I dropped the last box onto the old, worn carpet with an unceremonious grunt. It was absurdly humid and I was covered in a film of sweat and dust. Pulling my hair back from my face, I turned to see Jake awkwardly maneuvering my air conditioning unit through the door. Thank God.

"Wait, why didn't we bring that in first?" I asked.

"Because your stubborn ass insisted it was necessary to get all of your vinyl in the room before anything else," he huffed.

Oh, right.

"And tell me again why Alice and Rose couldn't help with the move-in process?" he inquired while hoisting the cumbersome machine into my window.

"Oh, come on. Alice weighs less than half of one of these boxes and Rose wouldn't risk breaking a nail. They're out getting supplies for dinner."

"Supplies for dinner meaning ten boxes of Franzia, I assume."

"How dare you! We would never drink boxed wine," I retorted, appalled at this assumption. I mean, really, the lowest we've ever stooped was Yellow Tail's cabernet sauvignon.

"Of course, how silly of me."

I collapsed on my futon while Jake plugged in the AC unit. Once it was on full blast, he crumpled down next to me, letting out a sigh of relief.

"You just had to move into some creepy old house with no central air and a ridiculous flight of stairs, didn't you?" he scolded lightly.

"Hey, this place is charming. And I have the best room in the house."

He sat up on his elbows and looked around before conceding, "It is a pretty sweet room."

All creepiness and mustiness aside, I loved my new place. I had spent a lot of time here towards the end of my sophomore year of college with my best friends Rosalie and Alice, who lived here with another girl named Vicky and her boyfriend James. Vicky and James had moved out at the end of the lease, so they invited me to move in. I was thrilled, both to get out of my depressing one bedroom and to live with two of my favorite people in the whole world.

Jake had wanted to move in together, but I was vehemently against the idea. True, we'd been dating since our freshmen year and it seemed like the logical next step, but I still didn't feel quite right about it. I love Jake, but we bicker enough without the added stress of "who used up all the hot water," "who took the last Toaster Strudel", etc. Even if I had wanted to, I would never even think of running the idea by Charlie, my father. He'd immediately develop a hernia, but not before traveling out to the university with the sole purpose of shooting Jake directly in the testicles. He may have more or less approved of Jake, but Charlie still liked to think the most we had ever touched was the occasional chaste hand-holding. Despite being legally allowed to drink, smoke, buy porn and enlist in the army, I was still his little girl.

It worked out anyway; Jake's friend Seth needed a roommate in his two bedroom, which was only about a ten minute walk away from me. We could still see each other regularly and I wouldn't have to listen to his band practicing at all hours. Problem solved.

Jake swiped some hair from his forehead while glancing at the screen of his phone. "Oh, by the way, you still need someone to move into James' old room, right?"

"Yeah, we've been asking around but it seems everyone we know already has a place. We might have to resort to putting up a Craigslist ad." None of us were fond of the idea, sure that this would lead to giving a bunch of creepers tours around our home while never actually finding a decent roommate.

"Well, you know that guy who just auditioned for the band? The drummer I told you about?"

I vaguely remembered him mentioning this to me, but his band was always cycling through drummers so I hadn't really paid attention.

"It looks like it's going to be a permanent thing. He's a genius, Bells, exactly what we've been looking for. Anyway, he mentioned he's looking for a place so I told him he could stop by and check it out."

"Geez, Trigger. When did you invite him over? I haven't even met the guy, let alone had a chance to mention anything to Rose and Alice. And the place is a wreck right now!"

Just then, I heard a knock at the front door. I slowly looked over at Jake with a scowl, which he returned with a sheepish look and slight shrug of the shoulders.

"Damn it, Jacob!"

"I'm sorry!"

I rolled my eyes while he stood up and thundered down the stairs. I began instinctively smoothing my hair back and pulling down my tiny running shorts, annoyed that anyone but Jake would see me in this bizarre juxtaposition of skimpy clothing and sweaty, dirt-and-dust smudged skin.

The door creaked open and I heard Jake's jovial greeting.

"Edward! How's it going, man?"