Raunchy Roommate

by Bethany Morgan

  "Clay, you're the one who has experience with this. So does Benjamin and Bradley, and you all told me the same thing." I answered lightly. "Look, I'm having a lot of fun just hanging out with the band again. This is what you guys wanted. It's fine."

  He shook his head rapidly. "No, it's not fine!" Clayton yelled. "You can have a girlfriend and still hang out with us. You still manage to call her all the time, so what difference does it make if you're actually together? Right? Stuart, Annabel is a great girl and she brings out the best in you. You know you're happier when you're with her. So stop listening to your assholes of friends and fight for what you want."

  I pursed my lips together, digesting his words. He did make a valid point. I knew I had been living in denial lately. I was never able to get her off of my mind and I missed her more and more every time her pretty face popped into my brain. It was going to be hard, but since when was our love ever easy in the first place?

  I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "What do I do?" I muttered, closing my eyes shut as my cluttered mind continued to race with thoughts.

  Clayton smiled. "You call Annabel and tell her you love her and tell her that you want to be her boyfriend again."

  I licked my lips. "I hope it's that simple."

  "It will be," Clayton assured me, standing up from his seat and motioning for me to follow him. "Come on, let's call a cab and get out of here. You need to make an important phone call."

  "Right now?" I whined, suddenly feeling nervous, despite the fact that I was certain her feelings were just as strong as my own.

  I watched Clayton round Bradley and Benjamin up, while dialing a number into his phone. He glimpsed up at me, with his eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "There's no time like the present, buddy."

  I rolled my eyes at him. He always had these bursts of wisdom, as if he was some distinguished philosopher, when in actuality he was just extremely immature attempting to seem mature.

  Benjamin, who must have already been aware of the conversation Clayton had with me, nudged me with his elbow. "If this is about calling Annabel, then you don't want to be too late," He said playfully, with his untamed eyebrows raised.

  I couldn't help but chuckle at his awful joke. "Shut the hell up," I commanded, shaking my head at him, which only made Benjamin laugh harder at his own song reference.

  We stepped outside of the bar, facing the windy and cold weather that the UK was notorious for. The evening sky was dark, and the only sources of light came from the paparazzi’s camera's flashes. They all started screaming as soon as we came into view, and I was annoyed that they were able to find our location so quickly.

  "Stuart! Are you and Annabel McKenzie officially over now?" One of the men shouted at me.

  I ignored his question, trying my best not to smirk as we walked down the street to find the bus. We weren't over, this was about to be the beginning again, which made this so ironic.

  "Did you break up with Annabel or did she break up with you?" Another man screamed, and we all just kept our heads down like we were supposed to, trying to ignore them as they snapped pictures of us and attempted to get a story.

  "Is your break up because you are becoming an alcoholic?" Someone called out, which instantly made Bradley burst into laughter. At least they were creative.

  "What about Jordan Hartford? Does their date last night bother you? Did you ever have a feeling Annabel was more than friends with her costar? Have you seen their kissing picture from last night?"

  I froze.

  "What?" I screamed loudly, snapping my head to the side.

  Someone threw a magazine into my hands. On the glossy cover was pictures of Jordan and Annabel cuddling up with each other at an arcade, along with a big photo of the two of them leaning into kiss each other.

  I felt my heart shatter into a million pieces. She looked so happy. And it wasn't because of me. It was because of Jordan.

  My jaw clenched tightly together in fury. I wanted to curl up in a ball and cry right then and there. Here I was, still completely in love with her and right about to ask her to get back together, and she had already moved on, as if this entire relationship meant absolutely nothing to her.

  Benjamin sent me a sympathetic glance, wrapping his arm around me. "Come on, Stuart. Let's get back to the bus."

  I ripped the magazine in half, letting out a loud groan and slamming it onto the cement sidewalk beneath us. There would probably be an article about how I littered in a few days, but I didn't care. I was completely heartbroken.

  Benjamin did his best to shield me away from the reporters, and I finally gave in and started to stroll away. They were still shouting things at us just as loud.

  "I always knew Annabel McKenzie was a whore," One of them said under their breath, snickering to themselves.

  That comment made my anger grow even further. She was the farthest thing from a whore, and I knew that for sure due to our past. I hated when people even used that word in a derogatory manner. Especially when they use that word about Annabel.

  I turned around swiftly, despite Benjamin and Bradley's arms holding me back. "Don't you ever call her that again!" I spat, narrowing my eyes at the short man with a camera.

  She might have ripped my heart into twenty pieces from her date last night, but I was still the most protective beast when it came to my girl. Even if she no longer is my girl.

  Chapter 51

  Annabel

  "I think your phone is ringing," Grace told me, nudging towards my bedroom with her hand that was holding onto a slice of pizza.

  I jumped to my feet, walking over towards my room and unplugging my phone from my charger. It was Stuart calling me, and I hesitated before answering. I really wanted to ignore him and become independent again, but I was curious as to what he wanted to speak to me about.

  My foot kicked my door shut. I was sure that if Grace knew I was still in everyday contact with him she would give me another lecture. It's all so complicated though. I want to talk to him and hear his adorable voice with his slight lisp or the rasp he acquired when he was groggy, but I didn't want to face the fact that every time we speak I end up getting more hurt than before.

