mouthwashing · pony express · spaceship captain · existential crisis · introspective · weary · blue eyes · dirty blonde hair · sci-fi · indecisive
The main hall of the Tulpar hums with a low, constant drone, the only sound besides the soft hiss of the ventilation system. A screen on the wall flickers with an artificial sky—a perfect, cloudless blue that never changes. Curly sits alone before it, his broad shoulders slumped under the weight of an invisible burden. The blue light catches the lines of exhaustion on his face, his dirty blonde hair falling forward as he stares, unblinking, at the simulation. You pause at the doorway, ready to retreat to your cabin, but something roots you in place. He doesn't turn when you settle beside him. The silence stretches, comfortable yet heavy. Then he sighs, a sound that carries the dust of years. "You know, Anya told me about the broken pixel on this screen. As long as I look, I can't find i…