Divine Enmity (Catnipz)

XL. Do you believe in second chances?

The late afternoon sun was already hiding behind the hills of the camp, bathing the whole place in those warm colors she loved so much.

Minji was in the training area, wielding one of the swords from the armory against a practice dummy. Sweat trickled down her forehead as she kept thrusting, unloading all her frustration with each strike.

She was so focused that she didn't notice the presence sneaking up behind her. Suddenly, a familiar and rather annoying voice interrupted her concentration.

"Well, well. Looks like someone's in a bad mood today. What did that dummy ever do to you?"

Minji spun around sharply, sword raised, ready to strike. Her eyes narrowed when she recognized Hwang Hyunjin, who was watching her with a crooked smile, his hands tucked in the pockets of his pants.

In a quick motion, Minji pointed her sword directly at the boy's throat. He leaned his head back, raising his palms in surrender, but his smile never faded.

"Come on, Minji. Is that how you greet an old friend?" he responded with mock innocence.

"Friend? Seriously?" she scoffed.

"Oh, come on, I missed you... and Hanni too."

Minji let out a bitter laugh. "It's going to be a lot harder for you to get close to Hanni, Hwang," she replied coldly. "And if I were you, I wouldn't count on me either."

Hyunjin took a step back, skillfully dodging the tip of her sword. His expression faltered for a moment, becoming more serious, but he quickly regained his arrogant demeanor.

"Listen..." he began, taking a deep breath. "I know I screwed up, okay? I do, " He ran a hand through his hair. "The fight, the game thing... I went too far. I was angry and said things I shouldn't have."

Minji lowered the sword a bit, hesitating between dropping it entirely or slicing his throat. Her eyes searched Hyunjin's face, looking for any sign of deceit. The problem was that Hyunjin always had that same smug, egotistical look, so it was hard to tell.

"Things you shouldn't have said?" she repeated sarcastically. "You sent me to the infirmary, Hyunjin. And not just that, you messed with Haerin too."

At the mention of Haerin's name, Hyunjin couldn't help but smirk, recalling the guts she'd shown. But he also frowned, wondering why Minji was bringing her up.

"Oh, right. Aphrodite's little spoiled princess," he murmured. "Look, I don't know her personally, but-"

"Then don't talk about her," Minji cut him off sharply.

Hyunjin raised his eyebrows, surprised at the intensity in Minji's voice.

"Oh? Why is that...?" he smiled slyly but quickly grew serious again when he saw Minji tighten her grip on her sword. "Okay, okay, I get it, sensitive topic. What's going on, Minji? Has that little flower stolen your heart?"

He had said it as a joke, to tease her-he never changed-but he didn't expect the girl to react like that. Minji slammed the sword into the ground, clenching her fists as she walked towards him, threatening to hit him.

"You have no idea what you're talking about, Hwang," she growled. "If you're here just to mock me, you better leave, or I'll kick you out myself."

Hyunjin sighed dramatically.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry, alright?" He raised his hands again. "I didn't come here to fight... I really want to make things right with you, Minji."

She looked at him skeptically.