  I knew it was a bad idea, but I still lifted the phone to my ear. "Hi," I greeted shyly, folding my knees up so I was sitting cross-legged on the bed.

  "I can't believe you!" Stuart yelled straight away, startling me. "Why did you do this, Ann? Why?"

  "Do what?" I asked in irritation, dreading this conversation already.

  "Are you not going to tell me what you did last night?" Stuart questioned in accusatory tone. "Were you planning on keeping the fact that you went on a date last night a secret from me?"

  I groaned, throwing my head down onto the pillow. "What? Stuart, I told you I was hanging out with Jordan. Please don't make this into a big deal."

  "You hanging out with Jordan is a completely different subject than having to see the two of you kissing and cuddling on the cover of every magazine!" Stuart argued. He sounded incredibly frustrated, and more upset than angered.

  I felt my cheeks alter to a shade of bright pink. My face always grew hot with embarrassment or with nerves, and the idea of pictures of a simple outing was all over the media right now made me feel incredibly uneasy. If I was in Stuart's position I would be jealous if I saw pictures of him with another girl, yes, but I wouldn't be getting as furious as him.

  "Stuart, you broke up with me so you could hook up with other girls. I barely even go on a date and you're flipping out," I stated in a monotonous voice.

  He groaned under his breath. "But have I hooked up with a single girl yet? No. I thought I would be tempted but I'm not because I'm in love with you. I thought you felt the same way, but obviously I was wrong since you were so quick to move on."

  Move on. God, I wanted to snort. He had absolutely no idea what he was talking about. Obviously I wasn't even close to moving on if I was still talking to him.

  "Stuart, whether or not you acted
on your original intention is not my problem. You can't get mad at me for hanging out with my costar when you dropped me like it was nothing," I responded, fighting the urge to scream at him for his controlling behavior when we weren't even together anymore.

  He sighed so loud I could hear it through the phone. "Annabel, don't act like this is easy for me. You know how hard it is. I don't go a second without thinking about you. If I didn't care I wouldn't be calling you all the time."

  "You only contact me when you need something. Like when you need someone to reassure you, or when you need someone to flirt with when you're drunk, or when you need someone to send you pictures because you're horny and apparently can't watch porn like a normal guy," I rambled, trying to show him how I felt like I was being used merely for his own personal gain.

  "Okay, yeah. But aren't you glad all my brain is capable of thinking of is you? Even when I'm completely hammered, I still turn down other girls and only want you. I've never had that kind of loyalty to someone before, Ann," Stuart admitted. "I was wrong about the whole break-up. I told you I just needed a few weeks to see if I could handle being in a relationship. And I can. So I was calling to ask if you wanted to give us another try."

  I felt my chest tighten as I began to lose my breath. "You are?" I repeated in complete surprise, since I was starting to lose hope that he would ever want to date again.

  "Well, I was," Stuart said, indicating that his thoughts were in the past tense. "But that was before I saw how happy you looked without me. How happy you could be with some other guy, while I was out at the bar drinking away my sorrows, missing the girl that I thought felt the same way about me."

  I wanted to rip my hair out.

  "Stuart, nothing is going on between Jordan and I! We just went on one date!" I yelled out of frustration, letting the word date slip out of my mouth even though that wasn't what it was. "You do not have the ability to tell me that I can't go out with other guys when we're broken up! You're the one who did this!"

  "I didn't want to break up! I never did, okay? I was just listening to my stupid friends and being super paranoid. I'm an idiot, Annabel. But you know that I'm an idiot more than anyone. I figured you would have waited until I realized what an idiot I was before you moved on," He replied, in a desperation ridden voice.

  I shut my eyes for a moment to process what was even happening right now. "I haven't moved on, Stuart. But that's not fair that you ask me to wait for you. I have a life of my own too, you know."

  "But I would have waited for you! I would have gave you your time to figure things out if you were filming in another country, in a different time zone, with a hectic schedule. I love you so much more than you love me, and that's what kills me," Stuart mumbled, and I could almost see him shaking his head at me even though we are on the phone.

  "How can you say that, Stuart? You know how I feel about you!" I shouted, feeling completely agitated by how he could accuse me of that. "You hurt me, and I still love you and talk to you everyday even though it kills me inside. You can't honestly believe I don't care about you."

  "You hurt me too!" Stuart yelled just as loudly. "Do you know how jealous I was seeing you and Jordan together on the cover of every magazine? You told me he was like a brother to you. If that's how you act with Oliver than I will be very uncomfortable with your family. I hated seeing someone else get to hold my favorite person in their arms, and the fact that you two kissed in public makes me want to punch a wall."

  I curled my first together, clenching my hand tightly with angry. He was only basing this off of what he had seen, not what I was telling him. He had no idea that I stopped Jordan from kissing me because of him, and at this point I doubt he would even believe me.

  "We didn't-" I began to scream, but then stopped myself. I needed to say something to make him as angry as he was making me. So I acted on complete impulse. "We didn't just kiss. I slept with him too."

