MidReal Story

The Roommate

Hayden Davies

Scenario:Tina and I have lived together in the same dorm room for almost a year. We don't get along very well due to Tina's very complex character. She never watches her words, calls me names, and finds ways to quarrel with me over everything. It’s 2 a.m. now, hours since our last fight. I’m lying in bed, trying to fall asleep, but insomnia keeps me awake. Suddenly, an awkward but quite loud knock is heard on the door. Here the door opens a little and the top of Tina's head appears from there. "Are you sleeping? No? I knew you weren't sleeping." She walks into the room, closing the door behind her, her pillow in her hands, her hair disheveled as if she had been wrestling with someone in the bed. "Look... Just don't laugh, okay, idiot. But can I sleep here tonight? I... I just can't. I need company, maybe a little cuddle, I feel calmer this way." Her face is slightly red, she looks at me with a calm and tired face. "Just don't think that I'm a small and helpless girl, got it, nerd?" She shifts awkwardly from one foot to the other and then adds "Well then...can I?"

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Tina and I have lived together in the same dorm room for almost a year. We don't get along very well due to Tina's very complex character. She never watches her words, calls me names, and finds ways to quarrel with me over everything. It’s 2 a.m. now, hours since our last fight. I’m lying in bed, trying to fall asleep, but insomnia keeps me awake. Suddenly, an awkward but quite loud knock is heard on the door. Here the door opens a little and the top of Tina's head appears from there. "Are you sleeping? No? I knew you weren't sleeping." She walks into the room, closing the door behind her, her pillow in her hands, her hair disheveled as if she had been wrestling with someone in the bed. "Look... Just don't laugh, okay, idiot. But can I sleep here tonight? I... I just can't. I need company, maybe a little cuddle, I feel calmer this way." Her face is slightly red, she looks at me with a calm and tired face. "Just don't think that I'm a small and helpless girl, got it, nerd?" She shifts awkwardly from one foot to the other and then adds "Well then...can I?"

Chanel Windsor

college student, roommate to Tina, average height with curly brown hair, introverted and analytical

Neil Jensen

mutual friend of Chanel and Tina, tall with glasses and a friendly smile

Tina Rodriguez

college student, roommate to Chanel, petite with straight black hair, outspoken and complex

Tina and I have lived together in the same dorm room for almost a year.

We don't get along very well, and that's an understatement.

She never watches her words, calls me names, and finds ways to quarrel with me about everything.

I can already count the times we argued by the number of fingers I have, and even that isn't enough.

She is a complex person, to say the least.

Sometimes I think she is bipolar.

One moment she is angry at me, the next she is laughing at a joke I made.

I swear, even psychologists would not be able to analyze her properly.

I thought I had seen all the facets of her personality until tonight, when she knocked on my door at 2 a.m. with her pillow in her hands.

It's 2 a.m., hours since our last fight.

I'm lying in bed trying to fall asleep, but insomnia keeps me awake.

Suddenly, an awkward but quite loud knock is heard on the door.

This girl doesn't know how to knock on doors; I swear I heard a faint "oouch" after her last knock.

The door opens a little, and Tina's head appears from there, or rather the top of Tina's head.

"Are you sleeping? No? I knew you weren't sleeping."

She walks into the room, closing the door behind her, her pillow clutched tightly against her chest.

The moonlight coming in from the window casts shadows on her face, revealing dark circles under her eyes.

She is pacing back and forth between our beds, her bare feet making a soft padding sound on the cold floor.

Each time she passes my bed, she opens her mouth as if to say something, but then closes it again.

Finally, she stops at the foot of my bed, gripping her pillow even tighter against her chest.

Her sharp tongue seems to have been dulled by sleepiness.

I can see her hands trembling slightly as she stands there.

"Umm... What do you want, Tina?"

She shifts her weight from one foot to the other, fidgeting with the pillowcase.

The dim light from my bedside lamp catches the sheen of sweat on her forehead.

I can see her lips moving, but no words come out.

I swear I've never seen her so awkward before.

She takes three steps forward, then backs away again, repeating this dance several times until she finally perches on the edge of my bed.

Her fingers dig into the pillowcase as she mutters something under her breath.

"What was that?"

I ask her, shifting to make space for her on my bed.

She looks at me, and for a moment I think I see fear in her eyes, but it's quickly masked by her usual bravado.

"I said... I heard strange noises in my room. I'm not afraid of them, I just thought it would be nice to have some company tonight."

Her shoulders tense up when a tree branch scrapes against the window. She crawls under my blanket, still keeping her pillow clutched tightly in front of her chest like a shield.