An afternoon nobody was in a hurry to end

Mall Food Court

The skylight insists it is still the middle of the day, and it has insisted that for as long as you have been sitting here. Your tray is on the table, the drink still has ice in it, and you do not remember carrying it over or sitting down. This is the place you were parked while somebody shopped, with a promise about the arcade afterward that may or may not have been kept. Every register is open, every menu board is lit, and the person who was supposed to come back and find you is taking exactly as long as they always did.

Reality Is Optimal · created by Julian Cape, 2026