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33 - THE ACCIDENT
Last Updated:
2025-02-08 17:45:54
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The Roomie Complex 34 - ANOTHER CONFESSION
AidenHospitals had a way of making you feel like a kid again.Like you were small. Like you didn’t belong. Like every bad memory you ever tried to bury clawed its way up to remind you that you weren’t as grown as you pretended to be.I moved through the lobby with long, purposeful strides, the fluorescent lights overhead buzzing like an unwanted thought in the back of my mind. I could hear Anika’s heels clicking against the tile behind me, but I barely registered it. My focus was on one thing and one thing only.Her.She was here. She was alive.And she was dying.The irony wasn’t lost on me.I barely noticed the people around me, barely noticed the nurses bustling from one side of the room to another, barely noticed the smell of antiseptic clogging my nostrils. But then, I noticed her.Cheryl.She stood near the waiting area, arms wrapped around herself, her body slightly hunched forward like she wanted to fold into herself and disappear. The second she looked up and locked eyes wit
Last Updated : 2025-02-09The Roomie Complex 35 - I ALREADY PAID FOR IT
CherylThe hospital air felt suffocating.I stepped out of the room, exhaling a breath I hadn't even realized I was holding, pressing a hand to my chest like I could physically loosen the tight, inexplicable knot forming there.It made no sense.Why did it feel like I was the one left behind?Aiden hadn't looked at me once. Not when he spoke to Molly. Not when he walked out. Not even when I left the room. I could have been a ghost, and it wouldn’t have made a difference.I let out a bitter chuckle. He didn’t need me.And I wasn’t sure why that hurt.The vibration of my phone startled me, dragging me out of my ridiculous thoughts. I pulled it out of my pocket, and Damon’s name flashed across the screen.I hesitated.I had texted him earlier that there was an emergency, but I hadn’t told him the emergency was Aiden. I let the call ring out, waiting for it to go to voicemail.Seconds later, my screen lit up with a message."I found a place for you."My fingers hovered over the keyboard,
Last Updated : 2025-02-11The Roomie Complex 36 - AN INVITATION
Cheryl"Wait—what?!"My voice came out sharp, my eyes snapping up to meet Damon’s, searching his face like maybe—just maybe—I had misheard him.He looked utterly unbothered. Like he had just told me he picked up my dry cleaning instead of dropping thousands of dollars on a house."You heard me," he said smoothly, hands slipping into his pockets, his stance too damn relaxed. "I already paid for it."I let out a short, breathy laugh, running a hand through my hair. "You’re joking, right? This is a joke?"Damon tilted his head, watching me with that unreadable expression of his."Do I look like I’m joking?"I took a step back, shaking my head. "Damon, no. No. I told you—I can’t let you pay for this. We talked about this.""And I heard you," he said, his voice calm in contrast to the mini panic attack rising in my chest. "I just decided I didn’t care.""You didn’t—" I stopped myself, pressing my fingers to my temples. "Damon, this is insane. This isn’t just a new phone or a fancy dinner.
