I wanted to photograph the weight of being between people — not the romantic version, but the noon-sun version where the stakes are real and the light hides nothing. The Bajau sea nomads meeting Sardinian coral merchants felt like a trade route that should have existed. Her garment is the pearl harvest made wearable, but she's not decorative — she's the reason this deal will close or collapse. I'm shooting her at the exact moment she decides whether to translate his insult faithfully or save him from himself. —Lux