My Roommate Used A Fake Lawyer To Evict Me And Got Me Fired. He Didn’t Realize I Found Proof His Girlfriend Had A Secret Apartment. Now They Owe Me $45,000.
Losing It All
I spend my entire lunch break the next day sitting in my car in the work parking lot filling out court forms. The legal terminology might as well be another language. Words like “affirmative defense” and “motion to dismiss” and “verified complaint” swim in front of my eyes. I Google half the terms just to understand what I’m supposed to write.
3 days after the attorney ambush, I come home from work around 6. I try to connect to the Wi-Fi to continue researching my case, and the password doesn’t work. I try it three more times thinking I typed it wrong. Then I realize what happened.
I find Brock in the kitchen and ask him about the Wi-Fi. He barely looks up from his phone and shrugs. He says I’m not a permanent resident anymore, so I’m not entitled to household amenities. The cruelty is so casual it takes my breath away. I need internet to file my legal paperwork and research my case. This is deliberate sabotage.
I grab my laptop and documents and drive to the public library. It’s open until 8. The librarian at the desk sees me looking lost and asks if I need help. I explain I need to file court documents online. She’s incredibly kind and patient. She helps me scan all my documents and shows me how to use the court’s online portal.
The website is confusing, but she walks me through each step. As I hit the submit button, I feel like I’ve at least done something instead of just waiting to be thrown out. My phone buzzes a few minutes later with an email from the court clerk. A hearing date will be set within 30 days.
The next morning at work, my supervisor, Melody, calls me into her office. There’s someone from HR sitting there already. My stomach drops before anyone even speaks. Melody’s face is completely neutral as she tells me a complaint has been filed against me for stalking and harassing a former tenant of my apartment building.
She says there’s evidence of threatening messages and unwanted contact. I’m being terminated effective immediately for violating company conduct policies. I try to explain that I don’t know what they’re talking about, that there must be some mistake, but Melody holds up her hand to stop me.
She slides a folder across the desk, and I see printed screenshots of text messages. My phone number is at the top of each one. The messages say things like: “You’ll pay for this.” And “I’m not letting this go.” And “You think you can just take what’s mine?”
My hands start shaking as I read them because I never sent any of these. The HR person asks if I recognize my phone number, and I say yes, but I didn’t send these messages. Someone faked them somehow. Melody’s face shows she doesn’t believe me. She says the company takes harassment seriously and they can’t risk keeping an employee who stalks and threatens people.
I’m trying to think straight, but my brain feels fuzzy. I ask who even filed this complaint, and Melody says she can’t share that information due to privacy concerns. The HR person starts talking about final paycheck and returning my building access card. Everything is moving too fast.
Security shows up at the door within 5 minutes. A guard I’ve seen around for 2 years walks me back to my desk while people stare. I grab my coffee mug, a framed photo, some pens. Everything fits in one small cardboard box. My coworker Jake watches from across the room but doesn’t say anything.
The walk through the office feels like it takes forever. Everyone knows what’s happening when security escorts someone out. I can feel their eyes following me to the elevator. The parking lot is nearly empty since it’s only mid-morning. I sit in my car holding the box on my lap. My hands won’t stop shaking. I stare at the office building for maybe 20 minutes just trying to process what happened.
Then it clicks. Sienna. This has to be Sienna’s work. She must have doctored those screenshots somehow, made it look like the messages came from my number. She reported me to my company as the stalking victim. They’re not just trying to evict me anymore. They’re destroying my entire life: my income, my job history, my professional reputation.
I start the car but I don’t know where to go. I can’t go back to the apartment. I drive to a coffee shop and sit in the parking lot trying to figure out my next move. I need Craig’s retainer money more than ever now, but I just lost my income. My savings account has maybe $800. My credit card is already carrying a balance.
