Enterprise 06
Back up on the bridge of the Genesis, Alex was bored. Bored, and worried. Worried about Tyler. She hadn't seen him have a reaction like that in a long time, not in years, really. She frowned and looked up at the view screen. The Enterprise. If it wasn't so painful to Tyler she'd laugh. Something about the Enterprise set him off. 'This could be bad. Very bad.' she thought to herself. 'I have to figure out what it is before he looses it completely.' Alex had a vague idea, but couldn't quite get it to work in her head. It didn't make any sense in her head. 'I'll have a talk with Anne later. Maybe she can fingure some things out that I can't, being over there and all.' Satisfied wtih that, Alex went back to her work.
Meanwhile, on the Enterprise, Phlox was giving Anne the tour of the sickbay, telling her what the different plants and animals could do. Anne, the daughter of a naturalistic medical practitioner, suggested alternatives for some of the more difficult to aquire items as well as some new ones to cut back on the usage of some of the medical supplies. "So y'see, if ye use peppermint oil on a headache it goes away. Tis also useful in a tea to calm upset stomachs. Oddly enough, ginger ale and caffeinated beverages do the same thing. Excpet coffee. That just makes it worse." "Really?" Phlox was intrigued. "Not too many doctors think like this." "Tis wha' happens when ye can' really afford most medecines. Especially for headaches. If ye read my medical file, ye'll ken that I suffer from really bad ones. Tyler's worse though. Migraines, they're called." Anne shuddered. "He gets them really badly. No' as often as he used t', but once in a while, he does." "Is that what happened up on the bridge earlier today?" Phlox asked, putting some food in one of the cages. "I heard something about Commander Wolffe being forced off the bridge due to some sort of fit he suffered." Anne shook her head. "No. Tha' was somethin' I'm not permitted to talk about. Kind o' a secret, if ye take my meanin'." "I won't pry then. As long as he has the medical help he needs..." "Which he does." Anne cut him off. "Now, can we get back t' wha' we we're doin'? I prefer no' t' discuss my patients." "As you wish. Now, if you'll follow me, this is how the dermal regenerator works."
Later that day... "You wanted to talk to me Captain?" Trip asked as he walked into the captain's dinning room. T'pol had been asked to be a little late to dinner.
"Yes, I did, Trip. Have a seat." Trip sat down, watching Archer carefully. He had a very odd expression on his face. He could see some concern in it, but that was all he could easily read. "Is something wrong Captain?" "Not really. I just wanted to talk to you. You seemed a bit confused this morning whe you showed up on the bridge. Are you doing alright? You've been acting strange ever since we met up with the crew of the Genesis." "I have?" Trip blinked, confused. "i don't think I have." "I just really noticed today. Malcolm's been acting odd, too, so it's not just you. Granted," Arcer smiled. "I think his problem has more to do wtih a certain blond we had over here more than anything else. You, however, I'm not sure about. It could be envy over Malcolm's night, or somthing else entirely. If you'd care to enlighten me, I'm all ears. If not, I'll respect your privacy, but you do look like you need to talk." Trip slumped forward onto to the table. "I just don't know Captain. One minute everything makes perfect sense and the next I'm all confused again. I'm still confused. Have been all day. If something doesn't happen about it soon I feel like I'm going to go crazy." Archer waited patiently for him to continue, wondering what could have done this to his friend. "Have you ever had a crush on someone that was so completely wrong for you, but you couldn't tell if it was a crush or not?" Archer nodded. "Y'see, Jon, that's the closest thing I can hink of to describe what's going on in my head. I keep feeling this urge to be near this person, but the more I'm near, the more I want to be closer to them. Physicaly and all that other stuff. It scares me so I have to find an excuse to