The moving truck had barely disappeared down the street before the argument started.
Min-Jae stood at the threshold of their new Seoul apartment, holding a backpack, two plastic grocery bags, and one very large grudge.
Soo-Min stood beside him, tapping her foot aggressively while holding a suitcase with wheels that sounded like a dying seal on every tile.
"Move, tree stump," she said, elbowing him.
"After you, mushroom hair. I'd hate to crush your dreams by going in first."
"Oh please, your dreams are probably just ramen and socks without holes."
They stepped inside. The apartment was... humble.
Two small bedrooms. A shoebox-sized kitchen. One bathroom so small they'd have to breathe in shifts.
Soo-Min took a deep breath.
"Smells like regret. And expired Febreze."
"Did you already fart or is that your attitude leaking through the walls?"
She ignored him and stormed toward the bigger bedroom. Min-Jae immediately chased after.
"Dibs! Dibs on the bigger room!"
"Says who? The man-child with six graphic tees and a Naruto bedspread?"
"I need space for my dumbbells."
"You lift chopsticks, not weights. Get lost."
They started pushing each other at the doorway until a neighbor peeked in, holding a cat.
"Is this a newlywed couple fight or do I call the police?"
Min-Jae waved awkwardly. "Sibling argument! We're fake siblings! I mean, not fake siblings—uh, roommates!"
The neighbor slowly backed away.
---
Round One: The Bedroom Battle
They spent thirty-five minutes debating over who should get the larger room.
Min-Jae tried logic.
"I snore. Loudly. You'll thank me later when you don't hear it through thin walls."
Soo-Min tried emotional warfare.
"I'm a woman. I need vanity space. And my clothes need breathing room."
"Your clothes? You wear the same hoodie three days a week."
"It's oversized fashion! Not failure!"
Eventually, they resorted to flipping a coin. It bounced off the ceiling and landed under the fridge.
They stared at the gap.
"So... split the rent and both get mold?"
"Welcome to adulthood."
Min-Jae caved and took the smaller room, but not before writing "Min-Jae's Realm" in permanent marker above the door.
Soo-Min retaliated by taping a picture of a unicorn pooping glitter on his door.
"Symbolic," she said. "Your room = where hope dies."
---
Round Two: Kitchen Warfare
It was 6:00 PM and both were starving.
Min-Jae tried to take the lead.
"I'm cooking tonight. I bought ingredients."
Soo-Min peered into the grocery bag.
"Spam, instant noodles, one carrot, and a banana. That's not dinner. That's a late-night mistake."
"Trust the process. I watch cooking videos."
"So does my cat. Doesn't make him a chef."
He began his culinary masterpiece: boiled ramen topped with raw carrot slices and half a banana on the side for "fiber."
Soo-Min stared at the plate.
"This looks like you made a food pyramid and then punched it."
"It's called fusion."
"It's called punishment."
They both ate it anyway.
Then they both burped. Loudly. And blamed each other for the gas.
---
Round Three: Bathroom Negotiations
Later that night, both stood outside the single bathroom.
Toothbrushes in hand. Glares engaged.
"I go first. I need longer," Soo-Min said.
"You take longer because you scream-sing BLACKPINK in the shower."
"At least I shower. Unlike you and your mysterious forehead smell."
Min-Jae blinked. "...What's wrong with my forehead?!"
"It smells like... leftover decisions."
They ended up brushing side-by-side, shoulders bumping, spitting in the sink at the exact same time.
He looked at the mirror.
"Why is there a sticky note that says 'you smell like regret' on my forehead spot?"
Soo-Min smiled. "Motivation."
"You're a motivational speaker in a horror movie."
They began leaving sticky notes every morning:
> Min-Jae: "Flush the toilet, ghost girl."
Soo-Min: "Clean the sink, swamp man."
Min-Jae: "Why are your eyelashes on the mirror?"
Soo-Min: "Why is your soul on the floor?"
---
Round Four: Netflix & No Chill
At 10:45 PM, they both emerged from their rooms like raccoons sniffing out leftover food.
Soo-Min flopped on the couch. "I get the left side. My buttprint's there already."
"Too much information. I sit on the right. We build a pillow wall."
They threw six mismatched pillows between them.
Min-Jae turned on the TV. "What are we watching?"
"Rom-com."
"Horror."
They compromised by watching a horror movie about a cursed romance.
Halfway through, a jump scare made Soo-Min throw popcorn and scream into a cushion.
"I thought you were tough!"
"Shut up, that ghost had better skin than me!"
He laughed. She threw popcorn in his mouth. He choked slightly. She didn't stop.
---
Midnight Snack Disaster
Soo-Min snuck into the kitchen at 1:00 AM. She opened the fridge.
"Where's my pudding?"
Min-Jae appeared behind her like a villain. "I ate it. It expired tomorrow."
"TOMORROW! NOT TODAY! THAT'S THE FUTURE'S PROBLEM!"
They wrestled over the remaining banana. It snapped in half mid-air.
Both of them held one piece and stared.
"Truce?"
"You sleep with one eye open tonight."
---
The Last Straw
At 2:30 AM, they were finally in bed.
Or so they thought.
A loud crash came from the kitchen.
Min-Jae shouted, "Did you bring a ghost?!"
Soo-Min: "It's probably your bad cooking haunting us!"
They tiptoed into the kitchen and found... a cat.
Somehow, a stray cat had slipped in through the balcony.
It sat on the counter, smug.
Min-Jae blinked. "It's sitting on the rice cooker."
Soo-Min sighed. "Guess we have a third roommate."
They named the cat "Bokki."
Bokki scratched Min-Jae, bit Soo-Min, then went to sleep in the sink.
---
Epilogue: Day One Ends
The scoreboard for Day One:
One food fight.
Two passive-aggressive notes.
Three pillow throws.
Four cups of spilled water.
One haunted cat.
They both lay in their respective rooms, exhausted.
Min-Jae whispered to himself: "Only 1,459 more days of this."
Soo-Min muttered: "I should've chosen Canada."
Bokki meowed from the bathroom.
And Seoul slept peacefully.
For now.
---
End of Chapter 2
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