About Face
Posted on Mon Apr 22nd, 2024 @ 6:13pm by Lieutenant Christopher Blake & Lieutenant Sorine Kaida
Edited on on Mon Apr 22nd, 2024 @ 9:41pm
0 words; about a 1 minute read
Mission:
The Sins of History
Location: Holodeck 1 - Deck 4 - USS Artemis
Timeline: MD006 1600 hrs
Kaida pressed the chime outside Chris's quarters and let out a large breath to calm her nerves. In the back of her mind she found it rather amusing that she'd been in some pretty tense situations before and this scared her the most. She wasn't sure if it was the activity Chris was planning or the fact that she might actually let someone close to her. It was ridiculous either way, the safeties would be on in the holodeck and she was the one who started this friendship or whatever it was.
The door open and she offered a half smile. "I have some time . . . . if you're not busy . . . to do that thing?"
Chris raised his eyebrow and had to think for a moment. Thing... thing... His eye widened and a low chuckle escaped his lips. "So you were serious. I thought you were joking. Just let me put away the manual and I'll be right with you."
He'd been doing what he always did, studying. The thought of getting out on the sea was a welcome break and he allowed himself to get a little excited about the prospect.
She hadn't been joking, but she kind of wished she had. The thought of being on the sea, even if it wasn't a true sea and the safeties would be on, made her very nervous but he had gone rock climbing with her so it only seemed fair that she tried something he liked. "Do you ever get seasick?" She asked conversationally.
Chris chuckled. "Oh yeah, I got sick so many times growing up that my parents said I would turn green as an orion." He closed the lid of the computer and turned around back to the door. "But I'll make sure not to have the seas rough, it'll be pretty standard."
He walked up next to Kaida and nodded. "I'm ready if you are."
"Good so if I lean over the railing and lose my lunch you won't think anything less of me? Kidding . . . mostly. Yep, I'm ready." She gestured for him to lead the way. "Do you have any siblings?" Kaida asked, making conversation as they walked. She couldn't remember if she had already asked that before. He never seemed to talk about his past unless she prompted him but slowly, bit by bit she was finding things out about him.
"Not at all, Any sailor worth their salt has been sick at least once. It's how we function during and after that matters." Chris shrugged and walked down the hallway. "Siblings? No. Only child here. I was always over a friends house or in the park though so I don't think I ever felt like an only child."
He glanced back over his shoulder so he could see her with his normal eye. "How about you? Any cute sisters or over protective brothers I should be aware of?" He turned back quickly so she couldn't see the blush on his face. He couldn't believe he'd said that. Not now at least. He'd been a partier and a flirt during the academy, but those were different times. "Sorry, I didn't mean to sound like a letch."
"A what?" Kaida asked, confused. She had considered herself pretty fluent in Earth standard but wasn't familiar with that word. But after all Earth standard was her second language. Before she waited for an answer she added, "No sisters, I had a brother. I haven't seen him since I was 9 though. I don't know if he's even alive." She considered Chris's question for a moment. "Why, what are your intentions?" She really shouldn't tease him, but he had backed himself into a corner and she couldn't resist. Besides, of all the people on the ship she was perhaps most comfortable with him.
"Letch, sort of a creepy pervert really." Chris replied with a sigh. Her question about his intentions made him cough as a reflex and clear his throat to give himself time to formulate an answer. "Only to take you sailing, it was a stupid thing to say. Sorry."
Coming around to Holodeck 1, he tapped in his access code. "Computer, Load Black Cutter 316." There was a pause before the computer beeped and the doors slid open. Chris smiled somewhat awkwardly and motioned to Kaida. "Ladies first."
The holodeck had done an amazing job of recreating the Cutter and the open ocean. The blue sky was tinged with the slightest wisps of clouds and the sound of the waves lapping at the hull was soothing and gentle. Chris couldn't help but take a deep breath of the salty air.
"You're fine, I was only teasing." Kaida said as she slipped inside the holodeck, her eyes wide as her nostrils first picked up the scent of the sea. "Wow," she said. "Smells . . . . authentic." She wasn't sure what to do or where to sit though and felt awkward standing there like a lump waiting for him to tell her what she should be doing.
Chris took another deep breath and let it out slowly. As much as he loved being at the helm of a starship, there was something special about being at the wheel of a ship. "Take a seat or lean against the railing," Chris said as he motioned to the side. "Just be careful of the sail."
He took his position at the steering wheel and watched to make sure Kaida was settled. "Computer, start wind at 6 knots." There was a beep from around them as a breeze slowly came up from behind them, catching the sail fully and slowly pushing the Cutter up to a gentle speed. "Let me know if you want to go faster."
