Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Two days had passed, and Anthony decided to have a talk with Vivian. He tried all he could to hold his anger down last night. After the conversation with his sister, he decided that he wasn't going to endure living with someone in his own house. And if he wanted to do that, they were going to have a conversation.

He waited for her to come down stairs, and she finally came down for some coffee. And as usual, she looked like she'd just escaped an alien invasion.

"Why do you always look like that in the morning?", He couldn't help but ask.

"Like what?", She frowned.

"Like a zombie", he replied her.

"Wow. Thank you so much for the compliment, Anthony. You don't look to bad yourself", she replied in sarcasm as she walked past him.

"Well, I wanted us to talk", he said.

"About what?", She groaned as she took the coffee can from the drawer and poured some of it into the brewing machine.

He opened his mouth to speak, but he got quite stunned by the amount of coffee she was brewing.

"Umm... I didn't ask you to brew me some coffee. That's very thoughtful of you, though", he said.

"And who said I was making you coffee?", She questioned.

"Wait, you want to make all that for yourself? Isn't that too much?", He questioned.

"Why do you care? What did you want to talk about?", She drew him back to the main topic.

"Yeah, about that...We started off on the wrong foot. We've been arguing about everything she you arrived, and I want that to stop. There's no need to fight if we come to agreement. I want us to leave in harmony, so...", He whipped out two documents.

He slid one across the kitchen counter to Vivian.

"What's this?", She asked as she began to read it.

"I made list of rules I set overnight. We both are going to follow. If we're going to live in peace, there has to be some set rules to guide us on what to do, not to piss the other person off. Don't you agree?"

"So you stayed up all night writing and printing a document of rules? How creepy can you get?", She chuckled as she went through the document.

Anthony swallowed and try not to reply her. He didn't want to get distracted. He'd practiced this all night.

"Anyways... If you read the content of the document, you'd see the set of rules I set. But just in case you can't read, I'll day them out loud", he said and cleared his throat, ignoring Vivian's scoff at his statement.

"First rule... No littering. You will not for any reason dump anything at the wrong place. Papers and wrappers are to be thrown in the trash can.

Second rule... You must clean after yourself. Since you came to my house, I have been the one washing the dishes. Considering the fact that you consume way more than I do, leading to more plates getting used, it's only logical that you help wash the dishes. I even created a dish washing plan. I'll do the dishes on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. You'll do them on Mondays, Tuesdays, and during weekends.

Third rule... No loud music. I can literally hear you sing from across the hallway in my room. When I'm not working, I'm resting, and in both situations, I need some peace and quiet.

Fourth rule... You have to start regulating the amount of coffee you take in the morning and at night. If you don't consider your health at all, at least consider the fact that the person who bought the coffee would also want to use it the nearest future.

Fifth and last rule... It's a good thing you don't know your way around the city. But just in case, you must not be out past 10:30pm. I'm going to be home before then, so I don't have issues with that. I like to lock up as soon as I get in, so if you don't want to get lock outside, you'd better be in the house before the curfew.

Bonus rule... I would love it if you put things back where you saw them, or try to engage in minimal touching. I love my house arranged and in perfect order. I can't count the number of times I've had to rearrange the remote control. I keep it vertically, five inches away from the edge of the cupboard. Let it be like that after you use it", he said and took his breath before he continued.

"I'm going to hold my own end of the bargain, and I suggest that you do so too. If you could just sign atop the line where your name is written, and I sign mine too-"

"I'm not signing this shit"

Anthony looked up from his document.

"What? Why?"

"This are not rules that WE are going to follow. These are rules you want ME to follow. You want me to conform with you way of life"

"And what is wrong with that?"

"Well, first of all, you live a boring life. I used to think old people have the most boring schedules, but you broke the record. By 8:00 am, you're out of the house on your way to work, despite the fact that you're the boss of the company. Then you come back by 9:30 and go straight to bed. If you're not working, then you're locked up in your room. You have the most boring routine I've ever seen. And trust me, I'm not going to be like you", she said.

"So you prefer that we keep arguing over everything little thing, than for you to just sign the document?!"

"No! No, I'm not signing such a self-centered document. Let's even ignore the fact that you actually created a freaking document of rules for me to sign, like we're living in some prison... All these rules are easy for you. Hell, it's your way of life! I cannot and will not live under these conditions. Besides, why do you get to be the only one to create the rules in this house? Since they are rules that WE should follow so we don't puss each other, why can't I come up with some rules you must follow not to piss me off?!", She asked, already getting pissed.

"What could I possibly be doing that would piss you off?", He questioned.

"The fact that you actually keep your remote control at a measured distance is annoying. Other normal people keep it wherever they can, and it gets lost. The colors you choose to paint your walls is enough reason for you to be sent to the psychiatrist home. Anyone who walks into this house would think the owner is having mental issues, and maybe they'd be right to guess so!", She got up and smacked the paper on his chest and walked out of the kitchen.

Anthony couldn't believe he'd just been spoken to like that. In his efforts to calm any future tension, he tried to solve the issue the only way he knew how to solve issues, by making a document. And what he got in return was being called a creep.