Gabriel walked into the USS Yeager’s bridge for the first time. His expectation was that the bridge will be much smaller than that of Gettysburg. However, it was a pleasant surprise to see that starfleet did a good job designing the Scout’s bridge for comfortable space and efficiency, so it seemed larger than it really is.
It didn’t take long for Gabe to recognize the controls of the Science Station to the right of the Center Chair. He quickly sat down and familiarized himself with it. It was not all that different than the one on the Getty. Except the sensors here were FAR MORE superior and advanced. In fact, those sensors were one of the Scout’s design strongest assets. Amazed by the numbers he was seeing Archer looked to his side to see the same Blue Eyed girl he met in the turbo lift earlier, she we sitting at the Ops Station looking as beautiful as ever, and for the second time today Gabriel thought that his heart skipped a beat. So, Archer thought about saying something, and just when he opened his mouth to say it the First officer spoke first,
“Is everyone aboard?” Commander Tregelen asked her.
She nodded at him, and Gabriel let out a little cough to cover up his stumble. He felt the rush of the blood to his head as he turned his full focus to his station.
I embarrassed myself… that was dumb…
“Helm, prepare for take off and once we are clean set a course for Starbase Charlie, best possible speed.” Tregelen ordered as he announced to the ship,
“All hands prepare for lift off.”
Blue Alert was declared again and the ship’s engines were powering up.
“Helm, take us up.” The First officer ordered and Mid. Kaiser who was manning the helm station complied. The ship took off and began its ascend to the sky. The flight was smooth and comfortable, Kaiser did a great job piloting the starship. In a short time the ship cleared the atmosphere and Blue Alert status was switched to Green Status.
My first Blue Alert ever… Gabriel smiled to himself.
“We have cleared the atmosphere sir. Course set for Starbase Charlie.” Kaiser declared.
“Engage.” said Tregelen with an air of confidence that suited his new position. The Yeager jumped into warp and trip began.
Gabriel calibrated the long range scanners and began the standard scanning circle for warpspeed trips. Satisfied with his instrument’s performance Gabe turned his attention to the girl next door.
He gathered his wits and looked at her perfect face as he said,
“Hi, I am Archer. The new CSO… we met before?”
Julia stepped out of the lift and onto the bridge. It seemed quiet to Julia, but perhaps that was because they still hadn’t left yet. Julia made her way across the bridge towards Ops, smiling at the other officers that were there. She slid effortlessly into the chair for the Operations station, feeling much better than she had a few minutes prior. Despite her concern for her new friend, Julia knew that Kaiser was in good hands.
Fingers nimbly sliding across the console, Julia began running through the list of items she had to make sure were ready before the ship left the planet’s atmosphere. She wasn’t sure how long she had been working when the door to the observation lounge opened and out stepped the senior officers from their meeting.
Julia watched as Tregelen exited the room first, and took his seat in the center. He was followed by Barrett and the handsome Lieutenant Commander that Julia had run into early. Barrett took his seat at tactical as the unknown LCdr took the science station next to Julia. She raised her eyebrows at this in wonder, glancing over to where Tregelen was sitting especially since he was still wearing his DH uniform. Promotion perhaps?
“Is everyone aboard?” Tregelen asked Julia, and she nodded: all the crew had checked in, there weren’t any stragglers.
The orders were given and the Yeager took off, leaving the planet’s atmosphere and streaking across space to its destination. Julia paid attention to the readouts that were crossing the screens in front of her to be sure that all allocations were at the right levels.
“Hi, I am Archer. The new CSO… we met before?” The voice of the new Chief Science Officer to Julia’s left said in introduction.
Julia turned towards him and extended her hand, giving him a warm smile in return. “Julia Nielson. Welcome to the Yeager, it’s nice to meet you,” She said before glancing quickly back at her station, and then back towards the LCdr. Julia couldn’t help but noticed the intriguing shade of green in his eyes.
“How do you like the Yeager so far?” She asked as, quickly turning back to her station to type in a few things before turning back to him, “What ship did ya come to us from?”
“Julia Nielson. Welcome to the Yeager, it’s nice to meet you,” She said before glancing quickly back at her station, and then back toward the Archer.
“Nice meeting you too.” Gabe replied.
“How do you like the Yeager so far?” She asked as, quickly turning back to her station to type in a few things before turning back to him, “What ship did ya come to us from?”
“The Yeager, I haven’t seen much of the ship itself but the crew that I have met seems to be very capable and organized. I came from the USS Gettysburg, one of the few Avenger Classed battlecruiser left in the fleet. Its quit… large in comparison to the Yeager. However, each ship serves its purpose, the Getty won’t do as good af a job as the Yeager on a scouting mission for instance. On the other hand, the Yeager was not built to take on a Romulan Warbird in a one on one battle.”
