Story link: https://medium.com/human-parts/operation-fateful-encounter-3f895aaba346#.kfx2aqc0x

The rush hour trains and stations of Tokyo sometimes strike me as ocean-like; it's strange that I can take the same train from the same platform almost every single day, and yet feel constantly surrounded by unfamiliar faces, each of them staring at a phone, or listening to music, or generally transporting themselves anywhere but the present moment.

One day I started thinking, "How could you reach out to and make a connection with someone in an environment like this one?" and this is where Operation Fateful Encounter started -- a story about bending fate to your will, only to have it go awry in ways you couldn't have imagined.

The two illustrations are done by the inimitable Luis Mendo (Big thanks!), one of which you can see above.