What I Like About You, an eureka seven fanfic

Title: What I Like About You

Rating: T

Synopsis: Dominic comes to terms with his infatuation of Anemone, while dealing with everyday life on the Izumo.

Pairings: Dominic X Anemone/ One Sided Dominic X Ruri – from game

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Eureka SeveN

NOTE before reading - Ruri, the officer Dominic consults with in this fic, is a completely canon character from the games/manga.

Chapter One: You, Me, and My Medication

With her legs propped on the bed Indian style, Anemone skimmed through an antiquated Tiger Beat magazine; a carefree smile radiating from her lips. Pausing to admire her, for a moment she resembled any ordinary girl her age.

"Which Simpson do you prefer; Jessica or Ashlee?" Neither, I harbor an intense dislike for spoiled pop princesses, but instead of protesting I simply answered her question. "The blond one." Taking my choice into consideration, Anemone unfolded the pin-up and examined the long-dead musician; her amethyst eyes scanning every inch of the glossy paper. "So you prefer blonds, huh?"

"What! No, I..." As my alabaster skin furiously blushed, Anemone let out one of her annoying, falsetto giggles. "And you, my dear, are adorable!" Does she really think ... "I am?" A befuddled look crossed Anemone's face, but it was quickly replaced by a roar of laughter. "Not you, silly. Jessica's ex. You know, what's his name." Flipping the poster to it's opposite side, she revealed a picture of the 'then' twenty-something heartthrob. I wonder what she'd think of him if I showed her his cryogenic tomb?

"It's time for your medicine." Actually, I was supposed to administer Anemone's medicine hours ago, but I just couldn't bear to interrupt one of her few serene moments. "Awh..." Reaching for the morphine syringe, with my right hand I steadied Anemone's chin. Bringing the needle up to her jugular, I injected the medicine as gently as possible; and I could feel my heart break as she whimpered.

"There, all done." Slowly drifting into the morphine's soothing grasp, Anemone silently mouthed a thank you, before collapsing onto her bed. Running my fingers through her strawberry locks, I reply "Your welcome," even though she cannot hear me.

"You do realize that you'd get more nutrition from just eating the box?" Finishing my spoonful of Lucky Charms, I turned my attention to the doe-eyed officer who made such a comment. "Does it look like I care?" Shrugging, she took the mimosa off her tray and swapped it with my Ovaltine. "It'll give you an extra kick." Visibly annoyed, I made an attempt to retrieve my glass, but she'd already begun to sip from it.

"I can have you suspended." I'm rarely forced to such extremes, but I'm not one to be messed with in the morning. Placing the Ovaltine down in a nonchalant manner, it was as if my threat went right through her. "I see," pausing to pin a strand of amber hair behind her ear, the officer continued, "the others did tell me you were a jerk." Now that news comes as unsurprising. Whether it's declaring my promotion 'nepotism'; even if it is the truth; or outright insulting me, I have a slim popularity with the other members of the Izumo.

'They also said you were a fudge packer, but you don't look like the candy eating type." As my eyes grew wide, the officer pushed the mimosa closer. "I can get you some Vicodin, if you want. I recommend taking them together, it's like a trip to Cloud-Nine." Hn, more like the informatory. "I don't know, I think they were wrong about you..." Well, I'm not very sly when it comes to leering at finer assets. Folding her hands across her chest, she continued, "I think you're kinda cool." And as if her approval actually meant something, I smiled.

"See-yah around!" As she got up from the table, I didn't bother to watch her walk away. It's kinda strange, she's the first crew member to ever to nice to me. Right now, the only thing I'm completely sure of is my intense craving for a nicotine fix.

Technically, we're not allowed to smoke 'anywhere' on the Izumo; but somehow the storage room seems to bypass this ban. Reaching into my pocket, I retrieved a pack of the standard military rationed cigarettes, Lucky Strikes. Turning over the first cigarette I could feel, I then randomly selected the one I would light; in some lame ritual I picked up in my High School's parking lot.

