Page 12 of Oblivious Roommate

“You excused yourself so fast you almost tripped over the folded bit of carpet,” Cass says, but this time his eyes twinkle, as if remembering that moment amuses him enough to soften his reaction to the current argument. He folds his arms on his chest, which only emphasizes his wide-shouldered silhouette.

“It was unexpected, okay? One moment I’m sitting there, enjoying my popcorn, and then they’re going for it. I’m cool with gay stuff, but maybe I just don’t wanna watch it next to Logan. What if he got a boner?”

“What then?” Cass asks, challenging me with a direct stare that makes my balls shrink. “It’s you who wanted to skinny-dip when we went on that hike.”

“Yeah, and if it was just the two of us, we could have had fun!”

Cass spreads his arms. “Maybe he didn’t want you to worry about a gay guy staring at you, or something. Nobody stopped you from getting into the lake naked, by the way. Make it make sense, Mattie!”

I can’t.

Because it doesn’t make sense.

All I know is that being around Cass is like reliving our teenage years of chasing one another between the trees and having mud fights. When it’s just the two of us in the woods, I feel as if we never grew apart. In contrast, the two times Logan tagged along were a shitty experience. I couldn’t be myself, and Cass acted as if he was sitting on a broomstick, refusing to touch me in his presence, like I was a leper.

“I didn’t want to go in alone! Where’s the fun in that? And why would he be staring at my junk, when his boyfriend is right there, huh?” Now that’s a weird thought.

I never considered the possibility of Logan having the hots for me, and now that I do, I hate it.

Cass sighs and lowers the temperature under the simmering pot. He takes his time, and I can almost hear his brain working before he looks back at me. “Look, Matt, I get it that it’s hard, but can’t you just… give him a chance? For me? It’s really hard to deal with two guys who are so important to me but who dislike each other.”

My shoulders sag. I don’t want to upset him. “Was it easier for you last year? When I wasn’t here?”

He steps close and grabs my shoulder. “No! Dude, why would you say that?”

I can smell his herby cologne when I shrug. “I dunno. I just don’t wanna stand in your way.”

His expression softens, and he rubs my forearm in a way that feels so very familiar. “You’re not. I just want you to give Logan a fair chance. I like him, and I’m sure you will come around too.”

“I’ll try,” I say and stomp off in frustration. I don’t want to be a bad friend. Cass should have everything he dreams of, so why do I feel so bad about it?

“Where are you going? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, just need to pee!” I even make myself laugh, but by the time I close the bathroom door, I have to rub a bit of dust out of my eye.

My chest is so heavy I don’t know what to do, but there is someone I can vent to. I plop into the empty bathtub and pull out my phone.

Aaron’s avatar is the picture of his horse, Snowley Darcy II, and despite studying, working, and horse riding, he is somehow almost always available to chat. So I hit him up with the good old, [What are you up to?]

In the last month, I took him up on the tutoring offer, but in all honesty, we only had two real study sessions, because I was too eager to talk shit about Logan to learn anything. I had to work out what kind of friends Aaron was with my nemesis, but it turned out they were acquaintances at best. One time, Logan tried to correct Aaron’s riding form, and since Aaron took offense, they never became more than people-who-know-each-other.

Which is perfect, because while I require help with essay writing skills, what I need even more is a spy.

Aaron and Logan see each other at the stables, are both gay (even if Logan isn’t gay-gay), and hang out at Rainbowology more than me. This makes Aaron my ideal accomplice for all and any shit-stirring. While he’s perfected the look of a bored descendant of the Great Gatsby, I know Aaron enough by now to see he’s not nearly as refined as he thinks he is. And since gossiping is one of his guilty pleasures, he promised to tell me if he sees Logan hanging out with anyone suspicious.

The tub cools my back through the thin T-shirt, but I heat up the moment my new friend responds.

[Just writing. Why? Is Logan coming over tonight?]

I roll my eyes and type back, [Yeah. Wanna hang out?]

As I wait for his response, my mind wanders to the disappointment flashing over Cassian’s features moments before. Did I really have the right to confront him about the plastic spiders? I do like them, and the idea of pranking Logan is hilarious, but it’s not that important. So why did I get worked up to the point of shouting at Cass?

Guilt twists my insides as I step out of the tub. Maybe he’s right. Maybe I’m too protective and should treat Logan as I do any other guy. After all, I rarely end up disliking someone for crimes far greater than Logan’s.

Aaron’s message comes right before I leave the bathroom. [Will be at the Rainbow in an hour].

As I walk past the open door of Cass’s bedroom, I see the jungle of plants taking up all of the vacant space around the desk and king-size bed, and once again, the accusation I’d thrown at him comes back to haunt me.