Gabriel realized that he might be talking too much. so stopped there before this gets out of control,
“Is there anything in particular that I need to know about the Yeager? I barely know my way to sickbay and to the bridge. In fact, I haven’t even been to my quarters yet.” He added.
Julia couldn’t help but chuckle at Archer’s comments comparing the Yeager to the Gettysburg. Something about men and always mentioning size that always made her laugh.
“Well, the Yeager might be small, but it’s all in how you use it that counts,” Julia said, unable to resist adding a teasing wink to her comment.
“As for things to know about the Yeager…” Julia thought for a moment, “It’s pretty simple: don’t put any more holes in her hull and you’ll avoid the wrath of us engineers. Particularly when us on Ops get to decide how much sensor access you get to be allocated.” Julia said with a glint of mischievousness in her eyes, before laughing cheerfully again: perhaps Ops could be as fun as working down in Engineering.
“Anyway, if you’d like a tour of the ship, I’d be more than happy to show you around after shift?”
Gabriel grinned at Julia’s playful remark, which helped him gain more confidence in talking to his new colleague.
“Oh, yes you got me there, I hear those Sensors are a power-hungry insturment, so I will try to keep the hull clear of holes for you, and yes I will be very thankful if you’ll give me a tour of the ship.”
He glanced at his station to get an idea about their position in space,
“I believe that we won’t be at Starbase for sometime. Everything seems to be routine around here. So we can start as soon as I get someone to take our stations, if that’s good for you Julia?… can I call you Julia?”
Gabe wondered if he had crossed the line here. It was not customary for him to call an officer who he just met by their first name. However, there was something about her that made him feel at ease…
“Sure, you can call me Julia or Jules, either works,” Julia replied, giving him a smile, but then she added “But only on the condition that I can do the same. You haven’t said your name yet.”
Julia turned back to her station briefly to check on the resources, but as always it was the same. They weren’t conducting any studies, so the only resources being used were basic things, nothing that really needed to be monitored.
“And as soon as you get those replacements, we can start that tour. Even though Ops could practically run itself right now…” She said as she turned back to him. “Anything in particular you’d like to see first? Probably your quarters and the Science labs, right?” Julia said as she started making a mental checklist of how she would go about the tour.
“Sure, you can call me Julia or Jules, either works,” Julia replied, giving him a smile, but then she added “But only on the condition that I can do the same. You haven’t said your name yet.”
Indeed, one good deed deserve another…
“Gabriel. my friends call me Gabe.” Archer returned her smile. “I’ll get those replacements up here then.”
“And as soon as you get those replacements, we can start that tour. Even though Ops could practically run itself right now… Anything in particular you’d like to see first? Probably your quarters and the Science labs, right?” Julia asked.
“Yes, I believe that would be a good start.”
The Chief Science Officer smiled back then he turned his gaze back to his station and bought up a list of his department’s officers, he noticed that his Department was on of the largest on the Yeager.
It makes sense. Complex Sensors will need that man-power to run it.
Gabe sent his orders to two officer to report to the bridge and take over the stations of him and Julia. As soon as they arrived, the tour began.
After the replacements came, Julia and Gabe began the tour of the ship. The first stop, Julia decided, would be quarters. That way the Lieutenant Commander wouldn’t need to lug his bags all over the ship. As they wandered down the corridor on Deck 2, where the Senior Officers’ quarters were located, Julia kept an eye out for the door marked D2-08, the quarters that had been assigned to Archer.
“So what brings you to the Yeager? Did you request the transfer or did you get transferred?” Julia asked as they finally came upon the quarters. There was no passcode on the door, as the quarters were previously unassigned, so when they got there they didn’t need to worry about it.
The doors swished open, revealing what the Senior officer’s quarters looked like. “Here ya go,” Julia said, motioning to the quarters, “Home sweet home.” She couldn’t help but notice how much more spacious version of her own quarters. Despite the cozy feel to her own quarters, Julia couldn’t help but wonder the day when she would get to move into her own senior officer’s quarters.
“So what brings you to the Yeager? Did you request the transfer or did you get transferred?”
“No I was transfered here for a medical treatment. Doctor Liora did specific research related to my injury, so it was best if I get treated by her.” Gabriel tried to be brief, as he didn’t want to boar Julia with all the details.
“Here ya go,Home sweet home.” She said.
As the doors of his new home opened up, Archer was happy to see the spacious quarters he was assigned to. He had a wonderful view of the ships aft, he could see the ship’s Warp nacelles. Since the Yeager was at warp, the stars were turning into sliver lines on both sides of the ship.
