Chapter 21 – Farewells
They had been together for a few days, attending the fair and a small reception as well. Hobie had acted the part of an attentive and romantic boyfriend or at least escort, dancing with Mack, pulling out chairs for her and standing in her presence.
Mack had reciprocated by dutifully laughing at his jokes, dressing up for him and spending as much time with him as possible, turning off her PADD entirely.
As for sex, it was not out of the question, and they found that, as they got to know one another a bit better, the experience improved. She didn't cry again afterwards, and he had better staying power. And, as she had insisted, he kept his hands off her breasts. Whatever trauma had occurred, and however she had come to be uneven, he wasn't sure he wanted to know just yet.
On the morning of their fourth day together, Hobie got up first and checked messages. At the top of the list, in flashing red, there was an urgent one. "Damn," he muttered, reading the message to himself.
"What is it?" Dana asked.
"Oh, we've got maneuvers. Andorian ambassador's heading to Klingon space. They want a fleet escort and some extra guards – that's us."
"Right."
"I gotta be a part of this. I never let the guys do anything I wouldn't do, myself. So I'll be deployed, too."
"I should check messages, too," Mack agreed. She turned to her PADD for the first time in days, and there were a ton of fast-moving flashes. "I guess I got a few messages," she commented sheepishly. She began thumbing through them. Five of them were from Marty; she'd open them later, in private. There were a few from Majira, mainly reporting on Grosk's condition but also asking whether Mack herself required any medical care. Wesley reported on his findings – he had been continuing to check the Cookie's engine and other systems during the overall furlough. Crita had sent a few images of her painting of the Grand Canyon as it progressed.
Daniya just sent one message, which made Mack laugh. Well, how is he? She didn't answer that one.
There were two other messages – one was from a promoter on Tellar, the other from a freighter captain.
"I, uh," she said as she read her mail, "it looks like there's interest in having the team come and play elsewhere. It, uh, the game here really helped. Looks like it's getting everything off the ground."
"Yeah." His tone was one of some disappointment.
"Not just that. You, you helped, Kent," She kissed him. "You did."
"I'll miss you," he confessed. "I, I don't miss Sandy, not anymore. I miss the girls, of course. But, uh, you helped me, too. It, um, it wasn't just about, uh, about getting laid."
"Thanks. And, well, same here." They kissed.
"The, um, the long distance thing. I can't pretend that it's easy," he mumbled.
"I guess I'll have to start worrying about you, Kent."
"I'll start worrying about you, too, Dana."
"I better, um, I better tell my team we'll be shipping out soon."
"I gotta make the same speech to my men. You'll win the next one, y'know."
"Maybe. There are no guarantees, Kent."
"It's not a guarantee. It's just, I got a feeling."
=/\=
On the Enterprise, they finally left the Denab System, bound for the Kreetassan System.
Marty stood in the Observation Lounge, alone. The doors swished open. It was B-4. "Did you wish to be alone?" inquired the android.
"I'm alone a lot," Marty admitted, "so it's fine. What's up?"
"There are, it would seem, several possibilities regarding the phenomenon we have been studying."
"Well, yes."
"That may mask a great deal of cleverness, for a conclusion is not so easy to draw, in this instance."
"I think that's a perceptive observation," Marty complimented B-4.
"This phenomenon, it would seem," the android opined, "is masking a wealth of possibilities."
"What have we got so far?" Marty asked rhetorically. "Augments, maybe. The Kreetassans, maybe. The Mirror Universe, maybe. Or some other universe, I dunno. It might be a harbinger of an invasion, or just somebody wants to say hi. Or maybe someone's scientifically curious. Who knows?"
His PADD dinged. "'Scuse me a second." He grinned as soon as he saw the note from Mack. "I, uh …."
"By all means," replied the android, which departed.
Marty clicked open the note.
Straight Arrow,
Sorry I haven't written. My date kind of stretched out for a while there. Now he's talking long distance, and I just don't know. I'm mulling it over.
