Welcome Back, Elliot Grey

The next morning, Elliot woke to something strange.

A text.

From June.

(Sticker of a duck waving)

"Hey hey, Mr. Ordinary Salaryman.

Where should we make your memories… uneraseable?"

(Confetti emoji, heart, ghost)

He stared at the screen for a while.

Then — typed back.

"Amusement park?"

They met a few days later, standing outside the rusted gates of a local amusement park that had survived decades of chipped paint and discounted weekends.

June wore a simple jacket and a huge smile.

She carried an old instant camera slung over one shoulder.

"Hope you're ready for total chaos," she said.

"I thought you said we were making good memories," Elliot replied.

"Exactly."

She handed him a sticker sheet.

"We're going to document your healing in kawaii form."

The day passed in moments stitched together like a dream:

Photos with giant-eyed mascots

Screaming together on rickety rollercoasters

Sharing soft-serve cones while wandering the food stalls

And yes — cotton candy, pink and cloud-like, stuck to their fingers and noses

At one point, June convinced Elliot to wear a ridiculous foam crown for a photo.

"You look like a prince who hasn't smiled in 100 years," she said, snapping the shot.

Later, they sat under a shaded bench near the carousel.

Elliot looked out at the spinning lights and children's laughter.

Then he spoke — softly.

"I always wanted to come to a place like this when I was a kid. But my parents were strict. Formal. Nothing like this was allowed. When I entered university and started living alone… we stopped talking. I dropped out halfway through. Couldn't afford it anymore."

He didn't say it like he was sad.

Just… remembering. Like dusting off a long-abandoned box.

June looked at him quietly.

Then, after a pause, she said:

"You remind me of my brother."

Elliot turned.

"He was shy," she continued. "Didn't talk to many people. But when we were alone, he laughed a lot. Like the world didn't scare him as much with me around."

She smiled.

Then she took a breath.

And said it.

"So… would you want to be my boyfriend?"

Just like that.

Elliot froze.

His hands still held a half-finished stick of cotton candy, the sugar melting against his fingers.

He looked at her — not like a man caught off guard, but like someone who'd forgotten what it felt like to be chosen.

June didn't rush him.

Didn't fidget.

She just let the air sit still between them.

He opened his mouth. Closed it.

Then quietly — in the only way he could — he said:

"Yeah. I'd like that."

June's eyes widened just slightly. Then softened.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," he repeated, voice steadier this time.

She grinned like the sun had poked through a month-long stormcloud.

Then she reached into her pocket and pulled out another sticker.

It was a sparkly one — a blushing bear in a hoodie with a heart above its head.

She stuck it onto the corner of the newest photo they'd taken.

"Memory: First Day of Boyfriend Mode Activated. Stored in kawaii form, obviously."

Elliot laughed — for real this time.

A quiet, broken, beautiful laugh.

And for the first time since his world collapsed...

He let himself believe it might just be worth rebuilding.

End of Chapter 13