the Roommate Mistake

by Elizabeth Stevens

  Alex Landry

  K

  “‘K’?” I muttered to myself as I pulled up my keyboard. “Neanderthal.”

  ‘K’ was the sort of response your technologically challenged grandparents sent you in response to the huge missive of what you’d been up to that week. ‘K’ was the sort of thing your mum sent when you told her you were on the way home. It was the bare minimum of a reply, not the sort of thing you used in formal school communique.

  Elliott Hopkins

  Thank you. I will attend your office at 11am today.

  Lottie Hopkins

  I felt quite pleased with myself as I hit send, then wondered why the hell I’d felt the need to show up Alex in the first place. I just couldn’t help it. The guy got under my skin by just existing. The previous afternoon, he’d pestered me about showing me around and meeting some people I might like, and going to the dining hall together. Thankfully, he’d been distracted by the arrival of more of his friends, so I hadn’t needed to do any of those things and avoided him successfully.

  I’d have to see how successful I’d be for the official first day of Acacia Academy’s Term One. Who knew what classes we might have together or, worse yet, homegroup. That was a legitimate concern since I’d read that Acacia’s homegroup system was based on dorms and was designed to foster friendships among dormmates. The last thing I needed was friendships, let alone with anyone in my dorm.

  “Rise and-or shine, Elliott Hopkins!” I heard through my door. “This is your official welcome to your first day at the excellence that is Acacia Academy.”

  By the time he’d finished his little spiel, I’d managed to haul arse out of bed and throw my bedroom door open. I didn’t need the look on his face to confirm how good I looked first thing in the morning; I knew what I was and future swamp witch was not only an apt title but something I looked forward to.

  “What?” I asked, my voice groggy as hell.

  But Alex Landry was clearly a morning person.

  There he stood with that charming smile beaming at me at about a million lumens. He was already dressed in his full uniform with not a wrinkle out of place. His hair was characteristically pulled up again and, as I waited for some explanation as to why he was at my door so chipper so early, my half-asleep brain watched him half-mesmerised as he ran his hand through and up it again.

  “Good morning,” he said with a widening of his grin.

  “Is it?” I asked.

  He nodded. “It is.”

  “Then go and enjoy it instead of waking me up.”

  How could his smile get even bigger? How? “Ah, but you replied to Miss Fairley’s message, ergo you must have already been awake.”

  My brain got stuck on marvelling he knew the word ‘ergo’ and it took a while for it to move onto any other thought. “I can sleep reply. I’m rather proficient at the sleep reply.” And I was. Much like, I imagined, any person who hated waking up but was expected to function during society’s pre-approved hours of custom.

  He seemed to mull it over as his eyes scanned me again.

  It was still the height of Australian summer in a building more suited to the rolling green blessed plots of England than the rustling dry scrub of the Australian bush (sure, it looked good, but it stuck out like a sore thumb). Being that it was still so warm out and I was not a Summer creature, I was wearing a tank top and shorts. It was this not terribly concealing get up that his eyes scanned.

  They did it with practised simplicity, like it was second nature to judge a young woman’s worth by her outsides as you held a fleeting conversation. What better way to keep the conversation brief and get the information you wanted? It wasn’t like I hadn’t done the exact same thing to him when I opened the door.

  To his credit, while he clearly couldn’t turn off the easy charmer part of his personality and definitely had some choice quips on the edge of his tongue in regards to my state, he didn’t try anything on.

  “Not a morning person, then.”

  I couldn’t tell if it was a question or not and, if it was, whether he was asking himself or me.

  Either way, I shrugged. “Not. No.”

  He gave me a nod. “Right. Well. I–”

  There was a drumming noise from the living room door and a raucously called, “Alex! Alex! Alex!”

  Alex smirked like I was joining in on the joke. “I’ll leave you to it. See you later?”

  Figuring I had no choice but to see him at some point in my day – although it would prove an interesting social experiment to see how long I could avoid him – I nodded. “See you later.”

