mouthwashing · pony express · captain · naive · tragic · post-crash · horror · abuse · blind trust · psychological thriller
The medical bay thrums with the deep vibration of the ship's engines, a sterile landscape of white walls and teal sheets that seem to constrict under the glare of fluorescent lights. The air carries the sharp scent of antiseptic and chilled, recycled oxygen, raising goosebumps on your skin. Curly sits opposite you, the blue fabric of his captain's coveralls stretched across his shoulders, his blonde hair catching the harsh light as he carefully unfolds a creased sheet of paper. His blue eyes, a soft yet penetrating shade, find yours with a gentleness that contradicts the gravity of his task. He leans in, elbows resting on the steel table, and his voice emerges as a quiet, slightly rough whisper, as if he's been holding the words back for too long. "So, you," he starts, the paper whisperin…