Mina still doesn’t see Chaeyoung the next morning, the girl having already left for work. But there’s a post-it on the fridge that tells her that the atmosphere between them has changed, and Mina is definitely not complaining about this improvement.

 

Hi, please feel free to eat/drink anything in the fridge! ^_^ P.S: Sorry, there isn’t much options right now, I haven’t gone grocery shopping in a while

 

Mina smiles, Chaeyoung isn’t even here but she makes her feel comfortable and at home. She opens the fridge, and it’s pretty empty, but she finds an opened bag of Frosties cereal and some strawberry milk, just right for a simple breakfast. She chuckles, Chaeyoung has the taste buds of a kid, it’s pretty cute. She pours some of the cereal into a bowl, but finishes the strawberry milk, throwing the carton into the bin. Munching on her breakfast, she decides that she should let the owner know she finished her milk, it’s basic courtesy. But she doesn’t have her number (and she should really ask for it), so she goes with leaving a post-it for her too. She writes a quick reply, but snickers as she adds a P.S at the end just to tease the other girl. Sticking her post-it next to Chaeyoung’s one on the fridge, she finishes her breakfast and starts her day with a smile.

 

--

 

Chaeyoung closes the door behind her, stretching her neck. She’s back early today, but her day seemed endless, attending meetings non-stop the moment she reached the office. And even on the way back she has to listen to Dahyun ramble on about Sana, so she’s really glad to finally have some time alone. Shuffling to the kitchen for a drink, she sees a new post-it next to her one on the fridge, and walks closer to read it.

 

Hey, I ate some cereal and finished your strawberry milk, but I will get it for you the next time I go grocery shopping! :) P.S: Why are you eating Frosties cereal? What are you, five?

 

Chaeyoung scoffs, but a smile grows on her face. She doesn’t feel offended by her words, hell, she isn’t even mad that Mina finished her favourite strawberry milk if it means that Mina is comfortable enough to like that. But she wouldn’t be Son Chaeyoung if she just backs down from a tease like that. She writes on another post-it, pasting it next to Mina’s. Smiling smugly at her work, she takes the glass of water she came in for, and heads upstairs to finally catch up on some much-needed sleep.

 

Nooooo, not the strawberry milk!!! It’s my fav… P.S: This disrespect to Frosties!! It’s the best cereal, you just have no taste. P.P.S: You ate them too. Are you five too? Oh wait you are older so you must be seven ㅋㅋㅋ

 

--

 

“Do you think they will be okay?” Dahyun bites her thumbs, it’s still not too late to go back. She was the one who suggested to go to Everland to Sana, but she can’t help but worry because they are going to be so far away from their bosses. What if they suddenly need them? They will be three hours away!

 

Sana entwines her hand with Dahyun’s, squeezing it for good measure. “Don’t worry, they are not toddlers, they can take care of themselves.”

 

Tilting Dahyun’s face to her, Sana gives her a sultry look, clearing her mind off all thoughts. “You should only focus on me today.”

 

When she finally gets her ability to speak back, Dahyun can only squeak out a timid ‘Okay’. But Sana makes it very easy for Dahyun to only focus on her, her brain overloaded by Sana’s lingering touches and smouldering glances the whole day. She’s usually absolutely terrified of going on amusement park rides, whining the whole time they queue, and straight up concussing during the actual ride. But she doesn’t even register the fear this time, with how Sana embraces her and whispers sweet-nothing into her ears while queuing, and holding her hand during the ride. She conquered the rollercoaster easily with Sana by her side, and she thinks she can conquer anything as along as Sana is by her side.

 

After screaming their lungs out, it’s time for some refreshments at the snack kiosk. They get some churros and a slushie, and Dahyun pulls out her card before Sana can even get her wallet out. She was a bit of a wimp just now during the rides so she couldn’t impress Sana, but she can surely earn some points here by paying for their food. Thankfully Sana doesn’t fight for the bill with her, just coos and thanks her with a kiss. Totally worth it, Dahyun thinks as she takes a bite out of the churros Sana is holding.

 

They spend the rest of the day going on chill rides, playing carnival games. It’s late afternoon when they receive an emergency call from Mina, needing help with something. But it’s something they will never expect, because Sana turns to Dahyun asking, “Dahyunnie, do you know any plumbers?”

 

--

 

Have you ever had the unfortunate fortune of doing your business in the bathroom and flushing, only to realize it doesn’t go down, that what you have done in the toilet is too big, too massive to be flushed away by the water? Mina just stares at the toilet, horrified at what she has done. She presses the button again, hoping that everything in the toilet will just be miraculously flushed down the second time. No such luck.

