A TROUBLED ROOMMATE Page #3

• Mystery
• Short story
• Fiction

								


No longer feeling comfortable in the apartment with Chandra, Stacie was not in a hurry to get home on Friday after work. She hung around downtown, checking out new sneakers on display that were “JUST IN.”  Then she checks out a new style of denim slacks that fit snug like tights but not buying them. A stop was made in a fast-food restaurant to buy chicken nuggets and fries with a sprite before getting on the bus. Slowly entering the apartment, the last person she expects to see on a Friday evening is Chandra sitting on the sofa, with the TV on, but not watching it, her head down, and sniffling could be heard. Quickly, putting her food  down and rushing over to Chandra, Stacie ask,
“What’s wrong Chandra? Are you sick? 
“No, I’ll be alright. I just need some time.”
“Ok,” 
Stacie grabs her food and went in the kitchen. But when she looks back and see Chandra crying uncontrollably with both hands covering her face, she rushes back in the living room and sits next to her. 
“Something is definitely wrong with you Chandra. What is it? And don’t try to keep it from me.”
  Blowing her nose Chandra sat up and began to speak.
“I’m in trouble.”
Stacie instantly thought about the gun. Did Chandra shoot somebody?
“What kind of trouble?” she ask.
“It’s Troy.”
“What did he do? Did he hurt you?”
“No, but he threaten me.”
Stacie did not let on to Chandra that she had seen Troy gripping her tight.
“Why did he threaten you?” 
After ringing her hands Chandra said,
“Troy shot somebody.”
“Oh no!” Stacie said, covering her mouth in disbelief. 
Chandra continued to speak.
 “After we went to dinner and a movie one night, he  picked that time to tell me what he had done. I was in shocked, and tried to leave, but he stopped me. When I asked him, was it in self- defense?” 
 He said, ‘No, the guy stole money from him, and he  tracked his ass down and shot him.’  
“I told him I don’t wanna know nothing about none of this.” 
 	He said, ‘ I’m telling you cause you’re gonna be my alibi if the police come snooping around.’    	
 “Then I said to him, I don’t wanna do this.”    
He said, ‘ You don’t have a choice.’  
“He got real close up on me, gripping my arm tight.” 
He said, ‘If you tell anybody, I’ll find you and make you pay.’ 
“I won’t tell anybody I promised him.” 
“He said, pointing his finger at me,” 
‘Just remember, you can’t  get away from me.’ 
 “After he told me the man’s name and I saw his picture on the news I couldn’t take it. I 
tried not answering the phone, but he was calling me every five minutes and if I didn’t pick up, he texted threatening to pay me a visit if I don’t pick up. I texted him back and said, “But I didn’t do this you did.“
Stacie remembers the conversation she overheard when Chandra said,
 “No, I didn’t say nothing to Stacie about it.”
Turning to Chandra she said,
 “Why didn’t you tell me about this? We could’ve gone to the police together. You didn’t have to bear this alone.”
“I couldn’t tell you Stacie. He said if I told you he might have to hurt you and me to keep 
us quiet. I tried to get rid of him, but he told me if I didn’t show up to meet him, he threaten to show up at my apartment. I didn’t want him showing up here so whenever he called and threaten me, I went to meet him. I bought a gun to protect us from him. But I didn’t wanna tell you because I knew it would scare you. That’s why the other night when you came out of your room to get a drink of water, I overreacted cause I didn’t know who was in the hallway. I thought Troy might’ve broken into our apartment.”
“So that’s what that was about,” Stacie said. “You sure scared me when that door flew 
open so strongly. I thought you were mad at me.”
“No, the only person I ‘m mad at is Troy.” 
 “That explains why you were coming home every night watching the news.”
“Yeah, I thought the police might find Troy and then they would be looking for me next.” 

 Stacie now understood why Chandra was keeping track of all the sirens coming through  the area and why she kept looking out the window even when a siren was not passing by. She  feared that Troy might be hanging around the apartment to make sure his secret is kept. Stacie did not let on to Chandra that she had been snooping around in her room and found the gun. But relief came over her to find out that Chandra is still that good person she met almost three years ago. Now she understood why Chandra bought a gun. 
 
As weeks went by Chandra was barely eating anything. This thing with Troy was really bringing her down. She started losing weight and called in sick from time to time. One evening Stacie sat Chandra down after making homemade chicken soup for her upset stomach and tries to convince her to go to the police.
“I can’t!” Chandra said shaking her head vigorously. ”I just can’t do it!”
“Chandra you can’t go on like this. You have to go to the police. Troy has taken over your life. He’s not suffering. You are. Look at you, you don’t look well. If this keeps up, you might have to see a doctor.
“I don’t need to see a doctor,” Chandra said. “I just wish I could be free of Troy. I 
thought he was a nice guy at first. I just want this to be over,” she said crying.
“If you don’t do something about this, it will consume you. You’ll continue to be
 miserable, and your parents will soon have to be notified.”
“No! shouts Chandra. My parents can never know about this.”
“They will know if you’re in the hospital cause the news will get back to them.”
Giving in to Stacie, Chandra shouts with strong lungs,
“Alright! alright! I’ll go to the police. I can’t let Troy continue to hold me hostage this way. 
It’s killing me.” 
“Now you’re talking. If you don’t wanna go outside, we can call an officer and have him 
come to our apartment.”
“That’s how I wanna handle it,” Chandra said feeling some relief.
 	“It gives me chills just to think about how Troy could’ve hurt you and me both,” Stacie said.
Chandra shakes her head in agreement. 
“I know, I know,” 
 
In the meantime, Chandra keeps Troy away from the apartment by telling him she’s sick. But this didn’t stop him from calling her. But with interruptions of coughing every few minutes  she finally convinces him to hang up, but not before threatening her first. 
 “You better be telling me the truth, cause if you’ ain’t  I’ll be paying you and Stacie a little visit.”  
Chandra cringes with fear for herself and Stacie.

 An officer came by two days later and took a report which made Stacie and Chandra feel a little safer. The officer got back with Chandra a week later. He said the information she gave him checked out and that they would be arresting Troy as soon as possible. The officer cleared Chandra of any wrongdoing and thanked her for coming forward and doing her civic duty. The officer said the department had been looking for the killer of the 28-year-old Black male for weeks and without her help they couldn’t have identified Troy.

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