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If you were to ask Gwen why she didn't like Heather, she would ask you why you did like her. She was a Queen Bee-itch, as Leshawna had dubbed her after "The Quad Incident", in every sense of the word. Rude, stuck-up, manipulative; you can name a bad quality, and Heather most likely has it.
And unfortunately for Gwen, Heather was her dorm mate. During move-in, she hadn't thought too much about the other girl; they had exchanged pleasantries, complained about the broken elevator, and had even shared a laugh at watching a girl walk straight into a closed door. They weren't friends or anything, but they were civil enough with one another.
Over the first semester, that had drastically changed.
"Did you use my laptop charger?" Gwen asked, hand on her hip as she held her half-charged laptop that she was sure she remembered to plug in the previous night.
Heather sat cross-legged on her bed, applying lip gloss while holding a hand-held mirror to her face, making sure she didn't get any on her face. She barely spared Gwen a glance, letting out of a huff. "Yeah? What about it?"
"You didn't ask," Gwen practically snarled, tossing her laptop onto her bed and shooting daggers at the other girl. "Don't you have your own charger?"
"Alejandro is borrowing it," Heather answered nonchalantly, sitting the mirror down and screwing the cap onto her lip gloss. "Why are you freaking out so badly? Geez, you need a chill pill."
At the mention of Alejandro, Gwen groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose to combat an incoming headache. Of course she knew who Heather's boyfriend was; she had come back to the dorm to the two of them making out far more often than she would like to. Honestly, it was a bit embarrassing.
"Because it's my charger that I use for my laptop," she explained, frustration evident in her tone. "Get your own, or have your boyfriend buy you another."
Heather scoffed, rolling her eyes. She turned to her phone as Gwen continued to get ready for her morning class, shoving her laptop and charger into her bag. Before she leaves, she turns to the taller girl, a sigh leaving her teal covered lips. "Just ask next time, okay? I don't mind sharing it, but you have to let me know."
"Fine, whatever," Heather tells her, just so she'll shut up and leave. Gwen sighs yet again, though it's more out of exasperation than anything else, and she quickly leaves so she wasn't late to her morning art class.
She doesn't catch grey eyes watching as she goes.
Heather was sitting at her desk, finishing an assignment for her English class when Gwen walked into the dorm, her usually tired expression replaced with a fond smile and a twinkle in her dark eyes.
It was annoying, and she hadn't even said anything yet. Biting the dust, Heather turns around in her desk chair, giving the girl an up-down to see if there was anything out of the ordinary. "You seem oddly cheerful," she sneered, not seeing anything physically different. "Did your painting professor finally have a heart attack and croak?"
"Ugh, I wish," Gwen said, hanging up her bag on the little hook by the door before she moved to plop down onto her bed. She laid on her back, staring up at the ceiling. "He's still alive, sadly, and still the worse person I've ever met."
"Then what is it? Because you didn't look that happy even when I told you Alejandro and I broke up." Heather hadn't been too upset about the breakup, considering she was the one who dumped him. There's only so many times a lesbian can force herself to kiss a man before it becomes unbearable. Plus, she didn't believe that Alejandro was just "academic rivals" with Noah. They definitely flirted with each other.
Gwen rolled over onto her side, facing Heather with that same smile on her lips. "You remember Trent, right?" she asked, raising an eyebrow as the other girl frowned. "Oh, come on. He isn't that bad."
"He's friends with that dork Cody, and that's more than enough reason for me to not like him," Heather claimed, turning back so she could focus on her assignment, though she just stared at the words.
"Whatever. Anyways, he asked me to go watch him play a show this Saturday," the goth explained, and out of the corner of her eye, Heather could see the way her pale cheeks flushed. "And then I'm going to hang at his place for the night, so you'll have the dorm to yourself."
Heather should be happy that her roommate would be gone; maybe she could bring a girl over, someone to keep her company, or she could use the face masks Lindsay had bought her. She could have fun without Gwen. "Yeah, sounds great," she says, though for some reason, the words feel like a lie.
They shouldn't. Gwen is annoying, and pushy, and just as stubborn as Heather is. The two fight more often than not, so she should be grateful for some time alone. And yet, she's not.