In other news, we have two other prospects. A human freighter captain contacted me about flag football. A Tellarite sent a note about playing a game of theirs called Kreesta. It sounds like a girl's name, eh? But it's really more like a cross between competitive eating and table tennis. At least that's what I'm gathering from reading up on it a little.
Life is nutty and busy, and I got caught up in everything. But I kept you really waiting there, and I'm sorry about that. It was, well, let's just say I still have issues. So does this guy. We all do, I guess. But he doesn't deserve to get saddled with my issues, too, I think.
Anyway, we're going to Tellar. It would be great to see you, but I know that's not always so possible. Let's talk tonight, okay?
Go easy,
The Black Sheep
=/\=
"I'll contact you as often as I can," Hobie promised. He was on the Cookie, near the gangway. Everyone on the team was already aboard, and ready to go. The little Gorn ship was ready to lift off, out of Bay #15.
"I'll write back," Mack replied. "I, um, I dunno about this, uh," she gestured, her hand motion filling the air between them.
"I dunno either. We'll play it by ear, okay? I got, um, I got damage, Dana. I know you do, too. I dunno if, if our damage, if it'll all really work together. Know what I'm sayin'? But I don't wanna give up, not just yet." He kissed her.
"You take care of yourself," she told him. "I need for you to not get shot, y'know?"
"I kinda need that, too," he smiled. "I need for you to not get checked into the boards too hard."
"You mean like your goon did?" She pretended to be angry about that, but her eyes were dancing.
"Hey, you ended up in penalty, too, y'know." He went back to being serious. "I mean it. I'd hate to see you get hurt, Dana."
"It's all part of it. Which I guess is a part of soldiering, too." She sighed. "You got a lot more that can happen to you than I can. Please be careful."
"You got it." They kissed again.
"I better go," Mack decided. "I wish, eh, I wish a lotta things. Keep in touch."
"You better believe I will."
Another kiss and she was gone.
The trip was a bit of a letdown for Mack. Once they were off-duty, Daniya cornered her. "Well?"
"Well, what?"
"How was, you know?"
"It was good," Mack said quickly, hustling herself to quarters.
=/\=
"Hey! How are you doing?" Marty enthused as visual communications came up.
"I, um, I'm okay," Mack's tone was subdued.
"You look down, Mystic. Is it that fellow?"
"Yeah. I don't, y'know, I'm not so sure I wanna get attached at all. But I guess I am, at least a little bit. What about you?"
"Me?"
"C'mon, there's gotta be someone on the Enterprise you can romance, Cuz."
"No, it's, um, it's my position," Marty told a half-truth. "I got a list of, uh, possibles who are still on the Talos. I can't bear to bring myself to contact any of them, though."
"Oh? I gotta say, the idea of a candidate list is a little wacky."
"Hmm. Maybe you're right."
"But seriously," Mack asked, "why haven't you called any of 'em? I mean, don't tell me you're afraid of rejection, because you're every shade of amazing I know. You are smart, you're kind, and you are good company, and you're really good-looking, too, y'know."
"Huh, well, thanks," he replied, "but it's, well, I shouldn't get into it."
"Marty," she peered more closely at the screen, "I never hear you talking about anyone. You're too much on time and available. I just, well, I don't honestly think I'm all that entertaining."
"Oh, c'mon, you're very entertaining."
"That's not really what I was commenting on, and I think you know that. You're alone, right? You're brooding, I think."
"Mystic, until you met this guy, I think you were just about as much of a loner as I am right about now."
"Touché. Seriously, though, I want you to be okay."
"I am. Don't fret. Really, I am okay," Marty replied, hiding a bit of how he was really feeling. "I think you are, too."
"Yeah, I'm, I'm a bit okay, too."
=/\=
And over at Archer's World, which was located in a part of what had once been known as the Delphic Expanse, and was quite a distance away from the Ceti Alpha system, another bit of pulsing, changing and cycling radiation band shifting started up.
Ping.