Behold! My Difficult Roommate

1 |A New Chapter

Kai

The bell rings, filling the silent halls as it marks the end of my high school life.

My best friend Alicia rushed to my side, tugging my sleeve, "Come on, Kai! Don't look so grim! School's finally over!"

I just gave her a gentle nod but Alicia's not having it.

"Don't worry about that math exam. It's already over! Loosen up!" She hardly taps my back multiple times, saying, "Cheer up! I say, to hell with that GPA nonsense. A pass is a pass!"

If only that were the case... I can only bow my head as I tidy up my desk.

"Tsk tsk tsk." Alicia walks in front of me, bending down to see my face. "You're being too hard on yourself. You did your best and I know it's more than enough!"

Our eyes met, yet I couldn't even bring myself to agree because I was living in reality. You can't just do your best and expect good things to magically happen just because. In my case, I need to work even harder just to be considered adequate.

"You're still upset, huh?" I heard her whisper. She took a deep breath before putting up a wide grin. "Then I have no choice but to give you an early graduation present!"

Alicia twirls around before putting her phone on my desk "Tada!" She puts her hand on her hips. "I'm gonna give you a one-time pass to compare your grades to mine! You'll for sure feel better!"

Alicia slowly winks, making sure I notice.

I tried to stifle my laugh by covering my face with a book.

"You see! Here, I have 3 C's while the rest are B's. But I did get a B+ on PE. Good job, me!" She flicks her hair in the air.

"You're such a dork!" I retorted, still holding back tears of joy.

"There! Now you're smiling. Now, we've got to prepare for our graduation party. Let's go!"

She pushed all the things on my desk inside my bag.

"Hey! I was going to put those back neatly!"

Al grabbed my bag before dragging me out of our classroom, never letting go of my sleeve. "Yes, yes. Mr. Always-so-clean-and-smell-like-lavender-all-the-time, but we're gonna be late!"

Alicia is always like this and I admired her for it. She's always so lively even way back when we were kids. Even I don't understand why we became friends in the first place. I look at her and my heart always skips a beat.

There's something in Alicia that makes me feel at ease whenever she's around. No matter how ironic it may sound.

She hums before stopping. "Aww! What a cute doggie!" Al knelt petting someone's dog.

I'm more of a cat person but I wouldn't mind turning into a dog, as long as she's the one petting me.

I shook my head, making the thoughts disappear. What the hell am I saying?

But kidding aside, I could never see myself being with someone other than her.

We arrived in front of the boutique and I broke into a long sigh knowing we'll be here for hours. "The graduation party is next month. It's too early to buy dresses."

Al waves her finger. "No, silly. Not 'that' graduation party. Stephanie's."

I should've known. I really couldn't escape that girl no matter what! I should think of a possible excuse to avoid that party.

I composed myself before Alicia could see my contorted face. She excitedly looked at me, pointing at a teal gown "Look! This dress looks good on you!"

"What?" I raise my brow. "We're not kids anymore. I'll not subject myself to playing dress-up and tea parties."

She just smiles. "Aww, you're no fun."

But surprisingly, those childhood years I spent with her didn't bother me in the least. As long as I spent it with her.

Believe me, the thought of holding her hand in public warms my heart but I noticed that all her friends are girls. Maybe she'll accept my confession and we'll live happily ever after but, she might friend-zone me and things will be awkward from then on. And I can't risk that. I'll just stick to giving her clues. I'm not rushing.

My hand slides at the smooth tuxedo while I wait for Alicia in a corner. There's a really good blue suit in the middle rack but there are so many people hanging around there. My low social battery forbids it. This black tuxedo will do.

"Oh em gee! Kai! Look at this!" Alicia emerges from the fitting room and time seems to slow down as if the world itself is in awe at her beauty. The red (semi-appropriate?) dress hugged her curves perfectly as it draped down the ground without crease. It's accompanied by a silk shawl gently placed on her forearms. She definitely looks like a naughty socialite.

"So. How is it?" Al gave me a little twirl.

I couldn't stop my mouth from dropping. "Wow... You're so beautiful. And perfect." Everything stopped making sense except for one thing. All I know is that I'll be the luckiest guy if she gives me a chance. Is it wrong to think like this?

My heart skipped a beat. Why would you say that? I don't know what came over me. Maybe it's the unkempt bun or her sunshine smile. But, regardless! I should pick the right time.

Al blushed. "Aww. Thanks! You're such a sweet friend." She coyly slaps my chest.

Friend... This is so embarrassing! I wish the ground could swallow me whole!

Alicia struts, practicing the weight of the dress. "You know, I have 10 more dresses to try but I kinda wanna buy this one since you're all so--" She imitates my reaction a while ago with exaggeration.

"Yup. Definitely stick to that one." Mainly because she'll take forever and I don't wanna be here when the store closes.

"Now, it's your turn to pick." Al beams at me.

I grabbed the black tuxedo from the rack. "I already got one."

She pouts. "But there's a cute white dress with a feather band I want you to try... It'll bring your twink features to perfection!"

And... She's being weird again. What even is a 'twink' anyway?

It was a struggle stopping her from picking more things when we were already in line to pay. I carefully dragged her outside to avoid damaging her red dress. However, I must say, it took a lot of convincing for Alicia to let me settle for a tuxedo. She just wants me to wear it now. I can do that. Easy!

Al waved her hands in the air. "Hey! You look like a groom! Thank God I didn't pick a white dress or people might mistake us for a newlywed couple! Hehehe."

Can you not be so happy? It's making my heart bleed. Sob*

"Now we're officially ready for the party!"

Right. The party. My parents will launch a new product this week. Yup, that'll be my excuse. "So when's the party?" I asked as we left the boutique.

"Tonight! And worry not my friend, I already asked your parents and they said yes!" Alicia breaks into a squeal.

"What?!"