just another roomie

I was on my way home from work.

It’s been a day full of surprises for sure.

First, some asshole tried to hack into our system so we had to block his attempts, the coffee machine broke down, so we had to make it the old fashioned way.

But surprise, surprise. There was no coffee in the whole building because no one made it anymore.

It’s been years since someone last used the kitchen we had in our company.

But the good thing is, I survived and was done for today.

Now my head was full of thoughts about Rachel.

How did her interview go?

I wasn’t sure if I wanted it to go good or bad.

On one hand, I really wanted her to get a job.

Not just because she would move out but because she deserved it. Her last boss was a total asshole that only saw her outside but didn’t care about her smartness or drive.

But on the other hand I wanted her to fail.

After all she had an interview in my company, and if she got the job, that would mean, when she moves out, I would still need to see her every day at work.

As I was thinking about all these options I reached our house.

Suddenly I registered that loud music was coming from somewhere.

Closer I got to the house, the louder the music was and I realized it was coming from my destination.

Once I opened the door my suspicions were confirmed.

The music was indeed coming from our house.

I went in search of Rachel. I found her in the kitchen, stirring something.

And what was shocking about the scene in front of me, was that Rachel was singing and dancing.

And not in a lady kind way.

She was singing as loud as she could, and danced like a professional disaster.

Ok. It wasn’t so bad, but it sure wasn’t good either.

And now I also had a problem.

I had to make my presence known, without scaring the crap out of her.

Now how do you do that with music blasting, a screaming woman, flailing her arms around like a crazy person?

Either I scare her or I get hit.

Is that even a question?

Since you can guess what I chose, I moved towards her phone that was plugged into the stereo system in the living room.

I pushed the pause button and after a few more notes even Rachel realized it was too quiet.

She turned around and when she saw my grinning face, hers got drained of all the blood.

“H-h-how long were you s-standing there?” She stammered and I laughed wholeheartedly.

Damn she really could be adorable when she wasn’t being a bitch.

“Long enough to know you have no future in the entertainment business. So I really hope you get a job as a secretary soon.”

At my words her face once more brightened.

“You won’t believe it, but I got the job! I begin tomorrow morning. Mason I can’t even believe it myself. I hope it won’t be a problem if we work together?”

She was so happy that I forgot all the reasons why it was a bad idea for us to work together.

But still I couldn’t right away admit it to her that I was happy she got the job.

“It’s a bit too late to ask that question don’t you think? After all, you already got the job.”

When her face fell I wanted to slap myself for being a dick once more, but it was just who I was.

“I can give a call to the HR team and tell them I changed my mind. I am so sorry Mason for not thinking about it beforehand. Just give me a second.”

She started going through her purse to find something, I guess she was looking for her phone or the number of our company.

I had to move as fast as I could and I was by her side in seconds.

“Rach, I was only teasing you. Of course it won’t be a problem. I am happy for you. After all, you deserve a break from the shit storm that your life turned into recently.”

As she was looking at me I could see hope coming back to her eyes.

“Do you mean it? I know we don’t get along but still I wouldn’t do that to you. It would be uncomfortable for both of us after all.”

I gave her a soft smile.

“I mean it. Congratulations on your job. I know you will fit right into our team.”

“You have no idea how much I enjoyed today. It was amazing to see someone actually interact with his workers, and not just bark orders at them. But there was something weird. Aron said he got a really flattering letter of recommendation from my former boss. Now I have no idea where he got it but I am sure it wasn’t written by Mr. Rickson. Any ideas?”

I had an idea alright, but in no scenario could she ever find out what I did for her.

“Well maybe he finally got to his senses?”

She looked deep in thought for a moment.

“Yeah, maybe you are right. I should go by tomorrow and thank him.”

“NO! I mean, no. You shouldn’t. He just got to his senses and you don’t want to jinx it.”

Damn. I almost gave myself away with my outburst.

Rachel was looking at me weirdly.

“Ooooook. Maybe you have a point. Never mind. What matters is the fact I got the job. And we are celebrating. I don’t care that you are a dickhead most of the time. Becky is away and I need someone to celebrate my success with me. So you will do it and you won’t complain. I made us dinner so you need to get showered and come back so we can eat. Understand?”

I laughed again. I liked this bossy side of her.

“Aye, aye captain. I won’t be long. But what are we eating if I may ask?”

“Spaghetti bologna. Any complaints?”

She won’t hear me complaining. It was my favorite food.

“No complaints here. I will be back in a minute, don’t start without me.”

I didn’t even finish my sentence and was already running to the bathroom.

I could hear her laugh behind me.

And at this moment I realized I might hate her a little less than I did yesterday.