Second Date - Part 1
Posted on Mon Jun 27, 2016 @ 4:21pm by Lieutenant Benj Amoran
1,141 words; about a 6 minute read
Mission:
Interlude - Day 1
Location: Captain's Yeoman's Office
Timeline: MD 1 - 13:00
ON:
Benj had spent every day thinking about Peridot ever since their first date. He had wondered if he had made too much of a fool of himself or if perhaps she might be interested in seeing him again? There was only one way to find out so, with his best resolve, he presented himself at her office door. What did he have to lose? She could only say no and if he never asked her out again the loss would be the exact same, so what did he have to lose?
He rang the chime and when the door swished open he poked his head around the doorway. "Hi!" he said cheerily, his cheeky grin broad and confident but his heart pounding in his chest. "Have we met?" he tried to joke his way through the initial awkwardness of what to say.
Peridot looked up from the screen - filing the reports was making her eyes go fuzzy she'd been at it so long and there did seem to be an awful lot of reports.
She blinked.
"Bill, wasn't it?" she said with an open smile. "Come on in."
~Bill?~ Benj's heart sank and so did his face.
"Yeah. Bill." he agreed weakly. "Anyway........ just thought I'd say hi, see if you're okay?" It had now become rhetorical as he tried to slide away with as little conversation as possible.
Seeing the pained expression on his face the blonde burst into laughter, "That was a joke, Benj," she said trying to get him to see the humour. "I'm great, how have you been?"
Winded, Benj took a moment to get his bearings. It hurt that she was laughing at him but then again, it was a big relief that she hadn't actually forgotten him after all.
"You" he said reproachfully and a smile widened across his face as he began to see the funny side at last. "Bill eh? You wait! I'll SO get you back, Perdita!" he came back into the room, relief spreading over him.
"I'm good and I'm glad you are too. I was wondering if you wanted to come to the Bajoran Gardens on the Promenade - it's on the lowest level and they're having a picnic there tomorrow. It's to celebrate the Bajoran Festival of Friendship. What do you think?" he asked, approaching her desk and looking around to see if there was any opportunity to play some kind of trick on her too. He decided against instructing the computer to blow a gust of air suddenly and sending all her papers and PaDDs flying off the desk.
~Nah too childish~he thought. ~...but funny though!~ He settled for just smiling as he thought of the look on her face as he imagined it might be if he had actually tried that. ~I might have regretted that.~ he had to admit.
"So....? Will you come?" he returned to the matter in hand.
"Tomorrow," she asked doubtfully, "Let me check my schedule." She sat at the desk and pulled up a calendar that was bursting with notes and appointments (not all of them hers). "What time?"
"It starts at noon and goes on until about 14:00?" he replied hopefully.
Her brow wrinkled."Oh no," she said, "Perdita is tied up then. I know a Peridot who could make it if that's ok?"
"Well, I guess if she's the only one available, I'll have to make do" he grinned. "I'll bring the lunch. Do you know if Peridot is vegetarian or has Klingon tastes in food?"
She wrinkled her nose as a mental image of wriggling Gach and Racht caused the blood to drain from her face, "Is there anything on the menu that isn't living?" she asked warily.
He laughed. "I made up the bit about Klingon food. I wouldn't bring that even if you really liked it. It would die or go bad or something, knowing my luck, and we'd both be poisoned!" He held up his hands in a submissive gesture. "I just meant it as an extreme alternative to being vegetarian... in case you're not?"
"Extreme or vegetarian?" Peridot grinning, "Neither, which I guess makes me sound totally dull."
"You could never be dull, you're too beautiful" Benj replied without thinking and then realised the full implications of what he'd just said and found himself blushing like a girl. "s..Sorry" he apologised wondering what it was about Peridot that made him such a mess that he fumbled just about everything when he was around her.
Peridot felt the blush creeping over her cheeks, "Its alright," she said with a giggle, "I'll take that as a compliment. A picnic sounds like fun, and you can tell me that my eyes spakle like sapphires and my hair is the purest spun gold," she teased.
"Yeah, and knowing how good I am at this, that will be when you tell me that you colour your hair and it's naturally green, right?" he joked without thinking and then suddenly wondered if that was yet another mistake. "Not that I'm trying to say your hair looks coloured... I'm sure you don't, I just meant it would just be my ................. opening my mouth and putting my size 29 foot in it!" His face crumpled and his shoulders sagged. "A bit like that....." he conceded, defeating himself all in once sentence and with no help at all. He facepalmed and looked helplessly at her.
"Oh Benj," Peridot said with sympathy, "What are we going to do with you?"
"I hope you're going to still come to that picnic?" He said, the hope and a rather puppy dog appeal in his eyes.
"I'll come," she replied, "Do I need to bring somthing? Wine? A hamper? Sandwiches? or is that all laid on?" she asked, unsure what the arrangements would be.
"You're my guest. I'll bring everything!" ~Even if I have to stay up all night making sure I have whatever we might need to cover every eventuality~ he thought, unwittingly predicting what would actually happen.
"You just need to bring the most beautiful guest that anyone at the whole picnic will ever have seen!" he finished and then rethought it. "I meant yourself of course!" he blustered, hoping she had understood the first time but suddenly needing to make certain.
"And there was me going to send Perdita!" Peridot winked just to make it doubly, triply clear that she was joking. "I'll bring a surprise," she added.
Benj brightened. "oooh!" he said. "I can't wait. I'll see you tomorrow then! And thanks for agreeing to come."
"You're welcome," she replied with a dazzling smile, "I'll see you just before noon."
Benj's knees melted under that smile and he just about managed to leave without mishap. Just!
CPO Peridot Quirm
Captain's Yeoman
NPC by Louise
and
Lieutenant Amoran, Benj
ACMO - DS5
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