One light-year apart, yet a heart separated by only a centimeter: in the vastness of the cosmos, love is within reach. ---Mo Chen
Song Yin's eyes, seasoned by countless star systems, registered something far more intriguing than the sterile gleam of the polished marble floor in the Earth research facility's lobby – that, to her, was about as exciting as a particularly smooth rock, albeit one the Earthlings had gone to an almost comical effort to buff. What truly snagged her attention were the subtle, zippy energy fluctuations humming in the air. This blue-ocean-covered planet pulsed with an energy field wildly different from her own dying homeworld, like an over-caffeinated toddler compared to a wizened old grandpa. It was brimming with life, sure, but also… chaotic. Think a symphony played by a thousand different instruments, each with gusto, but the overall effect was less harmonious orchestra and more epic noise party, making her highly sensitive sensory system twitch ever so slightly – if she'd actually possessed eyebrows in this current Earth guise.
After all, for the past five centuries, she'd been on a rather intense cosmic scavenger hunt for the "element" to save her planet, flitting through human history like a dedicated ghost. She'd sampled more lives than a cat has (allegedly nine, though she'd lost count around life number 372). From Renaissance painter's apprentice to Industrial Revolution factory worker to early 21st-century online streamer, each "integration" into human society felt like recalibrating the parameters on an outrageously complex and, frankly, user-unfriendly piece of alien tech. One wrong tweak, and you'd end up with some seriously weird noises – or in her case, unwanted attention.
"Hello, my name is Song Yin. I'm the new research staff member," she announced at the reception desk, her Earth Standard English honed to a razor's edge after centuries of practice. Her voice, meticulously controlled by her vocal cords (a feature she still found somewhat… organic), was warm and perfectly modulated, every syllable landing just right. It flawlessly masked the tonal characteristics of her distant planet – because, let's be honest, if she started speaking in what sounded like a fleet of alien star cruisers trying to parallel park, she'd probably be on the global news by lunchtime with a headline screaming, "We Are Not Alone! Scientists Baffled by Polite Extraterrestrial New Hire!"
The receptionist, a classic Earth middle-aged woman with a smile so professionally plastered on it could probably qualify for a patent, held a hint of "another day, another bewildered newbie" in her eyes. She glanced up at Song Yin, her gaze flicking over her like scanning a grocery item. After confirming Song Yin's identity, she produced a magnetic card and a hefty employee handbook with the practiced motion of a vending machine dispensing lukewarm soda. "Lin… oh, Dr. Song, welcome to the institute. Someone will be with you shortly to show you around."
Song Yin took the card, her fingertip brushing its cool surface. Her sensory system, light-years ahead of Earth's technology, instantly downloaded its contents: access levels, basic personal information, internal network structure… it all unfolded in her mind like a neatly labeled star chart. What gave her a momentary flicker of unease, however, was the crude, almost Stone Age-level energy signature embedded in the card. It was a product of Earth tech, which, to her, felt like using a sharpened rock for brain surgery. Yet, this laughably primitive technology could easily flag any unauthorized energy fluctuations exceeding its parameters. She had to be careful, a slip-up in controlling her far superior energy manipulation could turn her five-century-long undercover operation into a one-way ticket to becoming a human (or rather, alien) lab rat.
Told to wait a moment, Song Yin settled into a nearby lounge area. She pretended to skim the employee handbook, but her thoughts had already drifted to the vibrant green landscape visible through the window. Earth's plant life was ridiculously diverse, a riot of color compared to the monotonous vegetation of her home planet. It brought a pang of longing for the once-brilliant civilization of her world, now a desolate memory of unchecked resource depletion and a suffocatingly polluted atmosphere.
Soon enough, a man in a crisp white lab coat approached, his smile radiating the kind of enthusiasm that could probably melt glaciers (or at least take the chill off a slightly too-air-conditioned lobby). "Dr. Song, welcome, welcome! I'm Zhou Huai, the head of our lab. Come on, let me introduce you to everyone."
Song Yin nodded politely, following Zhou Huai into a spacious, brightly lit laboratory. Cutting-edge equipment was neatly arranged, emitting a soft, cool blue glow. The air hummed with the low thrum of data processing and the faint, unfamiliar scent of various chemical reagents. Several young research assistants were engrossed in their work, their faces illuminated by the glow of monitors, a spark of curiosity for the unknown dancing in their eyes. This raw enthusiasm was a precious emotion that had long since vanished from her home planet, making her feel a touch of wistful unfamiliarity.
"Alright everyone, gather 'round!" Zhou Huai clapped his hands together, his booming voice instantly drawing everyone's attention. "This is Dr. Song Yin, our newest addition! She's an expert in energy mineral research, so let's all make her feel welcome!"
The researchers in the lab looked up, their gazes filled with curiosity. Song Yin offered a slight nod and a perfectly calibrated smile, her eyes, like miniature scanners, briefly sweeping over each person present. In that instant, a figure in the corner of the lab caught her attention. It was a young man sitting alone at a workstation by the window. His slightly oversized lab coat gave him a somewhat disheveled look, but it didn't detract from the air of intense concentration that emanated from him. His gaze was glued to the flickering data curves on his screen, as if held by an invisible magnet. An almost palpable barrier seemed to surround him, isolating him from the surrounding activity. His energy field was remarkably calm, yet it possessed the silent pull of a bottomless black hole, subtly drawing Song Yin's senses.
