Julian Bashir stared at the screen in front of him, waiting for the computer's analysis to finish on the unidentified DNA. He was late for this morning's counseling session, but he didn't care about that much. He obviously had more important things to concentrate on.
The pulsing headache behind his left eye had eased into a dull throb. Still regretting that last martini last night, he stood from his chair and stretched his arms above his head. In the distance across the infirmary, he heard Commander Rzepka's hacking cough and winced. He knew she would be fine - the bacteria in her lungs was already responding to the antibiotics he started her on - he still hated to hear her cough. It sounded very uncomfortable.
On graceful legs, he turned toward the replicator and ambled slowly, stretching out his legs and back. It was only 0930 and he was already looking forward to the end of the day.
"Raktijino, hot, extra cream..." he said into the replicator as another raspy, barking cough erupted from inside the infirmary. "... And one Tarkaliean tea. Hot."
Two mugs emerged beneath the swirling yellow lights. He pulled both mugs off the replicator platform and made his way out into the main infirmary area.
"Tea?"
Commander Rzepka looked up from her PADD and smiled before holding out her hand. Her raspy voice had improved to the sound of a tired bull frog. "Thank you."
"What are you working on?" Bashir lowered himself into a chair close to the bio bed. He held the raktijino to his lips and breathed in the steam. Rzepka shook her head in disappointment and held up her PADD before dropping it on the bio bed beside where she sat.
"I'm trying to locate a warp core system to replace Defiant's. Not much luck." Her dejected voice pulled at the doctor's heartstrings. He knew she was under a lot of stress already, the warp core issue just made it worse.
"Do you think the entire system needs to be replaced?" Bashir asked, hoping for a positive answer. Rzepka merely nodded at his statement.
"The anti-matter injectors are all destroyed. You can't replace the injectors without replacing the entire system; it will overload a used core."
"Oh..." Bashir breathed. He took a sip from his cup as Rzepka did the same. The negative air pressure in the room helped Bashir wake up a bit and his headache was already starting to ease. He looked back up at the commander who was still struggling to breathe; but overall, looked much better. "I'm sorry your first week has been so... active."
The commander smiled. "I didn't expect anything less."
Bashir's gaze fixated on the green coffee cup in his hands. His mind wandered back to the appointment he was blowing off. Work was too important right now - he knew the counselor would never accept that excuse.
Do you want to talk about it, Imdazi?
Bashir's head snapped up when he thought he heard the commander's voice. She was silent as a stone, but looking at his face with a soft eye. When his eyes met hers, she let a small smile overcome her face. Well? Do you?
Hearing her voice from the inside made Bashir's heart jump. It had been so long since he heard her like that. He was even feeling relieved she could still communicate with him on that level, considering they hadn't been emotionally close in eighteen months. He nodded, then smiled.
Later. Not here. When she nodded a tiny nod then took another sip of her tea, he know she heard him. Before the silent conversation could continue, however, Krissten entered the room with a light knock on the doorway.
"Last antibiotic dose!" The medical assistant's voice was cheery and bright. Bashir stood from his chair, put on an obviously fake smile and reached the hypospray she was holding.
"Thank you, Krissten."
Security Chief Jefferson Blackmer sat at his desk deeply concentrating on the reports from Defiant for the past two weeks. He wasn't sure what he was looking for, but he certainly didn't want to miss anything. He was having a hard time really integrating into his new role as security chief since his transfer three months ago and he wanted to prove himself to Captain Ro. Somehow.
As if on cue, his door chime rang and Blackmer quickly recognized Ro's figure behind the door. He sat up straight and answered the door. "Come in."
Ro stepped forward, her short but lean stature standing straight and stiff. "Good morning, Chief. Have you seen this?"
She handed over a PADD as a lump dutifully formed in Blacmker's throat. He carefully scanned the information.
Lieutenant William Barr's service record was displayed on the PADD screen. Blackmer frantically tried to think of a reason the captain was giving it to him. Then he noticed Barr's face.
"He's the officer in the security video, isn't he?" Blackmer quietly asked. The captain nodded.
"I want him in your office within the hour. Call me when he's here and I will come speak with both of you," the captain replied. "And Chief - what was that all about this morning? You seem uneasy. Everything okay?"
Blackmer shifted his weight in is chair. "Yes sir. Everything is fine. I mean, well... " he paused and took a breath when the Captain sat in the chair across from his desk. She wasn't going to leave without an answer. "Well, to be perfectly honest, sir... it's the new Chief engineer."
"Rzepka?" the captain said, her surprise inching through her voice. Blackmer nodded as the captain's eyebrows furrowed and her legs crossed at the knees. "What about her?"
"Well, sir... I'm just not sure what to... think... around her," Blackmer confessed. "She is a telepath, isn't she?"
The captain's tiny smile couldn't be helped. "Yes, she is. Have you never worked with a telepath before?"
Blackmer shook his head. "I don't think I've even met one before."
"Well, Chief, I can tell you, you're not the first one to have this problem. My advice is always to sit down and talk to her. Ask her about her culture. She's very understanding about this kind of thing," Ro replied. "But give her until at least tomorrow. She's got her hands full today."
With that statement, the captain stood from her chair and smiled again at the chief. "I trust that you and she will work out any uneasiness you may have. And I trust to hear from you on Barr within the hour. I won't be far away." Chief Blackmer nodded at her as she turned on her heel and walked back out through the security door.
Captian Ro quietly stepped out into the Promenade from the security office. She felt strange visiting her Chief of Security in her old office, even though she'd been out of the position of security chief for nearly four months. Running a space station was nothing like she'd imagined - it was much harder and much more complicated. As she turned toward the infirmary, she wondered if she would ever feel at home on her station.
"Captain," Doctor Bashir greeted her from his office when he saw her enter through the main infirmary doors. "What can I do for you?"
"Doctor, I just stopped by to say thank you for your help with that DNA scan this morning," Ro said, leaning on the office door and crossing her arms over her chest casually. "And to see what the damage is with Commander Rzepka."
Doctor Bashir stood slowly from his chair, picking up a PADD from his desk. "You're welcome. And pneumocystis pneumonia. She'll be fine in a day or two."
"Relieved of duty?" the captain asked, thinking she wanted to speak with the Commander about a few things.
Doctor Bashir shook his head. "She's off today anyway; she'll be fine to return to duty tomorrow."
Ro nodded. "Thank you, Doctor. Again, I appreciate your help."
The captain turned and headed back out to the Promenade to waste a little bit of time before Blackmer called her back. She had a feeling she was about to have a long afternoon.
