You chewed on your nail, desperately trying not to scroll through your phone. Tyler was meeting you for lunch to discuss the upcoming school year and he happened to be late, as per usual.

You had fallen into a bit of a predicament, realizing that it wasn't really an option to live in residence for your second year but it also wasn't ideal to move home. Though more of your classes would be completed online, your parents hadn't seemed too appealing in recent months.

Most student housing in the downtown core was already rented out or unbelievably overpriced, and you were desperate to find someone to live with that wouldn't be totally unbearable or unapologetically creepy. You planned on asking Tyler to be that person for you, but he made it clear that he was moving in with his boyfriend. Options were rapidly narrowing.

The sound of movement across from you snapped you out of your daydream, causing you to blink a few times before looking up at your best friend.

"This seat taken?" he raised an eyebrow, already sliding into the chair.

"Actually, yeah," you smirked, sitting up a little straighter.

"By whom?" he drew the words out, questioning you in an old-fashioned tone.

"The ghost of my formerly happy self," you shot back, your eyes scanning the room for your server.

"Oh, please," he waved you off, opening his menu to scan its items, "What absolute travesty has taken over your entire life at this point in time?" he questioned. He knew you too well.

"If you must know," you began, eyeing him over your menu as you inspected the contents of the pasta dish you planned on ordering. "I'm homeless."

"What?" he shot back, forehead crinkling with confusion. "If you need a place to stay-" he began.

"Shh, stop right there, good sir," you smiled, "I need help finding a roommate. You have a lot of friends, right?"

"Like, a sex roommate? It's true, I do have a lot of hot friends," he teased, convinced you were back to your sexually frustrated self.

"No, I'm serious," you whacked him with the paper menu, "I couldn't find a student house and I refuse to move home. I need to find something and I need to find it fast," you spoke. "I can only handle so much of my mother."

"I concur," he nodded, closing his menu and folding his hands on top of it. "Now that I think of it, there actually is someone I have in mind. What exactly are you looking for? Do you care who it is, really?" he asked.

The waitress walked up, stealing both of your attention as she took your order for drinks.

"I think we're ready," you added, telling her what you wanted and handing her your menu before she retreated to the kitchen.

"I was asking because I know a guy," Tyler spoke, looking into your eyes with sincerity. "I honestly think it would work. He's never home, but when he is, he absolutely hates being by himself. He's looking for someone to just live alongside so he doesn't get all up in his thoughts, you know?"

"Oh?" you smiled, holding onto the glimmer of hope that maybe you'd be able to find a place.

"It's decent commuting distance for you and he's gone a lot. You know, on business," he muttered, eyeing your server as she emerged with your drinks.

"Is he like, old?" you asked, unsure of what being away 'on business' meant at this age.

"Oh, no. He's our age. Just uh, he travels. But it's a really nice place, and I'm sure he wouldn't charge you through the nose. You'd be helping him out," Tyler reassured.

"When's he need me?" you questioned, hoping it would be soon.

"Whenever you're ready," he nodded, slurping his Pepsi audibly.

"And he won't, like, kill me in my sleep?" you spoke carefully, wondering why on earth this sounded so perfect.

"Oh my god, no. He wouldn't hurt a fly. Want me to text him?" Tyler asked, fishing his phone out of his jeans.

"Please," you agreed, leaning back in your chair and crossing your arms over your chest.

Tyler typed out a message and put his phone on the table, changing the topic when your food arrived. It wasn't until you were shovelling your last bite of pasta into your mouth that his phone buzzed, a text notification popping up on his screen.

"You down to meet him in a few hours?" Tyler mumbled, his mouth full of chicken parmesan.

"As long as I can hang out at your house until I have to go," you giggled, finishing up with your plate and pushing it to the side.

"Okay, it's set. You can meet him at the Starbucks by me around seven," he grinned, putting his phone back on the table face-down. "We can watch movies until then?"

"Mhmm," you nodded, taking a final sip of your water before speaking again, "Are you gonna come with me? To meet him?"

