### **Chapter 1: The Mix-Up**

### **Chapter 1: The Mix-Up**

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**Setting:**

Alex Harper, a second-year art student with a flair for chaos, moves into his new off-campus apartment. He expects to share the place with his best friend, Ryan, only to find out—thanks to a last-minute housing mix-up—that he’ll be living with a complete stranger. As Alex steps into the apartment, his hopes for a fun, carefree year are immediately dashed.

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**Scene 1: Moving Day Madness**

Alex bursts through the front door of the apartment, dragging a large suitcase and balancing a box filled with random art supplies, video games, and instant ramen packs. His carefree, over-the-top personality is on full display as he cranks up music on his phone, filling the empty space with loud beats. He’s ready for a wild, stress-free year, completely unaware of the surprise waiting for him inside.

As he throws his bags onto the living room floor, he hears a soft clearing of the throat behind him. He turns to see **Ethan Rivers** standing in the kitchen doorway, arms crossed, eyebrows furrowed. Ethan is the polar opposite of Alex: tall, clean-cut, and dressed in a neatly pressed shirt. A stack of medical textbooks sits on the kitchen table, carefully organized. The sight of Alex’s mess has clearly disrupted Ethan’s calm, orderly existence.

- **Alex**: “Hey, man! You must be Ryan’s roommate! Didn’t think he’d be bringing in such a… serious guy.”

- **Ethan** (dryly): “I’m Ethan, and I’m *your* roommate, apparently.”

Alex’s grin falters as the reality sinks in. Ryan had mentioned something about a last-minute change, but Alex, being the laid-back guy he is, didn’t bother to double-check the details. Now, he’s stuck with someone who looks like he stepped out of a medical school brochure.

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**Scene 2: The Clash Begins**

After a painfully awkward introduction, Alex shrugs off the mix-up, deciding to make the best of the situation. As he unpacks, he quickly turns the living room into a chaotic mess of clothes, art supplies, and random knick-knacks.

Ethan, meanwhile, stands at the edge of the chaos, staring at Alex with barely disguised horror. He’d envisioned a quiet, productive environment where he could focus on his studies—definitely not this tornado of a roommate.

- **Ethan**: “You’re planning to… clean that up, right?”

- **Alex** (laughing): “Eventually. Gotta let the creativity flow first.”

Ethan’s left eye twitches as Alex shoves a pile of clothes onto the couch and pulls out a gaming console, plugging it into the TV. He’s about to fire up a game when he notices Ethan’s stiff posture.

- **Alex**: “You game? We could play some *Super Smash Bros*. Loser has to do the dishes.”

- **Ethan** (deadpan): “No.”

**Comedy moment:**

In an attempt to lighten the mood, Alex accidentally knocks over Ethan’s perfectly arranged textbooks on the kitchen counter while plugging in the console. The books tumble to the floor in slow motion, and Ethan’s face contorts into a look of pure anguish.

- **Alex**: “Oh… whoops. Don’t worry, I’ll fix it!”

- **Ethan**: “Don’t touch anything.”

Ethan bends down to pick up the books, and Alex watches, a little amused, as Ethan painstakingly arranges them in the exact same order as before.

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**Scene 3: Establishing Boundaries**

After an hour of trying to ignore each other, it becomes clear that Alex and Ethan’s different personalities will clash in more ways than one. As Alex unpacks, Ethan stands by, arms crossed, offering unsolicited advice about keeping things tidy.

- **Ethan**: “You could at least fold your clothes.”

- **Alex**: “Or, I could *not* and say I did.”

This earns Alex a sharp glare, but he just grins. Ethan’s neat-freak tendencies are so foreign to him that he finds them amusing. On the other hand, Ethan is already regretting every second of this arrangement. He watches in disbelief as Alex carelessly tosses a half-empty bag of chips onto the kitchen counter.

Finally, unable to contain himself, Ethan speaks up, trying to maintain his calm:

- **Ethan**: “We should set some ground rules. Like, keeping things clean, respecting each other’s space, and not... making this place look like a tornado hit it.”

- **Alex** (grinning): “Oh, you mean like a ‘roommate agreement’? Gotcha. I’ll try not to cramp your vibe.”

Ethan blinks, surprised by Alex’s breezy attitude. He expected more pushback but doesn’t yet realize that Alex’s carefree nature means he won’t follow any rules consistently.

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**Scene 4: The First Night**

Later that evening, Alex settles in to binge-watch a TV show on the couch, sprawled out with a bowl of snacks. Ethan, however, is ready to head to bed early. He peeks out of his room to see the living room lights still on and Alex laughing loudly at the screen.

- **Ethan**: “It’s almost 10. Some of us have early classes.”

- **Alex** (glancing at the clock): “10’s early? Dude, it’s barely night!”

Alex’s carefree reply only frustrates Ethan more. He huffs, deciding to head to bed anyway, but the walls between their rooms are thin. Alex’s laughter and the booming sound effects from the TV seep through, making it impossible for Ethan to focus. After tossing and turning for nearly an hour, Ethan snaps.

**Comedy moment:**

Ethan storms out of his room, still in his perfectly ironed pajamas, and grabs the remote to turn off the TV mid-episode.

- **Alex** (shocked): “Whoa, whoa! Dude, I was watching that!”

- **Ethan** (gritting his teeth): “I have a 7 a.m. lab. I need sleep, not explosions in the background.”

Alex, looking at Ethan’s flustered face, stifles a laugh. It’s not often he sees someone so wound up over something so minor. Still, something about Ethan’s seriousness makes Alex take pity on him.

- **Alex** (teasing): “Alright, alright. You win, Mr. Early Bird. I’ll turn it down. But next time, maybe try earplugs?”

Ethan storms back to his room, muttering something about “immaturity,” but despite the annoyance, he can’t help but wonder how long he’ll survive living with someone like Alex. Meanwhile, Alex leans back on the couch, smirking to himself. He’s starting to find Ethan’s uptight personality oddly charming.

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**End of Chapter 1.**

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In this chapter, the groundwork is laid for the opposites-attract dynamic that will fuel their interactions throughout the story. Their differences are immediately apparent, leading to comedic clashes, but there's also an underlying sense that their personalities might complement each other in unexpected ways

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