Chapter 1: The Bag Swap
Monday mornings were never kind to Mai. She was clutching a green detox smoothie bag when the elevator doors at Coworking 88 nearly closed on her. A hand shot in—steady, quick. The doors reopened to reveal a guy in a blue shirt, holding the exact same kind of bag.
“Thanks,” Mai said.
“No problem. Yours smells like… kale?”
“Exactly. Yours?”
“No clue. I ordered whatever was trending.”
By the sixth floor, Mai realized her bag felt heavier. The guy—Phuc, according to his lanyard—looked confused too. He opened his bag to find a box of honey-garlic chicken sitting among the vegetables. They stared.
“I think,” Mai said, “we just swapped digestive destinies.”
Phuc grinned. “Guess the universe wants us both full of surprises.”
They traded bags, and just then, the elevator jammed. Ten minutes of awkward silence turned into shared laughter. Mai told him about her boss who thought every slogan needed the word “ultimate.” Phuc confessed that he dreamed of graphs chasing him in his sleep. By the time the doors reopened, they were laughing like old friends.
“See you around,” Mai said.
“If the elevator gets stuck again,” Phuc replied, “I’ll bring chicken. You bring kale.”
