Fell In Love With My Roomy Chapter 72

I feel terrible today.

Breakups are always tough for me. I didn't feel very connected to Dane emotionally, but it didn't seem to matter. I'm a sensitive person, and feeling deceived and used isn't something that just goes away.

The only, and I really emphasize, the only positive thing this week is that Thanksgiving break is approaching. This weekend is a holiday, which means four blissful days without school. I can also go back home and be with my parents.

Mom understood my emotions on Saturday, to the point that she sent the remaining enchiladas home with me and my roommates. They provided comfort, and it was the only thing I had an appetite for yesterday before I had to drag myself to work.

That's another thing, I only have three days of work this week. It's incredibly exciting, less exposure to chlorine on my hair and clothes. I always worried that I smelled of it.

Today, I had my one afternoon class. It's Monday, a relatively easy day for me. Usually, I'd use it for homework, but due to the holiday, things finally seemed to be slowing down a bit in terms of schoolwork. Of course, it will pick up again next week with the last set of assignments before exams.

It's crazy to think that I've already completed about half of my final year of undergrad. When I started, I couldn't imagine reaching this point, getting close to completing my degree.

I'm sitting through the end of my lecture on Persian sculpture and art, then I can go home and relax. Do nothing until work. I've been working extra hard these past few weeks to prepare for the upcoming batch of essays and assignments.

Looking back, I realize that I was also overworking and studying excessively to avoid Dane as much as possible. I don't know how I didn't see that our relationship was destined to fail.

My laptop is open with notes when I receive a notification in my email. The sender is '[email protected],' and I almost screamed in the middle of my seminar.

I applied as soon as the opportunity arose because I couldn't wait, and I was incredibly excited. I open the email and read the subject line: 'Interview.'

I click to open the email and read it, struggling to contain my excitement.

...

Oh. My. God.

I've been selected to advance? But how? Surely this must be highly competitive, and there must be more qualified candidates than me. But I can't dwell on that; I'll only get in my own head. I smile with excitement and quickly compose a response.

'Dear Doctor Elliot,

I'm thrilled to hear from you, and I want to express my gratitude for selecting me. I'm very excited to meet you and discuss your fascinating program.

Friday around eleven should work perfectly! I look forward to our conversation, and thanks again for reaching out!

All the best,

Julianna Macey (she/her)

Brown University'

I feel like I could burst with joy; everything about this opportunity is incredibly exciting. The possibility that my research and hard work could take me this far is overwhelming.

If I could secure this opportunity, it would be the best break imaginable. A break from Chase, Dane, and just the complications boys bring into my life.

Tonight, I'll have to call my mom and share the good news with her, as well as my roommates. I know they'll be happy for me; they watched me fill out the applications and heard me express my excitement about it.

My class feels too challenging to endure after that; my leg keeps bouncing. I save my interview questions to my laptop and plan to review them tonight before work.

Once my class ends, I exit the building through the lobby and the side door. I have a huge smile that I can't seem to erase from my face.

I walk along the sidewalk, heading back home. I need to be able to get excited about things in private. I don't want a repeat of the situation where Kent watched me celebrate with a burst of happiness in the kitchen.

This is the first time I've felt positive in days. The first time I've been able to let go of my messy breakup. I've been waiting for this news, and not even the cheating and controlling Dane could bring me down.

"Hi, Juls," she says in this fake, cheerful tone, and I nod. Don't let her get to you, Juls; she's not worth it. "Heard you and your boyfriend called it quits, how tragic," she sighs, placing her hand over her heart.

"Um yeah, it was a bummer," I mumble, trying to walk away when she grabs my shoulder and pulls me back.

"Well, what happened?" she asks, blinking at me, her long fake eyelash extensions fluttering around.

"Nothing I feel like sharing right now," I answer.

"Well, I figured I'd let you know that I think Kent and I are about to start dating," she smiles, and my mouth goes dry.

He couldn't; she was literally Satan reincarnated.

"So I figured I should just say it now, when we become official, Kent's completely off-limits. No more of this weird friendship thing you two have; it's annoying and... come on, let's be real. Kent's so totally out of your league; it's cute that he humors you."

"Yeah... okay. Great talk, Piper," I sigh, shoving her off and rolling my eyes. Like I'd listen to her anyway.

That was totally bizarre; there was no way that was happening. It had been weeks since Halloween, if anything serious was going to come from their hookup, it would have already.

But still... why tell me that? Something's going on that I don't like.

