Chapter Text
1 Month Before the Crash
Daisuke
In the middle of the "night", Daisuke sneaks to the kitchen for some sweetener, as he does every night. But as he enters the lounge, his heart almost stops. He sees Curly, staring at the giant screen.
He tries not to make a sound as he steps back but the metal creaks under him. Curly doesn't react to the noise at all. In fact, he seems almost distracted.
"Interesting," Daisuke says in a morbid tone for no reason at all. "PROBABLY THE WIND!!" he shouts casually. Of course Curly hears that and almost jumps out of his skin. He whips his head around to look at Daisuke, eyes wide with surprise. The intern flinches, not entirely sure what he was expecting.
"Daisuke! What- why are you up?" Curly asks, moving to stand up. He hasn't changed out of his work clothes. "You almost gave me a heart attack, kid. Trying to kill me, huh," Curly says with a chuckle. Daisuke laughs with him, almost nervous.
"Ahhah... sorry."
"No, don't apologize. You're not in trouble." Daisuke nods, smiling at the reassurance. He almost feels bad when he says, "I, uh... couldn't sleep." It was half-true, at least. He really was unable to sleep. Because of the sweetener.
The intern walks over to Curly, taking his invitation to sit. Once they're both comfortable, Daisuke looks up at the screen.
"So, what are you doing up still, Captain?" Daisuke asks. Curly smiles slightly, tilting his head a little.
"We're alone, Daisuke. Please, call me Orion," the captain suggests, making Daisuke's heart skip a beat. Curly's such a nice guy.
"O-okay, Orion!" Daisuke stammers, immediately cringing at how he sounds. Curly seems both amused and sympathetic. "Soooo..?"
Curly looks confused for a moment. "... ah, yeah. I was just watching the screen."
"Why?" Daisuke asks, looking up at the giant screen. He doesn't understand the appeal. At least the stars are pretty.
"I like looking at the stars."
Oh.
Daisuke holds back a laugh at the irony.
He glances at Curly again, admiring him. His hair looks soft and his eyes are kind. Of course he has to be a pretty blue-eyed, blond. It's unfair. Not to mention his muscles! They bulge out under his coveralls. Especially his chest. They almost remind him of boobs.
The thought makes him blush.
"I do too. I prefer seeing them in real life, though. Back on earth," Daisuke murmurs, turning away. Curly nods in agreement, sighing softly.
"Yeah. On earth."
Daisuke scoots closer, careful not to touch Curly. But the captain tenses anyway.
"Something wrong?"
"... no. Just thinking."
"Oh, okay..."
They sit there in silence for a long moment, just staring up at the screen. "So, what are you thinking about?"
•
Curly
Curly shakes his head. He doesn't want to burden Daisuke with the stress being captain and having Jimmy as his friend gives him. Swansea's probably gonna be making Daisuke pay for not sleeping when he should've been, anyway.
He feels Daisuke lean on him and finally looks at the intern. He's looking up at him with a strange expression, his eyes shifting their focus.
Curly recognizes that look.
He's not sure he likes it.
And he sure as hell won't be letting Daisuke indulge in it. He's just going to have to go about it in a way that won't hurt him too bad.
For now, Curly will leave it be.
They don't speak for the rest of the night.
•
Curly wakes up with a start, feeling a weight on his shoulder. He doesn't have to look to know who's leaning on him.
The captain doesn't remember falling asleep. He must've gotten too comfortable. Daisuke as well.
"Hey, Daisuke. C'mon, wake up buddy," Curly mutters, trying to shake the intern awake.
Daisuke yawns when he wakes, shaking his head.
"You awake?" Curly asks, watching him nod in response.
"I don't wanna be," he whines, nuzzling into Curly. "You're warm..."
The captain lets out an amused chuckle, pushing Daisuke off of him.
"I know, but we have to get up."
He growls, shaking his head.
Curly scoffs and gets up, making Daisuke fall over. He turns to make sure the intern's okay.
"Ack! Oriooon!" Daisuke exclaims, making Curly laugh.
He then sighs, looking up to see Jimmy. The co-pilot stares back at him, an eyebrow raised. He crosses his arms, his lips pulling back in the beginning of a snarl.
"Hey, uh... good morning, Jimmy!" Curly greets with a smile. He doesn't know why he's nervous now.
Daisuke gets up quickly at the utterance of Jimmy's name. He turns to look over the back of the couch.
"Good morning, Orion. ... hi Daisuke," Jimmy mutters, rolling his eyes.
Curly gets the feeling he did something wrong in Jimmy's eyes. Again. Sometimes, he doesn't understand his friend. But surely, he means well.
Surely...
How could he doubt his friend?
