Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 138775 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 694(@200wpm)___ 555(@250wpm)___ 463(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 138775 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 694(@200wpm)___ 555(@250wpm)___ 463(@300wpm)
He nodded.
“And Kyle’s got his room upstairs.” I moved over to Lucas and took his hands in mine. “It’s time for you to take your bedroom back. I’ll sleep on the sofa or hell, I’ll put a sleeping bag on top of the pool table. But you need your own space.”
“So do you,” he said softly.
“This is your house.”
“But you live here, too.”
“Do I?” I looked around, seeing confused faces. “I mean, is this what we’re doing for the rest of the semester or is it just for now? I thought it was just for now when I moved in.”
“We didn’t,” Jayden said.
“But nothing was planned. Within a matter of days, you went from two people living here to four. And we kind of never stopped to figure out the logistics.”
“Like what?” Kyle asked. He was idly twirling the pool cue. I wondered how well he played. He was good at many sports, not just baseball.
“Everything,” Jayden said. “She’s right. We’ve all been so busy with school that we haven’t ever really tried to figure this out.”
“Figure what out?” Lucas asked.
“Cooking. Cleaning. Groceries. Bathroom sharing and schedules. These are things that roommates or housemates should discuss,” Jayden said.
Kyle scowled. “So we’re going to regulate everything? Like chore charts and that crap?” Clearly, he wasn’t a fan of the idea.
“Not over regulated, but don’t you think we should have some semblance of a plan?” I asked. “And I’m going to pay rent, just like Jayden does.”
“That’s not necessary,” Lucas said. He was leaning against the support column in the middle of the basement, but he looked like he might start pacing at any moment. “Our household expenses haven’t gone up, and you already pay for your share of the groceries.”
“Probably more, since you eat so much less than we do,” Jayden added.
They were trying to be generous, but they were missing the point.
“Guys, I didn’t move in here because I was looking for a free place to stay. I moved in because I was looking for a decent place to stay. As in one that wasn’t awful.”
“Have you seen the rest of this basement?” Kyle asked, and I ignored him. This was important.
“I like it here. I like living with you guys. But I can’t stay if you don’t let me pay my way.” The thought of leaving was distressing, and not just because I didn’t have anywhere else to go. I sat down on the bed next to Jayden.
Looking at each of them in turn, I tried to figure out which one of them I was most likely to get through to.
To my surprise, Lucas spoke next. “All right, I’ll look at our expenses and make a budget.” He glanced Jayden’s way. “For your sake, too. You’ve been paying half the electricity and gas bill, but now it should just be a quarter.”
“Thanks, man,” Jayden said. “And as for the rest—the chore charts and all—” he threw a pointed look at Kyle, “Maybe we can meet once a week until we figure it out. But the sleeping arrangements can’t wait that long.” He caught Lucas’s eye. “Tori’s right. You need your room back.”
“I’m fine on the couch,” Lucas insisted. Now he did start pacing, while also rubbing the back of his neck. He was no longer the self-assured man who’d gotten me through the awful ceremony this morning.
Jayden let out an exasperated sigh. “Dude, you had a date the other night, and you didn’t even have a place to get ready.” His eyes cut to me. “A date with a really hot chick.”
I gave him a quick wink before focusing on Lucas. “You still managed to clean up nicely. But you’re moving back into your room—end of discussion.”
Kyle straightened up, as if the conversation was done, but I had a feeling it wasn’t. Lucas still hadn’t agreed to take back his room, for one thing.
Jayden seemed to realize that. “We’ll find another place for Tori to sleep. We’re not going to make her sleep in the bathtub, dude.” He looked around. “We cleared space for one bedroom down here—maybe we could make another one and get one of those portable room dividers or something.”
“Maybe,” I said. My eyes drifted past the cozy lamplight illuminating Jayden’s new room out to the mounds of clutter. I couldn’t see us getting through the rest of that any time soon.
There was one very obvious solution, but either they hadn’t thought of it—or they didn’t want to suggest it. “Here’s the thing,” I began, and I ran my finger along the top of the blue comforter. “This is a really big bed. If Jayden wouldn’t mind, maybe I could… I mean, it’s not a big deal. Lucas and I slept together last night.”
Utter silence met my words—and Kyle and Jayden were staring at me, jaws dropped.