The smell of the fresh spring air and the warm gust of wind brushing my exhausted body was everything I needed after a 9-hour shift at Granny's. I had a long consuming day, a class in the morning followed by a team assignment, and than work at the restaurant. Usually Monday nights are slow, so I wasn't prepared at all for the unexpected evening rush that occurred and to top it off, the customers were rude and didn't tip well. And to think that this was only the beginning of the week was a depressing thought.
I normally walk home, but I couldn't support my weight anymore since I ran all through the evening to attend the customers, my legs were just too sore for me to walk. I opted for the bus, I would prefer a cab because I would get home faster but being in a tight budget makes cabs a luxury that I just can't afford. As I arrived at the bus stop, the bus arrived and I was relieved that there were some free seats so I could rest my legs. The moment I sat down, I felt my eyelids go heavy and I forced myself to stay awake, missing my stop is the last thing I need today. When I arrived at my stop, I got up despite the protest of my muscles. I went into my building and I escalated the stairs to get to the third floor where was my apartment. It was the longest climb I ever had, I had to grab the ramp to keep myself from collapsing.
Finally arriving in front my apartment door, I took my keys from my purse to unlock it. Entering the hallway I leaned myself on one arm, freeing my feet from the pressure of my shoes and I went to the living room with a zombie kind off walk. I tumbled on the couch next to David, who didn't even lift his head the moment I sat down. I turned my head to look at him; he had his MacBook Pro on his lap, staring at the screen with a frown and biting his lower lip. I knew my brother well enough to know that something was bothering him.
"Hey, what's wrong." I asked.
"I'm looking at all of my bills, and I don't know how I'm going to make rent." He turned his head to look at me with pleading look. "Do you think you can help me out for next month rent?"
"You know I would love to, but I'm broke too, and I only have enough money for my part and I barely have enough to afford food this week." I replied.
David sighed heavily as he leaned his head backwards, making a light thud when it reached the wall behind the couch.
"You could ask mom to lend you some money." I proposed. His head automatically rose and turned his gaze on me.
"Are you crazy? I'm not going to ask mom for some money. I'm an adult I should be able to rely on myself on these type of things." David answered as he closed his laptop and tossed it aside.
"Fine, but what are you going to do? You can't get another job, you're already swamped with school and the animal shelter."
"I know, I don't know what to do." He responded in a despondent tone.
We sat on the couch in silence, both trying to figure out a solution to his financial problems. Suddenly David straightened and shifted on his seat turning his upper body towards me, he had this look on his face as if he had the idea of a lifetime.
"We could get roommate!" He exclaimed.
"Why would we need a roommate?"
"If we get a roommate, we split the rent, it will cost us less. You can have a less tight budget, and I could afford the rent without asking mom for money." He explained enthusiastically.
I looked at him thoughtfully, assessing his arguments. "Let's say we do have a roommate, where would that person sleep? I mean we don't have a spare room, you don't expect them to sleep on the couch, nobody is going to agree to that."
"Well, we have an office that neither of us use. We could put some of the furniture in my room, some in yours and in here." He said as he gestured his arms towards the room we used as an office. I wasn't completely convinced by his idea, but it would appease some of our financial strain we had lately.
"Okay if we do this, I don't want just anybody living here with us, I don't want a creep living with us." I looked David with a stern look. "Got it?"
"Of course, don't worry Emma. I'm going to write the ad now." He brought back his computer on his lap, and started writing.
"Good, I trust you with this. I'm off to bed, I have a lot of things to do tomorrow." I got up from the couch and I almost fell back, I had completely forgotten that my legs were weary from my day. I managed to get up and I walked towards my room. I rid myself from my work clothes and didn't even bother to take a shower and went straight to bed.
David was in charge of finding the perfect roommate who would agree to live with us. He had a couple of people come over during the week for them to see the apartment and the room and interviewing them. I was glad that David was thorough in finding the perfect roommate. I had some criteria's that made the search a little difficult, I didn't want a smoker, someone who doesn't clean up after themselves, someone who isn't considerate to the people living with them, and the list went on and on. I knew I was being difficult but I really didn't want to feel uncomfortable in my own apartment.
