Housemates (boyxboy)

Chapter 25

Small droplets of rain pattered on the ground around me before picking up speed, beginning a downpour as I too, picked up my pace while I sped to class. I hadn't known it was going to rain because I neglected to check the weather but rain was a common occurrence in my area so I should have prepared for it anyway. I cursed at my idiocy and pulled my hood over my head as I neared the science building.

My jeans stuck tightly to my legs and they became a darker shade of blue due to the rain and it was very uncomfortable as I tried to climb the stairs to class. Dropping my soaked backpack to the floor, I slipped into a desk and pulled out my notebook, the bottom of the pages wet as well.

"Hey," someone said beside me.

Looking over, I removed my hood and nodded my head. "What's up?"

Then, remembering the stupid pen, I quickly dug through my backpack, snatching it up in my hand.

"Thanks for lending me this pen," I told Arlen as the professor was yet to arrive.

Offering a wide smile, Arlen placed his hands in the air. "It was nothing."

Raising an eyebrow, I said, "Do you know how rare this pen is?"

Clicking the light on, I stared down at it before reaching over to Arlen's desk and placed it down.

"What do you mean?" Arlen asked. "It's rare?"

"You didn't know?" I questioned. "My housemates said it's a limited-edition Percy Jackson pen from the book or something. There's only like three in the world right now."

Looking down at the pen on his desk, Arlen scooped it up in his hands as if to inspect it.

"I had no idea," he replied. "My girlfriend gave it to me after she won it in a contest but she was disappointed because she wanted to win Yugioh cards instead."

"Yugioh cards?" I said with a laugh. "Sounds like one of my housemates."

"Does he play it too?" Arlen asked, his blue eyes widening.

"Mhm," I said. "He goes to tournaments and shit. It's where he met his girlfriend."

A wide grin spread across Arlen's lips again. "No way. I met my girlfriend at a tournament too."

"Maybe I should head over to a tournament then," I joked.

"You're not in a relationship?" he asked, unaware of the jest.

"I am," I said. "I was just making a joke."

"Ah," he said. "Relationships suck sometimes."

I squished my eyebrows together upon hearing his claim. "How so?"

Arlen opened his mouth to reply but the professor soon made an appearance as he greeted the class and I sighed, leaning back in my desk. It was going to be another long, boring lecture.

Already tuning the professor's voice out, I fought the urge to close my eyes but it was difficult when they felt as if there were bricks weighing them down. Blinking repeatedly to keep myself awake, I was startled upon finding a paper note rolling across my desk.

I uncrumpled it quietly and read the message inside.

(770) xxx-xxxx- my number

Looking over at Arlen, I showed him the note and he nodded his head, confirming the assumption I had that he was the sender. I smiled at him as I was unsure what to do and pushed the note into the pocket of my hoodie, forgetting about it almost instantly.

Well, class ended a while later and I stood up, stretching my jeans away from my legs as they were still soaked from the rain.

"No umbrella?" I heard Arlen ask as he stood by my desk while I packed my belongings together.

"Nah," I said, hauling my backpack over my shoulders. "I didn't check the weather."

Arlen laughed as we exited the class together and made our way to the front doors of the building. The rain was still coming down hard and I cursed again, earning another laugh from Arlen.

"Here," Arlen said, holding out his umbrella to me. "We can share it."

I grinned widely at the kind fellow and gratefully accepted his offer. "My savior."

Arlen just smiled and opened the umbrella, making room for me to stand beside him. It was cramped under the small size of it, but we made it work, our shoulders bumping into each other as we walked.

"About that note," Arlen spoke up. "I didn't get to finish what I was talking about before the professor got to class. It'd be nice if we could talk over the phone sometime."

Quickly reaching inside my pocket, I searched around for the note to make sure I still had it.

"Sure," I said, grasping it in my hand. "I can call you tonight if you want."

"Sweet," Arlen said, smiling. "Thanks."

"Nah," I said. "Thanks for lending me your umbrella. And the pen."

"Anytime," he said and I realized we had arrived at my car.

"Wait a second," I said. "Don't you park on the opposite side of campus?"

"Yeah," he said. "But I didn't want you to have to get soaked all over again."

I couldn't understand the reasoning behind his kindness and patted him on the shoulder softly.

"I appreciate it," I told him. "Do you want me to give you a ride to your car?"

Arlen shook his head, his blue eyes gleaming. "I'll be alright."

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"It's not too far," he said. "See you."

"Oh, uh, yeah," I said. "See you and thanks again."

He smiled at me once more before turning his back and disappearing into the rain.

Collapsing into the driver's seat of my car, I pulled out the note again and saved Arlen's number into my phone so I could call him later. I wondered what he meant when he said relationships suck sometimes and assumed he needed someone to vent to. And with how kind he was to me, I figured it was the least I could do to repay him.

Perhaps Arlen could become a good friend of mine.

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thx for reading still (: