Enterprise 02
The little party went on for hours. Trip and Malcolm spent the rest of it talking to Yumeko Ryuuyama and Jason McCormick, Every so often Trip or Malcolm would glace up from their table to look over at the table where Alex and Tyler were sitting, nursing their drinks. Every so often Captain Kyle would wander over their way and sit down and talk for a while before heading off to talk to her other officers.
Jason was in the process of telling a joke involving a trio of brothers by the name of Foot, Foot-foot-, and Foot-foot-foot. While he was telling it, Malcolm was busy staring at Alex, who had just taken her hair out of the tightly braided bun she'd had at the nape of her neck. Freed from its pins, the long blond braid fell down past her butt. She picked up the end and undid the elastic band tying it and undid it, combing her hair out with her fingers before rebraiding it.
"So then Foot-foot-foot says, 'but Foot-foot can't die! We have one Foot in the grave already!'." Trip and Yumeko laughed, but when they noticed Malcolm not laughing with them Trip looked up, following his line of sight.
"Pretty hair." He observed, elbowing him in the ribs.
"Lieutenant Remscheid is very pretty." Yumeko commented, nodding.
"She doesn't often take her hair down in public." Said Jason.
"Which means she's either very bored or fishing."
"Fishing for what? Complements?" asked Trip.
"More like men." Yumeko sighed. "She's like that sometimes. It's amusing to watch, but the aftermath isn't pretty. She's not nice about it most of the time."
"Meaning?" Malcolm asked, coming out of his daze.
"She's a player." Jason translated.
"Oh. I thought only men did that."
"Well, if you factor in Alex's tomboyish upbringing, it makes more sense. She's not much of a lady. She's female. That's about it."
"Shh!" Yumeko hissed at Jason. "She'll hear you, baka!"
"She's too busy talking to Tyler to hear me." He told her.
"Speaking of Tyler, what's his deal anyways?" Trip asked, curiosity getting the better of him.
"He got to you, didn't he?" Jason smirked. "He does that. Getting under people's skin is one of the things he does best. It doesn't really help that he's one of the best engineers Starfleet has, yourself included in that list."
"Leave the ego stroking for later, Jason." Yumeko chided.
"At any rate, he's actually not that bad once you get to know him. He's got very few soft spots. All I know is that he has a thing for chocolate and another for blue eyes. I have yet to see him have any sort of extreme dislike for anyone with blue eyes. You're the closest thing I've seen."
"You saw all that earlier?"
He nodded. "Yeah, I did. Amusing though it was, I can't help but wonder why he took an instant disliking to you. It's very odd."
"Perhaps Alex likes him." Yumeko suggested, eyes flashing merrily. "You know Wolffe."
"Are they together?" Malcolm asked as Jason took a sip of water.
He chocked while trying not to laugh at that. He managed to swallow. "Are you kidding? Those two? They'd kill each other in a few days. They're much better off as being best friends."
"Wolffe doesn't swing that way, does he?" Yumeko asked, puzzled
"Yet another one of his mysteries." Jason shook his head. "We know so little about him. What his family is like, what kinds of things he does when he's not glowering at the engineers or fiddling with the engines. Hell, we don't even know what kind of person he likes. Outside of the blue eyes thing I mean."
"There are theories about it everywhere." Yumeko continued. "We just aren't sure where the rumor ends and the truth begins."
"Sounds like someone else I know." Trip gave Malcolm a meaningful look.
He just shrugged. "It's not Wolffe I'm interested in; it's Alex. Now that I know they aren't together I feel a bit better. If you'll excuse me." He got up and walked towards Alex and Tyler.
They looked up as he approached. He stood for a bit before Alex invited him to sit down. They talked for a bit until Kyle pulled Tyler away, leaving Malcolm alone with Alex. She crossed her legs and leaned forward at the table, elbows leaning on the surface with her hand resting on one hand, looking intently at Malcolm.
She wasn't wearing her uniform, but was instead wearing a pair or close fitting black pants and a baggy white collared top. Malcolm had on a pair of black slacks as well as a white dress shirt.
"Now if Malcolm had blond hair and black eyes, they'd be a matched set." Tyler said, taking the seat Malcolm had previously inhabited. He put his drink down on the table and rolled his large grey eyes.
