Chapter 6
January 23rd, 2015
Vince Grant was sitting in Vanessa's office, trying
to make sense out of a maintenance report he was reading. The
maintenance records indicated weekly servicing of all the major components
that needed to be checked on, but from Vince had seen with his own eyes,
there were several components scattered throughout the entire array that
seemed to have not been touched for some time. He found dust in some
compartments and power supplies and had also found a few broken sensors
on undamaged sections of the grid, therefore ruling out the claim that
all damage was due to the initial strike on the grid.
He was also surprised to find that the surveillance
discs from the secured area where the grids had been located, were all
kept right there in a cabinet in one of the storage sheds. They were
of absolutely no use now that they had been destroyed when the grid array
was initially hit. Why the discs weren't stored in a more secure
location perplexed Vince.
Vanessa came back into her office carrying two cups
of coffee.
"Here you are Vince," she said as she set the cups
down on the desk.
"Thanks Captain, it smells great," replied Vince
as he picked up his cup.
Vanessa stood there with her hands on her hips and
for a moment she reminded Vince of his sister Claudia.
"Vince, you don't have to call me 'Captain.'
"Yes Captain. Ooops, yes, Vanessa."
Vanessa smiled and sat down and picked up her own
cup.
After he finished a few sips of coffee, Vince, leaned
forward a bit and said, "Vanessa. Have you seen these maintenance reports?
It looks like a bunch of lazy a--es, who were suppose to be making sure
this thing worked properly, weren't doing their job."
Vanessa wore a slightly surprised look, "I had noticed
something to that effect in a couple of the logs as well. Do you
think, maybe...maybe it isn't sabotage after all and that it is a case
of negligance?"
Vince narrowed his eyes and looked at the report
in front of him one more time, then said, "I think it's possible.
Of course we would still need to do some more investigating, but it seems
all things are pointing to that conclusion."
Vanessa tapped her pen on the desk as she said,
"It's important we first find out who was responsible for making sure that
radar was maintained properly. And we also need to know what happened
that day, but it's impossible, the surveillance footage is destroyed and
all the staff on duty were killed in the attack."
Vince rubbed his forehead and said a little bit
irrately, "I can't believe we cannot get anyone to tell us who was the
person in charge of the maintenance. I was assigned to working on
the SDF2 so I never really got to hear all the goings on with that radar.
The last thing I heard was that the maintenance duties had been transferred
but to whom they never said. Lisa didn't know either. The darn
thing never had any problems though, so there was never any need to fix
it, and so, no need to go looking for the
person that was in charge of fixing it."
Vanessa put another stack of folders in front of
her and Vince and announced, "Well, hopefully we can find something in
here. But if we don't then we're going to have to go around trying
to find answers from alot of people. This is the last stack of reports."
Vince finished up his coffee and took half of the
folders and started to scrutinize them one by one, hoping that they would
find some sort of answer somewhere.
* * * * * * *
Kim and Lisa were seated on one side of the aisle,
Edwards on another. Lisa had the aisle seat of her side, as did Edwards.
The plane had just taken off and everyone was settling back into their
seats, trying to get comfortable for the rest of the flight.
Kim and Lisa were seated on one side of the aisle,
Edwards on the opposite side. Lisa had the aisle seat of her side,
as did Edwards. The plane had just taken off and everyone was settling
back into their seats, trying to get comfortable for the rest of the flight.
The pilot announced that they were taking off in
five minutes and Kim looked around and asked her, "Are we going to be the
only ones on this plane?"
Edwards was sitting in his seats with his eyes closed,
still battling with his concussion-induced headaches, answered, "Yes we
are Commander. Leonard and the others are making the trip on another
plane. Seems like they want to keep the New Detroiters separated
from the New Macrossers if you ask me."
Kim looked over at him and saw that his eyes were
closed then gave Lisa an irritated look. Lisa cracked a small smile
and shrugged. Kim wrote something down in her notepad and lightly
kicked Lisa's foot to get her attention. 'Thank goodness it's just
us on this plane!!' the note said. Lisa took the notepad and pulled
out a pen and wrote something down, then handed it back to Kim. 'What's
the matter, don't you miss your "boyfriend"?' Lisa stiffled a laugh as
she saw Kim's eyes go wide and her mouth drop open. Kim looked at
her and tried to give her an angry look but she couldn't camoflauge her
smile. She might also would've hit Lisa with the notepad had Edwards
not been across the aisle.
Kim looked over at Edwards and then looked at Lisa
and said, "I think this will be a nice time to take a nap, wake me when
we get there will ya Lisa?" Kim motioned towards Edwards with a small,
barely noticeable jerk of her chin and Lisa understood that Kim didn't
feel like talking with Edwards so easily situated for eavesdropping.
Lisa folded her arms to her chest and leaned back
in her chair to get comfortable for what would be a nap for herself as
well and spun a parting shot at Kim, "Just make sure you don't snore, or
else I'll have to wake you up before we get there."
Kim was about to rebuttal when Edwards spoke up
and said, "Admiral, you're father always told me you had a keen sense of
humor, it's nice to witness it in person."
The two women looked at Edwards, who was still resting
his eyes. Kim gave Lisa a sour look, seeing that Edwards wasn't paying
attention.
"Thank you Major," said Lisa, evenly, not wanting
to sound too grateful for the compliment, yet not sound too unappreciative.
Lisa silently was relieved when Edwards didn't continue
talking and so she managed to settle back in her chair, but she felt anything
but relaxed. This wasn't the first time that Edwards had mentioned
her father, and every time he did, something stirred inside of Lisa.
It was like something that she had been trying to avoid since that day
at Alaska Base. She brought up everything she could think of to try
to avoid thinking about it, and since none of her friends wanted to make
her feel bad, they avoided the subject of Lisa's father. However,
unknowingly they were contributing to her continual denial and refusal
to come to grips with the damaged and lost relationship with her father.
Lisa knew that she needed to face the subject, not
just for her own piece of mind, but so as not to dishonor or further hurt
the memory of her father. She was caught in between and haunted by
the memory of two fathers actually.
One was a man who wasn't bound to her by blood but
she had long thought of him as a better father than her own blood father.
There had been an understanding between she and Gloval and even though
he was gone, she had no worries that there was anything left unsaid between
them.
The other man, the one bound by blood, was a man
whom she'd been closer to in her early years, but after she had entered
into service, the relationship took on a more formal tone. Their
constant disagreements and opposing views over many issues drove the wedge
further between them.
During her academy days, Lisa felt estranged from
her father. She felt as if he had been trying to run her life.
When Karl Riber had died, her father didn't seem overly sympathetic and
didn't speak to her about it to try and understand or comfort her in her
time of emotional need.
When Lisa was stationed at Alaska Base, she and
her father were on friendly terms, as opposed to their usual cool formalities,
and her father had told her that he was proud of her. But he didn't
tell her what she wanted to hear, which was that he loved her. He
told her he was proud of her and she wondered if he was proud of her as
a soldier or as his daughter. What would've happened if she hadn't
been as successful a soldier as she was, would he have scorned her?
Lisa wanted to kick herself, she knew that it was
a terrible thought. Her father loved her, he just didn't know how
to show it. She started thinking about it and realized that the estrangement
was probably at least half of her fault. Her father had made the
effort to try and get to know her, but she pushed him away time and again,
too angry that he was too overprotective of her. She suddenly felt
very ashamed and quickly tried to think of something else before her emotions
overtook her, but she let the thought linger a little bit longer.
