Raunchy Roommate

by Bethany Morgan

  One man, dressed in all black with a knitted hat on the top of his head, had another guy slammed up against the wall. The other man was scrawny and frightened and was screaming out for help.

  I hid behind the brick wall of the dimly-lit alleyway to investigate.

  "Your brother owes me five hundred bucks! I need my friggin' money!" The guy dressed in black shouted, pushing him even further into the concrete wall.

  The other man's face was being squished and he was gasping for breath. "I don't have it! Go ask my brother! Please, let me go!"

  "Your brother doesn't have it either!" The villain in this situation huffed, punching the apparent innocent man in the back and making him whimper in pain. "Pay me the money or I'll kill you and your brother."

  The man gasped loudly, tears suddenly beginning to roll down his cheeks. "No! I have a family! I have two kids! Please don't do this! I promise I'll help him get you the money soon!"

  He shook his head, snickering in a condescending manner. "I need my money now!"

  I couldn't take viewing this any longer. My heart was beating rapidly against my chest. I've always been the type to help those in need, regardless of whether or not it was a good idea. What I was about to do definitely wasn't a good idea, but I would regret it for the rest of my life if I watched some father get murdered right in front of me.

  I jumped out from the wall I was previously crouched behind, waving my purse in the air. "I have the money!" I called loudly. "I have the money, just let him go!"

  The two heads instantly turned towards me. The guy dressed in black let go of the scrawny man and slowly approached me. I gulped. "What did you just say?"

  "I-I have the money," I repeated, opening up my purse to grasp five one hundred dollar bills. It was just one of the perks of being a Hollywood actress. I didn't need this money, but this man obviously did. "Here, take this cash and let the poor guy go."

  The scary guy stared at the bills, eying them carefully. He did not touch them. Instead he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a shiny, silver gun.

  I sucked in a deep breath, beginning to panic. "Oh my God, please don't-"

  "This doesn't involve you. I don't need your charity," The man spat, lifting his gun up to face me.

  I could feel every part of my body began to shake and my lips begin to quiver. I glanced up at the man with pleading eyes, only to spot a pair of green irises I could never forget. I knew who this man was.

  "Charles," I whispered.

  •Stuart

  As soon as Annabel told me she was at the diner, I hopped into my car and began driving straight there. We used to go there all the time as kids, but everything was different now with our recent accounts of fame. I just wanted to make sure my girl was safe.

  It only took a few minutes to get there (I may or may not have been speeding) but when I stepped inside the familiar diner, I didn't see anyone except a group of teenagers in the back booth that I used to always inhabit.

  I sighed with relief, figuring that she must have finished eating already and was headed back home safely. But as I turned my head swiftly, I spotted her vehicle still parked in the parking lot.

  Where the hell is she?

  My feet scuffed against the dingy pavement as I strolled around the building to see if I could find her hanging around here for a bit of breath air or something. I could faintly hear voices coming from behind the building, and sure enough that head of blonde hair was easily seen.

  With further inspection I saw a guy standing in front of her, with a gun held in his hand, pointed directly at Annabel. I instantly gasped loudly, running straight towards them with a new burst of adrenaline.

  "What the fuck are you doing?" I screeched, leaping in front of Annabel and knocking the gun out of his hands. The man stood there in shock as I swung at him, punching him square in the nose and watching as blood immediately began pouring out of his nostrils.

  Annabel's palms gripped onto my bicep tightly. I was fuming, my jaw clenched together tightly, but I was mainly just scared out of my mind. "Stuart, stop! He has a gun!"

  I kicked the gun that was laying on the ground as far as I could. "Not anymore," I yelled. I started to dash away, but Annabel was still frozen in place. "Ann, run! What are you doing? Get out of here!"

  "It's Charles," She mumbled, motioning towards the gunman who was holding onto his broken nose in pain.

  My eyes widened. It was Charles. The one she was head over heels for back in high school. The one I wrecked our friendship over. The one that must have turned down the wrong path and became a heartless villain.

