Author's Note: Okay, I finished this a looong time ago but I haven't been sure whether to post it or not. But then someone reminded me of why I'm a writer so here we go... Thanks to devilrats for doing the beta. Any spelling/grammar errors or plot holes are my own fault for not taking her great advice! Btw; I just had to mention Sweden in at least one of my fics ;)
Cadnobach: You're absolutely right. I should have posted it as one story with several chapter instead of a series with several short stories. A bit late to change that now though :( But I changed it on my website. Thanks for your advice!
ADULT ATTENTION,
written by Whipper
"C'mon, Lucas," the Captain chuckled and gave the unmoving teenager in front of him a gentle push.
They were both wearing wetsuits with the seaQuest logo as well as white towels thrown over their shoulders. Lucas', in Bridger's opinion, too long hair was plastered against his face while small drops of water were slowly making their way down the teenager's face. The long swim with Darwin had been quite amazing. Bridger had lived near the ocean his entire life and during his self-imposed exile he had spent most of his time exploring the ocean with the help of the dolphin. But that was nothing compared to swimming with Darwin in the company of Lucas and the vocorder. The truth was that he felt like a child exploring a new place for the first time. To be able to actually talk with his old friend, instead of using difficult hand signals... it was amazing indeed.
He shook his head, wondering if it was too late to get Lucas the Nobel Prize in science. He was sure the teenager would love Stockholm. Beautiful country, he mused. He and Carol had spent a few days there before Robert had been born. He lost himself in the memories of his and Carol's adventures and didn't notice the look on Lucas' face until he a few minutes later turned around to ask him if he'd ever been to Sweden. Now, as a soldier Bridger had seen people facing great danger. He had seen the the regret on the faces of those who were risking to lose everything. Had himself experienced the myriad of thoughts that hit every time death seemed near. Words left unsaid, things left undone... But he'd never seen that kind of regret on the face of someone so young until looking at Lucas.
The young genius seemed anxious, almost frightened, and he appeared to become increasingly so for every step they took. His arms were tightly wrapped around his chest in, what Bridger assumed, was an attempt to find comfort as he slowly walked along by the Captain's side. It was as if they were talking towards an execution instead of just the men's locker room.
"You okay, Lucas?" he finally asked, careful to keep the worry out of his voice.
He'd learned the hard way that Lucas took offence when treated like a child. The blonde teenager demanded to be given the same level of respect as the other crew members on seaQuest. He didn't take kindly on being bullied or ordered around. And even though that attitude sometimes made the Captain want to shake him until his teeth rattled, it was still a good thing. Lucas had pride and principles and wouldn't let himself be pushed around. That was something Bridger loved about the kid.
Lucas turned his head so fast that the older man for a moment worried about whiplash damages. The teenager was gnawing on his lower lip with a look of deep concentration, although it seemed to Bridger that there was a note of desperation to be found on Lucas' face as well.
He acted as if something needed to be figured out and it needed to be done fast. What really annoyed Bridger was that he didn't have a clue as to what that was going through the teenager's head.
"Just fine," came the answer in a flippant voice. "Why?"
"You look a little upset," Bridger commented cautiously. "You didn't hurt yourself while we were swimming, right?"
Lucas blinked a few times then looked at the Captain with a strange look on his face. Then his lips twisted into an equally strange smile as he shook his head.
"Nah, I didn't hurt myself. Just a bit tired."
Bridger nodded. He was aware that Lucas was lying but had no way to prove it.
"Yeah, well... you shouldn't stay up so late, you know."
"A bit hard to know the time since we're always jumping time-zones here. It's as if we're playing checkers or something," Lucas commented as Bridger opened the door to the locker room. "That's wrecked total havoc on my social life, you know."
"Social life?"
"My friends are offline when I'm online and the other way around," Lucas explained slowly, as if speaking to a child.
It was quite insulting and Bridger was prepared to bet that that was something Lucas was very aware of. Still, the Captain refrained from making any comments on what he thought of Lucas 'social life'. He hadn't had any real fights with the teenage boy yet and wasn't very eager to get into one either.
