The clatter of forks and the sound of laughter filled the dining room. Jerome's siblings were halfway through a loud argument about who could eat more dumplings when Jerome suddenly leaned back in his chair, smirking.
"Hey," he said, raising his voice over the chatter, "did you guys know something?"
His family turned to him curiously. "What?" Sarah asked, tilting her head.
Jerome jabbed a thumb toward Asura, who sat quietly at the end of the table, calmly finishing his meal.
"This guy right here—Asura Khan—he's Juno's first ever Prodigy in UNE military history."
The room went still for a moment.
Sarah's eyes widened. "Wait—what?!"
His father leaned forward, serious now. "Prodigy... of Juno's military? You mean... in all our system's history?"
Even Jerome's younger sister's jaw dropped. "No way..."
⸻
The Squad's Reaction
Raul immediately slammed his hand on the table, nearly knocking over his drink.
"YUP, THAT'S OUR BOY!" he shouted, grinning ear to ear. "The Prodigy! The legend himself! This man was blink-stepping around the training field like he'd been doing it since birth!"
Marco jumped in, waving his fork dramatically. "Dude didn't even break a sweat. Meanwhile, I almost blinked into a wall! True story."
Jerome's little brothers' eyes lit up. "No way! That's so cool!" one of them yelled. The other pointed at Asura. "Can you teach us?!"
⸻
Asura's Response
Asura looked up at all the attention. His expression barely changed—calm, blank, almost stoic as always.
"...It's not a big deal," he said flatly, setting his fork down. "Just... something they called me."
But Jin caught it—just a flicker in Asura's eyes, the smallest crack in his calm. Not pride, not ego. Just a weight he carried.
Jin quickly jumped in, smiling at the family. "Don't let him fool you. He's incredible. He saved all of us more than once."
⸻
Closing Beat
The table burst into chatter again—Raul hyping Asura louder, Marco retelling exaggerated stories, Jerome's siblings practically bouncing in their seats.
Sarah smiled softly, looking at Asura as if seeing him differently now. "Well... prodigy or not, you're always welcome here, son."
For a moment, Asura froze. He gave the faintest nod in return.
And that tiny, rare smile tugged at his lips again.
-
The afternoon sun lit up Jerome's neighborhood. The sound of bouncing balls and sneakers on pavement echoed from the small court near his house—an old relic of Earth's 19th-century invention, basketball.
"Yo, let's run it!" Raul shouted, already spinning the ball on his finger like he'd been born with it. "Two-on-two. Jerome, Marco—you're with me. Jin, John—you're on the other side. Let's see what you got!"
The game started fast. Raul shocked everyone—he was smooth, crossing over Jin, spinning past Jerome, and hitting a clean layup.
"WOOOO!" Raul roared, pounding his chest. "Best in the UNE, baby! Put me in the league!"
Marco laughed so hard he tripped, nearly dropping the ball. Jerome muttered, "Don't get cocky," as he tried to guard Raul, but Raul was already juking past him again.
Even Min-seo cracked a rare smirk. "He's actually... good."
⸻
Enter Asura
Raul strutted back to the half-court line, spinning the ball. "Anybody else want some of this smoke?"
Then Asura stepped onto the court.
Silent. Calm.
He didn't even warm up.
Raul blinked. "...Uh oh."
The game reset. Asura moved like lightning—stealing the ball mid-dribble, gliding across the court, and dunking so fast the others didn't even react until the rim rattled.
"WHAT?!" Marco shouted, eyes wide.
Next play—Raul tried to drive in. Asura blinked—literally blink stepped—and blocked him effortlessly. Raul froze. "Bro cheated! Ain't no way!"
The squad burst into laughter.
Jerome groaned, "We should've known... prodigy."
Marco threw his hands up. "Of course it's easy for him! He's the prodigy, what do you expect?!"
⸻
Closing Beat
The game devolved into chaos—Raul yelling, Marco trying trick shots, Jin laughing so hard he couldn't play straight, Jerome's siblings cheering from the sidelines.
And Asura?
He just played quietly, no trash talk, no boasting.
But deep down... Jin swore he saw that same faint smile again.
-
The rest of the afternoon passed in a blur of laughter and noise.
They played with Jerome's siblings in the yard, wrestled like little kids, and chased each other through the streets until the sun began to set. The squad, for once, wasn't UNE Marines. They were just a group of brothers having fun.
By evening, Sarah called them all back inside. Dinner was hot and fresh, the kind of food that warmed every stomach and soul. Raul and Marco couldn't stop praising it, Jerome kept telling them to quit embarrassing him, and Jin once again complimented Sarah until she laughed and waved him off.
⸻
The Movie Night
After dinner, Jerome's younger sister grinned mischievously.
"Let's go to the movies! There's a new one out—it's 3D horror!"
The squad agreed instantly.
Minutes later, they sat in a sleek, state-of-the-art theater. The screen stretched so wide it swallowed their vision, the sound system rumbling deep into their bones. When the movie started, holographic horrors seemed to leap out of the screen, brushing past their faces.
