May I Take A Peek? (part III)

Posted on Sat Jan 19, 2019 @ 4:10am by Lieutenant Alanna Wells & Civilian Jason Haines
Edited on on Sat Jan 19, 2019 @ 4:15am

1,564 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Doors of Perception
Location: Promenade
Timeline: MD3 - 1700

[CONTINUED]

[OLD]

Jason ate slowly, his eyes darting back and forth, but more often than not, they stayed on Alanna's face.

[NEW]

"Thank you", he said with his signature smile.

"For what?" she asked, her eyes meeting his again.

"For taking the time to show me about, keeping me from getting lost, and having a meal with me so I didn't end up talking to the replicator while sitting in my quarters", he replied. "I haven't met a replicator yet that could talk about anything other than work."

"Yes, but they're very good listeners." She smiled again. "It was my pleasure. And I thank you as well. It's nice to have someone to talk to. When I come here, I generally sit in the corner and people watch. This is much nicer."

"I agree", Jason said with an eager nod. "I don't know if you have ever served on a Sabre class vessel before, but you either get the mess hall or replicator. The last crew I served with was pretty much all business, so a meal like this never happened. This is very nice, and the company is great. "

"I haven't been on a sabre-class, but most of the ships I've served on have the same options. Mess or replicator. I would generally use the replicator. This is a nice change--as is the company." She finished her meal, wiped her mouth on her napkin, and set it on her plate. "Do you want to keep looking around, or do you need to do something else?"

"I just got here today, so I don't get down to business until tomorrow, so I am free", Jason said. "The question is do you need to do anything. I sort of intruded on your personal time. I mean you could have plans to conquer the universe in an hour and I'd be holding you up."

The idea of conquering any universe in an hour made her laugh in appreciation of his humor. "No, I have nothing pressing tonight. So, I am at your disposal. There's no way we can cover the station in one evening, but we can try to hit the highlights."

"Saying you are at my disposal is a dangerous proposition to put on the table", Jason answered, with a wink and a laugh.

He used his pay chip given this was a civilian business.

"As I have no idea about anything here, you can show me what you think are the highlights."

"All right. Then if you don't mind, the next stop is a small antique shop that sells old books. I want to see if they have anything new."

Jason nodded.

"I don't mind at all", he replied. "I was exposed to old style reading a lot. I prefer electronic versions, but I can appreciate a regular book. How did you get hooked on them? They are bit of an acquired taste now a days."

"Print books were easier to tote around when I was little," Alanna said. "And then, as I developed a love of history, I fell in love with paper books again." Since Jason was a new arrival, she affixed her thumbprint to the bill. "My treat, as a welcome to DS5."

They made their way out of the restaurant and through the passageways to another small shop with images of antiques outside the door. Alanna walked in and paused to take a deep breath. "I love the smell of old things," she said before going to the book section. It wasn't very large, but Alanna looked at all the titles, selecting one. On the way to check out, she passed a small locket and picked that up, too. "Okay, I'm done here."

She went up front and purchased her two items, then arranged for them to be sent to her quarters.

Jason looked around the shop. There were a lot of interesting things from different cultures. He could see the allure of the store. He looked up as she paid.

When they left, he said, "So, what has made your library reading list today?"

She held up the book. "Ancient Rites of the Viridian Dynasty. The Viridians lived in the Lanaprost system."


"Well, that is intriguing", Jason said. "A bunch of bed time stories there."

Jason opened the door for her and then said, "You know, I need regular clothes. I am not the type to walk around in my uniform all the time. They chafe in all the wrong places. I imagine there has to be a place around here for that. The clothing, not the chafing that is."

"I understand. I generally only wear my uniform while on duty. However, I'm not sure about a shop for men..." She cheated and pulled out her PADD. "Ah. Here's one." She led him to a shop that catered to men's clothes. "Lead on, MacDuff."

Jason smiled and opened the door and let Alanna enter the store first. He looked around a bit and then started picking out some clothes. He got a few pair of pants that were good for a semi-casual evening out, then a couple for far more casual wear. He did the same with shirts. He chose blues, reds, greens, and black for the most colors, but did grab one white shirt.

"So, anything here that you think looks good?", he asked her.

He had good taste in clothing, Alanna noted. "Dangerous question," she said humorously. "Well, we've been to my favorite Italian place, I have a new book and you have clothes. My other two favorite places are a little ice cream shop a click away and the arboretum. The one here is enormous."

"Ice cream and a walk in the park", Jason said smiling. "I haven't done that in a long time. That sounds fun."

Alanna nodded and led the way to the ice cream shop. "We can eat there, or take it to the arboretum."

"Well, eating in gives us a few more options", Jason said. "After all, it is rather difficult to eat a banana sundae while walking."

"True." She ordered a sundae with vanilla custard, chocolate and caramel topping, pecans, and whipped cream, then stepped aside for Jason to order.

Jason ordered a banana sundae with Neapolitan ice cream, whip cream, chocolate, nuts and extra cherries. He smiled an impish grin and pulled out a chair for Alanna to sit.

"Thank you." She appreciated old-fashioned chivalry. She sat down and made sure she had two napkins, just in case. "It is less messy this way." Although sometimes it was nice to sit by a tree and eat. But that also gave her frozen custard time to start melting. She took a bite and sighed in appreciation. "What do you hope to do while you're here?"

"That's a good question", Jason replied, slipping one of the cherries into his mouth. Once he ate it, he continued.

"See, my current line of work is very tactical and linear", Jason said. "It isn't like say sciences where you make discoveries or come up with some new ground-braking theory. Unlike all the holo-vids and books, intel is a lot of boring work with the ultimate goal of sending information to the right people. Even most of the so-called spies do just a lot of waiting and watching. All that said, I haven't thought a ton of what I want to do while here beyond my job and now seeing how volatile the place seems to be, protecting people. I'm kind of in a neutral spot in life, so to speak, so I am not trying to force anything, just trying to see what catches my fancy, life-wise."

"That's a good attitude. You can't force life to do what you want. It happens on its own terms. You either take what's offered and make the most of it, or it moves on without you." Like everyone, Alanna had regrets, but she tried to have a positive outlook and make the most of what opportunities she did have. "And it's important to have fun." She grinned and ate more of her dessert.

"So, what about you?", Jason asked. "What do you want to get out of this, besides more whipped cream on your nose?"

He laughed as he ate some ice cream.

Alanna laughed and wiped the whipped cream off. "Thus the need for two napkins." She shook her head. "I love learning and exploring. I love science. That's what I hoped for when I came here, and so far I haven't been disappointed." Professionally, DS5 was everything she'd hoped for, if a bit more chaotic than she expected.

"Exploring is fun", Jason remarked. "Especially when one finds ice cream and good company to eat it with."

He lifted a spoonful in a toast like fashion and then ate it.

"So, what do you think of all the staff you work with?" Jason asked.

"We are a diverse group," she said, not quite sure how to sum up her co-workers. "They're amazing in a crisis." She shook her head. "That may seem like an odd comment, but we've had some situations where we had to perform miracles. It's good to have people you can trust in a tight situation. I think you'll fit in."

(To be continued...)

Lieutenant JG Jason Haines
Chief Intelligence Officer
Deep Space Five

Lieutenant JG Alanna Wells
Chief Science Officer
Deep Space Five

 

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