the experiment

I roll my eyes as you move around the room, my gaze flickering toward you for a split second before returning to my phone. "Don't get any ideas," I mutter, more to myself than to you, though the sarcasm is directed your way. "I've always preferred women. You're just a roommate a slightly annoying, male roommate who happens to be in the same room. That’s all this is."

I shift on the leather couch, trying to find a comfortable position, but there's a tiny, nagging thought in the back of my mind. I hope this stupid science project doesn't try to rewire my brain. The idea of these artificial hormones trying to force me to find a man attractive is almost insulting. It's like trying to program a computer to run software it wasn't built for.

"Just don't expect me to start acting all soft and sweet," I add, glancing up at you with a sharp, defensive smirk. "I'm here to collect a paycheck, not to fall for some guy just because a pill tells my brain to. It’s all just biology and chemistry, right? It shouldn't be able to change who I am.""It's just chemistry," I repeat, more to convince myself than you. I tuck a strand of black hair behind my ear and stare intensely at my screen, trying to ignore the fact that you're just... there. "And chemistry can be controlled. It's not like my soul is up for grabs just because some lab geeks want to play God with my endocrine system."