Perfect!…
Gabe had a small bag that he swung on his shoulder. The rest of his belongings were transported there already. Suddenly there was a movement in the bathroom.
Jean Philip is here.
A man dressed in a traditional early 20th century’s gentleman’s suit, walked out of the bathroom,
“Good day monsieur. I see you brought visitors?” he spoke with a French accent.
Julia was slightly surprised when a man dressed in a suit stepped out of the washroom. She had to double take, as she wasn’t expecting anyone to be in the quarters. Then she noticed what the man was wearing, and what he was saying.
Monsieur… what the heck is going on?
Julia raised her eyebrows as realisation dawned on her. It was a hologram! One of those new gimmicks that was popular on Earth while she was in the Academy.
“That’s a Mark III PAH, right?” Julia asked enthusiastically as she wandered over to where the hologram butler was standing. “This model was really interesting; they made some leaps and bounds with the holo-emitter for it.” Julia said as she glanced around the quarters wondering where the holo-emitter was. Back when the Mark III’s came out Julia had gotten her hands on one and taken it apart, much to the annoyance of her father.
Julia took her mind off the hologram and glanced around her quarters while Gabe got rid of the bag he had been carrying. It was neatly arranged, with lots of blue items here and there. While Gabe was occupied, she wandered around a little bit, looking at the holo-images that were set up. There was one on a corner table near the couch of a Starfleet Admiral whom Julia could see the resemblances to the Lieutenant Commander. On one of the walls was another holo-image, this time it was of Archer himself on the back of a large black horse.
Then she spotted an old fashioned book sitting atop a desk in the corner. Her curiosity piqued, Julia wandered over to glance at the title: The Lost World by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It was a classic! A small smile played on her lips, people these days usually read only the modern titles. While Julia herself hadn’t read The Lost World, she had read the entire collection of Sherlock Holmes books. She wondered if Gabe would lend the book to her when he was finished reading it.
Looking away from the book, Julia glanced around again. Then she spotted it: the holo-emitter. Julia couldn’t quell the engineer in her, and she wandered over to it to have a look at it.
Jean-Philip showed up before Archer had a chance to explain the hologram to Julia. He could see her surprise at first, but that was replaced with excitement as she spoke,
“That’s a Mark III PAH, right?”
“Yes, I call him Jean-Philip. A graduation gift from my aunt.” Explained Gabe
Aunt Olivia Paris, also an engineer…
“This model was really interesting; they made some leaps and bounds with the holo-emitter for it.” She said as her eyes were examining the hologram, who looked a little bit uncomfortable.
“I will go and prepare some tea now. Excuse me…” Said the butler as he made his way to the replicator on the far side of the room.
Gabriel smiled at his butlers behavior,
“I will go drop these things off, please make yourself at home, It won’t be long.”
He walked into his new bedroom which looked very much like his old one, thanks to Jean-Philip’s organizational programing. The decor was very simple, but cozy. There was a small plant in the corner opposite to the neatly made bed. A small lamp on the night stand, and a bookshelf.
Gabriel dropped his bag on the ground and took a moment to think.
Wow. I am actually here… on the USS Yeager… and I am a CSO again, now how did that happen.
He took a deep breath, and looked at his wound one more time. There was no pain, but it was not healed yet. The picture of that Romulan Firing at him flashed in his mind. He opened his eyes to peaceful sight of the stars, as the Yeager flew by them.
This is my home now. This is where I belong… I am ready.
Gabe tucked his shirt back in and exited the bedroom. He smiled as he saw Julia approaching the Holo-emitter.
Jean-Philip will NOT like it if she took THIS emitter apart as well…
“Sorry about that, found anything you like?” he said that lauder than usual to make his presence known, and attract her attention.
“Sorry about that, found anything you like?” Came the Lieutenant Commander’s voice from the doorway to his bedroom. Julia stopped in her tracks, almost like a kid with her hand caught in the cookie jar.
“It’s alright. I just spotted the holo-emitter and was going to take a quick look at it,” Julia said as she turned away and instead made her way to where Gabe was standing.
“I did notice, however, the copy of The Lost World you have!” Julia said with a smile as she motioned to the book on his desk, “How is it? Have you read any of Doyle’s other works? A Study in Scarlet is one of my all time favourites.” At this point a faint blush appeared on her cheeks as Julia felt as though she was babbling.
“I’m sorry, I’m such a book worm,” Julia said, apologizing for her enthusiasm, as she gave a small giggle, “But I was wondering if I could borrow the Lost World from you? It’s one I have yet to read…”
“It’s alright. I just spotted the holo-emitter and was going to take a quick look at it,” Julia said as she turned away and instead made her way to where Gabe was standing.
