Hold my beer
The romantic dynamic between Stratt and Grace only works if you shove Karl in the middle.
I 100% love the headcanon that Stratt and Grace are aroace and platonic whatever-the-fuck-is-going-on-between-them. But just think about it!!! This totally normal guy balances out their intellect and asexuality; he’s a buffer zone between Stratt Grace, and the rest of the world. He’s just a chill guy who suddenly found himself privy to global conspiracies but didn't lose his cool over it. He’s literally the "looks like a killer but is actually a cinnamon roll" type. He’s like the "our third" meme, but it’s "my two." Karl can pick them both up at once and "Hehehe, I swiped 'em."
To Grace and Stratt, he’s a calm haven—someone who’ll listen to a sudden brilliant idea with genuine interest, pay for the shopping, remember the Sour Skittles, bring hot coffee, and agree that they’re all idiots. He’s an extraordinarily ordinary person, and in the chaos that saving Earth turns into, he’s simply essential.
He’s just there to remind the saviors of Earth that they’re still human—that it’s time to eat, or "you need to change your t-shirt and get some sleep."
He doesn't have the neurodivergent traits Stratt and Grace do, and looking at the two of them, he thinks, "Thank God for that."
He loves his job because he can surprise people with the contrast between his serious face and powerful physique, and the fact that he’s actually the most harmless person in a room full of evil genius scientists.
I’ve lost the thread here. When the fuck did this post become all about Karl? Oh well, screw it—the man is magnificent. Just let him tuck his Director of Earth and her advisor into bed.
.....and then watch as the woman he loves sends the man he loves into space, with no hope of return.