"I don't know. They look cute together." Trip observed.
"Feh. I've seen cuter couples. Cute couples never last. Trust me on that one."
"Speaking from experience, Commander?" Yumeko asked politely.
"So to speak." Tyler agreed, taking a long swig of his drink. He set the glass down on the table, rotating it slowly between his two hands. Tyler himself was dressed in a collared forest green shirt with the collar standing up and grey dress pants. There was a plain pewter band around his ring finger. His hands were slightly scared.
"Nice ring. Married?" Trip asked.
Tyler's head snapped up. "What makes you think that?" he snapped.
"The ring on your finger."
"Oh. That." he relaxed a bit. "It's my Engineer's ring. It's a thing my old high school did at graduation. I took advanced engineering all the way through and was given it on graduation. I prefer to wear it instead of the school grad ring. Doesn't get in the way like that other bulky thing does."
"Advanced engineering? Tough class." Trip whistled admiringly. "Plain bands look better anyways."
Tyler nodded, taking another swig. "I'd best be going. I have a lot of work to do in the morning."
"Didn't you just get off shore leave?"
He shook his head. "No. I didn't take any this time around. As soon as I do there's some crisis on the ship and I get called back anyways. Doesn't matter where I go. They find me rather quickly no matter how hard I try and hide."
Trip shuddered, noticing that Jason and Yumeko had slipped away. "Don't you have to wait until the rest of the crew is ready to head back to the Genesis?"
"You had to bring that up, didn't you?" Tyler sighed, looking forlornly at his empty glass. "I think I've had a bit too much to drink. I'm way to calm. I hate social gatherings."
"Why?"
Tyler frowned. "I'm not even sure why I'm talking to you. I don't like tall people."
"From one Chief engineer to another?" he suggested.
To Trip's surprise Tyler actually laughed. "That could be it. Anyways, I don't really like crowds. Don't even really like people much for that matter."
"I think your friend Alex has taken a liking to Malcolm there."
Tyler snorted and grabbed another drink from the table behind him. "It's a good thing that our two ships probably won't have many opportunities like this. Otherwise, your Armory officer might wind up with a shattered heart. Alex is like that. Stringing them along and cutting them loose when she gets bored."
"So why are you letting her do this to him now?"
"Because this falls under the category of a one night stand." Tyler knocked the entire contents of the glass back in one long pull. "I see no harm in letting her have some honest fun for a night. She didn't get her shore leave either so she's in need of some relaxation."
Trip grabbed a drink as well and another one for Tyler. "Lieutenant McCormick was right you know. You really aren't that bad once someone gets to know you a little." He observed.
"Or you get so much alcohol into my system that I slip." He grumped, taking a sip this time instead of a chug. "That's the other reason why I don't like gatherings. I get bored. Boredom equals depressed. Depression leads to the nearest keg of Guinness, and that leads to slipping up. When I slip, I talk. Too much, really. I just prefer to avoid these things all together so I don't wind up telling people things when I'm this tipsy."
"You don't look drunk to me."
"That's because I'm not. Not yet at any rate. Give it an hour tops."
"That bad huh?" Tyler nodded glumly and slammed back the rest of the sticky black stuff in her glass. "I've got an idea. Why don't we blow this party? I'll show you around the ship."
Tyler slammed his glass down on the table and stood up. "Deal."
Alex and Malcolm had moved to a table in the corner of the mess hall to talk in quiet. Mostly they talked about weaponry and strategy, but they were in serious danger of wandering off topic.
Malcolm kept staring at her legs and back up at her face. The black eyes that bored deep into his while he talked, the long, elegant fingers resting lightly on the side of her face, flawless skin slightly colored a blush color, which could have been the result of the stuff they were drinking. He had to fight the urge to reach over and touch her, take her other hand in his.
Alex was quite happy to listen to him talk, regardless of the topic. She'd never dated any British men before and was beginning to think she'd missed out. His voice was deep and had that nice, sexy accent. It didn't hurt at all that he was fairly easy on the eyes. If he'd loose that very serious look on his face, he'd be perfect. She stifled a sigh and leaned a little more forward onto the table, leaning a bit closer to Malcolm.