Reading Gwen's diary out loud in the quad two days before the girl's date with Trent wasn't on Heather's to-do list, but she'd tripped over a platform boot and had almost given herself a black eye from the dresser, so Heather considered this karma.
The diary entries were cheesy, more poetry than anything. When Gwen and Leshawna approached as Heather read out loud for the dozens of passerby, the shorter girl looked ready to burst into tears, while Leshawna looked pissed.
The worst part? Trent was around whenever the reading began, and Gwen had written quite a few things about him, in great detail. When Heather finished, which was because Leshawna had snatched the diary out of her hands and started cussing her out, his cheeks were bright red, and grey eyes followed him as he chased after Gwen.
"That was seriously fucked up, Heather," Leshawna snapped, finger roughly poking Heather's chest. She looked furious in a way that Heather had never seen, not even when she called the girl "ghetto queen" a few weeks ago. "No wonder you and Alejandro broke up."
"I dumped him," Heather interjected, glaring at the girl in front of her. "And that's none of your business. Maybe she'll think twice before bossing me around and leaving her shit everywhere."
Leshawna rolled her eyes, calling her a few more names before heading towards the direction Gwen and Trent had retreated, leaving Heather to stand around and watch.
On Saturday, Gwen was more of a ghost rather than a roommate. She took a shower, got dressed and ready for her date, and left without saying a word to Heather.
"Good riddance," the girl muttered under her breath, though between scrolling through her phone, she glanced towards the other bed. It was actually made, for once, blankets folded neatly and sheets tucked in. Even the pillows were fluffed, Heather noticed.
Good. Gwen was starting to listen.
Heather spent her Saturday out of the dorm, deciding that the silence was too much for her. She quickly threw on an outfit, applied lip gloss and mascara, and texted Alejandro that she was coming over to his apartment, and that she'd order takeout for them.
His answer was calling her, and when she answered, Heather heard a familiar nasally laugh in the background. "Is that Noah?!" she asked, eyes widening in shock. Noah wasn't too bad, more sarcastic than she'd like, but he was a decent conversationalist, even if she'd only talked to him through Alejandro.
"That's what I was going to tell you," Alejandro answered, shushing someone—apparently Noah—and then continuing, "we may or may not have settled our differences, and he is currently over for the day. Possibly spending the night, he isn't sure yet."
"About damn time," Heather said, rolling her eyes, though the smallest smirk was on her face. "Seriously, you two weren't subtle by any means. It was getting embarrassing. Anyways, I'm coming over."
She could hear Noah grumble something, and Alejandro shushed him again before telling her, "alright, amiga. Stay safe." He hangs up not even two seconds later.
Heather pocketed her phone, making her way to the nearest bus stop near campus. The ride is only seven minutes, and she makes it up the elevator and to Alejandro's door in ten minutes total, knuckles knocking against the door.
Surprisingly, Noah answered, dressed in a very familiar shirt and a pair of pajama pants. His hair was wildly curly, which she hadn't seen before, and she immediately pointed it out.
"Forgot my straightener, and Ale said you stole his," was her answer, and Noah moved out of the way so she could come inside.
Heather slipped her shoes off, wandering into the living room, where Alejandro was sat on his sofa, patting the spot next to him for Noah. The girl took her place in a velvet armchair, a gift from Alejandro's uncle, throwing her legs over the arm of it as she watched the two boys cuddle. "You two are seriously gross."
"Jealous?" Alejandro teased, leaning down to press a kiss to the top of Noah's head. The other boy grumbled, though he didn't move.
"As if," Heather scoffed, glancing away from the two and letting her eyes scan over the room. Well, until she noticed Noah staring at her. "What? Judging your boyfriend's ex already?"
Noah rolled his eyes, crossing his arms as he pulled his knees under him. "I heard you read Gwen's diary out loud at the quad," he said quietly, not a hint of emotion in his words. "I thought you two were civil enough."
"We were, until she decided to leave her shit everywhere," Heather answered with a grimace, wondering just how many people had heard about her revenge. "And how did you find out about that? I thought you didn't go outside."
"Izzy was there," Noah shrugged, before grabbing a book from the other couch cushion. "Seriously, though, that's kinda fucked up, even for me."
