My Roommate, the Actor

Sunlight peeked through my curtains as the morning greeted me, the chirps of nearby birds providing background noise. My eyes fluttered open as I woke up, mentally cursing myself that I’d woken up before my alarm clock. Another day, another dollar, another guaranteed migraine. I sighed as I got out of my bed, sliding on my slippers before leaving for the kitchen.

As I walked down the hall, I stopped by my roommate’s room to see if he was awake for the day or not. He was lying on his stomach in his own bed, only a sheet covering the bottom half of his body, and snoring that told me he was still sound asleep.

Benedict Cumberbatch. My best friend of several years and temporary roommate whenever he’s working on a movie in the states. I stood in the doorway as I took in his sleeping form, and while he was truly beautiful, my heart became heavier with each passing second. He’d never see me the same way, I thought. While he’d been my dearest friend for so long, he was also the one who unknowingly captured my heart.

With a soft sigh, I went downstairs and started on breakfast for the two of us. He’d usually get up with me and keep me company while I got ready for work, but he only just finished his scenes from his latest movie the day before, forcing him to come in close to midnight. So I contently worked on our breakfast, cooking in silence as my thoughts kept me company.

Once the food was fully cooked, I fixed our plates and set the table. I barely had a chance to pull out my chair before his alarm clock started blaring from his bedroom. Why would his alarm go off? He shouldn’t have anywhere to be today… right? Deciding to allow breakfast to cool off for a moment, I went back upstairs and saw Ben place his phone back on his nightstand, letting out a low groan in the process.

“Good morning, sleepy head,” I greeted, smiling.

“Ugh,” he grunted in response. “It’s too early for this shit.”

“I’m not the one who decided to set an alarm. That one’s on you, Mr. Cabbagepatch.” I chuckled as he groaned once again. “Now, since you set that alarm, I have to take it to mean that you wanted to see me before I went off to work. So, either you get out of that bed or--”

“Or what, Chloe?” He turned his head so one eye could peek out at me. “What’s the worst thing that could happen if I don’t get out of bed right now?”

“You’d miss out on a freshly cooked breakfast made by yours truly,” I smirked. “Which, by the way, is still sitting on our kitchen table, getting quite cold.”

With a stretch, Ben turned so he could face me, his head propped up on one hand. “Why, oh why, must you tempt me with your perfect cooking?” He turned onto his back so he could stretch again, revealing a tent formed from the sheet, and not from his legs.

“Why, oh why, must you be naked?” I covered my eyes as I felt my face get warmer. “You know what, don’t answer that. Just, take care of it before you come down.”

I heard him mutter something under his breath as I left his room. I closed the door behind me to make sure he had the privacy he needed then made my way back to the kitchen. Deciding to wait for Ben to join me, I sat at the table and just stared at the delicious looking breakfast I’d made. He finally found his way down to the table, dressed in a pair of blue jeans and a grey v-neck tank top. When he took in the scene, his head tilted. “You haven’t eaten yet?”

“I’ve been waiting for you,” I admitted. “I usually do, and I thought it would be rude to eat before my company joined me.”

“Chloe, you didn’t have to.” He sat down and smiled softly as he rested his hand over mine. “I appreciate it, though. Now, come on, let’s eat before all this delicious-looking food goes to waste.”

Once breakfast was finished, I was leaning over the kitchen sink, cleaning the dishes before anything had a chance to sit and become a hassle later. I placed a plate in the strainer next to me and continued on with washing. When I went to set a coffee mug in the same place, I was a bit confused when I saw the plate was missing.

“You don’t have to do everything around here, you know.”

I jumped slightly at the sound of his voice behind me, but I calmed quickly when I saw it was just Ben drying the plate with a clean towel. “You could’ve let me know you were there, you know.”

“Where’s the fun in that?” He chuckled. “Either way, I wanted to repay you in some way for breakfast. It was absolutely amazing, as always.”

“Oh hush,” I waved him off as I went back to cleaning the dishes. “You make dinner, so breakfast is the least I can do.”

He put the clean plate away, but before starting on the coffee mug, he surprised me by taking one of my soap covered hands in his, his other on my chin so I would look him in the eye.

“I mean it, Chloe. You’re an amazing cook, and I appreciate every meal you make.” Ben looked down at his watch and sighed softly. “I almost hate to say goodbye, but you have to leave for work soon.” With a smile, he gently nudged me out of the way of the sink, then took off his watch and plunged his hands into the soapy water. “Go get ready, love. I can finish up here.”

“Thank you.” I gave him a quick peck on the cheek and dashed up the stairs, drying my hands with the towel as I went. I was almost done getting into my uniform when I froze, realizing what I’d done. I kissed his cheek, I thought. Why did I do that? I mean, yeah, we’re friends, but… wait. He called me “love.” He’s never called me that before.

