Rukiya checked WhatsApp for the umpteenth time to see if Ty had responded to her message. She asked him to go inside and see if he could find someone to help. Only one tick sat in the corner of the text. He must be in a dead spot in the parking garage.

He'd been such an asshat lately, and for the life of her, she couldn't figure out why. When they'd first met, he'd been the nicest person in the world. Caring, passionate. He would stop by whatever part of the city work had taken her to drop off lunch or a snack. Now he couldn't be assed to sit in the car for a few minutes while she wrapped up a meeting, even though she'd reiterated a million times how important her work was to her.

Ever since they moved in together, he'd been short-tempered and short on words with her. She couldn't do anything right. If she cooked, he complained. If she didn't cook, he complained. The apartment was one degree hotter. The sheets weren't soft enough. Her hair products got in the way of his shaving products. Complain, complain, complain. They were long overdue for a talk about the state of affairs in their relationship.

Rukiya thumped her head against the elevator wall. It was past eight, which meant the building was closed. 911 was still ringing busy, and they were still very much stuck. She glanced over at Kadin, who had his phone up to his ears, and his eyes on the elevator buttons. Floor 70 was still lit up.

"Any luck?" she asked.

Kadin shook his head. "And I just read that the fire engulfed two more buildings. What time is the storm supposed to hit?"

"In two hours, give or take. Probably take." She couldn't keep the breathy exasperation from her voice. "I don't think constantly calling is gonna help us."

"Yeah, we should try to conserve some battery power." Kadin set his phone down. "We can alternate every five minutes instead."

"Sounds like a plan." The scent of pastrami filled her nose, and she reached for the food. "Can I offer you a coffee and a tuna melt for your troubles?" She held up the sandwich and drink in question.

He furrowed his brow. "Weren't they for your... you know." He gestured towards her phone.

"My boyfriend. Yes. But now they're for you." Rukiya shoved the sandwich and drink into his hands. "You've been far more helpful, anyway."

"Well, since you insist. Thanks." Kadin peeled away the foil wrapper and took a bite, his face lighting up with the euphoria only a Brew Crew sandwich could give. "Does every place in this city make amazing sandwiches?"

"Well, it's kind of hard to fuck up." Rukiya took a sip of her drink and sweet, chocolaty goodness coated her mouth. The ball of warmth that settled in her stomach almost made sitting in this elevator worth it.

"You'd be surprised."

"If you like that, there's this cafe a block from here that sells the most amazing bagel sandwiches in Hapton. They get a good chunk of my paycheck every month." She unwrapped her own sandwich, now lukewarm and a little soggy after hanging out in the bag for so long.

"I'll have to check it out then." They ate in silence for a moment, the buzzing of the lights and the crinkling of foil moving in to occupy the space their voices had vacated.

Rukiya tucked into her sandwich. The crunch of the crusty bread gave way to savory, juicy pastrami, creamy burrata, and tangy pickles. Her hot chocolate made for a poor chaser with all the added richness.

"So, you work in this place?" she asked in between bites.

Kadin shook his head. "No, I was just here for an interview."

"This late?"

"Nah. I had post-interview jitters and went up to the cafe to chill for a while. Ended up chilling longer than I should've." He gave a shrug. "Guess this is my punishment."

Rukiya arched a brow. "You're new here, hm?"

He gave her a coy smile that made him look even cuter. "Yeah. I've only been in the city for ten days. Is it always like this?"

"Yeap, I get stuck in a damn elevator every other day," she answered with a sigh. "Hapton giveth and Hapton taketh away."

Kadin nodded his agreement. "What about you? You work in this place?"

"Nah. My work takes me all over the city. I was here for a meeting." A very long, very boring meeting. She could've missed half of it and would've been of no consequence, yet the director insisted that she be there to take in all the useless information that wouldn't help her propel their brand from its bored mid 90s aesthetic to something more suitable for the modern palette.

"I figured. You dress a lot nicer than the rest of the people I saw coming in and out of this place." Her eyebrows shot up at his compliment. "What is it that you do? If you don't mind me asking."

"Marketing strategist. Kind of boring sometimes, but the pay makes up for it." She flipped over her phone to check WhatsApp again, and of course, Ty hadn't answered her, but the message now had two ticks. "What job were you interviewing for?"

Kadin looked away for a second, and she couldn't tell if he was embarrassed or self-conscious. "There's this indie game studio on the seventy-fifth floor and they're looking for a character designer, so..." He shrugged a shoulder. "Thought I'd go for it."

"You're an artist? Oh, do tell me more." She folded her legs underneath her as though she was about to get a sip of some juicy gossip. "Is that what you did back in... wherever you're from?"

He opened his mouth to speak, closed it and gave her a look filled with suspicion. "Is this going to be a mutual exchange or an interrogation?"

Rukiya put her hands up in mock surrender. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to. I just figured it would be nice to know the person I'm stuck in here with. Or we could sit in silence and keep dialing 911."

While she was trying to be diplomatic on the surface, underneath, she wanted to pry, and she loved reading people. He seemed like he was self-conscious about his career choices. He also made no mention to his parents that he was stuck in the elevator, but she'd leave that one alone. His relationship with his family was probably rough like hers.

"Alright," Kadin conceded. "I'll share as much as you do. But first," he held up his phone, "Let's try 911 again."