Heather frowned, eyes shifting from the bookworm to Alejandro, who was quiet through their little exchange. "And what about you? Do you think I fucked up horrendously too?"
"I believe it's not wise to make enemies with your roommate," Alejandro responds, all diplomacy and wisdom. It was annoying, and Heather let him know as such before she was asking the two what they wanted to eat.
Sunday morning, Heather sat at her desk, looking over a few papers when she heard chatter from outside the door. She immediately recognized Gwen's voice, and assumed that the other belonged to Trent, who Gwen had apparently spent the night with.
Kisses could be heard, and Heather fought the urge to gag, suddenly feeling a bit strange. Was it voyeurism to listen to your roommate kiss a guy? It was better than listening to them fuck, right?
Gwen finally unlocked the door, stepping inside and taking her boots off. From the corner of her eye, Heather could see that she was in a shirt that wasn't the one she'd left in—not that she'd been paying attention to what Gwen was wearing—and her makeup was off, revealing clear, unblemished skin and dusty rose lips.
"Have fun?" The words escaped Heather's mouth before she could stop them, and she saw how Gwen froze, eyes narrowed at the other girl in suspicion.
"It was fine," the goth answered, laying on her bed and looking up at the ceiling. "I had fun, and Trent's a great guy."
Heather hummed, trying to seem uninterested in the date, but God, her mind was reeling. Was the show good? Did Trent look out at Gwen while he was onstage, singing her a sappy love song? Did they talk about Heather any, about what she'd done?
She turned back to her desk, muttering, "I'm sure he is," under her breath. Whether or not Gwen caught it, she didn't know.
Heather hoped she didn't.
Midterms came and went, and Gwen and Heather were still dorm mates. They'd only talked about "The Quad Incident" once, and while Heather hadn't exactly apologized, she showed the slightest bit of remorse, so they were on decent terms again.
They weren't great, but had they ever been? They'd both tell you no.
When she was at the dorm, Gwen was usually caught up immediate in one art project or another, and when she wasn't at the dorm, which was quite often, she hung out with Trent, going on dates to small cafes and studying with him and a few of their mutual friends.
Heather, meanwhile, studied with Alejandro three days out of the week at the library, Noah sometimes joining them whenever he was on break from his shift. A few times, she had hung out with Duncan and his girlfriend Courtney, attending parties that Geoff hosted, all while avoiding her parents' phone calls like they were a disease.
She knew what they wanted. They were wondering if she was going to come and visit during fall break, but they didn't know that she'd already planned on either staying in the dorm or with Alejandro that week. If she didn't forget, she'd text them about it.
The days leading up to fall break were filled with shitty midterms and late night study sessions that left Heather bleary eyed and in desperate need of another tube of concealer to hide her eye bags. She contemplated asking Gwen to borrow some, but their skin tones were different.
One evening, after they had cooked dinner together in the communal kitchen—a simple dish of eggs, rice and chicken that was drowned in soy sauce, Heather got the nerve to ask, "are you staying here over break?"
Gwen shook her head, swallowing a bite of egg and rice. "I'm going home for a few days, and then staying with Trent for the rest. He has another gig Thursday." She took another bite of her food, looking at Heather with a raised eyebrow.
"Make sure you don't forget anything, I plan on deep cleaning," Heather said, finishing her meal and sitting her bowl on her desk.
"You're staying here over break? I thought you'd go home." Gwen also finished her food, looking up as Heather took her bowl to stack it on top of hers. "Or you'd stay with Alejandro, though Noah might be doing that."
Heather shrugged, telling her, "it won't be too bad here with everyone else gone." Gwen gave her a look, not saying anything despite wanting to.
She settled on replying, "I guess. If you get lonely, you can text me." The offer was simple, but somehow, it felt way bigger to Heather, who nodded dumbly before leaving the dorm with their bowls to go wash them.
Fall break was boring, Heather decided halfway into the first day. Gwen had left two days prior, bags packed for the week, and she'd repeated her texting offer. Heather hadn't accepted it yet, out of stubbornness and pride, and had spent half the day cleaning their dorm from top to bottom. She even dusted Gwen's paintings for her, noticing a theme of the color grey.