  “Alex!” came the call again.

  He gave me one more cheerful nod, then headed off to deal with the very loud people at the dorm door. His overly enthusiastic words unintelligible as I turned back into my room, pushing the door closed again with my foot, and tried to remember where I’d put my uniform.

  By the time I was dressed and found my school map in the things I’d packed up in preparation for the first day, I just got to Assembly on time. It was longer than usual apparently, covering a whole bunch of details that mostly meant nothing to me as a new student; sports news, club reminders, updates on building works and schemes, tournament announcements, and of course a massive welcome from various members of staff.

  Two hours later, it was Recess time. Which was good, because it was about that time of the day that my stomach started thinking it was hungry. It was also good because it was the first time I could walk the halls of Acacia Academy without a map for guidance; everyone else was going to the Dining Hall as well.

  The noise of hundreds of moving, chatting, excited students surrounded me. The jostling alone was enough to make me feel like I’d be swallowed up by the flow if I tried to do anything but follow it. There was, though, something wholesome in being surrounded by people genuinely happy to see each other after a long absence.

  I was sitting on my own at the end of one of the long wooden tables when a shadow fell across me. Strike that. Multiple shadows.

  Great, I thought to myself. Time for the new kid to be hounded by the popular girls.

  Looking up, I saw it was just Alex. Alex and his friends.

  He nodded in greeting, a jut of his chin in my direction. “Hey.”

  I inclined my head to him. “Hi. Can I help you with something?”

  “Thought I’d grab you on the way to Miss Fairley’s office.”

  I looked at the four boys behind him. All in their green and grey uniforms, they looked like they were about to drop some throwback boyband album.

  “Did this thought also include your entourage escorting us there?” I asked him.

  He huffed a laugh. “Nah. They’re just dropping me to you.”

  “Are you not allowed to go anywhere unaccompanied? Or just incapable?”

  One of his friends, the Viking-looking one, sniggered as he elbowed the lean one. “I like her.”

  I raised my eyebrow as I looked back to Alex, as though he would have any explanation for what was going on.

  There was zero need nor want for this giant blond boy to like me. It was bad enough Alex had decided it was fair game to talk to me just because there’d been a bungle about our sexes. Under no other circumstances, in no other universe, would these people be talking to me otherwise. It was a pity.

  I looked at the time and saw it was almost eleven. Given I was still working my way around the school, I probably should have been already on my way. I supposed, this once, having someone talk to me wasn’t the worst thing in the world.

  “All right. I guess we may as well go to Miss Fairley’s office together, then.” I stood up and made to pick my tray up.

  The short red-head took it from me. “We’ve got it. You don’t want to be late.”

  I bit back a retort about what he knew about what I didn’t and didn’t want; I’d learnt that antagonism wasn’t always the best policy, especially when these people did seem to b
e genuinely trying to be nice.

  “Uh, thanks.” I nodded. “Shall we?” I asked Alex.

  He gave me a smile and a nod, said goodbye to his friends, then headed off in a manner that suggested I follow. Follow I did and we came to Miss Fairley’s office a mite before eleven and with zero getting lost or turned around.

  “Ah, Alex. Lottie,” she said when she saw us hovering in the door. “Come in. Come in. We’re almost ready. Take a seat.”

  Alex indicated me towards one chair like he would have pulled it out for me had we been sitting down to eat. I sat in his suggested seat, only because he was standing in the way of the other one.

  “Good morning,” came a new voice from the doorway.

  I turned around a saw a stern-looking woman I recognised from the Acacia brochures. It was the Principal. Tamara Wilson. Newly appointed. First female principal the school had ever had, breaking years of old boys’ club tradition. What was she doing here?

  “Uh, Ms Wilson,” Miss Fairley said, looking around her office in panic like she thought she was about to be told off. “What brings you–”

  “I’m here on behalf of my sister,” Ms Wilson said as she looked Alex over knowingly. “What has my nephew been up to now?”