Archer smiled as he was glad he got there in time, while the emitter was in one piece still. Not that he thought Julia wouldn’t be able to fix it. He just didn’t want explain it to Jean-Philip when he comes back on line…
“I did notice, however, the copy of The Lost World you have!” Julia said with a smile as she motioned to the book on his desk, “How is it? Have you read any of Doyle’s other works? A Study in Scarlet is one of my all time favorites.”
Gabe noticed Julia’s cheeks turning from light rose to red, perfectly complementing her perfect blue eyes, and for the third time in the same day, Gabe got this same feeling, it was like a tingle in his spine, or a butterfly in his stomach. It felt good, and it was because of her. It was hard to read what was on his mind though, as he did a good job hiding it.
“I’m sorry, I’m such a book worm,” Julia said as she gave a small giggle, “But I was wondering if I could borrow the Lost World from you? It’s one I have yet to read…”
“Yes, I read a lot of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s work. He is a one of my personal favorite.” Gabriel walked to the desk and grabbed the book, and gently opened the first page. He used a pen and he wrote something in it in beautiful hand written English.
To Julia Nielson, my first friend on the USS Yeager.
My your journeys be filled with excitements, adventure and success!
Gabriel Archer.
20702.13
Gabe gave the book to Julia and said,
“You can have it, I have a second copy in my bookshelf. I fell in love with this book, and I believe you will appreciate just as much.”
“Your tea is read Monsieur.” Jean-Philip said as he pointed to the small sitting room to the left. There was a Tea Set on the middle table.
“Thank you Jean-Philip.” Gabe said.
“I will deactivate now Monsieur, unless you need anything else?”
“No thank you, I will call you if I do.” Gabe replied as the hologram disappeared.
“Tea?” Gabe invited Julia to join him…
The blush in Julia’s cheeks deepened as Gabe handed her the book, after inscribing something in the cover. She stared at it in her hands, savouring the feel of a real novel in her hands instead of a PADD with a book downloaded onto it.
“You can have it, I have a second copy in my bookshelf. I fell in love with this book, and I believe you will appreciate just as much.” He told her with a warm smile.
Julia felt shocked at this, her eyebrows raising for the second time in the last ten minutes. “Thank you,” Came her simple reply, as she carefully opened the cover to read what he had written. That small smile played on her lips again, the one that only someone watching would have caught, as it came quickly and left just as fast. “Thank you very much.”
Thumbing through the pages, Julia took in the tactile feel of the paper beneath her fingers and the way the ink of the text stood out, the way the spine of the book creaked slightly as the cover moved. Julia was so wrapped up in the book that she didn’t notice the disappearance of the holographic butler until Gabe spoke to her again.
“Tea?” He asked her, motioning to the table that had been set up with the drinks. As she looked up, she saw him watching her with those mysterious green eyes again. Something in Julia trembled under that gaze, and she wondered what stories those green eyes might be able to tell. But as soon as that thought came, she pushed it away quickly, feeling guilty for even thinking it.
“Oh, certainly, that would be really nice,” Julia replied as she gave him a warm smile and wandered over to the table. Sitting at one of the place settings, she carefully set the book on the table. “So what other things do you enjoy?”
Archer poured the tea into the two cups, and asked if Julia liked anything added. She politely stated that she like her tea black.
Archer was happy to hear it. He believe that its such a waste to add anything to a good cup of Earl Grey. It takes away the real taste of the fine brewed tea. He put a cup in front of her as she asked,
“So what other things do you enjoy?”
“I am a fan of classical music. I listen to it as I read my books. It takes me to a very deferent place. I listen to the greats, Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Tchaikovsky and the list goes on. Do you like music?”
Gabe asked as he savored the smell of the Earl Grey before taking a sip. the taste was full and satisfying just as he expected. He felt the warmth the tea brought him spreading in his body. This is exactly what he needed now, a moment to relax.
Julia couldn’t help but wrinkle her nose at Gabe’s choice of music. While she had a deep appreciation for classical music, through the experience she had being a musical prodigy when she was younger, Julia couldn’t stand it because of all those years her mother had crammed classical music at her. Julia tried to hide all those thoughts away again, not wanting to dredge it all up again.
Julia took a quick sip of the tea, which pleasantly turned out to be earl grey, before replying. “I have to admit that classical isn’t my favourite genre,” Julia said with a small smile, holding the teacup in her hands and enjoying the feel of the warmth on her hands, “I’m a jazz fan myself. Count Basie, Duke Ellington, J.J Johnson: it’s just such creative music.”
Julia took another sip of her tea, before casting a look at the photo of Gabe on a horse, wanting to desperately change the subject off of music. “That’s a gorgeous photo. I’m guessing you enjoy horseback riding, or was that just a fun one?”
