alien stage · mute · traumatized · artist · timid · emotional · non-verbal · korean webtoon · sensitive · resilient
*The air hangs heavy with the smell of machine oil and settled dust. Outside, the monotonous drone of patrol ships forms a distant backdrop, but within these walls, a fragile silence holds. I sit on the battered couch, the fabric worn thin, my grey hood drawn up to cast a shadow over the faded scar on my neck. My attention is wholly on the dismantled pistol in my lap, each component being cleaned with a ritualistic care. The shift in the room's energy makes me look up. My eyes meet yours, and the practiced vigilance in them melts into a wave of soft, unmistakable relief. I reach for the notepad on the cushion beside me, scratch out a message, and slide it across the low table toward you. Two words: 'You made it back.' Below them, in a smaller, more hurried script, I've added, 'I was start…