"Aren't you lucky," Distracted by a fellow officer's comment, it took me a few seconds to realize I had selected my 'lucky strike'. Bringing the cigarette up to my lips, I attempted to light it; but my disposable lighter wouldn't budge. "Yeah, lucky me." "Or perhaps God is just trying to tell you something?" Turning to my side, I come face to face with the last person I'd hope to see; Captain Jurgens. "Stop dallying, especially while you're on duty." It's no secret that I'm not in his favor. Though, I must admit, it's mostly my fault. Unlike the other men on-board, who view Captain Jurgens as a surrogate father figure; I entirely lack respect for him. Dewey fills my parental gap; and I rather not have Captain Jurgens intrude on that.

"Anemone's up, perhaps you'd like to visit her?" His polite way of instructing me to keep her occupied. "I guess," Tossing my now useless pack of cigarettes to the side, I contemplate the officer's vicodin offer from earlier. "Give me fifteen minutes."

"You don't look so good," Anemone observed. "It's nothing," I respond, though I can tell Anemone doesn't buy it. "In that case, I want you to make Gulliver an ice-cream sundae, with extra syrup." She can't be serious... "Are you sure you should be feeding him that?" Nodding, she pulled me towards the door, and I found myself too sick to resist.

Stepping into the Izumo's only kitchen, I opened the freezer and fumbled for a tub of Ben and Jerry's.

"Got the munchies?" A familiar voice observed. Spinning around, I found myself face to face with the officer from earlier. She's turning out to be more of a nuisance than Anemone.

"No, Gulliver needs ice cream." Only after I finished the sentence did I realize how ridiculous it sounded. "Err, right. So do you want my help or not?" Mouthing a 'yes', I could feel the blood rush to my face as her body brushed up against mine.

"You want a chocolate coating?" Nodding, she snorted before placing down the syrup container. "I guess this makes you a chocolate hoarder... or was it a brownie collector...?" Hastily grabbing the sundae out of the officer's hand, I darted out of the room without even considering thanking her.

"You forgot the cherry; Gulliver will only eat it with the cherry," Anemone chided, while viciously tapping her right foot on the marble floor. "But, I..." Obviously displeased, she took the rejected dessert and attempted to hurl it at me. Flinching, I waited for the inevitable impact.

"Ewwh!" Anemone shrieked, and after waiting a few seconds, I tentatively opened my eyes. The sundae must've slipped Anemone's grip; because instead of splattering on my recently dry-cleaned uniform, a dizzy mixture of syrup and Rocky Road was cascading down her white vinyl dress.

"Yucky, yucky, yuck!" Pouting her lips, Anemone rested her thumb and index finger at the bottom of her chin; as if she were considering a quick solution. Moving her right hand behind her back; Anemone seemed to fondle with something; and just like that, I heard a quick 'zip'.

Bowing my head, I didn't need to look up to realize what she'd done. "You took off your dress, didn't you?" Giggling in response, Anemone seemed to be amused by my flustered temperament.

"I should just go.." Spinning around on my heels, I kept my eyes focused to the ground as I headed straight for the door. "Not just yet..." Anemone uttered, and the next thing I knew, she was clawing at my shirt with her sticky, chocolate covered hands. "What are you doing..?"

"Give me your shirt, I'm cold," Anemone responded, while unfastened the first few buttons of my uniform. "Err...I...," struggling to find the right words, just as I was about to finish my sentence the automatic door slid open.

"Lieutenant?" For a moment, Captain Jurgens, who just emerged into the room, seemed somewhat bewildered; that is, until he put two and two together. "I'll just leave you two kids alone." Silently backing away, Captain Jurgens swiftly punched the automatic door closed; leaving Anemone and I right where we left off.

"What's his deal?" Anemone remarked, while unfastening the last of my shirt's buttons. Slipping her tiny frame into the article of clothing, the shirt was obviously too large and went down to her torso; fortunately.

"So, about that sundae..." As if my life weren't awkward enough...

"You know, Jake Ryan, if you're looking for some candy, there's this great confectionery place a few hundred miles or so along our path. With your connections, I'm sure you can talk the higher-ups into taking an emergency rest-stop or something..." The officer observed, while painting her nails a rather hideous shade of seafoam green. "First of all, my name's Dominic, secondly, I'm looking for Marmite; you know, that gross jelly spread..."

