New Roommate

Megan was pissed off. She had gotten a call from her mother and found her mom basically making some demands, even if somewhat gently.

"Megan dear, your dad and I have been supporting you not only through university, but even since you graduated."

"I appreciate it, mom. I really do."

"We've had to dig deep into our retirement account to do that, and we can't keep doing it."

"Mom, I'm working full time, but I don't make enough to cover all my expenses."

Megan was almost in tears at the thought of losing the financial support of her parents.

"We have something that might help you."

"Something to make up the difference in your support?"

"Exactly. You remember my friend Natalie?"

"Yeah. What about her?"

"Well, Megan, she has a niece who has been accepted at the university you were attending."

"So what? How does that help?"

"She can stay with you. She can contribute to the rent and utilities, and help you afford it."

"I only have a one bedroom place."

"You can work something out."

"Please don't do this to me."

"We don't have the money to keep giving you. I was told that Emily was a sweet girl."

"So I just have to take in some girl I've never met?"

"When you lived in the dorms, you didn't know your roommates before moving in."

"That's why I needed out of the dorms. Some of those girls were terrible. Never cleaned up after themselves, brought guys back to the room, stayed up late, played loud music."

"Natalie said that Emily isn't like that."

"I have to share a bed with her?"

"Not necessarily. Work something out with her."

"Fuck."

"Megan Ann Silver, watch your language."

"So when is this bih -- person, supposed to be here?"

"Saturday. Be nice to her, dear."

"Whatever."

Megan hated it, though she knew she could hardly complain. Her parents supported her all though college and once she got her degree, she went to work. Even though she had her degree, because it was only a BA, the pay was crummy. She majored in finance, which helped her get a job, but without an MBA, she was stuck.

She wanted her MBA, but couldn't swing it financially. She knew if she hung in with this company for three years, they'd pay tuition for her to get her masters in evening classes. In the meantime, this 21 year old was stuck working a shit job for shit pay. She knew she couldn't swing it without either her parent's support or some other help.

She'd had a boyfriend and thought they might move in together or even marry, but just before graduation, he dumped her for some cheerleader type. She didn't really have the cash to go out, and most of the guys where she worked were married, gay, or players. None of that did her any good, so she now had no boyfriend and no social life.

Her apartment had a coat closet, so she emptied it out, figuring that would be for this girl. Her television was sitting on an old dresser in the living room, so she emptied that for Emily, as well. She had no intention of giving up any part of her closet or her bedroom for a roommate who was forced on her. She had a futon sofa in the living room, and this girl could sleep there.

Megan had a couple days to get ready, even if she didn't really want to. Sadly, she knew she had to, financially. Megan's apartment was only a couple blocks from campus, which was part of why she liked it. It was only a mile or two from where she worked, so she wasn't inclined to move. Beyond that, almost any other apartment could cost her more money, which she couldn't afford.

Saturday afternoon, Megan sat reading, when there was a very light tapping at the door. It was so light that if she'd had any television or music on, she'd never have heard it. In fact she was almost uncertain she really had heard it. She walked to the door and opened it to see a boyish young woman standing there. Emily looked timid and almost fearful as Megan opened the door.

"Are you,,, Megan Silver?"

"Yes."

"I'm Emily Feldman. My aunt Natalie told me you might be able to -- "

"My mother called me. Come in."

Emily had a rolling suitcase and rolled it into the apartment, still looking quite uncertain. Megan figured after some of the major bitches she'd dealt with in the dorms, this at least seemed better. She was surprised though. She seen mice who were bolder than this Emily seemed to be. She figured her mother must have told Natalie that Megan wasn't happy about this and Natalie told Emily.

"There's only one bedroom, Emily."

"That's what I heard."

"And we are not sharing a bed."

Emily turned red and looked like she was trying to stare a hole in the floor. "No, I didn't think we would."

Megan showed Emily how the futon sofa flattened out to make something about the size of a single bed. She then got out some bedding.

"Here's a cover to put over the futon so you aren't sleeping directly on the fabric. There's other sheets and blankets you can cover yourself with, and some pillows, as well."

"That should work."

