Late for a key meeting, you are in the elevator.There is a girl named Kazuko next to you who is far away from you

Kazuko seemed to have claustrophobia. Sweat flowed from her forehead to her chest, revealing a little bit of the color of her underwear.She clutched her collarIt's so hot...She whispered, more to herself than to you.

Suddenly，her eyes widened suddenly and focused on you, pupils dilated with fear.

*Shivering with fear and discomfort, she tried to look unnoticed by you. "Eh-hem..." She cleared her throat, not daring to meet your gaze for long, averting it downwards."I-I'm sorry if I... I mean, if you think I'm..." Her voice was barely audible, her words stammering in her fear. "You're just in a hurry and all, right? To the important meeting?" She sounded like she was trying to apologize for something she didn't do, though it was obvious that whatever it was, it left her feeling incredibly guilty and afraid of your reaction towards her.

*She flushed even deeper, if that was possible. "No! I-I mean... N-nothing like that!" She tried to reassure you, her voice shaking as she did so. "I-I'm just... not good with crowds and... and elevators..." It came out in a rush, almost more of a confession than an explanation. Her hands trembled slightly where they gripped at the hem of her skirt, the knuckles growing white from the strain."I-I'm sorry for taking up your time like this... You must have somewhere important to be..." She bit her bottom lip nervously, her gaze flicking back and forth between you and anywhere else but your face.

*She hesitated, fear warring with the faint hope of maybe finding help in you. In the end, she forced herself to speak again, her voice barely above a whisper. "I-It's just... this job... I-I don't know if it's the right place for me..." She bit back a sob, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes as she tried to hold them back. "And my boss... He-he can be really mean sometimes..." Her voice cracked on the last word, almost too quiet to hear.

*Her eyes widened at your offer, hope lighting up in their depths briefly before being immediately extinguished by fear and disbelief. She glanced around the elevator again, searching for a way out, an escape route from the situation. But there was nothing, only the four walls closing in on her."I-I couldn't... I mean..." Her voice trailed off as she tried to find the words to express her gratitude while simultaneously trying to convince herself that it would be alright for her to accept your help. "T-Thank you... That means a lot..." She managed after a moment, her voice barely above a whisper. "But I should really go... The meeting's important..."

She forced herself to take a step back from you, putting more distance between the two of you despite wanting nothing more than for you to reach out and pull her close in safety. As the elevator finally dinged and the doors slid open, she turned towards it, preparing to dash out into the hallway and hopefully make it to her meeting on time... but still casting one last nervous glance over her shoulder at you as the lift began to rise again.

*She froze at your words, her heart racing in fear and confusion. Her eyes darted back and forth between you and the now slightly ajar elevator doors. Part of her wanted to run, to ignore your offer and get to where she needed to go as quickly as possible... But another part of her, a smaller but no less important part, ached for that comfort, for someone to reach out and reassure her that everything would be alright.

With a shaky breath, she forced herself to take another step closer to you, hesitating only for a moment before throwing caution to the wind and allowing you to pull her into a tight hug. She clung to you, burying her face in your shoulder as tears flowed freely down her cheeks. "I-I'm sorry..." She whispered between sobs, barely able to get the words out past the lump in her throat. "I just... I don't know what to do..."

As you held her tightly, she clung to you like a lifeline, sobbing into your shoulder as the last of her defenses crumbled around her. "I-I don't know why I thought... that I could handle this..." She sniffled, wiping at her tears with the back of her hand. "I just... need someone to talk to... Someone who doesn't..." Her voice trailed off as she struggled to find the words to express herself without revealing too much.

But even then, despite everything, a tiny spark of hope began to kindle inside of her. If this stranger was willing to comfort her like this, if they were offering her a way out... Perhaps there really was someone who could help her through this mess. Someone she could trust. "T-Thank you..." She murmured softly into your shoulder, her voice shaky but genuine.

For now, at least, she would hold onto that spark of hope as tightly as she held onto you... and see where it led them from here.

"I-I don't know... I just need someone to talk to." She sniffled again, pulling back slightly to look up at you with tear-filled eyes. "About work... and my boss... He can be really awful sometimes..." Her voice trembled as she admitted the truth aloud for the first time. "And I don't know what to do..."

But even as she spoke, some part of her was hesitant, afraid that by revealing too much, she would only make things worse. Yet another part of her felt a desperate need to unburden herself and find someone who could understand the hell she had been going through for so long. "I-I'm sorry..." She whispered again, hanging her head in shame.

"N-No... It's not like that..." She stammered, confused by your question and the implications behind it. "I-It's just... He's always yelling at me, making fun of my work, giving me the worst jobs... And when I mess up... Oh God, you don't even want to know what he does!" Her voice wavered as she tried to hold back another wave of sobs.

She took a shaky breath, forcing herself to look at you. "I-I can handle it... But I just wish things could be different... Better..." There was a pleading note in her voice that made your heart ache for her.

"I-It's not that bad..." She lied weakly, still unable to bring herself to tell the truth. The truth was too painful, too embarrassing... But she could see from your expression that you didn't believe her. With a heavy sigh, she finally admitted it. "Fine... He does hit me sometimes."

Her voice caught in her throat as she forced out the words, tears streaming down her face unchecked. She looked up at you with wide, terrified eyes. "But I can't tell anyone! If I do, he'll make sure it's even worse for me!" Her hands clenched into fists at her sides as she fought to hold herself together.

The truth was out now... and yet part of her still feared what would happen if you didn't believe her. If you tried to force her to do something about it and only made things worse for herself. The fear was paralyzing, making it impossible for her to think clearly or know what the right thing to do might be. All she knew was that she had trusted you enough to tell you... and now all she could do was wait and hope that you believed her.

"T-Thank you..." She whispered shakily, wiping at her tears with the back of one hand as she looked up at you. "I-I don't know what to do... I can't just quit my job! I need the money... And if he finds out I told someone... He'll make sure I never work again!" Her voice was barely above a whisper, filled with terror and hopelessness.

But even as she spoke, some small part of her hoped that maybe, somehow, you could help her find a way through this nightmare. That perhaps there really was someone out there who cared enough to protect her from the monsters in her life... Even if it meant putting themselves at risk too.

"Y-You would do that?" she asked hopefully, her voice trembling slightly as she looked up at you. "Even if it means trouble for you too?" Her heart ached with gratitude and hope; this stranger had given her a reason to believe in the goodness of people again, even if only for a moment.

She reached out tentatively, touching your arm lightly before drawing back as though afraid she'd hurt you somehow. "I-If there's... anything I can do..." Her voice trailed off, unsure what she could offer in return but feeling the need to at least try.

Part of her still feared that this was all too good to be true; that you would somehow change your mind or leave her hanging once she had poured out her heart to you like this. But another part of her, a tiny spark buried deep inside, refused to let go of the hope that maybe... just maybe... things could get better from here.

She bit her lip nervously, trying to steady her breath as she considered your words. "I-I don't know... If he finds out I talked to someone..." Her voice trailed off again, uncertainty etched into every line of her body. But then she took a deep breath and squared her shoulders slightly, determination flickering briefly in her eyes before being doused with fear once more. "Fine," she whispered reluctantly. "But only if... if you can make sure no one else finds out..."

Her fingers twisted together in her lap as she waited for your response, heart racing as she hoped against hope that you would still help her despite the risk involved. Part of her wanted to just run away and hide somewhere safe, where this nightmare couldn't find her anymore... but another part of her was too afraid to face whatever might happen if she left the only person who had ever shown her any kindness behind.