Blob Fish!

Settled?

  "Well, this is nice."

I scoff at Mom and her desperate attempt to shed a light on the situation. I sit on a large dresser resting against the wall as she folds her clothes from her suitcase, setting them on her new bed.

The place was nice, beautiful really. But Barnes was a bit much. Even Mom's room smells like him and his dirty socks.

"He's quite a looker, ain't he? I mean I don't know how you feel about younger guys but-" Mom smacks my arm with one of her shirts and shoots me with a glare.

"He's not that much younger. I read on the house listing that he's thirty-one." She says matter-of-factly, sticking her nose up and returning her attention to her clothes. "Besides, I like men without facial hair."

"Like guys younger than thirty?" I grimace, "Cougar is not a good look for you."
She goes to hit me again, but I dash out of the room before she can reach me, only to run back to quickly embrace her in a hug. Her small, fragile frame stiff as stone under my arms. Her tight black curls tickle my nose as she returns my hug. I breathe deep. She smells like lavender and old books twisted into a cinnamon roll. Her smell always calms me, and with the overwhelming new environment her smell is the grounding I need. We pull apart and I head for my own room across the hall.

The entrance way is a glossy wooden door surrounded by that same emerald green wallpaper, only here on the second floor there's small pink flowers accenting the harsh green. I wrap my hand around the doorknob, making my way inside.

I stay by the door and take in the new place. I'm assuming all the rooms in this house are the same given that mine as well has green walls and dark wooden flooring. Luckily mine will be spiced with art soon, anyway. A bay window bulges from the right side of the room, a light breeze creeping in through the open window, blowing the thin curtains in through the dewy afternoon light. The room smells of old books and mold. The emptiness is calming but I know it will feel more welcoming when I've hauled in my overwhelming number of books and blankets.

I scoot down the stairs to head out for more boxes. I plug my nose from Barnes' odor as I trace my hand along the smooth railing. I head for the front door but halt at the sound of people arguing from the other room.

Admittedly I nosily listen in to the conversation, only purely out of curiosity. I keep a safe distance from them and stay by the front door. Does someone else live here besides Barnes'? He was already a surprise enough.

I creep toward the voices that I now realize are coming from the kitchen. I poke my head around the corner, avoiding hitting the side table at my waist. 

I find myself looking at a girl who seems to be around my age. Ringlets of hair bob around her shoulders, matching Barnes' aggressively red hair color. Her pale freckled arms are crossed at her chest and her face is red from yelling so hard at Barnes'.

"C'mon Barnes! Even with guests? Are you serious? Pick up your shit for once, please, it smells like a fucking sty in here!" She's so pissed that she's practically fuming.

"Well, they're not guests, are they?" Barnes states.

"They're your new roommates?! You're acting like this even with your new roommates? Are you kidding me? Put on some damn pants, at least!" She stomps into the living room, and I hide behind the corner for a moment while Barnes stays slouched against the island. I hear her stomp back to the kitchen and watch as she throws a pair of pants at Barnes' face and crosses her arms again. "Jesus, Barnes." She grits through her teeth.

I take a deep breath considering what to do. I decide to make a run for it and turn to leave, knocking over a PS4 controller. A controller. The one thing I knock over and it's not a sock.

I hear scattering coming towards me and I whip around, pretending to fix myself in the mirror above the side table next to me.

"Hello?" The girl calls out as she rounds the corner. I hold my breath, observing their entry through the mirror's reflection. Barnes follows suit and stands next to her; he must have abandoned the pants in the kitchen.

Poor pants, please return them to their home covering your gaunt legs.

I turn to them, acting like I didn't even notice they were there before. 

Nice move, Austin. You've got a real talent in trickery there, bud.

"Are you Barnes' roommate?" She asks timidly. Her arms still crossed tightly to her body. 

Barnes coughs,

She reaches her hand out to me. 'I'm Lee, Barnes's sister." She mouths an 'unfortunately' as we shake hands. "You're his new roommate, I assume?" She looks at Barnes skeptically.

"Hey, hey, hey, never assume. It makes an ass out of you an-" Lee produces a quick jab to his gut with her bony elbow. He hunches over, clutching his hairy stomach.

"That seems to be the case." I remark.

"Well, I'm sorry for his behavior." She looks back at him, scrunching her nose and sighing. "He's untamable."