Hate to Love You - Chapter 3: Chapter 3

Hannah
I was greeted with a loud, girly scream as I stepped into the communal house that I shared with six other girls. I stopped in the entryway with a confused frown and looked towards the old oak stairs — the direction the scream came from.
The house was a two-story wreck with a tiny bathroom on each floor, an outdated kitchen likely built in the '80s, and a living room that almost always had reality shows playing on the TV. The dining room had been turned into a home gym that was hardly used and there were seven bedrooms in total, with five being upstairs. Two of my roommates, Jenny and Aqua, took the two downstairs rooms while the rest of us stayed upstairs.
There were some muffled voices, and then another scream cut through the air, making me jump. It almost sounded like someone was giving birth.
I closed the door behind me and hurried up the stairs, one of my hands trailing up the old metal railing. Flecks of old paint flaked off, and I wiped my hand on my pants. Wincing at another ear-piercing scream, I followed the noise to the second room on the right from the stairs — Tanya's room. The door was wide open, so I popped my head in to see what all the commotion was —
And stared directly at my roommate's vagina.
Jenny, the owner of said vagina, was lying on the bed, legs spread and facing the door as all of our other roommates surrounded her. They were all very focused on the area between her legs, bent over to examine it more closely. Tanya practically had her nose buried in it.
Groaning, I closed my eyes immediately, trying to banish the mental image I now had of Jenny's nether regions, but they shot back open when Jenny let out another agonized yell. Just what the hell was happening?
"Sorry, sorry. It's just really stuck in there," Tanya, the short-haired Latina, mumbled. She was the only one actually touching our roommate's genitals, poking and prodding as her arm casually rested on Jenny's stomach. Upon closer inspection, I could see she was wearing a pair of blue hospital gloves.
Molly appeared a little green as she stared at the place between Jenny's legs. "This is why I could never be gay."
"Uh... hey, guys," I announced my presense, unsure if I should interrupt whatever they were doing. It could have been some kind of bonding ritual between them all. If so, I wanted nothing to do with it.
All of the girl's heads swiveled in my direction — minus Tanya, who was completely focused on her task. Amanda, a stunning brunette with dark blue eyes, narrowed her eyes in displeasure when she saw me. Her eyes traveled up and down my body, before she looked away, a sour expression crossing over her face.
Next to Amanda was her best friend and lackey, Penelope. Penelope was what you called 'fun-sized' without any of the fun. She was really short, barely cresting five two — with big brown eyes and hair dyed a similar shade to mine. And while no one ever said anything, it was glaringly obvious how much Penelope sought Amanda's praise and validation. It was just plain weird how she did everything Amanda told her to.
"Oh, hey, Hannah," Jenny greeted me through gritted teeth, grimacing at something Tanya did.
Despite everything that was currently going on, Jenny was actually pretty cool. She always tried to include me, even when Amanda complained. She was like the mom of the group, and since she was also hooking up with one of the guys on the football team, I guess that made her the unofficial leader of the house. It was a recent thing, and she was still insecure about it.
Maybe he'd given her an STD? Guys like that weren't exactly known for their loyalty or chastity.
"What's happening?" I asked, looking anywhere but between her legs.
"Jenny got a piercing at some dodgy piercing shop and now it's infected. And swollen. And bleeding. Serves her right for not using any common sense." Aqua scoffed, showing no remorse when Jenny let out another whimper and squeezed her hand in a death grip.
"I was trying to be adventurous and cool." Jenny moaned, squeezing her eyes shut. "You guys are always going on about how plain and boring I am. This is what I get for trying to step out of my comfort zone." She let out another gasp and her legs tensed. I could see her toes curling from where I stood.
"And you went with a genital piercing?" I tilted my head, one brow raised.
"I might have been slightly-very drunk and let the guy convince me to do it."
"You know he was just trying to see your kitty-kat, right?" Tanya added, squinting her eyes at something I definitely didn't want to see.
"Now I do," Jenny answered, flinching.
"You don't think you should go see a doctor?" I asked.
"I'd be way too embarrassed." Jenny shook her head. "Tanya's studying to be a doctor. She's like the next best thing."
