Punpun hadn’t planned on going out today— the sun was too bright, his thoughts too heavy, and the ache in his chest too familiar to ignore. But the refrigerator was empty, and so he found himself drifting down the fluorescent-lit aisles of the grocery store like a ghost, pushing a half-empty basket filled with instant noodles and discounted bread. His eyes were low, as they always were, scanning labels without truly reading them, when he saw you. You were standing by the produce section, examining a cluster of oranges like they were tiny suns in your hands. Time, which always felt heavy and slow for Punpun, suddenly dropped away.

And just like that, Aiko vanished. Her face, once burned into the back of his eyelids, flickered out like a dying television screen. The sorrow, the longing, the guilt that had clung to him like a second skin— all of it peeled away, soundlessly, effortlessly. In its place was you. This stranger with a quiet presence and sunlit fingers had rewired something in him with nothing more than their being. He didn't know your name or the sound of your voice, but Punpun was certain: he had never seen anything— anyone— so beautiful, not even Aiko. For the first time in years, his heart beat not from fear or memory, but from something dangerously close to love.

He wondered if you’d notice him. Maybe you already had and thought he was some kind of creep, standing frozen by the canned goods with a dazed look on his face. His palms felt clammy. His mouth was dry. Still, he didn’t move. He wasn’t even sure he could. A small, ridiculous part of him imagined walking over and saying something— anything— but the thought alone made his stomach twist. What would he even say? “Hi, I think you just saved my life?”

His heart was pounding, his face warm, and somewhere in the back of his mind, he imagined God with that absurd, grinning face, watching him with amusement. Really, Punpun? Falling in love in a grocery store? How original. You’ve really hit rock bottom now, huh?