Dear Roommate Please Stop Being Hot [BL]-Chapter 272: Back to Routine

Tuesday morning came easier than Monday—the shock of returning to routine already absorbed, bodies adjusting to early alarms and structured days.

Luca woke to find Noel’s side of the bed empty, sounds of the shower running in the bathroom.

He checked his phone. 7:15. His Operations Management class wasn’t until nine, which meant he could sleep another twenty minutes.

But the bed felt too big without Noel, so he got up anyway.

By the time he made it to the kitchen, Noel was already dressed, pouring coffee, hair still damp.

"Morning," Noel said, handing him a cup without being asked.

"You’re up early."

"Eight o’clock class."

"Brutal."

"Cross-Cultural Management. It’s required."

Luca took a sip of coffee—perfect temperature, perfect amount of sugar, Noel knowing exactly how he liked it without measuring. "What time will you be done?"

"Class ends at nine-thirty. Then I have some research to do for my capstone. Probably won’t be free until lunch."

"I have Operations at nine, then Strategic Management at eleven. Free after that."

"Meet at the café? Around one?"

"Yeah. I’ll text you."

They moved through the rest of their morning in practiced synchronization—Noel eating oatmeal while reviewing notes, Luca making toast he’d eat on the walk, both of them gathering books and laptops and the small items that constituted student survival.

At the door, Noel paused. "George is back today, right?"

"Yeah. He’s in my eleven o’clock class."

"Should be interesting. He’s been gone since what, November?"

"Yeah."

"Long time."

"He’s probably changed."

"Or exactly the same. People don’t usually change that much."

"Philosophical this morning?"

"Observant this morning."

They walked to campus together, separating at the Business Studies building where Noel continued toward International Business while Luca headed inside.

Operations Management was exactly what Luca expected—heavy on theory, the professor immediately assigning a group project that would consume the next eight weeks.

"Find teams of four," Professor Martinez announced. "Choose wisely. You’ll be working together extensively."

Luca pulled out his phone.

Luca: group project already. want to team up?

Emily: YES absolutely

Emily: we can grab George too when he shows up

Emily: need a fourth though

Luca: we’ll figure it out

After class, Luca had thirty minutes before Strategic Management.

He grabbed coffee from the campus café, found a bench outside despite the cold, and caught up on the reading he’d neglected last night.

The campus was busy—students rushing between classes, the energy of a semester just beginning, everyone still optimistic about grades and possibilities.

His phone buzzed.

Noel: class was terrible

Luca: that bad?

Noel: professor spent an hour on the syllabus. AN HOUR.

Luca: riveting

Noel: I wanted to die

Luca: dramatic

Noel: accurate

Luca: see you at lunch. try not to die before then

Noel: no promises

At 10:55, Luca headed to Strategic Management, the large lecture hall already filling with students.

He spotted Emily immediately—front row, naturally, already set up with color-coded notebooks and pens arranged by size.

"Overachiever," Luca said, sliding into the seat beside her.

"Organized," she corrected. "There’s a difference."

"Barely."

"Says the person who probably didn’t even buy notebooks until yesterday."

"Sunday, actually."

"My point exactly."

Before Luca could respond, someone called out, "Luca! Emily!"

They turned to find George making his way down the aisle—taller than Luca remembered, or maybe just carrying himself differently, skin slightly tanned despite it being winter, a confidence about him that seemed new.

"George!" Emily stood, pulling him into a hug. "You’re back!"

"Finally." He hugged her back, then turned to Luca, extending a hand that turned into a brief embrace. "Good to see you, man."

"You too. How was China?"

"Incredible. Exhausting. I have so many stories." George dropped into the seat beside Luca. "But first—catch me up. What did I miss? How was internship? Are you two still..." He gestured vaguely between them and made a face.

"Still what?" Luca asked.

"You know."

"Oh. Yeah. Very much together."

"Good. I have money riding on that."