This was the first time really, since her father died, that she was trying
to sort out the emotional troubles they shared. Edward's recent mentionings
of her father were making her remember that she had alot of unresolved
issues she needed to face regarding her father and their relationship.
Edwards opened one eye and tilted his head slightly
to see that Lisa was seemingly lost in conversation with herself and resisted
the urge to smile.
* * * * * * *
It was already past lunchtime and Lieutenant Antell
had yet to return. Sammie had been very anxious all day. She
wanted to make sure she could leave early so that she and Vanessa could
do some shopping and then prepare for Lisa and Kim's homecoming.
She had hoped that Antell would be her ticket to getting off work early,
but now Antell was being uncharacteristically late for reporting back from
her break.
The male tech that was seated a few feet away from
Sammie also noticed that Antell was late and said in a confounded tone,
"Antell must have gotten herself a boyfriend or something. She's
never late getting back from lunch."
Sammie looked at the tech tiredly and said, "Of
all the days to be late, it's got to be today. Damn her."
The tech laughed and said, "Maybe this is a good
thing actually, then you can write her up and request another aide."
Sammie rolled her eyes, "Don't I wish! But
there's nothing I can do, Maistroff assigned her so you know that she's
untouchable. I am sure he assigned her to me on purpose, just to
make me go crazy."
The tech chuckled, "Unfortunately Captain, that's
definitely a possibility."
Sammie put her hands on her hips challengingly,
"Well, if it's strict, play-by-the-book she wants, that's what she'll get.
I intend to chew her out when she comes back. I'm sure you'll like
that."
The tech rubbed his hands together, "I sure would!
Do you know, this afternoon I asked her a question about one of the song's
by that new group 'Cat's Eye' because I was interested in looking for it
as a present for someone. She says something like, 'It's on so-and-so
album, didn't you know that?' And I'm like, 'No I didn't know that,
I'm not a music encyclopedia.' Then she went on and on about the
album and how she didn't like any of the songs on there but that she had
the cd, mini-disc, and vinyl pressing of it. B--ch, if you hate it
so much why did you buy it, I wanted to ask her. Then yesterday she
was ragging on Brady about that new Zentraedi movie, going on and on, like
she's some big a-- film guru. She drives us all crazy, why don't
she get a life!"
Sammie's spirits lightened up, "You had to sit through
all of those rantings?!?"
The tech put his face in his hands and groaned,
"Unfortunately."
Sammie laughed with delight and said, "Welcome to
my world. Now you know how I feel."
The tech gave her a regretful grin then switched
moods as he said, "Captain, I don't know if anyone's told you yet but it
sure is great having you as commander."
Sammie gave him an astonished look and said, "Whoa,
better not let Lisa hear you say that."
The tech shook his head, "No that's not what I mean.
It was great having Admiral Hayes as commander too, since she was daydreaming
half the time. What I mean is that it's great that you are her replacement,
instead of them bringing in someone inexperienced and stuffy. Everyone
here appreciates your easy-going nature and knowledge. Not to say
that anyone ever thought that Admiral Hayes was unknowledgeable, it's just
that we never could predict what kind of mood she'd be in."
Sammie shook her head in agreement and then smiled,
"I know what you mean. But I don't think we'll have to worry about
that anymore, only if she and Captain Hunter get into a fight."
The tech looked at her as if he hadn't heard what
she said, then he said in a disbelieving voice, "No way! You've got
to be pulling my leg!"
Sammie nodded confidently, "No I'm not. It's
true, just you wait and see."
Before the tech could answer, the door slid open
and Lieutenant Antell walked into the room.
"Lieutenant Antell," said Sammie, trying to sound
stern, "I'm disappointed, this isn't like you to be late and not call in
letting us know about it."
Antell didn't seem repentant and said flatly, "I'm
sorry Captain, it will not happen again."
The tech looked at Sammie and tried to shake his
head so inconspicuously that it looked like he was shivering. He
was trying to signal to her not to push Antell too hard, since she was
most likely a snitch for Maistroff and could cause trouble if she felt
threatened.
Sammie eyed Antell suspiciously, then decided that
she had more important things to worry about and let it drop.
"Very well. Everything has been running smoothly,
so I will be leaving a little bit early today, around 4pm. Just to
let you know." said Sammie, trying to sound as commandingly as possible.
"Yes ma'am," Antell replied in monotone.
"No problem Captain!" chimed the male tech cheerfully.
Antell gave the tech a disdainful look but kept
quiet.
Sammie turned her back to the two so that Antell
couldn't see her amused smile.
* * * * * * *
Rick paced back and forth in Claudia's office.
Hialeah's team had been so efficient in the evacuation and relocation procedures
that he was momentarily left with nothing to do. After a few more
minutes of pacing he scrounged around the room and found what he was looking
for.
He took a seat behind Claudia's desk and opened
up the phone book and searched through the restaurant section. He
had decided he was too nervous to cook dinner as he had originally planned,
and would instead resort to take-out, expensive take-out that is.
"Definitely not Chinese food," he said out loud as he passed through the
section. He came to the Italian section but he had just had Italian
and he knew Lisa didn't care that much for Italian, so he continued to
flip through the pages.
He came across a large ad for a French restaurant
and recalled Lisa telling him that she and her father had often gone to
a French restaurant when she was stationed at Alaska Base. He checked
the menu on the website, then picked up the phone and punched in the number
and placed his order.
Rick looked at the clock and it read 1:30pm.
Sammie had said that Lisa and Kim would land sometime around 2pm but they
would immediately attend a couple of meetings as well as a debriefing and
another medical check, so they would not be home until around 7pm.
It was still a little bit too early to leave the
office so Rick looked around for reports of some sort to work on.
He managed to find a couple of half-completed reports that Claudia had
been working on and decided to try and finish them up for her.
About an hour later Max poked his head through the
door, then took a seat and sat back. "Hey Rick, those people of Hialeah's
are just too efficient. I don't have anything to do right now."
Rick looked across the desk at him and laughed,
"Me neither Max. I'm glad I found some reports to work on.
How's Miriya doing?"
Max folded his arms and replied with a smile, "She's
doing fine. She is having a fun time tossing me around like a rag
doll."
Rick stopped writing and looked up with a big grin,
"That must be a sight to see."
"Yea, well, I have a few bruises to show that it
isn't as fun as it sounds. But it keeps Miriya amused so I can't
complain really. So when's Lisa coming back?"
At the mention of Lisa's name, Max saw Rick perk
up, dropping his pen and saying with twinkling eyes, "She'll be here about
half an hour from now. But she needs to attend a few meetings so
I won't get to see her until around 7pm."
Max picked up one of the pen's on Claudia's desk
and started twirling it around with two fingers, "You must be pretty anxious
to see her again."
Rick smiled nervously, "You bet. The girls
are helping me put on a quiet homecoming date tonight. I'm
a bit nervous."
Max laughed at him, "Nervous? You two have
known each other for what? almost five years now? What's there
to be nervous about."
"Hey com'on Max, you were just as nervous, even
more nervous, on your first date with Miriya, remember?" teased Rick.