I walk home, feeling a bit annoyed by that interaction, but mostly excited about my interview. I'm just ready to do nothing for a while; my brain is finally not thinking about my stupid breakup, and that's important to me.

As I approach our place, I start to slow down; there's a black Range Rover parked in the driveway on our side. That's strange; Kent is the only one with a car... so who's here?

No messages from the roommates about anything. I made them promise to text me if they were ever going to have a girl over again. I don't need any more surprises.

I shrug and walk down the steps, pushing the door open.

"This place is filthy," I hear as I push open the door, and I furrow my eyebrows. A middle-aged woman is standing in our kitchen, looking around. She's glamorous with blonde hair, green eyes, and tanned skin. She's quite beautiful, but it's clear she's had some Botox and hair extensions. I hope I look like that when I'm her age. "Honey, I thought we talked about getting a new dining table for your place; this one's wrong for the wall color...." She fades off mid-sentence, and I look around, finding Kent on the couch.

She looks amazed, ecstatic to see me. I can't figure out why... who is this woman?

"Oh my goodness, you didn't tell me she was so lovely," she beams, hurrying over from the kitchen to wrap her arms around me, and I tense up. "I'm Astrid."

"Um... h-hi, Astrid," I mumble uncomfortably. That's not a name you hear every day.

"Mom," Kent says tensely, standing up to come to my rescue, and my eyes widen. This was his mother? No wonder Kent was so good-looking.

"I'm sorry, I'm just so excited," she says happily, pulling back and looking at me. I furrow my eyebrows, feeling lost in this whole interaction.

"I'm Juls," I answer, trying to stay calm. "I... didn't know you were coming for a visit."

"Well, my son is never available to come home for one. I haven't been able to get him on the phone in weeks, and I was in town. I figured he couldn't hide you from me if I came and surprised him," she says with a wink, resting her perfectly manicured hands on my shoulders.

"Hide me...?" I say carefully, and she nods.

"Yes, my son's never had a girlfriend before, and I'm just so excited to meet you," she tells me with a huge grin, yanking me into a hug, and I feel my eyes shoot open. I glare at Kent, whose cheeks are turning red. "I-um... I think you might be confused, I-"

"That's right, Juls. I told you my mom wasn't coming anytime soon so you could meet her," he says, cutting me off while his mother continues to hug me. He folds his hands in front of him, shooting me a pleading look. "I'm sorry, I know this is a surprise," he adds, and I lick my back tooth.

Should I go along with this? It's foolish, but I'm curious about his reasoning.

"Right," I sigh, pulling back. "It's nice to meet you."

"Oh, you too," she practically sings. She looks elegant, beautiful, and polished. This is a woman who has been in the wealthy world for a long time. "You're very pretty; of course, he was holding out for a good one," she whispers, and I smile, feeling touched by her kindness.

"I love your dress," I say kindly.

"Thank you," she smiles, looking pleased to see me. "I'm afraid I can't stay long, but I'm so glad I was finally able to meet the girl my son's been talking about. I was hoping if I grilled him enough, he'd finally say something... but here you are!" She sighs, looking so proud.

Kent looks embarrassed, stressed out. As he should, he owes me for this.

"Here I am," I repeat, and she claps her hands together.

"Well, I hope you can join us for Thanksgiving dinner this year. It's on Saturday, and Kent will take care of all your necessary travel arrangements so you can join us," she smiles, running her hands up and down my arms, and I sigh.

I had my own Thanksgiving dinner to attend; I wouldn't be going anywhere with Kent.

"I hope so," I answer instead.

"Lovely. Well, I have to get back home to your father," she says, turning to Kent. "But I will see you and Juls this weekend."

"Bye, Mom," he says quietly as she kisses his cheek once.

"It was lovely to meet you, Juls," she whispers, giving me a brief hug. "Saturday, Kent. Text me, please," she says with a wave, heading out the door as if she was never even here.

As if she hadn't just called me her son's girlfriend.

"Explain," I order, turning on my heels to face Kent. I cross my arms, feeling irritated, and he clears his throat.

"It's a really long story."

"Then start talking," I respond, shaking my head and running my fingers through my hair. "Have you lost your mind?"

"I-I know it looks bad, just... I can't tell you here," he sighs, scratching the back of his neck.

"Right, because it's always not here, not now, not ever," I answer, shaking my head, and he sighs, grabbing his car keys off the ledge and putting on his shoes.

"Come with me," he says, and I blink. "Juls, just do it," he answers, and I sigh, following him out of the apartment and up the steps. His mom's car has already pulled out and left as he leads me to his car.