"Obviously, you won't be able to bring guys back here to sleep with."

Emily turned red again and did an embarrassed squirm. "I wasn't planning on bringing anyone back here."

"Even though I'm sleeping in the bedroom, I won't bring any guys back here either."

"I appreciate that."

"I have to work and get up at 7am, so no loud music or TV after 11pm."

"I know having me here is an imposition, but --"

"But I need this financially, so as long as we don't have any problems -- "

"I won't cause any problems. I swear."

"I have to be at work by 8:30, so I need to get ready and be out of here on time."

"My earliest class is at 10am, so I'll stay out of your way."

About the only way Emily could have been more accommodating was by outright groveling, and at times, she seemed pretty close to that. Megan decided to lighten up a bit. Emily had a car and still had some of her stuff in the car. Megan helped Emily bring her things up and put them away. Megan moved her laptop to the bedroom to let Emily use the small desk in the living room.

Emily had registered for classes online but had not yet decided on a major. She seemed to be smart, maybe even smarter than Megan, but tried to stay in the shadows. It seems she had deliberately done less well in a couple of classes so she would not be either valedictorian or salutatorian of her class though she had higher standardized test scores than the folks who were.

Emily was 18 but the impression Megan got was than Emily had never been on a date and probably never been kissed, much less anything more intimate. As they talked, Megan began to feel protective of Emily. Emily offered to pay Megan her share of expenses for the whole fall semester, but Megan said it was better to pay month by month.

Emily was afraid that meant Megan was planning on kicking her out, so Megan assured her it was just better for them both to pay as they went. Megan didn't want to take advantage of Emily and it felt like that's what she'd do if she took it all up front. Plus, in some ways she didn't trust herself to save it all for when it was needed.

Emily really didn't want to be in a dorm and have to put up with all manner of other women in the dorm. Since Megan had hated dorm life, she could quite understand that. Besides, giving Megan the cost of a dorm room helped Megan more than her parents previously had. Since it was so close to campus, it made it easier for Emily, and meant she didn't have to drive much.

In spite of her initial reluctance, Megan almost began to see Emily as a little sister type. Megan made dinner for the two of them and Emily began to settle in to the place. They talked and watched a little television, though Emily preferred very clean shows, so they watched some sweet romances on one channel.

When it got late, Megan helped Emily get the futon ready to sleep on. Megan had a queen size bed and when she went to bed, wondered if she should have let Emily share the bed, though as shy as Emily was, she might well have not accepted. Emily had gone in the bathroom to change to pajamas that loosely covered her whole body.

Megan usually slept in a night shirt, often without panties and found Emily's sleeping attire to be entertaining, though she would never laugh at it. They bid each other good night and retired to their respective beds. As she drifted off to sleep, Megan decided that Emily was probably the most acceptable roommate she could have had foisted on her.

....................................................................................................

Megan woke up the next morning and quickly remembered Emily. She was still not sure she wanted a roommate, but knew she needed the money and was starting to like Emily. She came out of the bedroom, needing to visit the bathroom, still wearing her nightshirt with no panties. Emily had apparently just awoken, looked at Megan, blushed, and looked away.

Okay, Megan's nipples were pretty obvious under her night shirt, but nothing was really uncovered except her legs, Megan knew Emily was rather shy, but this seemed more so than she'd have expected. After Megan peed, she waved Emily into the bathroom and went to the bedroom to change. She put on a nice pair of jeans and a cute top, along with some walking shoes and a sports bra.

She came out to see Emily in very loose jeans, with a top and flannel shirt over. She had her hair tucked under a cap and wore a sports bra that flattened her chest and almost looked like a teenage boy. Megan was kind of shocked, but she knew Emily was timid and figured this was her way of hiding. Since it was Saturday, and they might actually have a few extra dollars Megan wanted to go out to breakfast.

"Why don't I show you around the town and we can grab a bite while we're out."

"Are you sure?"

"There's a place I know that has coffee and pastry reasonably priced."

"I don't know."

"You need to learn your way around town, and I can even show you some of the campus."

