𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓 | (𝐆)𝐈-𝐃𝐋𝐄

𝐁𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐅𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬

If there was one person Kim Minnie would choose not to be stuck in a malfunctioning elevator with, it would be Cho Miyeon. Yet, the universe clearly had a dark sense of humor.

A sharp metallic jolt shook the elevator, and the lights flickered before the hum of movement died out completely. The silence that followed was tense.

"Great," Minnie muttered under her breath, already feeling claustrophobic-not from the tight space, but from Miyeon's presence. "Just my luck."

Miyeon didn't even bother to look at her as she crossed her arms. "Believe me, I'm equally thrilled."

They stood in stiff silence, barely three feet apart but emotionally miles away.

Minnie shifted against the wall, arms crossed. "You'd think karma would give me a break after the week I've had."

Miyeon scoffed. "Maybe karma's paying me back for tolerating you all these years."

Minnie turned to face her, eyes narrowed. "Tolerating me? You've done everything but tolerate me, Cho."

"That's rich coming from the girl who once 'accidentally' spilled coffee on my thesis notes," Miyeon shot back.

"Maybe if you didn't act like the entire campus revolved around you-"

"Oh please, you're the one who walks around like everyone owes you applause."

The bickering bounced off the steel walls until finally, both women fell silent again. Not from running out of insults, but from something heavier-exhaustion.

After what felt like an eternity, Miyeon broke the silence again, her voice low this time. "Do you even remember how this started?"

Minnie blinked. "What?"

"This... whatever this is. Us hating each other. Do you remember why it began?"

Minnie opened her mouth to snap back but... paused. Her brows knit together. Did she? They had clashed for so long it was hard to tell where the line between playful rivalry and real resentment had started to blur.

"It was second year," Miyeon continued quietly. "You beat me for that creative writing scholarship. And I overheard you tell someone I didn't deserve it."

Minnie looked down at the floor. "I never said that. I said I didn't think the judges read your piece properly. I was... jealous. I didn't think I'd win."

A beat passed.

"I've hated you since," Miyeon admitted, voice barely above a whisper. "But not because of that. Because you were always so damn confident. I thought you looked at me like I wasn't good enough."

Minnie leaned back against the elevator wall, letting the confession settle. "I hated you because you made me feel exposed. Like you could see through me. Like if I let my guard down, you'd know I was faking it."

A silence bloomed between them-heavier than before, but warmer somehow. It wasn't quite reconciliation, but it was a crack in the walls they'd both spent years building.

"So," Miyeon said after a while, "We're both idiots."

Minnie let out a soft laugh. "That's the most accurate thing you've ever said."

The lights flickered on suddenly, and the elevator jerked into motion. The spell broke. They looked at each other, almost unsure of what came next.

"I guess that's our cue," Miyeon said.

The elevator doors opened, but neither of them moved at first.

Minnie looked over, hesitant. "Do you... wanna grab a coffee? Just to clear the air?"

Miyeon raised a brow. "You buying?"

Minnie grinned. "Fine, but only if you don't talk about that thesis again."

Miyeon smirked. "No promises."

//

Weeks Later

Minnie didn't expect that one awkward coffee to turn into weekly meet-ups, late-night calls, or shared playlists. But it did.

She especially didn't expect Miyeon to confess one night, over lukewarm ramen in her apartment, that she'd always found her intriguing. That all the sarcasm and cold stares were a mask for something she never wanted to admit: attraction.

"I hated how easily you made people laugh," Miyeon had said. "I hated that I wanted you to make me laugh too."

And Minnie-who once swore she couldn't stand Cho Miyeon-realized she hadn't stopped thinking about that moment in the elevator since it happened.

They didn't label anything at first. It was easier to keep pretending, to say "we're just figuring it out." But they stopped flinching when people teased them about their bickering. They started smiling instead.

One evening, Miyeon showed up at Minnie's apartment in a panic, clutching a rejection letter in one hand and a half-eaten croissant in the other.

"I didn't get into the program in Paris," she choked out. "It was my dream."

Minnie, instead of saying something dismissive or sarcastic, just pulled her into a hug and whispered, "Then we find a new dream."

It hit both of them in that moment. They weren't enemies anymore. They weren't rivals or one-time elevator survivors. They were something new. Something fragile but hopeful.

◇◇◇

A few months later, the same elevator stalled again. They laughed this time, pressed together against the wall, and Miyeon grinned.

"Still think being stuck with me is the worst?"

Minnie kissed her cheek. "Best thing that ever happened to me."

This time, when the doors opened, they stepped out hand in hand, no longer trapped-by the elevator or by who they used to be.