Last Updated : 2025-02-14The Roomie Complex 37 - BAKING SODA
CHERYLMoving day. The day I was finally supposed to pack up my life and start over.I should be excited.I should be jumping for joy.Instead? I was standing in the middle of the hallway, dressed in the absolute worst color choice for a move-in day—white.A white sweater. Sweatpants. What was I thinking?Too late to change now. The movers were already outside, lugging my stuff into the van, while Damon stood by, making sure everything was moving smoothly. Like the bossy, take-charge man that he was.He looked ridiculously sexy in all black, but that wasn’t where my mind was.My mind was stuck upstairs.With him.Aiden.The man I had spent years hating.The same man who had somehow, some way, managed to wedge himself into my head like an unsolvable riddle.We had spoken earlier that morning—if I could even call it that.A muttered “good morning” from him.A reminder from me about the party later that evening.And then—he vanished.Into his room. Into his thoughts. Into the awkward, su
Last Updated : 2025-02-20The Roomie Complex 38 - LIGHTS OUT
CHERYLI smiled. I nodded. I accepted congratulations from people I had never met in my life, people who were in my house—a house that wasn’t even mine.Damon introduced me to everyone like I belonged here, like this was some grand milestone in my life worth celebrating. But the truth?I felt like a stranger.I wasn’t even sure what I was doing here.The drink in my hand was growing warm, the ice melting into something tasteless. I had been nursing it for what felt like hours, using it as a prop—something to keep my hands busy, something to give me an excuse to retreat when the conversation became too much.And yet, my mind was elsewhere.On the door.On the one person I hadn’t seen yet.I told myself I wasn’t looking for him.That I wasn’t waiting for him.That I didn’t care whether he showed up or not.But every time that damn door swung open, my breath hitched—only to deflate when it wasn’t him.Aiden wasn’t coming.Of course, he wasn’t.Why had I even thought—why had I even hoped—
Last Updated : 2025-02-21The Roomie Complex 39 - TENSION
CHERYLHis lips were fire.Wild. Unrelenting. Desperate.Aiden kissed me like he was making up for every second we had spent not kissing. Like he had been starving for this moment. For me.And God help me—I kissed him back.I melted into him, my fingers fisting into his shirt, pulling him closer because I couldn’t help myself. His hands—cold against my burning skin—brushed against my waist, sending shivers down my spine even as his mouth stole every ounce of oxygen from my lungs.I was floating.Butterflies exploded in my stomach, my heart raced, and my mind—my very sanity—spiraled out of control.This was bad.So, so bad.But damn it, it felt so good.Aiden deepened the kiss, his tongue teasing against mine, his fingers sliding up my arm, branding me with his touch—And then—The lights came back on.A gasp.A collective horrified silence.I jerked away from Aiden, my chest heaving, my lips still tingling from the intensity of that kiss.And then I saw them.The entire party.Staring
Last Updated : 2025-02-22The Roomie Complex 40 - AFTERMATH OF A FIST FIGHT
Aiden’s POV –Damon groaned on the ground, holding his face where I’d just landed my last punch. Blood trickled from his split lip, a red stain against his otherwise perfect, well-groomed exterior.I should have felt satisfied. I should have walked away knowing I’d put him in his place. But all I could see—all I could think about—was Cheryl.She stood a few feet away, stunned, breathless, trembling. The dim lights from the house behind her cast a soft glow on her face, making her look almost ethereal—except for the panic in her wide eyes. Her white sweater was slightly disheveled from struggling against Damon. The sight made my blood burn all over again.I turned to her immediately. “Are you okay?”Her lips parted, like she wanted to say something, but no words came. She just nodded. A weak, unsure nod.I didn’t believe it.I couldn’t believe it—not after the way Damon had grabbed her.I wanted to hit him again. Wanted to break every bone in his fucking body for putting his hands on h
Last Updated : 2025-02-26The Roomie Complex 41 - DAMON'S PART
Damon’s POV I paced along the edge of the backyard, my blood still boiling with rage.Cheryl.Aiden.Together.The image of them kissing on the balcony played over and over in my head like a sick fucking joke.In my house.At my party.With the guy she swore meant nothing.I shouldn’t be surprised.I saw it. I saw the way she looked at him when she thought no one was watching. I saw the way her body reacted to him.I saw it all.And I ignored it.Because I thought… I thought if I just gave her more, did more, loved her more—that she’d eventually love me back.But she never did.I clenched my fists, my knuckles aching from the punches I had thrown at Aiden. Not enough. I should’ve hit him harder. I should’ve made him bleed for taking her away from me.The sound of footsteps made me turn sharply.Cheryl.She stood there, her arms wrapped around herself, her face pale in the dim glow of the garden lights.“I’m sorry,” she said, her voice soft.I let out a sharp, bitter laugh. “You’re so
