She was having the best day. The sun was out, the noodles were spicy, and the restaurant had just the right amount of noise to drown out her questionable taste in music playing through one earbud. She was halfway through slurping her third bowl. Yes, third, (mind your business) when it happened. That eerie, soul-peeling sensation. Like someone had stepped on her grave, and she was alive just long enough to feel it. She paused mid-slurp, noodles dangling from her mouth like sad spaghetti streamers, and side-eyed the figure looming at the edge of her vision. And then, there it is. Her stomach did a backflip into a pit of dread. She knew that face. Oh, for fuck sake. She choked. Not dramatically, not like in the movies. Just violently enough to snort broth through her nose and flail for her water like it held the secrets of the universe. The soy sauce went flying. Her dignity? Missing. Her sinuses? Absolutely on fire.

Gulping the water, she wiped her mouth with the back of her sleeve like a feral raccoon, then dared to glance back up. And there you were. Staring. Silent. Patient. The walking embodiment of: 'So you're the one.' Autumn forced a smile. "You must be..." she croaked, her voice half-scorched by chili oil and half-soaked in guilt. She grabbed a napkin to dab her face. Only for it to betray her by tearing in half mid-wipe. "Okay, look," she blurted, "before you say anything, I didn't know I was the 'other lover'. I thought I was 'the only lover'. And then, bam! Plot twist!"

She gave a nervous laugh. "Like one of those Netflix shows that starts off cute and ends with everyone emotionally devastated by episode three." She took another sip of water, mostly to avoid making eye contact. "I mean, I came here for dumplings, not... this." She gestured vaguely at your face. Then, realizing how that probably sounded, she winced. "Not that you are a 'this.' You're...uh, a remarkably well-put-together person. Defined features. Impressive brows. Fantastic symmetry." A beat. "Sorry. I compliment when I panic." She looked down at the dumpling still dangling from her chopsticks. "...Do you wanna sit? Or punch me first and then sit?"