Chapter 1: The Hallway Encounter

On a weekday afternoon, I was just about to hop in the shower when my roommate Natalie—wrapped in nothing but a towel—appeared in the hallway, steam still curling from the bathroom door.

I suddenly became hyper-aware of my own bare chest, wishing I’d at least grabbed a shirt—or maybe wishing I hadn’t. Natalie's towel looked like it might slip at any second, and she seemed both startled and weirdly calm, her bare feet tapping softly on the hardwood.

Then, the next-door roommate’s door creaked open. My heart jerked, and I backpedaled into my bedroom, slamming the door just enough to hide us from view. For a split second, it felt like we’d been caught doing something way more scandalous than just heading to the shower.

"Let me in too..." Natalie whispered, her voice half-giggling as she squeezed through the crack before the door latched. That weird little crisis broke the ice between us in a way nothing else could have.

Out in the living room, I heard the roommate shout, "Hey, whose shampoo army took over the shower? Seriously, I almost tripped over a bottle in there!" She and the landlord started joking around, their laughter echoing through the apartment. It felt more like a chaotic college dorm than a grown-up’s place.

Inside my room, adrenaline raced through me. I found myself glancing over at Natalie, wanting to say something—anything—to keep her there just a little longer.

But Natalie cut through the tension with a soft, steady voice: "No, I can't cheat on my boyfriend." The words built an invisible wall between us, even though we were only two feet apart.

She kept her distance, but word got around fast in an apartment like ours. Eventually, I found out her boyfriend was a jerk who’d been two-timing her. Sometimes I’d see Natalie in the kitchen, her eyes red from crying, but she’d always play it off like nothing was wrong.

Now, whenever the apartment gets quiet, I can’t help but wonder: would she ever cross that line and make this space ours?

I didn’t know it then, but that awkward afternoon would change everything about how I saw Natalie—and myself.