Julia’s reaction to Gabriel’s choice of music was surprising, However Archer sensed that there was more to the matter.
i>A topic for another time perhaps. For now, I better change the subject…
As if she heard his thoughts, Julia asked about his horse. A broad smile was on Gabriel face mixed with a hint of pride as a true horseman,
“I used to compete. In fact I won some awards on that horse. That fine Arabian horse’s name is Ra’ed, which translates from Arabic to Thunder. Ra’ed was by best friend as I grew up, a beautiful animal. Now, he is at my uncle’s farm back on Earth.”
Gabe felt that he was starting to drift into a sea of memories that he had to pull himself out of,
“What about you? do you like horses?” Archer said as he took another sip of tea.
Julia was glad that Gabe didn’t mind the change in subject, but just speaking of music made her horribly uncomfortable. Not many people other than her father and brothers knew of Julia’s hate for music and instruments these days.
Julia could see the Lieutenant Commander beginning to wax nostalgic regarding horses, and she couldn’t help but smile. The way his lips curved into the gentle smile drew Julia’s attention as she watched him speak.
Dammit Julia! Keep your mind in the right place!
Julia couldn’t figure out why her mind was wandering like that, but she could feel a deep guilt for thinking about that when she was in a relationship with Brad’ick. Julia wasn’t one to cheat, so why those thoughts were popping up about the new Chief Science officer was beyond her.
“What about you? Do you like horses?” Archer asked her as he took a sip of his own tea.
“I like horses, but have never ridden one,” Julia said as she thought back to the times she’d seen people on horseback and wondered how much fun it would be. “Though I wouldn’t mind trying. I’ve always been into water sports myself. I’m a surfer girl.” Julia said with a chuckle as she took another sip of tea.
“I like horses, but have never ridden one,” Julia said, “Though I wouldn’t mind trying. I’ve always been into water sports myself. I’m a surfer girl”
“I did my share of swimming, but thats as far as I went with water sports. If you are interested, I have a wonderful Holodeck program for horse back riding. Not as good as the real thing but it should be fun.” Archer said.
He just realized that in a way, he just asked Julia out on a date. He didn’t mean to move this fast, but it seemed the natural thing to do.
Friends can go horse back riding together too…
Gabe tried to calm himself down, before he panics. He waited in anticipation for Julia’s answer, and he expected the worse…
“Sure, that sounds like fun!” Julia said as she gave him another warm smile and a nod. “Though you’ll have to start at square one with me on that, I know absolutely nothing about horses or horseback riding!”
Julia sat back, relaxed and feeling comfortable in the company of Gabe. They were becoming fast friends, and she was glad that it seemed he was comfortable around her too. It pleased Julia to no end that she had ended up getting assigned to a ship that had a great crew and that they all got along well.
“If you like, I can teach you how to surf in return for the horseback riding?” Julia offered before taking another sip of her tea, contemplating asking for a refill.
It was a few hours later, many refills of the teapot, and having migrated from the table they had been sitting at to the couch, that Julia realised that the tour of the ship had been long forgotten.
She glanced at her chronometer, the blush that had been on her face previously now returning to her face. How time had slipped away from them like it had, she wasn’t sure, but Julia had certainly had a good time.
“Do you realise we’ve been talking for over three hours straight?” Julia couldn’t help but laugh as she set her teacup down and then smoothed down the material of her uniform. She hated to end the conversation, but when three hours only felt like ten minutes, she started to get worried.
“It’s definitely been fun. But you still haven’t seen much more than the bridge and your quarters. Would you like to continue with our interrupted tour? Or did you just want to get back to work?” Julia asked him, despite her want to continue their conversation.
“It’s definitely been fun. But you still haven’t seen much more than the bridge and your quarters. Would you like to continue with our interrupted tour? Or did you just want to get back to work?” Julia asked.
“This is very enjoyable indeed. I can go on for hours more.” Gabriel laughed before adding ” But I believe it will be nice to go for a little walk. Where should we go next?” He asked.
Since Gabe hadn’t had any preferences as to where they went next, Julia figured it would be smart just to start at the top of the ship and start their way down. He had already been to the bridge on deck one, so next it was deck two where the quarters were located.
“To the officers’ mess?” Julia suggested, as she stood from the couch and stretched her muscles out a little bit. She wandered over to the table and picked up the book, before waiting for him at the door. “Ready?”
“To the officers’ mess?” Julia suggested.
“Sure! give me a second though…” Gabe replied and picked up a small PADD that was on his desk. Before calling the Computer,
“Computer, Activate the Personal Assistant Hologram.”
Jean-Philip appeared in the center of the room,
“At your service, Monsieur.” he said.
“Jean, I’ll be going for a little walk, prepare my mail, and make sure to send a communique to my parents informing them that I am posted on the Yeager now as her CSO.”
