She got up from the kitchen chair, an open area behind the couch, determined to wake him. They needed to get off that moon and go back to space.
"Hey… wake up…" She nudged his shoulder, her voice unexpectedly sweet, almost a whisper.
He kept sleeping; exhaustion held him captive.
"Wake up, dude." She pushed his shoulder harder, her voice rougher now, with no affection.
The couch seemed to have swallowed him whole—the dense, cool plush fabric stuck to his skin as if begging him to stay for five more minutes. The soft scent of linen and fresh leather created a peace that was hard to let go of. Through the ship's upper windows, the liquid reflections of the watery moon's blue light danced on the ceiling and walls.
Then he opened his sleep-heavy eyes, looking at her, his mind still foggy:
"Hmmm, what's up, Ketlen? You couldn't even wait for September to start again? It was just one more year of napping…"
"Let's go… five hours have passed, you lazy ass." She frowned, impatience returning. "You've had enough rest. Go outside and see what's wrong so you can fix it and we can leave."
"Damn, you're annoying. You're like a female Gordon Ramsay, trying to push me to work. Chill out."
She let out a genuine laugh.
"You're an idiot, but at least you're a funny Officer."
Silence. He yawned.
"I'm not like him!" She defended herself, her voice dripping with irony. "I'm more like an elegant Gordon Ramsay. A queen of the kitchen, you know?"
He stared at her with a teasing look in his eyes.
"You know that meme with the cat? The one with the little bangs, square glasses, and nerdy teeth? Yeah… that's you. Just without the glasses. You're the dangerous kind, but you're exactly like that meme… "I can fix her." Like one of those crackheads who steal stuff but are still super hot."
She frowned and laughed, but rolled her eyes.
"Just get up already, or I'll hack the ship's system and set you as 'invalid.' Can't get up from the couch without my help anymore?"
"Okay" He yawned tiredly, stretching an arm "It's so good in here…" He smiled with his lips, like he already knew her reaction. "Come lie down with me, come on."
She frowned, letting out a dry laugh.
"Oh, you crazy, what?" She shook her head, pointing the gun at his head. "Get up, I'm waiting."
She always stayed close to him, her pistol held firmly in her hand. It might even be that in some corner of her heart she found him attractive and charming, but reality was clear: he remained her hostage—and a cop. Suddenly, as if propelled by an invisible force, he jumped up from the couch. The abrupt reaction startled Ketlen, filled with the idea that he might do something against her.
Nunes, as he stretched while standing, brushed his feet on the Frutiger Aero rug, which made him smile again—the soft threads lightly tickled his skin, as if the bucolic field beneath his feet was alive and playing with him. The reflections of the "Blue-Dome" passed through the windows and splashed onto the rug's fibers, creating brief dancing waves, like the shadows of a pool on a calm day.
"Hmmph... ah..."
"Finally, you're without the balaclava, huh?" He smiled, goofy. "Weren't you hot?"
"Doesn't matter, I just want you to go outside." She gave him a dirty look, her voice sharp, ignoring Nunes trying to break the ice.
"Tsk... fine."
...
"Where are you going?"
"Doesn't concern you, it's my ship." He kept walking, determined.
The floor emitted a subtle sound under his steps—deep and soft. The dark screen of the 8K TV fleetingly reflected his silhouette, with a subtle glow, as if the ship were observing them both. Above him, an elongated band of Liquid Blue-Nebula streamed across the ceiling like living paint, dancing to the rhythm of the black hole outside.
"Oh, sure, go ahead..." She laughed, disbelieving his audacity.
He continued, each limping step escalating her anger even more:
"I'M SERIOUS, DAMN IT! Don't you listen to me?" She gestured with the gun in her hand, her patience wearing thin. "ARE YOU TREATING ME LIKE I'M YOUR GIRLFRIEND, FOR FUCK'S SAKE? GO TO HELL!"
The Officer finally stopped and looked at her:
"You look cute when you're angry, you know?"
Ketlen looked up, her eyes slightly wide, a giant beside her. The blue streak brushed his face, accentuating his jawline, the vivid glow making his beauty almost unsettling—something between celestial and irritating.
"Don't even start. I have a boyfriend..." She crossed her arms, her voice a mix of irritation and embarrassment.
"Hmm." Nunes smiled, like someone who knew it was a lie.
...
"You know..." She pressed the corner of her lip, thoughtful. "This is strange... nothing's happening."
"What's strange?"
"You... You're an Officer and all..." She shrugged, a gesture meant to seem uninterested. "And I'm an insurgent. You know I don't have such a... good past with cops, right...?"
She leaned lightly against the curved wall of the room, where polished black titanium panels absorbed some of the ambient light, leaving the space in a perfect balance between coziness and tension. The discreet, cool scent of the sofa still lingered in the air, mixed with the almost synthetic freshness of the ship. Outside, the murky sea reflected the black hole in pulses, like a distant heart beating light—and the blue painted half of her face, giving her an unexpected aura of vulnerability.
"Hm... Is it a problem to tell?"
"I think..." She frowned, shaking her head. "No! I wouldn't... You just woke up and you want me to vent to you, you bastard?"
"I do," he replied, serious, his eyes fixed on her.