Page 32 of Tapped By My Roommate
“Okay, but I’m taking this with me,” Linh said, picking up her bowl of half-eaten cereal and sauntering toward the door.
“Bring the bowl back,” I called as Ethan headed toward the futon.
I decided the coffee could wait. Tired as I was, I was more curious about what Ethan might say. I took a seat by him on the futon, waiting while Linh shut the door behind her. Waiting while Ethan shifted nervously beside me.
He was blushing again.
“So, what’s up?” I prompted when he didn’t say anything.
He hesitated, biting down on his bottom lip, and my stomach clenched. His nerves were giving me nerves.
“If you’re not ready to—”
“I want it to be you,” he blurted. “The…sex stuff.”
My heart leapt. “Yeah? That’s great.”
“But I don’t want you to do it out of sympathy or obligation, because it was your kiss that made me so… And I don’t want this to be some weird thing where you’re protecting me from all the scary guys out there. I can’t do this if you don’t want it too. If you’re not…into me, then—”
“I’m into you.”
He looked thrown by my interruption. “You’re not just saying that?”
“Ethan, I’m into you. I liked kissing you. Both times.” My hand strayed to his knee and squeezed. “I wouldn’t mind doing it again. Maybe in more places.”
“But you could be with anyone. What do you get out of it?”
“I get you.” Ethan frowned, and I didn’t want him to get the wrong idea. This wasn’t about love. “I’m burnt out on app hookups with strangers. It’s boring, you know? It has been for a while. I don’t have time for a real relationship, so I don’t date. But with us sharing an apartment…”
“It’s convenient,” he said.
I nodded. “Yeah, it is. But I don’t want you to think that’s the only reason. I like you. We’re friends. I think we could both have a lot of fun, as long as we’re careful and have clear expectations.”
“Right. That’s why I did this.” He picked up the notebook and shoved it at me. “I’m no good at talking about this kind of stuff. So, I wrote down some things. Because I know you’ll want to know. Explicit consent, right?”
“Okay…”
I released his knee to take the notebook and flipped it open to the first page, titled, “Roommate Hookup Policy.”
A set of rules followed, all in Ethan’s neat handwriting.
Rule 1: This is sex only. No emotional attachments.
Rule 2: Hookups will only happen when both parties want them to.
Rule 3: Hookups will only continue so long as both parties enjoy them.
Rule 4: Hookups will be exclusive and will stop immediately should either roommate meet a romantic prospect.
Rule 5: There will be no talking about hookups outside of hookups.
Rule 6: Hookups will end when list of bisexual experiences is complete (See Pg 2).
“You’ve thought this through,” I said. “But Rule Five…”
“Like I said, I’m no good at talking about this stuff. Besides, we should keep our friendship and this stuff separate, right? So boundaries are clear. We don’t need to talk about it when it’s not happening.”
“I guess, if that’s what you want,” I said dubiously. “But I don’t want to presume you want something without asking beforehand. Or assume you liked what happened between us without checking in afterward.”
