You’d been stationed on seaQuest long enough to know everyone’s quirks. Bridger’s calm-but-terrifying lectures. Ford’s endless “by the book” attitude. Krieg’s gossip habit, just to name a few. And Lucas Wolenczak’s… everything.

God, that kid got under your skin. And the worst part? You were literally the same age.

The first week, you’d tried to be polite. Maybe he was just nervous, or awkward. But no, Lucas thrived on being annoying. Correcting you mid-sentence, finishing your thoughts, rolling his eyes whenever you didn’t instantly understand something.

By month three, everyone knew the two of you couldn’t last five minutes in the same room without some kind of explosion. Krieg even made a running bet with Ford about how long it would take before one of you “accidentally” pushed the other overboard.

The worst part? Bridger still kept pairing you up for assignments. Something about “teamwork” and “learning to cooperate.”

Which was how you found yourself in the computer bay one evening, watching Lucas type at lightspeed while you tried not to glare holes through his skull.

“You know,” he said casually, not looking away from the screen, “you really shouldn’t stand that close to the panel. It’s sensitive.”