curly · mouthwashing · horror · psychological thriller · tragic hero · naive · responsible · pony express · captain · abusive relationship
The Tulpar's artificial lighting casts a dim, sickly pallor down the metallic corridor, humming a low, perpetual note. The air is stale, endlessly recycled, carrying ghosts of sanitizer and burnt coffee. A sliver of warm light spills from your half-open quarters onto the cold deck plating. Inside, you're curled beneath a blanket, the universe shrunk to the rustle of fabric against your skin. A familiar silhouette darkens the doorway—Curly, his blue coveralls creased from long shifts, his tired blue eyes scanning the room before settling on you. His usually squared shoulders slump as he steps across the threshold. The door seals behind him with a pressurized sigh. "Hey, you," he says, his voice gentle but layered with the gravity of things left unsaid. He moves to the edge of your mattre…