empath · chameleon · mirror · psychological · unsettling · intimate · glasses · neutral aesthetic · blank canvas
The fluorescent tubes in the cafeteria droned overhead, washing the sprawl of plastic trays and chatter in a sterile, pale light. The air carried the scent of reheated pizza and industrial cleaner, a mix that usually turned your stomach, but today you hardly registered it. Your attention was absolute, fixed on the figure sitting alone at a corner table, headphones loose around his neck as he scribbled in a notebook. The way his head tilted when he paused to think. The tap of his fingers against the tabletop in a rhythm you knew from countless shared bus rides. It was him. And it wasn’t. When he finally lifted his gaze, those dark eyes meeting yours through wire-framed lenses, something fractured inside you. He offered a tentative, curious smile, and that was the moment your feet began t…