“Off-course Monsieur, will be done. Should I prepare a hot meal for you and the Mademoiselle?”
Gabriel didn’t know what to answer to that… he didn’t want to force this on Julia.
“Its a bit too late for a meal now Jean, maybe some other time?” Gabe smiled at Julia as he said that.
“Bon. everything will be ready when you get back Monsieur.”
“Good!” Gabe walked to the door and accompanied Julia to the Officer’s Mess.
They had started — or rather, restarted — their tour of the ship by stopping in at the Officers’ Mess. It had been pretty quiet there, so their stop there had been quick. They had also stopped quickly at the transporter rooms, the Security offices, the holodecks and various other locations found on decks 2 through 4. But it was Deck 5 that Julia felt that Gabe would be spending most of his time: the Science Labs were there.
The doors swished open, and Julia lead the new Chief Science Officer into his new domain. “And here are your new labs,” Julia said, stating the obvious, with a smile as she crossed the threshold and entered. She had only been up here a few times since she had come aboard the Yeager herself, and most of those stops were to see Midshipman Cassie Blanke when she had been planning her new fiance’s party a few months back.
Julia stayed near the doorway, to let the new CSO have free range over his new department, watching him with a small smile before glancing down at the book in her hands: it was probably one of the best gifts she had ever received.
The tour was going great, and Archer’s good memory allowed him to make sure he will remember his way back here from now on.
On Deck 5 were the science labs, and CSO’s Office. As Archer walked in there and introduced himself to some of the crew on duty, he was pleased to see the good order the place was in. The instruments were in pristine condition, and the crew seemed to be efficient and well coordinated.
I expected nothing less from Commander Tregelen’s department…
Then, Gabe entered his office. The Computer granted him access though Commander Tregelen’s things were still in there, so Gabe made sure not to touch anything. A quick look showed him that it was spacious and comfortable place, with access to both labs and sensors.
Excellent… I am looking forward to coming here tomorrow.
Gabriel was about to get lost in his thoughts and his new work place, when he remembered that Julia is still waiting for him.
She was standing there near the door, looking as beautiful as ever, resting her back on the wall and running her fingers on the letters of the book’s title. As if she was feeling the ink-bumps on the hard cover. He stood there trying not to interrupt, and admired her for a second while she was not looking.
They had a wonderful time together today, and Gabe felt a connection with Julia, unlike any other person he ever met. Was it her warm smile? her easy going attitude? her stunning looks? or a combination of many things. Archer was not sure, but there is one thing he was sure of; He wanted to see her again.
“I am done here.” he said, “Where should we go next?”
“I am done here. Where should we go next?” At the sound of Gabe’s voice, Julia looked up about her musings of the book. She had gotten caught up looking at the book and feeling the anticipation of actually getting to read it. It had been a few years since Julia had last gotten her hands on a real novel, let alone been able to read one. She would need to find a good place to relax and read it.
Julia flashed him another smile. “That was a quick stop; I thought for sure you were going to be a bit longer,” Julia said as she pushed herself away from the wall that she was leaning against to join him again and resume the tour.
“Do you mind if we make a brief stop at my quarters so I can drop this off?” Julia asked holding up the book as they exited the Science Labs out into the corridor. “They’re just on this deck, and then we can head to Engineering?” Julia asked, hoping he didn’t mind the small detour to her quarters. Julia was just worried she might lose the book, so the sooner she had it somewhere safe the better she would feel about it.
Her quarters are around the corner from my office?… how convenient.
Archer thought as he picked up an updated PADD bringing him up to date with ship’s business and that of the Science department. Then, Gabriel returned Julia’s smile and said “Sure! that would be excellent.”
He moved out of the way to let Julia out first as a gentleman should. However, he caught himself checking her out as she moved in front of him! He was sizing her up as if she was the only female left in this universe…
Goodness Gabriel! The place is full of science officers… not good.
He turned his gaze away and pretended to be looking at the PADD in his hand …
Julia punched in the code for her quarters when they arrived there, and the door swished opened to reveal a much smaller set of Officer’s Quarters that were similar to the Senior Officer’s Quarters three decks above.
“Feel free to snoop around,” Julia said as she entered into her cozy little home, “I’ll just be a sec while I put this on my nightstand.”
Julia wandered away and into the bedroom, doing exactly as she had said and leaving the book on the nightstand next to her bed. She glanced at the monitor nearby to see if she had any messages: a new letter from her father and one from her friend Amy Hamilton.
Turning away, Julia made her way back to the living area of her quarters, but made a quick stop at a mirror that was hanging on the wall to check her appearance, an action that was infrequent of her. For whatever reason though, Julia felt the need to today. She brushed a few stray strands of her raven hair behind her ear, before leaving her room and entering the main area of her quarters.