"That's Lu Zhe, our lab's golden boy, a real prodigy," Zhou Huai murmured, leaning closer to Song Yin with a slightly exasperated smile. "Bit of a lone wolf, though. Spends all day with his nose buried in research. You'll get used to it."
Song Yin's gaze lingered on him for a few more seconds. Human emotions, to her, had always been like complex and often illogical algorithms. She could observe and analyze them, but truly understanding them on an emotional level remained elusive. Yet, in this moment, a primal curiosity, originating from the deepest core of her data processing center (or, you know, her heart, if she were being dramatic), began to sprout like a tender shoot in spring. As if sensing her gaze, the young man named Lu Zhe suddenly looked up. His eyes, as dark and deep as obsidian, locked onto Song Yin's with uncanny precision. In that instant, Song Yin distinctly felt a faint energy resonance, like two distant planets briefly acknowledging each other across the vast cosmic expanse, their invisible gravitational fields causing a subtle ripple in the fabric of space-time. It was a sensation she had never experienced in her countless centuries of masquerading as human.
Over the next little while, a cheerful young research assistant guided Song Yin through the lab, familiarizing her with every nook and cranny and explaining the operating procedures for the various pieces of equipment. Her memory chip, functioning like a supercomputer on overdrive, efficiently recorded all the information. Complex chemical equations and the energy output frequencies of different instruments were instantly stored and analyzed. She could even deduce the types of experiments recently conducted by analyzing the trace elements lingering in the air. But she had to play the part of the attentive newbie, occasionally asking questions that seemed laughably simple to her, carefully concealing her knowledge base, which was centuries ahead of Earth's current era.
Through the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, warm sunlight streamed through the lush foliage outside, casting dappled shadows on the notebook Song Yin held in her hands. She glanced out, seemingly casually. The vibrant green of Earth was a color long lost to her home planet. Deep in her memory banks, the once-brilliant civilization of her world remained vivid, followed by the stark and desperate images of its decline due to energy depletion and ecological collapse. The sky had been a perpetual gray, the land a barren yellow-brown, the air thick with suffocating dust – a stark contrast to the vibrant blue marble of this thriving planet.
"One way or another, I have to find the specific element that can save our home," Song Yin vowed silently. Even though she wasn't entirely sure what this planet-saving substance might be, she wouldn't give up hope. Not now, not after five centuries of searching.
"Dr. Song, could you please follow Lu Zhe to the mineral specimen room later? He'll help you familiarize yourself with our collection of samples," Zhou Huai's voice interrupted Song Yin's thoughts.
Song Yin turned to see the young man named Lu Zhe already standing up, a seemingly ordinary paper file in his hand. His expression was still calm and reserved, but there seemed to be a hint of something akin to curiosity flickering in his dark eyes. "Dr. Song, please come with me." His voice was low and resonant, like the mellow melody of an ancient instrument, cutting clearly through the quiet hum of the lab.
Song Yin nodded slightly and followed him. The hallway lights were soft and bright, casting long shadows of their figures. Their footsteps echoed softly in the narrow space, creating an almost palpable silence. Song Yin glanced sideways, seemingly casually, observing Lu Zhe as he walked ahead. His profile was sharply defined, his nose straight, the curve of his lips hinting at a subtle coolness. His gaze was focused and deep, as if holding untold secrets. That brief eye contact in the lab had dropped a small pebble into the still waters of her carefully constructed composure, sending out tiny ripples of unease and curiosity. It was a strange sensation, like an unexpected variable popping up in her meticulously crafted world of data, a glitch in the matrix of her existence.
Lu Zhe pushed open the heavy wooden door to the mineral specimen room, releasing a slightly damp, earthy scent. Song Yin's gaze was immediately drawn to the rows of mineral samples carefully displayed in glass cabinets. They varied in shape and color, each emitting its own unique luster under the soft lighting. Song Yin could clearly sense the faint, distinct energy fluctuations emanating from these seemingly ordinary rocks – the unique "elements" of Earth, and the very reason for her long journey. She knew then, with a certainty that settled deep within her core, that the next three hundred and sixty-five Earth days wouldn't just be a search for a life-saving substance; they would be the most complex and unpredictable chapter in her five-hundred-year existence. And it seemed, quite clearly, that this chapter had just begun, and it was inextricably linked to the enigmatic man named Lu Zhe standing just a few feet away.
"Thank you," Song Yin said softly, her voice still calm, but with a subtle undercurrent of something she couldn't quite define. Lu Zhe glanced back at her, a flicker of something that might have been curiosity in his deep eyes, but he didn't reply, simply nodding slightly before turning towards a glass case displaying a collection of particularly unusual-looking minerals.
Watching his back, an unprecedented premonition bloomed in Song Yin's mind. Perhaps the "element" she was truly searching for wasn't just in these inert rocks, but something hidden deeper within this vibrant planet, something she had lost on her homeworld but could faintly sense here… hope. And that hope, it seemed, was somehow connected to this quiet, intense man. She even began to wonder if the answer she had been tirelessly seeking for five centuries might just be contained within this seemingly ordinary Earth scientist. The thought felt absurd, yet it sparked an irresistible urge to investigate further. After all, the universe had a funny way of hiding its greatest secrets in the most unassuming places, didn't it? Like a tiny speck of dust capable of unleashing the energy to shatter galaxies. And maybe, just maybe, her encounter with Lu Zhe was that speck of dust, quietly brewing a cosmic storm that could change the fate of her and her planet forever.