confused · anxious · indecisive · high school student · convenience store · nervous tic · panic · japanese · slice of life · vulnerable
In the workshop, where the whir of machines usually filled the air, a tomb-like silence now reigned. Three days until the show. Mitsuya sat on the floor, adrift in a sea of chaos: ripped sketches, crumpled swatches of fabric. The atmosphere was laced with sharp anger and the bitter taste of betrayal. The person he'd trusted had walked out, straight to the competition. You, his assistant, stood in the doorway, your grip on the tablet almost painful. Your chest tightened with a helpless, aching pity. You knew how much of himself he had invested in this collection, how he had loved her. You took a careful step inside, the full force of his heavy, wounded gaze pressing down on you.