leave that won't be offensive. As soon as I go away, I find that that's where my thoughts constantly return. I have this face, this perfect image burned into the inside of my eyelids. I close them and it's still there. No matter what, I can see that face, hear that voice, almost smell them." "You sound like you're in love more than just infatuated." Archer frowned. "If you feel so strongly about this person, why don't you just tell them how you feel? You're not an unattractive man,Trip. A good deal of the women on this ship would gladly get into a relationship with you if you asked. If this one has a brain in her head, she'd be as flattered as any of our ship's women." Trip laughed bitterly. "That's just it. If I approached them, they'd think I'm some sort of freak." "And why is that?" Archer was really concerned now. "Who is she?" "You've got it all wrong there." Trip shook his head. "It's not love. I don't know what it is, but that's not what it is. Dear lord I hope not." "Who is it? Come on Charles, tell me. I promise I won't tell anyone." "I never doubted that, but don't think any less of me for this." He took a deep breath. "Wolffe, sir." "Anne Wolffe? There's nothing wrong wtih that." "No, not Anne. She's a pretty little thing, but it's not her." "Not Anne?" There weren't that many people named Wolffe around so it mucst be... No, that wasn't right. Was it? "Tyler Wolffe?" Trip nodded glumly. Archer was silent for a long time after that. Trip even looked up at his friend, seeing his thoughtful face. "Tyler. How'd that happen?" "I'm not sure, really. All I know is that the more time I spent with him, the more I learned about him and his wacky friend Alex the more I wanted to learn. I want to get to know hom more, but I'm afraid that he'll find out how I feel and leave." Archer nodded, his head still spinning from Trip's revelation. "It would be best that you just carry on as usual, make friends with him, and go from there. Who knows? Maybe he'll respect how you feel and not leave. From what little I've seen of him, I think he's a fairly open minded individual. He wouldn't have made it that far in Starfleet if he wasn't. We're taught in the academy to respect all races and cultural beliefs." Trip thought about that and then passed on what Alex had told Malcolm erlier on their way up to the bridge. "That's an odd one, but I can see where they'd do it. The family line has to come from somewhere. Especailly in the part of the world he comes from. It's quite possible that he'd accept you and your feelings." "That's also part of the problem, sir. I don't want to find out if these feelings are real or not. I don't want to be a freak." "Listening to your heart is hardly being freakish, Trip." "No, but this is so different. I don't know what to do!" Trip placed his head in his hands and raked his fingers back through is hair. "All my life I've been just a normal guy, falling for pretty girl after pretty girl, but then he shows up and ruins it all." Archer wasn't sure how to offer comfort, so he leaned forward and placed a hand on Trip's shoulder. "The only advice I can offer to you at this point is to just let life go on as it normally would have. Let me ask a few questions though first. First of all, are you attracted that way to any other men, now or ever?" "No." Trip said, a look of releif crossing his face. "Second, what's you oppinion on both Anne and Alex. Of their physical appearance that is." Trip thought for a minute. "Anne is cute, but Alex is just hot. Malcolm's a lucky guy." "So you are still you, just you have odd feelings for one man. One and only one. I don't think that makes you freakish Trip. It sometimes happens to people that they become attracted to a member of the same gender. Most of those people, the ones that I knew, did eventually find a partner of the opposite gender and have a nice, happy life with them, but I only knew a few. It's probably just an exception to some rule, but don't loose heart. You aren't a freak, Trip. Believe that." Trip nodded just as T'pol walked in. Seeing Archer's hand on Trip's shoulder, she raised an eyebrow. "Did I miss something?" she asked.