  Ms Wilson’s eyes slid over to me and I saw the exasperation clear as day on her face. I meanwhile was tucking away the tid-bit of information in case it came in handy. Why my brain thought I needed potential blackmail info against Alex, I wasn’t sure. It either spoke to who I was as a person or who I assumed he was, and I didn’t much care to know which.

  “Really, Alex?” Ms Wilson asked, clearly already decided what had happened. “Already? It’s literally day one.”

  Alex gave her a grin that was intended to charm the pants off even the strictest of family members. Clearly, Ms Wilson was far more than the strictest of family members.

  “Relax,” he told her. “No one’s been caught doing anything naughty.”

  Miss Fairley clearly only just realised what Ms Wilson had assumed and went bright red. “Oh. Uh. No,” she stammered, blinking furiously behind her glasses. “Mr Landry assured me there would be no…inappropriate shenanigans.”

  “No,” Alex agreed. “I’m a strict ‘appropriate shenanigans only’ kinda guy.”

  I rolled my eyes. “There were no shenanigans, appropriate or inappropriate.”

  Ms Wilson looked at me, looked at Alex, looked at me, then looked at Miss Fairley. “Then why am I here? What meeting is his parents unable to make?”

  “Ah, now see…” Miss Fairley started.

  Alex took over with his suave tone. “An error was made. Lottie and I were assigned as roommates and it looks like finding her a new dorm is going to prove a little tricky.”

  “I knew Elliott– Lottie’s father–” Miss Fairley started by way of apologetic explanation.

  Ms Wilson looked at her as she interrupted. “And with ‘Sasha’ as his official…” She trailed off with a sigh as her gaze returned to her nephew. “That’s what this morning’s donation was for?”

  Alex gave her a shrug. “I assume so.”

  Ms Wilson sighed heavily. “Yes. Because money will always solve the problem.” She sighed again and her attention was back to Miss Fairley. “What can we do?”

  Miss Fairley was clearly doing her best ‘professional and with it’ impression. “As finding Lottie a new room could take a while, it was suggested we would have a meeting with the parents to see if they gave their consent for Lottie and…Alex to share a dorm in the interim.”

  Ms Wilson almost smiled upon realising that this woman had no idea who her nephew was – versus clearly knowing who I was – and even more so upon seeing how annoyed this made him.

  Before she answered, she cleared her throat and the smile was gone. “I see. And Lottie’s parents…?”

  “About to be on the line now,” Miss Fairley said as she did something on her computer.

  “So sorry I’m late,” I heard Mum’s voice play through the speakers.

  Miss Fairley nodded to the monitor while giving a side eye to Ms Wilson. “No problem, Mrs Hopkins. I’m here with Lottie, as well as Alex and his…guardian.”

  She spun the monitor and there was Mum in all her bohemian glory – messy bun, glasses, flowing kaftan, no makeup. They said that if you wanted to know what a woman would look like in ‘x’ number of years, then look at her mother. If I looked like that in any number of years, then I had an awful lot of changing to do.

  “Oh, hi,” Mum said, waving to the room. “Nice to meet you, I’m Mary Hopkins, Lottie’s mum.”

  Ms Wilson nodded. “Tamara Wilson. Alex’s aunt.”

  Mum’s eyes narrowed as she moved closer to the screen. “Wait. Aren’t you the principal?”

  Ms Wilson nodded. “I am here, however, in the capacity of guardian. Alex’s mother is my sister.”

  “Alex Landry, Mary. Pleased to meet you,” he said, angling himself better in the camera’s scope.

  I rolled my eyes. Mum was obviously charmed. “Oh, hello. I hear there’s been a bit of a mix up with the dorm allocation?”

  “Yes,” Ms Wilson said stonily. “I’m afraid we’re doing renovations to Callistemon House, so room is…sparse this year. As such we’ve had to accommodate some of the girls in Banksia House. We appear to have had a confusion as to where Elliott and Sasha belong.”

  I could see Mum had ideas about ‘where I belonged’. Thankfully, she didn’t voice them all aloud. “Well, I’m sure these things happen. What do you need from me?”