  "Charles?" I screamed down at him. "Why were you going to shoot her? What the hell is wrong with you?"

  He coughed, standing up to his feet weakly. "I didn't realize it was Annabel! I wasn't going to shoot her after I found out who it was!"

  I punched him in the face again, since my anger was still building up with rage. "Yeah and you better not ever scare my girl like that again," I yelled in my best form of intimidation. "You used to be such a good guy. Go to Hell."

  Annabel was still shaking nervously, almost completely frozen with shock. She threw some money onto the ground before shuffling over towards me. I intertwined our fingers together and started to run, tugging her away from the scene as fast as I could.

  I helped her get into the passenger seat before buckling up my own seat belt and driving away from the parking lot. My knuckles were throbbing as they gripped the steering wheel and I was nearly panting for breath.

  "You didn't have to do that," She murmured, her gaze fixated on the road in front of us. "You didn't have to come all the way out here."

  "Bullshit," I said in an irritated tone. "You almost got freakin' killed, Ann! You know what would have happened if I didn't listen to my gut and I didn't show up? We would be attending your funeral tomorrow because some idiot with anger issues would have shot you. Nice choice in men, Annabel. Real nice."

  Annabel swallowed. She picked up my hand that wasn't holding the steering wheel. Her thumb traced over my bruised knuckles and she lifted it to her lips to kiss gingerly. "Stuart, please don't yell at me. I just had a gun pointed to my face. I can barely breathe."

  "And who's fault is that?" I shouted, not even being able to contain my fury. I was taking all of my anger towards Charles out on Annabel, which I felt bad about, but I couldn't stop myself. "I told you to come home and that it wasn't safe this late! I told you!"

  "I know, baby. I'm sorry," Annabel spoke timidly.

  I cracked a small smile as her lovely voice uttered those words. I could never stay mad at her. "You called me baby."

  "Would you rather I called you Daddy?" She teased, somehow managing to giggle at a time like this.

  "Annabel," I warned, and I saw her smile at me through the corner of my eye. "I'm sorry for yelling, okay? I just don't know what I would do if you were gone. That's why I'm so protective. I never want you getting hurt."

  She kissed my hand again. "Can you tell me what even happened back there?" I questioned, my curiosity getting the best of me.

  "I'll tell you when we get to my house. You're sleeping over tonight."

  Chapter 28

  Annabel

  "Why didn't you just call the police?"

  I sighed heavily, shrugging my shoulders in a nonchalant response. Stuart's head was propped up on the pillow beside me, making his sharp jawline protrude even further. He had a small little smile tugging on his lips, but I think that is just because he is excited that I let him sleepover.

  "That would have taken so long. If I just stepped in to do something this innocent man wouldn't have gotten murdered. I don't need a few hundred dollars, so why not help someone out?" I responded, turning on my side to get a better look at him.

  His hair was messy and fell over his forehead in random patterns, the ends of each lock of hair curling up at the end and hiding his tan skin like a curtain. He was taking long blinks to rejuvenate his tired eyes, making his long eyelashes
flutter against the small, little bags underneath his eyes. He is so gorgeous, even in this dark bedroom in the very early part of the morning.

  Stuart's plump lips grinned at me as his hand crept underneath the blankets and picked up my hand, intertwining our fingers together. "You always have had this moral obligation to be kind to people who don't really deserve it, Ann. It's adorable. But don't do something like that ever again."

  "No promises," I whispered, suddenly realizing that we were talking incredibly loudly when my parents were just down the hall.

  He groaned, scooting closer to me so our faces were almost directly in front of each other. I hope my breath doesn't stink.

  "Please, Annabel," Stuart pleaded, his beautiful brown eyes locking on mine. "You scared the living crap out of me. And I'm scared that there will come a day when I won't be there to protect you, so please just protect yourself."

  I nodded, understanding that I didn't make the best decisions regarding my own safety tonight, but it felt right in the moment to help that guy. "Thank you for getting me out of there, by the way. We'll have to go pick up my car tomorrow."