"Ok boss, you got me. Yea, I was very nervous,
so I can sympathize with what you're going through now. Oh, by the
way, there's something I want to ask you. Have you ever met Lady
Hialeah?"
"Lady Hialeah?" asked Rick quizzically, "Well, I
just spoke to her that one time when we were at her office and I needed
to get Claudia some medical attention. That's the only time.
It was strange, she picked me up as I spoke to her. And she held
me for awhile and was inspecting me sort of. She even poked me on
the head with her finger, I guess she was trying to play with my hair or
something."
Max laughed out loud, "Ok, so now you also know
what it's like to be handled like a rag doll too then. Hialeah came to
see Miriya yesterday, and she asked about you."
"About me? Why?"
Max snickered, "She wanted to know where she could
find you, so she could ask you to macronize so that she may look at you
better."
Rick's mouth dropped open in disbelief, "What?
Look at me? What for?"
Max couldn't resist laughing again, "'Cause she
told us you are 'pleasing to look at' and wanted to look at you again,
only this time macronized."
Rick rolled his eyes and tossed down his pen, "Oh
great, that's all I need right now, a Zentraedi, full-sized Zentraedi,
warrioress chasing after me. Lisa would macronize without a doubt,
just to keep Hialeah away from me."
Max burst out laughing, "Now wouldn't THAT be something
to see?!"
Rick gave Max a challenging grin, "Hey don't laugh.
I bet Lisa could kick Hialeah's a-- with no trouble."
"Oh I don't doubt she could, especially if they're
fighting over you."
Max's sentence caused Rick to stop to think about
Lisa fighting for him. He thought about what would've happened if
Lisa had tried harder to challenge Minmei, but she hadn't, because she
was afraid she couldn't win, when in reality, she could, and she did.
Max saw the immediate change in Rick's demeanor
and was afraid he might've said something wrong, "Rick, I'm sorry, did
I say something I wasn't suppose to?"
Rick looked at the desk and then picked up his pen,
"Nah Max. It's alright, I was just thinking...about...well, nevermind,
it's ok."
Max, still not convinced he hadn't said something
wrong, apologized, "Rick, I'm sorry."
Rick shook his head and smiled, saying a bit adamantly,
"Don't worry about it Max, alright?"
Max stood up to stretch and said, "You know another
funny thing? Miriya agreed that you were 'pleasing to look at.'
Rick let out a surprised laugh, "She doesn't know
that you're not suppose to talk about another man in front of your husband?"
Max laughed, "Yea well, it's ok. I know it's
a harmless comment. But I'll have to make things even. I ran
into Lisa before she had left and I must admit that she looks really good
in those new uniform colors of hers."
Rick smiled proudly, "She sure does. You should
see her walk down the halls, she turns heads. Well, she always did."
Rick grew a little more serious as he continued,
"You know, it is just so amazing that she doesn't even know how attractive
she is. Claudia had mentioned it, Lisa has no self-awareness..."
Max pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his
nose before saying, "Well Rick, now maybe you can help her with that; give
her that confidence."
Rick shook his head and said in a determined voice,
"I will do exactly that Max. I've already begun to see the change
in her and it's so amazing. You'll see, when this butterfly spreads
her wings, it will be a sight indeed. Nothing will be able to stop
her."
Max regarded Rick for a moment then said, "You talk
like a man in love."
Rick stood up so he could be eye-level with Max,
"I am Max, I am."
Max reached across the desk and shook Rick's hand,
"I'm very happy for ya boss. Really I am, and so is Miriya. Haha,
in fact, she asked me if you and Lisa were going to touch lips now that
you two were a couple."
Rick shook his head and chuckled, "Oh boy, if it's
not the Trio trying to spy on me and Lisa then we also got Miriya now too."
Rick looked at the clock again and decided it was
probably alright to leave so he put the reports away neatly and asked Max,
"What are you doing right now? Do you want to come into town, I have
to pickup dinner for tonight. I can get you something too if you'd
like?"
Max smiled and said goodnaturedly, "It's alright,
you don't have to get me anything. I'll come with ya though, you'll
probably need a hand carrying all that I imagine, since you've got to feed
yourself and four women."
Rick headed for the door and held it open for Max
and patted Max on the shoulder as he walked out, "Thanks Max, a man couldn't
ask for a better best friend."
Max made a small theatrical bow and said, "Always
happy to help a friend."
Rick flipped off the light and closed the door behind
him.
It took Rick and Max half an hour to get to the french
restaurant "Lumineux" to pick up dinner. Max followed Rick through
the door as the two men were greeted by a hostess, "Good afternoon gentlemen,
where would you like to be seated?"
Rick looked around for the take-out counter and
told her, "I had ordered to-go, my name is Rick Hunter."
The woman looked at him with a surprised look and
then looked around her and said quietly, "So you're Rick Hunter.
Is it true that you and Lynn Minmei have been thinking about getting married?"
Rick looked at Max with a confused look, "Uhh, where'd
you hear that?" asked Rick.
"Oh well she mentioned it in one of her interviews,
I believe it was in yesterday's paper, I can't remember which one though,"
answered the woman.
"Was it just a rehash of an old interview?" put
in Max, seeing that Rick was disturbed by the report.
"No, it was her most recent interview," replied
the hostess.
"Do you remember what she said exactly?" asked Max.
"Well...she said that she and Mr. Hunter were thinking
of getting married but she thought that it probably wouldn't be possible
because they had seperate careers that were both very important and necessary."
Rick had his hands clenched into fists and Max waited
to see what Rick would say or do. Rick huffed and told the hostess,
"You know what? That isn't what's happened at all."
Rick saw the woman give him an intrigued look and
continued, "Minmei and I aren't getting married and it's not just because
of our seperate careers. You want to know what the real reason is?
It's because I am not in love with Minmei. I'm in love with another
woman, I think you know her by name, Admiral Lisa Hayes, and if there's
anyone I'm going to marry, it's going to be Lisa. Not Minmei, Lisa.
So don't believe all the things that's said in the newspapers."
The woman stared at him for a moment, as did Max,
surprised at his outburst. Then the woman said hastily, "Yes, sir,
that's right sir. Excuse me, I will go and get your order," and then
headed towards the kitchen.
Max chuckled, "Rick, I think you scared her."
Rick let out a heavy sigh, "I didn't mean to.
It's just...I can't believe Minmei didn't tell the truth."
Max laughed again, "Do you really think she wants
to tell the reporters that you dumped her?"
"I suppose not, but then she should've just not
mentioned the fact that we talked about getting married. S--t, Lisa's
going to get mad if she hears about this."
"Rick, don't worry. I doubt if Lisa will get
too upset. Even if she does, it will be at Minmei for distorting
the truth, not you."
Rick kicked his foot lightly against the floor and
stuffed his hands in his pocket as he said, "Yea, I guess. Still
though, I don't like Minmei going around telling this story to everyone.
Now I'm going to get this question wherever I go, and you know, some people
don't have tact, they might even ask me when I'm out with Lisa. How
do you think that will make her feel?"
Max smirked at Rick, "Well, actually, if you tell
them all just what you told this lady, that it's Lisa who you love, then
I think she won't mind at all."
Rick scratched his temple and said, "Hey, come to
think of it, that's right..."
The woman returned carrying 3 bags and Max signaled
for her to give him two as she placed the other one on the counter and
Rick took out his wallet.
