Page 31 of Overtime
“Yup. It’s how I met this weirdo.” She jerks a thumb at Aran. “Captains often have to share duties. Mainly, keeping our kids in check.”
“Whoa.” I glance between them. “I’m among St. Cloud royalty. I am not worthy.”
“Hush, you dork.” Ryan waves a hand. “The only royalty here is Aran, who is a royal pain in the?—”
“And we’re here,” he interrupts, cutting the engine.
I missed the last stretch because I’ve been watching Ryan, but I recognize the place immediately. It’s one of the apartment complexes closest to campus. Even though it’s older than where I currently live, it’s always in higher demand because it’s cheaper. Not a single unit was available back when Rebs and I were looking.
They haul their bags and equipment up the stairs without issue. But I lag behind with my tongue hanging out like a cartoon character. I don’t know if I can live without an elevator.
After a moment, Aran climbs back down until he reaches me. “You good?”
Wow, this is embarrassing.
I close my mouth, although he could probably hear me panting all the way.
Ryan jogs back down too. “Don’t worry, it’s just one more flight. You’ll get used to it.”
“Will I?” I push myself to keep going. “Because I’m not an elite athlete like you two.”
“First month or so, I got winded too,” she says. I don’t know if it’s a white lie, but it does make me feel a bit better.
Finally, we reach her front door. Aran and I wait as Ryan takes off a glove and fishes in the pocket of her knee-length coat for the keys. I’m curious about why Aran doesn’t help, since he probably has a key too. Maybe he’s not a super affectionate boyfriend.
Ryan opens the door with a “ta-da!”
She walks in, and Aran motions at me to go first. I step into the apartment as Ryan flicks the lights on.
“It’s Spartan because I don’t actually spend a lot of time here. You can put your stamp on it as much as you want,” Ryan comments from the kitchen.
The whole place is painted white. The floor is imitation wood throughout, and the only furniture in the living room is a cream-colored sofa and a TV stand with a flat screen on top. Floor-to-ceiling curtains cover an entire wall. Probably a balcony.
“It’s pretty big,” I say.
Something bumps against my back, and I jump. But it’s only Aran’s duffel as he’s turned around, shutting the door.
“Let me show you what hopefully will be your room.”
I follow after Ryan, casting a glance back. Aran has set down his bag and stick and now has his head poked into her fridge. The boy is always hungry.
“This here is the bathroom.” Ryan points at the door immediately after the kitchen. “And the next door is the laundry room.”
“Oh, what a luxury. We have a shared laundry room at my current place.”
“Right?” She grins. “It used to be a storage room, but my previous roomie and I converted it. And the door across from it,” she says, pointing at the farthest one on the left. “Is my room. Yours would be this one.”
She opens the door across from the bathroom, with the shared wall to the living room. Even though it’s completely empty, I hazard a guess that it’s smaller than my current room, but it’s free of the Loris of the world, so it looks beautiful to me.
“Um, so what’s in the fine print?” I ask.
“Fifty-fifty split on everything except food because I eat like a horse.”
From the kitchen, Aran says, “She does.”
“You’re one to talk,” she retorts and shakes her head at me. “So, anyway, your rent would be about…”
My eyes bulge out. I make her repeat the sum. And once more for good measure.
