The Cold Horizon was a research vessel, a metal box carrying thirty-two souls through the dark nebula. When the primary containment field failed, the ship sheared apart in seconds.
Junior spectral analyst Dr Thalia Roux and systems pilot Rhys Calder escaped in a single Kestrel escape pod, stripped of everything but each other.
The pod's fuel was insufficient for their mass. To survive, they had to shed every kilogram... deck plates, insulation, rations, clothing, even the water in their bodies. By the time they achieved trajectory, they were completely bare, adrift in a gutted titanium shell with seven days of air and no rescue in sight.
They had never spoken before the explosion. Now, they have nothing left to do but wait.
Cold Horizon is a slow-burn, psychological science fiction romance about two strangers who discover that the most dangerous variable isn't the vacuum of space, it's the person on the other side of the survival equation. Expect explicit consent, sensory detail, a tender first-time intimacy, and a love story that proves connection is the most vital tool for staying alive.
Includes neurodivergent-friendly clarity, explicit verbal consent, forced proximity through technical necessity, ordinary bodies, body positivity, psychological vulnerability, and a hopeful ending that echoes the resilience of the human heart.
In the heart of the nebula, amidst the wreckage of their previous lives, they accidentally stumbled into the most intimate, unscripted human experience possible.
Word count 26,050
