phm oc and rocky and grace being a platonic found family :)
oc is a few years younger than ryland. there’s not much they know about her and she can’t remember much of her past at all.
a/n: we know that grace can be a huge crashout but the concept of rocky losing his cool and having to learn how to remedy that is actually super interesting so here you go :D
It had started as a silly moment.
There were in one of the common areas that evening, Ryland working away on a new approach to ration supplies with Rocky assisting. But both were abruptly brought away from their task as they saw what she had just done.
"Why did you do that, question?"
She smiled, taking her finger away from where it lightly tapped the part of the xenonite ball above Rocky’s head before she moved to take the seat next to them at the desk.
"Um, just thought it was funny." There was a small smile on Grace’s face as they both waited to see how the Eridian would take this new form of human communication. “Yeah, it’s uh, like a teasing thing.” He explained. “We do it as a joke. Usually on a person’s nose.”
“…Rocky doesn’t have a nose.”
“Exactly.” She continued, turning the chair a bit to look at the drawn-out notes that were slowly growing before them. “Okay, what are we looking at?”
“Oh yeah, so basically, utilities are at a good level right now. But I think it’s best if we move these compartments into another room closer to the controls…”
It was a small explanation, nothing that seemed to warrant any further elaboration. But as they moved onto looking at medical supplies, she couldn’t help but see out of the corner of her eye how the alien was mimicking her action with one of his fingers.
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So it went. Sometimes if they walked by each other in a hall, maybe if he was zoning out, a small tap accompanied with the word. He didn’t seem to mind. It was the equivalent of a person nudging someone’s shoulder with their own or slipping in a nickname in greeting. It was small. Harmless.
Well, things were different one morning.
The dynamic duo had been up for a few hours already. She joined them, padding into the space wrapped in a jacket and worn sweatpants. Nothing seemed off enough to reconsider what she had already deemed a normal way to lightheartedly bother the Eridian. And as Rocky rolled alongside her, she went ahead.
But he moved back. Suddenly. Strictly.
“What is your problem? Stop with the ‘Boop!’”
She couldn’t realize why it sounded so much more serious in that moment. But later she caught it.
He didn’t say, “What is your problem, question?”
Just, “What is your problem?”
She just looked at him, now more awake at the suddenly change in tone that took over the small room. There wasn’t even a moment to note the way her hand hovered in the space now deemed too close between a supposedly growing friendship. No one said anything. Grace just looked on from where he sat, his head having raised at the outburst.
“Rocky…” Her hand came back to her side, paired with brows slightly bent in confusion. “I’m sorry.”
The Eridian turned to the microbiologist at his attempt at intervening and pointed at her. “She always do this! Always…joking! Not taking anything serious.”
“I’m sorry, okay?” The interjection brought the attention back to her, both of her hands now slightly raised in an attempted keep-the-peace stance. She repeated the sentiment again in hopes that it was clear. “I’m sorry.”
A few more awkward moments passed as the floor was now his. To answer. To say anything.
With that, she slowly turned and continued her original path to the pantry.
No one said anything as Armando helped make her coffee and rehydrate some oatmeal.
And no one said anything as she walked back to her room and closed the door.
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Well that was a packed question. She sat back on her bunk, a spoon scooping the first of the grainy excuse of a meal into her mouth as she pondered it herself.
When she first woke up on the Hail Mary, it was nothing short of disorienting. She still remembered how she could barely hold herself up after the time in a coma and how she couldn’t believe she was in space. As part of some mission. To save Earth.
And there just happened to be a random guy and an alien on board.
Ryland’s memories had come back. But her’s…that had been a little different.
There hadn’t been much progress made at all. And, try as they might, there still seemed to be some kind of barrier that stopped her from remembering pretty much anything about her past.
Grace noted that she was well-versed enough in small tasks around the ship that she must’ve had some training prior to being put in the coma. Whether it came from their crew mates or Eva and Carl…they couldn’t tell.
But it also meant that she wasn’t fully unable to help out sometimes, much to her relief. Pipetting and sample analysis became routine, as well as maintaining other systems around Mary. Some of the work mirrored jobs that required specified advanced certification. Armando and the aforementioned ship had been helping her learn even more protocols lately. That was some kind of win. Not including the friendship she’d been forming with Ryland and Rocky.
She guessed…she guessed she could joke around a bit too much at times. Joining Mary in teaching Rocky about human jokes (like his amazingly successful “Knock-knock” one), had been a non-negotiable for her. After that came the art of pranks and sarcasm. Grace was usually the victim of these shenanigans. It had brought about bonding for all of them. A reminder that even being in a death mission…there could be some fun times.
And, in her defense, there didn’t seem to be much to do sometimes when they were busy saving the world and she was just, well, there.