"That will be $200 sir."
Rick pulled out his credit card and handed it to
the woman. As she was completing the transaction, Max hid himself
behind one of the bags and whispered to Rick, "Two hundred dollars?? For
dinner?!"
Rick wore a proud smile and said, "Yea, well nothing's
too good for my girl. Or her friends, our friends, for that matter.
I also picked up dinner and dessert for the Trio. Make sure though,
you don't tell them how much it cost me."
Max winked, "Mums the word, boss."
After Max and Rick had secured the bags in the car,
they headed towards Max's house so that Rick could drop him off at home.
After pulling away from the curb where his car had been parked, Rick fumbled
in his jacket pocket and pulled out one of the mini-discs that Sammie and
Vanessa had given him in the morning. Rick popped in the disc and
turned up the volume slightly.
"Hey, great, some music!" rejoiced Max.
"Ok Max, now don't laugh at me, but this isn't our
regular music. I let the girls put it together, it's some songs that
Lisa and I will listen to, and dance to, tonight."
"Oh, I see, those type of songs. Don't be
embarrassed Rick, I play those type of songs for Miriya too sometimes,
she likes them. I think alot of women do. And besides, she
says she hates all of Minmei's songs."
The two men laughed then Rick got serious and said
thoughtfully, "I do believe that sometimes a song can say more than what
I could come up with, I mean, probably say it better than I could too.
Sometimes I feel uncomfortable saying things because I don't want them
to turn out wrong. I did that a lot with Lisa, I dunno if sometimes
everything would've just been better off if I hadn't opened my big mouth
sometimes."
"Well, I do admit Rick, you do have a tendancy to
shoot off at the mouth sometimes, but don't worry about that for now.
Just tell Lisa what you feel and if you need to, let the music tell her,
although she should hear it from you."
"I know Max. Hey, check out this song, it
sounds pretty good."
Rick turned up the volume and the two men listened
intently. The song was soulful, not what Rick and Max ordinarily
listened to while patroling in their VT's but Rick was struck by the words:
Last night we had an argument
You told me you love me
All the things I said I never meant
No baby
I didn't mean to make you cry
I didn't mean to make you say bye bye bye
Baby won't you let me look inside your soul
Let me make you lose control
Let me be the one you need
Baby just come to me
(1)
Rick turned to Max and said excitedly, "Sammie and
Vanessa are geniuses! This song is perfect!"
Max smiled as Rick reset the song to the beginning
and turned up the volume again.
You know what I'm talking about baby
I never meant to hurt you
I never wanted to see you cry
So I'm right here now baby
I'm asking you, I'm begging you
Just give me one more chance baby
(1)
Max grinned looked over at Rick, "Those lyrics seem
pretty good, but what about the other half of the lyrics? A little
bit more suggestive don't you think?"
Rick blushed slightly, "Yea, I know but I think
we'll be ok."
Max raised his eyebrows as the song finished with
the line: 'Can I turn you on till the break of dawn baby.'
Rick cleared his throat, "Ok, maybe I'll
make a little disclaimer before the song comes on."
When the song finished, Rick hit the replay button
again. Max looked at Rick and saw he was lost in thought and decided
to keep quiet and let him be.
They listened to two other songs before they finally
reached Max's house. When he got out of the car, Max could see that
Rick was still deep in thought and thought it was best to let him keep
concentrating on tonight, so he just said, "See ya tommorrow Rick, have
a great time tonight and say 'hi' to Lisa for me." Before Rick could
shake out of his meditations and answer, Max had already run up the driveway
and headed into the house.
Rick honked the horn and Max came back out of the
house, "Thanks Max!" called out Rick, as Max waved at Rick's departing
car.
Rick sped home, his mind and feelings stirred up
by the song lyrics and the thought of seeing Lisa that evening.
* * * * * * *
Kim and Lisa got up from their seats after the pilot
told them that they could disembark from the plane. They had already
started down the aisle when Lisa looked back and saw that Edwards had some
trouble getting out of his seat. She went back to help him, expecting
Kim would follow her but Kim instead made her way to the door and waited
for them there.
Edwards got up steadily, his hand resting on Lisa's
shoulder. "I'll be fine, Admiral, thank you."
Edwards saw Lisa look at him with genuine concern
as she asked him, "Are you sure Major?"
He was momentarily transfixed by her eyes for a
moment, but then looked away from her and said, "I'm sure Admiral, once
again, thank you for your concern."
Lisa nodded and moved out of the way to let him
pass and then followed behind him as he headed towrds the door where Kim
was waiting. Kim, not comfortable in his presence, quickly hurried
through the door when she saw him heading her way. Then when they
were all off the plane, they were quickly ushered to the main conference
room for their debriefing.
Sammie met Vanessa in the hallway outside Vanessa's
office. She looked around her to make sure no one was in earshot,
then said in a hushed voice, "Vanessa, Lieutenant Antell's been acting
strangely since yesterday.
"What do you mean Sammie? You said she's a
wierdo, period."
"Yea yea I know, but I mean, she keeps disappearing
off and on throughout the day."
Vanessa snickered, "Maybe she finally found herself
a guy insane enough to want to be her boyfriend."
"That's what Dirk had said. But get real,
who would be crazy enough to put up with her?"
"Who knows Sammie, maybe she's a totally different
person away from the office."
Sammie shrugged, "Anything is possible I guess."
Vanessa walked ahead to punch the elevator button
and turned to Sammie and said dreamily, "Tonight's going to be such a romantic
night for Lisa! She's so lucky!."
"Mmmhmm! I'm glad that we get to be a part
of it. That was so nice of Rick to ask us to help him."
The elevator arrived and Vanessa was relieved to
see no one would be sharing the elevator with them. Vanessa stood
quietly for a moment, thinking about the plans for the evening. A
thought struck her and she decided to consult Sammie on it, "Sammie, about
a couple fo those songs we put together for Rick..."
Sammie looked at her and stated, "You know, I was
wondering about that too. Especially those two songs that Claudia
told us about. They are pretty emotional, and they might, I mean,
what happens if they..."
Vanessa adjusted her glasses and said, "Well now,
ahem, I don't know. It's none of our business anyways. But
lets just warn Rick about that song though, just as a precaution."
The elevator opened up and the girls headed out
of it into the parking garage. Once in the car Sammie paused before
pulling out of the parking spot, "Vanessa, are you sure that Lisa will
be ok with that song."
Vanessa waived her off, "She should be ok as long
as she's not drunk. If she's not drunk then that song should be harmless.
And we know that Lisa won't get drunk tonight, Rick won't let her, and
he's too much of a gentleman to get her drunk on purpose."
Sammie looked over her shoulder to back out of the
spot and said agreeingly, "Right, I know he won't do anything like that.
But you know, that song can get a person pretty emotionally charged, do
you think Lisa will be ok with it. Even if she isn't drunk?"
Vanessa thought for a moment, "Whatever happens,
happens, let's not try and control destiny." Suddenly a lightbulb
went on in Vanessa's head, "Hey waita minute, you're worried?? You're the
one who didn't want to fix the heat in the hopes that Rick and Lisa would
have to share the bed, and you're worried about tonight?!"
"Ok ok..." said Sammie defensively.
Sammie and Vanessa didn't have to spend much time
at the market since Rick had called them and told him he had decided to
buy dinner instead of cook it himself.