Last Updated : 2025-03-01
Latest chapter
The Roomie Complex 58 - THE KIDNAP
AIDEN'S POVI’d texted her earlier asking if she wanted to meet for lunch. But this wasn’t going to be just lunch — I was planning a date. A real one. The kind where I’d lay it all out: the truth, my past, my feelings. I was going to tell her everything. Then I was going to tell her I loved her and I wasn't that person anymore.So I dressed like it mattered. A dark navy suit, tailored. The tie she once complimented. I bought a bouquet of red roses — ones that matched the silvery-red dress I’d sent over earlier. It had taken me a solid hour to choose that dress, something that clung just right and shimmered when she moved.The restaurant was tucked into the edge of the waterfront, the kind of place that wore its elegance like an old song — soft jazz playing in the background, golden lighting that kissed the walls, waiters in pressed shirts moving with quiet grace, and tables set with flickering candles and polished silver.I arrived early. Sat by the window with the view of the river g
The Roomie Complex 57 - DANCE WITH THE DEVIL
CHERYL'S POVI didn’t go home yet after I left Aiden at the party. I couldn't wrap her head around the bombshell Aiden had just dropped on me, and more so I couldn't believe Anika had been using it to have him wrapped around her slimy fingers.I walked straight into the storm.Anika’s place looked exactly how I imagined a villain’s lair would look—sharp angles, moody lighting, the scent of overconfidence and money woven into every inch. I didn’t knock. I walked in like I had every right to be there, because I did. Not with a plan. Not with a strategy. Just the weight of the truth and a fury too heavy to carry alone.She was sitting by the window holding a glass of red wine in her hand, dressed in casual baby tee and sweatpants, her blonde hair tied up in a messy ponytails, tendrils of her framing her face that now had a scowl the moment she saw me and then slowly it morphed to a smirk.“Cheryl,” she said without looking at me, like she’d been expecting this moment all her life. “To wh
The Roomie Complex 56 - YES YOU CAN
Cheryl's POV“She has something on me.”The words fell from his lips like stones into water, heavy and irreversible.For a moment, I couldn’t breathe. I just stared at him, feeling the ground beneath my feet shift. My heart was thundering in my chest, but my limbs were frozen, stiff with disbelief.She has something on me.That sentence echoed over and over again in my head, and with every repetition, it burned hotter—an inferno roaring in my chest, trying to claw its way out of me. My fingers loosened their grip around his wrist, not because I wanted to let go… but because I had to. Because if I held on a second longer, I might have shattered right in front of him.“What does she have on you?” My voice cracked around the edges, but I couldn’t keep the question down. It came out too fast, too desperate. “What kind of thing could she possibly have on you?”He looked away, his jaw tense. His silence twisted the knife deeper into my ribs.Then, finally, he spoke.“Something that happened
The Roomie Complex 55 - SECRETS
Aiden's POVI saw her before she saw me.She’d gone back to the party, to the flashing lights and the pulsing bass. I stayed behind, pacing like a caged animal, fury choking me with every breath I took.I’d let her walk away.Again.And that stranger—the one in the black mask—he was still there. Lingering. Like a goddamn shadow.The second I stepped back into the crowd, I saw her. Dancing.With him.Her body pressed flush against his, the white feathers of her mask catching the lights like she was some kind of fallen angel gone rogue. She moved like the music was part of her bloodstream—wild, reckless, untouchable. His hands were everywhere—her waist, her back, sliding too low. And she wasn’t just letting him.She was enjoying it. She was feeding off of it.And then she looked at me.That’s what fucking did it.She saw me standing there, eyes locked with mine.She knew I was watching.And she smirked.I felt it like a punch to the chest. That look—it was deliberate. A fire lit in her
The Roomie Complex 54 - TIME BOMB
