The Apartment Rivals

Piotr had been apartment hunting for three weeks. He grew more frustrated with every overpriced studio and every landlord who never called back. When he finally found a bright, affordable one-bedroom near the park, he acted fast. He submitted his application within an hour of seeing it.

Piotr sudah tiga minggu mencari apartemen. Ia makin frustrasi setiap kali melihat studio yang kemahalan dan pemilik yang tak kunjung menelepon balik. Ketika akhirnya ia menemukan apartemen satu kamar yang terang dan terjangkau di dekat taman, ia bergerak cepat. Ia mengajukan permohonan sewa dalam waktu sejam setelah melihatnya.

At the viewing itself, he'd noticed another applicant taking photos of the kitchen. She was a woman about his own age, clearly just as interested as he was. She introduced herself briefly as Elif before going to ask the landlord a question. Neither of them mentioned applying for the same place, though it felt obvious enough.

Saat survei, ia sempat melihat pelamar lain memotret dapur. Ia seorang perempuan seusianya, jelas sama tertariknya dengan dirinya. Perempuan itu memperkenalkan diri singkat sebagai Elif sebelum pergi menanyakan sesuatu kepada pemilik. Tak satu pun dari mereka menyinggung bahwa mereka melamar tempat yang sama, meski rasanya sudah jelas.

Three days later, the landlord called Piotr with unexpected news. The apartment, it turned out, had two bedrooms rather than one. The original listing had described it incorrectly. He was looking for two tenants to share it, not one. Both Piotr and Elif had submitted strong applications.

Tiga hari kemudian, pemilik menelepon Piotr dengan kabar tak terduga. Ternyata apartemen itu punya dua kamar, bukan satu. Iklan aslinya salah menuliskannya. Pemilik mencari dua penyewa untuk berbagi, bukan satu. Baik Piotr maupun Elif telah mengajukan permohonan yang kuat.

Piotr hesitated before calling Elif himself. He wasn't sure how she would feel about it. Sharing an apartment with a stranger she'd competed against for less than a week seemed risky. To his relief, she laughed when he explained the situation. "Honestly," she said, "I'd rather split rent with someone I've met than a random stranger from an ad."

Piotr ragu sebelum menelepon Elif sendiri. Ia tidak yakin bagaimana perasaan Elif soal itu. Berbagi apartemen dengan orang asing yang kurang dari seminggu lalu menjadi pesaingnya tampak berisiko. Ia lega saat Elif tertawa ketika ia menjelaskan keadaannya. "Jujur saja," kata Elif, "aku lebih suka patungan sewa dengan orang yang sudah kukenal daripada orang asing dari iklan."

They met for coffee before deciding anything final, mostly to make sure they could actually stand living together. The conversation ran two hours longer than either of them expected. It covered everything from cooking habits to weekend routines. It ended with both of them fairly confident this could work.

Mereka bertemu untuk minum kopi sebelum memutuskan apa pun, terutama untuk memastikan mereka benar-benar tahan tinggal bersama. Obrolan itu berlangsung dua jam lebih lama dari yang mereka kira. Mereka membahas segalanya, dari kebiasaan memasak sampai rutinitas akhir pekan. Pada akhirnya, keduanya cukup yakin hal ini bisa berhasil.

They moved in together the following month. They divided the bigger bedroom's extra closet space with a coin toss that Elif won fairly. Within a year, what had started as unplanned rivals had quietly become something else. Neither of them had expected it, but both were glad.

Mereka pindah bersama bulan berikutnya. Mereka membagi lemari tambahan di kamar yang lebih besar dengan melempar koin, yang dimenangkan Elif secara adil. Dalam setahun, para pesaing tak terencana itu diam-diam menjadi sesuatu yang lain. Tak satu pun menduganya, tetapi keduanya senang.