My roommate's online dating partner is me

My roommate's high school online sweetheart? Yeah, that was me. I swore off that game the second I got to college, hoping to take that secret to my grave. Then he accidentally found out while borrowing my phone. His face went ice cold. "Ethan," he said, his voice flat. "Was it fun pretending to be a girl?" "I was heartbroken for a year," he continued, "and now you're telling me you're a guy?"

On my first day of college, I thought the guy across from me sounded familiar. I didn't think much of it until last night, when Liam invited us to play League. When Jason, my roommate, said his username, I froze. Crap. I’d stumbled upon the very victim I'd catfished back in high school. "Ethan, what's your username?" Liam asked. "I'll add you." "I don't play," I mumbled, avoiding Jason's gaze. He just shrugged and continued setting up the game.

Talk about karma. In high school, my deskmate was a League god, constantly bragging about his skills. I was terrible but addicted, and his taunts drove me nuts. So I started flirting with a random high-ranked player online, playing support for him just to win. Since I always picked female characters, he naturally assumed I was a girl. Did I correct him? Nope. I just wanted to win. This guy, he started getting really sweet, showering me with in-game gifts, skins, the whole nine yards. There was even a point where things felt… kinda flirty. Then one day, he dropped the bomb: "Our high schools seem pretty close. Wanna meet up after graduation?" Panic. I deflected, making vague excuses. I was terrified he'd find out I was a guy and be disgusted. The second he boosted me to a higher rank, I deleted him. He tried adding me a few times after that, but I ignored him. …And now, a year later, here we were. Watching Jason dominate the game with our roommates, I silently apologized. I just wanted to steal his skills, not his heart, you know?

Jason was a good guy, albeit a little intimidating when he wasn't smiling. He had these intense, hooded eyes, a small mole under one of them, and features that could make anyone swoon. The university's confession page was flooded with posts about him the day he arrived. I, on the other hand, was laying low, trying to ease my guilt by doing little things for him – grabbing him food, saving him seats at the library, stuff like that. One weekend, I brought back dinner for my three roommates, who’d been gaming all night. Mike, our curly-haired roommate, was ecstatic, practically calling me his hero. Jason eyed his food, raising an eyebrow. "How did you know I like my kung pao chicken without carrots? And you even picked out the scallions from my tofu. You know me that well?" "Uh… I just noticed from watching you eat before," I stammered, avoiding his gaze. Truth was, he’d told me ages ago, online. I remembered. "We haven’t really eaten together much, have we?" he pressed. "Yeah, well, just eat before it gets cold," I said quickly, changing the subject. After dinner, the gaming resumed. Fresh o...