"Me? Oh, no," he grinned wider, "I think you'll thank me for this later."

Seven o'clock approached rapidly, leading you to freshen yourself up in Tyler's washroom before heading out. You blotted your face with some powder and ran your fingers through your loose curls. Just in case, you pulled your emergency toothbrush out of your purse and cleaned your mouth, earning a giggle from Tyler, who stood in the doorway.

"Nervous?" he asked, leaning against the frame.

"Yeah, actually," you responded, leaning toward the mirror as you slathered your lips in chapstick. "I know I shouldn't be, it's just a roommate. But this feels so formal."

"Relax, it'll be fine. Just be charming yet friendly, and it'll go well. Pretty sure he's already picked you, anyway," he reassured.

"Why?" you asked, wondering why these assumptions had been made.

"No one else really gets it," Tyler mumbled, "they've always got an issue with his, uh, his schedule."

"Oh my God, Tyler," you rolled your eyes, "Who the fuck is this guy? Why are you making this so weird?"

"It's just," he paused, clearly struggling to form a sentence. "It'll be fine. Don't worry about it. Just remember that he's totally normal and needs a roommate, and he's harmless. You'll be fine."

Feeling a bit uneasy, you tousled your locks one last time before flicking the bathroom light off and following Tyler to the front door.

"Wish me luck," you spoke unconvincingly, slipping into your light jacket and twirling your keys on your finger.

"You won't need it," he said with a tight-lipped smile, opening the door and shooing you out of his house with a giggle.

"Alright, alright! I'm going!" you laughed, skipping down the steps and hitting unlock on your key fob.

"Let me know," he called from the doorway, earning a nod from you as you climbed into the driver's seat of your truck and fired up the engine.

You creeped out of the driveway, turning on the radio and flipping through the stations. It was only a two-minute drive, but you were relieved to find 'Stitches' approaching its bridge on your favourite station. You sang along, bopping your head as you scanned the street for a spot, enjoying the last minute or so of the song before turning it down to concentrate. You pulled off to the side of the road, shifted into park and turned the truck off. Your phone buzzed.

An unknown number was displayed across your screen, indicating that you had a new message.

Hi, Tyler gave me your number! I'll be at Starbucks in five it said, calming your nerves to know that you'd arrived first.

Crossing the street, you eyed a small dark booth in the corner through the window. After receiving your drink, you took a seat and pulled out your phone to update Tyler on the situation.

"Uh, hi," spoke a shaky voice, diverting your attention from your phone and causing you to look up. "I think I'm your new roommate."

Holy fuck. That's why Tyler was so weird. He was Shawn Mendes, and he was your new roommate. Shawn Mendes was your new fucking roommate.

"H-hi," you stumbled over your words, holding out a hand for him to shake as he slid onto the bench facing you.

He was even more beautiful in person. What the actual fuck? You were just blasting one of his songs in your car and now he was sitting in front of you, confirming that you were going to move in with him.

"I'm gonna go grab a coffee and then join you, I'll be right back," he smiled, hoping out of his seat and heading to the counter. Dear lord.

You went into your conversation with Tyler and sent him a keysmash, to which he replied with multiple laughing emojis. Fucker.

Looking over at Shawn, a blush crept up your cheeks as your eyes met his. He was staring. You felt your heart rate speed up, freaking out a little as he began walking over to you, again. He was charming and gorgeous and huge.

"Okay, we can talk now," he grinned widely, "I'm Shawn."

You introduced yourself, looking into his eyes as they lit up at the mention of your name.

"Well, it's nice to finally meet you. You're, uh, in need of a roommate?" he asked, tilting his head back as he sipped his coffee.

"Uh, yeah. I'm a student and I don't want to move home, even though most of my classes are online. So I'm home a lot, but I keep to myself, I promise," you said quietly, inspecting his face for a reaction. He maintained a tight-lipped smile, leaving you to look at the stubble on his chin and the curve of his lips, accompanied by two very rosy cheeks.

"Oh, trust me, that won't be a problem," he smiled, straightening out the sugar packets on the table.