Sammie, standing in line behind Vanessa, picked
up the newspaper that was on the stand and decided to flip through it while
waiting in the somewhat long line to the cash register.
A small headline on the front page caught her eye
and she tossed a few pages over to find the contuation of the story.
Vanessa heard Sammie gasp, then let out a short, low, growl and turned
around to see what was wrong. Sammie not saying a word, pointed to
the column in question and watched as Vanessa reacted almost identically
the way she had, minus the growl. Sammie folded up the newspaper
and put it back in its rack and then followed Vanessa as they slowly shuffled
forward in line.
Sammie stood on her tiptoes and whispered to Vanessa,
"I can't believe she'd lie like that!"
Vanessa shook her head in disbelief, "She must've
done it out of bitterness."
Sammie huffed and decided not to say anything since
there were many people around them.
Once they got to the car Sammie unleashed, "What
a b---h! She's just angry because Rick dumped her for Lisa!"
"I can't believe she didn't tell them that she and
Rick are not together anymore. I sure hope Lisa doesn't see that
article. She won't be happy," said Vanessa.
"Hopefully she won't see it. Ok Vanessa, where
to now?"
Vanessa looked at the list clipped to the inside
of her organizer and announced, "Department store, we have to find them
something nice to wear."
Sammie took her hands off the wheel to clap, "Shopping!
My favorite hobby."
Vanessa rolled her eyes and said in an amused tone,
"No kidding."
Rick resisted calling Sammie and Vanessa again.
He had called them already while they were at the market and once more
when they were at the department store. He realized that the more
he kept slowing them down with his calls, the later they would get home.
So he plopped down on the couch and waited, shaking his foot nervously.
He unfolded the liner notes that Vanessa had made
for the mini-discs and began to scan through it. He was grateful
she had included some lyrics. He could see that some of the songs
were suppose to be from his point of view, others from Lisa's point of
view, and a few from a couple's point of view. He was a tiny bit
nervous about some lyrics of a few of the songs, including the one Max
had mentioned earlier, but he resolved to make sure that he would try and
keep his emotions in check.
Finally, after what seemed like eons had passed,
Vanessa and Sammie came fluttering through the door. Rick swiftly
got up from his seat and rushed to help them with the various bags and
boxes that they were struggling with.
"Thanks Rick. Just you wait and see what we got
for you and Lisa to wear!" celebrated Sammie.
Vanessa handed Rick his credit card and told him,
"Everything came out to around $400 Rick, I hope that's ok."
Rick shrugged and smiled as he put the card back
in his wallet, "Nah, that's perfectly alright. I've never really
had anyone to spend my money on before, now I do, and it's a pretty nice
feeling."
Vanessa patted Rick on the shoulder, "You won't
regret it Rick. Lisa will look gorgeous in her new dress. That's
what took us the longest to buy, or else we would've been home an hour
earlier. But, we wanted to find the perfect dress for tonight, and
I think we did a pretty good job, don't you think Sammie?"
Sammie concurred, "Oh absolutely!"
Sammie pulled out a few boxes from a large bag and
handed them to Rick, "Here you go, this is what you're going to wear tonight.
Hopefully everything fits."
Rick took the boxes and headed upstairs. When
they heard the door close behind him, Sammie turned to Vanessa and whispered,
"I'm so excited about tonight and I'm not even the one going on a date!"
"I know! Me too! Well, this IS something that everyone's
been waiting for for the past 4 years. This soap opera of theirs
is finally taking a turn for the better it seems. We both know, it
was never any fun watching them at each other's throats," replied
Vanessa.
Sammie folded her hands together and said dreamily,
"This is going to be such a romantic night."
Vanessa snickered, "I think Lisa will be very surprised."
"Oh definitely! She will wonder what's come
over Rick!"
The two laughed but lowered their volume as Rick
came down the stairs, towel slung over his shoulder, on his way to the
shower in the downstairs bathroom. He paused to look at them and
in return, Vanessa and Sammie made swiping motions with their hands and
told him, "Go on Rick, better get showered and dressed, there's no telling
if they might arrive early or not." Rick looked at them blankly for
a moment then gave them a thumb's up and hurried into the bathroom.
Sammie couldn't help but giggle, "He's so cute!
And I bet he looks so handsome in a suit!"
Vanessa grinned, "I'm sure that would be a pleasant
sight. Oh, Sammie! Look at the time, speaking of dressed we better
go get dressed ourselves."
Sammie followed Vanessa up the stairs, "Right behind
ya!"
Rick found himself once again waiting for Vanessa
and Sammie. He had gotten showered and dressed rather quickly and
was anxious for them to help him make sure his tie was straight.
Then there was the question of his hair. He had tried to comb it
neatly as possible but it still seemed too unruly to him.
He paced back and forth and finally decided to take
another listen to the songs the girls had prepared for the evening.
He remembered hearing a couple of them, the Country and Western ones, because
that's all his dad ever played on the radio.
There were also a couple dance type of songs
on the disc that had good lyrics, but Rick didn't know what it would be
like to dance to the songs since he had never really danced. He started
growing self-conscious and wondered if there was some time left so that
the Vanessa and Sammie could give him a crash course in dancing.
After ten minutes, Sammie and Vanessa finally came
downstairs, dressed in somewhat formal
dresses. Even though their primary function for the evening was to
serve as waitresses, they didn't want to miss out on the fun and be atmospherically
out of place, so they decided to dress in the best dresses they had in
their closet.
Rick temporarily forgot his anxiety over dancing
and gaped at Vanessa and Sammie. The two
immediately noticed Rick's surprised look of admiration and Sammie
winked at him and said, "If you think we look good, wait till you see Lisa
dressed up!"
Rick broke into a smile as the two came down the
stairs and turned around in front of him, as if modeling their gowns.
"You two look absolutely beautiful. The guys in Skull would go crazy
if you came over to the hanger dressed like that," said Rick sincerely.
Sammie's eyes went wide, "Really?!! Hey Vanessa,
we should try that some time!!"
Vanessa shook her head in amazement, "You're too
much Sammie."
Rick laughed lightly then became anxious again and
asked, "I...uh...I don't suppose maybe we have time for a few dance lessons?
I mean...well, I've never really danced before and I don't want to be stepping
on Lisa's toes the whole evening."
"One crash-course coming up!" shouted Sammie.
Vanessa rolled her eyes and stated, "Oh boy Rick,
now you're in trouble."
Rick gave her a worried look and Vanessa quickly
countered, "Oh, no, I was just kidding Rick. Sammie's a great dancer,
don't worry."
Rick looked at her warily at first then let out
a sigh of relief after Vanessa shook her head to reaffirm her claim.
Vanessa quickly surveyed the room and proclaimed,
"Wait, we first need to rearrange the furniture for dinner."
"Oh that's right!" said Sammie from the other end
of the room. She scampered back to the center of the room where Rick
and Vanessa were and they proceeded to move the small couch to one corner
of the room. Then Rick went to the kitchen and folded up the small
table and brought it back to the living room and positioned it in the middle
of the room. Vanessa busied herself by moving the chairs into the kitchen
and Sammie started placing candles around the room.
After the room was arranged the way it was planned,
Sammie grabbed Rick by the hand and
dragged him to part of the room that was designated the 'dancefloor.'
