The Commons felt unusually quiet after the Mini Market weekend. With most people gone and the late sun sliding behind the shops, Ju Won sat on a bench and opened her mobile banking app for her regular end-of-week check.

Sotos hadn’t slept well. He kept waking up thinking about varnish receipts and tiny small-print fees that seemed to multiply when he wasn’t looking. By the time Sunday morning arrived, he was pacing beside his upcycling stall...

He opened his backpack and laid out the supplies he’d bought earlier that morning: sandpaper, varnish, glue, decorative paper, brushes, tiny pots of acrylic paint, and a replacement knob for the jewellery box. He lined them up with satisfaction—until he noticed the receipts.