The Roommate

Finally, after two weeks of quarantine at the airport hotel, Shelley arrived in the dormitory in
her new school. The thunder outside was roaring like a ravenous lion, and buckets of rain were
pouring down and striking the rooftops vehemently. It was about ten-thirty in the morning, but the
dense clouds concealed the sun so completely that not a speck of light could be detected from
the sky, and it seemed more like midnight.
“Sorry to disturb,” she said, “but I’m your new roommate.”
“New roommate, huh? It certainly took a long time for you to get here,” the tall girl replied
as she turned around. The ickering room light illuminated a smirk on her face.
“Uh, yes. I would have come two weeks earlier, if it weren’t for my quarantine,” Shelley
answered.
The girl cocked her head and turned back to face her desk mirror again. “By the way,” she
said as she dabbed her cheeks with rouge, “I’m Polly, the smartest student here.”
“Nice to meet you,” Shelley replied as she looked about the room for an empty bed and
some drawers. Having found the spot, she started emptying her suitcase.
Shelley was fourteen years old, and she was arriving to the high school later than anyone
else. This was the rst time she ever left her parents for more than three days.
At twelve, she saw Polly leave her desk. “You goin’ to lunch?” Polly asked.
Shelley smiled at her and replied in the a rmative.
When Shelley, having taken food, sat down opposite to Polly, she noticed that her
roommate’s plate contained only meat. Red blood oozed from the rare beef next to the exuberant
honey-glazed chicken wings. The only plant-based food were the tiny specks of rosemary spice
scattered on the roasted lamb-chops.
As a vegetarian, Shelley felt dizzy looking at so much meat, so instead she concentrated
on her own plate and nished her food quickly. When she looked up, she was surprised to see
that Polly had vanished. Shelley glanced around the canteen and spotted Polly at the food
counter, lling her plate with a second serving of the same eshy meat. Her eyes met Shelley’s for
a brief second, but instead of walking towards her, she went to another table with some other
older girls.
At the same time, another group of younger girls stood up from their table and walked
towards the exit. Shelley noticed this and quickly took her empty plate to catch up with them.
“Hi!” She called out, “I’m Shelley, a new student here.”
They all turned around and almost simultaneously exclaimed, “Hello!” One said, “Nice to
meet you, Shelley. I’m Tina. We’re tenth grade students here, like you.”
Shelley gleamed at such a warm welcome from her new friends.
It was a busy weekend, and all the girls had some homework to do—including Shelley,
who had already been taking online classes. Moreover, the rainstorm was still raging outside. So,
the girls studied in the library for the better part of the afternoon, then went to the gym for an hour.
By ve-o’clock, the other girls had forgotten that Shelley only came that day, and they talked as if
they had known each other forever. They decided to rest for a while and meet up in the canteen at
a quarter to six.
When Shelley returned to her dorm, Polly was leaning comfortably on her chair, watching
cat videos. “Hi, Polly, I’m back,” Shelley said quietly. Hearing this, Polly took a glance at Shelley,
but said nothing. Half an hour passed, and Shelley surmised that Polly must be hungry too. She
walked over to Polly’s desk and asked, “Do you want coming to dinner with us?”
“It’s ‘Do you want to come’, not ‘Do you want coming,’” Polly replied without turning her
head, “You need to correct your grammar if you’re gonna get good grades like me. And I’m not
hungry now. I’ll eat later.”
“Okay!” Shelley exclaimed, and skipped cheerfully from the rainless hallway to the
canteen.
At dinner, Shelley and her friends played werewolf. When Tina was revealed to be the
werewolf, she burst out laughing. “Oh my gosh, Shelley, I had you completely fooled! Minnie
would have found me out easily, but I got her out of the game before she could say anything. You
really need to learn to be less credulous.”
What she said was true. Shelley had a rm belief that Tina was a villager, and even argued
for her by saying, “Everyone, Tina must be saying the truth now. I don’t think she would lie.” Now,
astonished, she clapped her hands for Tina and laughed with her.
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 Shelley still carried a great smile on her face when she came back to her room. Before she
had time to say “Hi,” Polly had already opened her blooming red lips and asked dispassionately,
“Can you complete this survey for me? I need it for my Biology report.”
In great spirits, Shelley speed-walked to Polly’s desk and said, “Happy to help!”
Shoving her computer into Shelley’s hands, Polly said, “Fill it out quickly. I’m a busy
person.”
Fortunately, the survey only had one question: “What’s your blood type?” Shelley ticked
the “AB negative” box in less than two seconds and handed the computer carefully back to Polly.
Impartially, Polly moved her nger to the “View survey results” button. As soon as she hit
it, however, her face lit up and she jumped from her chair with exhilaration. She ran rapidly—but
without noise—to the door, and locked it with the greatest dexterity. Simultaneously, her other
hand slipped up to the switch and turned o the lights.
Before Shelley could yelp out, Polly had sailed across the room and her hands were
already cupped over her mouth. Shelley wriggled her body frantically and screamed as loud as
she could, but no sound travelled out of Polly’s soundproof hands. The rain outside had stopped
a while ago, so that the night was completely devoid of sound.
When Shelley helplessly stopped struggling, Polly chuckled, breaking the silence. “Before
you go, let me just tell you one thing,” she said with her slanted eyes gazing at Shelley’s pale face.
“Your blood type is rare. Very rare. Not that you’re special or anything, since you can’t even get
your grammar right.”
Then, she slowly took out a syringe from her pocket and held it up towards the moon
outside the window. The needle ashed brightly like a burnished sword. She brought the needle to
the vein on Shelley’s wrist, deftly inserted it, and pushed the plunger.
Having completed this, she gently lowered Shelley to the oor, as a Michelin chef lowers a
slice of foie gras. Then, she walked soundlessly to her drawer and took out a jar of strawberry
jam, a bar of butter, a butter knife, and a culinary torch.
By now, Shelley’s heart had stopped. Polly patiently roasted her fresh skin with the torch
and spread the butter all over her with the knife. The butter gave o a delectable aroma. “A warm
heart gives o such a pleasant smell,” Polly murmured to herself.
After Shelley had been cooked, Polly licked the butter knife clean and proceeded to
spread the vibrant jam over her body.
With the last drop of jam, the meaty dish was at last ready for eating. Polly stooped down
to Shelley’s face and took a bite. She chewed the juicy meat contentedly.
With each and every bite, Polly would stretch her neck towards the moon and howl.
“Awoooo…” Finally, Shelley’s esh was all nished and only the glittering bones remained. Polly
smacked her lips and patted her stomach with satisfaction. “I told you you’re rare,” she said,
addressing the pile of bones, “even rarer than rare steak.”
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