“Feel free to snoop around,” Julia said, “It’ll just be a sec while I put this on my nightstand.”
“Take your time.” Gabe said politely, as she went to the other room.
The quarters were a smaller than those of a Senior officer, but larger than the regular Crew Quarters. However, the place was cozy and had a feeling of warmth in it that made it easy to associate the place with Julia’s personality.
There was a couch with a knit quilt loosely thrown across it. In front of that, was a coffee table with a stack of PADDs on it. Gabe could see that they had various engineering schematics and books downloaded to them. There was also a Surfboard propped up in the far corner of the sitting room. On the opposite corner was a guitar case.
She plays guitar too?… how lovely.
The place was fairly tidy, aside from the PADDs on the coffee table. On the walls there were a number of old school photographs hanging, some were of friends and family Gabriel assumed. But what attracted his undivided attention was the bookcase Julia had!
It was placed neatly next to the couch, and contained a treasure of novels by the greats: Shakespeare, Agatha Christie, Jules Verne, Ian Fleming, LM Montgomery, Arthur Conan Doyle and the list went on…
“Marvelous! absolutely Fantastic…” Archer exclaimed as he ran through the list of titles on that bookcase. It was a pleasant surprise indeed to find such a fan of old fashioned books in this day of age, and this far away home. Even more pleasant was the fact that Julia seemed to like the same novels as he did, the tales of mystery and adventure.
However, there was one special book that seemed to have been read over a hundred times. It was older than the rest, and was warn from the number of times that its been used. The title on the side was not clear, so Gabriel reached for the precious book with the intent to pull it out of its place…
As she exited her bedroom, Julia spied Gabe perusing her bookcase near the couch and stopped to watch him. She couldn’t help but grin at his enthusiasm towards the titles in her bookcase. They would definitely become great friends if he shared the same tastes in novels as she did. Julia got the feeling that they might be swapping books quite frequently.
She stayed silent, and watched him as he browsed all the titles. He suddenly grabbed a novel from the case, an old worn out hardcover book. Julia recognized it immediately as it was her favourite.
Good choice.
The book that Gabe had selected was a first edition of Now We Are Six, by AA Milne. It had been published in 1927 and contained 35 pieces of poetry by the famous creator of the children’s icon Winnie the Pooh. While there were no poems about the famous bear in the collection, there were several illustrations of the famous character. Her great-grandmother had given the book to Julia when she was little.
Julia slowly made her way towards him, a caring smile on her face and a glint of nostalgia in her eyes as she began to recite her favourite poem in the book by heart. “Let it rain! Who cares? I’ve a train Upstairs, With a brake, Which I make From a string Sort of thing, Which works In jerks, ‘Cos it drops In the spring, Which stops, With the string…”
Julia stopped next to him and looked at the book in his hands. It was the first book she had ever read and the one that had ignited her passion for reading. “And the wheels All stick So quick That it feels Like a thing That you make With a brake, Not string…
ulia looked from the book to Gabe’s face, giving him a warm smile as she finished off the poem. “So that’s what I make, When the day’s all wet. It’s a good sort of brake But it hasn’t worked yet.”
She couldn’t help but giggle and give him a childish smile at the silliness of it all, before Julia added, “It’s funny that my favourite poem in that book is entitled The Engineer, don’t you think?”
Julia’s voice startled Archer, he got so immersed in exploring the bookcase that he had forgotten that he was not the only one in these quarters. Never the less, her presence was more than welcome.
While he turned around to face her, Gabe listened with a smile on his face as Julia recited a poem from what turned out to be a children’s book. Archer thought it was very charming, and the best part was, that he was able to get in touch with Jolia’s most innocent part of her life, her childhood.
It was clear from her smile and the look on her face, that a part of her mind was somewhere else, somewhere in the past. Gabe’s smile widened as the poem was getting more interesting, and reminded him of his own childhood, a distant place that he hadn’t visited in years.
As the poem ended with Julia’s perfect smile she said, “It’s funny that my favorite poem in that book is entitled The Engineer, don’t you think?”
“Indeed! that was a wonderful poem, I think I will borrow this book from you for a while.” A mischievous smile was on Gabriel’s face as he held the book away from Julia and stretched his arm to place the book as far away from her as possible!
At first Julia couldn’t figure out why Gabe had raised the book high in the air, but then she caught that glint in his eyes. He was teasing her!
“So that’s how it is, is it?” Julia let out a laugh before making a first attempt jump for the book. Her fingers came within centimetres of the book, but it wasn’t enough and she missed. She knew she would have to rethink her tactics.
