Letters Left in the Vending Machine

Type: In-World Artifact Collection

Theme: Loneliness, connection, and unnoticed lives

Concept Overview

On the corner of a dimly lit street, there’s an old vending machine that hums softly through the night. Locals say that if you leave a letter in the change slot, someone will read it, maybe even reply. No one knows who started it, or if anyone ever really answers. Still, people keep leaving notes. Some are desperate. Some are kind. All of them are real.

These fragments offer a glimpse into unseen lives, the people who pass by but never speak.

Artifact Collection

Letter 1: “Midnight Coffee”

It’s 3:12 AM again. I bought another canned coffee I don’t even like, just to have an excuse to stand here. I keep hoping someone else will be out this late, but the only one who ever listens is you, this stupid machine.

If I disappear one day, I hope whoever refills you notices. Maybe that’s enough.

Letter 2: “Return to Sender”

I found your first note. I wasn’t sure if I should reply, but it didn’t feel right to leave it unread.

I used to talk to this machine, too. Back when I thought silence was safer than being hurt again. It’s funny, maybe we’ve already met, and neither of us would know.

If you’re still around, I’ll leave a can of peach soda here on Friday.

Letter 3: “Left Behind”

My daughter used to love this machine. Every morning before school, she’d get the same grape juice. The day she left home, I bought one too, just to see what it tasted like.

It was too sweet.

I keep buying them every week, even though I can’t finish them. I guess it’s easier than letting go.

Letter 4: “To Whoever Reads This”

I don’t know who you are, or if you even exist. But if you’re reading this, it means someone is still out there, someone awake at the same hour, standing in front of the same flickering light.

Maybe we’re all just waiting for someone to answer.

Reflection

This piece uses fragmented storytelling to evoke loneliness through physical space. Each letter reveals a small truth about its writer, while the vending machine becomes a silent witness, a metaphor for quiet connection between strangers. The tone balances melancholy with faint traces of hope, reflecting how narrative design can communicate emotion through setting and implication rather than direct exposition.