And They Were Roommates

Chapter one

10 appointments for seeing an apartment. Jin has already been on 10 appointments but he had no luck so far. Either it was the price, the distance, the weird roommates or the very competitive potential renters. He has only one month left until classes start and he already had two mental breakdowns today.

"I guess I'll just have to sleep in a tent under a bridge. No biggie. Who needs the comfort of a home anyway. Totally overrated." he said to himself and tried to hold back tears.

Jin refreshed one of the many websites he used to look for an aparment as he noticed a new offer. 

'Looking for a new roommate. We're two guys in our 20s looking for someone who can pay rent on time. Haha. Since we live close to campus we preferable want to rent the room to a student. Details about the apartment and the room: XYZ... Feel free to contact us if you're interested!'

"Who writes an ad like that? Reminds me of that dude in his 50s who wanted feet pics as payment. When did they upload... today?! Fuck yeah! I don't care about the obvious red flags; I'll get that god damn room!'

Jin immediately messaged the guy. He tried his best to sound as polite and sweet as possible although that is far from reality. But that doesn't matter, he only has to play that role until he moved in and befriended the roommates. Jin sat in front of the Laptop for about 20 minutes while waiting for a response.

Deciding it would be better for his mental health, he closed the laptop and hoped into the shower while singing his favorite songs. After some time he returned to his desk and opened his laptop again. The latter was greeted with a notification saying he can come over tomorrow and have a look at the room if he would like to.

"Oh my god this is it. I don't have any expectations anymore as long as the room has a lock I can make it work. Sign me up!" Jin mumbled and replied: I would love to! Does tomorrow at 12pm work for you? Kind regards, Jin

The next day

There he was: standing in front of the big tower. Jin was anxious as he pressed the door bell. The student entered the building and walked over to the elevator where he pressed the 12th floor.

"Calm down. This is just an appointment; it's not like my future depends on it...for fucks sake I'm so stressed. Why did I choose to study in the biggest city in this country and also so many hours away from home." Jin thought to himself as he checked his appearance in the mirror.

He knocked on the door and stood up straight. A handsome man with a blond-brown-ish mullet opened the door and smiled at him. Jin smiled back but inside he was screaming: 

"Well, hello there. This feels unreal; the ad wasn't a scam?! At least something is going right in my life."

"So, Jin is it? Nice to meet you, I'm Tae. I am the one who you talked to via message."

"Nice to meet you too. I'm glad we could arrange this meeting."

"Of course. I know the semester starts soon so you must be very busy and stressed out but come inside first."

"Gladly"

Jin took off his shoes and walked inside. The entrance leads into the living room which is flooded by sunlight. Connected to the living room is the open kitchen with a cook island separating it from the living room. On the left is a bedroom with the door wide open.

"That's my room. It is the biggest in this apartment but it is always open for my lovely roomies and other people who plan to stay with me for some time."

Jin looked at Tae who winked at him before they continued with the tour of the apartment.

"Thanks for the invitation, I might take up the offer."

Jin grinned and followed the man. He was usually very flirty and he felt like Tae would match his energy very well. The next room they walked into was Jin's, right after showing him the bathroom. It was a rather small room but there was enough space to put a bed, a desk and a closet.

"What do you think? Do you like it?"

"I really do. It's very clean and spacious and affordable. If you don't mind me asking: how is the rent so cheap? This area is rather expensive especially for students."

"I know the owner of this building very well and he allowed us to stay here for cheap."

"That's very nice. My friends won't even share their drinks with me. By the way, you said 'us' but I haven't seen the other person yet. Are they busy?"

"Ah yes, well, Matthew is currently at work. He spends a lot of time there so he is barely at home and when he is you probably won't even notice him."

"Good for me. One hot roomie and one absent rommie; I'm loving this already."

"I see. Well, alright, where is the contract? I'm going to sign immediatly!"

Tae chuckled and signaled Jin to follow him into his room. He printed out the document and Jin signed it after reading through it. Deposit is 2 months rent, everything is included in the rent and he can't terminate the contract in the next year. After shaking Tae's hand Jin went home and cheered loudly. He was very happy he finally got what he desired.

"Wild student life here I come!" Jin says as he transfers the deposit while grinning.