Vanessa hurried to the stereo and set the mini-disc to a song that was
one of the upbeat dance songs Rick was worried about.
"I bet you don't know how to dance to these type
of songs," said Vanessa.
Rick nodded, assuring her that her bet was right.
Vanessa walked over to where Sammie and Rick were about to begin to dance
and told Rick, "Rick, make sure you're not this nervous when you dance
with Lisa. Lisa will be very nervous about dancing too. We
could never get her on the dancefloor, her excuse being that she didn't
know how to dance. But we happen to think she does, she just wasn't
confident or brave enough. You have to take the lead, take charge
and act like you know what you're doing, even if you don't think you do.
If you're loosened up, then Lisa will loosen up too."
"I'll try," said Rick with a determined voice.
Sammie socked Rick in the arm and exclaimed, "Come
on flyboy, let's do it!"
Rick cleared his throat and said, "Ok, let's do
it!"
Vanessa cheered from the sidelines then dashed to
the corner to restart the song. After about 10 minutes of demonstrating
dance moves, Sammie was starting to sweat and asked Rick, "Do you think
you got it?"
Rick shook his head and Sammie continued, "Good.
Ok, Vanessa you get in here and dance with him, I'm tired out already."
Vanessa laughed at her teasingly, "Sammie, get outta
here. That will teach you for trying to be a showoff!" Vanessa
gave Sammie a parting sneer and walked up to Rick. Seeing him up
close made her hesitate and take a moment to catch her breath. He
did look handsome indeed. Now she understood what had melted Lisa
so thoroughly. Vanessa adjusted her glasses and coughed once then
told Sammie to cue up the music.
Barely several minutes had passed when Vanessa stopped
and stared at Rick. Sammie also stared at him too and said, "I thought
you said you didn't know how to dance!"
Rick looked at them innocently, "I don't."
"You do too!!" they both exclaimed.
Rick grinned hopefully, "You really think so?
I never danced to this type of music before, I just tried to follow what
Sammie showed me and go with the music."
"You must have a natural knack for dancing Rick!
Just be this good and confident when Lisa gets here and you guys will have
alot of fun booty-shaking," said Sammie reassuringly.
Vanessa wagged her finger at Rick, "Remember, Lisa
will be shy at first, so make sure you keep assuring her that there's nothing
to be embarrassed about and hopefully after some coaxing you'll get her
grooving with you."
"Got it." said Rick, wiping his brow.
Sammie looked at the clock on the mantle and said
in a frenzy, "It's already past 7pm!!! They'll be here any time now!"
Vanessa saw that Rick wore a slightly panicked look
but she was ready to combat it. "Rick.Listen to me and make sure
you listen good. Don't be nervous or you'll make Lisa nervous.
Be relaxed and remember that you're suppose to be Lisa's knight in shining
armor. No second-guessing yourself. Just enjoy the evening,
show her how much you care about her, and don't worry about anything else.
There's no place for timidness here. You two have known each other
for almost five years and been through hell and back together and there
shouldn't be anything to be embarrassed about when you're around each other.
Show her that you're no longer that immature prick who never passed up
the opportunity to pick a fight with her. Show her that you're now
the man that she had always believed you could be."
Sammie watched Rick carefully. Those had been
some pretty straighforward words Vanessa had
launched at him and Sammie was hoping that it wouldn't put Rick back
into his guilty frame of mind. She was relieved when she saw the
look on Rick's face change from worried to determined, and she felt
glad with the prospect of not having to be constantly worrying throughout
the evening.
"I'll be the lookout!" pronounced Sammie as she
scampered to the window.
Rick sat down on the couch, trying to remember everything
that Vanessa had told him.
* * * * * * *
The meeting was shorter than anticipated, much to
Kim and Lisa's relief and they left their seats, eager to get home as soon
as possible. Edwards stood up and followed them out the door.
Kim walked a little bit faster than usual to try and distance herself from
Edwards but Lisa was walking at her usual pace which allowed Edwards to
keep stride with them.
They walked out to the carport area and waited for
their drivers. Lisa looked over at Edwards who seemed to be still
a little bit unsettled. Then she decided to walk up to him and offer,
"Major Edwards, if you want, I can accompany you to your quarters to make
sure you've settled in. You seem a little bit disoriented still."
Edwards turned his head slowly and looked at her
for a moment then replied, "If it's not too much trouble Admiral, I would
appreciate that."
From where she stood, Kim cursed under her breath
and waited for Lisa's orders.
"Kim you go on ahead, I'll be home soon, it shouldn't
take too long."
Kim was silently relieved but at the same time still
a little bit unwilling to leave Lisa alone with Edwards. A car drove
up and Lisa put Edwards bag on the back seat and helped him into the car
and waved to Kim as they drove off.
A driver for Kim soon pulled up and she climbed
into the car. She asked the driver, "You ever heard of Major T.R.
Edwards?"
"Yes ma'am, just a little bit. Whaddya wanna
know?"
"What kind of person is he?"
"Well ma'am, now let's see...I heard that he basically
keeps to himself mostly, doesn't socialize with anyone. He's got
some old bitterness about something, you know, like a chip on his shoulder,
but no one seems to know what it is. People speculate that it has
something to do with Alaska Base and those injuries he suffered, but no
one knows for sure. A few people say that he has a wicked temper,
although I've never seen it myself. He's rather of a mystery.
He isn't a friendly guy and you wouldn't ever see me or most other people
for that matter, invite him out for a beer after duty. That's all
I really know abotu him ma'am."
Kim nodded, "That's fine, thank you."
* * * * * * *
Sammie was sitting by the door, waiting to hear the
sound of a car pull into the driveway. When she finally heard the
sound she was waiting for, she jumped up and exclaimed, "They're here!
They're here!!"
Rick took a deep breath and adjusted his tie nervously. A few
seconds later they heard the key turn in the door and when the door swung
open, Kim walked through and then closed it behind her. She looked
around her and said, "Wow, what'd you guys do to this place?!" Then
she noticed how Sammie, Vanessa, and Rick were dressed, "Why are you guys
all dressed up?"
No one said anything and the silence allowed Kim
to catch on, "Oh! Oh, Lisa will be a little bit delayed, probably
by just half an hour or so."
Sammie and Vanessa looked at Rick, who seemed a
little bit disappointed. They looked back at Kim as she made her
way through the living room, limping slightly.
"Kim! What happened to you? Why are you limping?"
inquired Sammie.
Kim looked down at her foot, "Oh this, don't worry
about it, I just have a slight ankle sprain."
Rick wanted to ask her if Lisa were ok but didn't
want to seem insensitive to Kim's injury so he remained quiet, thankful
and relieved when Vanessa asked how Lisa was and Kim had replied that Lisa
was unhurt.
Rick saw that Kim looked as if she had trouble with
her bag and quickly went to scoop it up for her and then went up the stairs
to put it in her room for her. While he was making his way up the
stairs Kim said in a quick and hushed voice, "I wouldn't believe it if
I didn't see it with my own eyes!"
Sammie giggled, "That's probably what Lisa will
say too!"
"Damn, does he look good in a suit." said Kim looking
towards the stairs.
"Mmmhmmm! He and Lisa have to be the best
looking couple I've ever seen. They should be on the soaps! Just
wait till you see the dress that we got for Lisa to wear tonight!" said
Sammie proudly.
