Roommate Paradise | NaNoWriMo 2022

6. My Day Is Ruined

Reprimanding Daniel felt quite strange. As I walked away from him and entered my room, I closed the door and stood against it for a minute. Was I too harsh with him? Did he feel insulted? But I didn't say anything, just that he should take better care of the place he lives in. Is that too wrong of me to ask?

Sighing, I trudged over and belly-flopped onto my bed. I should really stop caring about whether I'd hurt him or not. It was his mistake to take such poor care of the house in the first place.

As soon as the adrenaline wore off, I felt my hunger come back to me in full force. Groaning, I sat up, not wanting to go back outside. This man's presence would surely make me a loner who hates to get out of their room. I opened my phone and ordered some Chinese. That was a much better option than risking my life by going outside and seeing his face again.

Sure, I was acting like I was the guilty one, but that's just how I was.

As I was replaying the earlier event in my head on full speed and killing myself with my anxiety, a message popped up on my screen. It was from Cassey.

"So, did you talk to him?"

I sighed. If only she knew.

"Yeah."

Better to not fill her in any details.

My phone pinged in just two seconds.

"What did he say? Will he abide by your rules?"

I sighed again. She was one dedicated woman. Sometimes, I didn't even understand if she cared for me as a friend or as a psychiatrist. I was just glad she was there for me whenever I needed her the most. I also knew that she wasn't leaving me alone because she knew I would beat myself to death with my own thoughts. That's how dangerous it was to leave me alone with my worthless thoughts.

"He didn't say anything. Just that he thinks that how he lives is normal."

"So, what will you do now?"

I closed my eyes, feeling the exhaustion of the day take over me. In all honesty, even I didn’t know what would happen from this point. His stance neither told me that he would listen to me, nor did he outright disagree to following my terms and conditions. Which weren't that many, to be honest.

"I don't know. Let's see."

Just then, the doorbell rang and I told Cassey that we'd talk tomorrow. It was time to dig in some delicious Chinese food and go to sleep. We could always think about our problems later on.

I woke up extra early the next morning. The anxiety of my new roommate messing up my clean and organized house was too much to bear. If I went around and told about my predicament to anyone else, they would for sure consider me insane. But it was just how it was. I was a woman with increased anxiety levels, and as adept as I was in solving problems, I too had my limitations.

It was still six o'clock, and I didn't have work until ten. Not knowing how to pass my time, I went to the bathroom and washed my face. Putting on some leggings and a jacket over my top, I grabbed my phone and airpods and left the house. I played the hardest rock song I could find in my playlist, and went on a run around the neighborhood.

Rock songs were the best if you ever wanted to quieten your mind and numb your feelings. They usually never left a spare place in your mind for stupid thoughts. As soon as the blaring music played, my insignificant thoughts vanished from my mind like thin air. I finally found peace and quiet in that intolerable noise, and that made me smile.

I reached my apartment after an hour, all sweaty and energized. I felt immensely refreshed after that run, and was contemplating whether I should make it a daily routine, when I saw a foreign presence in my living room. A young girl, in her early twenties, rummaging through her bag in the middle of the living room.

But what was more shocking was that she was only wearing a plain white shirt – the same shirt that I'd seen on Daniel last night. My mouth opened in shock, and the girl who noticed me also looked equally bemused.

The nerve of this man! But most importantly, how did I not know anything about it last night? Daniel just had one night stand in the room across mine and I didn't hear a single thing? Then again, my roommate had mentioned this house was sound-proofed. Was it actually true? That was the only explanation to this situation, because the awkward look on this girl's face only confirmed my suspicions that she had, in fact, slept with him last night.

I blinked at her once, twice, then proceeded to move towards my room. But this girl had other plans. She stood before me and looked panicked. I raised an eyebrow, looking at her in anticipation. She better have a better reason to stop me when she had just ruined my day.

"I- I can explain. I didn't know he had a girlfriend, I swear. And it was just a one time thing, it won't happen again, okay?" She rambled on, and my eyes widened more than they could.

Did she really think I was upset with her because I was Daniel's girlfriend? Oh, what a pleasure it must be!

I scoffed, "You've got it all wrong. I have nothing to do with that stupid man, aside from the fact that he's my roommate. You can hook up with him whenever you want."

At my words, she heaved a sigh of relief. "Oh thank God," she said. "I thought I was gonna get slapped by this lady right here. Then again, you do look a bit... older than Daniel to be dating him. I understand it!"

I choked on my spit at her rude comment. What the fuck did she mean by that? That I was an old hag who didn't deserve Daniel? That dude was only 5 years younger than me! Ha! the fucking audacity of this woman.

She then smiled at me like nothing happened, and went out the door. I breathed in and out of my nose, trying to calm myself before I lost it and pulled out all of Daniel's hair as punishment.

Sleeping with anyone was definitely his choice, and I wasn't going to determine that for him, but if he ever brought that woman to my house again, he would actually be dead... and the woman along with him.

No wonder he was so quiet yesterday. Once a troublemaker, always a troublemaker.

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