  "Anything for my girlfriend," Stuart stated proudly, kissing the top of my nose. Then he sunk backwards, his eyes widening with realization at what he had just called me.

  I gulped. I hated the conversation that was brewing.

  Stuart licked his lips before he spoke, a deep exhale escaping his mouth. "Ann. What are we?"

  There it is. The dreaded three words.

  I truthfully didn't know. Obviously I liked him; I liked him so much that I was terrified. Obviously I wanted to be with him and listen to him call me baby and bake him cookies when he's sad and cuddle with him at all hours of the day. But there was still a hint of nerves for getting my heart completely shattered to pieces again, and I was incredibly worried that the day would come again.

  "I don't know."

  He rolled his eyes at me. "Don't give me that shit, Annabel. We're a couple. Do you really think I would have drove down to the diner for someone else just to make sure they were okay? Do you really think I would have punched some guy for anyone else? No, I only do this for you. I'm not going to hurt you. I'm crazy about you."

  "You're just crazy in general," I tried to tease, but my smile diminished when he didn't even react to my attempt at messing around with him. He looked genuinely ticked off.

  "Shut up. You're making this so difficult," Stuart grunted, shaking his head at me. "I realize I was an asshole before. But that's the thing. Before. I'm not anymore. Why can't you see that I've changed?"

  I placed my hand on his bicep. I felt an ounce of guilt strike through me. "Of course I see you've changed, Stu," I insisted, stroking my hand over his smooth skin. "I just- putting a label on things is stupid. I don't know. I'm just scared."

  "For God's sake! I'm scared too!" He yelled at a low volume in complete annoyance. Stuart sighed, finally glancing up at me. "We don't need a label, you're right. But I wanna be yours."

  I beamed up at him, pressing a kiss onto his cheek. "Don't go all Arctic Monkeys on me, Robinson."

  He chuckled, scooping me up into his arms. His fingers swiped away a few pieces of my hair and tucked them behind my ear delicately. "Annabel, will you please be my girlfriend?"

  My heart was beating rapidly against his chest. I had slowly regained my trust in him, especially after tonight's recent events. We could still take things slow in a relationship. Maybe this was exactly what I wanted all along.

  "Yes."

  He grinned, colliding our lips together in one swift motion. I smiled against the kiss. I had an official boyfriend for the first time in a long time, and he was my best friend. He was the kid I used to despise. And now I'm kissing him at three in the morning with butterflies fluttering throughout my stomach, and I couldn't be happier.

  "Stuart? What are you doing here, son?"

  My eyes shot open quickly. My father was standing in the doorway of my room, his thumb still connected to the light switch he had just flicked on. Luckily the only part of our bodies touching was our feet that were tangled together underneath the blanket, but that didn't stop my cheeks from burning bright red.

  Stuart sat up, his hair even messier than before and he rubbed his eyes as a yawn escaped his mouth. "Morning, Mr. McKenzie! Uh, Anna and I were hanging out last night since we both had some jet lag and I guess I fell asleep."

  My dad nodded, falling for his half-lie. "Alright, kiddo. As long as you two weren't making any other kiddos," He said with a laugh, which Stuart and I pretended to join along with. "That would be the day-- you two ending up together."

  I swallowed. "Yeah, it's too bad that that would be weird since we're such close friends."

  "It would be weird," My father agreed. "Well I came up here to tell you that your Mum and I made some breakfast. Stu, you're welcome to join us. And you're welcome to sleep over whenever but just not in my daughter's bed next time."

  Stuart smiled, shaking his head in confirmation as he slipped out of the bed. "Right. Sorry about that."

  My dad exited the room without another word, making me exhale a deep breath that I was unaware I was holding. Stuart instantly burst into a fit of laughter. "Stop! That was so close," I whined.

  "Such close friends, hm?" He mocked, coming closer to me to peck my lips. His hands traveled down to my butt, giving it quick squeeze. His lips hovered over my own. "I'm pretty sure friends don't do this."

  "Shut up," I mumbled, kissing him for barely even a second before I pulled away. "I need to go brush my teeth."

