Despicable Roommate

Jessie’s POV

I smiled when the familiar car pulled into the drive way. I turned on the camera app on my phone and focused it on the driver’s side of the car, waiting for my dream boy to get out. He pushed the door open, stepped out and closed it. I had put the camera in burst mode so it kept snapping photos of him. She waited for his girlfriend to get out from the passengers side in vain before realizing it was her lucky day. For the first time in many weeks, the girl called Lynn wasn’t with him. This was my only chance to speak to him.

I rushed into my room, checked my face in front of the vanity, reapplied my bright red lipstick and ran out. I hurried along the hallway until I reached the landing. I watched Alec climb up the stairs, ear phones stuck in his ears.

Alec stopped at the landing and leant against the railings near me. He acted like I was nonexistent, ignoring me as he tapped away on his phone. I moved closer to him.

“Hey,” I smiled, tapping his shoulder. He smelled really nice and that made me feel like burying my head in the crook of his neck. If only he could let me. I could make him the happiest man in the world.

He turned, studying me with a blank expression for a moment before replying. “Hey.”

“I’m Jessie,” I said, the flirty smile not leaving my face.

Without saying a word, he glanced at me and resumed his walk up the stairs. Rude.

My fingers balled into fists as I tried to control my temper. How dare he act like I was nothing? I’m prettier than that good for nothing girlfriend of his, I thought. I needed to come up with another plan as soon as possible, before I lost him forever. I had waited long enough, hoping they’d break up but it never happened. They seemed to be getting closer to each other as time passed.

I remembered the day he moved in. I was standing on the balcony when a truck and car pulled in. Three boys had gotten out of the car and walked into the apartment building. He was one of them. Ever since that I’d loved him. That was the first time I experienced what they call love at first sight.

But he’d ignored me. He seemed to hate everyone who wasn’t his friend so I had kept away, waiting for the right time.

Before the right time came, I found out he was dating his roommate, a nerdy girl. I had laughed so much, expecting them to break up soon because I thought Lynn wasn’t the type of girl a boy like Alec would be interested in. Two months had gone by and they’d not broken up. I was tired of waiting. I needed to do something. I had to break them up in order to have him for myself.

It was either now or never. I was not going to let that encounter stop me from getting what I wanted. He was not going to ignore me forever.

I entered my room and sunk into the couch.

“What happened?” Lauren, my roommate asked, decreasing the volume of the television. “You ran out like a mad woman.”

“It was Alec,” I said. “I think he doesn’t like me, I wonder why.”

I was the type of girl he should be dating. I figured he was just playing hide and seek.

“Come on,” Lauren rolled her eyes. “You should find another guy, Jessie. Alec loves his girlfriend and there’s nothing you can do about it. I don’t understand why you’re obsessed with him anyway. He’s not that special.”

I unlocked my phone and looked at the faint photos I’d taken. I zoomed in on his face and stared at it. “He’s so cute and I love him. You don’t understand.”

I got up and went to my bedroom. I turned on my laptop, connecting my phone to it with a USB cable. I sent the photos to my Alec folder, which contained lots of other photos I’d taken of him. The folder was at the top right side of my laptop.

I’d failed to find him on social media so my only option was to sneakily take photos of him from her balcony. I liked staring at him at my convenience, and it increased my feelings for him.

There were thirty seven photos and I loved each and every one of them. He was perfect in all of them. There was one in which he’d been holding hands with his girlfriend but I had cropped her out. I wondered what it’d feel like to hold his hand, hug him and feel his body pressed against mine. Those strong, lean muscles were tempting.

I sighed, shutting down the laptop. He had showed disinterest in me but this made me want him more. If Alec thought he could keep me away from him, he was wrong. I already had a plan which would bring him closer to me, and further away from that little nerd. This plan was going to bring a lot of heartache to Lynn if it succeeded but there was no other option. Why would I care about someone I didn’t know?

It was not my fault that I was in love with Alec. I had never wanted to steal another girl’s boyfriend but however much I tried, I couldn’t stop loving Alec.

Love was not something you could just stop feeling. Every part of me ached for him and it saddened me to see him with another girl that wasn’t me. I just wanted to be happy, but it was hard to achieve happiness without hurting anyone.

In every struggle, there was collateral damage. Lynn would have to deal with heartbreak and cry like everyone else when things went South.

Life was unfair, why would I try to be fair? I had to take what I wanted at any cost.