Malcolm sat by himself at a table facing the window. Luck was with him tonight. The Genesis was flying on that side of the ship. He stared up at the spot on the saucer section where the bridge was located. He poked at his dinner with his fork, occasionally taking a bite or a sip of juice from his glass. He could still feel Alex, taste her, smell her hair. She'd been over on her ship for most of the day and he already missed her. Last night was the best night he'd had in a long time, the first time in years he'd felt that good. Being wtih someone who knew what they were doing might have had something to do wtih it, but they had so many things in common that they got along almost instantly after they started talking. Despite a few oddly placed scars Alex was the most beutiful woman he'd seen since leaving Earth. She'd smelled so good, looked even better wth her hair freed from it's restrictive styling. He sighed, remembering her sleeping form. Her face was almost angelic when sleeping, loosing all of it's mischief. With her hair fanned out on the pillow she'd looked like an angel or a goddess. Untouchable, yet within his reach. Her smooth, silken skin and full lips, her butt long blond hair and black eyes, every curve of her tall, thin body was burned into his mind. He couldn't think of anything else, wasn't overly hungry, either. Not for food, anyways. Giving up on his meal, he went to his cabin and lay down on his bed after taking his boots off. He sniffed the air. Her scent still lingered in here, especially on the pillow and sheets. He lay his head down on the pillow she'd used and inhaled deeply. He was in serious danger of becoming obsessed with this girl, but he didn't really care. Not now. He thought of all the things he could possibly say to her if, when, he saw her again, but nothing sounded right in his mind or when he said them outloud. He rolled over onto his back and stared up at the ceiling and sighed. He generally tried tyo keep his distance from women. This one in particular was driving him mad. Just thinking about her did things to him that he'd rather not happen. Not on duty anyway. 'It would help if I had someone to talk to about this' he mused. 'Commander Tucker would understand, but he looks a little bit preocuppied himself. If only I knew how to get a hold of Alex wihtout attracting too much attention. I can't risk Hoshi knowing. I don't think I could take the teasing. I'd rather Captain Archer not know the entirety of the matter either, though I think he knows a bit already. I could disguise it as an armory matter, but that would only work for so long.' He rolled back over onto his stomach, Alex's scent catching him full in the face, making his head spin. 'I really should hjust send her a letter. No one checks the contents of letters. It's an invasion of privacy.' He shook his head. 'I don't want to seem too eager to see her again. It might scare her off. Wouldn't that be counter productive?' He sighed again, now thoughroughly confused. 'If I could just talk to her again. Our ships are going to the same place and I would assume that we'll be working together to some extent.' He relaxed a bit. 'Surely an oppertunity will present itself.' Content with that, Malcolm pulled out the book he'd been reading and settled in for the night.
Back up on the bridge of the Genesis, Alex was bored. Bored, and worried. Worried about Tyler. She hadn't seen him have a reaction like that in a long time, not in years, really. She frowned and looked up at the view screen. The Enterprise. If it wasn't so painful to Tyler she'd laugh. Something about the Enterprise set him off. 'This could be bad. Very bad.' she thought to herself. 'I have to figure out what it is before he looses it completely.' Alex had a vague idea, but couldn't quite get it to work in her head. It didn't make any sense in her head. 'I'll have a talk with Anne later. Maybe she can fingure some things out that I can't, being over there and all.' Satisfied wtih that, Alex went back to her work.
Meanwhile, on the Enterprise, Phlox was giving Anne the tour of the sickbay, telling her what the different plants and animals could do. Anne, the daughter of a naturalistic medical practitioner, suggested alternatives for some of the more difficult to aquire items as well as some new ones to cut back on the usage of some of the medical supplies. "So y'see, if ye use peppermint oil on a headache it goes away. Tis also useful in a tea to calm upset stomachs. Oddly enough, ginger ale and caffeinated beverages do the same thing. Excpet coffee. That just makes it worse." "Really?" Phlox was intrigued. "Not too many doctors think like this." "Tis wha' happens when ye can' really afford most medecines. Especially for headaches. If ye read my medical file, ye'll ken that I suffer from really bad ones. Tyler's worse though. Migraines, they're called." Anne shuddered. "He gets them really badly. No' as often as he used t', but once in a while, he does." "Is that what happened up on the bridge earlier today?" Phlox asked, putting some food in one of the cages. "I heard something about Commander Wolffe being forced off the bridge due to some sort of fit he suffered." Anne shook her head. "No. Tha' was somethin' I'm not permitted to talk about. Kind o' a secret, if ye take my meanin'." "I won't pry then. As long as he has the medical help he needs..." "Which he does." Anne cut him off. "Now, can we get back t' wha' we we're doin'? I prefer no' t' discuss my patients." "As you wish. Now, if you'll follow me, this is how the dermal regenerator works."
