I was getting ready for Monday with very little energy in my body. I hadn’t slept enough, I had to go back to the office to finish my last two weeks of work and I was living with a cold that showed no sign of completely disappearing. I was sitting at the kitchen counter sipping my usual coffee, hoping it would give me some strength when I heard the doorbell ring. I wasn't expecting anyone. I understood immediately. It must have been the candidate for the room. If I had known, I would have prepared myself. She would see me like this for a few months anyway, so there was little I could do. I ran to the door, excited to open it and find the perfect roommate... or? Maybe the flyer wasn't clear enough, because I would have expected everything except to find a guy in front of me. Not that he was ugly, in fact, I could have confidently said that he was the most handsome guy I had ever seen. And it wasn't just to say, he really was that beautiful. He was wearing a Nike sweatshirt and a pair of jeans. He was tall, brown hair, blue-green eyes, even freckles, so what more could I ask for? In fact, I had a question.

"Hello, can I help you?" I asked politely. He answered by holding up one of the flyers I had hung around the neighborhood. I wasn't sure if he was actually there for the room, but the paper he was holding had solved all my doubts.

"Hello... Noelle," he replied, reading my name from the flyer.

"I'm here for the empty room. I really need it," he continued, smiling. He seemed like an okay guy, but I hadn't forgotten what I had written. I wouldn't have accepted just because he had a beautiful smile and looked fine, I was more serious than that.

"I'm sorry, but it clearly says that the offer is reserved for a girl, no exceptions," I replied politely. I didn't feel like sharing the house with an unknown guy, I would have felt uncomfortable.

"I understand, but I'd only stay three weeks," he begged.

"You're a stranger who just showed up at my door holding a flyer that says only girls. You'll have to tell me more than that to convince me."

"You're right. So... I have a stable job, all the other ads were too absurd, they barely offered a sofa, and I could pay you more than what is written above. I've never had a problem with the law and I know how to clean." he said, as if my decision depended on his ability to keep my house clean.

"How much would you give me for the total number of days?" I replied. Maybe this situation could help me more than I had imagined.

"On the flyer it says £300 a month including utility bills... I could give you something more," he tried to say.

"How much?" I insisted. I wanted to see if he could really help me.

"I guess I could raise it to £600, if the room was mine..." he concluded, smiling again. He really had a beautiful smile. "Noelle, focus," I said to myself mentally.

"Deal. Under these conditions, I imagine I can make an exception. When did you plan to move?" I thought he was going to move in a week or two. So I could prepare myself to live with a guy I'd never seen before. It sounded really absurd, but it would only be three weeks after all, and if he gave me trouble, I would send him away immediately.

"If it's not a problem, I'll be here tomorrow..." tomorrow!? I wasn't stupid enough to accept just because my bank account was begging for some help.

"Perfect! I'll be waiting for you tomorrow with your stuff," I replied quickly. Maybe I was that stupid.

"Okay, see you tomorrow," he replied, and I watched him walk away until he turned into another street. I couldn't believe it. I had found a roommate, he would pay me more than I had planned and he was fine too! Had I made a hasty choice? Yes. Had the usual impulsive me, who would have done anything to not spend more than a moment in a difficult situation prevailed, or perhaps I could really take advantage of it? In my defense, I wasn't that great living in difficult situations. And I needed that money more than ever. There was only one person I could ask.

"YOU DID WHAT? Noelle, are you sure?" asked Evelyn as soon as I told her everything. Evelyn Moses had been my best friend for ten years, we had met in the first year of high school and from that moment we had been inseparable. If there was one person who could have changed my mind about this story, it was her. We had immediately become friends because my frivolity went perfectly with her strong character, which was also reflected in the black curls of her hair.  We had even gone to live here in Inverness together. She was the anchor that brought me back to land when I had completely unachievable ideas. For my part, I helped her to live with a little extra lightness. In short, we complemented each other.

"You have an accusatory tone that I don't like." I retorted, as I continued to stir my tea empty. I had asked her to meet us at a bar because I hoped it would cause a more restrained reaction, but I hadn't exactly gotten the result I was hoping for.

"You don't like it because you know I'm right. Do you at least know his name?" she asked me exasperatedly. In fact, I realized that the guy hadn't even told me his name.

"No, but we'll see each other tomorrow. Besides, I wasn't even wearing make-up and he didn't bat an eye." I replied with a convincing smile, as if the fact that he wasn't subject to me being make-up free and just woken up was a point in my favor. But it didn't work with Evelyn. It never worked. She took a long sip of her tea and then went back to talking to me.

"Noelle, you don't know anything about him, he could be, I don't know..." I immediately knew where she was going.

"A bad person? I've heard it from you too many times before. He said he never got into trouble with the law. He even knows how to clean, from what he says. Also, he’s beautiful. He’s perfect, you know? Being alone at Christmas when you're already married saddens me more than anything." I continued, trying to pity her with my single status and giving her a detailed description of the guy in question, from the shades of his eyes to the type of socks he was wearing, until I saw her convinced. In my defense, I've always been a good observer.

"It doesn't look bad, but he'll be your roommate, don't get any weird ideas. I know very well how your feelings tend to put you in uncomfortable situations, but promise me that this time you won't get too attached."

"I promise I'll do everything I can to not have a crush on him.  I only accepted his proposal because my bank account is in a really bad situation."

"Anything he does that makes you even the slightest bit uncomfortable, promise me you'll warn me and send him away."

