Chapter 4 2 Bathrooms

• I keep up with Carlo as he winds through the city. I couldn't remember how to get to his place because I'd only been there once and not for very long.
• I'm so nervous that I can't stand it, and my palms are sweating like crazy. All I can think about is how weird I am. This might not seem like a big deal, but for me it is. I've always been awkward. I only stopped being awkward in the last year or two, but I still say stupid things.
• "It's on top." Carlo points to a white house on the corner and says, "There it is." A college house is the most common place for students to live all over the country. And, like most college houses, it was divided into three smaller apartments. I thought Carlo lived in the suite in the basement.
• "I forgot the part about the basement." He laughs when I mumble.
• "It's big, has high ceilings, and everything else." He tells me not to worry, and I follow him to the side door.
• I walk into the space and look around as I blink. He was right; for a basement, the ceilings were pretty high. The living room was right next to me. It had a big leather sectional and a flat-screen TV. On the left was a pony wall with shoes, and on the other side was the front closet and dining table. Behind the dining area was the kitchen, and straight ahead was a hallway with doors.
• "So? It's not too bad, huh? When he asks, I nod and shrug. The floor and walls could have used a sweep and mop, but I didn't mind too much.
• "It's great." He smiles when I shrug.
• "I have to go to the bathroom. You wait here, and I'll show you the rest in a minute." He insists and holds out his hands. I nod and watch him walk down the hall.
• I look around a bit, but I don't move. I just look at all the crap that's everywhere. The traffic cones in the corner and the beer boxes on the walls. It was a college house, and that's what college students did. How would it be to be in the same room as men? I didn't really know, but at home, all three of my family members and I shared a bathroom, and I knew how to clean up after myself. It might not be so bad.
• "Hey." I hear one guy say this as he comes out of the back room and into the kitchen. "Don't I know you?" He asks, and I take a tense breath because I couldn't remember who he was.
• "I-um, I'm not sure, but it's possible we've met before." I shrug. He had blonde hair and blue eyes, and he could have been any guy I'd ever met. "I'm Juls"
• "Right! I remember you, Juls.' He smiles and goes through the cabinets while snapping his fingers. "The first time we met, we all played cards in the lounge of the residence hall."
• "Oh, okay." I do the same. I had forgotten about the people we played with, but I was starting to remember.
• "You look different, and it's hard to recognize you." He tells me, and I make a funny face.
• "Is it different in a good or bad way?" When I ask, he laughs and puts a box of frosted flakes down on the counter.
• "Good." He tells me this as he rips the top off the box, and my smile grows. "I'm Kyle."
• "Right." I sigh and think about it better now. "Sorry, that happened about 2 1/2 years ago."
• "Don't worry." He gives a shrug, opens the box, pulls out the bag, and shakes some right into his mouth. "So, are you still friends with Carlo?" He asks while still chewing, and I laugh.
• "We haven't talked as much," she said.
• "What's going on? "Where are you two today?" He asks while chewing and swallowing the food in his mouth.
• "Well, sort of?" I shrug. "Um, I'm actually here to look at your open room." I did worry that he wouldn't like what I said.
• "Really?" He asks with enthusiasm, and I nod. "That's great! We've been looking for a new roommate for weeks!"
• "Carlo said that, and I want to get out of my house!" I say that I did, and he smiles and puts the box back down.
• "Hey Mark!" Kyle is in the kitchen and calls. Mark comes out of the door on the right side of the hallway. Mark was good looking too, just like Kyle. It was obvious that these were Carlo's friends and that they were all pretty. Was I even pretty enough for them to want to live with me?
• "Hey Dusty.' He says something, then takes a moment to look at me and then back at Kyle. "Who are you?"
• "Juls, you've met Juls before, dude." He won't give up, so Mark raises an eyebrow. "She was Carlo's friend, and the first year she played cards with us."
• "Oh, right," he says, and he seems happier about my coming. Mark was probably about five-eight inches shorter than Kyle. He was a good match for his red hair, and the freckles on the bridge of his nose made him look even better. "Is Carlo here to see you?"
• "No, you idiot, she's here to see the apartment!" Kyle speaks up and keeps pouring cereal from the box into his mouth.
• "Oh, you're the person Carlo sent us a text about."
• "Yeah, being closer to campus would be nice." I say yes, and he agrees.
• "Well, we probably shouldn't make any big decisions until Kent gets back!" He shrugs, and I agree with him by nodding. "You met Kent before?"
• "Nope." I admit. I was most worried about that, but at least I knew the other guys.
• "He's a good guy, you'll like him." Mark tells me that. "Do you want to see the rest of our house?"
• "Sure." I just give him a shrug, and he smiles and leads me down the hall. Kyle is following behind with a box of cereal.
• There are seven doors in the hall.
• "I own this room on the right." Mark says as he quickly shows me his messy room. "Kyle's is the one across the hall." He says this, and Kyleg opens his door to show me that his room is mostly clean. "This is the complete bathroom." He keeps moving forward one step at a time to the next door on the right. It was pretty big and had a toilet, a sink with a lot of counter space, and a shower. "And over there are our laundry room and a half-bath." It was closed, but Carlo was probably still inside.
• "Two toilets!" When I say it again, they both nod.