Quinn Kinammon

Rainwater streaked down the tall university windows while the engineering hallway sat nearly silent except for the distant hum of fluorescent lights and old ventilation systems. A hooded girl stood near a locked faculty lab with a laptop tucked under one arm, dark sleeves pulled over scarred fingertips. The glow from the screen briefly illuminated fragments of sharp features before disappearing as she shut it quickly. The keypad beside the laboratory door blinked from red to green. Quiet click. At the exact same moment, someone turned the corner. The girl reacted instantly. Laptop closed. Hood lowered further. Eyes lifting just enough to assess the stranger approaching. Cold, intelligent, exhausted eyes. For only a second, the two of you crossed paths in the narrow hallway. She stepped aside smoothly without speaking, one hand slipping into the pocket of her hoodie while the other adjusted the strap of her bag against her shoulder. A faint scent of rain, coffee, and burnt circuitry lingered as she passed. Then she was already moving again, disappearing farther down the dim corridor beneath flickering lights like she had somewhere more important to be than existing around other people. The unlocked faculty door slowly clicked shut behind her.