Someone bumped into her from the side and sent her tumbling into Malcolm. "Oops. Sorry sir." The young ensign apologized and left as quickly as he could.
Malcolm fumbled to get her sitting back up again. Some of the fumbling was deliberate, as it felt good to have her pushed right up against him like that. Alex wasn't objecting at all to being that close so he gave up and let her move where she wanted to. Much to his surprise, she adjusted her body slightly so that she wasn't crushing his right arm and twisted so that it was behind and up near her shoulders.
Alex frowned slightly and craned her neck upwards, sniffing at Malcolm's neck. "You smell good." She whispered in his ear.
"Thank you." He said, unsure of what else to say. "You look good."
"A complement?" She rested her head on his shoulder. "I'm flattered." She sat up.
"I see you two have become friends, Alex." Kyle said as she walked over with Archer.
"Hello, Captain." Alex smiled. "Lieutenant Reed is actually quite nice. He promised to show me the armory."
She raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Is that so? Well, enjoy yourselves. Just don't set off any torpedoes, eh?"
"What was that last comment about?" Archer asked.
"There's one thing I've learned when dealing with Alexis Remscheid, Jon. She likes men. A comment like that, coming from my chief armory officer in this kind of situation, usually only has one meaning. I trust I don't have to explain that part to you, do I?"
Archer sighed and shook his head. "No, I don't think that's necessary, Serena."
She nodded. "Good. I didn't really want to anyways. It's a bit embarrassing to discus the private lives and habits of my senior staff."
"I understand." He looked around. "Where'd Trip and Wolffe vanish to?"
"Engine room, probably. He'll never admit it, but he's been dying to see Enterprise's engines ever since we got this assignment."
"There go Alex and Malcolm."
"I don't expect to see them until tomorrow." Serena's eyes danced with mirth. "I'm looking forward to having a happy crew after tonight."
Slowly, one by one, the various crewmembers left the mess hall and headed back to either the waiting shuttle pod or their quarters. Alex and Tyler weren't among them. Tyler had planned on staying with Anne anyways, and everyone at the party could figure out where Alex wound up and quietly joked about it on the trip back to the Genesis.
The little party went on for hours. Trip and Malcolm spent the rest of it talking to Yumeko Ryuuyama and Jason McCormick, Every so often Trip or Malcolm would glace up from their table to look over at the table where Alex and Tyler were sitting, nursing their drinks. Every so often Captain Kyle would wander over their way and sit down and talk for a while before heading off to talk to her other officers.
Jason was in the process of telling a joke involving a trio of brothers by the name of Foot, Foot-foot-, and Foot-foot-foot. While he was telling it, Malcolm was busy staring at Alex, who had just taken her hair out of the tightly braided bun she'd had at the nape of her neck. Freed from its pins, the long blond braid fell down past her butt. She picked up the end and undid the elastic band tying it and undid it, combing her hair out with her fingers before rebraiding it.
"So then Foot-foot-foot says, 'but Foot-foot can't die! We have one Foot in the grave already!'." Trip and Yumeko laughed, but when they noticed Malcolm not laughing with them Trip looked up, following his line of sight.
"Pretty hair." He observed, elbowing him in the ribs.
"Lieutenant Remscheid is very pretty." Yumeko commented, nodding.
"She doesn't often take her hair down in public." Said Jason.
"Which means she's either very bored or fishing."
"Fishing for what? Complements?" asked Trip.
"More like men." Yumeko sighed. "She's like that sometimes. It's amusing to watch, but the aftermath isn't pretty. She's not nice about it most of the time."
"Meaning?" Malcolm asked, coming out of his daze.
"She's a player." Jason translated.
"Oh. I thought only men did that."
"Well, if you factor in Alex's tomboyish upbringing, it makes more sense. She's not much of a lady. She's female. That's about it."
"Shh!" Yumeko hissed at Jason. "She'll hear you, baka!"
"She's too busy talking to Tyler to hear me." He told her.
"Speaking of Tyler, what's his deal anyways?" Trip asked, curiosity getting the better of him.
"He got to you, didn't he?" Jason smirked. "He does that. Getting under people's skin is one of the things he does best. It doesn't really help that he's one of the best engineers Starfleet has, yourself included in that list."