Curly stretches, trying to act casual. He can't help but notice the glare Jimmy gives him. At least Daisuke doesn't notice.
"I'm gonna go change. I don't want Swansea yelling at me," the intern says, leaving Jimmy and Curly alone.
"Don't go back to bed!" Curly yells after him.
"I'm not gonnaaaa!" Daisuke exclaims.
Curly scoffs, turning back to Jimmy. He doesn't look happy.
"What's with you and the kid?" he asks, his tone almost accusatory.
"We talked," the captain answers with a shrug. But evidently that answer does not satisfy Jimmy, if his scoff is anything to go by.
"About?"
"Earth. The stars."
"That's it?"
"Mhm."
Jimmy narrows his eyes, a look of distrust in his expression.
What did he do to deserve that look?
Was there a reason for it?
"I'll see you back at the cockpit."
•
Daisuke
"Owie! That hurt!"
"Oh, shush. Didn't hit ya that hard, did I?"
"... no."
"Alright then."
Swansea was teaching Daisuke, getting annoyed at the intern's current inability to pay attention.
Daisuke yawns. He really shouldn't have stayed up so late. The mechanic raises a brow.
"What? Too boring for ya?"
"N-no. I just... didn't sleep much last night..." Daisuke admits hesitantly.
"Pony Express only allows 5 hours of sleep and no more than that," Swansea reminds with a huff.
Daisuke nods, wondering why. Is that even legal? But if they're doing it, it should be, right?
Everyone says you need 8 whole hours of sleep. But if Pony Express says 5 then maybe that's all they need?
Yeah.
Pony Express isn't such a bad company, right?
•
During break, when no one's looking, Daisuke goes to the kitchen. He goes to the machine on the counter. He's done this enough without having to hover by Curly to see the code. Not that it's hard to remember, anyway. It's only 4 numbers.
"Daisuke, what are you doing?" someone asks, making Daisuke freeze. He turns to see Curly.
"Guh- Captain! Hey," Daisuke greets, letting out a nervous giggle. "I'm just... making sure the machine works!"
Curly smiles and shakes his head. "Right, right. I get it, Mr. Sweet Tooth. But not right now, alright? C'mon, Anya's taking a break too. Maybe you guys can play a game."
That gets Daisuke's attention. He forgets about the sweetener, eager to play games.
Curly moves to let the intern go to the lounge, where Anya was waiting. He almost trips over his own feet, the nurse standing up to assist him if needed.
"Woah! I'm okay! So, what game you wanna play Anya?" Daisuke asks.
•
Curly
Curly watches with amusement, so caught up in seeing the two interact. He doesn't know Jimmy's right behind him until the guy's arms are wrapping around him. The captain freezes when he feels hands on his chest, squeezing just slightly.
He knows it's Jimmy because only his best friend would do something like this. "Hey, Jimmy," Curly murmurs.
"... you don't sound as excited to see me as you did when you saw Daisuke."
"What's wrong with that?"
"As if you don't know."
The co-pilot squeezes harder. Curly bites back a complaint.
"I really don't."
"Then you're about as stupid as that kid."
"Jimmy! You can't say that!" Curly scolds, pulling Jimmy's hands off his chest. He pulls away and turns around only to be punched in the face. "What the fuck, Jim?!"
Curly wipes his face and looks down, noticing the blood on his hand. This is normal, but what bothers him is that Jimmy didn't pull them to a more secluded area. Was he really that mad?
What did Curly do to deserve this? Is Jimmy trying to publicly humiliate him?
He's lucky Daisuke and Anya aren't paying attention.
"What's wrong with me hanging out with Daisuke?"
"Oh, is that what you call it?"
Curly gives his friend a confused look.
"Oh, don't act like that. You're sleeping with the intern, aren't you?"
"Pardon?!"
"You heard me."
"I- why would you- fucking hell, you really think that I... that I'd do that?"
Curly narrows his eyes, his next words coming as a shock to both Jimmy and himself. "You're fucked up, you know that? How could you say that?" Jimmy's eyes widen in surprise, then narrow. Curly could swear he saw his friend's eye twitching.
•
Daisuke
When night comes, Daisuke comes out to the lounge. But this time for Curly. He noticed the captain hadn't come to the sleeping quarters. He finds it weird that he didn't notice last night.
Daisuke's always been weirdly aware of where Curly is. Whether the captain be in his immediate vicinity or somewhere else on the Tulpar. Didn't matter where, he always found Curly when he needed him.
"Ca- ... Orion?"
Curly hears Daisuke this time, turning to look at him. He smiles almost immediately and it makes the intern unbelievably happy. He's not sure why. It just does.
"Hey, Daisuke!"
Daisuke approaches quite quickly, eager to sit beside him. The next thing he knows he's wrapping his arms around Curly's waist and hugging him. A soft sound of surprise escapes the captain's lips.
