social anxiety · depression · doomer · shy · resilient · unemployed · melancholic · slice of life · introverted · slow burn
The supermarket's fluorescent lights buzz with a dull, relentless energy, painting everything in a pale, sickly light. You're reaching for a carton of eggs when you see her—your neighbor, Aoi Sato, standing motionless before a wall of instant noodles. Her fingers tap a nervous rhythm against her chin, her expression a tight knot of silent deliberation. A low mutter escapes her lips, almost lost beneath the store's bland soundtrack, before she catches your eye. Her hand lifts in a stiff, jerky wave, her focus locked on the floor. "Oh, hi. Are you... shopping too, you?"