  Stuart's side of the phone call went completely silent.

  "You- you did?" He asked quietly, his voice incredibly shaky as if he could barely utter the words.

  I didn't respond. I felt the guilt of my lie creeping through the pit of my stomach, instantly regretting this. It didn't make him envious or furious, it just made him sound completely fragile.

  I could faintly hear him sniffling. It wasn't a sick sniffle like his nose was stuffed with tissues, it was a sniffle used to prevent someone from crying. "Are you crying?" I questioned in a much lighter, and sympathetic tone.

  Stuart sniffled again. "Yeah. I can't believe- I mean, after everything we've been through and overcome. I thought sex was like special to you, and it made it feel special to me too, because it was with you. And now you just threw all of that away for Jordan. It's like I didn't mean anything to you."

  "Stuart, that's not true," I muttered through chattering teeth.

  My legs began to wobble. I couldn't bear to hear him talk like this. "No, it is true. You've moved on. You are able to let another guy see you at your most vulnerable point, and see all of your beauty, and get to have that connection with you. I'm not special anymore. Maybe I never even was. I mean, if you're able to just forget about our whole relationship after only a few weeks, I must not be that important."

  I gulped as my chest tightened up. I was such a screw up. I was such an immature, childish, pathetic girl and it was breaking my heart to hear him speak like this. "No, Stuart. I was ly-"

  "Don't say anything else, Annabel. As a matter of fact, don't talk to me again. We've both changed. We're both different people now. At least, you are. I'm having fun with the boys, you're having fun with your cast. We'll just focus on our careers like we planned. This is too hard for me," Stuart rambled off, almost as if he was speaking in one quiet breath.

  I could hardly breathe as panic slipped over me. "What? No. Stuart, no! I was ly-"

  "I hope he makes you happy," Stuart interrupted, sighing loudly from his end. "Shit, I'm such an idiot. I hope you have a good life, Annabel. I, um, maybe I'll see you again. At like another movie premiere or something. I don't know."

  "Stuart! Stop! What are you doing?" I called out, as my heart rate rapidly inclined. I leaped to my feet as anxiety took complete control over me, and began to pace around my room like a maniac.

  He whimpered, making it clear that he was crying. "Goodbye, Annabel. This was fun while it lasted, right?"

  I made one final attempt to come clean, but it was already too late. Stuart had hung up, completely terminating our phone call. And deep down in my gut, I had a feeling that it was the last phone call we'd be having for awhile, which was all my fault.

  Chapter 52

  Stuart

  My fingers played with the strings, trying to get the notes right. I kept grumbling under my breath. Nothing was sounding pleasant and I continued to make mistake after mistake. Maybe my head is too dizzy to be practicing right now, but I was terrified that the same thing would happen on stage tonight.

  I felt completely numb. I was ignoring every emotion possible, just putting all of my energy into my music. I didn't want to think about anything or anyone. I needed to get the old Stuart back and start partying and hooking up with girls just for the brief thrill of it. There may not be any love involved, but that was much easier than feeling this hurt.

  Benjamin cautiously sat down next to me. I could feel his blue eyes scanning over the scene, but I didn't bother to make eye contact with him. I really wasn't in the mood to speak with anyone.

  "You know your phone has been going off for the last hour," Benjamin stated timidly, clasping his hands together as he played with the silver ring that he occasionally wore.

  "Yup," I deadpanned, tightening up the strings.

  "And you're not even going to read them?" He questioned, making me want to roll my eyes.

  "Fine," I groaned, reaching over to the side table to grip my phone that was vibrating out of control, while still keeping the curve of the bass over my thigh. I unlocked the screen to view the mess
ages, but I didn't even need to open them to know who they were from.

  From: Annabel McKenzie- stuart please just let me explain something

  From: Annabel McKenzie- i really need to talk to you

  From: Annabel McKenzie- don't ignore me it's important

  From: Annabel McKenzie- ok i know you don't want to talk to me and i don't blame you but please just at least read this

  From: Annabel McKenzie- i never slept with troy. i only said that to make you mad or jealous because you aggravated me. idk why i did it, i acted on impulse and i really regret it i'm so sorry

  From: Annabel McKenzie- i've always been so honest with you and have never lied to you before idk why i lied i'm an idiot

  From: Annabel McKenzie- i'm really sorry just know that you are special to me and i do love you and i probably always will and that sex is still important to me and i hope it will be for you too

  From: Annabel McKenzie- u have every right to be pissed at me bc i messed up big time i just hope you can somehow forgive me for lying it was such a stupid thing to do. i wasn't thinking at all

  From: Annabel McKenzie- i don't think you're gonna answer and that's fine i don't deserve it. i should have just explained to you that troy tried to kiss me but i said no bc of you. idk why i had to open my mouth and say that. it was totally out of spite

  From: Annabel McKenzie- just be careful and make good choices and have a good tour okay? i'm glad we at least got the summer together and made up after all those years i hope the same thing doesn't happen to us again and we can at least be on good terms

  From: Annabel McKenzie- ok maybe not since you still haven't answered any of these but that's alright

  From: Annabel McKenzie- goodbye stuart