"What's that?" Jimin asked.

Her landlord straightened some creases off the poster she pasted on the door of her fridge, showing blocks of numbers that appeared to be dates that she still can't figure for what. With a hand gesturing to the poster, her landlord answered in a firm voice, "It's a rent reduction contract."

Jimin noticed her name written on the rightmost corner of the poster as well as a color coded squares that appeared to be legends.

"1000 dollars worth of rent times three months gives twenty-one payments. You do something for me, one block gets crossed off and that's 50 dollars off what you owe."

Jimin listened with mouth wide open, eyebrow drawn in concentration, calculating the rent, numbers going off in her mind as well as what her landlord dubbed as her form of 'payment'.

"This is a new contract, so if you agree," she pointed a finger on poster, "just stamp here," her landlord finished, jacket-clad arms now hidden behind the pockets of her  jacket.

Dazed, Jimin asked one of the questions that's been bugging her, "What do you mean by 'do something for you'?"

"It's simple," her landlord started, cool stare boring into her own eyes, making her shiver as she anticipated for the answer. "If you have with me until I'm satisfied for the next twenty-one days," Jimin unconsciously covered her chest at the word '', cheeks heating up at the mere mention of the word but her landlord continued, unflinching," everything will be paid off."

'That's not simple!' she thought, blushing hard under her landlord's stare. Why is her body reacting like this?

"I-I'M NOT GONNA DO IT ANYMORE!" she yelled, unable to stop herself anymore. Her landlord just responded with an indifferent 'Huh'.

"What's with the face?" she asked, under (even when she's a good few inches taller than her landlord) her scrutiny.

"Well ... you seemed into it last night, I thought you might be willing again," her landlord said, pursing her lips in thought. Cheeks puffing adorably, resembling a hamster. Jimin can't seem to stop getting flustered around her landlord and with a cute expression in her landlord's face, she felt like a hypocrite acting like this. Belatedly her mind thought, 'What have I done exactly?'

"And if you share an apartment with me, I can rent out my current place," her landlord continued, "You'd have even less rent to worry about."

Jimin whipped her head so fast at her landlord's words, she felt a momentary whiplash, and a sting on her neck as she responded in shock, "LIVING WITH MY LANDLORD?!"

"I think the deal's quite beneficial for you ..." Jimin felt her body grew warm, images entering her mind if such arrangement ever persist. A hysterical laughter escaping her trembling lips. This would not have happened if she chose to gulp down her pride and continued working in her old company.

"B-But there's only one bed ... if you attacked me ..." her landlord's gaze hardened at her insinuation, a quiet and cold kind of fury lying beneath pools of brown that made Yoo Jimin pause in her sentence.

A momentary silence ensued save for the low hum of the heater. Jimin can feel her resolve crumbling under her landlord's stare even when there's no way of knowing wether its safe or not to risk living with her. It's gamble that she's considering.

"Then, I guess, there's nothing left to talk about," her landlord said, finally breaking the silence, brushing past her in huge steps, quickly opening the door, "I'll be waiting for your payments."

Before she could fully get out, Yoo Jimin stumbled to stop her. Shouting 'W-Wait!' and grabbed strands of her landlord's hair to her stop. Memories flashing in her eyes, vague yet the eyes, her landlord's eyes, as she stare back in confusion remain vivid in her mind. Even at what Jimin briefly insinuated, she knows the eyes staring back at her won't harm her in any way. A decision born of a gamble, she'll deal with the consequences later.

And as she held the strand of hair, there was a certain softness in her landlord's gaze. She wanted to ask what it was about but the moment was quickly gone too soon.

***

The stamp she left on the poster was an image that chased Yoo Jimin as they slowly cleaned up her living quarters to make it habitable for two adults. Her landlord was quick on her feet as she picked up cans of beer and crumpled bags of chips, disposing it on a trashbag, leaving a clean trail on her wake.

As what her landlord mentioned, she'll rent out her place and in turn they will share an -- her -- apartment so Jimin would have less rent to worry about on top of her unpaid debt. "I can't sleep in these conditions," her landlord said, drily, pulling a soiled comforter off the floor and putting it away.

"You can keep the bed. I'll sleep on the floor," Jimin heard her say, that made her stare in surprise, afterall, her landlord technically owns her apartment and thus have every right to claim the bed yet she chose to sleep on the floor. Jimin doesn't know why but her heart swelled with warmth at the gesture.

Her landlord looked away after saying that, Jimin noticed reddened ears peeking over her hair, coughing on a hand in embarassment she continued, "You don't have to worry about speaking politely with me. I'm younger than you after all. It'll be simpler that way."

Jimin perked up at that bit of information, "Yes ... Okay, er, how old are you?" she asked after a beat.

"I'm 21--"

"What?! You're barely legal!"