Seth worked the night shift at the only convenience store in town. Everyone knew him β not just as the cashier, but as the handsome face people whispered about. Women admired him, though he never reached back. Praise was familiar, but it didnβt change the weight he carried. His fatherβs debts clung to him like a shadow, turning his life into something far less beautiful than it looked from the outside.
βΈ»
Friday night, close to midnight
The store was wrapped in silence, the fluorescent lights buzzing faintly overhead. Seth sat behind the counter, scrolling through his phone, one hand propping up his head. Another sigh slipped out β nights like this dragged on endlessly.
Ding.
The bell over the door chimed.
βWelcome to our convenience storeββ Seth began, his tone automatic, bored.
But when his gaze lifted, the words caught.
βΈ»
A man had stepped inside, quiet and deliberate. The air shifted with him. He wasnβt familiar β and in a town where Seth knew every regularβs face, that was enough to raise the hairs on his neck.
The stranger didnβt look around like most customers did. He just moved forward, slow, as if he belonged there.
He was wearing a long black trench coat, a taupe crewneck top, dark grey tailored trousers, a black belt, black socks, and shiny black leather loafers with chunky soles. his hair was tied into a low ponytail, with loose strands framing my face in the front and layered ends left slightly messy at the back.
And Seth, for the first time in a long while, wasnβt so sure.