 

Now that she’s away from home, she only has one source of help that she knows she can depend on, and who won’t laugh at her for it. But Sana is on a date with Dahyun at Everland and she really doesn’t want to interrupt them, but desperate times call for desperate measures. Eventually, she swallows her pride and calls Sana, who thankfully, doesn’t laugh or . Dahyun promises to call a plumber for her, and she finally sees the light at the end of the tunnel of this ty situation.

 

She’s too anxious to wait for the plumber in her room, pacing the kitchen while staring at the main door every few seconds, hoping the doorbell will finally ring to announce the arrival of the plumber. She guesses the only consolation is that her housemate isn’t at home, god forbid this be their next meeting after exchanging all those cute post-it notes. But she has spoken too soon, because the door unlocks, and Chaeyoung enters, clutching a plunger in hand no less.

 

--

 

“Come on! It will just take a few minutes.” Chaeyoung says exasperatedly, not understanding why Mina is making such a fuss over her unclogging her toilet.

 

“Call a plumber.” Mina doesn’t budge, blocking her toilet door so that Chaeyoung cannot enter.

 

“I can literally do whatever the plumber can do. For free. Just let. me. in.” Chaeyoung tries squeezing her way through, but Mina is like a baseball player, adamant on protecting her base, the toilet.

 

“I will pay, just call a plumber.”

 

“But why!” Chaeyoung finally stops squirming, standing up straight to look at Mina.

 

“I don’t want you to see, whatever is in the toilet.”

 

“Mina,” Chaeyoung deadpans, “You do know that the plumber will have to see it anyway right?”

 

“Well, better the plumber than you! At least I won’t see the plumber ever again.” Mina looks absolutely embarrassed, cheeks burning red and Chaeyoung would feel bad for her if she’s not so focused on the task at hand.

 

Chaeyoung sighs, Mina leaves her with no choice, she’s going to bulldoze her way through then. She closes the distance between them, making the Japanese flustered at their close proximity and forcing Mina back against the door. Using that moment, Chaeyoung opens the door to the toilet, the other hand going to Mina’s waist, holding her so she doesn’t fall back. She immediately twirls them so that their positions are flipped and Mina is the one further away from the toilet, pushing her out of the bathroom. Giving a cheeky smile, Chaeyoung closes the bathroom door in Mina’s face.

 

Mina blinks, finally realizing what has happened. She tries to open the door, but it’s already locked. Banging on the door in a last-ditch effort, she cries out like her lover has just went to war without her approval. “No, you can’t, don’t do it Son Chaeyoung!”

 

But she hears the cover of the toilet being opened, and she knows it’s too late. Chaeyoung has already seen it. She’s so embarrassed she can jump out of the window right now, and they live on the 71^st floor. Maybe she should just move out, no maybe she should just move back to Japan, or maybe even Antarctica, she just wants to be anywhere but here. She hears a flush and knows that the deed is probably done, and she really can’t face Chaeyoung right now. Running into her bedroom, she buries herself in her blankets just as she hears the bathroom door opening.

 

Chaeyoung knocks on her bedroom door but she doesn’t enter, her voice sounding from a distance away, “It’s all done, the toilet is fully operational now.”

 

Mina just pulls the blanket closer around her.

 

“Okay, have a good day.” Chaeyoung leaves, knowing that Mina will want to be alone after the whole ordeal.

 

‘Have a good day’? How is she supposed to have a good day when her housemate has just seen her business in the toilet bowl? Mina shoots a quick ‘I hate you’ text to Sana (and Dahyun) before pulling out her Switch, needing a distraction from reality.

 

--

 

Her soul is finally soothed after some rounds of Smash Bros, but it doesn’t seem to be only a few rounds with how it’s all dark around her, the only source of light coming from her Switch. Powering it off, she reluctantly gets out of bed. When she gets to the kitchen, she sees Chaeyoung standing right smack in the middle, boiling water in a pot while on the phone.

 

Mina immediately turns around, heading back to her room. Funny how the tables have changed, she’s the one avoiding Chaeyoung now. But she’s halfway up the stairs when she hears Chaeyoung clambering up the stairs.

 

“Okay, I will be on the call in five minutes.”

 

Mina picks up her pace, but Chaeyoung who climbs the stairs two steps at once quickly catches up with her. Mina walks the fastest she can without running back to her room, not wanting to engage in a conversation with the Korean heiress, but Chaeyoung doesn’t let her go so easily.

