The atmosphere that afternoon should have been romantic. They were all dressed up and ready to go on a weekend date—Garrick in a white shirt rolled up to his elbows and dark chinos, you in a lilac midi dress and a matching small sling bag. They both looked cool, a young couple who were ready to spend the day sweetly.

But of course, their lives were never that simple.

As soon as the car engine was started, the conflict began.

“I’ll play the song first,” you said while immediately connecting his iPhone to Bluetooth.

Garrick, who was sitting behind the wheel, turned his head. “Wait. You said it was my turn to make the playlist today.”

“It was your turn last week when we went to IKEA,” you argued casually, while scrolling through your playlist. “Now it’s my turn.”

“But we discussed it last night! You said yourself ‘okay, you set the playlist, I want to listen to your weird songs so I can be a supportive wife’.” Garrick imitated your tone dramatically.

“I said that when the mood was romantic, okay? It doesn’t apply in normal conditions like now.”

Garrick let out a long sigh, his eyes glancing at the car screen that was already showing a song from your playlist: a mellow pop song that was the soundtrack of a Korean drama. “Oh God, this again? We’ve listened to this song five times this week.”

“Well, it’s good!” you replied defensively. “And you can even sing the chorus. See, don’t pretend you don’t like it.”

“I memorized it because I was forced to,” Garrick sneered. “Not because I like it.”

You raised an eyebrow. “Forced to? Wow. Last week you said the song made you mellow and reminded you of your dating days.”

“I said that so you’d stop skipping my songs!”

The car immediately went quiet… then:

“Wow, you’re quite manipulative, huh.”

“I have to survive,” Garrick replied, holding back laughter.

“I’ll change the song,” you said as you pressed skip.

Just a second after hearing it, your boyfriend immediately presses a button on the steering wheel. The song changes to his own playlist—the sound of an acoustic guitar strumming immediately fills the car.

You glance sharply. “I haven’t finished playing my playlist yet.”

“Your playlist is enough. Now it’s my turn.”

“It’s not your turn!”

“My playlist is more suitable for a relaxing drive. Your songs make you sleepy, even though we have to be alert on the road.”

“Oh, so now my songs are a threat to driving safety?”

“More or less, yes.”

You immediately touch the screen again. The song changes. Garrick touches the button. The song changes again. You change. Your boyfriend replies.

The car atmosphere becomes like a DJ battle without the music actually being played in full.

Finally...

“IT’S ALL!” you shout while pulling the aux cable from the dashboard. “Let’s just play the radio!”

“Good,” Garrick says in a high tone. “So it’s neutral!”

But when the radio was on, what came out was a celebrity gossip talk show.

The two of them glanced at each other, then laughed together.