My Girlfriend Is Dating My Roommate

My girlfriend of three years asked me a question during our video call.

Your roommate is so handsome. Is he seeing anyone?

Seeing that look in her eyesDthe look of a predator spotting preyDmy heart skipped a beat.

Before we got together, she was known for being a player.

Over the years, she had settled down quite a bit.

At most, she would glance at someone she found interesting, but she never acted on it.

The last time I saw that unmistakable, eager gleam in her eyes was three years ago, when she was chasing me.

I stood downstairs at my dorm, seeing Selina and Chase kissing passionately.

They were in their own world, completely ignoring the students passing by who were staring at them.

I felt like I had been struck by lightning, frozen in place.

My girlfriend, Selina, had told me she loved me just two hours ago on text, promising to bring me snacks later that evening.

Now, she was kissing my roommate right outside my building.

A memory from two weeks ago hit me hard.

We were on a video call, and Chase had walked into the frame for a split second.

I had seen the intense interest in her eyes.

Chase was a heartthrob, tall and athletic, and he was popular on campus.

I had always known Selina was restless, so I did my best to keep them apart.

That day, when she asked me if Chase had a girlfriend, a wave of panic washed over me.

Trying to hide my anxiety, I lied to her.

"Him? Of course he has a girlfriend. She is beautiful, and they are very much in love."

"Oh, I see," she said, sounding disappointed, but then her competitive streak kicked in. "So, tell me, is his girlfriend prettier than me?"

I didn't answer. Instead, I frowned, feeling annoyed. "Selina, what do you mean? You aren't interested in him, are you?"

She didn't push it, just waved it off with a laugh.

"Relax, Noah. You are overthinking it. I was just curious."

"Besides, I have you. Why would I ever be interested in someone else?"

Even though she didn't bring him up again, I felt an inexplicable sense of dread.

The following days were agonizing. I couldn't tell if I was being paranoid.

She would disappear for hours at a time.

Whenever I asked, she claimed she was busy with her thesis and didn't have time for her phone.

My roommate was also coming and going at strange hours.

Today, everything finally clicked into place.

I stared at them, my heart aching so badly I could barely breathe.

"Selina, when are you going to give me a title?"

After they broke the kiss, I heard Chase ask.

Selina leaned in and kissed him again before saying, "Don't worry. As soon as I break up with Noah, I will go public with you."

"So when is that happening? I get so jealous when I see you stuck with him, pretending to care about his calls."

I gripped the bark of a nearby tree, my face pale, waiting to hear her answer.

Selina sounded indifferent. "Soon. Do you think I enjoy dealing with him?"

"He is just so clingy. I have been fed up with him for years. If I don't find the right moment, he will never stop pestering me."

Chase hugged her, his voice sounding offended.

"So what is the right moment? Just tell him you like someone else, and be done with it."

Selina reassured him, "Be patient. I have been acting cold toward him these past few days. Knowing him, he should be at his breaking point by now."

I stood there, dazed, for a long time after hearing that.

I touched my face, realizing I was crying without even knowing it.

Only when they said their goodbyes and went their separate ways did I emerge from behind the tree.

I walked back to my dorm.

As soon as I entered, Chase leaned back in his chair and greeted me.

"You are back. I ran into your girlfriend downstairs. She asked me to give this to you."

He tossed a bag at me.

I caught it and realized it was a bag of sour cherry gummies.

I squeezed the bag and asked, acting like it was no big deal.

"My girlfriend? How did you know she was my girlfriend?"

Chase paused, then replied carelessly.

"Don't you post photos of her on social media all the time? She is gorgeous. Hard to miss."

My grip on the bag tightened.

I didn't have a bad relationship with Chase, and we used to hang out for meals sometimes. I never expected him to be so cold-blooded about being the man to cuckold me.

He didn't intend to explain any further, perhaps fearing he would say too much.

Or maybe, he was waiting for me to find out the truth, since he was clearly eager to replace me.

He ignored me and put his headphones on, returning to his game.

I cleaned up and got into bed, checking my phone to see a message from Selina that had finally arrived.

"Bought you some snacks. Ran into your roommate, so I had him pass them to you. Did you get them? How do they taste?"

Reading those words, knowing what I had just seen, my heart stung with a sharp, suffocating pain.

Why? Why could they both act like nothing had happened?

I suppressed my anger and typed a reply.

"You never used to send things through others."