She chewed on another bite. But for Rocky - sweet, curious-about-human-life, dependable Rocky - to tell her something like that?
The oatmeal seemed to taste even worse now.
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“You good, pal?” Ryland marked a few more things on his paper before cutting to look at Rocky who stood nearby.
That was surely believable. “Okay.” The tone was even as he got back to his work. “But if something was wrong, you know you could talk to us, right?”
Grace noted the beat of hesitation.
“Okay.” He drew another line through an unreliable equation. “We might not get it.” He added. “But it might be better than going it alone. And, if I’m being honest, you might have hurt her.” 7. The answer for the problem he had been looking at was 7. He wrote as such. “Even if she was in the wrong.”
Another small pause followed. “How Rocky hurt her?”
Grace looked over at him again, mind already turning at how to explain yet another forfeit concept in a way that clicked. Talks about human emotions had proven to be some of the more difficult ones sometimes.
“Our feelings can be hurt - we might feel bad - when someone is angry with us. Like…guilty.”
Rocky didn’t say anything at that.
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She’d fallen asleep at some point and then gotten up and reorganized her bunk. A small box of odds and ends that might be helpful for later experiments lay by her door as proof. Now she lay on her bunk again, looking at the poster of woods in New Hampshire that was displayed on the wall against her bunk.
It was already clear that she couldn’t stay there forever. Besides the fact that Armando and Mary would surely break the door down to make sure she didn’t succumb to starvation, it was just plain immature. She’d made her mind up. The next time she saw Rocky, she’d apologize. Wrap the whole thing up with a simple, “I promise, it’s okay.” And they could move on.
The green pine trees on the picture were her company as she thought of the plan. It was a nice poster. She’d put it there a few weeks back, but surely she wasn’t the one who brought it on the ship.
She would’ve remembered going somewhere that beautiful.
A knock then sounded on her door. But the way that it was one tell-tale thud told her exactly who it was.
She didn’t say anything. Maybe he would just think she was resting.
“I know you are not asleep. I can hear your heart.”
Getting up, she went and opened the door to see him facing up at her. Well, even without a face, he didn’t seem too upset.
He then seemed to look down for a moment before facing her again and continuing.
“Rocky need to apologize.”
There wasn’t any getting out of this. She nodded her head to the room and walked in to sit on her bunk again, Rocky following her and stopping a few feet in. He was quiet for a few moments.
“Rocky…remember bad things lately. Things with crew. With home.” His claws lightly clicked together. “Not been sleeping good. When you approach Rocky, Rocky tired. Rocky…grumpy. Angry. Stupid.” He looked up at her again. “Not mean to hurt you.”
If she was being honest, that made total sense. After years of loss and isolation, Rocky carried a pain that was heavy. Maybe even stifling, at times. And trying to save the world didn’t make processing any of that any more bearable
“Understand if you are mad at Rocky.”
Something akin to a small smile came over her face. As if being angry at him was something easy to do.
“I’m not mad at you, Rocky.” She assured, pushing herself off the bunk to sit on the floor next to him. “I get it. You were stressed and I startled you. I didn’t mean to mess with you so much. And you’re right.” She fidgeted with her right thumbnail. “I joke too much.”
A short, high trill sounded from him. “No, not too much.” He replied. “Rocky just impatient. Not your fault.
“No you’re not. You were being honest with me.”
His tone was quieter. “But didn’t have to do that way.”
A small exhale left her nose and she gave a little nod, still looking at her hand. “Yeah…” Neither said anything for a few moments before she turned to him. “But if something’s bothering you, tell me. So I can know. And if you ever want to talk about…your home and crew…any of it, I’m here for that, too.” He needed to know that he wasn’t alone anymore. That he had people to talk to. To confide in.
He was part of a family again.
He seemed to ponder those words a bit before responding. “Thank thank thank.” If he had eyes, she could’ve promised they would’ve been looking right at her, filled with gratitude you can’t put into words. “You are good friend of Rocky. Good good friend.”
Right in the feels. She couldn’t help the smile that grew on her face. They were good. Everything was fine.
“And still want to learn more jokes!” He stood up straighter, excited at the prospect of the human humor they hadn’t gotten to. “Can use them on Grace.”
Her smile grew into a laugh at how out of pocket that last part was. “Deal.” She said once she sobered up and looked back at him. “And you’re my friend, too. Always.”
With that, she moved to face the wall again and rest the side of her head against the xeononite. A small thud against her temple told her he did the same.
They didn’t have to have all of the answers. Or all of the plans. Right now this was enough. This moment. This time.
And knowing none of them were alone anymore.
a/n: was eating sour skittles as i edited some of this AMAZE AMAZE AMAZE
hope you guys liked it! 🥹 have a great day/night! and remember that Jesus loves you!!