"Hi, Orion."
"Hey. What's with the hug?"
He shrugs, looking up at Curly. He just presses his face into his chest, feeling the hug be returned.
"Needed it?"
"Yeah, you could say that..."
"Somethin' happen?"
"Swansea... it feels like he hates me with how little he makes me work. Instead he makes me play around with wires."
"He just wants you to learn a little more before you accidentally hurt yourself trying to help. He cares about your safety and that's a good thing. But I can talk to him about it if it bothers you that much."
"Really?" Daisuke asks hopefully, looking up at Curly. Then he nuzzles back into his chest. "Thank you!"
Daisuke hears him hum in response, petting his hair. He sighs contentedly, glad that the captain had listened to him.
Curly's so nice to him. He could just kiss the guy.
But that'd be inappropriate. Besides, he definitely doesn't like him back.
Right?
The thought makes Daisuke sad. It really shouldn't, but it does.
He looks back up at Curly, seeing his soft smile.
The intern's almost tempted to kiss him.
No, not almost.
He really wants to. He's very tempted.
"Just one..."
•
Curly
"What was that, Daisuke?" Curly asks, raising a brow in confusion.
Daisuke seemed lost in thought when he whispered something inaudible. He was almost worried about him.
But the intern focuses back on Curly, his eyes wide. His face turns a deep red before he hides in the captain's chest.
"Daisuke?"
"I-it's nothing. I'm just... really tired!"
"Then you should go to bed," he suggests.
"Yeah. You're right," Daisuke huffs, but he doesn't let go.
"Daisuke, aren't you gonna go to bed?"
"I will. I just- give me a moment."
"Daisuke?"
Curly frowns, confused. He arches automatically when he feels the younger man's hand slide up his back and tighten his grip.
"Daisuke," Curly murmurs, his voice a little more stern this time. He looks up at him this time.
They just stare at each other for a long while, both silent. He's tense, waiting for something to happen. But when nothing does, he relaxes.
Then Daisuke leans in, and this is when Curly learns he has terrible timing. His eyes widen when he feels the intern's lips on his. He freezes for a moment, shocked.
Wait, no. Daisuke shouldn't be doing this. This is just going to prove Jimmy right. He knows better, doesn't he?
Daisuke knows better. So does Curly.
He should be pushing the kid away. And yet here he sits, frozen in shock as Daisuke kisses him.
Kid? He's not a kid, he's 20. Just about. Jimmy and Swansea are getting to him.
Curly just lets the kiss happen until the surprise wears off. Finally, he puts a hand on Daisuke's chest and pushes him away.
•
Daisuke
Daisuke blinks, confused. He looks down at Curly's hand, then looks up at his face. It takes him a moment to realize what he had done.
He slaps his hand over his mouth, shocked but somewhat pleased with what happened. The captain's lips were so soft. Surprisingly sweet tasting. It felt... great.
"Daisuke."
Then he freezes, noticing the change in Curly's tone. His arms are crossed and he doesn't look very happy.
Oh.
"I- Ori.... captain..."
"... is there something you want to tell me?"
Daisuke shakes his head, causing Curly to give him a look of disappointment.
"Daisuke. Don't lie to me."
He glances away for a moment, ashamed. Then he looks back up at him.
"I-i love you..."
"... excuse me?"
"I'm in love with you..."
"... no, you're not."
"What?" Daisuke asks. "What do you mean no, I'm not?"
"You’re not. This is just... a minor crush. Only temporary."
Daisuke inhales sharply, tears starting to form. He shakes his head, leaning away and almost falling over. Curly reaches out, keeping him steady. The intern pulls away harshly.
"How would you know?"
"I just do."
"No. No, that's not good enough."
"Daisuke-"
"It's not just a crush!" Daisuke exclaims, about to cry.
"Oh, honey," Curly whispers, giving him a sympathetic look. He wraps his arms around the intern as he falls apart. "Fuck... Daisuke. Even if it were more than just a crush, and even if I did... love you back, it would never work."
"What? W-why not?" Daisuke sniffles, his grip tight.
"I don't feel the same way. Besides, you're too young for me."
Every word hurts Daisuke more and more. His grip tightens more, eliciting a soft noise from Curly, so he loosens up a little.
"But- I don't... what do I do now? I can't just turn this off. How do I..?"
"It'll be okay. You're going to get over this. After this internship, you'll be able to go on with your life. Go to college, meet a nice girl... or boy. It's not the end. You'll be okay."
"Promise?"
"I promise."
Daisuke holds on to Curly tightly, crying it out. Despite being rejected, he feels comforted by the captain's warmth.
Eventually, he falls asleep.