My Skin-Hungry Roommate

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My stepbrother kicked me out because he couldn't handle my condition.

I have Skin Hunger. Severe touch starvation. Without physical contact, I feel like I'm burning alive.

So, I found a roommate. A hacker. Quiet, mysterious, and an incredible cook.

One night, while eating his tiramisu, glowing text floated across my vision like a Twitch chat:

[ Run, girl! He's a yandere! There are handcuffs under his pillow! ] [ He fantasizes about chaining you to his bed every night. ] [ You're still eating? Once you're full, it's his turn to feast. ]

That night, someone kissed me in the dark.

I shivered with excitement.

Before my mom and stepdad left for their world tour, they told my stepbrother, Ethan, to take care of me.

But my skin hunger was flaring up. Every night was torture.

To cope, I took scalding hot showers until my skin was raw and red.

Ethan hated it. He banged on the bathroom door. "Serena! How many showers are you gonna take? Are you that dirty?"

I turned off the tap, guilty. "I... I just don't feel well."

I craved touch. Desperately. The hot water was a poor substitute, but it was all I had.

"What's wrong with you?" Ethan's voice was low.

I wrapped a towel around myself and opened the door.

He stared at my flushed skin, frowning. "Are you trying to boil yourself alive?"

"The hot water... it helps," I whispered, my eyes misty.

"You're weird. Stop it." He looked away, but I saw the tips of his ears turn red.

As he turned to leave, I grabbed his arm.

"Ethan, wait. Can you..." I bit my lip.

Ethan stopped. He looked at my hand on his arm. "Can I what?"

"Can you... hug me?"

The silence stretched for thirty seconds.

"Serena," he finally said, pulling away. "I'm your brother. Have some boundaries."

"We're not related by blood!" I argued. "And we used to date! We hugged then!"

"Mom and Dad aren't home. Just one hug? Please? My skin hunger is killing me..."

"Skin hunger?" He scoffed. "Sounds like delusion to me."

He looked at me sternly. "Serena, we are never getting back together. Stop making up excuses."

I froze. I let go of his arm. "Okay. I get it."

Ethan and I dated in college.

After we broke up, my mom married his dad. We became legal siblings. Not biological, but close enough to make things awkward.

We never talked about our past.

A year ago, Ethan asked to get back together. I said no.

I like the possessive, obsessive type. Ethan was too normal.

I told him, "Ethan, I'm your sister. We can't."

Who knew he'd throw my own words back at me?

Ethan works at his dad's company now. My mom says he's close with his secretary, Chloe. Maybe that's why he won't touch me. Or maybe our past relationship traumatized him.

I went back into the bathroom and cranked the heat up.

Suddenly, the water went cold.

"One shower a day," Ethan yelled from outside. "Or I shut off the water main."

I couldn't sleep. My skin crawled.

Ethan's room was next door. He texted me: [ Can you stop? If you keep this up, move out. ]

I thought for a second. [ Fine. I'll move out tomorrow. ]

I found a two-bedroom apartment on Craigslist. First floor, garden access.

My roommate was a 25-year-old guy named Julian.

We lived together peacefully for two weeks. He was handsome, quiet, and cooked like a Michelin chef. He always made enough for two.

Until tonight.

I was eating his homemade tiramisu when text started floating in the air.

[ Run! He's a psycho! Handcuffs under the pillow! ] [ He wants to lock you up. ] [ You're eating his food? Girl, you ARE the food. ]

I peeked at Julian.

Is he really a yandere? A psycho obsessive type?

And he's gorgeous?

This is... exciting.

Ethan broke up with me because he thought I was a freak.

I used to tell him, "I wish you'd lock me up. Buy some handcuffs, okay?"

Ethan looked at me like I was a monster. "Serena, you need help."

Yes, I do.

Once, we got stuck in an elevator. Ethan was checking his watch, waiting for rescue. I was secretly hoping the rescue team would never come so we could die together in that metal box.

Ethan was terrified by my thoughts.

I broke up with him because he wasn't possessive enough.

Back to reality. I finished the tiramisu.

"I take long showers," I told Julian. "If you need to use the bathroom, go ahead."

"No rush," he said calmly. "You go first."

"Okay." I went to my room to get a towel.

As I closed the door, more text floated by.

[ Want to see what Julian is doing right now? Look through the crack. ]

I froze. I peeked through the gap in the door.

Julian was in the living room. He dipped his finger into the leftover cream on my plate.

He brought it to his lips and licked it off slowly.

Then he looked up. His eyes met mine through the crack.

Dark, intense, and hungry. Like a predator.

I slammed the door shut. My heart was pounding.

He watched me eat every time. He never ate with me.

Now I know why. He eats my leftovers.

So perverted. I love it.

I walked out with my towel and pajamas.

Julian was washing the plate in the sink. His back was straight, his demeanor cold and distant again. Like the cream-licking psycho never existed.

I went into the bathroom. The text appeared again.

[ You know why he waits for you to shower first? ] [ Because he likes to use your used... ] [ You have skin hunger. He has an addiction. ] [ Match made in heaven. ]

My face burned.

No way. That's too much.

Is there more?

[ He has hundreds of photos of you on his phone. ]

What? How?

[ He's a hacker. A genius. Your life is an open book to him. ] [ He hacked your phone ages ago. ] [ He knows your search history. ] [ Scary, right? You should run. ]

I was getting more excited by the second.

Scary? No. This is my dream.

My search history is basically: What does it feel like to date a yandere? How to cure skin hunger? Dreams about being chained up meaning? How to attract a possessive man?

If he hacked my phone, he knows exactly what I am.

[ Of course he knows. He baited you with that rental ad. ] [ He's been obsessed with you for years. ] [ He says your name in his sleep. ]

Wow.

I turned the shower heat up. My skin hunger was raging. Hot water wasn't enough anymore.

I wanted... Julian.

Handcuffs under the pillow? Even better.

I wondered what it would be like. A girl who needs touch and a man addicted to her.

[ You guys wouldn't leave the bedroom for a week. ] [ You're a fish out of water. He's the ocean. ] [ He'll never let you go thirsty. ]

The steam made me dizzy. "Mmm..." I moaned softly.

"Serena?" Julian's voice came from outside the door. Low and husky. "Do you need help?"