House 2 - I'm Back!

Cliff’s Tee and some dark jeans and brown boots

-x-

For most people, summer ending was the reason they had a curfew reinstated, the reason they were tortured and didn’t get to do as many fun things as they had before, but for Cliff it was the opposite. Over the summer, he and Cleo had stolen her mother’s car, drove up to Maine, only to find that Maine wasn’t what Cliff remembered it to be. The rest of the summer was spent in his room, grounded for his illegal actions. Cliff was no longer allowed to work towards his drivers’ license (which sucked, because driving to Maine totally got him comfortable behind the wheel). He hadn’t been able to go hiking like he’d wanted to do and his mother was absolutely petrified of what he’d done. But Cliff... didn’t find it in himself to care. It was all his mom’s fault. She never took him to Maine, no, she took him away from Maine. It was all her fault he didn’t feel welcome there anymore. It was her fault he didn’t feel welcome anywhere.

Cliff had moved in about three hours ago and had just gone to the dining hall to get some lunch. Noah wasn’t on campus yet, neither was Pippa, and neither was Cleo. Not that the latter mattered much anyway. He was banned from ever seeing her by her mother, because of what had happened, but it wasn’t like there was a restraining order out on him! So they could talk at school, even if they had to hide to do it.

Cliff had yet to meet his two housemates. He was glad he wouldn’t be stuck in the same house as any annoying girls this year. Especially girls like Logan. Just thinking about her brought a grimace to Cliff’s face. She had been so annoying, starting that stupid hashtag calling him a doof! And of course Campus Sweetheart liked it. And kept using it. So. Annoying. He’d changed significantly over the summer – he was a whopping four inches taller, constantly outgrowing his pants, and his hair was a little longer, so now at work he had to pull it back. But still, his social life was probably not going to change. Unfortunately.

All Cliff knew about his only housemate who’d moved in thus far was that he was a dancer and probably gay. The way the guy had spoken to him when he first entered the house he thought he was rooming with a girl again. But whatever his housemate was, he could do anything he wanted as long as he didn’t bother Cliff. Wasn’t Cliff’s business what the guy did in his spare time or who he dated, after all.

Cliff opened the door and walked in, shutting it behind him. He barely got a chance to hear the lock click before an annoyingly familiar voice spoke up and he whipped his head over, glaring at Logan sitting on his couch. Logan on his couch?! What was she doing here?!

Cliff’s eyebrow twitched as he looked at her. Oh no. Oh hell no.

”Breaking and entering is something that can get you expelled!” Cliff said, walking over to Logan. He glared at her camera but didn’t care. So what! She was the one who broke into his house. He could get her expelled for this! The thought almost made him smile. ”Why are you so obsessed with me?! Get a life!”

Cliff scowled when Logan snapped a photo of him. What the heck was she so obsessed with him for! This was probably going to go on that stupid hashtag, no doubt. He rose his eyebrows and folded his arms across his chest, gripping his skin tightly with his fingertips.

”You’re the one who devoted a whole hashtag to me! And it’s not my fault that I’m annoyed you showed up in my house when you don’t live here!” Please. She was saying he should ask how she was? He barked out a harsh laugh. ”Why would I do that when we aren’t friends? You’re the one who picks fights with me.”

He could tell her that she was the one picking fights all he wanted but then she said something that gave him pause – she was invited here. He scoffed. No she wasn’t! ”Inviting yourself over doesn’t count! You don’t have any friends anyway, who the heck would actually enjoy spending time with you! Go find some friends instead of trying to get on my nerves!”

Daemon’s outfit

-x-

Cliff would honestly take another month of house arrest than deal with this.

He couldn’t believe Logan had any ‘followers’ for Cliff the Doof or whatever it was. Was she five? How the hell did people retain interest for such a stupid joke? But then again, he and Noah constantly made farting jokes. So people were probably just amused by stupid things... when she said that he expected to be alone on campus he shook his head. ”No! Don’t put words in my mouth! I don’t care if I see other people but I don’t ever want to see your face, ever! It’s so annoying and ugly.”