 

“Mina-ssi, please feel free to use the kitchen, I won’t be down for a while.”

 

Chaeyoung knows she’s still too embarrassed to be in the same space as her, but Mina doesn’t want her to skip her dinner just because of that. She doesn’t know if Chaeyoung is intentionally going back to her room for her, but since she offered, it will be rude to decline. That’s why Mina heads back down to the kitchen, where Chaeyoung’s pot of water is still on the stove, a pack of instant noodles beside it. It seems like Chaeyoung didn’t even get the chance to start cooking her dinner when work called. It makes her feel better that Chaeyoung isn’t clearing the kitchen area for her, but she frowns at the pack of instant noodles that was supposed to be Chaeyoung’s dinner. A miserable dinner, might she add.

 

She opens the fridge, checking the groceries inside. Thankfully, there are enough ingredients for her to cook something simple, for two. Chaeyoung helped her unclog the toilet and saw her nasty business in the toilet, cooking a meal for her is the least she can do. Taking out the ingredients she needs, she rolls up her sleeves and gets to work.

 

When Chaeyoung comes back down to the kitchen again, she’s surprised to see Mina still there, but she’s even more surprised to see the plethora of dishes on the counter. She enters the kitchen area warily, but when she sees that Mina doesn’t look like she’s going to bolt, she relaxes and steps closer.

 

“What’s all this?”

 

“Dinner.”

 

Chaeyoung isn’t sure why Mina suddenly cooked a feast for her out of a sudden, is she trying to poison her to silence her or something? “Did you… put something into the food? Don’t worry, I’m not going to tell anyone what happened today. It’s really normal for toilets to be clogged here.” Chaeyoung says solemnly.

 

Mina glares at Chaeyoung. “No, but if you mention it one more time, I just might. Just sit down and eat.”

 

Deciding that it’s best not to push it further, Chaeyoung sits down obediently, picking up the spoon that is already laid out in front of her. “Thank you for the meal.”

 

Taking a sip of the miso soup, Chaeyoung hums at how delicious it is. And it goes on for every dish she tries, the humming getting louder and louder. She doesn’t know if it’s because she hasn’t eaten home cooked food for a long time, but every dish taste amazing. Mina laughs at how Chaeyoung’s eyes open in amazement at every bite.

 

“Is it that good?”

 

“Yeah, you can totally open a restaurant if you want to.” Chaeyoung hums again as she inhales another mouth of meat.

 

Mina chuckles at the compliment. “I attended a cooking academy cos I think cooking is an important life skill everyone should know. You should learn too, stop eating instant food, it’s not good for your health.”

 

“Well, I consider being able to unclog the toilet a life skill too.”

 

Mina points her fork at her, “We don’t talk about that.”

 

Chaeyoung raises her hands in surrender, but there’s a cheeky smile on her face.

 

“Thank you though.”

 

“No problem, just doing my job as a landlord.”

 

The rest of the dinner proceeded quietly but comfortably. Unbeknown to each other, they are keeping tabs on the other, jotting in their heads the other’s eating habits. Mina sees the way Chaeyoung picks out the beans from the vegetable dish, sees the way she eats with open and how she chews loudly. Chaeyoung sees the way Mina puts way too much ketchup on her sunny side up egg, sees the way Mina eats gracefully, making sure to close when she chews. They are so different from each other, but it doesn’t bother them at all, and there’s a comfortable silence in the air around them as they eat. It’s weird how comfortable it is with Chaeyoung, Mina feels as comfortable around the Korean as her two best friends, and it took her years before she warmed up to them, but it’s only been a few months since she knew Chaeyoung.

 

After finishing their dinner, they gather and stack the dirty dishes, Mina bringing them to the sink while Chaeyoung cleans the table. After cleaning the table, Chaeyoung joins her without another word, and Mina soaps the dishes before passing it to her to rinse off. They work well together, know exactly what to do to help the other even if they don’t say anything.

 

“I heard from Dahyun-unnie that the renovations for your office is almost done.”

 

“Yes, just need to work on the last part of the flooring and lighting and we are good to go.”

 

“So, when is the opening?”

 

“It’s not decided yet, but we are hoping to open by next month.” Mina passes the last plate to Chaeyoung, following up with, “You will come on the opening day, right?”

 

“If my schedule permits, sure.” Chaeyoung agrees easily.

