After recovering from that heavenly vision, Layton immediately looked away, looking into his plate with a sulky air and slightly embarrassed that such a beautiful girl had voluntarily sat at his own table.
"Hey?" she said, gesticulating with her hand to get his attention.
Pretending not to see anything, he continued to eat, taking his mp3 and raising the volume almost to the maximum.
"Heeey? Don't pretend not to see me!" she exclaimed again, who inevitably caught the eye of a group of boys from a nearby table, who after seeing that she was dealing with Layton, recognized by all as unsocial and grumpy, did not meddle in the matter.
Layton continued to eat, intending not to answer the girl and sure that if he continued to pretend nothing, sooner or later she would leave him alone.
She snorted and rose from the red and white stool of the lunchroom tables, walking around the table, and detached one of the earbuds from Layton's ear, who, immersed in the music, was frightened by that reckless gesture.
"What the fuck are you doing? Are you crazy?" he said, catching the earphone and making sure it wasn't ruined.
"Does it sounds nice to you to not answer a greeting? You're so rude!" she said again, looking him in the eye and immediately realizing that he, slightly intimidated, did not reciprocate her gaze.
"I'm talking to you, beasty boy!" she repeated, knocking her hand over his head, forcing him to raise his eyes towards her.
When their eyes crossed for the second time, Layton tried to keep the sulky expression that accompanied his days, but he did not succeed: the eyes of that girl and her smile entered in his soul and for a moment, that place, those smells, even those people, seemed to disappear.
It was as if there were only the two of them, or at least, he had that feeling.
"There are so many other places to sit, why did you decide to come here and bother me? Can't you see I'm eating in peace?" he said, with a grumpy air.
"Well, it doesn't seem to me... you should how are you eating your legume soup! You look like a man under torture!" she chuckled, returning to her seat and sitting down, glad she had finally gained his attention.
'Yes, indeed, it doesn't drive me crazy, but it's good and it's full of vitamins and protein. Now that you have satisfied your curiosity, you can leave me alone."
After talking and sending down another bite of soup, Layton inserted the earbuds back into his ears and clicked the mp3 player's 'play' button.
*tic*
For the second time, the earbud was detached from the red-haired girl, who started laughing again, amused.
"Uff..." Layton snorted, rubbing his eyes and raising his head, trying not to lose his composure.
"Listen... I don't know if this is a bet or if it's a simple joke, but..."
"Nice to meet you, I'm Faith!" she interrupted, reaching out to him and looking at him with a smile.
"But what the heck does this girl want from me? I've never seen her! But from her look, she seems sincere! Pff! Maybe if I try to please her, she'll get the fuck out of here!" Layton thought, shaking her hand.
"Layton... my name is Layton."
"Ah! Then you have a name too, all right! I noticed from the symbol on your jacket that you're a janitor in sector B... from today I was transferred from sector C to your own area, so we will be colleagues!"
"Okay…" he replied, coldly, unwilling to continue beyond that conversation.
She placed an elbow on the table and the cheek on her hand, looking at him sulkily: "You're such a weird fellow! I just showed up with you, and you don't even worthy of a friendly word! I don't know anyone in the business, could you guide me? I need a friend here!"
"Uhm... yes, why not..."
"Anyway… I really like Clash too, did you know?" she said, trying to have a conversation.
"What?" he asked, convinced that he had not heard well.
"The Clash. The band you're listening to on your mp3. On Earth I had all their albums, they are one of the best bands in the history of rock!" she said, making horns with her hand and chasing her tongue as if she was a punk singer during a concert.
Faith's sympathy, after that conversation started by chance, ended up snatching a smile from Layton, who for the first time since boarding, began to re-evaluate the people aboard the Voyager.
When the break time ended, the usual beep followed an AI message.
*To the entire crew of the BS Voyager: return to your workstations, the lunch break is over*
*To the entire crew of the Bs Voyager...
The message was repeated by the same robotic voice four times in a row as if it was a bell ringing in the corridors of the ship.
All the people seated at the tables got up and deposited their lunchboxes inside specific containers placed next to the food distribution machines.
From there the journey of the dishes to the sterilization sector, which would wash them at high temperature, treat them with sterilizing chemicals and make them usable for the next day or for dinner time, would begin.
"What do you think of Sam, the B-sector supervisor?" Faith asked, after leaving her lunchbox in the bin.
"The old Sam? He's one of the few people on this ship with a little sense into his head. Since I've met him, I've been convinced that he's wasted on this kind of job" Layton answered, who had been working under Sam's command for several months, having never changed his operation sector.
As they left the lunchroom, the two friends walked in the same direction, following the corridor leading to the closet from which Layton would continue his monotonous cleaning shift.
"What about sector C instead?" he asked, out of nowhere.
"Uhm?"
"You said you've been moved from Sector C to this one. How's that? Did something happen?" Layton continued, who, being a distrustful person, did not believe it was the case that made him meet such a beautiful and kind girl and began to suspect some strange conspiracy.