a/n: Book tag: "Starship: Pirate" by Mike Resnick. Includes: slash EstebanMorales/RachelMarcos
~Esteban Morales falls in love~
For the First Time
Ever since Esteban Morales first arrived aboard the Teddy R from the pirate yacht Achilles no one really cared for him. He was eighteen years old, didn't have military training like the rest of the others, so he just stuck to himself; in his quarters that had nothing in it that belonged to him but himself, and the mess. When he first came he was taken to a room with nothing in it but two chairs. He sat in one chair and a young woman sat in the other, no more than five years older than himself. At her shoulder stood a man that had enough muscle to tear the chairs in half ten times over.
Esteban knew Bull was there to protect the woman, Rachel Marcos, but he could never hurt her, not in a million years. The moment she stepped into the room, he was in love. So he told her anything, without any prompting, but even that didn't make her like him.
After he became a full member of the Teddy R, things didn't much change. When he saw her in the mess, he always tried to talk to her, but she was never alone, and her male company always drove him away. And he'd never forget the way that she looked at Wilson Cole, it was the same way that he looked at her; yearning. He found that he didn't have a complete utter chance with her. How could he complete with Wilson Cole? How could anyone?
He took to his usual lonesome table in the empty mess and ordered a beer through the floating menu. A few moments later it arrived, he'd just taken a swallow when she arrived, dropped into a chair, and quickly ordered. When her drink arrived, she didn't even pause as she upended the amber liquid into her mouth. She gasped and squeezed her eyes closed, slamming the glass down before ordering another. She did two more rounds before she finally paused. She didn't look happy at all, sad more than anything.
"Lieutenant Marcos?" Esteban called hesitantly across the room, "are you all right?"
She looked in his direction, a look of surprise passed over her beautiful features, as her out of focus gaze located him. She squinted. "You...Es-es-esser, c'me ov'r here." She waved at him.
Esteban hesitated for but a moment, before he stood and left his drink behinds as he slid into the seat across from her. "Are you okay...?" he asked again.
"You c'n call m' Rachel," she slurred, a smile on her lips.
"R-rachel?"
"Yesss?"
"Are you okay?"
"Of c'rse I am! Why-why wouldn't I be?" She asked.
"Um..." Esteban wasn't sure how he was supposed to answer.
"Do you think I pretty?" She asked him suddenly, her blurry gaze pinning him to the spot.
Esteban couldn't tear his gaze away. He swallowed. "R-rachel... I think you're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen." He spoke quietly, blushing.
"Really?"
He nodded.
"That's so nice," she said, almost looking about to cry. "Everyone else's so mean, they all think I'm a stupid kid that's in love with Wilson Cole."
"A-are you?"
She looked at him. "Am I what?"
Esteban gulped. "Are you... with Mister Cole?"
Rachel scoffed. "Who could be in love with him, when he's only in love with himself!"
Esteban didn't believe a word she said, and by the look on her face, neither did she. "Everybody loves him, even you… just differently," he said softly. "Sometime, different kind of loves hurt more than others."
She looked at him in the emptiness, and sniffed, trying to stop herself from tearing up, and not quite succeeding. "You're so nice, Estebarne." She pronounced his name wrong, but it didn't matter as she reached across the table and took his hand. "You're like the only person who's ever been this understanding."
Esteban smiled at her. "You're an easy person to like."
She smiled back at him. "Do you like butterflies?" she asked suddenly.
Esteban looked at her. "They're cool," he said, though he'd only ever seen them in a holo once when he was a kid.
"Come on!" said Rachel, suddenly jumping unsteadily to her feet, tugging at his hand. He had no choice least she fall on her arse. "I love butterflies, their so pretty. I want to show you all the holos I got!"
"O-okay!" Esteban stammered as she dragged him to the airlift and then to her room. They layout was the same as his, but hers was drowning in her private personality.
She pushed him onto her narrow bed, and grabbed the portable holo on her desk, and sat down close next to him. She commanded the lights off, and they were plunged into darkness for a second before she activated her holo. The next time that Esteban blinked, the walls and ceiling was covered in 3D holos and butterflies fluttering around the room. Esteban looked on opened mouthed; with the butterflies, and Rachel pressed close to him...
"This is awesome!" he told her, turning to look at her.
Her big eyes were a little more focused as she smiled back at him, and before Esteban could take another breath, she crushed her lips to his. He was so shocked as the holo device dropped to the floor and continue to transmit and she pushed him onto his back on the bed.
He was dazed as she pulled back for breath.
"Rachel!" he gasped. "What are you doing?!" he demanded.
She looked down at him, her legs straddling him. "Esteban... I thought you liked me?"
"I do!" Esteban protested, not able to help but think how beautiful she looked with her hair loose around her face. "But you're not doing this because you like me, you're doing it 'cause you're upset and I was nice to you."
"You're wrong!" she shook her head rapidly. "You're cute, and you are nice. But I'm not that drunk, and I know you like me. I'm not stupid to m'ke this a drunken mistake. I want to do it," before Esteban could speak she leaned down and kissed him again, but not as rough and forceful this time.
Esteban hesitated for only a second before he kissed her back this time, his arms around her as she covered his body with her own. It didn't matter if this was the first-last time, if when they were done she did regret it. To Esteban his first time would always be with his first love, surrounded by butterflies with heart-shaped wings.
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