Our Agreement

Hello New Roomate

It's been two weeks since I moved in. I have officially cleaned everything out of this house and only the items I'm keeping remain. I spent this past weekend deep cleaning. I'm still not sure what I'm going to do with the extra bedrooms. I'm sure I'll figure out something.

I went on a shopping binge the day after I got here. First, I took a taxi and bought a used car I found on Facebook. It's a 2017 Nissan Rogue. And since I had the space for anything I desired (that would fit in a 4 door sedan, anyway) I went ahead and hit up all the stores in town.

It's pretty cool because as soon as you get down the mountain, which is about a twenty minute drive, there's a little town called Beckinsdale. It looks like your modern old-timey town with a lot of antique shops and little stores. I managed to find a lot of decorations from the antique stores and I picked up a bed too. I ended up getting way more than I intended. Trying to fit that into my sedan was a nightmare. But I finally have this house looking like it's mine. I still can't wrap my head around the fact I'm a home owner to such a beautiful house. I haven't started outside yet but I'm definitely going to be tackling it soon. I'm still waiting on the lease but my dad did promise it to me. He might've been a shitty dad but he's never broken a promise. "I promise I'll see you before the year ends." And he did, he showed up two days before New Years. "I promise I'll send a Christmas card" and I did get a card, that's just the only thing he sent.

I wasn't a materialistic kid. I wasn't spoiled or anything of that sort. My mom did the best she could to give me everything she could growing up. But as a kid, you can't help but hope for more than a Christmas card from your parent. I would've been happy with five dollars in that card.

My boss has been on me the past week because apparently the moment I boarded my plane he filled my position. So, he needs me to hurry and find a job so she can start. So much for me enjoying working from home for a couple months. I was upset for a couple hours, then I realized that this is just room for another opportunity. So, I've been applying for all the jobs that meet my expectations. I told him I would try to find something by the end of the month. If I don't, I have enough in my saving account to last me a few months. So, I'll be okay. I've been doing so much to get settled in and find a new job, I haven't had any time to enjoy myself.

I decide to open a bottle of wine I got from the store. I pop the top and take it into my living room. I pour a glass and take a seat in front of window overlooking the valley. The sun is beginning to hide behind the mountains and the sky is filled with all the colors from the rainbow. It's seriously so beautiful.

It only takes about two hours before I'm drunk, alone, in my new house. I turn my radio up to 10 and start jamming out while I cook dinner. It's so hot I strip down to my underwear and grab the chicken out the fridge. I decide on chicken and rice and throw the chicken on the stove. I grab a spatula and start to use it as a microphone when something catches my eye.

I look up and there's a man standing in my doorway. My immediate reaction is to cover my body. I duck behind the counter and take a few deep breathes. Who the hell? Why is there a strange man in my house?? I debate for a minute whether to grab a knife. But then again, if he was going to kill me he would've done it by now, right? Think Sydney, THINK! I see a blanket within reach on the other side of my kitchen counter. I grab it and wrap it around my body.

I stand up and look at the man who's now making his way towards my kitchen. "I'm assuming your Sydney?" He says with a big goofy smile on his face. "I'm Ryan. Based on your reaction I'm going to take a wild guess that your dad didn't tell you I was coming?" What? My dad? He definitely doesn't look like anyone my dad would associate himself with. Most of my dads friends are around his age but this man can't be any older than maybe early thirties.

He's pretty attractive. He is probably around six inches taller than me. His blue eyes mesh well with his long brown hair, which is currently pulled back into a messy bun. I wonder how long his hair really is, it's hard to tell with it pulled back. He's wearing a white collared t-shirt and ripped up blue jeans with work boots. My dad definitely did not tell me that anyone else was coming. Why the hell would he be here? Does he have the right house?

"Are you sure you know my dad?" I ask. He laughs. Oh god, his laugh. I feel it right in the put of my stomach. I don't even care if he has the wrong house, he can stay here as long as he wants. It'd be nice to have company around here anyways. The lack of human interaction I've had the last couple weeks have definitely been getting to me. Or maybe it's the alcohol, I only drank four glasses of wine.

"It's pretty hard to end up at the wrong house out here. I'm pretty sure the closest house isn't for another half a mile down the road.... and I know your name..."

He's right. I don't have many neighbors and the neighbors I do have are so far away I wouldn't even attempt to walk to their house, I would have to prepare to hike.

"So why did my dad send you here? This isn't exactly close to South Dakota." I ask.

"It's kind of a long story.. Maybe I can finish up dinner if you want to go um..."he pauses as his points down at the blanket I'm currently wearing around my body. I nod and head for my bedroom.

What the actual fuck.

I feel uneasy getting dressed. I don't even know this man in my kitchen. I can hear the pots and pans from him finishing up the dinner I started. I quickly throw on a pair of black leggings and a tank top. I look at myself in the mirror and cringe. Alcohol never looked good on me and it definitely doesn't now. I run my fingers through my hair and throw it up into a messy bun. I make my way to my bathroom and wash my face. I take one final look and decide it's definitely better than I started with. I make my way to the hallway and  peek into the kitchen. I see him setting a bowl of chicken and rice on my table. He takes a seat facing away from me and pulls his phone from his back pocket.

I wonder who he's texting, is it my dad? I can tell it's definitely not a short message since his fingers are running a million miles an hour. I pause for a moment, unable to make my way into the kitchen. What are we even suppose to talk about? I'm really outgoing around people I know. It did take me awhile to warm up to Dylan but I got there. Around strangers it's a whole different story, though.

I gain the courage to walk over and take a seat in front of him. He looks up at me and sets his phone on the table. "Ready to eat?" He says as he takes a spoonful of chicken and rice and slaps it on his plate. I nod and do the same. It was pretty quiet for the first half of dinner, like neither one of us knew where to start. Eventually he breaks the silence.

"So, what made you want a change of environment? Your dad told me you moved from Atlanta?"

"I always knew Atlanta wasn't permanent" I responded "I was just waiting for the right place to come along."

He nodded. I took the opportunity to dig a little deeper. "So how do you know my dad?" I ask.

"He gave me a job. I was at one of the lowest points in my life and he kinda saved me. His wife didn't like the idea of me staying in their garage anymore, so he sent me here. Bought my plane ticket and everything. The only thing he left out was you not knowing that I was coming."

I always hated his snobby ass wife. She felt like she was entitled to all of my dads money, even though she's never worked a day in her life. His statement makes me curious about his past, though. I've been at some low points but by the way his face fell, it was probably nowhere near his experiences.

"How are you going to be working for my dad being over 1,000 miles away?" I ask.

He points to a laptop case on the floor. "He sent me prepared" he responds. Of course he did, my dad always cared more about his career than anything else. Selfish bastard.