Behind the counter moved Guō Shū , a gray-furred grola woman with kind eyes and hands weathered by years of work. She hummed as she arranged blossoms, pausing to greet a young couple with a knowing smile.
A delivery truck rumbled to a stop.
"Ah—perfect timing," Guō Shū said, waving as the driver hopped out and unloaded several wooden boxes. Inside were fresh flowers, herbs, and ingredients for the day's dumplings. The driver tipped his cap, climbed back in, and drove off.
As Guō Shū She turned back toward the shop window, her eyes caught someone passing by.
A young man.
BURAJIRU
Hands in his pockets. Eyes unfocused, drifting somewhere far beyond the street in front of him.
"...Sleeper Boy?"
She leaned out the door.
"Sleeper Boy!"
He stopped. Blinked. Turned.
"Oh," he said softly. "Hey, Guō Shū."
She hurried out and wrapped him in a tight hug.
"Oof, granny, you're gonna squeeze me to death," he muttered.
She laughed and released him, then glanced down.
"And who is this little friend?"
Burajiru looked to a small cat weaving around his legs. "Oh. This is Kyra. She's... kind of a stray. I guess."
Kyra flicked her tail.
"Well aren't you precious," Guō Shū said, crouching to greet her. "You picked a good man."
Burajiru scratched the back of his neck.
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She straightened. "Say, can you help me bring those boxes inside? My back's not what it used to be."
"Yeah. Sure."
They carried the boxes in together, stacking them neatly behind the counter. The shop smelled like steamed dough and fresh petals.
They sat.
"So," Guō Shū said, pouring tea, "how's school sleepboy?"
Burajiru shrugged. "Fine. I sleep through most of it. Standardized math. Science. Reading. Pretty easy."
She stared at him.
"...You sleep?"
He nodded. "No."
She opened her mouth to scold him, then stopped.
"When I was your age," she said instead, smiling faintly, "school was everything. Friends. Dreams. That's where I met my husband."
Burajiru's eyes fluttered shut.
"His name was Ganthro," she continued. "Strong. Kind. But, like all the others he went missing some years ago." She shrugged
Burajiru says to himself, eye half closed, That's an odd reaction, shrugging off her missing husband.
Burajiru fell asleep instantly.
"HEY!" she snapped. "Don't you dare fall asleep when your elders are speaking Sleeper boy!"
He jolted upright. "S-Sorry! I'm up! I'm up!"
She sighed, shaking her head then smiling. "Life moves fast, boy. Sleep too much and it'll pass you by. You never know when you'll meet your soulmate."
"Soulmate?" Burajiru echoed.
"Yes. Sometimes they're right in front of you Sleeperboy."
He scoffed. "I highly doubt anyone on this island is worth giving a damn. Everyone's annoying. Everything's... commercialized."
She chuckled. "How would you know? You're asleep half the time."
"...Fair."
She slid some money across the table.
"No, keep it."
"Please," she insisted.
He took it.
"I gotta go," he said, standing. "I'll be late for class."
She muttered "Good day Sleeper Boy."
Burajiru "You know I have a name right?"
Guō Shū "Yes it's sleeper Boy"
Outside, the street buzzed gently.
Burajiru casually walked down the street, his afro puffed out as he let out a tired sigh.
"That's the annoying thing about an afro," he muttered, reaching up and picking at it. "You gotta keep picking it out, or it'll just do whatever it wants. Like it's got a mind of its own."
Burajiru stepped forward, and passed Plum.
She walked with Einstera and Xiu, uniforms crisp, expressions calm.
As they crossed paths, Plum slowed.
Her nose twitched.
"...Wait."
Einstera glanced back. "What is it?"
Plum frowned. "I smell something... really good."
She turned.
No one.
Burajiru was gone.
"...Strange," Plum murmured.
Then she started running.
"Plum?" Xiu called. "Hey, where are you going?"
Her stomach growled. Teeth sharpened slightly.
That smell... I need to find it.
She followed it through alleys, past rusted fences, until she reached an abandoned house.
Inside the yard sat four cats.
Eating.
A bowl of food rested on the ground.
Nothing else.
Plum stopped.
Her stomach clenched.
"...Just cat food?"
The cats glanced up, then went back to eating.
Somewhere far away, Burajiru walked on, unaware.
And Plum stood there, confused, hungry, and unsettled by a scent that lingered longer than it should have.