After a while, she replied, "I was just thinking of you."

"Thinking of me, but you didn't tell me you were here, choosing to hand it to my roommate instead?"

She went silent for a long time.

At this point, I expected her to confess.

Instead, she got annoyed. "Why are you being so difficult today? I won't buy you anything ever again!"

She stopped explaining and went to sleep.

I didn't chase after her to soothe her like I used to.

I put on my headphones and started listening to music.

I tore open the bag of gummies and ate one.

It tasted bitter.

"The secret crush is like a sour candy; I am hooked on the bitterness and the fleeting sweetness..."

The lyrics played, and I felt a lump in my throat.

Three years ago, freshman year, we met at a tea shop.

She was chatting with friends, and when she noticed me, she looked like she had found something fun to do.

Her gaze was so bright, it made me feel uncomfortable.

When I finished my tea and turned to leave, she blocked my path.

"Hey, handsome, are you seeing anyone?"

I shook my head, stunned.

She laughed, a bright, bold sound that blinded me.

She gestured at the tea in my hand. "My mistake! I thought you bought it for your girlfriend. This flavor is my favorite; we have such similar tastes."

I smiled shyly without responding, just handed my tea to her.

From that day on, she started pursuing me in a very public way.

She was very proactive. Even though we went to different schools, she would find excuses to come see me.

I fell for her quickly.

She always thought it was her chasing me.

But she didn't know that I had been secretly in love with her for three years back in high school.

I even applied to a university in the same city just to be near her.

We were in different classes, and she likely had no memory of me.

She was lively, always surrounded by guys.

After high school graduation, she changed boyfriends every few days.

To protect myself from getting hurt, I kept my feelings hidden, content to follow her shadow from afar.

I never imagined she would notice me, let alone pursue me.

The surprise had blinded me, and within days, I was all in.

Later, she would often show interest in other men, but she never crossed the line while I was around.

I had been jealous countless times, and after a few arguments, she seemed to tone it down.

I had thought I was the one who could make her change.

In the end, it was all just an illusion.

A total waste.

The next day, I asked Selina to meet.

We met at a BBQ place. She sat across from me, looking clearly distracted.

At first, neither of us spoke, until she grew impatient. I finally asked my first question.

"Selina, what do you think of my roommate?"

She looked awkward for a second before regaining her composure.

"Why are you bringing him up again? Is this about him giving you those snacks last night?"

I watched her silently, not answering.

"Alright, fine," she snapped, sounding annoyed.

"Why are you so sensitive? I admit he is good-looking, but I am not shallow. Since I am with you, I wouldn't do anything inappropriate. We have been together for three years; why don't you trust me?"

Seeing her say that without blinking, even managing to turn the blame back on me, made me realize something.

The relationship I had worked so hard to preserve for three years was nothing but a joke.

Selina kept fidgeting with her phone. After eating almost nothing, she made an excuse to leave.

I followed her from a distance and soon saw Chase.

She ran into his arms, looking overjoyed.

I stayed hidden in the crowd as I moved closer.

"Noah keeps doubting everything. It is so annoying."

"He is always hovering around me, never giving me any personal space."

Chase asked, "Then why are you still with him after three years?"

Selina curled her lip. "There isn't anyone else around better-looking than him, so I just settled for now."

"But now I have you. The moment he mentions breaking up, I will never look back. He is boring and dull. Being with you is so much more fun."

"Oh, right, you didn't know this, did you? I didn't even like him that much when I first pursued him."

"Back in high school, I realized he had a crush on me. I was so surprised when he followed me to this city for college! I was just bored that day at the tea shop, so I pursued him on a whim. Who knew he would be so easy to get? Haha..."

Hearing that felt like being doused in icy water.

I felt cold all over.

So these three years really were a joke...

No, I had been a joke since high school.

I watched them laughing as they walked into a hotel, and they didn't come out for a long time.

I leaned against the wall and called Selina.

The first call didn't go through.

Neither did the second.

The third, the fourth...

I kept calling until she answered, her voice sounding breathless and husky.

"Noah! Are you insane?! Why are you calling me so many times?!"

Listening to the lingering desire in her voice, my heart felt like it had been hollowed out, but I couldn't feel the pain anymore.

"What are you doing, Selina?"

"I," she paused, "was working on my thesis, and I was trying to rest."

I smiled and shook my head, whispering, "Selina, let's break up."

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