Kim put her finger up in the air and looked at them
sideways, "Let me guess! Low-cut and body-hugging."
Vanessa jabbed her fist in the air, "You better
believe it! Rick is going to be drooling when he sees Lisa in that
dress!"
Kim looked back up at the stairs, and seeing that
the coast was clear, motioned for Sammie and Vanessa to join the huddle,
"Minmei, eat your heart out!" The three women ended the huddle with
a loud and unisoned, "Yeah!"
Rick rushed back down the stares and noticed that
the Trio was staring at him. He gave him an awkward look and Kim
laughed as she said, "Don't worry Rick, you look great. We can't
stop gawking at you. So, what do you guys need me to help with?"
Sammie fluttered her hands, "Oh don't worry about
it, Vanessa and I have everything under control. You go ahead and
go rest up, you've had a long day."
Kim stood her ground, "What? And be left out of
the fun? Hell no! I'm staying. Now tell me what you need
help with."
Vanessa crinkled her face a bit, trying to think
of something that Kim could take charge of, then the idea struck her and
clapped her hands together, "I got it! Kim you can be the photographer!"
"Ohhhh, great idea Vanessa!" said Sammie happily.
"Of course," said Vanessa holding her head high.
Everyone laughed briefly then scattered to turn
their attention back to final preparations for the evening. Sammie
went into the kitchen to make sure that the dinners warming in the oven
were not drying out and Vanessa walked around the room, looking to re-light
any candles that might've gone out, and Kim went upstairs to get her digital
camera ready.
Rick suddenly felt out of place, standing there
in the middle of the room. He felt as if he should be doing something
since everyone else was busy. He approached Vanessa and told her,
"Give me something to do, I need to be doing something or else I'll get
to nervous."
Vanessa gave him a knowing look and said, "Why don't
you just go sit down and try to relax. Turn on the television if
that will help, but make sure you don't watch the news, that will just
depress us all."
Rick hesitated then mumbled something and shuffled
over to the television and flipped it on. He quickly skipped over
the news stations and came to a music station. The station was showing
an old rock song music video and Rick sat back and managed to relax while
watching the video. The next song was one of Minmei's and Rick quickly
changed the station. The next station he came to showed a very old
broadway musical, one that he remembered as being one of his grandmother's
favorites, 'Oklahoma.' He smiled and felt a wave of nostalgia wash
over him as he recalled sitting on his grandmother's lap as a child. He
had loved that show, he remembered even mimicking some of the song and
dance routines.
After a few minutes they came to the main title
song sequence and Rick sat on the edge of his chair, fully prepared to
sing along. He knew the entire song by heart, and he took a deep
breath so he could bellow out the line along with the tv.
"Oohhhhh-klahomaa, where the wind comes sweepin'
down the plain," sang Rick loudly. Vanessa
stopped what she was doing to watch and listen in amazement.
After the segment was over, Rick sat back in his
chair, grinning ear to ear. He thought it divine intervention that
he had the chance to see an old memory on television. It was just
what he needed to effuse him with the confidence and sense of fun that
he would need for the very special evening that awaited he and Lisa.
From her place, Vanessa remained commentless, but smiled broadly.
Sammie had finished checking on things in the kitchen
and had entered the room to find Rick sitting there with a smile on his
face. She looked over at Vanessa, who raised a finger to her lips,
signaling to Sammie to remain quiet. Sammie was curious to know why
Rick was all smiles but decided not to distract him and walked over to
where Vanessa was.
"What happened?" whispered a very curious Sammie.
Vanessa motioned with her chin, "It was something
he saw on that show. I guess it must've been
something he knows very well. He even sang along with the song
too! He has a nice voice actually. We'll have to figure out
something to try and get him to show us his singing sometime soon."
Sammie winked and took a seat nearby to await Lisa's
arrival.
* * * * * * *
"Here we are Major," said Lisa as she opened the
door for Edwards.
"Thank you Admiral," replied Edwards as he shuffled
into the living room area.
Lisa looked around, "Well, I think you will be alright,
I should be going now."
Edwards followed Lisa to the door and added, "I
think I've said it before, but I'll say it again. You're father would
be very proud of you right now."
Lisa froze for a few moments, then turned around
slowly, "Do you really think so?" The way she asked the question
seemed sad and Edwards allowed a rare moment of guilt to enter his mind.
He looked at Lisa, her eyes eagerly awaiting his reply.
He couldn't bear to look at her anyone and turned
away, replying, "I know so Admiral. You were the apple of your father's
eye. You were his 'little princess' as he oftened liked to call you."
Lisa felt as if a boulder had crushed her.
She hadn't recalled her father calling her that for more than ten years,
but yet here she had just found out that he had been calling her by that
name, even in the presence of people who were not family members, and he
wasn't ashamed to do it.
The clock in Edward's living room chimed 7:45 and
Lisa realized that she needed to go home. Especially now, all she
wanted to do was hold onto Rick.
Lisa went out the door and was down the first step
when she turned around and asked Edwards, "Major, if it's not a bother,
could you tell me more about my father sometimes? I mean, you've
mentioned some things that I didn't know, and..."
Edwards nodded his head, "I understand Admiral.
I had a bad relationship with my father too, and never got the chance to
figure out who's fault it really was, his or mine. If there's someway
I can help you, I'd be more than happy too. Your father was a great
man, more than you know, I think."
Lisa gave him a sad smile and then was gone.
Edwards watched the car drive away and wrestled with his thoughts.
He had intended to bring up the subject of Lisa's father, just for this
purpose, but the look on Lisa's face made him realize how mean-spirited
his conspiring had been. Now instead of using the subject of Lisa's
father as a means of being able to manipulate Lisa, Edwards felt a genuine
concern for her.
He had struggled with the whole plan to begin with.
Admiral Hayes had treated him better than anyone ever had, and for that
Edwards was eternally grateful, although he would not admit it to anyone.
He had also been witness to Admiral Hayes' death at the Grand Cannon command
complex and the gruesome images had come back to haunt him sometimes.
He wondered if he even dared to manipulate Lisa the way he had intended,
whether or not Admiral Hayes himself, would come back to haunt him.
Edwards wasn't a superstitious man, but he had a few strange incidents
in his lifetime to know that everything didn't necessarily have a scientific
explanation.
* * * * * * *
Rick hadn't heard a car pass by or pull up, but when
he heard the key turn in the door he got up from his seat quickly, as did
Sammie and Vanessa. The door opened and Lisa walked in.
The room was rather dark and Lisa had to take a
few moments to let her eyes get accustomed to the lighting. After
they had adjusted she looked ahead and saw Rick in front of her, dressed
in a suit, and looking extremely handsome, and Vanessa and Sammie in evening
dresses. Then she looked around the room and noticed it had a restaurant
ambience. She saw the small table with two chairs in the middle of
the room, the roaring fire in the fireplace, and many candles scattered
about the entire environment.
Rick had been waiting for this moment for what seemed
like an eternity. He walked up to Lisa and gently backed her up against
the door, then said softly, "Welcome home," and proceeded to kiss
her.
Lisa, already surprised at the romantic look of
the room, was surprised by Rick's kiss, as she had been many times in the
past few days. Again, for the hundreth time, she just couldn't believe
that this was happening. It seemed to good to be true. She
hadn't responded to the kiss immediately, but when she became fully aware
of just how emotionally and physically stirred she was by his kiss, she
responded whole-heartedly.