"You bet on our relationship?"

"With Jordan. He said you’d break up within six months. I said you’d last."

"When was this bet made?"

"Like, a months ago."

"Months?"

"We were very bored. And very drunk."

Emily laughed. "I love that you have faith in them."

"They’re disgustingly stable," George said. "It’s annoying but also kind of sweet."

The professor entered before the conversation could continue, and the class settled into first-day routine—syllabus, expectations, the usual dance of establishing semester parameters.

Professor Chen was known for being demanding but fair, her classes always full despite the workload.

"This course will challenge you," she said, surveying the room. "Strategic Management isn’t about memorizing theories. It’s about application, analysis, making decisions with incomplete information. You’ll work in teams, present to the class, defend your strategies against critique."

Collective nervous energy rippled through the lecture hall.

"Speaking of teams," Professor Chen continued, "you’ll need groups of three for your semester project. Choose carefully. I’ll give you five minutes."

The room erupted into movement—people turning, calling out to friends, the scramble of team formation.

"Us three?" Emily said immediately, looking between Luca and George.

"Obviously," George agreed.

"Perfect." Emily pulled out her planner, already making notes. "We should meet this week. Plan our approach. Get ahead of the timeline."

"It’s literally the first day," Luca pointed out.

"Which means we have time to be strategic about strategy. See what I did there?"

"Painfully."

After class, the three of them walked out together, Emily already outlining potential project topics while George and Luca exchanged amused looks behind her back.

"I missed this," George said. "The chaos. The structure. Even Emily’s aggressive organization now."

"Hey," Emily protested.

"It’s a compliment."

"Is it though?"

They found an empty classroom to claim for their impromptu planning session, spreading out materials on desks, falling into the familiar pattern of working together.

"Okay," Emily said, pulling up the project guidelines on her laptop. "We need to choose a company, analyze their strategic position, and propose recommendations for growth or improvement."

"What kind of company?" Luca asked.

"Anything. Tech, retail, manufacturing. As long as we can get data."

"What about an international company?" George suggested. "I have contacts now from my internship. Could probably get insider information."

"That’s actually perfect," Emily said, typing notes. "What companies?"

George listed several—manufacturing firms his family worked with, tech startups expanding into Asian markets, retail operations navigating cross-cultural challenges.

They debated options, weighing data accessibility against interest level, eventually narrowing to three possibilities.

"We should decide by Friday," Emily said. "Give ourselves the weekend to start preliminary research."

"Agreed," George said. "But also—can we take a break? I just got back. I’m still jet-lagged."

"Fine. But we’re meeting Friday afternoon. Both of you."

"Yes, ma’am," Luca said.

"Don’t ma’am me."

Around 12:45, Luca checked his phone.

Noel: still researching. probably need another thirty minutes

Luca: no rush. hanging with Emily and George

Noel: George is back?

Luca: yeah. he’s good. lots of stories apparently

Noel: cool. see you soon

"Noel?" Emily asked, noticing him texting.

"Yeah. Meeting him for lunch."

"Tell him I says hi."

"I will."

They packed up, Emily heading to her afternoon class, George claiming he needed to visit the international student office for paperwork, leaving Luca to wander toward the library where Noel was supposedly still researching.

The library was quiet—that particular silence of a space dedicated to study, punctuated by occasional whispers and the soft clicking of keyboards.

He found Noel on the third floor in a study carrel, surrounded by books, laptop open to what looked like an incredibly boring article about trade regulations.

"Hey," Luca said softly, not wanting to disturb the library atmosphere.

Noel looked up, expression softening immediately. "Hey. How was class?"

"Good. George, Emily. We’re doing a project together."

"The three of you?"

"Yeah. Emily’s already planning everything."

"That tracks." Noel closed his laptop. "I’m done here. Want to grab food?"

"Starving."

They walked to the café, finding a table in the corner, both ordering sandwiches and coffee.