  “Put frankly, Mrs Hopkins, we’re not sure when or if we’ll be able to find Lottie a new dorm until the renovations are complete,” Miss Fairley said, her tone all apology.

  Despite her being there in the guardian capacity, Ms Wilson took over. “What we need, Mrs Hopkins, is your permission for Lottie and Alex to continue to share the dorm. They have separate rooms and Miss Fairley will be keeping a close eye on them.”

  Mum smirked and I was sure she was remembering stories Dad had told about good old Acacia Academy and their success in segregating the sexes. Naturally, he’d not told me any of them directly, but I’d overheard enough to know that allocating the students different dormitories had done very little to keep them out of each other’s beds. Teenagers were nothing if not a resourceful bunch when they really wanted something.

  “Well, it sounds like I really don’t have much choice here,” Mum said.

  “Rest assured, we are doing everything we can to have the renovations finished and the school back to order,” Miss Fairley said.

  Mum shrugged. “It honestly makes very little difference to me. If it’s permission you need to make yourselves feel better and cover your legal butts, then you’ve got it.”

  Miss Fairley looked to Ms Wilson, who sighed.

  “As Mrs Hopkins said, we have very little choice. But, Alex, know that you are answerable to me as both principal and aunt here. One wrong step and–”

  “Look, no offence, Aunt Tam, but Lottie’s not exactly falling over herself to get in my pants and the feeling’s mutual. You got nothing to worry about shenanigans-wise.”

  Ms Wilson looked like she was caught between wanting to believe him and wanting to berate him into taking this seriously. I wondered what kind of relationship they had outside of her being the principal.

  “Okay,” Ms Wilson said. “As Alex’s guardian, I also give my permission.”

  Miss Fairley looked like she was just happy to have the situation out of her hands. “Wonderful. I’ll draw up some paperwork to sign and keep you apprised of our efforts to find Lottie a new dorm,” she said, more to Mum than Ms Wilson I was sure.

  “Excellent. Sounds good,” Mum said with a nod. “I’ll get right on that.” Which was Mary Hopkins code for ‘I’ll plan to do that, forget for an inordinate amount of time, need ten reminders, then eventually do it when the fates align’.

  “Thank you, Mrs Hopkins,” Ms
Wilson said. “I’m glad we could sort this out quickly and with minimal fuss.”

  Goodbyes were said, Mum signed off and Alex and I were dismissed.

  “What class have you got now?” he asked.

  “Maths.”

  “No way!”

  “You have Maths now?” I guessed.

  He shook his head. “Nope. Tourism. But! Maths is in the same block. I’ll walk you.”

  “I don’t need a chaperone.”

  “Fine. I’m going to the same building, can I please walk with you?” he asked.

  I looked at him and found it very difficult not to smile. “Fine. You can walk with me,” I caved.

  He grinned. “Awesome.”

  Later that day, I texted Mum about the absolutely surreal situation I’d found myself in.

  Lottie

  Well. You wanted me to join something. Does the circus count?

  Mum

  LOL!

  Mum

  No.

  To what would be Mum’s utter chagrin, I locked myself away in my room and looked up my new roommate.

  From what I could gather, Alex Landry had risen to school stardom the year before when he surpassed all previous expectations and smashed every single swimming record the school ever held, both internally and in competitions. It was no wonder people knew who he was.

  School newsletters for the past year had at least one mention of him and his accomplishments, if not a whole article. The guy might be arrogant, but at least it seemed somewhat earned. I had to give him that. If my school made such a big deal about me, I’d probably walk around like I owned the place, too.

  The introvert and the jock as roommates.

  It sounded like the beginning of a really bad joke.

  “Well,” I muttered to myself. “This year just got a whole lot more interesting.”

  Chapter Four

  My second day at Acacia was no less busy than the first. There was just the added complication of having Alex waiting for me first thing in the morning. At least he hadn’t knocked on my door again.