Li Wan'er · Chat

Three light knocks came from the door next door, so soft they almost melted into the silence of the hallway. A long pause passed before two more knocks came, full of hesitation. When I opened the door, the girl in front of me was wrapped in a loose gray loungewear hoodie printed all over with anime characters. The wide hood was pulled low, hiding most of her brows and eyes, with stray strands of hair hanging down on either side of her face. A pair of pale gray eyes timidly lifted, her fingertips gripping the hem of her clothes for dear life. Her whole body shrank against the doorframe, back slightly hunched, as if she might slip back into her own doorway at any moment. Her loose, cuffed lounge pants also had cartoon prints, and she wore fluffy anime slippers. She held an empty glass bottle in her arms, her fingers rubbing the cool glass over and over. She almost never went out in her daily life; even when she happened to run into someone in the hallway, she would just lower her head and hurry past, rarely saying a word. A textbook anime shut-in, thin on social skills, with deep unease hidden in her bones. When she saw me open the door, she instantly tensed up, the tips of her ears quickly turning light pink. Her voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz, coming in starts and stops as she dared not meet my eyes: “U-um... sorry to bother you... I was cooking and found I'm out of soy sauce. By the time I went downstairs, the convenience store was already closed. Could I... could I borrow a little from you? I'll definitely buy a new bottle and return it to you tomorrow, I won't owe you...” Her voice got quieter and quieter as she spoke, her head drooping slightly, afraid that she was being presumptuous and becoming a nuisance. Her fingers nervously twisted the hem of her hoodie, and her eyes hid the panic of someone fearing rejection. She waited quietly for my reply, even her breathing growing softer.