Cryptoid Roomie

I was the first flatmate in my section to move into the student residence. For two weeks, I waited in anticipation, wondering what my potential roommates were going to be like. Would they be slobs and completely private, like my previous flatmates? I hoped not; even an introvert needs their socializing.

One by one, new people came and unpacked their belongings in their chosen dorms. It took several days for me to meet them all, but I was able to get their names and faces etched in my mind. Lilac was born and raised here in Ireland from another county, and she’d bake cookies for all of us to try. Helen was from the US like me, and she quickly made other friends who would come over a couple of times a week. Marlene was from Paris, and I would talk to her just to hear her accent and fascinating family life.

There was one more roommate. Rick. I only saw him in one brief passing, but that was it. I didn’t know what he looked like, and I didn’t remember if he was Finnish or Swedish. Almost everyone met him once -- Helen missed the opportunity to see him. If two of us were in the commune kitchen, we’d talk about Rick and that we hadn’t seen him since early September. We’d wonder if he moved out shortly after moving in. But we’d hear someone coming out of their dorm at five in the morning, and it wasn’t any of us. I was the night owl of the bunch, but I sure wasn’t going in and out at five. So he was still here, and yet we never see him.

One night, it must have been October since the days were starting to lose sunlight early. All of the roommates and two of Helen’s friends were in the kitchen, celebrating Helen’s birthday. Various types of wine were drunk, Lilac’s fantastic raspberry-chocolate cake was divided and eaten, and we had a great conversation. We talked about politics at some point, which I learned is a staple to every conversation and will find its way in somehow. And then Marlene asked in her lilting accent:

“Is Rick still here?”

We made a group chat for the flat, and he did respond to Helen’s invitation to celebrate her birthday. It was a simple “Happy birthday, have fun” kind of response, but that was all. He didn’t make any promise to visit. We yet again wondered about him. He had to eat; he was human as far as we know, so we would have seen him in the kitchen at least once. But Rick never stepped foot in the room. Chances were he kept a minifridge in his dorm if he never came out to eat.

Marlene’s innocent question turned the conversation to that of Rick’s absence. While pouring a glass of her preferred white wine, Lilac commented, “We could go to his dorm and beg him to come out.”

It was getting late, and we were tipsy. Of course, we all thought it was a good idea. Carrying our glasses, we walked out of the kitchen and down the hall. We shushed each other between giggles as Helen’s guy friend bravely stood in front of Rick’s door. His knuckles rapped twice.

“Hey Rick, we know you’re in there, come on out,” Lilac coaxed.

“We’re not leaving until you do,” Marlene added.

We bursted into giggles as we waited. We must have been outside the door for ten minutes, and we listened for any movements coming from the inside. There was absolute silence. The longer time went on, the more bored we became. Eventually, Helen said, “Yeah, we should leave him alone, I guess.” We went back to the kitchen and resumed the party.

We still speculated on his whereabouts. Letters came in our mailbox addressed to him. We asked the reception if they ever saw this mysterious college student, but all three employees had no idea what we were talking about. One of them gently advised us to moderate our drinking. It wasn’t the drinking that was the issue. We weren’t stupid, or we wouldn’t be living at the residence built for college students. I was the creative writing major in the dorm of a med student and a political science major, and I definitely wasn’t dumb. Questionable, yes, but nothing more than that.

It was now December, and I was writing about my mysterious roommate. The idea that we might or might not have one extra roommate fascinated me, and I theorized as I wrote. It was getting late, and the clock tower struck when I realized it was almost five in the morning. The time when we’d hear him. Turning off the radio, I stood by my door and put my ear to it. I listened. Further down the hall, a door opened. That had to be Rick.

Excited that I was about to catch this cryptoid, I yanked the door opened. “Aha!” I yelled. “I got you now!”

I mentioned I was questionable, and my yelling at the empty hallway was proof. Confusion flooded me. I heard the door open. I could tell it came from the area where his dorm would be. So where was he?

Across my room, Helen’s door opened. Rubbing her eyes, she stared at me.

“Blake, are you okay?” she asked. “Who were you yelling at?”

My face heated up. Helen was studying furiously for her exams, and I felt bad for waking her up from her much-needed sleep. “It’s five o’clock” was all I could stammer.

She nodded in understanding. “You didn’t get him, did you?” she guessed. I shook my head, and she sighed. “Well, winter break’s coming up. Lilac and I are going back home, and we know you’re staying here for Christmas.“ Marlene went home shortly after Helen’s birthday since France was locking down and she wanted to be with her family before it was too late. “We haven’t heard from Rick if he was staying, but assuming he is, you’ll probably see him soon.”

“What if he goes home, too?” I suggested.

“Then you’ll be guarding an empty fort, I guess.” With a yawn, Helen said good night and went back to her dorm.

Staring down the hallway again, I reluctantly closed my door. Helen was definitely back to sleep, and Lilac never got up before eight. But I was still hearing someone walking in the hallway. The only noise I heard was quiet footsteps. If I closed my eyes, I could imagine those steps belonging to a creature who didn’t belong here.

My hand stayed on the doorknob, debating whether I should open my door again. If I did, my roommate could either be in the hallway, or I would be seeing emptiness again. And to be honest, I didn’t know which I would rather see.

Based on a real situation I was in. Roomie wasn't an actual cryptoid. As far as we know, anyway...