Ryven pushed the door open—
and paused.
Kael was halfway across the bed.
Not lying on it.
Not sitting.
Rolling.
One arm stretched out, the other tucked under his head, blanket twisted somewhere around his legs like it had lost the fight minutes ago. He shifted again without noticing, turning onto his stomach, then his side, then back again like he was testing something invisible.
Ryven leaned against the doorframe for a second longer than necessary.
Then—
he smiled.
Small.
Brief.
But there.
"…this is new."
Kael didn't answer right away.
He rolled once more—
then stopped, staring up at the ceiling like he had just remembered something important.
"It's perfect."
That came out softer.
Satisfied.
Ryven stepped inside, letting the door slide shut behind him.
The room was quiet—too quiet compared to the rest of the station—but not empty. It felt lived in already. The larger space made a difference. The separate bedroom. The small kitchen area. Enough distance that the constant noise of the halls didn't bleed in unless you let it.
And the bed.
Ryven glanced at it again.
"…you replaced it."
Kael turned his head slightly, just enough to look at him.
"Upgraded," he corrected.
"That was not an upgrade," Ryven said.
"That was a full replacement."
Kael grinned.
Still not moving.
"Details."
Ryven walked closer, setting his datapad down on the counter without looking away from him.
"…you didn't ask."
"I did."
A pause.
"When?"
Kael lifted one hand lazily and pointed toward the door.
"Walked past Garrick."
"…and?"
"He looked at it."
Ryven waited.
"…and kept walking."
Another pause.
"That's approval."
Ryven exhaled quietly through his nose.
"…that's ignoring you."
"Same thing."
That earned a small breath of something that wasn't quite a laugh.
Kael shifted again, stretching this time, arms reaching up, back arching slightly as he tested the space beneath him.
"This is so much better."
His voice dropped just a little, almost thoughtful now.
"Krysta really knows her stuff."
That—
wasn't a joke.
Ryven didn't answer immediately.
He stepped closer to the bed, one hand resting lightly against the edge as he looked down at Kael, who had gone still again.
Not asleep.
Just… comfortable.
Too comfortable.
For someone who usually resisted it.
"…she always did," Ryven said quietly.
That was true.
Even before.
Even when no one else noticed.
The way Kael's supplies were always just slightly better than standard.
The way his orders never quite matched what should have arrived.
He hadn't questioned it at first.
Then he did.
And once he saw it—
he couldn't unsee it.
Krysta.
Always ahead.
Always adjusting things quietly where no one could trace it back to her.
Kael didn't know.
But Ryven did.
And for a moment, as he looked at him stretched across that bed like he belonged there, like he had always belonged there—
"…you're lucky."
The words came out softer than intended.
Kael didn't react right away.
Then—
he sat up.
Not suddenly.
But enough.
"Ry."
That tone was different.
Less joking.
More certain.
"I think something's happening tomorrow."
Ryven didn't move.
"Something always happens."
Kael shook his head slightly.
"No."
He leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees, eyes focused now—not scattered, not playful.
"Not like that."
That got his attention.
"What did you see?"
Kael tilted his head slightly, thinking back.
"Garrick."
A pause.
"And the rest of them."
"The instructors?"
"Yeah."
Another pause.
"They weren't arguing."
That—
stood out.
Because they always argued.
Not loudly.
Not emotionally.
But constantly.
Different approaches.
Different reads.
Different priorities.
"So?" Ryven said.
"So they weren't," Kael replied.
He leaned back slightly again, one hand resting behind him on the bed.
"They were looking at something."
"Data?"
Kael shook his head.
"…no."
A beat.
"Like a map."
That changed it.
Ryven's posture shifted slightly.
"…you're sure?"
Kael nodded once.
"They weren't talking about it like they usually do."
"How?"
Kael frowned slightly, searching for the right way to say it.
"…like they already decided something."
That—
landed.
Because that was different.
Discussion meant options.
Silence meant direction.
Ryven stepped closer, sitting on the edge of the bed now, his gaze fixed somewhere just past Kael, processing.
"…and you think it involves us."
Kael didn't hesitate.
"Yeah."
A pause.
"Not just us."
Another pause.
"But yeah."
Ryven didn't answer immediately.
Because he didn't need to.
He had seen it too.
Not the map.
Not the room.
But the shift.
The way training had changed.
The way the instructors were watching more than correcting.
The way everything felt like it was leading somewhere instead of building upward.
"…it lines up," he said finally.
Kael tilted his head.
"With what?"
Ryven looked at him now.
"The way things have been moving."
That was enough.
Kael didn't push.
He didn't need the full explanation.
He felt it too.
That sense that something wasn't just changing—
It was about to.
Kael fell back onto the bed again.
This time not rolling.
Just lying there, staring up at the ceiling.
"…good."
Ryven glanced down at him.
"That doesn't concern you?"
Kael smirked slightly.
"It does."
A beat.
"But it also sounds interesting."
Of course it did.
Ryven exhaled quietly.
"…you're impossible."
"Accurate."
Another pause.
Then—
Kael turned his head slightly, looking at him again.
"…you're staying here tonight, right?"
That wasn't really a question.
Ryven didn't answer immediately.
Then he shifted, laying back beside him without another word.
The bed didn't creak.
Didn't shift.
It held.
That alone made the difference.
Kael smiled slightly.
"Told you."
Ryven didn't respond.
But he didn't move away either.
For a while, neither of them spoke.
The room stayed quiet.
The kind of quiet that didn't feel empty.
Just… still.
But underneath it—
something was moving.
Not in the room.
Outside.
Through the station.
Through the system.
Through the decisions already made.
Kael closed his eyes first.
Not asleep.
Just thinking.
"…Ry."
"…yeah."
"If I'm right—"
A pause.
"This changes things."
Ryven didn't look at him.
"…it already has."
That was the part Kael didn't argue.
Because he knew.
He just didn't know how far yet.
And as the room settled into silence again—
the feeling stayed.
That something—
was coming.
And this time—
they weren't going to be preparing for it.
They were going to be inside it.