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After hearing the conditions for participating in the contest from Ayla, a certain person immediately pops up in your mind. You rarely make plans with him for this kind of holiday, but you always end up "accidentally" stumbling upon him—always catch that expectant look in his eyes. The moment you tap "Call," the line connects, as if the recipient's terminal was already waiting in his hand.
"…" The words "photography context" don't seem to spark joy on Lee's face. "Did you… already ask someone else?"
"No. You are the first person I asked." You smile knowingly. "I am not looking for a masterpiece, nor do I think I am capable of capturing it. Just looking to spend quality time with someone and help a friend with the contest."
"…You are aware what date is today, correct?" Lee turns away with a slight frown, arms folded. "Are you sure this is how you want to spend your rare free time?"
"Yes and yes." You make a sidestep into his field of view. "That's exactly why I specifically asked you to join me." Lee's cheeks blush in an instant, glancing at you for a few times from the corner of his eye. A moment later, however, he straightens up and clears his throat. "Fine. Photography isn't my forte, but I will try to assist you to the best of my ability."
Your thoughts take you to the photo album Lee gave you as a birthday gift. He was secretly taking photos for years. Is he really not excited about this contest…? "Great." You smile. "The sooner we submit our photo, the sooner we can do something else."
You take out your camera. "Let's start. When you think of Babylonia, is there any specific place that comes to your mind first?"
Lee lets out a sigh. "HQ."
"…Seriously?"
"Then what do you think of first?"
"Well, naturally…" your mouth opens and closes but no words are coming out. "…HQ."
Looks like this won't be as easy as it sounds.
Lee and you go for a long walk through Babylonia, purposefully avoiding the area around the military base. Embarrassingly, you realize that Babylonia changed a lot while you were stuck at your desk everyday—some places closed a long time ago while new shops and restaurants opened in their place. Even though you live here, you feel like there is still so much to explore.
'A place or a scene that people appreciate'—it can be as simple as a regular spot in their favorite coffee shop, or a surprise encounter with a new place they didn't even know existed. "Lee, how about we take a short break in that café?"
He looks up from his terminal. "Alright."
Even after sitting down, Lee is still absorbed in various holoscreens generated by his terminal. However, he checks up on you from time to time. "How do you like it here?"
"Coffee is great, although not quite as good as yours. Tiramisu has just the right balance of bitterness and sweetness." It certainly lifts you up. Time to think. "I wonder… The stability Babylonia has—the fact that we can enjoy freshly brewed coffee and silky tiramisu—it's something to appreciate." Is this the answer you are looking for? You take out your camera and take a quick shot of your drink, dessert, happy couples in the background, and your concentrated companion and his code.
He jolts at the sound of the camera. "…Was I in the frame just now?"
"Maybe." You chuckle at his deadpan. "Having company is also something to appreciate. What are you up to?"
He holds your gaze for a few moments before answering, "Scrapping information from popular websites. Civilians seem to like posting their opinions online. When I successfully build a structured dataset, we will be able to quickly identify measurable patterns—the most visited places, the best reviewed places, the most mentioned places etc., all segmented by gender, age, season, year and popular trends."
"That certainly sounds like you." You smile endearingly. "But doesn't that approach strip away your personal sentiment? I was looking forward to finding out what's your favorite place in Babylonia, Lee."
His cheeks give him away again, mouth agape, and he slowly escapes your gaze while turning off his holoscreens. "…You first. What's your favorite place in Babylonia?"
"My bed." When he immediately glares at you, you feel compelled to add. "I'm serious!"
Lee scoffs. "That's rich coming from someone who needs to be carried there every other nig—A-anyways." He looks away in haste again as the warmth from his cheeks seems to be spreading to his ears. "What about the observation deck, library, parks? WGAA, even? Aren't these places that you like to visit on your time off?"
Teasing Lee is also something to appreciate in life. "Someone sure is observant."
"Something would have to have been wrong with me, if I didn't notice certain things after all these years. It's not like I've been purposefully…" Lee stops himself in time, frowning—seemingly aware of your trap. "How about you stop changing the subject?"
All things in moderation. "They are places I love, but they don't feel like the right answer. Especially the observation deck. Looking at Earth shouldn't be the answer to what we appreciate about Babylonia."
Lee nods in understanding. "In my opinion, the most amazing thing about Babylonia is Babylonia itself. It's the first colony spaceship humanity has ever created and currently one of Earth's satellites."
Lee is right. Its identity is also something worth appreciating. And indeed, if Babylonia wasn't so close to Earth, you feel like it wouldn't be the same—something would change drastically. A satellite—always in Earth's orbit, always gazing at it. "…Perhaps trying to deny Earth's importance to Babylonia is a wrong way of thinking about it."
"Should we take a photo from outer space, with Earth in the background, then? WGAA's contest isn't a good enough reason to waste fuel, but Karenina could likely help us out."
A good idea but... You can't imagine a photo from outer space capturing all the things you felt grateful for ever since you met up with Lee. "…I feel like that's not quite the right answer either."
