Jean-Luc stroked his bald scalp, his hand gliding back until it contacted the fringing of white hair skirting around his cranium. Over forty years in Starfleet had taken its toll, every moment worthwhile in his books.
"I've been looking forward to this shore leave," Commander Dr Beverly Crusher, the Chief Medical Officer aboard his ship, the Enterprise, and his best friend, remarked cheerily as they relaxed in the shuttlecraft together. "You'll absolutely love the beaches on Mintarka, Jean-Luc!"
"I don't doubt it," he admitted with one of his rare smiles as her eyes sparkled, complimented by the swirls of purple, pink and blue gases outside in the nebula. It had been months of pestering in the making, jibes over breakfast occasionally, building until they were daily. Finally, he had agreed a few weeks before with the promise of Beverly accompanying him. It had been hard to say goodbye, but he knew his ship was in good hands, as did Beverly with her sickbay staff. The timing couldn't have been better with the Enterprise running some tests in the nebula, they didn't require either captain or CMO to go about their business for a fortnight.
Savouring each other's joy for a moment, their heads jerked back when an alarm flashed red. "Warning. Proximity alert. Warning." Jean-Luc and Beverly were out of their seats in a flash, going to the controls.
"Enterprise, mayday!" Beverly exclaimed on the communicator to the ship they had left minutes before.
"Brace for impact!" Jean-Luc shouted. Without hesitation, they threw their arms around each other as well as gripping to the console, holding each other down. The last sounds he heard were Beverly's screams as the console caught alight.
The cabin began to fill with ion radiation from an impulse engine leak as they both lay unconscious amidst the ruin. Their figures flickered moments later from the transporter beam, Jean-Luc's taking longer to lock on to.
"Transporter room?" Riker barked.
"I'm having trouble getting a solid lock on them both, sir," Transporter Chief O'Brien informed him.
On the Enterprise bridge, they watched on in horror as the small shuttle craft exploded. "Have we got them, O'Brien?" Riker asked in a low voice.
"Both Captain Picard and Dr Crusher are now in sickbay," he informed them.
Thank heavens! Riker breathed a sigh of relief.
A/N: The title will probably make more sense in the next chapter. I know O'Brien isn't there in the show canon for the film I've set it, but I thought I'd use him since I'm going AU anyway.
Please review! Who/what do you think caused the shuttle accident? The Enterprise might have them, but are Jean-Luc and Beverly alright? Will they make it to their shore leave? Please let me know your thoughts in reviews!