The week passed and he still hadn't found someone to rent the room. David was getting desperate because we needed to pay the rent soon, and he still hadn't managed to have the money for it. I tried to help the best I could but I was swamped with work and my midterms.
Today like any other day of the week, I had a class and then went to the restaurant for a 9 hours shift. I was on my break from work when I saw that David had called me three times today, and that he left me a text message.
I found us a roommate. He is moving in tomorrow.
Great, when tomorrow? I am not going to be home for most of the day.
Around noon, I will be there don't worry.
Good, see you tonight.
Putting my phone aside, I felt relieved that we finally found a roommate; David and I agreed that we needed to be a little less strict with our criteria's if we wanted to find someone eventually. I really hoped that this person isn't going to be a burden and an asshole.
I really needed to find somewhere else to live. I've been staying at Graham's for a week now, and it isn't because I don't like the company of my mate but I'm tired of sleeping on a couch. I was also paying a storage room so I could have my furniture back the moment I find somewhere to live and it is eating my money away.
Luck hasn't been on my side for a while now, and things really started sinking when I found out about Milah's dirty secret. I decided to move out from her apartment and I was determined not to see her ever again.
I checked on the address one last time to be sure that I was indeed at the right place. I really wasn't expecting much about this place, I mean living in an apartment with a brother and a sister can be awkward. I already talked with the brother, David I think, and he seemed nice but had a lot of questions to ask though. I was desperate for a place to stay, the rent is low and it's only temporary, the time that I gather some money so I can get my own place.
I climbed the stairs, and reached the third floor. I wandered down the hall to find the door with the numbers I was seeking. There it is, apartment 311. I knocked on the door and waited for an answer. I finally heard a muffled sound of footsteps in the apartment, and got slightly louder when I heard the door unlock and open. There was a tall blond man, he was built and had this honest and proud air to him.
"You must be Killian." said the fair-haired man.
"Indeed, and you must be David." I replied as I offered my hand for a handshake and he grasp it firmly. He stood on the side of the door, and with one arm he gestured the apartment's hallway.
"Nice to meet you, please come in." he simply said. I entered the apartment and started to look around. There was this long hallway with a door on the left, I peeked inside it and there was a large furnished room. "That's my bedroom. Let me show you the room that's for rent." He walked past me and I followed him.
At the end of the hallway there was what seems to be the living room, there was a grey couch that was big enough for three persons to sit, a coffee table at the center and a flat screen TV. There was a small hallway on the left with a closet and two doors. David gestured to one of the doors. " This is the bathroom…" and than he moved to the other door, " and this is the room for rent."
It was a pretty decent room, with a large window and it was big enough for all of my things, which wasn't much.
"So what do you think?" asked the tenant, leaning on the doorway and arms crossed.
"It's a nice room, do you mind if I look at the rest of the flat?"
"Sure no problem." David said as he pushed himself from the door to let me walk past him. On the other side of the living room there was the kitchen with a dining table in the middle. There was door leading to the balcony and another that was closed.
"Is this your sister's room?" I asked pointing at the closed door.
"Yes, she always keeps her door closed, she really likes to have her own personal space, where no one can come and bother her. And she doesn't like people sneaking and her room, not even me. Trust me I tried and paid the consequences." He said with a light chuckle.
"She seems like a tough lass."
"Oh you have no idea."
I looked around one last time, finally making my decision.
"Well, I think it's a pretty decent deal you got here. When can I move in?" I asked.
His eyes widen and a huge grin appeared on his face, he really seemed happy with my question. "Whenever you want."
"What about tomorrow? Around noon?"
"Perfect, I'll be here." He said, clearly content from my decision. We shook hands one last time and I went back at Graham's to gather my things so I would be ready for tomorrow morning.