"Leave the ego stroking for later, Jason." Yumeko chided.
"At any rate, he's actually not that bad once you get to know him. He's got very few soft spots. All I know is that he has a thing for chocolate and another for blue eyes. I have yet to see him have any sort of extreme dislike for anyone with blue eyes. You're the closest thing I've seen."
"You saw all that earlier?"
He nodded. "Yeah, I did. Amusing though it was, I can't help but wonder why he took an instant disliking to you. It's very odd."
"Perhaps Alex likes him." Yumeko suggested, eyes flashing merrily. "You know Wolffe."
"Are they together?" Malcolm asked as Jason took a sip of water.
He chocked while trying not to laugh at that. He managed to swallow. "Are you kidding? Those two? They'd kill each other in a few days. They're much better off as being best friends."
"Wolffe doesn't swing that way, does he?" Yumeko asked, puzzled
"Yet another one of his mysteries." Jason shook his head. "We know so little about him. What his family is like, what kinds of things he does when he's not glowering at the engineers or fiddling with the engines. Hell, we don't even know what kind of person he likes. Outside of the blue eyes thing I mean."
"There are theories about it everywhere." Yumeko continued. "We just aren't sure where the rumor ends and the truth begins."
"Sounds like someone else I know." Trip gave Malcolm a meaningful look.
He just shrugged. "It's not Wolffe I'm interested in; it's Alex. Now that I know they aren't together I feel a bit better. If you'll excuse me." He got up and walked towards Alex and Tyler.
They looked up as he approached. He stood for a bit before Alex invited him to sit down. They talked for a bit until Kyle pulled Tyler away, leaving Malcolm alone with Alex. She crossed her legs and leaned forward at the table, elbows leaning on the surface with her hand resting on one hand, looking intently at Malcolm.
She wasn't wearing her uniform, but was instead wearing a pair or close fitting black pants and a baggy white collared top. Malcolm had on a pair of black slacks as well as a white dress shirt.
"Now if Malcolm had blond hair and black eyes, they'd be a matched set." Tyler said, taking the seat Malcolm had previously inhabited. He put his drink down on the table and rolled his large grey eyes.
"I don't know. They look cute together." Trip observed.
"Feh. I've seen cuter couples. Cute couples never last. Trust me on that one."
"Speaking from experience, Commander?" Yumeko asked politely.
"So to speak." Tyler agreed, taking a long swig of his drink. He set the glass down on the table, rotating it slowly between his two hands. Tyler himself was dressed in a collared forest green shirt with the collar standing up and grey dress pants. There was a plain pewter band around his ring finger. His hands were slightly scared.
"Nice ring. Married?" Trip asked.
Tyler's head snapped up. "What makes you think that?" he snapped.
"The ring on your finger."
"Oh. That." he relaxed a bit. "It's my Engineer's ring. It's a thing my old high school did at graduation. I took advanced engineering all the way through and was given it on graduation. I prefer to wear it instead of the school grad ring. Doesn't get in the way like that other bulky thing does."
"Advanced engineering? Tough class." Trip whistled admiringly. "Plain bands look better anyways."
Tyler nodded, taking another swig. "I'd best be going. I have a lot of work to do in the morning."
"Didn't you just get off shore leave?"
He shook his head. "No. I didn't take any this time around. As soon as I do there's some crisis on the ship and I get called back anyways. Doesn't matter where I go. They find me rather quickly no matter how hard I try and hide."
Trip shuddered, noticing that Jason and Yumeko had slipped away. "Don't you have to wait until the rest of the crew is ready to head back to the Genesis?"
"You had to bring that up, didn't you?" Tyler sighed, looking forlornly at his empty glass. "I think I've had a bit too much to drink. I'm way to calm. I hate social gatherings."
"Why?"
Tyler frowned. "I'm not even sure why I'm talking to you. I don't like tall people."
"From one Chief engineer to another?" he suggested.
To Trip's surprise Tyler actually laughed. "That could be it. Anyways, I don't really like crowds. Don't even really like people much for that matter."
"I think your friend Alex has taken a liking to Malcolm there."
Tyler snorted and grabbed another drink from the table behind him. "It's a good thing that our two ships probably won't have many opportunities like this. Otherwise, your Armory officer might wind up with a shattered heart. Alex is like that. Stringing them along and cutting them loose when she gets bored."
