Five Whispered Words

Chapter 3

Luke felt his cheeks heating up, he scratched the back of his head. How could he have been so naïve? Of course Blake could've been a girl. He started spewing out apologies realizing his mistake. "I am so sorry. I just assumed you were guy since I said I was a guy but then again what the fuck does that mean? I'm sorry it's just you sounded like guy...not that you look like one! Of course not you're very feminine and all its just-" fortunately his nervous rambling was cut off by her joyful laugh.

"Don't worry about it man, I knew you were a guy and I have no problem whatsoever sharing an apartment with you. Well actually I do have a few questions." She spoke confidently, he liked that.

"Shoot." He said.

"Are you a rapist? An ax murder?" She asked. Luke started laughing before realizing she was dead serious. Chuckling he regained his composure. "No god no. Not a rapist and I'm just a regular murder. Axes get in the way." Seeing her smile again made him feel at ease. Blake had this way she portrayed herself which made the room light up. It was calming.

"Good. Now if you don't mind I'd like to move in to my new apartment, roomie." Brushing past him she started looking at the apartment and surprisingly Blake didn't bolt for the door seeing the shit walls and mould stains. "This one's a keeper." He whispered shutting his, well their door.

**********

"Morning, roomie." Blake croaked as she poured herself a cup of hot coffee just made by the blond boy. "I see you've made that my new nickname huh?" Luke laughed lightly while he stretched his muscles. He hated mornings, 'always had and always will' his parents used to say when they had to physically drag him out of bed. His tattooed fingers gripped his warm mug when he thought about his parents on mornings like this where he used to spend them with both of them and his brothers.

"I think it suits you. What are you getting up to today?" Blake let out through the mouthful of eggs she was having as her usual breakfast.

"Need to check out a tattoo parlour downtown; they're looking for a tattoo artist." He yelled back at her, going to change into something other than his Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles pyjamas.

Slipping on a pair of black skinny jeans, white converse and a clean shirt he began sniffing his flannels and jackets looking for decent smelling one. He had always heard the saying 'you never get a second chance to make a good first impression' and followed it religiously. Since he was small he has had problems dealing with anxiety and making sure he looked good helped him feel less self conscious when he was lanky and scrawny at 15 years old. Finding a denim jacket to wear he grabbed his keys and said goodbye to Blake. "Bye!" She poked her head out of the kitchen to wave and her oversized shirt, the only thing she wore to bed, rose up exposing her tummy to the 19 year old boy. How had he not noticed he had a half naked room right next to him at breakfast? He had to get laid soon, poor boy was starting to grow his virginity back. Shaking his head and walked out of the flat.

Opening his car Luke thought back to the first few days Blake had moved in. The walls were still mouldy and the sink dribbled dirty water. He was surprised they were still alive and neither had gotten some deadly disease. Luke shuddered just thinking about the gross showers they had to endure.

He was glad that Blake was so patient and determined to turn their apartment into something livable. On the second day she moved in they had driven to the nearest paint store to buy some beige, white and chalkboard paint. They painted their rooms white, the living room and kitchen beige and one of the hallway walls with the chalkboard paint. "Now we can leave each other messages and take notes even without paper; good for the environment" Luke had explained witch paint streaked hair and a bright smile. Then they had bought tools, cleaning supplies and food. He was surprised by how many things she seemed to know like that bananas were to be stored outside of the fridge so they wouldn't dry out or that blood stains came out with cold water.

In a week they had managed to repaint the walls, fix the sinks (with a lot of squealing from both parties) and buy a tv as well as wifi. By the second week they had two beds, two couches, a dining room table and a couple of chairs. Blake couldn't believe how good Luke was with money, being able to buy all that furniture without going over their budget. Sure they were still broke college students but it was a plus. Both were glad to have found a roommate they got along with easily.

As Luke drove down the streets near their house he realized he really didn't know anything about her. What was her last name? L something? He couldn't remember. All he knew about the girl was her age and her physical appearance.

He knew she was 20 and that she studied at the local college like him. She was an English major and she loved eggs in the morning. She had long chestnut wavy hair, green eyes and had lots of freckles that dusted her cheeks. That was the one thing he had noticed right away about her; the way those adorable dots looked like constellations. It was endearing really.

They hadn't gotten very close over the course of her stay. The 3 weeks that they had spent together had been filled with awkward morning silences and late night shyness. She was constantly working or preparing for the upcoming year and he was busy looking for a job so they didn't even eat dinner together. Not that the two minded exactly but it sure was weird living with someone you barely knew. Which didn't mean his mother was right, Luke highlighted all the time, no he would never admit that.

Arriving at the address he saw online he parked his car and taking a deep breath he walked into the tattoo parlour hoping for the best.