Marco screamed first when a monstrous hand shot out, grabbing at the audience. Raul clutched his seat, yelling, "BRO WHAT IS THAT?!" Jerome's sister just laughed at them.
Jin tried to play it cool, but even he flinched once when a sharp shriek pierced the theater. Min-seo hid his startle behind a serious expression. John stayed stone-faced—though Jin caught his fist clench once.
And Asura? He sat calmly the whole time, unfazed. When Raul peeked over at him mid-jump scare, Asura simply muttered, "Not scary." Raul groaned. "This man's not human..."
The squad couldn't stop laughing.
⸻
Closing Beat
By the time the credits rolled, they stumbled out of the theater buzzing, still joking about the scares and teasing each other. Raul acted out the monster's scream, Marco pretended to faint, and Jerome's siblings wouldn't stop laughing.
They came home late, exhausted but happy. Blankets and pillows scattered across Jerome's living room as one by one, they crashed out on the floor.
Laughter still lingered in the air as sleep finally claimed them.
For the first time in a long time, life felt simple.
-
The smell of breakfast filled the house—warm breads, sizzling eggs, meats, and glowing fruits from the local farms. The Marines dragged themselves to the table one by one, hair messy, eyes heavy, moving like they'd fought another war in their sleep.
Raul was the first to dig in. He bit into a steaming roll, leaned back, and sighed like it was the greatest thing he'd ever tasted.
"Man... this is good!" Raul said, his mouth half full. He slammed his fork down dramatically. "We get to have a whole month off! And this is only our second day! Life is good, boys. Real good."
He leaned back in his chair, smirking. "I'm probably gonna spend a whole week here before I head back to Novara. Farm world life's waiting for me."
Marco nearly choked on his juice laughing. "Bro, you already planning your vacation schedule?"
Jerome rolled his eyes. "Don't talk with your mouth full."
John, surprisingly, smirked faintly. "For once, I agree with Raul. Life doesn't feel bad right now."
Min-seo nodded quietly, sipping his drink. "You know I'm considering staying here for a week as well, before I go back to Kytheron."
Marco nodded and agrees, "yeah! Can't wait to go back to Novara"
John agreed and simply nodded. He can't wait to visit his parents back in Dravos the mining planet.
⸻
Asura's Quiet Moment
Asura sat at the end of the table, eating slowly as usual. He didn't say anything, but Jin noticed how relaxed his shoulders were compared to yesterday. No tension. No storm in his eyes.
Maybe, Jin thought, Asura was finally letting himself feel the break too. "Hey, Asura... if you like... well you can stay at my place till the months over. You don't have to be alone dude."
Jerome nodded in agreement, "yeah man, you can stay at my place too if you like."
Sarah simply nodded and smiled, "Dear, you can stay here how long you want, it wouldn't bother us at all."
Tyrese Jerome's father nodded in agreement. "And we have planets of room. Mr Prodigy." He chuckles.
Asura simply just smiles and thank them in honor.
⸻
Closing Beat
The squad all agreed with Raul's words, laughter and clattering silverware filling the table.
They had a month.
A whole month without orders, without gunfire, without alien screams.
For now, life was good.
-
By afternoon, the squad had already worn themselves out on basketball rematches and arcade VR battles. Raul declared, "Enough court time! Boys, it's BEACH time!"
Minutes later, they were walking along the shimmering shores of Eryndor Prime.
⸻
The Beach
The ocean stretched endlessly, a deep crystalline blue that sparkled under twin suns. Strange alien palm-like trees swayed gently, their fronds glowing faintly at the edges as if lined with starlight.
The sand was soft—white mixed with streaks of shimmering pink and gold. Each step felt like sinking into velvet.
People crowded the beaches: kids building sand-towers, families swimming in the waves, Marines on leave laughing and playing games. Music carried across the breeze, mingling with the crash of alien waves.
Marco froze the second they arrived. His jaw dropped.
"Bro... look at all the girls."
Raul immediately put his arm around him, sunglasses sliding down his nose. "Marco. My brother. This is paradise. And today—we feast."
They strutted forward like they owned the shoreline.
⸻
Squad Reactions
Jerome groaned. "I swear, they're impossible."
John smirked faintly, watching them embarrass themselves. "At least they're consistent."
Min-seo sighed, crossing his arms. "I'm not cleaning up after their nonsense."
Jin laughed, shaking his head. "They're hopeless. But you gotta admit—it's good to see them like this."
Even Asura, standing at the edge of the water with his arms folded, gave a quiet snort. Not quite a laugh—but closer than ever before.
⸻
Closing Beat
Raul and Marco were already trying to flex for a group of girls tossing a glowing alien beach-ball, shouting lines loud enough for half the beach to hear.
Meanwhile, the rest of the squad set down their gear, ready to relax under the suns of Eryndor Prime.
For one day—just one day—the war felt far away.
Here, there was only ocean, laughter, and the sound of waves.
The boys came out of their swimming trunks, shirtless too and all built like lean bodybuilders! Looking crazy buff and aesthetic!
Raul and Marco was flexing their muscles to the girls. Making some of them giggled and blush.
Jin was chuckling, "these guys..." as he shakes his head while face palming his forehead.
———————————————
To be continued...