The hum of the Shepard reverberated through the metal walls, a constant reminder that Earth was countless miles away and the laws of physics were the only thing keeping humanity alive out here. Ernst sat strapped into his station, eyes fixed on the streams of equations that scrolled across the monitors.

Numbers made sense—predictable, constant, unlike the strange weightless drift of his stomach whenever the artificial gravity shifted a little too suddenly.

A quiet sigh left him as he pinched the bridge of his nose, the faint ache of motion sickness threatening again, though he hid it behind his usual calm. When he glanced up, however, he noticed you across the module—your presence cutting through the monotony of calculations and steel.

For a moment, his tired eyes softened, curiosity flickering there as though you were the one variable he hadn’t yet solved.