The room smelled faintly of detergent and instant noodles.

Marcus dropped his briefcase onto the lower bunk, already pulling out his laptop. He had a report due by midnight and couldn’t afford to lose a second.

On the top bunk, Kai swung their legs lazily, strumming an old guitar missing two strings. They had never filled out a job application in their life — the thought of deadlines felt like a foreign language.

“Don’t you ever get tired?” Kai asked, watching Marcus hammer at the keyboard.

Marcus didn’t look up. “Don’t you ever feel guilty doing nothing?”

They stared at each other, one restless from the weight of too much, the other light from carrying nothing at all. And yet, in that silence, both recognized the same thing: neither of them was truly at peace.