"Let me guess. You're never home?" you asked, raising an eyebrow in his direction.

"Not even that. I'm home more, lately, but I just hate being," he paused, searching for the right words to say, "alone?"

"I get that. Another reason I'm not looking for an apartment by myself," you added.

"I just, I get a little lost in my head sometimes. It helps to have another human nearby," he averted his gaze, blushing more deeply.

It dawned on you that this muscular Greek God was actually a gigantic teddy bear afraid of being by himself.

"I can be that human!" you smiled, trying your best to make him feel more comfortable.

"Thank goodness. I'm tired of making my friends feel like they have to come babysit me," he chuckled, meeting your gaze again. "Can I ask you something?"

"Hmm?" you raised your eyebrows, sipping your iced latte.

"I mean this in the least arrogant way possible, but, uh, does this weird you out? That I'm, you know, me?" he whispered, earning a giggle from you.

"That you're pop sensation Shawn Mendes?" you responded jokingly, "No, actually. I'm unfazed."

"That's good," he smiled, clutching his chest in relief. "Wow, okay. So, uh, when can you move in?"

You blinked at him, wondering if this had seriously been that easy. "Um, like, now? How about this weekend?" you responded.

"Sounds good. I have a Jeep so I can probably help with most of your stuff, and you'll be all set up by Sunday," he smiled.

"I have a truck actually," you replied, earning a sigh from him. "But you can still help! I mean, if you want to."

He grinned in response, nodding in agreement.

"Oh, um, what's the rent situation?" you asked, wincing a bit in preparation of what you might hear.

"Oh, I didn't even think about that," he mumbled, chewing on his lower lip. "How about the cheapest place you looked at before, you can just match it. Fuck, cut it in half. Whatever. I don't want to rip you off, you're actually doing me a favour."

"Oh, okay," you nodded in disbelief, completely shocked that so many good things were happening at once. Why hadn't Tyler mentioned him before?

"This should be good!" he smiled, leaning back in the booth. "We can meal plan, if you want. Or do a weekly movie night. You pick one, I pick one, that sort of thing. The gym's pretty cool, too. I can show you some of my workouts if you're interested."

"Okay, Shawn," you laughed, giddy that he was getting a little too excited.

"Sorry," he sighed with a smile, running his long fingers through his thick curls. His hoodie displayed 'YOUTH' in large, white letters. This dork was wearing his own merch. "I got in a little over my head, there."

"That's okay," you laughed, glancing at your phone to check the time. "Shit, uh, I should get going," you said, your heart speeding up at bit when you saw his face fall.

"Oh, okay," he gulped, standing with you.

"This is truly wonderful, though. I can't thank you enough," you said, slinging your purse over your shoulder and heading for the front door, Shawn following closely.

"Thank you," he grinned, a silence falling over the two of you when his eyes met yours in the orange light. The sun was setting and light was cascading over his face, only making him look more gorgeous.

"R-right," you smiled, "You've got my number, so, uh, you'll text me?"

"Of course," he beamed, wiggling his eyebrows a bit as he bounced on his feet.

"Alright, um, I'll see you later, then? Saturday?" you asked, beginning to walk to your car when he nodded and pulled you in for a hug, catching you off guard.

You soon relaxed, melting into him and inhaling his musky scent. Your hands ran over his sides and up to his back, feeling the muscle beneath the fabric as he squeezed you tightly. He was warm, firm, and felt just right.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled, quickly pulling away and taking a step back.

"Oh, that's fine, it was nice, actually," you laughed, "We're gonna be living together, anyway. Might as well get comfortable now."

"Yeah," he nodded, shoving his hands in the pockets of his skinny jeans.

"Okay, I'm going now, for real," you giggled, checking both ways before stepping out onto the street. "See you later, Shawn."

"Take care," he waved, walking in the opposite direction toward the black Jeep parked up the road. You had barely made it to your car before your phone buzzed, a text message displayed on the screen.

I was thinking we could do Taco Tuesdays?