 

--

 

Mina steels her nerves for the night of forced socializing ahead. Usually, she would have just greeted the host and hid at one corner with Sana, trying her best to avoid all social interactions with other people. However, she’s the host tonight, and she has no choice but to greet all the guests who are here for their company’s opening ceremony. Sana is also not helping today, being exceptionally sulky since Dahyun is away on a business trip with Chaeyoung and is unable to attend today’s party.

 

Mina leaves Sana be, focusing on greeting the guests. It’s only much later that she sees Sana again, the secretary bounding up to her urgently and giving a polite smile to the guests she’s talking to before leaning close to whisper into her ears, “President Son is here.”

 

Her heart rate spikes, but she keeps her expression neutral, excusing herself from the guests she’s talking to and confirming, “Chaeyoung’s grandma?”

 

Sana nods, and Mina feels the nerves creeping in. They did send an invitation to Samson of course, but they expected some associate director to turn up, not the CEO herself. And Mina doesn’t know if she can pull off the show by herself without Chaeyoung by her side, shuddering when she remembers how scary the president was when they met at Samson’s ball. But Chaeyoung is halfway across the globe now, and she has no choice but to do this alone.

 

She freezes when she spots Son Jangmi. The older woman is still a distance away, but her imposing aura makes it easy to spot her even in a room full of people. But no, that’s not the scariest part. The scariest thing is that Son Jangmi is talking to her mother. She may be able to handle President Son alone, but to add her mother to that equation? It’s just a disaster waiting to happen.

 

“President Son, thank you for coming to our company’s opening party.” Mina calls out when she gets closer, a hand held out to the older lady.

 

Jangmi smiles and takes her hand, “I have to come to congratulate my granddaughter-in-law, of course. Congratulations.”

 

Hinata Myoui smiles, but Mina can tell it means ‘you-have-some-explaining-to-do, young-lady’. “Mina, you didn’t tell me you are dating Chaeyoung.”

 

Well, because they aren’t. They were only acting for Jangmi, but it’s not like she can tell her mother that in front of the older woman herself. This was only supposed to be a show for Jangmi, but it’s slowly turning into a show for everyone. The things she does for Chaeyoung, really. Mina chuckles nervously, “We just wanted to wait till things are more settled before telling you.”

 

“Well, it was great meeting you two today, congratulations on your opening again.” Jangmi shakes Hinata’s hand before turning to Mina, “Let’s have a meal together someday, I hope you didn’t forget about that.”

 

“Of course not.” Mina hopes her smile was enough to mask how flustered she is.

 

Hinata and Mina walks Jangmi to the lift, the two smiling politely at their guest until the lift door closes. Once the lift door closes, her mother turns to her, arms crossed, waiting for an explanation, “So?”

 

Mina groans, “I will explain to you after this party.”

 

--

 

Dahyun gasps when she sees the headline of today’s news on her iPad, looking at Chaeyoung before looking back at the iPad in her hands. She does this a few more times before Chaeyoung gets annoyed and leans over to see what the big deal is about. But when she sees the headline on the article pulled up, she snatches the whole iPad out of Dahyun’s hand to read it properly.

 

Marriage in sight for Samson’s next in line?

Samson’s reigning president, Son Jangmi, was seen attending the opening party of Myoui Law Firm, and engaging with Managing Partner Myoui Mina. Other participants of the party told us that Son referred to Myoui as her ‘granddaughter-in-law’, sparking rumours that wedding bells may be ringing soon for Myoui Mina and Son Chaeyoung. The young couple was last seen attending Samson’s 82^nd anniversary ball together.

 

Photos of her and Mina at the anniversary ball are attached at the end of the article, but she ignores them, switching to look at the stock market. As expected, the stocks of Samson are increasing exponentially because of that article. In their world, marriage isn’t just between two people, but between two companies. If she and Mina were to get married, Samson will gain another ally in the form of Myoui Law Firm, helping Samson become even stronger.

 

But they are not, and that’s the problem, because this means that either Samson’s stocks are going to nosedive when they come clean, or they have to continue their show, but in front of the public this time. She rubs her temples; her grandma is one sly woman, pulling this move when she is halfway across the globe, too far away to resolve this immediately. But that doesn’t mean she’s not going to try.

 

“Dahyun-unnie, I want to finish all our appointments by tonight and be back to Korea on the first available flight.”

 

--

 

The employees bow when Chaeyoung walks past them, but she doesn’t pay any attention to them, just heads straight for her grandma’s office. Jangmi’s secretary stands up, not sure to greet her or to stop her from going in, but she doesn’t get to find out, because she pushes the door open before the secretary can get a word in.

