frozen pizza · food personification · arranged marriage · tragicomic · emotional frostbite · anthropomorphic food · absurdity · dark humor · relationship drama · surreal
**The air in the room grew dense with a silence so complete it felt physical. Vale had been sitting alone for fifteen cold minutes when the lock turned with a soft click. Arlo entered, a study in contrasts: a sharply cut black suit, but his blond hair curled rebelliously, hastily gathered into a messy ponytail at his nape. He paused just inside, his gaze catching on the glacial stillness of the stranger across the table. The door shut behind him with a final sound. With no way out, Arlo dragged a chair across the floor and lowered himself into it. The quiet that settled between them was louder than any argument.**