Tanya popped her head up from between Jenny's legs, glaring. "I'm studying to become a psychologist. That's not even close to being a medical doctor."
"You're doing great, sweetie." Jenny fisted her sheets until her knuckles went white. She then threw her head back dramatically. "Oh God. This means no sex for a while. What's Matthew going to say? How am I even going to tell him about this? What if he finds someone else? I was so close to convincing him to go steady. What am I going to do?" She let go of the covers and Aqua's hand, and covered her face with her hands, letting her head fall back onto the pillow.
Amanda perked up, eyes sparkling as a plan began to unfurl in her head. "Maybe you could invite him over to spend some quality time together? Just like you would if you were in a relationship."
Jenny dropped her hands, frowning at Amanda. "No way — he'll want sex. I'm not in the best condition, if you haven't already noticed."
"No, silly. Invite him and his friends over so that you guys aren't alone, but you'll still be spending time together so he doesn't get any ideas about moving on. We'll have a party or something, but it has to be at night."
"Or," I suggested, frowning at Amanda. "You get her some antibiotics and let her recover. You shouldn't prioritize a guy over your health."
Amanda shot me a look filled with disdain, but it didn't faze me. I was more than used to her shit. She'd had it out for me since day one, and I still had no idea why. Not that I cared. I just continued to ignore her and her little sidekick — even when they spread weird, petty rumors about me.
"It's not that simple, Hannah," she said my name with as much venom as she could muster. "Some of us don't want to stay single, lonely losers for the rest of our lives. Jenny landed a diamond mine when she managed to capture Matthew's attention. It's important she doesn't lose it."
My face scrunched in disgust, but her words landed their hit with Jenny, who nibbled on her lower lip. "Why at night? I don't really see how that helps my cause."
Amanda dismissed me, flashing Jenny a bright smile. "Just tell Matthew you aren't feeling well if he pushes — that'll buy you some time. But think about the opportunities for the rest of us." She grabbed Penelope, shaking her excitedly. "Maybe Tristan Beckett will show up. Could you imagine that? The Tristan Beckett in our house! Manifest, girls!"
Aqua laughed wryly. "Why would he come here? He doesn't even know we exist."
Amanda paused, then turned to Jenny. "Let's fix that. Can you ask Matthew to invite Tristan? They're friends, right? I'd be eternally grateful — and we'll definitely send you a wedding invite when the big day comes around." She giggled at that last part.
Jenny looked at Amanda like she was crazy. "No way, what if he gets the wrong impression? I'll be throwing any chance of us out the door."
"She's right. He'd think she's using him to get to Tristan," Molly cut in as she handed Tanya more wet wipes.
Amanda sighed dramatically and collapsed into the desk chair. "I guess we'll just have to hope that fate is on our side."
Internally, I scoffed at her desperate scheming and decided it was time to leave. They had more than enough help already, and I had no intention of sticking around for the show. Later, when everyone was gone, I would give Jenny some over-the-counter antibiotic ointment. Having a mother like mine meant I always had things like that on hand. Of course, it was the most organic one she could find, but it would work.
As I stepped away, I could hear Amanda beginning to make plans and shuddered at what they could be. Whoever the unfortunate guy was, he had my sympathy; he was going to need it if he wanted to handle Amanda.
°•°•°•°
The next day, my phone pinged with an incoming message just as I parked my car in the large library's parking lot. I unclipped my seatbelt and reached for my bag, unzipping it. Grabbing my phone, I unlocked it to see a message from my best friend, Bailey.
I opened her message with a small smile, expecting to see a good morning text or something sweet and loving. We texted every day, and her messages were often peppered with hearts and kissing face emojis.
So I was not expecting the picture that popped up.
I immediately switched my screen off, shock blasting through my system. It took me a few minutes to process what I'd just seen, but once I gathered up the energy and courage, I opened her chat again.
Yup. Still there.
Believe it or not, this wasn't the first time either — though, I usually had a bit of warning first. Quickly deleting the picture before my corneas erupted into flaming balls of disgust, I typed my response.