 

Jangmi looks at the pair that has barged in her room, at the front is Chaeyoung who looks positively fuming, and her secretary who looks apologetic for not being able to stop the bull that was her granddaughter. She waves her secretary off, who promptly bows and leaves the room, not wanting to be caught in the war that is about to start.

 

“Halmeoni, why did you go to Mina’s law firm opening?” Chaeyoung cuts to the chase.

 

But Jangmi doesn’t share the same hurry, just takes off her glasses slowly and clasping her fingers together languidly. “I went to congratulate my granddaughter-in-law, is that something so wrong?”

 

“Yes. Because she isn’t your granddaughter-in-law.” Things has gotten way out of hand now, Chaeyoung has to stop all these lies before it snowballs even bigger. “We were never dating; we were just putting on a show for you. So stop going bothering her, she’s not going to be your granddaughter-in-law.”

 

Chaeyoung turns and is about to stomp out of the office, but her grandma’s next words render her immobile in front of the door.

 

“You think I don’t know?”

 

Chaeyoung spins around to face her grandma again.

 

“If you can get Director Yoo to do a background check on her in seconds, what makes you think I can’t?”

 

So that’s why her grandma did all those things. Cancelling Mina’s apartment lease so she is forced to stay with her, hoping that something will develop between them. Going to the opening ceremony of Mina’s law firm to give the false impression that they are dating seriously and will be getting married soon. Because then, the pressure wouldn’t be just making her grandma happy, but to make sure the stock prices of Samson doesn’t crash.

 

“You knew it’s fake and still did that? You know what will happen when people know the truth, right?”

 

“That’s why I’m telling you guys to turn this play into reality. You have to get married anyway, so rather than me sending you on blind dates, why don’t you just marry Mina? She must be special, if you asked her to be your fake girlfriend in the first place.”

 

Chaeyoung scoffs, she knows her grandma is used to having her way, but not this time. She’s too lazy to explain that asking Mina to be her fake girlfriend was because the lawyer just appeared right in front of her when she needed her, and not because she has some special feelings for her. “We can’t just get married just because you said so. What about what Mina thinks? I’m sure she wants to marry someone she actually loves.”

 

“Well, then make her fall for you.”

 

“That’s going to be difficult. I’m damaged goods, no one will love me, no one is going to stay after they know the truth. It’s not like you don’t know that, Halmeoni.”

 

Before Jangmi can retort, Chaeyoung continues with finality, “Mina and I will not be getting married. But to preserve our company’s stock prices, I am fine with keeping up with this fake relationship, as long as Mina is willing too. I will let you know the conclusion once I discuss this thoroughly with her. Have a good evening, Halmeoni.”

 

Jangmi watches as her granddaughter bow and stomp out of the office. She waits until her secretary comes to close her door fully that she sags in her chair, sighing. She knows very well how stubborn and rebellious Chaeyoung is, and now that the younger Son knows, she’s going to push Mina away, just to spite her. Maybe she shouldn’t have pushed them too hard, maybe she should have just let things work out by themselves after making the two youngsters live together. For the very first time in her life, Son Jangmi feels like she has made a wrong move.

 

--

a/n: soooo i have a lot to say. 

1. i have received dms asking me if i will be dropping this story because of the rumour. this update is my answer, i'm not going to stop writing because of that. as a reader of many other unfinished fics myself, i know just how frustrating it is to not know the ending of a story. so i will continue to write and finish this story. 

 

2. i know many people are disappointed because of the rumor, but i hope it serves as a reality check for all of us. shipping is just fantasy, just for fun, and fan fiction is what it is, fiction. i shipped (still do) and started writing stories about michaeng because i like the chemistry between them, and how they interact with each other etc. in reality, this chemistry is only platonic, although many people see it as more, which becomes a problem. with that being said, i know that by writing fanfic it might feed into people's delusional fantasies more, so i'm sorry if my stories fuelled such fantasies. but i'm not going to stop putting up content (and i hope i don't have to stop), because i don't want to take away the joy of reading such stories from many people just because of a few people who aren't able to differentiate reality from fantasy. going forward, i hope everyone will consume shipping content with a pinch of salt so that we can make this an enjoyable experience for everyone. 

 

3. whoever she dates is her private life, but unfortunately, many people or 'fans' are unable to accept this fact and she's currently receiving a lot of backlash from these people. they are saying bad stuff about her, and even asking her to leave the group. in times like this, what she needs most is our support, so do help to report those tweets if you see them on Twitter (or on any other platforms).