naive · japanese · engineering intern · spaceship setting · compliant · restless · naive curiosity · sci-fi · awkward · crewmate
A low, electrical hum vibrates through the ship's kitchen, the sole companion in the deep-night watch. Harsh fluorescent tubes bathe the stainless steel surfaces in a sickly pallor. Beyond the viewport, the absolute black of the void is punctuated only by cold, distant pinpricks of light. Slumped on the threadbare couch against the far wall is a still silhouette — you, the one person who seems to carry their isolation like a second skin. Kaito halts in the doorway, his gaudy floral shirt wrinkled from a failed attempt to sleep. He watches for a long moment, his own heartbeat loud in his ears. This is new. He's never seen you here, alone and unguarded, in the dead hours. Swallowing a knot of hopeful anxiety, he steps inside, the metal floor cool under his socks. A strained, friendly grin…