"I see what you mean by being tired," he said instead as he unzipped the wetsuit and began the struggle to get it off. "You're acting a bit cranky. If you have such problems with knowing when to go to bed, maybe you need a curfew?"
"What?" The disbelief in Lucas voice was almost comical. "No way."
Suddenly the door to one of the few individual dressing rooms opened and as a young, red-haired man left it Lucas quickly grabbed a towel and threw himself into the room, slamming it closed behind him. Bridger could just look after him with surprise. For a few moments he wondered if he should knock on the door and demand an explanation, but the looks from the other crew members made him remain where he was. No need to fuel the rumours of Lucas as a spoiled brat under the protection of Bridger.
As he grabbed a towel, prepared to head to the showers he mused on the many possible causes for Lucas' mood. There was the most common teenage boy problem of course, namely girls. There weren't that many of those on the seaQuest, which of course, he thought with a small smile, could be part of the problem. It seemed a bit unfair though hat Lucas, on top of the usual problems of a teenager, would have to deal with the isolation of the seaQuest. Not for the first time he wondered just what Dr. Wolenczak had been thinking when he'd decided to send his son to the seaQuest.
Shaking his head, he reminded himself to keep a closer eye on Lucas. He liked the kid and thought that the young genius deserved to get some adult attention.
***
"Stupid, stupid, stupid," Lucas chanted softly to himself as he entered his room and quickly locked the heavy, metal door. "How can I be this stupid with an IQ that's off the scale?"
He looked around his room, wishing for a distraction but finding nothing. All his programs seemed to be running smoothly and there were no messages on either screen blinking for attention. When he had told Bridger a few hours earlier that the strange hours they kept on the seaQuest was ruining his social life, he'd been telling the man the truth. Some days he didn't get to speak with Biff at all. Not that he didn't have any online friends except for Biff. His life wasn't that sad yet. He spoke with hackers from all over the world and enjoyed the feeling of comradeship. He even had a few non-Biff, non-hacker online friends. Not people he was very close to, but they could chat about music and movies and other teenage stuff.
Which was more than one could say about anyone on the seaQuest. Except for a few of the senior officers, lead by Morale Officer Krieg, and a handful of scientists he was unbelievably lonely. Well, there was Bridger, of course. Although Lucas wasn't entirely sure of how he felt about the Captain yet. He liked him of course, it wasn't a question about that. He was a good man, perfect for the role as the Captain of the seaQuest. Not a born diplomat perhaps but more than capable of handeling Commander Ford and Dr. Westphalen's frequent arguments. And, most of the time, the guy seemed to have a pretty good sense of humour and he really did his best to take care of Lucas. And maybe that was the problem.
Lucas was prepared to deal with people who didn't care. He was an expert on not being taken cared of, at times he even felt safe in his invisibility. Sure, he hated it when his parents didn't pay him attention him but strongly preferred that strangers ignored Lucas - the boy and concentrated on Lucas - the genius. But Bridger was displaying signs of wanting to get to know Lucas instead of just using the teenager's intelligence.
Reaching out to his right, Lucas grabbed the remote control to his DISC-player. As loud, angry music filled the room Lucas slowly undid his flannel shirt.
"C'mon, Lucas, lets hit the showers."
"What?"
The Captain laughed at him and reached out to touch Lucas' wet hair.
"You weren't planning on going back to your room like this, now were you? Always shower after you've been out swimming, Lucas. The water out there isn't exactly clean."
For a moment he though he was going to pass out. His heart was beating so fast he found it hard to think and even harder to speak. He nodded and began moving as the Captain gave him a gentle shove. All he had been able to think about was that *IT* would be found out. The Captain would know and then his father and... then what? The crazy house?
This time he had been lucky, he'd been able to escape into one of the individual rooms instead of having to undress in front of the Captain and half of the seaQuest crew. But at some point in the future he knew he wouldn't be so lucky. He needed a plan. A solution. They couldn't know.
They couldn't ever find out.