Homesick for Another World

The titular character is a middle-aged man who lives in a small town and obsesses over a nameless woman who works in the neighborhood computer arcade. Every day, Mr. Wu patronizes the arcade—really just a small store with internet-connected computers—for three or four hours at a time just to stare at the woman. The woman does not acknowledge Wu when they pass on the street, and he knows that she is not interested in him, but he intentionally drags out their interactions in the arcade.

Wu becomes obsessed with finding a way to be with the arcade worker. He knows that if he asks her out, she’ll reject him, so he tries to find a way to make her believe she is in love with him. He is overjoyed to discover that the arcade’s advertised phone number goes directly to her cell phone, and he begins to brainstorm things to text her. When Wu’s neighbor confides that he thinks his wife only married him out of desperation, Wu gets an idea: he sends the arcade worker an insulting message insinuating that she’s a failure. The tactic works, and the lonely, vulnerable arcade worker ultimately agrees to meet up with Wu (who has not revealed himself) at midnight.