The Soulmate Curse

Opportunity

Zhen stopped dead in her tracks. That herbal scent of rosemary and basil whacked her in the head harder than a two by four. The red hair still fell in loose curls, framing that cute round face that belonged in a fairy tale, her bright green eyes mirroring the surprise she felt. She was filling out her shirt pretty well too. And the curves didn't stop up top. But all that beauty was marred by the magma of rage and horror bubbling up from emotional depths that Zhen had forgotten existed inside her.

She turned to the girl she'd walked into the apartment with and smiled. "Can I call you later?"

Fiona gave her a kiss. "I'll be waiting."

Zhen slowly closed the apartment door behind her. Then slowly turned around.

The first eruption. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Welcome home Zhen. This is Finnegan Ev..."

"I know who she is, Gavyn," said Zhen. "Why she's here is what I'm having trouble with."

"Finn is your new roommate," said Gavyn. "She passed every survey and has every one of the traits you put forward as those of an ideal roommate."

"That's what you said about Murdoch." Zhen said.

Finn finally spoke, wiping the look of shock from her face like a pro. "I'm standing right here."

Gavyn responded to Zhen. "My software has since been upgraded to recognise psychopathic traits and behaviour. Finn exhibits none of these."

"Oh, she's no psychopath," said Zhen, dropping her backpack against the sofa. "She's just a thief."

"I found no records of Finn's name in relation to any criminal behaviour when I ran a background check."

Finn snapped. "Again, I'm still here!"

"Maybe you should leave," said Zhen, finally speaking to her for the first time in three years. The rush of emotion from those few words threatened to knock Zhen on her ass. It was a miracle she was still standing tall.

"Oh, you'd like that, wouldn't you? Well, the closest apartment available is twenty-eight miles away. I'm not leaving," said Finn, defiance colouring all her features. "And you can't make me. Not legally, anyway."

"Is that a challenge?"

"Like you could beat me if it was."

"There seems to be some tension between you two," started Gavyn. "Maybe we can try and run the new reconciliatory program that..."

"Not now, Gavyn!" Zhen said.

"Don't shout at him. He's just trying to help."

"Unless it's about kicking you out, he's not helping."

"I'm going to let you continue throwing your little tantrum," said Finn, deflating ever so slightly. The sudden change in demeanour caught Zhen by surprise. "When you're ready to act like an adult, I'll be in my room."

Zhen couldn't stop the bile from clouding her judgement and poisoning her words. "Not for long."

She was left alone in the living room, trying to keep herself from screaming her lungs out to vent her frustration. Of all the people on the planet, her new roommate just had to be Finn, of Finnegan's Engine, one of the greatest inventions of the decade. The engine currently strip mining an asteroid whose resources were being processed and used on the Lunar base and sold to the largest corporate entities on and off planet. Her idea manifest into a reality that didn't even acknowledge her existence, let alone her contribution. That engine had haunted Zhen for the better part of the last three years, more so after it was announced that they'd started a trust in Finn's name to collect royalties from any government's and/or any corporate's use of the design.

It wasn't the money and popularity that bothered Zhen the most. It was the fact that she hadn't been able to come up with an idea that was anywhere as good as that. Everything she'd done since then paled in comparison. That's what bugged her. That's what drove her freaking nightmares now. She was stuck. And Finn being here just rubbed that fact in her face even more. She took a deep breath. It was true that she couldn't oust Finn without a legal reason to do so. However, she could make it unbearable for her to stay here. Enough that she wanted to leave. Zhen felt the heaviness leave her chest. If nothing else, getting rid of Finn was going to be fun.

Zhen loaded a new cartridge into the food printer. "Gavyn?"

"Yes, Zhen?"

"Please call Jed Billings from Housing."

"As you wish, Zhen."

A beat later, Jed's voice came on speaker. "Hey Zhen! I bet you're calling to share your undying gratitude. I know, I know. You love me. She's the best roommate ever. So on, so forth. Told you I'd take care of you. You owe me one."

"I need her transferred," Zhen replied flatly.

"Sorry, what?" said Jed. Zhen imagined him sitting up on his gamer chair. "You did meet her, right? It says here that she arrived twenty minutes ago."

"I did. And I'm calling to apply for a transfer."

"We are talking about the same person, right? Finnegan Darrow? America's sweetheart? Engineer of the century? Drop dead gorgeous green eyes and an Irish accent that fuels more than my own wet dreams?"

"First of all, ew. Second, as the current tenant, I have twenty-four hours to apply for a roommate transfer, right?"

"Only if the grounds allow for it."

"You do remember that I had a psychopath for a roommate once, right?"

"Did Finn try to kill you?"

"Not exactly."

"Did she do anything that constitutes grounds for a transfer?"

"I could argue that she did."

"If you could, you would be," said Jed. "Unless you have evidence of her doing something extremely grievous, she's your new roommate. What wrong? Are you jealous or something?"

Zhen swallowed and choked on her next words. Instead, she said, "Excuse me?"

"I know you're both engineers and stuff and that she's better..."

Zhen cut him off. "You know what, Jed? It's all good. I made a mistake calling. I'm thrilled to have the highly esteemed Finnegan Darrow as my roommate."

"Are you sure? Because..."

"Goodbye, Jed."

"Don't murder anyone, Zhen."