Afterwards, she got dressed into proper clothes and left the dorm, texting Alejandro that she was coming over so him and Noah better not be fucking. She'd received a paragraph on why she shouldn't assume things, though his apartment door was answered by Noah, who was wearing a bite mark on his neck.
"He's feral," he said when he caught Heather looking, and she barked out a laugh before coming inside. Noah had brought his Wii over and was playing Mario Kart against Alejandro, who was so unbelievably bad at video games it made Heather nearly choke laughing.
The three spent the day playing on the Wii, stopping for a bit so Noah could cook dinner while Heather and Alejandro talked about their midterms.
"So, Gwen went home, hm?" Alejandro asked, chin resting in his hand. His eyes twinkled with something; he was probably going to insinuate something that would undoubtedly piss Heather off. "Are you lonely yet?"
"Pssh, no. I'm glad she's gone," Heather insisted, arms crossed over her chest and a set glare in her grey eyes. "Besides, she would've gotten in the way of my cleaning spree."
Alejandro hummed in a way that screamed unconvinced lips pursed in thought. "Well, you are more than welcome to stay here," he told her, pursed lips quickly replaced with a smile. "Though, I'm afraid we cannot share a bed anymore. Surely you understand."
Heather rolled her eyes and reached over to pinch his arm, relishing in the yelp the Spaniard let out. Noah poked his head out from the kitchen, giving the two a look, before returning back to the soup he was making.
The food was good, even if the company wasn't, and Heather did end up spending the night, claiming the couch as well as some pajamas she'd left behind. Alejandro bid her goodnight, Noah having already fallen asleep nearly half an hour ago, and in the darkness, Heather was left to her thoughts.
She fell asleep that night to visions of teal hair and platform boots.
The rest of the break was spent alternating between her dorm and Alejandro's apartment, occasionally playing Mario Kart with Noah or watching trashy TV with Alejandro.
A few times, she thought about texting Gwen, her thumb hovering over her contact, but Heather never brought herself to doing it. It would be pathetic if she did. She could handle herself, and even thrive with the peace of Gwen being gone. She wasn't lonely, Heather kept reminding herself, because she had her ex-boyfriend and his boyfriend.
However, when the goth returned back to the dorm a day early, Heather welcomed her back with a bowl of fried rice, drowned in sauce, just the way Gwen liked it.
"Awe, you're acting like you missed me," Gwen teased, taking a hefty bite of her meal. She sighed in contentment, having missed her roommates cooking.
Heather rolled her eyes, grumbling, "as if," and not sure if she was trying to convince Gwen or herself.
The second semester started on a very different note. They had both left the dorm for the break between semesters, Gwen returning home while Heather begrudgingly went to visit her family, only because her maternal grandparents were in town. She'd stayed a few days with them, before spending the rest of the time at Alejandro's, keeping him company whenever Noah had to work at the library.
She returned to the dorm a day before the new semester began, Gwen already inside. Before Heather had even sat her bags down, the goth said, "Trent and I broke up."
Well, that was a hell of a greeting. "Did something happen?" Heather asked, convincing herself it was only because she was curious, and not because she cared or anything. "You two seemed solid."
"Things just didn't work out," was Gwen's only reply, and she quickly dropped the subject to talk about her upcoming schedule, rambling as Heather unpacked.
She never did find out the reason for the breakup. Not that it mattered, now that Gwen was spending all her free time at the dorm, the two girls bickering and laughing and gossiping. Gone were the days of tense silence and pettiness, replaced with evenings of cooking together while sharing Gwen's iPod, pop music mixed with 90's grunge; a perfect mix of the two girls.
They weren't best friends or anything, though the others in the dormitory mistook them as such a lot of the time. It wasn't until Lindsay, a dumb blonde that had more boobs than brain asked Heather if they were dating, and that she was happy for them.
"What?! Me and Gwen? Dating? Hah!" Heather denied, though as she spoke, the words felt wrong. Her feelings felt wrong.
Later that night, as Heather laid down in her bed, she looked across the room at Gwen, who was already fast asleep, tucked underneath the blankets. The shorter girl looked so peaceful when she slept, soft snores leaving her that used to drive Heather crazy, but now lulled her to sleep every night.
Huh. Maybe she didn't hate Gwen as much as she thought.