Then Julia realised that having his right arm raised in the air to keep the book away left Gabe’s right side open for an attack. In a flash she had her hands out as she tickled his unprotected side, trying to get him to laugh or move just enough so she could grab the book.
But despite her best tickling attempts, Gabe didn’t move. Concluding that the man wasn’t ticklish, Julia started poking him in the side giggling as she went. It wasn’t hard pokes, but just enough to be annoying. So she started poking him in the side, seeing if she could distract him just enough to grab the book.
Gabe’s years of training in Self Control Techniques helped him block the ticklish sensation, he simply laughed louder with every attempt.
But when the poking started he couldn’t control it anymore. So, he used his free hand and tried to block Julia’s attempts with little to no success. His self protection instinct got him backing up slightly too fast resulting in Gabriel losing his balance! He desperately grabbed Julia’s hand as he was falling backward, but she was unprepared to carry his weight so she lost her balance as well and fell right on top of him. She shared his loud laughter for a moment before looking him straight in the eyes.
The loud laughter turned into silence. Julia’s face was close to Gabriel’s face, and he could feel her breath on his lips, he could smell her skin and even hear her heart beating fast. Archer looked into her blue eyes, and the time stopped, they were a sea and Gabe was lost in it. Without a whisper, her face drew closer to his ever so slowly.
Suddenly, there was a chime on Julia’s door…
One moment, Julia was laughing unrestrained as she was poking Gabe in the side. The next moment, she yelped as she landed on top of him and they were laughing together like old friends. Julia took his laughter as a sign that he was all right, despite having not only landed on the ground but also breaking her fall. But nonetheless, she had the need to make sure he was alright.
But just as she looked up to ask him she found herself very, very close to him. Julia was staring into the most amazing pair of green eyes that she had seen in her life. She could see mystery, friendship, humour, and secrets to be unlocked hiding in them. They were like a pair of wizards, and they had her caught in their spell. Julia noticed the rhythm of his breath, the steady rising and falling beneath her as her hands held her against the toned muscles that were his chest. The laughter had died down, leaving them with nothing but the sound of their breathing in the quiet quarters.
It felt like an eternity and like only a moment at the same time. Julia could feel those eyes and that handsome face drawing closer to her own, slowly lifting off the ground to meet her own. The space between their faces became smaller and smaller, but their eye contact never broke. They were so close now that Julia could feel the warmth emanating from his lips, so close…
Suddenly the hairs on the back of Julia’s neck rose as the chime of the door broke the spell that Gabe had over her. She tensed her shoulders as reality came crashing at her, and the realisation of what had almost happened hit her like a baseball bat to the knees.
“I’m so so sorry!” Julia yelped as she rolled off Gabe and onto her back, her cheeks turning a fiery red as a knot of guilt formed in her stomach. What was she thinking?! She had met the love of her life, had just spent three days with him no less, and here she was about to throw that all away with a man she’d barely known a day. Julia covered her face with her hands, feeling like the worst being in existence. Not only that, but she was sure that Gabe probably thought the worst of her, that she was just hitting on a superior officer to better her career or something.
Please, somebody, kill me now…
== Temp NPC: Ensign P. Hilton ==
Ensign Hilton, the ship’s hair dresser, was known to be the gossip central of the USS Yeager. She had the reputation of being the main distributer of the latest news and rumors on this starship. The Bolian was also Ensign Julia Nielson’s next door neighbor, and the all the noise coming from Julia’s quarter got her curiosity peeked. When the noises stopped she decided to go and check for herself, she gathered her wits and rang the door chim.
== LCdr. G Archer ==
The ring at the door startled Gabriel, but it seemed to have a more significant effect on Julia, she pulled away from him and apologized,
“I am so so sorry!” She moved away from him and covered her face with her hands.
“Julia… I…” Archer wanted to say something but there was another chim at the door.
Didn’t mean to hurt you…
Gabriel stood up and felt his wound burning. In all this excitement today, he neglected to take the Medicine Dr. Liora gave him. Now, there was two back to back chimes at the door.
Realizing that his presence might be putting Julia in a difficult position, Gabe thought that it is best if he leaves now, he straightened his DH jacket.
“Computer, mute door chim for the next ten minutes.
[Door Chim Muted.]
“Now, Transport me to the corridor adjacent to this quarters, around the corner.”
[Internal Transport, Authorization is Required.]
Not good… wait… the PADD
The PADD that Archer grabbed from the science labs contained his new Access codes for the Yeager.
“Authorization Delta three four two one one Archer, Chief Science Officer.”
[Authorization confirmed, transport in five seconds.]
Archer looked at Julia who was still covering her face, she was completely closed up.
“Julia, I am sorry…” was all he was able to say before the transporter beam took him away.
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