She wasn’t answering the question. ”Get out of my house!” Cliff didn’t believe she had permission to be here. He took a step towards Logan and was prepared to take her stupid phone and throw it out the window. ”I don’t care about your stupid Twitter feed! I don’t use Twitter!”

There was a sound behind them and Cliff turned around to look at his housemate, Daemon, glancing between Logan and Cliff. He rose his brows and Cliff’s chest swelled and he stood up straight. ”Looks like we have an intruder in our house,” he said, expecting for Daemon to be on his side and to insist they kick Logan out.

Who the heck did Logan think she was? Cliff seriously doubted she had permission to be here. If anything she was just going to pretend to know one of his new housemates. But that wouldn’t be possible. Someone like Logan had no friends. No one would actually enjoy hanging out with someone as annoying, dumb, and boring as her! Especially not any boys who would be living with Cliff. He knew Noah right off the bat as being his housemate so that left two potential ‘friends’. And this other guy, Daemon who Cliff had only met in passing, did not seem like the type to get along with Logan. He was popular, for heck’s sake!

Her comment about his paper made his eyebrow twitch. ”It would have turned out better had you not stolen it before I could have revised it!” he snapped. He wanted to put more work into it but all he got out of it was a measly C. He could have gotten at least a B if he had more time! When she asked why he cared he rolled his eyes. ”Because you’re in my house!”

Daemon entered as Logan insulted Cliff again for not greeting her – like he would just let her be when she obviously didn’t belong – and Cliff gave the other guy an exasperated look. Daemon rose his brows and adjusted his glasses, looking between Cliff and Logan.

Of course he knew why Logan was here and when she said cave, that made him nod his head slightly. Cliff took the motion as a sign of frustration.

”Uh,” He said, looking from Logan to Cliff. Cliff stared at Logan as though he didn’t understand what she’d just said (and he didn’t). Cliff suddenly looked towards Daemon. ”Do you know her?!”

”No. I was thinkin’ she was your friend.” Daemon said, and when Cliff looked away from him, he grinned and winked at Logan. Cliff smirked confidently.

”See? You don’t have any friends in this house! Now get out!”

Cliff rolled his eyes. As though he had nothing better to do? Logan was the one who broke into his house! And obviously his housemate wasn’t cool with this either! And what was she saying, if someone was looking for her? Who the heck would be looking for her! Maybe some guy who wanted to sleep with her or something. Didn’t she sleep around a lot? Cliff wouldn’t be surprised. But if any of his housemates were the type to actually sleep with Logan he thought he would vomit. So gross!

”I don’t know what her deal is,” Cliff said to Daemon, acting as though he was superior as Logan moved to leave, ”She was probably hoping you’d play along and go make out with her later or something.”

”Like a hooker?” Daemon asked, brows raised. Cliff shrugged and moved to go down the hall. Daemon glanced at Logan, nudged his head in Cliff’s direction, and made a ridiculous face. Once that was done he walked down the hall as well and grabbed Logan’s phone, pulling up the camera.

”Anyway as an apology I’ll get you a free ice cream if you come by my store in the mall. Oh. I’m Cliff by the way, you are?”

”Daemon.” Daemon said, pretending to be engrossed in his phone. It didn’t perturb Cliff as he went to open the door – only to find it jammed.

”What the heck?!”

”It’s not opening?” Daemon asked, and Cliff grumbled something about stupid Logan probably doing something and tried again. Daemon took a step closer and glanced at the lock. ”Nah, I think’s just jammed. Shove somethin’ in there and it should open up for ya.”

Cliff frowned slightly, but obliged and grabbed a card from his wallet and began to fiddle with the door, grumbling something as he struggled. Daemon slowly backed away and rose the camera up and started capturing video, turning his head to look to see if Logan had actually left or if she stuck around to watch the show.