The two of you end up visiting the observation deck, library, park, and WGAA's galleries and museums. Many photos later, no matter what place you looked at through your viewfinder, something still felt incomplete.
"A place where all of humanity's remaining culture, art and history resides… What do you think about a photo from WGAA?"
Lee lets out a small sigh. "…You know that I'm not the best person to inquire about the importance of art. But if this is the answer you want to submit, I support you."
You smile. "Thank you, Lee. But this has to be something we both agree upon unequivocally. Otherwise, there is no point in participating—" You still for a moment.
Ah. The answer was obvious from the start.
"Lee, why exactly do you think this photo would feel wrong?" You're sure it's for the same reason as the outer space photo.
"Well, an empty gallery doesn't…" He stops and seeks out your eyes.
You take a decisive step closer to him with a smile. "I think it's finally time for you to tell me what is your favorite place in Babylonia." After all, weren't you the one who changed the subject first?
---
You should've known. When he brought you in front of the HQ, your heart stopped beating for a moment, but you really should've known… that Lee's favorite place is the Gray Raven lounge.
"This is certainly like you."
Lee became more quiet and timid since you returned and started observing this place that you reside in every day—but this time with different eyes. Just as Ayla said, it's easy to take good things around us for granted. This place is filled with things you truly appreciate: Liv's plants, Lucia's recipes, Lee's ongoing engineering project, and right next to it, your open gun repair kit. The fact that some parts are tidy and the others are messy only brings more charm to this place. It's the proof that people are living in it—that its purpose is being fulfilled.
And don't get me even started on the memories… While Lee is looking at the boxes of Lunar New Year decorations, waiting to enrich the space this year yet again, your gaze finds framed photos on the wall. "Lee... I need to bring something. I will be back in a minute."
And a minute it was. His eyes immediately find you when you return. "W-wait, isn't that…?"
"Yes, it's the photo album you gave me for my birthday. How about we take a look together again?"
The sofa feels more comfortable than you remember. Lee is right by your side as you reminisce the old times. "Remember how Camu ended up eating half of Liv's menu behind her back while she was cooking? Chrome was so embarrassed afterwards."
"I do. He was too busy chasing Kamui," Lee says, his voice a soft whisper. "Remember this? Karenina challenged Lucia to a card game she learned from Rosetta. The reward was a Legend of the Mermaid VR experience disk…"
"…that ended up getting cut in half by Nanami's chainsaw," you finish Lee's thought with a chuckle, after he deliberately trailed off. Your fingers start turning the page, but Lee's hand gently envelops them, his eyes fixed on the photos—yet his face beginning to blush. Noticing your stare, he pulls the album from your lap onto his, and flips the page with his other hand. You slowly turn your palm up, and let your hands softly clasp together.
"...The album is a bit far now," you whisper, and close the infinitesimal remaining distance between you, your shoulders and thighs now fully joined. Lee stiffens up for a moment, but grows less rigid with each passing moment. Gentle whispers, smiles, and chuckles continue to be exchanged until you reach the last page, connected hands never letting go. The two of you immediately exchange a look, and he takes out a photo from your Christmas celebration two years ago.
In the photo, all of your friends are present in this very lounge, laughing, dancing, passing drinks and snacks. Lee, Liv and you are sitting in a silent corner, solving a puzzle. In the background, Ayla and Bianca are restraining the Cerberus squad that was hellbent on ruining your efforts. It's a photo truly radiating with character and energy... and Wanshi's sleeping figure. And most importantly, those serious faces that stared death in the face so many times... They are all smiling.
"I think we found our photo," you say, and Lee nods in agreement. "Let's make a copy and submit it."
"…We can just submit this one, no?"
"No contest could ever be important enough for me to submit your gift."
He blinks at you, deeply red. "Commandant…"
The last photo in the album is a selfie of Lee and you, taken on your birthday at your request. "Now that I think about it… We didn't take any photos together today either…" Lee says, with a loud swallow in between.
A fond smile spreads on your lips. "Let's fix that. You have to smile though." You place the camera on the coffee table, and the timer sets off in no time. Lee is holding the photo album with a small smile, and you are holding one of the winning photos, taken by none other than him, that will be used everywhere as a stamp in the future.
Contest entry:
The most important thing about a place isn't the place itself or its scenery. It's the people. It's the people who create photography contests to better appreciate what we have, who create freshly brewed coffee and silky tiramisu, who connect to others, those who lovingly gaze at Earth from above, and safeguard its relics from the past. People built this spaceship and tied its meaning to the very Earth it was created on. The people who live here—they're the ones who define it.
Our photo depicts both children of Earth and Babylonia, who fight to reclaim our home planet every day, in their small, private moment of celebration. Our favorite place is the Gray Raven lounge—not because of the memories tied to it, but because of the people that frequent it. Because of its ability to turn soldiers into souls who remember how to smile.
Gray Raven Commandant & Lee
Unbeknownst to you, Lee also took one secret photo of you that day—deep in thought with a camera in your hands. He wasn't entirely honest with his answer to your question either. He'd take the cold ground and open sky with you over the hollow silence of the lounge any day.
"Wherever you are… that's where I truly want to be."