Page 12 of The Roommate Situation

FIVE

RORY

When I get home later that evening I change out of my sticky clothes as quickly as I can and shower for the second time that day. The coffee smell is all over me and has leaked through my pants, and I’m dying to get into fresh clothes.

When I come back out to the living room, I see Parker on the sofa in the sweats he bought earlier and no shirt. He’s got his laptop out and is typing away, his legs splayed across the sofa and a bag of potato chips nearby on the coffee table. I stare at those gorgeous pecs and tight abs for far too long before I say, “I’m headed out. Be back soon.”

“Oh, hey, you want me to come with you? It’ll go faster.” He sets his laptop aside and wipes his hands on his sweats.

“Sure,” I say with a smile, happy for the company. It’ll help distract me from the shit that happened earlier, and I have decided I like spending time with Parker.

He scurries to his room, and I can’t help letting out a sigh when he returns with a T-shirt now covering his beautiful, smooth chest. “You good?” he asks.

“Yeah,” I reply, and grab my keys. I have to laugh when we reach my car and he has to slide the passenger seat back several inches before he can even get in. His head nearly touches the top and he looks like a giant. “Sorry,” I say, and he just grins at me.

“No worries, I’m used to it.”

When we reach the store I grab a cart and Parker snatches a basket. We split up, agreeing to meet back at the registers in twenty minutes. I’m there first, and when I see him coming my way, my anxiety spikes. He’s surrounded by three other well built guys similar in size to him, though not quite as bulky, and they’re laughing like they’re having the best time, and I’m all of the sudden feeling very out of place and awkward.

“There he is!” Parker calls when he sees me, and waves, then gestures for his friends to follow. I swallow as they get closer. “This is my awesome roomie, Rory,” he tells them, beaming at me.

My anxiety fades in an instant at how excited he is to introduce me to his friends. Me. Nerdy, awkward, me. “Hi,” I say, giving the three guys a wave.

“This is Preston, Blake, and Chris,” Parker says, gesturing to each of the guys in turn and they wave at me. “They’re in some of my phys ed classes with me.”

Preston is a couple inches shorter than Parker, with striking blue eyes and a baseball cap on over his blond hair. Lots of muscle but more of a swimmer’s build. He’s gorgeous and has several tattoos decorating his arms.

Blake and Chris aren’t bad looking either. Blake is the shortest but still significantly taller than me, with dark hair that’s pulled back in a messy bun and tan skin. Chris is the tallest next to Parker. He’s Black and his dark hair is even shorter than Parker’s.

“Nice to meet you,” I say.

“Same,” the one named Chris replies. “You’ve got a good roommate here.” He claps Parker on the shoulder and Parker blushes. “He was my roommate freshman year.”

“We gotta get home,” Parker tells them. “You guys coming over on Sunday to watch the game?”

They nod. “Sweet,” Parker says, and then proceeds to give each one of them fist bumps before they say goodbye and then make their way back down the aisles.

“They’re cool guys,” he tells me and I nod. “You don’t mind them coming over, do you?”

I’m not crazy about the idea because it will probably be pretty loud, but I’ll just put my earplugs in and do my best to block out the noise. I don’t want to tell him not to invite them when he’s so excited, and I don’t want to be the annoying roommate.

We make it home and unpack the groceries, and then Parker starts cooking. It smells decent once it’s been in the oven for a bit, so hopefully it tastes okay too.

“What happened to the cupcakes?” I ask, realizing that they’re all gone.

“Oh, uh, I gave them away to the neighbors. I couldn’t eat twenty four cupcakes.”

“Why did you make them, then?”

“I bake when I’m nervous,” he tells me with a flush, and I blink.

“You were nervous yesterday? About meeting me?”

His flush deepens and he runs his large hand through his hair again. “Yeah, I mean, I really wanted you to like it here, and I wanted you to stay. I’ve always been pretty extroverted and I grew up with five brothers and sisters, so I really don’t like being alone. I mean, just having another person in the apartment makes a difference even if we’re not hanging out, and I hated the idea of having to find someone else. My old roommate had onlybeen gone for two days and I was lonely.” He glances away. “That probably sounds ridiculous.”

“No, it doesn’t. I mean, I like being alone, but not for days at a time, and I know not everyone is like me. It makes sense. I’m sorry if I made it worse for you by being a buttface.”

He laughs. “Nah, I’m just glad you’re here.” He ruffles my hair and we sit down to eat. The lasagna isn’t delicious but it’s good, and I am thankful that I didn’t have to make it, so I offer to do the cleanup instead. He sits at the bar while I do and after knowing how much he hates being alone, I don’t mind.

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