Page 1 of Staying Home with Dad's Best Friend
Chapter 1
Megan
I’m talking to my friend Josh on FaceTime.
“Are you lonely, babe?” Josh asks.
I’m so lonely I’m going to explode.“No,” I say after a moment’s pause. I don’t want to tell Josh the truth because I chose not to leave the dorm.
“Do you miss me?” he asks next.
I miss everybody, including my bitchy roommate, but again, I don’t tell him that. “Not really.”
“Oh it hurts,” he feigns a disappointed look.
I feel guilty hurting his feelings, so I correct myself. “That’s because I talk to you every day, Josh.”
“I know, Meg,” he says, grinning now. “But it’s not the same as seeing you in person.”
Damn. I didn’t know he liked me that much. Josh’s very handsome and popular among the girls. I knew him from the orientation, and we became friends right away because he was from San Diego, too. I almost had a date with him, right before the campus closure.
But still, he’s not my boyfriend and he’s not supposed to miss me that much. I guess the quarantine makes everyone weird.
I yawn. “I’ve got to go to bed, Josh.”
He doesn’t take the hint. “Mm, are you wearing your sexy nightie?”
“What?” I laugh. “I don’t have any sexy nightie. I’m wearing a t-shirt and my PJ pants.”
I let him see me over the camera.
“Damn, you look good whatever you wear,” he says.
Flattered, I chuckle. “What’reyouwearing?”
It’s a mistake to ask. Josh quickly shows me his soft cotton boxers and makes sure I see his bulge.
I squeal. “Stop it, Josh!”
“Why? I’m not even flashing!”
“Yes you are. Bye and don’t call me again,” I say and press the end button.
I toss and turn in bed long after I ended the call with Josh. My triple dorm room feels empty because my roommates have moved out ever since the university closure. I decided to stay because I thought I would enjoy being alone in the dorm rather than going home and share a room with my brother.
But now, after two weeks’ living alone, I’m not sure I like it anymore. Besides me, there’re only three other girls in the building, and they’re international students who prefer hanging out among themselves. The building feels eerie at night. I’m afraid of going to the restroom even though my bladder is full.
Suddenly I hear the sound of crunching leaves outside my window. My stomach lurches and I strain my ears to listen.Is someone outside?
I live on the first floor and the dorm is accessible from the street. We’ve had random people trying to get in the dorms before. I nearly scream when I hear a knock on my window. I curl in bed and don’t move, but the knocking continues. I turn slowly to look and see a shadow against the window. I see a pair of glowing eyes first, and then I make out a furry head. It’s a stupid raccoon.
Shit. I bang on the window to scare it off. And then I sit in bed and shake.
It’s late, but I reach for the phone to call my mom.
“What’s wrong, Meg?” Mom says in a sleepy voice. “Is everything all right?”
I want to just tell her about the silly incident, but her voice makes me homesick. “Mom,” I hear myself cry. “I want to go home.”