Emily seemed reluctant, but agreed, so they got in Megan's car and she drove them to her favorite little coffee shop. Emily wasn't much of a coffee drinker, but was able to get a soda, and they each got a pastry for breakfast. They had talked some last night, but Megan got to know more about Emily. Emily had never dated in high school, and also had never been kissed.

She seemed embarrassed by that fact, but at the same time showed no interest in dating boys in college. That left Megan wondering whether Emily was ace or gay, though Emily showed no apparent interest in women. After their breakfast, Megan drove them to campus and parked and said she'd show Emily around the campus.

As it turned out, Emily had previously made a brief visit to campus during an orientation day. Still, she had not seen very much of the school at that time. Megan showed her much of the place including the library and the student center / cafeteria. They grabbed a bite of lunch at the cafeteria, and while they were eating, Kevin, who Megan had dated briefly saw them and came over.

"Hey Meg, long time no see."

Hello, Kevin."

Kevin looked at Emily before speaking. "Showing your little brother around campus?"

"This is my cousin, Em." Emily had looked askance at Kevin, so Megan figured she might prefer that he not know Emily was female."

"Em? What's that short for?"

"It's short for Em. So why are you still around here, Kevin?"

"Couldn't find a decent job with a history degree, so I'm taking some business classes."

"Kind of tough to find a decent job regardless of your degree."

Kevin looked Emily up and down, and Emily kind of shrunk away from him. "So, Em, are you into boys or girls?"

Megan got peeved, and Emily blushed and tried to move away. "Well, Kevin, Em certainly isn't into you."

"Damn, Meg, when did you get to be such a bitch?"

"I'm the same as I've always been. When did you get to be such a jerk?"

"I guess I see why we didn't last."

"A bitch and a jerk aren't a good match."

"It was nice meeting you, Em. I may see you around, Megan."

"I hope not. Bye, Kevin."

Kevin walked away shaking his head and chuckling. Emily looked shocked at the whole exchange.

Emily looked to make sure Kevin was gone before looking at Megan. "You dated him?"

"Only a few times. I'm not really into guys who play his sort of games."

"I'm not sure why any woman would date him."

"He can be charming when he wants to be. He's just way too pushy for my taste."

"You called me Em."

"I figured if he knew you were named Emily, he'd really put the moves on you."

"Some of my friends at school called me Em. I didn't think you knew that."

"I didn't. It just made sense at the time."

"I just know that if I see Kevin, I should head in the other direction."

"I heard rumors that Kevin swung both ways. I guess those rumors were true."

"Well the boys and other girls can have him."

Megan laughed. "My thoughts exactly."

They finished their lunch then wrapped up their brief tour of the college. Megan showed Emily the gym where she regularly worked out. They had deals for college students since the school had crummy workout facilities. Even though Megan had graduated, she was still until her college membership and she got Emily signed up, telling them she was just starting, even though she had no student ID yet.

Emily looked uncomfortable with the idea of showering or changing in the women's locker room, but Megan pointed out that she could do both at the apartment and just work out at the gym. Emily seemed a little happier with that. The school had an auditorium where they regularly showed art house movies and second run movies for the students.

There was a park like area at one side of the campus, near Megan's apartment which in nice weather was a good place to relax between classes. Mercifully for Emily, though a few people looked at them, no one else tried hitting up on either of them. Megan took Emily also to the grocery store, where Emily bought a bunch of stuff and said she'd make dinner.

While they were in the grocery store, they ran into Yolanda, who had been a friend of Megan's in college, though they hadn't seen much of each other lately. Yolanda came up to them, greeted Megan, then hugged Megan and kissed her on the cheek. After that, she looked at Emily and scanned her up and down before speaking.

"Well, Meg, I see you have yourself a little boy toy."

"Em is just my cousin, nothing more."

"You never mentioned anything about cousins before."

"Our families were not close."

"But you seem to be escorting Em around."

"Em is starting college this semester."

Yolanda looked at Emily again. "Here?" Megan nodded. "Dorms or does he have his own place?"

"Em is staying with me for now. It helps me cover my rent and utilities."

"So you do have a cute little bed warmer."

Megan scowls. "Em is warming the sofa, not my bed."

