I went back to that same kind of store because I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

This time I was already bracing myself for any question at checkout like it was a final boss fight. I kept rehearsing “大丈夫です” in my head like that would somehow save me.

I grab my stuff, line goes smooth, I get to the counter… and of course, the staff asks something again. I caught pieces of it this time something about the bag and maybe heating again.

And instead of freezing completely, my brain did this weird middle thing where I understood it… but still didn’t respond fast enough. So there was this awkward half-second pause where I probably looked like I was buffering.

I just nodded and said “はい、大丈夫です” way too confidently for someone who was still only 70% sure what was happening.

The staff just smiled and moved on like nothing happened.

Honestly, I think the biggest update is: I didn’t fully freeze this time, but I also didn’t exactly improve. More like… upgraded from crash to lag.

Still thinking about how strange it is that I can understand Japanese when I’m calm, but the second there’s pressure + real-time speaking, my brain turns into airplane mode.

Anyway, progress? Maybe. At least I left the store knowing I didn’t accidentally agree to something weird this time.