"Evelyn, thank you for your concern, but I know how to take care of myself. Nothing bad is going to happen," I replied to her worried look.

"Okay, you won. Look, I have to go to work now, but please make the right choice." Then she said goodbye with a hug and left. I knew very well what she was referring to. I always tended to let my feelings get the better of me, causing me to end up in the wrong situations. But this time it would be different. You couldn't fall in love with a person in three weeks, especially a stranger. Besides, it was going to be Christmas soon, and I had other things to think about, including getting a job. I didn't want to sit idly by, and if I wanted to go on, the boy's rent wouldn't be enough. However, I had to prepare the house for his arrival. I went home and immediately set to work to tidy up his room. I put on some clean sheets, dusted the furniture, and prepared a pile of clean towels at the bottom of the bed. After that, I went to the bathroom and made some room for him there as well. Now there was nothing left for me to do but wait for the next day. I was excited to finally have someone to share the house with. My grandmother had left it to me when she left us, but bearing the costs on my own became more and more difficult with each passing year. Plus, it would have been fun to have a roommate like him. Or at least, isn't it every single girl's dream to spend Christmas the way I would have spent it this year?

The next morning I woke up at nine o'clock to be ready when he arrived. He had phoned me (which I was surprised at, even though my number was prominently displayed on the flyer) to tell me that he would be there by eleven o'clock, and I had no intention of being caught unprepared. But I had forgotten to ask him for his name again. One thing I had to ask him. And I had managed to forget it again. In my defense, his call had really caught me off guard. I mentally went over my to-do list. This time I wasn't going to forget anything. Showering, fixing hair, brushing my teeth, putting on make-up and cleaning breakfast dishes. I'd say I had completed everything. I looked in the mirror one last time to check if I was ready. My hair was tied up in a side braid, and the makeup did its part to keep me from looking like I just woke up. I had also dressed up for the occasion. When the fateful hour arrived I was ready at the door, and thankfully I would add, because he arrived so punctually that arriving unprepared would have made a bad first impression on me. Second impression, I mean. Anyway, I had been thinking all morning of a non embarrassing way to ask him what his name was, but as soon as I saw him my head decided to stop working and I uttered a flood of gibberish. Being shy didn't go well with trying to meet new people.

"Hi, yesterday I forgot to tell you that I'm Noelle. Noelle Edevane. I mean, my real name is Natalie, but everyone calls me Noelle because I'm obsessed with Christmas. I know, it's a bit of a weird hobby, but that's the way I am. In any case, I wanted to ask you what your name was because since we are going to live together it seems to me the least to know, of course, and...” before I could really stop talking, he interrupted me.

"William Carter," he said.

"Huh?" I replied, not yet in the frame of the situation.

"My name is William Carter," he repeated, slightly annoyed.

"Oh, of course. Nice to meet you, William."

After my rather embarrassing scene there was a very long silence, which we spent staring at each other. Not the best of beginnings, in short.

"Anyway, do you need help with your stuff? Or do you prefer to see the room first?" I asked to break the situation.

"Don't worry, I can do it myself," he said. Thankfully, I might add, because his suitcases looked really heavy. There were two of them, as well as a duffel bag. For three weeks? I didn't carry so much stuff when I had to leave either.

I showed him his room. It wasn't very big, but there was a bed, two wardrobes, a wall-mounted television and the other usual things you would find in a bedroom. It wasn't that great, it looked like a room in a very ordinary hotel, but I was sure it would go well. I had also removed the Christmas decorations, I didn't want to invade his spaces.

"Oh, one last thing. Unfortunately, there is only one bathroom here. I hope it's not a problem to share it," I said, hoping he wouldn't withdraw his offer.

"No, no problem. I'd relax for a moment now," he replied, nodding his head at the bed, making it clear that he wanted me to leave.

"Of course, I'll set you free. I usually have dinner at seven o'clock, but if you want to go out and eat on your own, no problem," I told him before leaving.

"I am having dinner with my friends later, don't wait for me awake," he replied before closing the door in my face. I have to admit that I didn't like this last detail. Had I just become his mother? Should I have also done his laundry and ironed his shirts? Maybe Evelyn was right after all.

I immediately texted her to tell her that I had finally found out the name of my new roommate, but instead of answering me, she showed up directly at my house to meet him.

"Evelyn, what are you doing here?" I asked her as soon as she rang the doorbell.

"I'm here to meet this William. Where is he? I'll teach him a couple of things about how to treat my best friend," she said, trying to look inside the house.

"He's sleeping." I didn't really know what he was doing, but Evelyn really knew how to be terrible with guys, and I couldn't risk him leaving. I really needed him to stay. Besides, this time I wanted to fend for myself, and even make mistakes and bang my head on it if it was necessary, I was tired of not knowing how to get out of the mess I was getting myself into. If his kindness yesterday was just for show, he would soon show me his true personality, and I would have no regrets about asking him to leave.

"Evelyn, maybe he was just tired. He really seems like a nice guy," I replied to reassure her.

"For this time, I trust him. But whatever happens, I am notified, okay?"

"Of course, now go home. I'll call you tonight and tell you everything, I promise," I replied with a smile.

"All right, I'll be content with your story. But just so you know, I want to meet him as soon as possible." she finished, then walked down the driveway and back to her house. Living across the street from your best friend didn't just have advantages, let me tell you.