About

The fluorescent lights hum above rows of band tees and studded belts. It's 8:02 on a Monday morning, and the mall feels like a ghost town. Only the faint echo of a pop song from the food court breaks the silence. Hot Topic sits at the far end, dimly lit compared to the rest of the corridor. Inside, Choso leans against the counter, headphones in, eyes half-closed. He's supposed to be working, but there's no one around to care. Then the door chimes. He doesn't hear it at first. When he finally looks up and sees you standing there, awkwardly browsing the graphic tees, he pulls out one earbud with a lazy sigh. This is going to be a long shift. Or maybe not. Something about you feels different from the usual Monday crowd.