Part 2.
A/N:To Bec who, while she may not have a mention in this fic, always inspires Buffer-related things… ;)
"Ha, I should've guessed she was Navy." ET shot a sideways glance at Nav, which Buffer ignored. "It's the way they hold themselves."
"Well evidently my spider senses didn't quite catch that. I had no idea whatsoever." Buffer admitted, his tone indicating he was slightly disappointed by his lack of observation.
ET grinned at him. "Cheer up mate. You have a name and a job. Can't be that hard to find her." Buffer glanced at him. ET shrugged. "Or not?"
Buffer shook his head and walked away. ET laughed. "I'll just call in a few favours yeah? Have details to you as soon as possible big guy."
The Maryborough sat quietly in the harbour alongside, only a short walking distance from their sister ship the Hammersley. Her 95 shining white on her side, the Maryborough hadn't seen as many battles as the Hammersley, but her crew were tough enough. One of them in particular. A fun-loving and friendly CSO named Di Wolfe. That evening, after returning from what she described to her friend Able Seaman Kasey 'Danni' Green as an 'interesting trip', she was laying in her bunk thinking.
The Maryborough wasn't due to leave port until the next morning, allowing the crew a night ashore, and most had taken it happily. Apart from a small handful of seniors and the hard-nosed Kasey (who stayed aboard to do paperwork), the ship was pretty much empty. And Di was bored. She'd been sitting on her bunk for the last hour trying NOT to think about the man she'd met in the pub, but it was difficult. She still couldn't believe she'd already called him Mister. It was a little oddity of hers, when she met fellow sailors she liked, when she started to consider them as men not as sailors she'd call them mister instead of their rank. It was normally funny, a little thing as she usually enjoyed testing how long it would take before she saw past the uniform, but now she was just embarrassed. She'd called him it straightaway! Did that mean something?
And then, realising this wasn't helping her get him off her mind, she sat up in bed, almost banging her head on her top bunk. Pushing herself away from the warmth and comfort of her bed and memories, she left the cabin and headed as far away from her thoughts as possible. Heading for, without realizing she was, the shore.
It was well after 2100 when Buffer headed out onto the deck, breaking all the rules, but he needed air. It was a warm summer night and the inside of the Hammersley was stuffy and small. Either that or it was how annoyed he felt at his stupidity. How had he let the girl from the bar leave without even figuring out what ship she worked on? That night four patrol boats had passed through HMAS Cairns, only the Hammersley and Maryborough stopping for the night. The other two had left port only an hour before. What if she'd been on one of them? Or worse, what if she worked at base? CSOs worked on base as well. He frowned, leaning against the railing and looking out at the sea beyond, his back turned to the shore. None of this would've happened if they'd stayed at sea. Out there he could be free, not weighed down by women or their strange mannerisms. His past 'relationship', if he could really call it that, with Monica had proven to him that women really were an entirely different spec…
"Hey Buff." ET's voice broke into his thoughts. He was standing in the doorway, the light from inside spilling out behind him. Something in his hand that he was now waving triumphantly. "Guess what I found?"
Buffer ignored him. "I don't care ET." He grumbled, passing the electrical technician and heading down the side of the ship. ET didn't relent.
"Oh come on Buff. It's good, it's your mystery girl."
Buffer stopped and looked at him. "What?"
"Nav found her for you." He handed Buffer the piece of paper and he squinted, trying to read it. He gave up and looked at ET knowing the Leading Seaman had read it.
"What does it say?"
"Leading Seaman Wolfe, Combat Systems Operator, 25."
Buffer frowned. "That's all? No current placement details?"
ET shrugged. "It's the best we could do."
Buffer pocketed the piece of paper. "Thanks anyway ET." He made for the plank. "Uh, I'm just taking a short stroll to clear the lungs. I won't be long."
ET nodded. "Sure."
Buffer left the ship.
"Monkeys!" A voice said nearby and Buffer frowned, stepping towards it. He found a figure, curled up and rubbing her foot by the south end of the dock.
"Uh, are you okay?" He asked.
She turned and Buffer recognized her. Instead of her sticky jeans she was now dressed in standard grey Navy overalls. But she was still the girl from the bar. The girl he'd been unable to get off his mind. She obviously recognized him too because she grinned. "Well, a series of odd little coincidences." She took the hand he offered and let him pull her to her feet. "What are you doing here?"
Buffer motioned back to the Hammersley. "Escaping the heat."
She chuckled. "Ah, you're from the infamous Hammersley then?"
He nodded. "What are doing here?"
She motioned to the rope she'd tripped over. "Being a goofball." She laughed and he smiled. "I'm on the Maryborough. And guess what, it's stinking hot in there as well!"
Buffer smiled. "I can imagine." He glanced out at the waterway behind him then motioned to the edge of the dock. "We could always just sit here and take in the cool sea breeze, if you'd like."
She gave him a smile and nodded. "Sounds good."
So they sat, and they talked until it was too dark and they both had to return to their ships. But not before Buffer got one thing. A phone number and a promise – that one day soon they'd return to that sticky bar floor.
THE END