Chapter 1: Routine.

The glow of the monitor illuminated his face in that dark office. Only the sharp sound of his mechanical keyboard filled the silence, along with the incessant tick-tock of the clock on the wall.

"You won’t get promoted to Senior just because you stay late programming…"

The young man stretched in his chair and saw his team leader.

"Mr. Nomura, I’m sorry, I didn’t notice the time."

The man, with a few gray hairs, approached him holding his jacket.

"Takahashi, you’re the best asset in this office, but you shouldn’t push yourself so hard. It’ll be bad for your health…"

He looked at Ren’s desk, overflowing with energy drinks.

"I want to finish my line of code before I leave."

His boss glanced at the clock: 10 PM.

"As you wish. Just make sure to dress warmly when you head out, it’s snowing."

"Oh, and don’t stay too late. I know you’ve been staying until 3 AM; your family will worry…"

Ren took out his lighter and flicked it open and closed before answering, a habit he always had.

"No one’s waiting for me at home, sir. I’d rather give it my all for the company," he said with a tired smile.

His boss returned the smile and stepped away.

"All right, but at least eat something. You can’t live off vending machine energy drinks," he said, leaving 10,000 yen on Ren’s desk.

"Dinner’s on me tonight," he added before leaving.

"Yes, sir. I’ll give 100% for the company."

His boss simply raised a hand and left via the elevator. Silence once again filled the large office; only his cubicle remained lit by the monitor and the lights of the main hallway.

Ren slowly stood up from his seat, and a few cans fell to the floor.

"When did I drink so many…? Anyway, I’d better stretch a bit."

He got up from his chair, but before leaving his cubicle he noticed his waterproof coat was missing; only his suit was there.

"I knew it would snow today… where did my coat go?" he wondered.

Turning his head, he looked toward his coworker’s cubicle, Maria Tsubasa’s. Everything was in its place. Her desk was filled with photos of her parents and vacations with friends.

"Right, Tsubasa didn’t bring anything to protect herself from the snow."

Friends, family… he didn’t need any of that. He was fine this way. Ren decided not to dwell on it and continued on his way to the bathroom.

The intense light of the restroom blinded him for a moment. After all, he wasn’t used to such brightness, and the white reflected off every tile with even more force.

When he looked at himself in the mirror, his dishevelment was obvious: eyes exhausted from so many hours of work. But the most striking thing wasn’t even his crooked tie.

It was his face. One that seemed to show no emotion at all, like someone who had shut himself off emotionally years ago. Because it wasn’t exhaustion, he’d only been with the company for two years.

It was something deeper.

After leaving, he walked toward the vending machines, the brightest spot in that hallway.

First, he chose an energy drink, which fell heavily, echoing through the silent space. Always the same drink, in the same machine, every day.

Then he went to the food machine.

"I didn’t know we had a sandwich machine… I’ll try something different," he murmured as he read the options.

"Ham and cheese sandwich… pork sandwich… egg sandwich…"

"This one! B18, tuna sandwich."

The machine emitted a hum, and the sandwich package got stuck halfway down.

"Just my luck…" he said, hitting the machine.

Nothing. The sandwich didn’t budge an inch.

"Damn it, there go my last 300 yen…"

A barely audible whisper made him turn around quickly.

"Hello?"

There was no response, only an even more uncomfortable silence.

"Without a doubt, lack of sleep is messing with me…"

At that moment, the dry sound of the machine made him turn around again. Something had fallen inside.

The light of the machine flickered slowly and, as he stepped closer, he could see his sandwich at the bottom of the tray.

"Looks like my luck’s back," he said, taking the sandwich.

After that, he returned to his workstation. His boss’s yen were still there, on the desk.

He looked at the clock and it was already 3:00 AM.

"I’d better go to sleep."

He opened his drawer to leave the money there and saw a manila envelope.

"Did the mail come today? I don’t remember."

He took the envelope and slipped it into his laptop bag. Then he walked straight to the elevator.

After going down ten floors, he swiped his card at the entrance and the turnstile let him through.

"Goodbye, young Takahashi. Be careful, it’s snowing outside," said the security guard.

"Mr. Rio, good night. Don’t worry, I only live a few streets from here."

The gray-haired man smiled and returned the greeting as Ren stepped out into the streets, all covered in white.

When he arrived at his apartment, nothing was different.

"I’m home," he said, knowing no one was waiting for him. Maybe an involuntary habit from his childhood.

He left his bag on the couch, and his belongings seemed frozen in time. Nothing out of place, but there was no personal touch either… no paintings, posters, family photos, or magnets on the fridge. Nothing.

It was almost like looking at an apartment for sale.

"Another wonderful day." he said as he took off his shoes and collapsed onto his bed. "No changes or surprises…"