Other Side

13 | And They Were Roommates

Two hours later, even Zaid was over it.

Talia ducked under his wide umbrella as they hurried to the car, thick rain droplets pelleting against the barrier. Compared to the last time they'd ventured out, the air, though dreary, felt almost pleasant.

"You realize it's only warm because it's raining," Zaid explained as he slammed his door shut, "so don't feel bad we can't walk around outside."

"I know, I know. But this is such a walkable city. The other summer, I hit twelve miles out exploring with my cousins and didn't even notice." She reminded herself she had to come back more often, but those adventures sounded a lot less enticing if she'd be alone. "When do you leave?"

"The US?" She nodded. He ran his hands down the steering wheel and sighed. "May, unless I can find an internship and convince my mother she can survive another three months without me."

She blurted the first thing that came to mind. "You know, my mother's an engineer. Her firm always hires summer interns, and sponsorship isn't an issue for you. Just saying."

He leaned back in his seat and flickered his eyes to her coy smile. "Does that mean you want me to stick around?"

Talia stared straight ahead at the blurring windshield. "No. I mean, yes." His amusement set her cheeks on fire, forcing her to shake her head and mumble, "Forget what I said. Let's just head back home."

He started the car but didn't put it into reverse yet. "Actually, I wasn't thinking of going straight back to Newton. My apartment is only five minutes from here."

She froze, seatbelt in hand. "Your apartment?"

"Yes, my college apartment." When he realized her slight stupefaction had nothing to do with the building itself, he shook his head. "I didn't mean it like that, Talia. I left a few things there and haven't been back to this part of the city in weeks." She hid her warm cheeks and nodded, but a hand turned her face back to him. "Unless..."

Her mouth was only inches from his, body stretched over the center console. "Unless what, Zaid?"

He brushed his thumb over her cheekbone and spoke over her lips. "Unless nothing. Let's get going."

***

Talia had long been convinced that university housing built character.

Communal bathrooms, unstable roommates, cramped bedrooms, lofted twin beds, the occasional cockroach that refused to die even in a sea of Raid; all of it fostered a lasting amount of humility and grit.

She debunked her stable theory the moment she stepped foot into Zaid's ninth-floor apartment, realizing the only quality it could have nurtured was expensive taste. The minimalist white, brown, and chrome décor only enlarged the interior, appearing more like the presidential suite of a luxury hotel than a student's humble abode. She tried to keep her visual admiration subtle as Zaid led her through the kitchen and living room, observing half the city through the polished floor-to-ceiling windows.

"Are you sure your family just works in engineering?" she asked after a moment, unable to curb her curiosity. If so, my mother should definitely take notes.

He shrugged off his overcoat, leaving him in a black long sleeve. "Mostly, but we've also dabbled in petroleum. Real estate, too. Nothing too fancy, of course."

"Right," she said through a smile, stopping at the living room window. Thick fog slightly obscured the Back Bay skyline, reminding her lingering wasn't an option if they wanted to arrive home before the full-blown storm. She turned around, sliding her hands into the back pockets of her jeans. "Well, you should go get your things. You know, so we can leave soon."