CHAPTER TWO
JULIUS
It’s way too hot for this.
There’s got to be something wrong with my decision making skills because I can barely even think about the alphabet right now, let alone gather my opinion together on the houses I’m looking at today.
All I know is that the three I’ve seen so far haven’t been it for me, but I can’t seem to vocalise why. I just know I didn’t get the feeling I needed to get when looking at them, so it had to be a no.
I don’t even know what that feeling is, but I guess if I’m thinking back to the Halls I settled on last year, I could see myself living there from the moment I walked in, so maybe it’s something like that.
I still have a few more houses to go check after this one anyway; thought I’d get it all in on the same day so I don’t have to keep doing a back and forth situation here in Wild during my summer.
This next house is looking promising, which is why I’ve already made some preemptive plans for it, if I find that it’s what I think it is. If not, then I better say yes to any of the ones I’ll be checking out after.
This letting agent needs to hurry up though. I have no business standing out here with the sun beating down on my skin no matter where I go. It’s not even wise to complain about the heat when winter is bad.
But then again, I complain about everything.
“Julius?”
I turn to find a man who is probably what I would imagine a letting agent called Greg would look like.
“Yeah, that’s me,” I say.
“Sorry I’m a little late. Just got caught up with a few things but we can head inside now if you’re ready.”
“Yeah, I’m definitely ready.”
I’m already at the door, so he catches up and turns the key in the lock.
The house does have a fresh smell. It’s the first thing that greets me so I’ll give it that.
“Okay, so let me tell you a little bit about the house while we make our way in,” Greg begins.
“It’s one of a few that have just made it to the market, with some of the others being a little further away.
It’s a new build, all furniture and amenities are new.
The rent is five hundred and twenty five pounds a month for a non student and three hundred pounds a month for a student because it’s open to all.
There are four bedrooms and two bathrooms. Two bedrooms upstairs and one downstairs, one bathroom upstairs and then one downstairs.
” He faces me. “I remember in our initial conversation you said you had already spoken to someone about your interest in the house, right?”
“Yeah, I think when I first saw the house, it was listed with another letting agency. The guy I spoke to, he took me on a tour over the phone and I told him I wanted to reserve the biggest room at the top. But the landlord switched letting agency and he agent told me he would let update the new agency about my reservation.”
A nervous look crosses his face. “Ah, I see. So that was unfortunately never communicated with us at any point, so we actually…we do have someone who has moved in already. Just today, actually, but their room is the top room in question, unfortunately.”
“They moved in today?”
“Yes.”
I sigh. “It’s annoying that wasn’t communicated.”
He looks kind of nervous as he says, “We definitely would have helped you out if we knew.”
I like things to go the way that I planned, and getting that room was one of them.
But I’m not about to kick up a fuss about it, especially to this guy.
I get the topic back on track by asking, “But the other three rooms are still available, yeah?”
“They are, but we do have a number of viewings now booked in, so I do think the remaining rooms will get claimed quickly. This is the hallway,” he says, which is the moment I realise we’ve only walked a few feet into the house.
“Then we have one bedroom right here so that gives a view to the parking area outside and anyone coming to the front door from that side.” I step inside the room, letting myself visualise living here, before I catch up with the agent.
“If we go a little bit down here, we have another bedroom here. It’s a little smaller than the one occupied upstairs and a little bigger than the one you’ve just seen.
” Walking into the bedroom I’m met with a wave of something I don’t recognise yet.
“Then just over here we have the kitchen, which as you can see is very spacious with all fresh new equipment and appliances. You’ve got your fridge and freezer, stove, microwave, and then there’s also the boiler in here, just in case you need to take a look at it at some point.
Then outside the kitchen just over here in this little room, you have your washer and dryer, and a small storage room here.
If you — Oh, one second,” he says, as he looks down at his ringing phone.
“It’s the Landlord for this place calling me actually.
I’ll just go outside and take this really quickly, but feel free to still have a look around as you please.
Just knock if you wish to see the bedroom on the top right as that’s the one that’s in use already. ”
With those final words, Greg heads outside, closing the door behind him.
I see the garden out there, which tracks with the video tour I’ve already had.
I might as well go out there before I head upstairs, although questions run through my mind as to whether I even need to do that.
There was something about the room I was just in that seems to be enough for me.
There would be one extra available room to check out upstairs, which is feeling like a waste of time at this point.
Maybe I’m just trying not to go up there because I there’s already someone living in one of the rooms, and I don’t intend on talking to many other people today even if they’re my potential roommates.
I’ve reached my quota for socialising for the day, that’s for sure.
I can only take what I’ve endured so far today and it’s even too much, so no way I’m adding any more.
Not to mention the just reduces the heat for most conversations that have no importance in my eyes.
I place my hand on the garden door, working my fingers to twist and open it, but before I know it a noise from behind grabs my attention I’m quickly flipping around to catch who I’m guessing is Greg.
“What the fuck?”
Yeah, this doesn’t look like Greg to me.
The last time I checked, no letting agent I’ve seen today had dark brown skin that glowed against tight shorts and figure hugging T-Shirt.
I’m usually the one who has to look down to people, but the woman before me stands at almost my height, which makes it impossible for me to miss the glare in her eyes.
“What the fuck are you doing?” she repeats and it’s only now I realise I haven’t said anything since she walked in and instead I’m standing here staring and probably looking like some kind of creep. Now that I’m paying attention, it’s pretty hard to miss the stick in her hand.
“I’m going to assume you’re the tenant,” I say.
