He’s working part time at the convenience store again. 

 

It’s nearly midnight, and the store is almost empty. But he comes here, almost every night after high school. 

 

And so do you.

 

“Thank you for your patronage.” He says, bagging up the last customer's order, smiling as he watches them leave the store.

 

Though that smile wasn't meant for you, your heart beats a little faster.

 

You love him, and all the various expressions his face makes. You love them so much you can’t bear to miss a single one. It’s why you’re here after all, taking pictures of him and carefully adding them to the collage of images you’ve accumulated over the past few hours.

 

20:54 - Julian’s washing the dishes. He would make such a cute husband! >//<

 

21:30 - Oh no. A customer is complimenting him. He’s flustered. So cute!

 

22:35 - He’s eating the leftover mandu. Is he still hungry? He’s saving some for his sister. It must be hard living without your parents...

 

23:55 - It’s nearing the end of his shift. He doesn’t look too tired today, he’s even smiling at the customers! (≧∇≦)/ I’m so glad... 

 

Before you know it, his shift ends, and you watch as he leaves the store, heading towards a rickety looking old van with paint chipped off near the doors. The engine sputters to life, and he drives away.

 

You follow him.

 

The route he takes is familiar. You trail behind him, careful not to be seen. You must be good at this - for the past four months, he hasn’t noticed anything out of the ordinary. At very least, he’s never tried to turn right three times or drive to a police station.

 

Then he turns and leaves the better streets behind. Soon there were fewer lights and glass shop windows. The tipsy salary men and women gave way to beggars who sat unnoticed at street corners, clutching at the clothes of those who walked by. Light still pours out of the nearby bars and clubs, but the ambiance is no longer welcoming. 

 

He doesn’t belong here, in this place filled with rough men and women, where people do whatever it takes to survive. 

 

But in a way, you're glad. His poverty makes him more vulnerable, which means he will be all the more grateful when you finally decide to save him. 

 

»»————-

 

1:21 AM

 

You’re back at your apartment. It’s on the top floor of a recently developed high rise, a gift your father bought for your sixteenth birthday. You take out the key, fitting it to the lock and turning before drawing it out in one fluid motion.

 

There’s nobody inside, as usual.

 

Your father owns a silicon wafer company overseas, and you’ve never known your mother. Instead, you've been raised by a live-in nurse until your eighteenth birthday, when you were finally able to convince father you could stay on your own.

 

You know they love you. They’ve said so themselves over and over again. But you don’t feel anything when they say those words, and you feel nothing when you tell them over the phone that you love them back.

 

Instead, you feel… alone. Homeschooled most of your life, you’ve never had anyone to call a friend. 

 

You’ve simply trudged along, keeping your head down and spending your free time alone. You were insecure and quiet, hoping not to be noticed by anyone.

 

But that was until you met… him. 

 

Julian. 

 

For the first time, you understood the impulse that drove people to sculpt, to sing. For the first time, you understood how it felt to lust, and to love.

 

The life that was once methodic and dull suddenly had meaning again, and your pale gray eyes that once looked like the windows to an empty house, now shone with life.

 

You get in bed, setting an alarm for seven thirty in the morning.

 

“Darling…” You say, staring up at the ceiling. Pictures of him hang there, thoughtfully glued together in a collage of images. There used to be only one or two, but as the months went on, they now fully cover your walls.

 

You know this is wrong. Following him and capturing moments of his life without his knowledge or consent. But at this point you’re addicted, and you can’t bring yourself to care.

 

You close your eyes, imagining a future where he is in your life. Where you are his sweet and perfect girlfriend. You are too nervous to ask him right now, so it’s all you can do for now. 

 

Imagine.

 

»»————-