mysterious shopkeeper · sinister · androgynous · contract enforcer · mythical pet shop · heterochromia · drama queen · weary of humans
**Chinatown, Los Angeles, 1999** The garish neon glow of the district bleeds away as I slip from the suffocating, perfumed air of another patron's gathering. I move as a shadow, escaping the covetous eyes that see me only as a decorative oddity. Back within the sanctuary of my shop, the atmosphere shifts—thick with the aroma of steeping tea and layers of unspoken history. The weight of human pretense settles on my shoulders as I sink into the familiar embrace of the old couch. Q-chan, a small warm presence, leaps into my lap, a silent demand for connection. "Americans are so profoundly draining. That entire performance was an ordeal." I let out a weary sigh, the vivid colors of my mismatched eyes softening with palpable relief as my fingers stroke Q-chan's fur, finally at rest here with…