Kaida found herself a seat where she could hold onto something and didn't think she'd get hit by anything and knocked off the boat. She closed her eyes and let the wind blow her hair behind her and and brush the sides of her face. "Uh, I'm good with this speed." She said, trying to keep her voice even. Opening her eyes she blinked a few times in the brightness and cocked her head sideways a little bit. "Do you do this at home? Go out and visit islands and such on boats?"
Chris thought hard for a moment. The last time he'd been home had been a disaster, but he was sure she wasn't talking about that. Before then? "Yeah, actually. My family owned a cottage on the water. This isn't as fancy as my parents boat... but it's one that reminds me of my childhood."
"I take it you didn't get on the water much when you were younger?" A grin creased his face. "Stuck to rock climbing?"
"I grew up in Montana, no oceans. There are lakes but no, I was never out on the water. My parents had a farm so we were pretty much always busy with that. We didn't really take vacations. This isn't too bad though. I can see why you like it. The wind in your hair, the smell of the sea . . . ." She paused for a moment. "I get to pick our next activity though right?"
"Oh, of course." Chris said as he adjusted their course to match the wind. He wanted this to be a pleasant cruise so he wasn't about to set a distinct course. He thought for a moment about how she had said next activity. Part of him was weary but that part was getting much much smaller. "You're going to laugh at this, but I've never been to a real farm. Closest animals I've come to was my pet cat I had as a kid."
"Why would I laugh at that? Most people haven't been on a real farm. I think most people eat out of a replicator honestly. It wasn't that exciting. But sometimes, when there's too much going on and I'm running from place to place I do think I miss the evenings after all the work was done and we were sitting around talking to each other or playing a game to pass the time. My mother always had knitting in her hands, she said it kept her brain sharp. When I tried it I just tied myself up in knots." Kaida shrugged. "But this is nice. It's better than I expected, not a lot of rocking and the scenery is beautiful." She pursed her lips for a moment not sure she wanted to ask this but she went ahead anyway. "I was thinking that maybe I'd show you what the farm is like and afterward we could get something to eat. I can program the replicator with some recipes that I used to make at home. It won't be fresh ingredients but it's the closest we're going to get here."
"That sounds great actually." Chris admitted as he adjusted course. "Next time we get to a station we could request some fresh food too if possible." Chris chuckled for a second. "Replicator is fine, but nothing can beat the real thing."
The Cutter clipped along at a fair speed, the wind filled the sail and the sun shone down on them to take the chill edge off the breeze. Chris adjusted the course once more, deflating the sail slightly to keep the speed down. It added more realism to things to adjust course instead of asking the computer to adjust the wind.
Kaida blinked at him. She hadn't expected him to answer that so easily. "I don't think you understand." She said gently. "I was . . . well, that is. I had thoughts that it might be like a date." Her heart was absolutely pounding in her chest. She expected him to run away screaming. Okay, so maybe his response wouldn't be quite so dramatic but this man had many layers of shields, it didn't take an empath to see that and she was knocking on them.
Chris stopped still as if he'd been turned to stone. His grip on the wheel loosened for a moment and the wheel began to turn in his hands and caused the Cutter to twist in the wind ever so slightly before he tightened his grip and regained control of the boat. "A... date."
His thoughts swirled. The confusion was visable on his face more than any other emotion. He blinked a few times and finally managed to look at Kaida as if he was seeing her there for the first time. "Sorry... That was unexpected."
Chris sighed. "Computer, freeze program." The wind stopped and the waves seemed to freeze in place around the hull. He walked over next to Kaida. "Before I answer, I think you need to know more about me. I... The accident... It did a number on me. And I pushed someone away who really cared about me. I really do consider myself damaged goods. Hanging out with you since this posting started has probably been the high point of the last five years. I'm afraid of being a burden."
Kaida hadn't moved and simply looked up at him. "I know you are Chris," It dawned on her that she hadn't used his name much at all. "And in some ways I think I am too, but we both made a choice to continue living our lives after these incidents. Maybe not to the fullest extent but there was still a part of us that fought to let us go after our dreams. We're giving that specific part of ourselves a little chance. And I know you don't see it that way but you couldn't possibly be a burden." The corners of her lips twitched ever so slightly. "If you fall apart I'll just stick you on an anti-grav unit and run you around the ship. It's one date. What's the worst that could happen?"
Chris thought hard for a moment considering not only her words but his reaction. She was right after all. A single date wasn't the end of the world or a life long commitment. His good eye studied her and finally he nodded. "I can think of a few things, but none as bad as if we don't take the chance. You've got yourself a date Kaida."
A Joint Post By
Lieutenant Christopher Blake
Chief Flight Control Officer, USS Artemis
Starfleet Criminal Investigations Unit
Lieutenant Sorine Kaida
Criminal Investigations Officer, USS Artemis
Starfleet Criminal Investigations Unit
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