Overall, as far as New York City apartments go it wasn't a bad size; the apartment was 900 square feet, it was a pre-war and at some point in its 90-year history it had been modified from a two bedroom into a three-bedroom. This was manageable, but it made things a little tight. The clearest evidence of this was Peters room, which was the smallest and had one third of the bay window. The rest of window lit up the common area where a smart TV, a couch, an ottoman and a coffee table squeezed into a living room. The living room was open to the main hallway and a kitchen/dining space that was barely big enough for a small table. Haley had the largest room because she had been in the apartment the longest. It was big enough for a king-size bed, and a full desk set up. Sally had to make do with a full-size bed in order to have a desk, and when the Coronavirus lockdown started in March of 2020, she was glad that she decided to sacrifice the bed space so she could fit in a real desk and office chair.
Sally is an aspiring writer, but works in PR for a publicist firm. Overall, her workload was reduced during the lockdown, but she was always on call and she had to work in bursts sometimes going to work at noon, sometimes starting at 7 p.m. One thing she never did was get up early. On day one of the home order, Sally immediately embraced the pajamas and loungewear lifestyle, slowly and steadily as the lockdown went on she implemented a 'no pants in the house' personal policy.
Haley works for the City so her job remained a Monday through Friday nine to five work schedule. She needed to be presentable for everyday Zoom calls so she put on regular clothing during work, but quickly shifted to sweatpants in the evening.
Peter works in tech, so his work clothes were basically pajamas already. The biggest problem for him though was the space. His mini desk set up wasn't great so he wound up spending a lot of his time working on the coffee table or at the small kitchen table. Like Sally, Peter also had a reduced workload. Unfortunately for him this came with a fairly drastic reduction in pay. In a way Peter was lucky; the company had decided to cut everyone's salary instead of doing a round of layoffs, but like many people in their mid-twenties he had been living paycheck to paycheck.
Once the lockdown happened the three roommates had a house meeting. Peter assured the others that the rent wasn't going to be an issue, but let them know things were going to be a little tight for him. In the end, the three agreed that their previous policy of keeping food separate and labeling everything in the refrigerator didn't make sense in the new world, and that they should make food, and try to have dinner together as long as the lockdown was going on. They started to have what they affectionately called "family meals". Peter ended up doing the lion's share of the cooking and after the meal Sally showed off her skills making cocktails. Haley wasn't much for cooking, but always helped do the dishes -- a chore that in a dishwasher free apartment was incredibly appreciated.
The dinners helped them plan for the pandemic and save some money, but even more important they were comforting. Routine helped ease the roommate tensions that might come have about from being in close proximity. During the first few weeks of lockdown everyone was a little emotional due to stress and anxiety. Time seemed to flow differently and the future was uncertain; but regular check ins, interpersonal conversation, and Peters sourdough bread brought solace into their home.
"Sally, are you going to work or watch Netflix tonight?" Haley asked over a family meal of ramen with homemade broth and soft-boiled eggs. Haley regularly joked that she was doing her part for self-isolation by binge watching old TV shows. She knew that she was a little addicted, and sometimes stayed up too late watching them but overall, she found that engrossing herself in entertainment was much better for her mental health than following her instinct to be on her phone reading the news. She made sure there were four different shows in rotation at all times, one for herself, one for each of the pairings with her roommates, and one show that all three of them were all watching together.
"I've got a Zoom happy hour with some old high school friends at 8:00." Sally said "So I'll probably be late. Speaking of which, Peter can I borrow the gaming headphones? They work way better than my ear buds."
"They're next to the couch" Peter said. Sally replied with a thank you and hopped up to get them. Sally had a small frame; she often wore a men's sized t-shirt that went down to her middle thigh but at that moment she was wearing a tank top that barely covered her hips. As she bent over to pick up the headset Peter and Haley had an unobstructed view of her lavender panties, their tiny white polka dots, and the shapely form they tightly hugged.
Sally went down the hall to her room, Haley stood up and slapped Peter on the shoulder. "Stop staring, and help me with the dishes."
"I was barely looking," Peter lied. Haley rolled her eyes.
Haley didn't know why Sally showing off her underwear bothered her so much. Maybe she was jealous. She had always been attracted to Sally's carefree spirit and artistic approach to life. Haley reasoned to herself that it was probably just quarantine, and she was a little off because she had been personally feeling more stifled than ever. In spite of this she was fascinated by Sally. She wanted to be like her; Haley found Sally to be captivating.
"Do you think she'll dress differently when quarantine is over?" Haley asked.
"I don't think you can un-ring that bell," Peter replied, then after a moment he said "It's a good look. You know, you should probably try it out too."
Haley knew he was baiting her, but she liked banter, and she didn't have a lot of opportunities for it these days. "I see. Is that your plan for you to get more eye candy in the apartment?"
"Hey," He replied "I'm just trying to preach the good word. Once you take off the blinders that society put on you, you too will understand the truth. Pants have been a conspiracy this whole time."
She smiled and he felt a small victory. Peter was attracted to both of his roommates, but Haley was the one he had the most chemistry with. During normal times he had carried out a fairly regimented no flirting policy with his roommates -- that policy slowly eased once they started sheltering in place and all got closer to each other. Overall through, he was happy not to push the status quo. The apartment was a good price and right on the train to his office. Just having roommates who you could be friends with was a win in and of itself. He wasn't the kind of guy to upset the apple cart.
"It's okay to admit that you like the way she dresses." Haley said while handing him a bowl to dry.
"I don't know what you're talking about, she's comfortable and I don't mind that she's comfortable." Peter slyly smiled, he knew that his eyes couldn't lie -- Sally was gorgeous, and if he enjoyed himself it was no big deal, he made sure to be respectful at all times. "We can't help it if you're a puritan. Peter teased. "Maybe it's that Connecticut upbringing of yours."