I could still feel the weight of his touch lingering on my skin as I walked away from Aiden, but I didn’t let it stop me. Every step was harder than the last, but I pushed through, my heart pounding not just from the sudden rush of emotions, but from the fury that surged within me. Aiden wasn’t the only one who could make choices tonight.I needed to forget, and the quickest way to do that was to drown in the chaos of the party. The music called to me, a steady thrum that could wipe away anything. I didn’t even look back when I entered the mass of bodies. I needed something else to numb the ache. A distraction.I found him again.The stranger in the black mask, still standing there, leaning against the bar like he belonged to the night itself. His black shirt and trousers fit the atmosphere perfectly—dark, alluring, and just out of reach. When our gazes collided, I felt a pulse of recognition, that same magnetic pull that had led me to his side earlier. I was drunk, lost, and I hated
The Roomie Complex 53 - THREE WORDS, EIGHT LETTERS
CHERYL'S POVThe night wrapped around me like a silk veil, thick with the scent of summer air, sweat, and liquor. The masquerade carnival pulsed with energy—bodies moving in sync to the bass-heavy music, laughter and chatter blending into the electric atmosphere. Everywhere, there were flashes of color, glimmering masks, and people indulging in the thrill of anonymity. Tonight, nobody was anybody.I downed the last of my drink, my pulse buzzing as I let the alcohol seep into my bloodstream. One more. I needed another. Anything to drown the thoughts clawing at the edges of my mind—Aiden, Anika, my own stupidity. My dress fluttered as I spun into the crowd, letting myself get swept away by the music.I moved with reckless abandon, my body swaying in time with the beat, hands tangled in the humid air, the golden glow of the fairy lights painting my skin. If I let go hard enough, if I danced wild enough, maybe the weight in my chest would disappear. Maybe I could forget the hollow ache of
The Roomie Complex 52 - CARNIVAL
CHERYL'S POVI refused to cry.I refused to be the kind of girl who sat in her room, sobbing over a guy who couldn’t even bother to text her back. Well, I used to be that girl when I was married to Marty but not anymore or so I thought. But no matter how many times I swallowed hard, clenched my fists, or blinked up at the ceiling, the tears still fell. Hot. Unwanted. Furious.I wiped them away aggressively, my throat burning. Why did I still care?It had been hours since I left the beach, since I stood there alone under the fading sunlight like a complete idiot, waiting for Aiden. Waiting for nothing.And now, all I could see in my head was the exact reason why—Aiden walking out of Anika’s house.Betrayal sliced through me.The sound of my phone buzzing snapped me out of my thoughts. I almost ignored it, but then I saw the message.Pearl: Hey babe, town's masquerade party is tonight. You in?I hesitated.I wasn’t in the mood to party. Not when my heart felt like it had been ripped apa
The Roomie Complex 51 - I'LL MAKE IT UP TO YOU
Aiden’s POV – The Night He Stood Cheryl UpThe plan was simple. Meet Cheryl. Tell her the truth. Be with her.I had imagined it already—the way her face would light up when she saw the picnic I had set up. The way the ocean breeze would tangle in her hair, the way I’d sit next to her, close enough to reach out and touch her hand. Just me, her, and the waves.And then, just as I was getting ready, Anika called.I almost didn’t pick up. Almost. But something in her voice made me pause. A tremble. A sharp breath. I had known her long enough to recognize when something was wrong."Aiden, can you come over?""Anika, I can’t right now—""Please. Just for a second."It was stupid. I should have said no. I should have ignored the call and gone straight to Cheryl like I was supposed to. But a part of me thought, if I just check on her real quick, then I can leave. No harm done.I told myself I was going to be in and out.At Anika’s PlaceI barely stepped through the doorway before I told her,
The Roomie Complex 50 - STOOD UP
CHERYL'S POVCheryl wasn’t sure why she invited Pearl shopping with her. They weren’t particularly close. In fact, before all of this, Pearl had been little more than a friendly acquaintance—one of the few people in town who didn’t make her feel completely out of place. But for some reason, when she was debating who to call up, Pearl’s name had come to mind.Maybe it was because Pearl knew things. Maybe it was because Cheryl needed information.She didn’t ask about Aiden right away. That would be too obvious. Instead, she wandered the clothing racks with a lazy sort of interest, picking up a sundress here, a pair of sandals there, pretending to be lost in thought.Pearl caught on quickly.“Okay,” she said, turning to Cheryl with an amused look. “You keep sneaking glances at me like you wanna ask something but are too scared to say it. Spit it out.”Cheryl hesitated, feigning interest in a rack of crop tops before finally sighing. “It’s nothing.”Pearl scoffed. “Bullshit.”Cheryl wince
