Page 1 of Screwed By My Roommate

One

Penny

This is it. All the years I’ve put into schooling have finally paid off. I’ve graduated college with a degree in interior design and I’m off to bigger and better things.

That’s how I thought it was going to play out anyway.

In reality, I graduated college with no job opportunities coming at me, no money, and now I need to pack up this apartment that I’ve lived in because it’s all part of the college.

So, with my college degree, I'm moving back home to live with my parents.

This is not how I imagined it would be. I love my parents. They're amazing but living with them after being on my own for the last four years is going to suck. Especially my mom. She hasn’t stopped pushing me to find my great love. Now I’m going to have to listen to it constantly because I don’t even have school or a job to escape to.

“Penny, finish packing. We're going out one last time,” my roommate, Jessica says.

I force a smile I don’t feel and open another box. “I’m working on it.”

“You need to pull yourself out of this mood you’re in. I know it’s not ideal that you need to go live with your parents, but we just survived four years of college. You need to celebrate. We’re gonna out, get drunk, and get some well-deserved dick.”

I laugh and throw the packing tape at her. “So, we’re looking for celebration dick?”

She wiggles her eyebrows and smiles. “Damn right.”

She leaves my room and I look around at the mess as my phone rings. I dig for it under the pile of clothes on my bed and smile when I finally find it.

“Hey, Henry,” I answer.

“Hey, baby sister. How’s it going?”

I sigh and flop down on the mess on my bed. “Well, I’m trying to pack four years' worth of shit by the weekend. I have no job and worst of all, I have to move back in with Mom and Dad. Mom is going to drive me crazy pushing me to find someone,” I groan, resting my arm over my eyes.

He laughs and I roll my eyes under my arm. He has no idea what it’s like to be in this position. When he graduated college, he got his dream job and a huge, beautiful apartment. I guess that’s probably why I figured my life would turn out that way. I watched him succeed and I thought I would follow.

Wrong again.

I know I’ll get a job. I know I’ll find success. I know I’ll eventually have my own place. It’s just the idea of until that happens, I’m stuck in my childhood pink bedroom.

“Mom needs to realize you’re still young. You definitely don’t need to worry about finding love. Hell, look at me. I’m five years older and I sure as shit am nowhere near ready to settle down,” he says.

“You know she thinks it’s different because you’re a guy. I already got the speech that she was married at my age and pregnant with you.”

I remove my arm and stare up at the ceiling. I’m only twenty-two. The way my mom talks about love, she makes it sound magical. She always says you’ll find your great love and never look back. That everything will just fall into place. She thinks I’m not trying hard enough to find mine.

But no one realizes that I compare all men to someone else. I find fault in the way they talk, act, and look. There’s no comparison. No one will ever live up to the expectations I have. No one will ever be — him.

“Penny, holy shit, I’ve got a great idea,” he rushes out.

“If you tell me to go work with Dad, I’m going to hang up on you right now. I don’t want to answer phones for his construction company. Please don’t push like they have,” I say, feeling defeated.

He laughs again and I shake my head. “I’d never suggest that. Did you forget who you’re talking to? I’m your brother, not your goddamn father. I support your dreams and your choices.”

If only you knew, big brother.

“I know,” I whisper.

“I’m going out of town for six months. I need to help get the company set up in California. Stay at my apartment while I’m gone. That gives you six months to save up for a place,” he says, excitedly.

I sit up quickly as my eyes widen. “Wait, seriously?”

---