Later that day... "You wanted to talk to me Captain?" Trip asked as he walked into the captain's dinning room. T'pol had been asked to be a little late to dinner.
"Yes, I did, Trip. Have a seat." Trip sat down, watching Archer carefully. He had a very odd expression on his face. He could see some concern in it, but that was all he could easily read. "Is something wrong Captain?" "Not really. I just wanted to talk to you. You seemed a bit confused this morning whe you showed up on the bridge. Are you doing alright? You've been acting strange ever since we met up with the crew of the Genesis." "I have?" Trip blinked, confused. "i don't think I have." "I just really noticed today. Malcolm's been acting odd, too, so it's not just you. Granted," Arcer smiled. "I think his problem has more to do wtih a certain blond we had over here more than anything else. You, however, I'm not sure about. It could be envy over Malcolm's night, or somthing else entirely. If you'd care to enlighten me, I'm all ears. If not, I'll respect your privacy, but you do look like you need to talk." Trip slumped forward onto to the table. "I just don't know Captain. One minute everything makes perfect sense and the next I'm all confused again. I'm still confused. Have been all day. If something doesn't happen about it soon I feel like I'm going to go crazy." Archer waited patiently for him to continue, wondering what could have done this to his friend. "Have you ever had a crush on someone that was so completely wrong for you, but you couldn't tell if it was a crush or not?" Archer nodded. "Y'see, Jon, that's the closest thing I can hink of to describe what's going on in my head. I keep feeling this urge to be near this person, but the more I'm near, the more I want to be closer to them. Physicaly and all that other stuff. It scares me so I have to find an excuse to leave that won't be offensive. As soon as I go away, I find that that's where my thoughts constantly return. I have this face, this perfect image burned into the inside of my eyelids. I close them and it's still there. No matter what, I can see that face, hear that voice, almost smell them." "You sound like you're in love more than just infatuated." Archer frowned. "If you feel so strongly about this person, why don't you just tell them how you feel? You're not an unattractive man,Trip. A good deal of the women on this ship would gladly get into a relationship with you if you asked. If this one has a brain in her head, she'd be as flattered as any of our ship's women." Trip laughed bitterly. "That's just it. If I approached them, they'd think I'm some sort of freak." "And why is that?" Archer was really concerned now. "Who is she?" "You've got it all wrong there." Trip shook his head. "It's not love. I don't know what it is, but that's not what it is. Dear lord I hope not." "Who is it? Come on Charles, tell me. I promise I won't tell anyone." "I never doubted that, but don't think any less of me for this." He took a deep breath. "Wolffe, sir." "Anne Wolffe? There's nothing wrong wtih that." "No, not Anne. She's a pretty little thing, but it's not her." "Not Anne?" There weren't that many people named Wolffe around so it mucst be... No, that wasn't right. Was it? "Tyler Wolffe?" Trip nodded glumly. Archer was silent for a long time after that. Trip even looked up at his friend, seeing his thoughtful face. "Tyler. How'd that happen?" "I'm not sure, really. All I know is that the more time I spent with him, the more I learned about him and his wacky friend Alex the more I wanted to learn. I want to get to know hom more, but I'm afraid that he'll find out how I feel and leave." Archer nodded, his head still spinning from Trip's revelation. "It would be best that you just carry on as usual, make friends with him, and go from there. Who knows? Maybe he'll respect how you feel and not leave. From what little I've seen of him, I think he's a fairly open minded individual. He wouldn't have made it that far in Starfleet if he wasn't. We're taught in the academy to respect all races and cultural beliefs." Trip thought about that and then passed on what Alex had told Malcolm erlier on their way up to the bridge. "That's an odd one, but I can see where they'd do it. The family line has to come from somewhere. Especailly in the part of the world he comes from. It's quite possible that he'd accept you and your feelings." "That's also part of the problem, sir. I don't want to find out if these feelings are real or not. I don't want to be a freak." "Listening to your heart is hardly being freakish, Trip." "No, but this is so different. I don't know what to do!" Trip placed