Emily had edged partly behind Megan as the conversation continued. Emily looked quite embarrassed by the nature of the remarks. Yolanda tilted her head to get a better look at Emily,

"Is Em a boy toy or a girl toy?"

"Em is not any kind of toy."

Yolanda looked at Emily and smiled broadly. "Well, Em, if you want to be someone's toy, we can certainly fix you up."

Emily squeaked, then tried to lower her voice. "I need to focus on my studies for now."

Yolanda leaned forward and licked her lips. "College is a time to turn loose and try new things."

""I'll have Megan let you know if I change my mind."

Yolanda had a big smile. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Em."

"Nice meeting you."

"I should give a proper welcome to Megan's cousin, since you'll be around."

With that, Yolanda grabbed Emily and gave her a big hug, before kissing her on the cheek. Emily's eyes were wide and almost looked like they were bugging out. Yolanda held onto Emily for several more seconds and looked like she was about to kiss Emily on the lips, before giving a short sharp laugh and turning loose of her. Yolanda walked away, looking back with a smile and a swing to her hips.

Emily stood there with her mouth open and just amazed at what had happened. She turned to Megan and shook her head. Megan laughed and hugged Emily. Emily was a little stiff, then relaxed into Megan's hug. Megan turned loose of Emily, who continued to hold Megan for a few seconds longer, before letting go and looking quite ashamed.

"Boy, Megan, your friends are really something."

"Many of them are at the point where they've either found someone, or are looking for someone, or looking to hookup with someone."

"I knew college was going to be wilder, but I didn't expect this."

"There weren't people hooking up at your high school?"

"Yeah, but I stayed completely out of all that."

"Well, if you decide you want that sort of thing, you can find someone, whether you want a male or female."

Emily blushed and looked down. "I don't think I'm nearly ready for anything like that."

"Let's get home, before one of my friends tries to abduct you."

Emily squirmed as they walked to the register to pay for the food. Emily had planned on making chicken marsala so it included marsala wine. Since Emily was only 18, Megan had to show ID and buy the wine, but that was not a big deal. They checked out and took the groceries back to the apartment where Emily began to cook.

Emily surprised Megan by actually being able to cook decently, and before long the aroma of the chicken marsala was wafting through the place. Megan was a very basic cook, usually mostly prepared or semi-prepared things -- sauces and such. She was surprised to see Emily cooking without even using a menu. She clearly knew what she was doing, and used lots of fresh mushrooms and garlic cloves.

It took Emily less than an hour to prepare the whole meal, which she served over a bed of farfalle pasta. Frankly, if having Emily living there meant she might cook things like this, then Megan was more than happy, quite apart from sharing the apartment expenses. They ate dinner, and Megan had a bottle of wine, which she shared with Emily, even though Emily was under the drinking age.

They cleaned up after dinner, and since Emily had cooked, Megan did most of the cleanup. For the most part it meant rinsing things and putting them in the dish washer. Neither one drank much, but they each had a couple glasses of wine, between what they had with dinner, plus a little after dinner. They settled down to watch a romantic movie on TV.

Between the running around, the food, and the wine, both women were tired, and before too long Emily leaned her head against Megan and dozed off. Megan didn't want to disturb her, so she sat there and soon dropped off as well. Megan woke hours later and the TV and cable had timed out and shut off. Her arm was around Emily who had snuggled up to her.

Megan was trying to figure out how to extricate herself, when Emily woke up. She was embarrassed at having fallen asleep that way, and they each got up and Megan helped Emily get the futon ready to sleep on. When they had done that, Emily hugged Megan and thanked her for spending the day with her, which Megan had been happy to do.

As they hugged, for just a second, Megan thought Emily was going to kiss her, then Emily blushed, looked down and let go of Megan. Emily quickly laid down, facing away from Megan, and Megan stumbled into her bedroom. As she headed to bed, Megan wondered what Emily really wanted. Was Emily really interested in women?

That made Megan question her own feelings. Megan had strictly dated men, though in college, Megan had experimented a little and gotten intimate with another woman. They were both trying to learn something about themselves and their feelings, and neither one had wanted a real relationship with a woman. Was Megan now becoming emotionally and sexually attracted to Emily?