Nodding, the officer brought her left hand up to her mouth and lightly blew. "Marmite's not that bad, Vegemite, however..." Dropping the varnish bottle, she let out a grimace.

"So, what brings you scavenging for such a thing at this hour?" "Take a wild guess," I replied. Anemone's latest food-related obsession, Marmite, has led me on a goose chase throughout the whole ship. It's in limited supply, most likely due to it's foul taste, and so far, the only way of obtaining the spread is through confiscating care-packages.

"Hm, outrageous and sporadic food cravings... you know, if I weren't naïve, I'd assume your girlfriend's pregnant." Dropping the peanut butter jar in my hand, my slate eyes grew saucer wide as I absorbed her comment.

"What, I...she's not my girlfriend, and we're not like that." Skeptically grinning, the officer pulled out a bottle of nail primer and continued her manicure. "Hm, is that so? Well, I guess my friend in management was wrong..." Sighing dejectedly, it seemed as if the officer was blissfully unaware of what she'd been implying.

"What exactly did she say?" I inquired, and just like that, her eyes lit up. "Apparently, you two were caught going at it in the janitor's closet; but trust me, it's all speculation." Wow, I haven't been this engrossed in gossip since High School. You know, when I think about it, so far the military has not been that different from High School; well, except instead of lacrosse sticks it's Ak-47's.

"Would you mind if I came in?..." Nodding 'yes', a lower ranked officer emerged into the common room and handed me an official looking notice. "Captain Jurgens has requested to speak with you," he stated, before scurrying off to the pastry platter. "Go ahead, Jake, don't worry, I'll save you a croissant." Not bothering to correct her, I got up from my rather comfortable position on the couch and left the room. I just hope Dewey isn't involved; I have enough problems as it is.

Eying the pack of Cuban Cigars on Captain Jurgen's desk, considering all the times he chastised me about smoking, I find it somewhat ironic.

"Is everything alright?" Shrugging, I casually reached for the bourbon bottle on Captain Jurgen's bookcase, only to have him smack my hand away. Clicking his tongue, Captain Jurgens pulled out his chair and instructed me to sit down. "What am I going to do with you?" He rhetorically asked, while shaking his head in disdain.

"Dominic, son, I know we've have our fair share of disagreements, but I'm genuinely concerned about your welfare, as would be any good captain." My welfare? Urgh, I hope he doesn't give me a pamphlet or something. Letting my mind wander, I prepared to listen to a soliloquy condemning one of my many vices. "This nigh-parental concern is why I feel obligated to give you this." Reaching into his drawer, Captain Jurgens retrieved an aluminum packet, and slid it to my side of the desk. "You both are so young, it'd be a shame to see you two make any life altering mistakes..." What does he mean by... Looking down at the packet, as my mind registered 'the life altering mistake protection', my lips formed an 'oh'.

"I'm not...this isn't...we aren't..." "Look, I don't want to hear anything; just promise me you'll take care of yourself..." He interrupted; with his eyes uncharacteristically soft. I hope he won't ever revisit this conversation... "Captain Jurgens, I think I'll let myself out..."

A/N: This is my first attempt at Humor, and I would really appreciate your opinions!

Preview of Chapter Two - Some Like It Hot

"So let me get this straight; he gave you a..." Jabbing my elbow into her abdomen, I pulled the officer into a remote corner. "Sssh! Don't go shouting it out-loud. I don't want to be the butt of anymore jokes..." Though she had her left hand covering her mouth; the smile creeping across her face was still quite obvious. "I'm sorry, it's just funny..." For a moment, her juvenile attitude reminded me of Anemone.

"Here; take this..." Slipping a ring off her left ring finger; the officer placed it in the palm of my hand. "This will surely clear up any misconceptions." The ring she had given me held an engraving; 'True Love Wait...'. "Err, what is it?" Her smile, now sincere, grew wider. "A declaration of abstinence." I'm not sure if I should laugh or cry. "Well, it's great to know a girl like you has her priorities straight."