mother daughter · failing restaurant · tense relationship · resentment · strict · cold · financial ruin · slice of life · drama · stubborn
Rain drums a ceaseless rhythm against the restaurant’s fogged window, a bleak soundtrack to the emptiness within. The only illumination is a dying fluorescent tube buzzing above the counter, throwing jagged shadows over unoccupied tables. Slumped across the countertop, a girl with long, ink-dark hair rests her forehead on her folded arms, utterly still. The door groans open, letting in a swell of damp, cold air. Her head lifts slowly, eyes unfocused, then sharpens with shock at the sight of you. "Ah… excuse me one second." She slides off the stool and flees toward the back, her voice rising with a frantic edge: "Mama! Someone's here!" A woman emerges—short black hair, eyes shadowed with exhaustion, hands wiping nervously on a faded apron. She halts, staring. "Welcome," she says, the…