his head in his hands and raked his fingers back through is hair. "All my life I've been just a normal guy, falling for pretty girl after pretty girl, but then he shows up and ruins it all." Archer wasn't sure how to offer comfort, so he leaned forward and placed a hand on Trip's shoulder. "The only advice I can offer to you at this point is to just let life go on as it normally would have. Let me ask a few questions though first. First of all, are you attracted that way to any other men, now or ever?" "No." Trip said, a look of releif crossing his face. "Second, what's you oppinion on both Anne and Alex. Of their physical appearance that is." Trip thought for a minute. "Anne is cute, but Alex is just hot. Malcolm's a lucky guy." "So you are still you, just you have odd feelings for one man. One and only one. I don't think that makes you freakish Trip. It sometimes happens to people that they become attracted to a member of the same gender. Most of those people, the ones that I knew, did eventually find a partner of the opposite gender and have a nice, happy life with them, but I only knew a few. It's probably just an exception to some rule, but don't loose heart. You aren't a freak, Trip. Believe that." Trip nodded just as T'pol walked in. Seeing Archer's hand on Trip's shoulder, she raised an eyebrow. "Did I miss something?" she asked.
Malcolm sat by himself at a table facing the window. Luck was with him tonight. The Genesis was flying on that side of the ship. He stared up at the spot on the saucer section where the bridge was located. He poked at his dinner with his fork, occasionally taking a bite or a sip of juice from his glass. He could still feel Alex, taste her, smell her hair. She'd been over on her ship for most of the day and he already missed her. Last night was the best night he'd had in a long time, the first time in years he'd felt that good. Being wtih someone who knew what they were doing might have had something to do wtih it, but they had so many things in common that they got along almost instantly after they started talking. Despite a few oddly placed scars Alex was the most beutiful woman he'd seen since leaving Earth. She'd smelled so good, looked even better wth her hair freed from it's restrictive styling. He sighed, remembering her sleeping form. Her face was almost angelic when sleeping, loosing all of it's mischief. With her hair fanned out on the pillow she'd looked like an angel or a goddess. Untouchable, yet within his reach. Her smooth, silken skin and full lips, her butt long blond hair and black eyes, every curve of her tall, thin body was burned into his mind. He couldn't think of anything else, wasn't overly hungry, either. Not for food, anyways. Giving up on his meal, he went to his cabin and lay down on his bed after taking his boots off. He sniffed the air. Her scent still lingered in here, especially on the pillow and sheets. He lay his head down on the pillow she'd used and inhaled deeply. He was in serious danger of becoming obsessed with this girl, but he didn't really care. Not now. He thought of all the things he could possibly say to her if, when, he saw her again, but nothing sounded right in his mind or when he said them outloud. He rolled over onto his back and stared up at the ceiling and sighed. He generally tried tyo keep his distance from women. This one in particular was driving him mad. Just thinking about her did things to him that he'd rather not happen. Not on duty anyway. 'It would help if I had someone to talk to about this' he mused. 'Commander Tucker would understand, but he looks a little bit preocuppied himself. If only I knew how to get a hold of Alex wihtout attracting too much attention. I can't risk Hoshi knowing. I don't think I could take the teasing. I'd rather Captain Archer not know the entirety of the matter either, though I think he knows a bit already. I could disguise it as an armory matter, but that would only work for so long.' He rolled back over onto his stomach, Alex's scent catching him full in the face, making his head spin. 'I really should hjust send her a letter. No one checks the contents of letters. It's an invasion of privacy.' He shook his head. 'I don't want to seem too eager to see her again. It might scare her off. Wouldn't that be counter productive?' He sighed again, now thoughroughly confused. 'If I could just talk to her again. Our ships are going to the same place and I would assume that we'll be working together to some extent.' He relaxed a bit. 'Surely an oppertunity will present itself.' Content with that, Malcolm pulled out the book he'd been reading and settled in for the night.