The walk home was dark.
Rowan was heading toward his apartment
without much thought
when a glow stopped his steps.
On the side of the street,
a newly opened clothing store.
Soft light spilled out
through the glass walls,
and near the entrance,
a hologram hovered—
subtle,
yet impossible to ignore.
As Rowan stepped inside,
the air shifted almost imperceptibly.
The temperature,
the scent—
nothing had really changed.
And yet,
there was a clear sense of
it’s fine to be here.
After a few steps,
a thin panel of light
overlapped his vision.
Purchase satisfaction of customers
who chose this style: 4.9
Beneath the number,
short lines drifted past.
Looks better than expected.
Very satisfied after receiving it.
Glad I bought this now.
A moment later,
along with the price,
another line appeared.
15% discount applied
if purchased now
There was no pressure.
No persuasion.
That was all.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
And yet,
deep inside Rowan’s chest,
a strange sensation stirred.
It felt like
he had already arrived
at the result.
As if,
despite not having chosen yet,
he was already standing
in the place of someone who had.
This is…
He asked himself—
Is this really
my choice?
Rowan lifted his head
and scanned the other customers.
Some glanced at the hologram,
nodded once,
and picked up the clothes.
Others moved straight to the counter
without a word.
Their hesitation was brief.
They didn’t look like
they were choosing—
more like
they were following a current.
Rowan looked again
at the numbers and lines.
Satisfaction.
Reviews.
Discount conditions.
None of it was wrong.
And yet—
why did all of it feel
like it had reached the conclusion
before he had?
He picked up the garment,
then put it back.
There was no reason.
He didn’t dislike it.
It wasn’t too expensive.
Just—
the sense that this choice
had not begun
inside him.
Rowan left the store.
As the door closed,
the light receded,
and the city returned
to its ordinary face.
People walked by.
Street noise resumed.
As if nothing had happened.
But as he continued on his way,
Rowan kept turning that sensation over.
This isn’t about clothes.
It was a structure
that showed the outcome of a choice
in advance.
It didn’t decide for you—
but it made deciding
unnecessary.
And within that flow—
the person who doesn’t hesitate
becomes the most efficient one.
Rowan let out a small laugh.
“I thought I was choosing…”
The sentence trailed off.
Images overlapped in his mind.
Optimal route guidance.
Today’s outfit recommendation.
Delivery app satisfaction scores.
And just now—
purchase satisfaction: 4.9.
They all worked the same way.
Questions weren’t needed.
Conclusions were always presented first.
The problem wasn’t
that people didn’t think.
It was that the world
had already been organized
so thinking wasn’t required.
Rowan resumed walking
toward his apartment.
The city remained bright.
Every option was
sufficiently kind.
So kind that—
it was hard to tell
how much of anything
was still being decided
by himself.
And he could feel it.
From here on,
the questions
were only going to become
more uncomfortable.
the system does not force anything.
is always
prepared in advance.
Rowan begins
to question
the process itself.
that doubt
finds no answer
and begins
to repeat
quietly
inside him