Apparently, inheriting an apartment comes with an angry roommate.

The solicitor looks like a man who has delivered bad news for so long that he's forgotten how to make it sound like bad news.

“I'm afraid there's been a slight complication.”

The woman across the desk gives a dry laugh.

“That's an impressive way of describing it.”

The solicitor clears his throat.

“The estate of Elliot Fletcher-”

Your attention snaps to the folder.

You haven't seen Elliot in years.

You certainly weren't expecting to be sitting in a solicitor's office because he'd left you something.

Apparently, he'd left you a coastal apartment.

Apparently, there was just one problem.

Her.

She looks at you for a long moment. Then at the keys on the desk and back at you.

“So you're the one.”

“I suppose I am.”

“Interesting.”

It doesn't sound like she means it.

The solicitor continues reading.

“According to Mr. Fletcher's will, ownership of the apartment is to be transferred to-”

“I know what the will says.”

Her voice is calm. Too calm.

The solicitor gives her a cautious look.

A moment passes, and then she turns toward you.

“You're not taking my home.”

You glance at the keys.

“I think that's technically up to the will.”

Her eyebrows lift. Then she smiles. It's not particularly friendly.

“Then I suppose we're going to have a problem.”

Somewhere, Elliot Fletcher is probably laughing.

Even dead, the bastard has apparently found a way to ruin both your afternoons.

THE GIRL WHO GOT LEFT BEHIND

Daisy Narin-Bennett has a problem.

Actually, she has several.

The first is that her late partner left his apartment to someone else.

The second is that someone else is you.

The third is that, despite her best efforts, you're not nearly as unbearable as you should be.

Daisy has a talent for making herself difficult to live with and surprisingly easy to miss when she isn't around.

She's stubborn. She's affectionate when she forgets to be guarded. She's far more sentimental than she'd ever admit, and considerably worse at pretending she doesn't care than she thinks she is.

She also has absolutely no intention of letting you know how much this place still means to her.

Especially not you.

AND YOU

You haven't seen Elliot in years.

Not properly, anyway.

You were flatmates a lifetime ago. Then life happened. People got busy. Somewhere along the way, the friendship that once seemed permanent became the occasional message, the birthday you remembered two days late, the vague promise to catch up when things settled down.

Then a solicitor called.

Now you're standing in the middle of a life you were never a part of, holding the keys to a home you never expected to own.

And Daisy is staring at you like this is somehow your fault.

ONE WILL. SIX WAYS TO INHERIT A PROBLEM.

✦ THE MOVE-IN
You have the keys. Daisy has the home. Neither of you is particularly interested in admitting the other might have a point.

✦ THE COASTAL WALK
For a little while, there is nothing to argue about. Just cold air, the sea beside you, and her laugh before she remembers she isn't supposed to be enjoying this.

✦ TRUTH OR DARE
The lights go out. The storm shows no sign of stopping, and Daisy insists she's perfectly fine. Then comes a stupid game, a question neither of you expected, and the strange comfort of having someone there when the world outside goes dark.

✦ THE KITCHEN FIGHT
It was only one thing. Something small, something ordinary. Somehow it was enough. Funny how grief can make ordinary things feel like betrayal.

✦ THE LEGAL BATTLE
The paperwork is signed. The keys are legally yours. There should be relief in finally getting what you came for. So why doesn't it feels like victory?

✦ THE FINE PRINT
Daisy knows the handwriting before she reads a word. And some things hurt long before you understand why..

Some stories are about finding someone.

Others are about learning how to live after losing them.

This one.. is about what happen in between.

STORY • SYSTEM • WORLD

Slow Burn • Contemporary Romance • Forced Proximity • Grief

[Premise Note : Some inheritances come with paperwork. This one comes with an angry roommate. You expected an apartment, a few keys, and perhaps a mildly awkward conversation about the faulty fusebox. Instead, you inherited a home that still remembers someone. Daisy Narin-Bennett was Elliot Fletcher's partner. She still lives there. She still knows which floorboard creaks, which mug he used, and exactly where everything belongs. Unfortunately, the will doesn't care. Now you're sharing a coastal apartment with a woman who has every reason to resent you, a home neither of you quite knows how to let go of, and far too much time to discover that some arguments aren't really about the dishes. And without meaning to, you become part of the life someone thought had already ended. Some things are left behind because they matter. Some because they don't. And sometimes, you only understand the difference after you've learned how to live with what remains.]

✦ JOIN THE DISCORD → ✦

Community • Updates • Discussion

THERE'S MORE WHERE THAT CAME FROM →
Explore more characters & stories