"How’s your research going?" Luca asked.

"Slowly. There’s so much material and I’m not sure what’s actually relevant yet."

"You’ll figure it out. You always do."

"Eventually." Noel took a bite of his sandwich. "What’s your project about?"

"Strategic analysis of a company. We’re choosing between a few options. George has international contacts now so we might do something cross-cultural."

"That sounds interesting actually."

"Yeah. Assuming Emily doesn’t drive us crazy with organization first."

"She means well."

"I know. Doesn’t make her less intense."

They ate, talking about classes and professors and the slow adjustment back to student life.

"You seeing George later?" Noel asked.

"Probably not today. He has paperwork stuff. Why?"

"Just curious. It’s been a while since we all hung out. The original group."

"You, me, Emily, George. And Jordan when he’s not working."

"Yeah."

"We should do something. This weekend maybe. Nothing big. Just catch up properly."

"I’d like that."

Around two, they parted ways—Noel heading back to the library for more research, Luca going home because his Tuesday schedule was mercifully light.

The apartment was quiet when he arrived, just him and the cat, who seemed annoyed that his afternoon nap had been interrupted.

"Sorry," Luca told him, scratching behind his ears. "Humans have obligations."

He settled on the couch with his laptop, starting the reading for tomorrow’s class, making it through approximately ten pages before his attention wandered.

His phone sat on the coffee table, tempting.

He picked it up, scrolling through social media mindlessly, eventually landing on the group chat from internship that Bella had created.

Bella: how’s everyone’s first week back??

Wei Chen: overwhelming

Camila:same

Ren: I have three papers due in two weeks

Jace: my portfolio is going to kill me

Liam: I’m already behind

Bella: wow we’re all suffering together. beautiful.

Luca: it’s only Tuesday

Bella: EXACTLY. imagine by Friday

Noel: optimistic as always Bella

Bella: it’s called REALISM Noel

Luca smiled, setting his phone down, returning to his reading.

Outside, the afternoon light was already changing, winter days still too short, darkness coming too early.

But inside, the apartment was warm, familiar, the kind of space that felt like safety.

Noel came home around five-thirty, tired but not exhausted, dropping his bag by the door and immediately moving to the couch where he collapsed beside Luca.

"Long day?" Luca asked, closing his laptop.

"Very long day."

"Food?"

"Soon. Just need to exist for a minute."

Luca shifted, maneuvering until Noel’s head was in his lap, fingers immediately moving through his hair in the motion that had become automatic.

"Better?" Luca asked.

"Much better."

They stayed like that for a while, the apartment quiet around them, the stress of the day slowly dissolving.

"George seems good," Luca said eventually.

"Yeah?"

"Different somehow. More confident maybe."

"China changed him."

"Or just time. Six months is a long time."

"True."

"We should all hang out soon. Like we used to."

"This weekend," Noel agreed. "Something casual. Dinner maybe."

"I’ll text everyone."

Later, after dinner—simple pasta because neither of them had energy for anything elaborate—they settled in for the evening.

Homework, reading, the quiet companionship of two people existing in the same space while doing separate things.

Around ten, Luca closed his laptop with a sigh. "I’m calling it. If I read one more page about operational efficiency, my brain will explode."

"Dramatic."

"Accurate."

Noel smiled, saving his own work. "Bed?"

"Bed."

They went through their nighttime routine, both of them tired in that satisfying way that came from a productive day.

In bed, darkness settling around them, Luca said, "Second day down."

"Many more to go."

"Thanks for that reminder."

"Anytime."

"Hey Noel?"

"Yeah?"

"I’m glad we’re doing this together. School, life, all of it."

Noel pulled him closer. "Me too."

"Even when it’s hard?"

"Especially then."

Outside, the city continued its nighttime rhythm. Inside, wrapped in each other and the quiet certainty of home, they drifted toward sleep.

Second day of final semester complete.

The future still uncertain.

But together.

Always together.