Housemates

Chapter 6

After sitting for an hour with people she really only had video games in common with, Ellie decided to go and find Mia. It wasn’t that she minded talking about gaming, and it wasn’t that she didn’t like Mark and Mia’s friends. It was that she wanted to find Mia, and she didn’t quite know why.

Mia had made her come, and then walked away, and asked for nothing in return. She apparently expected nothing in return. Not even for Ellie to talk to her afterwards.

Not even for Ellie to say thank you.

Ellie should have said thank you. That bothered her. It was rude not to.

Mia had disappeared so quickly that Ellie hadn’t had a chance.

Ellie had been thinking about Mia. Thinking, more than listening to the people around her.

She thought this thing with Mia was probably how she wanted it to be. Like it had been the first time. She didn’t want Mia expecting things from her, she was fairly certain of that. Certain, too, that if Mia had asked to be touched, or tried to get Ellie to join in, Ellie would have been upset, or confused, or just embarrassed. Whatever was going on with Mia, she wanted it to be exactly how it was now. Unspoken of, and without expectations. Just fun, and just there.

Except that sitting there, thinking, talking to other people, Ellie suddenly wanted to see Mia. She wanted to find Mia, and she didn’t completely know why.

She wanted to be around Mia. To make sure Mia was okay, that she wasn’t disappointed, that this was what Mia wanted too.

Ellie was starting to realize she didn’t really know what she wanted.

She got up, and walked through the house, looking. She found Mark playing pool, and found Caz and Joey in a group in the kitchen, standing around the bench while someone made multicoloured shooters. She said hi both times, but kept walking.

Mia wasn’t inside. Ellie almost wondered if she’d taken off with someone else. Whether what she’d done with Ellie had made her horny enough she’d disappeared to take care of that.

Ellie wasn’t sure how that made her feel. Jealous, almost. As well as a little guilty, like she hadn’t done her part somehow.

She went back through the house, making sure she couldn’t see Mia, then thought to look out onto the deck in the back garden.

Mia was there. Outside, on a chair, beside another woman, talking quite intensely. Almost like she talked to Ellie.

Ellie watched for a moment, trying to decide if she cared. She shouldn’t care. Mia didn’t owe her anything, just like she didn’t owe Mia. Whatever was going on was just fun, something they’d tried a couple of times. Ellie shouldn’t care, and didn’t know why she’d care, but in a strange, strange way she almost did.

Ellie opened the door and went outside. She went over and stood in front of Mia.

Stood there, and waited, still trying to decide why she was acting like this.

Mia heard the door, and looked up, and grinned. She grinned friendlily enough, like she was saying hi to her best friend’s housemate.

Not really like anything more.

Not like she was saying hi to someone who had just come on her leg an hour ago.

“Can I sit here?” Ellie said. “With you?”

“Yeah,” Mia said. “Sure. Of course.”

Ellie sat down beside Mia, and looked straight ahead.