Once I was finished, I went back downstairs, everything passing by in slow motion. I’d made it to the kitchen when I felt a hand on my shoulder.

“Chloe? Is everything okay?”

I looked up at Ben, noticing his eyes were filled with concern. “I’m okay. I just think I might be coming down with something, but I’m okay. Will I see you when I get home?”

“It’s going to be a surprise, love.”

All throughout the day, all I heard was Ben’s echoing voice in my head, calling me “love.” Whenever I tried to think of anything else, my hand would come up to my lips and gently rub the sensitive flesh, remembering how prickly his cheek was from the new beard coming in. My heart tried to anticipate a scenario that would never happen - that he’d fallen for me as well, and the new pet name was all the proof I needed.

Like I said, it would never happen.

After a long day at work, I was finally able to come home. When I went inside, I found that I was the only one there. “I guess he had an interview or something,” I sighed to myself. “Oh well. More dinner for me, then.”

I set my purse down on the dining room table then stepped into the kitchen, already thinking about what to make for supper. I got out a steaming pot as well as a frying pan, and I’d barely set them on the counter when I heard a creak upstairs. Slowly, I made my way to the stairwell, holding the frying pan tight for defense.

“Hello? Who’s there?” I called out.

A creak from the stairwell was the response I got.

I brought the pan up to my shoulder, holding it as I would a baseball bat, and waited for the intruder to finish its descent to the first floor. A shadow peaked out from behind the wall and I swung for the bleachers, a loud, dull hum coming from the pan.

“Aaah! Fuck!”

My eyes widened, realizing who’s cry of pain that was. “Ben?”

I blinked a couple times, my eyes better adjusting to the scene in front of me. He was covering his head with his hands, cursing under his breath.

“Ben! Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” I dropped the pan and quickly took his hand, leading him back to the kitchen so I could get him an ice pack. “I thought you were an intruder. I thought I was alone. You can’t be scaring me like that!”

He didn’t say anything as I brought him the ice pack covered in a thin towel. I handed it to him and he instantly put it where I’d made contact with the now forgotten pan.

“I’m sorry, Ben,” I said as I sat on the counter. “I thought you were an intruder, I was afraid and I didn’t know what else to do. If I’d known it was you, I would’ve done things much differently.”

“I think I’m just lucky you didn’t grab the cast-iron pan you have, or else I’d be a heap on the floor,” he said with a soft chuckle. “I’m sorry for scaring you so badly. I was trying to go for a surprise, but I think it worked too well.”

I giggled, “Only a bit.” I watched as he pulled the pack away and felt up his head, making sure he wasn’t bleeding. “So, why are you in a suit?”

He looked down at himself, taking in the three piece suit he was wearing, and he chuckled to himself. “To be honest, I completely forgot that I put this on.”

“I think I hit you too hard, then,” I said, slightly more concerned.

“I put this on because I wanted to look nice when I asked you on a date.” His eyes sparkled as he looked up at me, something I’d never seen before. “Chloe, will you do me the honor of joining me for dinner tonight?”

My eyes widened to the size of saucers, threatening to pop out of my head. “What?”

Ben’s smile faltered a little before asking again. “Will you go on-on a date with me, Chloe?”

“Even though I almost knocked you out with a pan?” I asked, tears stinging at the corners of my eyes. “Even though for so long, I wanted nothing more than to hear you ask me that, and now I’m convinced you’re only asking because of potential brain damage?”

His eyes lit up a bit, “Chloe, I’ve wanted to ask you for a while, but I never had the nerve to bring myself to do it. It only became more difficult to hold myself back when I started staying here a couple months ago.”

“I always thought you’d only ever see me as a friend,” I said as I dried my tears with my sleeve. “I thought you’d go for someone else; some big shot actress that you wouldn’t be embarrassed to be in public with.”

Before I had a chance to process everything, I felt a gentle pair of lips on mine, afraid to press any harder. I blinked a couple times, my brain trying desperately to catch up, when I saw it was Ben, standing between my feet, a hand on each side of my face as he gave me a soft kiss. I could feel he was about to pull away, so I placed a hand on each of his hips, keeping him in place as I deepened our kiss.

After a moment, we pulled apart, a sweet smile on both our faces.

“I’ve been wanting to do that for a while,” he chuckled.

“Yes.”

He raised an eyebrow, his head slightly tilted. Then his eyes widened, as well as his smile. “Yes? You’re saying ‘yes’?”

I nodded, “I’m saying ‘yes.’ I’d love to join you for dinner tonight. Although, we probably shouldn’t go anywhere tonight, considering the welt you have on your head now.”

“Who said anything about going out?” He said as he placed his hands on his hips. “I was planning on giving you a dinner completely made by me.”

“I’d love that, Ben.”