Unbroken Rules (Rules 3)

New Place

“This the place?” Kendrick asks, craning his neck to get a glimpse of the large apartment complex through the car window. Haze turns into the visitor spot and kills the engine. Snatching my phone, I pull up the ad and triple-check the address.

“This is it.” I assess the five-story building cautiously and bring my eyes back to the screen. Three bedrooms, a balcony, an elevator, and a door buzzer. The rent costs an arm and a leg, and if it were up to me, we wouldn’t even be here right now. Sure, I have savings from my old job, and my father put some money aside to help me through school, but there is no way I can afford a full year of this lifestyle. Haze fell in love with it and insisted that we give it a shot, but I’m positive that we’re wasting our time here.

Shortly after my mother gave us a deadline, all four of us got our phones out and began scouring the internet for a place to call home. Six hours later, we were lucky enough to have landed three visits. The first landlord never showed, and we just came back from the second visit. Two words: false advertising. The place looked nothing like it did in the pictures. The wallpaper was coming off the walls, you could hear the neighbor’s baby throw a fit as if you were in the same room, and the tenant was smoking inside. The boys were pretty vocal about the smell the second we passed the threshold. The handyman giving us a tour admitted the pictures were taken years ago when the building was brand-new and, apparently, back when the apartment was inhabited by someone with taste. The low price should’ve been a red flag.

“What time did they say to be here again?” Haze asks.

“They said to be here in…” I check the time on my phone. “Now. We’re late. Come on.”

We hurry out of my dad’s car—thank God he was nice enough to let us borrow it—and make our way to the entrance. A woman with a bright smile is waiting on the inside. She unlocks the door for us.

“Hi, Winter, right?”

“Yes, nice to meet you.” I return her smile.

She tells us her husband is the owner and she’s in charge

of the visits as she leads us into the elevator and selects the fourth floor. We come to find out that the apartment is available right now due to the last tenant being evicted for missed payments. Considering the rent, I can’t say that I’m surprised.

The apartment is everything I could ever want it to be. Of course it is. Large windows light up the spacious living room, and new hardwood floors spread across all common areas. There’s a freaking fireplace, and don’t even get me started on the view. It’s close to everything—my school, the supermarket, pharmacies, restaurants, the mall—and it might actually be big enough to forget Will and Kendrick live with us. Something tells me that’s why Haze likes it so much. The kitchen is slightly smaller than I thought it would be, but the marble counters and white cabinets make up for it. In other words, it’s perfect. But with perfection comes a price—a very high one.

Haze says we can afford it.

Translation: he can afford it.

I know Haze’s parents have kept his bank account full over the years—probably to make up for their lack of love and parenting skills—but I didn’t know just how full we were talking. Until now. From what he’s told me, he’s got nothing to worry about even if his parents cut him off after the reception from hell. As for me, I’m not sure how I’ll afford to eat something other than air.

We ask the kind lady to give us a second, and she nods, stepping on the balcony to take a call.

Haze’s blue eyes find mine. “What do you think?”

“It’s perfect,” I painfully admit.

He smiles. “So, we’re all set?”

“Babe, this… It’s way too expensive. I can’t afford it.”

“But I can.”

Uneasy, I pace around my dream living room. I can’t stop a bunch of worst-case scenarios from spinning in my head. What if we break up? I couldn’t afford one month of this rent on my own. Winter, stop, you couldn’t be further away from a breakup.

For the first time in forever, no one is after us. No psycho brother, no vengeful fighter. Even with my mother being the real-life version of Cruella, Haze and I are finally in a good place. A perfect place. Nothing is standing in our way anymore.

No secrets.

No games.

Just love.

But I have to be smart about this. I can’t ignore the risks.

“You don’t get it. I don’t even think I can pay my half in full.” I admit, a feeling of embarrassment sinking into my skin.

“Who cares? I got it.”

I arch an eyebrow. “Wow, you really don’t know me at all, do you?”