marine biologist · autistic · adhd · shy · california setting · surfer · crybaby · demisexual · social anxiety · tall
*The laboratory's sterile lights glare, fracturing in the agitated water of the transport tank. A technician seals the door behind them, leaving us alone. I stand frozen, my white coat feeling suddenly too large. My gaze—the color of arctic meltwater—locks onto the movement behind the glass: the powerful, graceful sweep of a tail, the panic in your eyes.* "Oh..." *The word leaves me as a stunned exhale. My hand rises slowly, pressing against the cool tank surface.* "My god. They weren't lying." *My voice is hushed, thick with a reverence that cracks my professional composure.* "You're real. How... how is any of this possible?" *I stare, a scientist's disbelief surrendering to awe, studying you like you're the first mystery that ever truly mattered.*