any attention to my surroundings.
“Um, hi,” I replied in a whispered tone, too shaken up to do anything else.
“How’ve you been?” he asked, with a calmer tone this time.
It didn’t seem like he was mad at me, which was a good sign, right? Maybe that meant I hadn’t done anything to make him hate me as his roommate. Maybe I wasn’t the reason he hadn’t been living here for months.
“Um, good?” I replied, sounding unsure even to my own ears.
He still stood in front of the door awkwardly. Was he nervous? “That’s good. I’m sorry I sort of moved out and didn’t tell you about it.” He tried giving me a smile, but it looked as tense as it likely felt forcing it out.
“Oh, so you did move out?” I asked, not happy knowing I had been such a horrible roommate he’d actually wanted to leave.
He nodded, then moved to sit on his bed. “Yeah, I lived with my girlfriend, or now ex-girlfriend.”
What would be the best way to reply to that?
I had never given other people a second glance, not knowing what the whole thing about romantic partners was about.
No one had ever caught my eye, but I found others could get really hurt over being broken up with.
But I didn’t know if Remi had been dumped or not. In the end I settled for sympathy.
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.” I hoped it came out sincere, I was secretly happy having him back here, which reminded me. “Are you living here again then?”
He nodded. “I hope you didn’t take it personally that I left.”
“I just assumed I’d done something wrong, or said something wrong.
I tend to do that with people without realizing it.
” That was why I preferred to work on my app instead of meeting up with Amber.
She was so sweet toward me and I couldn’t risk making someone as kind as her hate me. It was much easier to avoid her.
“No, no,” he hastily assured me.
I relaxed a bit knowing I wasn’t the reason. “Okay,” I smiled. “I’ve missed you.”
He gave me another awkward smile before replying, “Me too.” I beamed at that.
“Your natural scent calms me,” I admitted. “My nightmares got worse once your t-shirt lost its scent.”
“My scent?” he questioned, looking either confused or terrified. Maybe a mix of both?
“Yes,” I replied, calmly.
“Why?” he only seemed confused now, which helped my own confusion.
“I don’t know why,” I shrugged. “It just calls to me and calms me down.”
“Cool,” he said, fiddling with his comforter. “I’ll find you a new one.”
This was the best day ever! “Thank you!” I said, feeling my cheeks ache with how wide I was smiling.
“Then I might actually get some sleep.” I felt the relief of that thought rush through me, and some tears started blurring my vision.
I could maybe function again like a normal person.
No more nightmares. Please, let there be no more darkness and shadows.
“I have class!” he blurted, likely just remembering he needed to be elsewhere.
“Wait!” I called after him, stopping him halfway through the door. “Some guy came looking for you.” I got up from my chair and handed him the note.
He took it and eyed it curiously. “What did he look like?”
“Blonde hair, blue eyes, leather jacket,” I replied, sitting back down at my desk.
Remi didn’t ask any further questions, seemingly glued to his phone. I decided to leave him to it; I had work to do and some research on how to be the best roommate to ever exist.