Chapter Text
“Does Damon seem different to you?”
Calderon flinched, a movement so small Aya would never have noticed if she didn’t know to look.
“No,” he said quickly. But he wouldn’t meet her eyes, scrolled through an article on his holopad that had suddenly gotten very interesting. Aya put a hand on her hip, leveled him with a glare.
“You’re an awful liar, you know,” she grumbled. “Come on, tell me. He’s been weird since we picked up Juniper.”
“I don’t know anything about that,” Calderon answered, refusing to look up, “Don’t you have star charts to calibrate or something, Flight Lieutenant?”
“We’re perfectly on course, Commander. You won’t be able to hide from me for long.”
“Long enough to avoid a knife in my stomach,” Calderon said simply. “Go find something to do, Ayame.”
“Go find something to do, Ayame,” Aya mimicked, but she took the loss and left.
--
Aya ran onto the bridge, her face bright and smile wicked, and Calderon knew that absolutely nothing good was about to happen.
“You fucking knew, didn’t you, oh my god,” she said, all in a rush, “I can’t believe - guess what I just found out?”
“I assure you, I do not want to know,” Calderon sighed. “I’m busy, Ayame.”
“No you aren’t. You’re online on Unholy Knights 3.”
He really had to learn how to turn that status off. Aya plopped down into the pilot’s chair, spinning it around to face him.
“Oh my god, okay, so! You can’t tell anybody about this.” When she started a story like that, it was always something disastrous. “You’ll never guess who just asked me how to cut hair.”
“There are only four of us on the ship.”
“You are absolutely no fun.” Aya rolled her eyes. “Damon is going to learn how to cut hair. Ask me why.”
“I do not care.”
“Thanks for asking! I’ll tell you!”
Calderon hated that he loved her. He focused on keeping his expression neutral, keeping the smile from breaking through.
“Damon is learning to cut hair for June. Because he likes him.” Aya’s eyes were as wide as saucers. “Like, actually fucking has a crush. On June. Damon.”
Calderon had really been hoping that would never come up again. He had been perfectly happy pretending he didn’t know that, largely because he didn’t care, but also because it was a little bit fucking strange. He stared at Aya as blankly as he could manage.
“Why are you telling me this?” he asked.
“Because you already knew!” Aya exclaimed. “You were being weird when I asked why he was being weird and for a while I thought maybe you were fucking Damon, but you’re still way too uptight for that.”
He actually had, once or twice, but he’d rather die than tell her that. Instead, he put on his best unimpressed glare.
“Sorry, just saying.” She looked entirely unapologetic. “Anyway, I had to tell someone. And I couldn’t tell June. Thanks for listening.”
“I wasn’t.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
She stood up, stretched, and swatted him on the shoulder.
“I’m gonna kick your ass in UK3 later,” she said cheerfully, and left the bridge with a spring in her step.
--
“You asked Ryona out?” Aya gasped. Bash laughed, the embarrassment of the memory now distant enough to manage.
“A long time ago. I didn’t know she had a girlfriend then. Definitely thought I was gonna get my ass beat on that one.”
Aya snickered. She took another sip of her drink, something sweet and fruity.
“Damn, that’s gotta suck, living in such close quarters.” She giggled. “At least you’re not the only one with a crush on a shipmate.”
She hiccuped, set her drink down, and rested her head gently on the counter. Bash poked her forehead insistently.
“You got someone you like?” he asked. Somehow, he was certain he’d have heard about this by now.
“Me?” Aya snorted, waved her hand dismissively. “No. Crushes are for losers.”
Bash rolled his eyes.
“Yeah, thanks. Who is it then? You can’t just say that and not tell me.”
Aya lifted her head to look at him seriously. At least, as seriously as she could manage with that much alcohol in her system.
“Can’t tell you. I don’t wanna die. He’d kill me with a spoon or something. There’s so many hot girls out there, Bash, I can’t die yet.”
“Fucking Damon?” Bash exclaimed, forgetting entirely that he was supposed to be quiet. Maybe he was a little drunk too. Maybe.
“Shut up!” Aya hissed urgently. “Noooo. You don’t know about it.”
“It’s not Calderon that he likes, is it?” Bash asked, “Or Ry? Tell me it’s not Ry or I’m gonna cry. I know it’s not you. No offense.”
“No, stupid,” Aya laughed. “I’m not telling you. It’s a secret, because I don’t wanna die.”
“If it’s not Cal or Ry or me, I know it’s not me, or you,” Bash was beginning to get a terrible, absolutely hilarious idea. “It’s June?”
Aya went absolutely silent and Bash knew he had hit the nail on the head.
“Deadass? June?” Bash felt a little bit hysterical. “You’re telling me that Damon, Certified Heartless Bastard, has a crush on June?”
“He’s not that heartless,” Aya offered. “Actually he’s pretty nice when he wants to be.”
“That is so genuinely not the point. How did that even happen? Since when?”
“I think you must not have eyes,” Aya said helpfully, “because it’s been, like, the whole time?”
“Oh my god. You’re fucking joking. I’m gonna ask Ry.”
“Come on, have I ever lied to you?” Aya asked, unable to keep herself from laughing even as she said it.
“You literally lie to me all the time,” Bash protested, “It’s a quinti- quinta- quint-ess-en-tial part of our relationship. You absolute troll.”
“Hmm… well if I told you about this, which I didn’t, I wouldn’t be lying.”
Bash flicked her forehead and she smacked his hand away.
“I’m gonna ask Ry,” he repeated, standing up on legs that felt just a little too shaky.
“You do that.” Aya set her head back down on the counter, closing her eyes. “But she’ll tell you I’m right.”
--
“Ryona?”
June peeked into the infirmary and Ryona waved him in. The door clicked shut behind him.
The poor man looked like he’d been crying. His eyes were red, lips turned down in a pitiful little pout. Ryona would have to remind Damon that his actions had consequences.
“Can I talk to you about something?” he asked softly.
“Anything.”
It was rare that he sought her out for anything, much less to share his problems, and although Ryona knew what this was about already, she would listen.
“Is Damon upset with me..?”
He sounded so small. Ryona placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and he leaned into the touch.
“No, June, he isn’t,” Ryona assured him.
“Are you sure? He’s been avoiding me.” That part was true. June fidgeted with one of his bracelets. “I think I must have done something wrong.”
“I’m sure,” Ryona said soothingly, “I know him well, after all. He’s not mad at you, he’s mad at himself.”
June looked down at the floor, his frown deepening.
“Why avoid me, then?” he mumbled.
“You could ask him,” Ryona suggested gently, patting June’s shoulder. “I promise it will be alright. You’re a good man, June.”
The look he gave her was absolutely heartbreaking, and Ryona made a mental note to remind him of his positive qualities more often.
“I mean it, Juniper. You’re good. I promise it isn’t you.”
“Okay,” June sniffled. “Okay. I trust you.”
He may have trusted her, but Ryona knew he didn’t believe her, and unfortunately, that made all the difference.
--
“Do you have any more books about cowboys?” June asked, and were Ryona a little more expressive, she might have cheered aloud. Instead, she smiled brightly at June, and he returned it in kind.
“I do. Take whichever ones you like from the bookshelf.”
June picked a few, tucked them under his arm. When he looked over at Ryona again, his cheeks were pink.
“Thank you,” he said, and then, more quietly, “you were right.”
“I know,” Ryona said fondly. “I’m happy for you.”
June smiled sheepishly.
“Y’know what? I am too.”
“Then go on back to him, loverboy,” Ryona teased, and with another bright and beaming smile, June was out the door.