Page 28 of Unfix Me

“No. I saidno… Why?... You said I should see how I feel about it. That’s what you said… That’s not fair… I don’t care if I sound like a child!”

I gripped the door handle tightly as he passed by. He fumbled with his keys before he aggressively unlocked the door.

“Why can’t you ever trust me? I know there’s something wrong with me! That doesn’t mean you can just…”

My wall shook when he slammed the door. I stood there for a moment, unable to shake what I’d heard. It reminded me of the arguments West had with his parent, although his had been worse. The tone of his voice was what concerned me. It was a similar anger mixed with desperation and pain. Even though I didn’t know for sure, I had a feeling Sen was talking to his parents.

I pulled out my phone and ordered some food to be delivered. After I gave myself a minute to decide whether it was a bad idea, I left the room and stopped in front of Sen’s door. What was the worst that could happen?

After I knocked, there was a loud shuffling sound. He swore, then appeared in the doorway. His brow furrowed when he saw me.

“Hey, Kai. What’s up?”

“Not much. I haven’t seen you since class on Friday.”

“That was only two days ago.”

“Well, we didn’t get a chance to talk. Haven’t really said anything to each other since lunch last week, actually.”

He regarded me carefully, still gripping the edge of the door.

“So, I ordered a bunch of food,” I went on. “West was supposed to come by, but he got caught up doing other things. You hungry?”

“I don’t know. Not really.”

“You gotta eat. Don’t let stress kill your appetite.”

“I’m not stressed.”

“Of course you are. All of us are. To be honest…” I moved closer, leaning my forearm against the frame. “I’m a stress eater, so you’ll either need to share the food with me or physically restrain me when I go for a twelfth taco.”

His brow raised. “How much food did you order?”

“Enough to feed a small army or two growing boys.”

With a sigh, he opened the door wider. I flashed him a grin as I strode into the room.

There was a thing about men at any age, but especially young adults. When you walked into their room, you had to be fully prepared to become immersed in the stench of death and trash. Generally, there would be dirty clothes strewn everywhere. Not everyone was like that, but I’d met my fair share. Sen’s room wasn’t incredibly tidy, but it smelled clean and I hadn’t tripped over anything yet, so I breathed a sigh of relief as I dropped onto his bed.

Lying back on the mattress, I stared up at the ceiling. It was noticeably quiet, so I glanced over at Sen. He was standing beside the bed with his hands in his pockets and wearing that terrified expression again.

“Sorry. I’m probably imposing here.”

“No,” he replied quickly. “It’s… fine.”

I smiled again and he looked toward the window. I was starting to feel like West with my need to be liked by this guy. He was like a nut I was struggling to crack. The more I tried, he just seemed to reinforce himself further. I was about ready to bring out the sledgehammer.

Sitting up, I looked around the room. He didn’t have anything personal in here. His suitcase was open on the floor, still packed as if he’d been taking clothes out as he needed them. On the desk, there was a laptop and a notebook, but that was it. There weren’t even any pictures. No family, friends, scenic views or anything.

“Do you miss home?” I asked.

He rolled the desk chair closer and sat in it. “Sort of, I guess.”

“Tell me what you don’t miss.”

His head cocked as he thought about it. I watched him tug on his lower lip with his teeth before he leaned forward.

“Lack of privacy. My parents are a bit overbearing.”

---