  "Yeah, you do," Stuart joked, flashing me a wink. He was giggling to himself, obviously in a good mood and I found it adorable. "I'll save you a seat at breakfast, baby."

  I nodded, strolling into the bathroom across from my bedroom. I gaped at myself in the mirror, realizing that I looked like a piece of expired cheese on a hot day. I rapidly pulled my hair up into a ponytail and splashed water on my face in hope of revealing something more presentable. I brushed my teeth quickly, even though I would be eating soon, and went to the bathroom before heading downstairs.

  Stuart was sitting across from my parents, a bowl of cereal placed in front of him with a happy grin on my face. He was so adorable. And he was my boyfriend. What a great feeling.

  "Morning, sweetie," My mum greeted, directing my gaze from Stuart to her. She handed me a plate full of pancakes that were already drizzled with syrup. "How did you sleep?"

  "I had a hard time falling asleep because of the time difference," I explained, sinking into the seat next to Stuart. His hand instantly went to my thigh, rubbing small circles against it. I bit my lip to prevent myself from making any noise.

  "Stuart coming over probably didn't help you fall asleep either," My mother scolded, her eyes narrowing at me in an accusatory manner. "It's good to have you here in the morning again though, Stu."

  "I'm glad to be here. You always make the best food, Mrs. McKenzie," Stuart said with a smile, trying his best to suck up even though he was only eating cereal that probably took my mum two minutes to prepare.

  My dad smiled at him with admiration. "How have you been, Stuart? The rock star life must be treating you good, yeah?"

  Stuart laughed. "Yeah. It's a lot of work and travel though. I'm really glad we got this summer off. I needed a break."

  "Having all those girls throw themselves at you must be exhausting, huh?" My father teased, with a hint of sarcasm laced in his tone. Stuart just scooped up a spoonful of cereal with a tiny grin on his face, making me become a little jealous. "You got yourself a girlfriend yet?"

  Stuart put his spoon back in the bowl, making a clinking sound echo throughout the kitchen. He licked his lips to get rid of the lingering milk. "Actually, yeah I do. She's great."

  My mother grinned widely, pressing a hand up to her chest. "Aw, you do? That's wonderful, honey. Is she okay with you and Annabel living together?"

  I tried my best not to laugh. I placed my hand that wasn't grasping onto
my fork over Stuart's hand that was still on my thigh, and gave it a little squeeze.

  "She's definitely okay with it," Stuart assured my mother. It was true. I was more than okay with it. "She knows that Ann and I are close. Plus, we didn't really have a choice on the whole roommates thing, so."

  My dad nodded, scarfing down his French toast. "Hopefully we can meet her someday."

  "Hopefully," I muttered, chewing on the inside of my lip to stop myself from bursting into a hyena-like fit of endless giggles.

  I glimpsed up at Stuart for the first time since the exchange, and he was already beaming at me with delight. I had the urge to just tilt my head up and kiss him right there. He was so good with my family, and so good with me. I knew this whole relationship thing was going to be super easy for us.

  Or was it?

  Chapter 29

  Stuart

  The week spent at home was flying by so quickly I could barely grasp onto any of it.

  We were leaving to go back to Los Angeles tomorrow, which I absolutely dreaded the thought of, and I was trying my best to pack as much as possible into this week. I recently visited the beach with a few of my old friends, I've been enjoying my mother's cooking, and I'm trying to soak up as much quality family time as I could manage.

  I haven't even seen Annabel that much since the diner mishap, and I've only been receiving scattered messages from the boys. This week was strictly about my family, as it should be.

  However, that didn't stop me from inviting my girlfriend over today. That was so lovely to say. Girlfriend. I can't even remember the last time I had an official girlfriend and not just some random hook-up. Surprisingly, I was loving the whole relationship mindset that I originally declined when the band started.

  "Well hello miss Anna," I greeted obnoxiously as I opened the door, revealing the beautiful girl I was now lucky enough to call mine. She giggled, giving me a warm hug that barely lasted a few seconds since my mum was not too far away. "I've missed you."