MK didn't give up.
Not when the first visit ended in disappointment.
Not when the second turned into quiet frustration.
And certainly not when the third, fourth, and fifth all followed the same cruel pattern—Shriya was never there.
Each time MK stepped into the establishment, hope followed her through the doors like a stubborn shadow. Each time, that hope walked back out with her, heavier than before.
Sometimes the staff said Shriya was on the field.
Sometimes they said she had taken the day off.
Sometimes she was on break.
Always, she was just out of reach.
Today was no different.
"She just left," someone said casually, as if they weren't shattering something fragile inside MK. "Morning shift."
MK let out a slow breath and nodded, though her chest tightened. She had tried everything—coming early, coming late, slipping in during lunch hours, even showing up when the sky was barely awake. Yet fate seemed determined to keep them apart.
Or maybe… someone else was.
Is she avoiding me on purpose, MK wondered, or am I just unlucky?
The corridor stretched long and quiet as MK walked through it, her footsteps echoing softly against the tiled floor. She was halfway down when her heart suddenly thumped hard against her ribs.
"Shrii—"
The name slipped out before she could stop it.
MK halted, eyes scanning the empty hallway. No one stood there. No familiar silhouette. No voice calling back.
She frowned.
What was that?
It felt ridiculous, but she could swear she had sensed her. Not seen—felt. The kind of instinct that doesn't come from logic but from memory, from the way someone once fit so perfectly into your world that your body still remembered them even when your mind tried to move on.
MK shook her head and turned to leave.
Two steps later, she stopped.
Then, slowly, she turned back and took another route—longer, quieter, less traveled.
Because if Shriya really was here… MK wasn't going to miss her again.
---
Shriya had known MK would come today.
She always did.
There was a pattern to MK's visits now—unintentional, but predictable if you watched closely enough. And Shriya had been watching. From behind doors. From across halls. From windows that framed exits like cinema screens.
Today, she stood inside a small room overlooking the main corridor, arms crossed, eyes fixed on the entrance.
She saw MK step in.
Saw her wait.
Saw her shoulders sink when the news reached her.
And she hated herself for the small, cruel smile that curved her lips when MK finally turned to leave.
Only then did Shriya step out.
She moved quickly, already late for her task, mind replaying the look on MK's face—confusion mixed with quiet hurt. It should have made her stop. It should have made her run after her.
Instead, she kept walking.
Until fate—ironic, relentless fate—intervened.
Shriya rounded a corner too fast and collided with someone stepping out of a door at the same time.
The impact wasn't hard, but unexpected.
She stumbled backward.
For a split second, balance wavered.
Then a hand wrapped around her waist, steadying her.
Not for long.
The grip loosened, surprise replacing instinct, and Shriya felt herself falling again. She grabbed the nearest thing she could—someone's hand.
They went down together.
The fall knocked the air from her lungs. The world tilted, lights blurring as pain sparked at the back of her head.
"Ouch…"
Her voice came out softer than she felt.
When her vision cleared, she found herself staring up at the last person she expected.
MK.
MK lay above her, frozen, eyes wide as if she'd just walked into a memory she wasn't ready to face.
For a heartbeat, neither of them moved.
Then Shriya lifted a hand and rubbed the back of her head, wincing.
"Why did you let go?" she asked quietly.
MK blinked.
"I—I'm sorry. You slipped."
A lie. And they both knew it.
Shriya's gaze sharpened. "What are you even doing here?"
MK swallowed. "I came to see you. But I was told you weren't here." Her eyes searched Shriya's face. "Are you avoiding me?"
"What?" Shriya scoffed. "Why would I avoid you?"
MK's lips curved, not in humor, but challenge.
"I don't know. Maybe you're afraid you'd fall for me again."
She leaned just slightly closer.
"Or maybe you already did."
Shriya's breath hitched. "Don't get ahead of yourself. We have nothing between us. Now get up."
But MK didn't move.
She was still braced above Shriya, one hand on the floor, gravity doing the rest. And then her eyes drifted—to a place she hadn't meant to look.
To Shriya's lips.
Her voice dropped. "Not until you give me another chance."
"MK." Shriya pushed at her shoulder. "Get up."
But MK barely shifted, her pulse loud in her ears. The air between them tightened, thick with everything they had never finished saying.
MK leaned closer—not invading, not forcing—just close enough for Shriya to feel her breath.
"Either you let me explain," MK whispered, "or I kiss you."
She leaned in, her voice barely more than a breath.
"Are you sure you're over me?"
Shriya froze.
Her heart betrayed her, pounding so loud she was sure MK could hear it.
She had practiced this moment in her head a hundred times—how she would stay strong, how she wouldn't let MK get close again.
But now that MK was here… this close… her body remembered before her mind could.
MK smiled faintly.
I still make her heart race, she realized. That means I still have a chance.
"MK," Shriya warned weakly, "don't you dare."
But MK was already leaning closer.
One inch.
Two.
"MK? Shriya?"
A voice cut through the moment like a blade.
They sprang apart.
Ben stood a few steps away, holding his phone, clearly surprised to see MK on the floor.
"Whoa—are you okay?" he asked, rushing toward her.
MK stood up quickly. "I'm fine."
Shriya was already backing away, her expression tight.
"Watch where you're going," she snapped at MK, then turned and walked off without another word.
Ben looked between them, confused but oblivious to the tension.
MK watched her go, anger and regret tangling inside her chest. Who knows when she would get another chance to kiss Shriya.
Ben smiled awkwardly. "Uh… bad timing?"
MK shot him a glare as she passed. "You're fired." MK said the first thing that came to mind.
She walked off before he could respond.
"What? You can't fire me—you're not even my boss!" Ben called, hurrying after her.
MK stopped abruptly. "I know. I'm just—" She exhaled hard. "I didn't bump into her on purpose. And she accused me like I did."
Ben studied her for a moment, then laughed softly."Hey, I was just heading for a break. Want to grab something to eat?"
MK hesitated… then nodded.
---
On the other side of the building, Shriya leaned against a wall, eyes closed, breath unsteady.
Her heart still hadn't slowed.
You're over her, she told herself. You are.
Then why had her body betrayed her?
Why had she leaned in when MK did?
Why had she swallowed, anticipation burning in her throat like muscle memory?
Shriya pressed a hand to her chest.
"What are you thinking?" she whispered to herself.