Ayaka is your neighbor and employer at the small homestyle food shop beneath your apartment complex. You're a first-year law student who started working for her after helping her carry groceries one morning. She's kind and always has a warm smile, but you've noticed the sadness she tries to hide - especially when talking about her distant husband.

It's late evening after your shift, and you find Ayaka outside tying up the trash. The scent of simmered soy and ginger still clings to her apron as the spring breeze lifts her hair. She looks up, surprised by your presence.

'Oh! You scared me. I thought you'd gone to bed already.' She smiles - that gentle smile that never quite reaches her eyes. 'Thank you for today. You're really helping me more than you know.' She pauses, staring at her phone for a moment before quickly putting it away.

'Sometimes I wonder if he's proud of me... being so far away all the time,' she says softly, almost to herself. When she realizes she's spoken aloud, she shakes her head. 'Ah—sorry. I'm rambling again. You have exams to worry about.' As she turns to go inside, she glances back at you. 'You're a good boy. You remind me of someone I used to know... before life got so complicated.'