H: What the hell??? Bailey? Please tell me that was a mistake.
She answered immediately.
B: No mistake. So... what do you think? It's huge, right? I nearly fell off my bed when I first saw it.
H: Why does it matter if it's huge? Why'd you send me a picture of some random guy's penis?
B: I'm thinking of taking him for a round in Pound Town, to show him the real estate, if you know what I mean. And bonus — he's hot! It always nice when the penis matches the face. He's really sweet too.
H: He can't be too sweet if he's sending you pictures of his penis.
B: I asked him for the picture. He was simply being a gentleman and obliged.
H: Why on earth would you ask him for pictures? That's so weird.
H: And gross.
B: I like to know what I'm working with before I actually put any effort into a guy. I've been disappointed way too many times in the past. Trust me — this is a surefire method.
H: I take it you're not disappointed then?
B: Definitely not. And I'm totally gonna fuck him — I just had to show you his majestic dick.
H: Oh wow, thanks. Not. I have to go, weirdo.
She sent me a range of different colored hearts and kissing faces as a goodbye — all the stuff I was initially expecting when I opened her messages. Shaking my head, I pocketed my phone, closed my bag, and climbed out of my car. Locking it, I started in the direction of the library's front doors. There were several side entrances I could have entered, but there was a very specific reason I came through the front.
I hurried up the large stone steps, nodding at the two security guards who greeted me at the door. Looking straight ahead, I grinned when I saw the familiar faces.
Behind the reception desk were three people — the old librarian, Mr Paulie, and two student volunteers, Sarah and Jacqueline. Mr Paulie was occupied with a shelf of returned books in the back while Sarah and Jac filled in some paperwork. Sarah beamed as soon as she noticed my approach. Jac just waved before going back to writing in her papers.
"Hey, you. Let me guess — you have a study room reserved," Sarah laughed, standing up.
"You know me." I shrugged. "Anything to avoid people."
"I hear you," Jac muttered under her breath.
I smiled at that before saying, "I'm here for the key. I reserved room 111."
She waved a hand at me. "Those rooms are hardly ever locked. You can just go ahead — no need to grab a key."
Mr Paulie walked over and dropped a pile of books onto the desk. "Now, Sarah, you shouldn't say that. Hannah has the right idea about it. She's doing it the proper way and we appreciate that." He gave me a kind smile.
I smiled sheepishly and shrugged. "Just in case." I turned back to Sarah. "Also, I like stopping by and saying hi. I like to think we've built a lifelong friendship based on our short interactions every time I come here."
"Oh, for sure. You're practically maid-of-honor material now."
We both laughed as she handed me the key. After saying goodbye, I went to find my room. Looking around as I walked, I noted that the library was a lot louder than usual. It was normally pretty crowded but today it was noisy. I was glad I had the foresight to reserve a room.
As I stepped out of the elevator and onto the fifth floor, my attention was pulled to a particularly loud group in the center of all the tables. I could tell they were athletes immediately.
Athletes just had a certain air about them. Most of them were overly disruptive and loud — and they tended to stick together in droves while hopeful girls buzzed around their edges, waiting for an opening to join them.
I frowned as they all laughed loudly, uncaring of those around them. One of the guys, a handsome blonde with dimples, stood up and bowed dramatically before following a giggling girl towards the dark area behind the bookshelves.
Scrunching my nose in disgust, I headed toward the dim hallway that led to the private rooms. Passing the first row of rooms, I could see that all of them were occupied by the small window next to each door. I shook my head at the couples using the rooms for make-out spots. My room was right at the back and the most private. A true gem.
Finally, I stopped in front of the door numbered 111 before looking down at the door handle to see if it was unlocked.
But a soft moan had my head shooting back up. I stepped up to the window as apprehension filled me. My suspicions were quickly confirmed when I saw the back of some guy's head. I frowned and leaned to the left — and caught sight of the girl's bobbing head in his lap. His torso was, thank God, blocking my view of anything too gross, but I knew the gist of what was happening.
Lips curling in disgust, I looked back up at him and froze.
I recognized the guy.
You have got to be shitting me.