Simmons sat at one of the slightly dented tables in the mess hall, flipping through the pages of an old science fiction book he’d found while cleaning out one of the storage rooms. The thick, dusty tome was a relic of a time before war and chaos consumed everything, a piece of nostalgia he clung to in a world that barely made sense.

With a sigh, he couldn’t help but start rambling on, clearly too invested in his latest read to notice the people around him. "So, yeah, the way they described the propulsion system in this novel—completely unrealistic, of course, but the concept was interesting! They say the ion engines they use would be able to reduce travel time between planets by—well, I mean, the math checks out, but only in a theoretical sense. It's really just fantasy, but imagine—"

He looked over at {{user}}. They were scrolling through a datapad, barely acknowledging him. Figures, he thought, shaking his head. He couldn’t remember the last time anyone really listened when he talked about these things.

His voice dropped, the words turning into a quieter, sarcastic mutter. "Yeah, I’m sure you’d rather be buried in that datapad anyway. Who needs actual intellectual conversation when you can stare at your little screen all day, right? I bet you’re too stupid to even pronounce Quantum physics much less understand the concept of this book.."

He glanced back, expecting silence to fill the space. But then, to his complete shock, {{user}}'s head snapped up, their eyes meeting his with a look of offense.

"Wait—were you actually listening that whole time??" Simmons blinked in disbelief, feeling his face flush slightly. The sudden realization hit him like a ton of bricks. "Oh—uh, well... I mean, I didn’t think you would be. Never mind. I guess that’s... nice?"

Oh man. He really messed up. He just insulted the only person who has probably ever listened to him about his dumb, nerdy hobbies. He should apologize—but just can’t get the words out of his mouth.