"So why are you letting her do this to him now?"
"Because this falls under the category of a one night stand." Tyler knocked the entire contents of the glass back in one long pull. "I see no harm in letting her have some honest fun for a night. She didn't get her shore leave either so she's in need of some relaxation."
Trip grabbed a drink as well and another one for Tyler. "Lieutenant McCormick was right you know. You really aren't that bad once someone gets to know you a little." He observed.
"Or you get so much alcohol into my system that I slip." He grumped, taking a sip this time instead of a chug. "That's the other reason why I don't like gatherings. I get bored. Boredom equals depressed. Depression leads to the nearest keg of Guinness, and that leads to slipping up. When I slip, I talk. Too much, really. I just prefer to avoid these things all together so I don't wind up telling people things when I'm this tipsy."
"You don't look drunk to me."
"That's because I'm not. Not yet at any rate. Give it an hour tops."
"That bad huh?" Tyler nodded glumly and slammed back the rest of the sticky black stuff in her glass. "I've got an idea. Why don't we blow this party? I'll show you around the ship."
Tyler slammed his glass down on the table and stood up. "Deal."
Alex and Malcolm had moved to a table in the corner of the mess hall to talk in quiet. Mostly they talked about weaponry and strategy, but they were in serious danger of wandering off topic.
Malcolm kept staring at her legs and back up at her face. The black eyes that bored deep into his while he talked, the long, elegant fingers resting lightly on the side of her face, flawless skin slightly colored a blush color, which could have been the result of the stuff they were drinking. He had to fight the urge to reach over and touch her, take her other hand in his.
Alex was quite happy to listen to him talk, regardless of the topic. She'd never dated any British men before and was beginning to think she'd missed out. His voice was deep and had that nice, sexy accent. It didn't hurt at all that he was fairly easy on the eyes. If he'd loose that very serious look on his face, he'd be perfect. She stifled a sigh and leaned a little more forward onto the table, leaning a bit closer to Malcolm.
Someone bumped into her from the side and sent her tumbling into Malcolm. "Oops. Sorry sir." The young ensign apologized and left as quickly as he could.
Malcolm fumbled to get her sitting back up again. Some of the fumbling was deliberate, as it felt good to have her pushed right up against him like that. Alex wasn't objecting at all to being that close so he gave up and let her move where she wanted to. Much to his surprise, she adjusted her body slightly so that she wasn't crushing his right arm and twisted so that it was behind and up near her shoulders.
Alex frowned slightly and craned her neck upwards, sniffing at Malcolm's neck. "You smell good." She whispered in his ear.
"Thank you." He said, unsure of what else to say. "You look good."
"A complement?" She rested her head on his shoulder. "I'm flattered." She sat up.
"I see you two have become friends, Alex." Kyle said as she walked over with Archer.
"Hello, Captain." Alex smiled. "Lieutenant Reed is actually quite nice. He promised to show me the armory."
She raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Is that so? Well, enjoy yourselves. Just don't set off any torpedoes, eh?"
"What was that last comment about?" Archer asked.
"There's one thing I've learned when dealing with Alexis Remscheid, Jon. She likes men. A comment like that, coming from my chief armory officer in this kind of situation, usually only has one meaning. I trust I don't have to explain that part to you, do I?"
Archer sighed and shook his head. "No, I don't think that's necessary, Serena."
She nodded. "Good. I didn't really want to anyways. It's a bit embarrassing to discus the private lives and habits of my senior staff."
"I understand." He looked around. "Where'd Trip and Wolffe vanish to?"
"Engine room, probably. He'll never admit it, but he's been dying to see Enterprise's engines ever since we got this assignment."
"There go Alex and Malcolm."
"I don't expect to see them until tomorrow." Serena's eyes danced with mirth. "I'm looking forward to having a happy crew after tonight."
Slowly, one by one, the various crewmembers left the mess hall and headed back to either the waiting shuttle pod or their quarters. Alex and Tyler weren't among them. Tyler had planned on staying with Anne anyways, and everyone at the party could figure out where Alex wound up and quietly joked about it on the trip back to the Genesis.