I woke up early so I could go to the storage room to get my things. I asked Graham last night if I could borrow his truck, and he offered to help me move. It took about an hour to pack all of my stuff, a couple of boxes with books, DVD's, CD's, bags with clothes, a dresser, a night table, a mattress and a couple of other things. We arrived at my new place a little after noon. I went to knock on the door and waited for my new roommate to answer. When he did, he greeted us with a smile and offered us to help unload the truck. When we finished, Graham needed to leave since he had to work in the evening. Too tired to unpack my things I sat down on the couch. David came to join me and offered me a beer before sitting next to me.
"Welcome to your new home." Said David has he tilted his bottle towards mine, so we could cheer.
"Cheers mate." I took a big gulp of beer; the cold drink had this appeasing and cooling feeling. It wasn't a particularly hot day since it was the beginning of spring, but moving furniture and boxes up and down three flights of stairs did make you sweat a lot.
"Thanks for letting me rent the room, I couldn't wait to have a space to call mine."
"My pleasure, but I feel that I should thank you, because I was growing desperate to find someone and everyone that came to visit were either weird or didn't seem that interested." He said before finishing his beer.
"Well, it seems we are both happy with this situation. What about your sister? What does she think of this? You two having a roommate." I inquired.
"She isn't fond of it, but we have been living with a financial strain for some time now, me more than her, and we really don't want to move. We like it here, so she agreed that if we wanted to stay here and relieve ourselves from some of the pressure, the option of a roommate wasn't that bad." He explained. He got up with his empty bottle and turned around to face me. "Do you want to order pizza?"
"Sure, why not." I answered him as I got up to follow him to kitchen to grab myself another beer.
We spent the next two hours talking about sports, music and movies as we were drinking and eating a pepperoni and cheese pizza. I really liked him; he was sincere and seemed like a really genuine person.
Around six in the evening I decided to retreat myself to my quarters and start unpacking some boxes. I placed my mattress on the floor, on the right corner of the room, and placed my night table with a lamp next to it. I hanged some of my clothes in the closet and the rest in my dresser. I started to make a list of things that I would need to buy: a bed, curtains, a library, a desk, a chair and some shelves. I finished unpacking late at night; David came to give me my key before calling it a night.
I was pretty exhausted, and I decided to go take a shower to rid myself from today's work. I went into the bathroom and tried to lock the door, but I couldn't. It must one of those doors in which you need to have that special move to get it to lock. Too tired to worry about it, I undressed myself, turned on the water and stepped into the shower. I felt the hot water running down and felt my muscles finally relax, washing away this long day. After cleaning myself and turning the water off, I stepped out of the shower, grabbing my towel to dry myself. As I was wrapping my towel around my waist, I heard the handle of the bathroom door rattle, and before I could react I was face to face with a gorgeous blond with green eyes. Her eyes widen at my sight and her mouth open and closed a couple of times clearly in shock, her eyes avoiding me.
"I…I…sorry." She stuttered before turning her heels, closing the door behind her.
Well this is perfect, I thought; perfect way to meet your new roommate. I went to my room, exchanged my towel with a pair of grey sweatpants and covered my torso with a white shirt. I left my room hoping to see her to apologize and introduce myself properly. I went to the living room, but she wasn't there. I then heard the water running in the kitchen and I followed the noise. I entered the kitchen and I saw her leaning against the kitchen counter with a glass of water in one hand. I cleared my throat to alert her of my presence; she turned her head around and avoided landing her eyes directly at me. I couldn't stop my hand from scratching the back of my ear, feeling slightly awkward with her cold demeanour.
"Um… sorry about that. I couldn't figure out how to lock the door." I explained trying to appease the absurdity of our meeting.
"You lift the doorknob and than give a little push." She answered in flat tone.
"I'll try and remember that. I'm Killian by the way, your new roommate." I propelled my hand towards her, waiting for her to take it for a handshake. But she didn't, she looked at my hand than levelled her stare to mine.
"Emma." She simply said.
"Nice to meet you Emma." I couldn't help myself but smirk. She is indeed a stubborn lass.
"Yeah, well, goodnight." And she turned around and went to her room. I walked back to my room with a smile. I lay back on my mattress, placing my arms behind my head; I couldn't stop myself from thinking that this was going to be interesting.