Chapter Text
Blue had always loved literature. It was because of their strong understanding for literature that they decided to pursue medicine, nurturing the beauty of life any chance they could. Specifically, they were drawn to poetry. Contrary to how capable and put together they seem to the others, Blue had always been a crewmate with a lot on their mind. There isn't a single moment where Blue isn't concerned about the wellbeing of the crew.
It was their sole responsibility to ensure that everyone was healthy and safe as the only doctor on board after all. Unfortunately, the pressure of such duty weighs a lot on them, more than they'd like to admit. Of course, Blue relies on poetry for comfort during such times.
"Poems evoke deep expressions of feelings that heal the tragic wounded soul." Blue would passionately say if someone asked why it was so comforting. "Swoon" is usually how others would respond to that. Oddly. However, Blue never once imagined that there would be a day where they wrote poetry in the hopes of romancing someone.
That someone was none other than the grouchy engineer, Lime, who spent most of their days by themself in the vents.
Blue can't exactly pinpoint when they started to be attracted to the loner engineer. It didn't seem like anyone else really cared much for Lime, since they always rambled on about crazy far-fetched theories that noone else has heard of except for them. Some would even go as far as to call them a lunatic, such as captain Red. Blue thought that was a bit too much. As far as Blue knows them, Lime isn't a lunatic. They're simply eccentric about their beliefs. Maybe that's one of the things Blue likes about them.
From the moment they met, Lime always came across as intriguing to Blue. The way they talked, their actions, habits, all of it was beyond interesting to Blue. For the first time ever, there was someone who didn't immediately swoon in response to Blue.
Instead, Lime even accused Blue of wanting to steal their organs at first. Blue was dumbfounded. They couldn't contain their laughter and ended up giggling a bit in front of Lime(who didn't seem too pleased about it). That was one of the few moments where Blue couldn't keep up their professional image. Maybe it was because of how easily Lime could uncover the more relaxed side of Blue, that they started to become fond of Lime.
That fondness grew to affection. Affection that Blue couldn't contain anymore. They had to express it in the only way they knew how to. Through poetry.
Blue didn't put too much thought into the first poem. They just wanted to see how Lime would react to it. If Lime even knows what poetry is. Hopefully they do.
Through cramped dark vents to medbay,
My heart pounds in waiting,
Your colour out of the vent makes my day,
A warmth unlike gremlins attacking.
Blue wonders if it's too direct or not. The thought of Lime immediately understanding it and rejecting them starts to make them nervous. They've never tried writing a poem for love before so it may lack the subtlety of Blue's usual poems. Blue shakes their head. No, they'll go through with it. Now, how should they hand it to Lime?
Lime was crawling through the vents as usual, making their way to.... somewhere. They weren't sure yet. Despite how much time they've spent in the vents, they still don't know each and every direction the vents lead to.
It only made things more thrilling for Lime in a way, they get to search through every nook and cranny to figure it all out by themself. The whole ventillation system belonged to them, and them only. Also, the rats. And not to mention, aliens and gremlins lurking around..... Lime had to be alert at all times.
There was no telling what danger Lime could face whether it be in the vents or worse, outside of the vents. Suddenly, Lime could hear distant humming while inside the vents. Smoothe and soothing humming, that is. Speaking of danger, Lime must be heading near Medbay. They could recognize the venomous voice of the doctor from anywhere. It was as if the voice of Blue was powerful enough to put Lime into a trance, they always got distracted whenever hearing their voice.
Lime won't fall for it! They'll take a turn to the opposite direction of Blue's blissful voice.
"Must be a deathtrap waiting for me at Medbay..." Lime muttered as they quickly crawled as fast as they could away from the sound of the humming until they eventually popped their head out of the vent.
The vent of Medbay........ "DANGNABBIT!" they shouted in frustration which caught the attention of Blue who was turned away. "Ah, Lime! There you are."
"Nope, nope, no" Lime angrily sputtered as they quickly went back down into the vent.
"Oh, wait, Lime! I have something for you." Blue sounded genuine. That was news to Lime. Something for them? The hot doctor Blue that everyone irritatingly "swooned" for had gotten Lime of all crewmates a gift?
Lime popped their head out of the vent again, squinting their visor at Blue.
"What? Did you lure me in here so that you could do freakish experiments on me and sell my soul to the government??? WELL I KNOW MY RIGHTS AND YOU CAN'T DO THAT TO ME!" Lime pointed an accusatory finger towards Blue and then proceeded to raise their fists up in protests.
"Lime, I assure you I will do no such thing to you. I know your rights as well as you do. I uhm... It's something else I have. For you. I mean." Blue had an unreadable expression on their face but they seemed to fidget a bit with something behind their back. Blue's face was slightly red too. Were they nervous? No way, Lime had never seen them like this before. It was making Lime nervous too.
"...What do you have behind your back? Is it a WEAPON? How can I trust you when you're hiding it from me huh?" Lime questioned with suspicion in their voice.
"It's not....It's uhm. How do I say this? I'll just let you take a look at it yourself Lime." Blue rubbed the back of their head. Blue was acting weird. Blue for once, sounded awkward and shy, totally unlike Blue's usual suave and charming character.....Did they get replaced by an alien? Lime started to sweat at the thought.
As Blue pulled out what was behind their back, Lime flinched and instinctively covered their face with their hands and ducked into the vents a bit.
"DON'T DO IT!" Lime yelled out.
Silence. Nothing happens. Lime still can't bare to look as the silence stretches. Then, Lime could hear the faint sound of footsteps and the Medbay door opening. Huh. Lime takes their hands off their face to see that Blue had left. A piece of paper was left on the ground.
Lime slowly reaches their hand out for it and gives it a read after grabbing it.
Through cramped dark vents to medbay,
My heart pounds in waiting,
Your colour out of the vent makes my day,
A warmth unlike gremlins attacking.
Lime is more confused than ever now. What exactly does this crypted message mean? They read it over and over again, attempting to process it as well as they could.
Then, it clicked in their head.
Yep, Blue definitely got replaced by an alien.
"Through cramped dark vents to medbay" refers to Lime coming here through the vents.
"My heart pounds in waiting" must mean the alien is excited to eat Lime... Oh god.
"Your colour out of the vent makes my day" THE ALIEN IS HAPPILY PLANNING TO KILL LIME.
"A warmth unlike gremlins attacking." THE WARMTH OF LIME BEING IN THE ALIEN'S STOMACH! Lime felt like puking in that moment. Blue, the only crewmate they actually trusted in a world where trust is a construct, turned into an alien. An alien that wanted to eat Lime.
"Oh shit Blue....I should've warned you more about the aliens." Lime felt a pang of sadness at the thought of losing the real Blue to a twisted alien. When could this have happened? There was no time for Lime to ponder on it anymore. They had to take action fast.
The alien had chosen to walk away for whatever reason, maybe it was to taunt Lime and go after other crewmates first. They can't let that fake Blue get away with this. It was time to construct a weapon.
And get revenge for Blue.