“Five…” she begins, and I turn around in all my confusion to see if I missed someone behind me.
“Wh—“
“Four…”
I haven’t missed anyone. All the people in this house are in the kitchen so why is she counting down?
“Why are you counting down?”
“Three…”
With one hand etched firmly against her waist, the other clings onto the stick, a stern look on her face as her eyes pierce into mine.
“What are you doing right now?”
“Two…”
I’m not scared of anyone. But this viewing has already annoyed me more than it should have, and now I have a pair of dark eyes studying the fuck out of me, so I don’t even know what to anticipate.
“Stop counting,” I say loud enough for my voice to finally get through to her.
There’s a pause for a moment, before she says, “You have one second before I drag you out.”
I almost let out a laugh. “Drag me out of where? Am I doing something wrong by being here right now?”
Her expression changes to one that would only be fitting in this moment if I’d suddenly grown two heads in two minutes.
“You’re a stranger standing in my house,” she says slowly and plainly.
“I think it’s pretty obvious what you’re doing that’s wrong seeing as I just told you. Like, are you serious?”
I could just end this now by correcting her, but there’s suddenly a battery in me, so I say, “You just moved into this place today. It’s a new place. Anyone you see here would be a stranger, so I think it’s pretty obvious what you’re doing wrong seeing as I just told you. Like, are you serious?”
“Don’t mock me.”
“Can I get back to my viewing now? And can you put that stick down?
“You need to get the — Wait. What?” She pauses for a moment and boredom passes through me as I watch her finally reach a journey of realisation. “Oh, shit wait, it’s Tuesday still. What’s the time?” She looks at me expectantly like I’m actually going to tell her.
“I don’t know.”
“You literally have a phone in your hand.”
“There’s also a clock right behind you.”
With her face turned towards the clock, she says, “It’s just gone three.” The sigh she releases next is followed by, “That must mean you’re the viewed that was booked in for today.” Her eyes meet the ground as she gently places the stick down to lay on it.
“Wow, what gave it away?” I say dryly.
“Well, I lost track of time after my nap, so…”
I know life can feel disorienting after a nap. I’ve been there before myself.
But that’s something she can take up with someone who has the patience for it.
Right now, I don’t know a thing about patience. I just want more than anything to be done with this whole thing so I can get far far away from here. Then I can find somewhere where shade exists and stick a bag of frozen peas over my face or anything that will save me from this nightmare weather.
“Where’s the estate agent?” she asks, pulling me out of my thoughts.
“Outside.”
To my surprise, she walks to the door and from the kitchen I have the perfect view of her opening it, exchanging a few words with Greg, and then closing the door back again.
“You still think I’m lying about why I’m here?” I say.
“It would be silly of me not to check,” she says.
I don’t have a rebuttal to that. “Fine. Fair.”
“I would also prefer it if you didn’t look at my room. Because it’s not exactly an option anyway.”
“Your room,” I say wryly. “That’s funny.”
“Not really but why?”
My mood is worsening by the minute, so I don’t even stop myself from saying, “I reserved that room. And now you’re in it,” even though I stopped caring about the room twenty minutes ago.
“No one told me about a reserved room,” she says.
“Okay,” is my only response.
I can only have myself to blame for her carrying on the conversation by saying, “Are you accusing me of stealing your room? Because you realise how ridiculous that sounds, right?”
I do realise how ridiculous it sounds, which is why I didn’t do it.
“I said, “Okay,” and you added sixteen more words to it.”
With a scoff, she says, “This might be the most immature conversation I’ve ever had. And I’m sure you’re a grown ass man, but maybe that’s something I’m assuming and you’re actually a child.”
“Goo Goo Ga Ga.”
I’m not proud to admit I enjoyed that.
“Please stay out of my room,” she responds, a hint of disbelief in her voice.
“Had the same thought myself,” I say, and decide against checking the other upstairs room as well.
I’m fine with just not going up there for anything.
“Cool.”
And then she’s gone.
Probably the weirdest conversation I’ve ever had.
“That took a little longer than expected, sorry,” I hear a few seconds later as Greg comes back into the room. “I know the new tenant just came down, I don’t know you saw her.”
“Yeah, I spoke to her.”
“Oh, that’s great,” he says. “What are your thoughts on the place so far?”
“I’ll take it,” I say.
That room right out there is mine, and that’s all I need to know.
“You haven’t seen upstairs quite just yet.”
“I don’t need to “ I say. I’ve seen enough. “I won’t be going up there anyway. I want the last room we saw.”
“Well, I don’t see why I would argue with that. Can you pay the deposit today?”
“I’ll send it over right now.”
“Let’s get this all in order then.”
It’s the nicest place I’ve seen so far, and I don’t see the point of dragging this day out any longer to continue with an activity that’s bottom of the barrel when it comes to enjoyment for me.
I even think I got that feeling that I was looking for, but I’ll probably never be able to confirm that because I still don’t know what the fuck I’m talking about.
There is the matter of not knowing who my roommates will be yet.
Well, apart from…one. My first meetings with people don’t tend to be great anyway because I can say with certainty I give people plenty of reasons not to like me in the first few minutes.
But I think I successfully annoyed my new roommate enough that I don’t have to worry about her trying to seek out a friendship with me.
That’s what I’m really hoping to avoid with this.
There’s a reason I chose the downstairs bedroom, apart from it being a good enough size for me. I just won’t go upstairs which is fine because I won’t ever need to.
I don’t even care who else moves in, to be honest. I’ve been keeping myself to myself for a long time. I did the same last year in my first year and I don’t see why that needs to change now.