ROOMMATES

"Liss. She finally did it, she's gone. She left me."

"What do you mean Rose?"

"My mom, she left with that asshole of a boyfriend this morning. She's gone and not coming back."

"Oh Rose. I'm so sorry."

"I don't want to go into foster care again."

"You won't, there's no foster care anymore for you once you turn eighteen. You're on your own."

"How can I be on my own, I'm still in high school?"

"It doesn't matter, you're a legal adult now in the eyes of the system. I should know."

"Liss, I don't want to be alone in this house."

"You're not, she left Jasper, didn't she?"

"She did, but you know what I mean." Who was Jasper, well he was my golden retriever. He didn't start out being mine, he was one of my best friends' masons' dogs. Mason died about a year ago from cancer and before he died made me promise I would take care of his dog. He was the best dog ever and never left my side. But it wasn't the same as having a human in the house. Yes my mom was an absent mother, but she at least came home at night.

Nights seemed to be the worst for me, I've had nightmares since I was a child. Me nor the many therapists have never figured out why, they thought that it may be some kind of past trauma that I have blocked. They suggested hypnosis, but my mom never signed off on it.

"Why did you have to graduate early and leave me?" Lissa my best friend and genius, graduated a year early and had moved to another state to go to school. I was extremely proud of her for overcoming so much and going to the college of her dreams. When we were fifteen when we were in a car accident with her parents. Her parents died leaving Lissa and her older brother Andre orphans and me back in foster care.

"I'm sorry, I wish I could be there, you know if I was back in Montana you could live with me."

"I know you would. At least my mom paid the rent for the next two months. After that I don't know what I'm going to do."

"Why don't you get a roommate to help with the rent?"

"Be serious Liss, where am I going to find a roommate?"

"I may know someone that's looking for a place to stay, but you may not like it."

"If it's who I'm thinking about, I'd rather get a second job to pay the rent."

"Rose, he isn't that bad of a guy. It was Tasha that treated him like dirt. He's been couch surfing since they broke up and really needs a place to stay."

In the end I agreed to let Dimitri move in.

Dimtiri Belikov, all I knew about him was that he had been dating Lissa's boyfriend Christian's older sister Tasha. We've only met a few times in person and he came off very stand-offish. Plus the only things I heard were from Tasha and she didn't paint him in a good light. But Lissa convinced me he was a good guy and got a bad break from Tasha and to give him a shot. I needed a roommate and he needed a place to stay. She said he would be on time with his rent, plus keep the place clean and liked dogs.

I had packed up all of the rest of my moms things in boxes and put them on the porch to be picked up by a charity. I had completely cleaned her room and left it a blank space for Dimitri. His room was the master and had a master bathroom attached to it. I gave him her room because I didn't want to move all my stuff and really didn't want to be in her room. It was nice we were going to have our own bathroom. I have never lived with a guy except for the many of my moms boyfriends that have been in and out of our house. Most of them have respected my space enough to leave my room and bathroom alone.

I was carrying the last box of my moms things to the porch. When I saw a truck pull into my driveway, it was Dimitri. I was nervous about how the interaction would be between the two of us. I tried to put the thoughts I had previously had about him aside and start new.

"Good morning Rose. Thank you for letting me move in." He said as he got out of his truck and headed to the porch. Jasper came running out the door and right towards him.

"Jasper no." I yelled, but he didn't listen to me and ran up and jumped on Dimitri and started licking him.

"Who's a good boy?" Dimitri said while petting him and giving him kisses back. That was a good sign that Jasper liked him. He was a very protective dog over me. He hated all the men my mom brought into the house.

"Jasper Down. I'm sorry about him."

"Don't be. I grew up with a dog and miss having one."

"He's a good one, very loyal." I patted my leg and Jasper came running up to me and sat.

"Follow me inside and I'll show you your room." I opened the door and ushered Jasper in before me where he went to his dog bed and laid down. Which was a sign Jasper was comfortable with him. Any unknown male that came into the house Jasper wouldn't leave my side.

"Your room is down the hall straight back, you will have your own bathroom. I've left the bed and dresser for you, if you have your own you are more than welcome to get rid of those. They were my mothers and she left them behind, but not the TV, so we only have the one TV in the living room."

"I'll keep the bed and dresser, I literally have nothing but my clothes, books, and a few personal items and that's it. Tasha kept everything including all the furniture I paid for."

"Oh I'm sorry. "

"Don't be, I'd rather her keep it all and have a clean break than fight for it. It's just furniture."

"Sorry, I only know her side of everything."

"Most people do, and I'm not the type of person to talk bad about her to everyone."

Dimitri was nothing like I thought he was, after he moved all of his boxes in. I helped put what stuff he did have away, while we talked. We ended up ordering pizza for dinner and watching a movie and relaxing on the couch. I ended up falling asleep during the movie only to be woken up to him shaking me.

"Roza, Roza, wake up you're having a nightmare." I was still a bit out of it and thrashed around and accidentally got him in the nose.

"Shit that hurts." I heard a Russian accent. Oh crap I totally forgot Dimitri was here.

"Oh my god I'm so sorry, let me get you a rag." I sprinted off the couch and ran to my bathroom to wet a rag.

"I'm ok. I should know better than to wake a person having a night terror." I came over and sat down and put the cloth on his nose. He winced once I touched his nose.

"Sorry."

"You don't have to do this. I can take care of it myself." He tried to grab the rag from me, but I didn't let him.

"I feel bad, it's my fault for hitting you."

"I shouldn't have tried to wake you up." By this time Jasper had woken up and came to investigate, sitting at Dimitri's feet giving me the look like mom what have you done.

"Do you have these often?"

"Night terrors?" He nodded.

"Almost every night, most times Jasper is next to me and I can easily fall back asleep."

"He seems very protective of you."

"He is." I gave Jasper a few scratches on his head.

"I heard what happened to Mason. I'm sorry for your loss."

"Thank you, it's been about a year, but I don't miss him any less."

"I lost my best friend a couple of years ago to cancer as well. So I know how it feels."

"I'm sorry for your loss." I paused for a second.

"Does it get any easier?"

"I'd like to tell you yes, but I would be lying. Some days I'm perfectly fine, then other days I don't want to get out of bed because I miss him so much. Then I'll hear him say "Dimka, quit being sad and get your ass out of bed."

"Dimka?'

"Yes, that's my Russian nickname."

"Is Roza mine?"

"No Rose in Russian is Roza."

"I like it."

"Much better than Mason calling me Rosie Posie."

"Why do friends do that?"

"Don't know, but I called him Duckie. So I guess we're even."

"I don't even want to know the story behind that."

"It is quite embarrassing." I laughed and looked at the clock on the wall. It was three in the morning and I had school and work the next day.

"As much as I like sharing embarrassing stories, I've got to get to bed and get some sleep. I have school in the morning."

"Me too, well not school for me I teach P.E."

"Really? That's my favorite class, I thought about going to school to become a P.E teacher myself. Our teacher Alberta said she would help me if that's what I wanted to do."

"Bertie? She mentored me. If that's what you really wanted to do, I would take her up on her offer."

"I've never heard anyone else call her Bertie except her wife."

"I went to college with Celeste, that's how I met Bertie. Such a small world."

"It is." We both got up and started walking towards our rooms. I stopped at my door with Jasper at my feet.

"I was wrong about you Comrade. You have a good night"

You have a good night too Roza."

This is another one of those stories that comes from my dreams. I may make this one a full story as I have the basic plot line done.