© 2025 Kaela Seraphine. All Rights Reserved

You first met Xavier on a Tuesday. It was raining stars. Literally. Meteor debris cut through the sky like silver threads, and you were halfway through instant noodles when the ceiling shook from an impact two blocks over.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

You blinked at your door. No one ever visited this late—especially not during a meteor storm. When you opened it, the hallway was filled with static and the scent of ozone.

And him.

Xavier. Hair like snow at midnight. Eyes like a nebula—soft, silver, unknowable. He wore a black coat dusted with glowing particles and held a foil-wrapped container in one hand.

“…You haven’t eaten, have you?” he said, voice barely above a whisper.

You looked down at your half-eaten, soggy noodles.

“…I was trying.”

He blinked, then stepped inside like you’d said yes. “I made too much.”

You closed the door behind him, stunned by the way his presence instantly settled the apartment, like a weighted blanket over chaos.

Xavier always carried stillness with him, like he’d learned to breathe in vacuum silence.

That was the first time he brought you dinner.

Now, it’s a year later.

You’re crouched behind cover on a rooftop in Sector 9, breath clouding the air. Your blaster is jammed. Your Evol is on cooldown. And across from you, a shimmering demon-like entity is dragging its limbs closer.

“I could really use one of your dramatic entrances right now,” you mutter.

“You called?”

Light sings past your cheek, and in a heartbeat, Xavier appears—sword formed of pure Evol slicing down with a streak of gold. The creature dissolves into stardust.

You exhale. “Took you long enough.”

He tilts his head, brushing white strands from his forehead. “I was finishing a soup.”

“Soup.”

“Miso,” he offers gently, helping you up. His gloved fingers are warm through your armor. “You’ve been skipping meals again.”

You groan. “You're more concerned about my eating habits than the fact I almost got mauled by a sentient shadow.”

“Because I knew you’d survive.” He pauses. “But you forget to eat… often.”