”I guess that makes sense.” Cliff muttered to himself and continued to jam his card in the door. Why wasn’t it working... what had Logan done to it? Ugh, probably something lame. ”Why the heck’s she going into my room for anyway?” Cliff grumbled, not expecting an answer from Daemon. And he didn’t receive one. Instead Daemon returned the grin Logan sent over and then focused the camera by tapping the screen just as the door finally sprung open.

Cliff only had a second to be relieved before some loud banging echoed. For a second, Cliff thought that Logan had jammed some kind of a desk there and he’d knocked it over when he opened the door, but instead it was a different thing being knocked over – Cliff watched in confusion as a carboard cutout of himself (where the heck did Logan even get that thing?) slammed down onto a cardboard cutout of someone else. When that annoying little kid voice echoed and he got a good look at Cleo’s face on the cutout, Cliff’s nostrils flared. This was – this – he – he didn’t understand! This was not only annoying, but kind of stung. The reminder of the party last year, when he’d knocked right into Cleo, stung. He remembered the shock in Cleo’s face when that had happened. But they had laughed it off. But then, over the summer, Cliff realized that he wasn’t what Cleo wanted. He’d never be what Cleo wanted. Especially now that they were banned from seeing each other, he had no chance of changing that. As Logan’s high pitched voice echoed around his room, emotions swirled across Cliff’s face. It started out as annoyance, soon blended with hurt, and finally it dissipated into anger.

Cliff was about to whirl around and go track down Logan and punch her or something when he heard loud, obnoxious laughter. He turned to see Daemon with the phone in his hands, still recording, bent over in hysterics so hard he couldn’t even focus the camera.

”I got his face, I got his face!” Daemon said, turning around to look at Logan. Cliff followed Daemon’s eyes to Logan, who he was shocked was still here. He stared, wide eyed, before he clenched his fists.

”What the hell is this?!” Cliff demanded. Daemon got a nice view of Cliff’s shocked and betrayed face when he realized Daemon had let Logan in in the first place. Cliff grit his teeth, before he burst out, ”what the hell is this?!”

Cliff couldn’t believe this situation he was in. Of all the people to be housemates with, he had to be paired with Logan’s one and only friend! And apparently a friend who liked to work with her to make people miserable. Did Logan seriously not have a life? Cliff grit his teeth together and watched as the duo played the video back.

Maybe most people would have yelled and lunged for the camera. Honestly, Cliff had a fleeting thought of grabbing the phone right out of their hands and shattering it underneath his foot. It wasn’t that he was scared of repercussions that he didn’t do that, though. Instead he stood there with his anger bubbling in his chest. He listened to Logan exclaim that this was some of their best work and his gaze grew cold. He stayed in silence with his arms folded across his chest as he stared at the laughing duo. He just stared.

The silence from Cliff was unexpected and Daemon – once he finished playing back the video – looked over at Cliff to see why he had ceased screaming. The sight he was greeted with was Cliff’s glare and stiff jaw. His arm had moved down to grab the cardboard cutout of himself. He had his foot pressed against his cardboard cutout’s chest. He wasn’t looking at Daemon – instead, he was focused on Logan.

”Get. Out.” He said, pressing his foot down to snap the cardboard piece in half. It worked and the cardboard cutout of himself caved. He grabbed the top of his cardboard head, and used his strength to rip the cardboard right off. Once that was successful, he again stomped on the cardboard and put a dent right through where his heart would be. Stupid Logan! Stupid Daemon, stupid – everything! And here he thought he might actually have an improved year.

But no. The universe hated him.

”Now,” he hissed, which got Daemon more interested as he quickly sent the video in a text message to his number on Logan’s phone (to ensure Cliff couldn’t get his hands on the phone and delete it). He glanced over at Logan, with raised eyebrows and a half-smirk.