s e d a t e d

Mila waved their hand, dismissing the correction. Instead, they nodded quickly, glad they were still there. Most people would have called them crazy by now, or gone on about the science of what they knew to be true, not listening to Mila at all. Holding the fabric with one arm, they held up a finger like a professor as they said, “That’s the question! That’s the big question. Are they telling us the secrets of the world - or are they just saying hello? What do you think?”

francisco smiled, a smile that grew from one that just tugged at the corners to a semi-grin the longer he looked at amir. however, it wasn’t because he was looking at him, but more because he caught onto the thinking that went into his words, so he wanted to encourage him – to not think like that. he reached out to take his hand, swinging a bit as he spoke. “well, you have to keep them engaged and excited about numbers and grammar, don’t you?” it didn’t come as a surprise when he realized that he hadn’t cut his day short to visit his boyfriend in a long time. maybe he needed to fix that or at least, make up for it. “but no, it’s over. i’m off. we can go somewhere – sadly, nowhere new, but somewhere. i smell like dirt, though. and i feel like dating on earth would’ve been a lot easier, huh?” 

“Sky lights?” Mila said, furrowing their brows. Somehow the jab at their position didn’t sting like it was meant to. They looked away to point at the ceiling as they said, “Those are sky lights. That’s the kind of stuff you learn about in Factory.” Moving their hand to point back at the dancing blues and greens, they added, “Those are aliens communicating with us, okay?”

“That would have been pathetic. Glad I saved you from that.” Felix replied with a laugh. He nodded and ate as his friend talked about the kids. He wasn’t surprised that they got off topic so easily. “We’re actually getting exposed to loads of solar radiation. And regular radiation. But, that’s a different type of sun damage than what they were thinking of, I guess.” He grinned. He liked coming into his class and having the kids think of him as some sort of superhero doctor. It wasn’t true, of course, but Felix wasn’t about to stop them. “Glad they think that I alone can protect them from the sun.”

“there isn’t much i’d wish to discuss with you, but thanks for the offer. conversations with you are probably the last thing i want to endure right now, and i’m sort of dying just speaking to you at the moment. why don’t you make this easier for both of us and move? you should know this is my seat. i sit here everyday. haven’t you noticed, or are you too lost in that huge head of yours.” august snapped at him, gripping onto the tray in his hand tighter. he wasn’t about to lose this battle, not with amir.

“well, the only thing i’ve ever received was a trip to the sky box, so this is like a diamond ring compared to that.” yara’s features played with a theatrical expression, her lips pursing into a frown. “hey, argo has some pretty great stuff, don’t shit on my station.” playfulness pulled her lips into a smile, brows quirking as she continued to play with the leaf. of course francisco didn’t talk to amir about raven—did he talk to him aout anything? grief spread from yara’s heart like a sickness, a huff escaping her lips as she began to roll her eyes. “he talks to me about her all the time.” yara answered, eyes full of confusion. for once, she was telling the complete truth—no twist on words, no picking and choosing what to talk about. it was real. “your boyfriend’s annoying. always takes things that belonged to raven, never wanting to share. i mean, really, that’s the only thing we have in common. her.” she shrugged, averting her gaze back to amir. “i care about him i guess, but he doesn’t know when to share. anyway, maybe you guys should talk about that? you seem way more invested than him….”

a gentle smile found its way onto her lips against her inclination, giggles spilling from her mouth as her eyes widened, jaw slightly unhinged as she outstretched her hand, grabbing the leaf from amir hastily. “no one’s ever given me anything before. i mean, besides hand-me-downs, but i don’t think that really counts.” a blissful sigh escaped yara’s lips as she twirled the leaf by its stem, swaying from side to side. no one bothered paying yara any mind—she’d never been anyone’s first priority. not even her dad, who she’d loved dearly. it was as though amir lived to please her. it was quite refreshing, in a twisted way. "come sit with me,” she spoke, the request abrupt but soft nonetheless. yara reclined in her seat, shoving her feet atop the metal table, desperately clutching onto the leaf as she eyed him. “guess francisco doesn’t get somethin’ this special, huh? doesn’t matter anyway. he’s always got his head in the clouds, going on and on about raven.” yara blew out a sigh in tandem to rolling her shoulders. “i’ll keep it forever. if i ever get floated, i’ll make sure to put this baby in my pocket so it’ll always be with me.” yara never understood amir and francisco anyway. it was like they were standing at complete opposite ends of the scale. amir seemed way more invested than the other, it was a bit unnerving. “what can i do to pay you back? maybe i should get you something.” yara tilted her head, feigning uncertainty. “don’t think i have anything worth while. a stinky old sweater that i haven’t worn since i was twelve?”

“Are you joking? Course I want to be around you.” Felix assured him with a grin. Even though they were both living busy lives on completely different stations, the two remained best friends. “How’re your kids? Do they know that Earth used to have birds yet? And that they can fly?” It was a bit of an inside joke. On an Earth quiz in elementary school they had both gotten all the questions about birds wrong. Neither of them had any clue what the hell a seagull was or what it could do. “Because you know. That’s important stuff. They won’t be able to do anything with their lives if they don’t know what a goddamn seagull is.” 

the thought of yara as a dosage was a subconscious one. a subconscious one he didn’t enjoy and was quick to berate himself for, because it was a little dehumanizing, really. she was the cacophony of angry traffic, described by his parents, personified. clearly confident in a way that amir could only pretend to be. but she was nothing that had to be rationed, careful with because of its potential to harm you if indulged too heftily. but he still found himself doing just that, being so very selective with his time dedicated to yara and yara only. he needed time for himself but when he didn’t want that, yara was not only a good distraction but also someone whose company he genuinely enjoyed. and that’s why he set out to find her now, bearing a gift. “perks of having a boyfriend who works in agro,” he greeted, smirk playing at his lips as he raised the one hand that was not empty. “a fallen leaf. for you.” 

it was a rather rough greeting, stemming mostly from being caught off guard than anything else, but he quickly reversed gears and smiled broadly at his boyfriend and his own conversation with the plants. instances like these were the ones that made francisco feel so guilty about the times he didn’t feel so loving towards amir. “no longer in need? don’t encourage them to relocate me, but fine – i’ll leave them alone. something else’s got my attention now, anyway,” he said, soft grin still stretching his lips as he extended his hand to pull him up, beckoning to him for an embrace. “so, what brings this great surprise visit?” 

bent at the knee, francisco hovered above a tray of seedlings with a watering can in hand. “so, your root system is going to suck up all this water, the roots are like your mouth, and you’re going to get what you need, do some photosynthesizing, and then it’s going to transpire out of you, like you’re urinating.” the conversation wasn’t loud, but it was loud enough for anyone less than five feet away to understand that it was a conversation with the plants. he stood when he was done watering them, brushing his palms on his jeans. “oh, fuck,” a murmur under his breath before he cleared his throat, “hey – didn’t expect you to drop by today… didn’t expect anyone.”