Vanessa and Sammie looked at each other. Vanessa
smiled and Sammie had her hands clasped as if praying, and quietly moved
her fingers as if to clap. The kiss continued for several seconds
and Vanessa turned around, Sammie following her lead, not wanting to be
too intrusive during Rick and Lisa's private moment.
When they parted, Rick looked at Lisa intently.
Lisa felt slightly dazed and said remotely, "That was some welcome home..."
She shook off her stupor a few seconds later and added, "If I go back out
the door and come in again do I get another one of those?"
Everyone laughed and Rick stooped down to pickup
Lisa's suitcase. "You can get one of those whenever you wish,"
Rick said with a wink.
Before Lisa could utter a follow-up, Sammie had
grabbed her by the arm and was saying excitedly, "Lisa we've gotta get
you upstairs so you can get dressed for dinner! We found this beautiful
dress that will just absolutely make Rick drool!"
Rick laughed, suitcase in hand, as he followed the
three women upstairs, Sammie nearly dragging Lisa the entire trip.
Rick deposited the suitcase on the floor of the room he and Lisa shared
and was then shoved out the door by Vanessa, "Ok Rick, no peeking.
It's downstairs for you." Rick found himself standing alone in the
hallway, shrugged, and went downstairs to wait for Lisa.
Lisa was so nervous that her hands were shaking as
she put on her shoes. She reprimanded herself for being such a jumble
of nerves. What happened to the woman who had graduated at the top
of her class? What happened to the woman who had been decorated several
times over for her exceptional bravery in the line of duty? She laughed
at herself. She knew that she could face anything anyone threw at
her, but when it came to matters regarding the man she loved, she was completely
ruled by emotions. It had been that way with Karl Riber and it was
that way again with Rick Hunter. Just as long as he returned her
affections, she reasoned, it was all worth it.
Lisa managed to finish getting her shoes on her
feet, shaky hands and all, and stood up and smiled. Her heart was
pounding and she felt as if she were going to her high school prom.
Would Rick like what she was wearing? Would he ask her to dance?
What would he say? What should she say?
She did a few breathing exercises to get her nerves
under control and took one last look at herself in the mirror.
She was pleased with what Vanessa and Sammie had
picked out for her. The dress was a little bit more form-fitting
than she would have picked out herself but she thought that it was a good
way of holding Rick's attention since he hadn't ever seen her in anything
so revealing before. She secretly wanted to make sure she competed
with and beat every image of Minmei that Rick had stored in his memory.
Lisa remembered several evening gown photos from
the Miss Macross pageant, and in her fits of anger, Lisa had remembered
realizing that she had a better figure than Minmei's.
The dress was strapless and accented Lisa's cleavage,
but didn't pose any threat of falling down, something she was grateful
for, since she didn't want to spend the entire evening pulling up her dress.
It was a very simple, but elegant gown, cobol blue
in color and made of satin and very comfortable. It was tight top
but around the waist it flared out a tiny bit so that it was loose enough
to allow her to move without feeling confined. The length was not too short
and not too long so although it was well past her knees, it didn't drag
on the floor, which could of caused her some anxiety throughout the evening,
especially if she had to be on her feet alot.
She took one last deep breath then opened the door,
knowing that the Trio were waiting for her outside in the hall.
When the door swung open the Trio all gasped as
they saw Lisa standing shyly in the doorway.
"Oh my god Lisa, you look so beautiful," said Kim,
almost in a whisper.
Sammie, never at a loss for words, could do nothing
but stare at Lisa. Vanessa moved slowly to take hold of Lisa's arm
and pull her back into the room, with Sammie and Kim following behind.
"This is it Lisa. Now remember to be confident
and smile." Vanessa moved Lisa to the full-length mirror and Lisa
was once again surprised at how she looked.
"You see Lisa, you'll knock him dead, you look absolutely
beautiful!" proclaimed Sammie. Then Sammie surveyed Lisa again and
said in a mock angry tone, "Grrr, how come I can't have a figure like yours?!"
Then Sammie proceeded to stomp her feet and turn around in circles, shouting,
"I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!" like a little child throwing
a tantrum.
They all laughed heartily and Lisa was happy for
the comic relief to help dissipate some of her nervousness. She took
a deep breath as Sammie opened the door and waited. Vanessa made
her way to doorway as Lisa remained rooted to her spot.
"Come on Lisa, nothing to be worried about," said
Vanessa, waving her hand to try and get Lisa to start walking.
"Let's go Lisa," said Sammie as she took Lisa by
the arm and tried to pull her out of the room.
"Are you sure I look alright?" asked a timid Lisa.
Kim came in the room quickly and pulled Lisa by
the arm, "Of course you look alright. No more stalling. You
look gorgeous, now go down there and show your man just how good you look."
"But I..." stuttered Lisa.
"No buts! Remember, if you're nervous, Rick
will be nervous too and that wouldn't be a fun way to spend such a romantic
evening now would it?" reasoned Kim.
"I suppose not," mused Lisa.
"Now come on, stand up straight. Be proud,
be sexy, and go get your man. God knows you fought long enough for
him, so reap your rewards now," interjected Vanessa.
The four women stood at the top of the stairs.
Lisa took a deep breath, squared her shoulders and cleared her throat.
"There you go!" exclaimed Kim triumphantly.
"Let's go now Lisa, remember to smile," said Vanessa
as she and Sammie walked down the stairs with Lisa.
As Lisa walked down the stairs her heart was nearing
cardiac arrest stage, or so she thought, and she was extremely glad that
Sammie was on her left and Vanessa was on her right, holding onto her,
or else she thought she might tumble down the stairs.
Rick had heard murmuring from upstairs and got up
immediately and stood near the bottom of the stairs in anticipation.
'Smile, be proud, be sexy,' Lisa echoed Vanessa's
words in her head. 'But I can't be sexy...I'm not sexy.' Lisa
said to herself with resignation. 'Go get your man....your man.'
The words reverberated in Lisa's head.
Lisa neared the last three steps and saw him standing
there, waiting for her, her man, Rick Hunter. After so long, after
what seemed like a lost cause, after all the years of angst, he was finally
hers. He looked so handsome. His dark, wavy hair was neatly
combed, allowing her full view of his illuminating blue eyes and his strong
jawline and brow gave him a distinguished look. He was wearing a
simple black suit and his tie matched the color of Lisa's dress.
When Lisa came into view, Rick's words stuck in
his throat. All he could do was stare at her. A few more seconds
passed then Vanessa decided to speak up, "Well Rick, what do you think?
Doesn't Lisa look gorgeous?!"
Rick still couldn't speak and could only nod as
he continued to stare at Lisa intently. The Trio looked at each other,
and Kim decided to get things moving more quickly by saying, "Ok, now Lisa,
you and Rick stand next to each other so I can take a picture, then you
guys can start on dinner."
Rick shook out of his stupor and held out his arm
for Lisa to take hold of and Kim moved them both over to where she wanted
them. She snapped a couple of shots then stood back to let Vanessa
and Sammie usher the couple over to their table.
Rick held out the chair for Lisa and she beamed
at him as she thanked him. Rick still hadn't said a word yet and
kept staring at Lisa even though Vanessa had handed him a menu. She
bent down to whisper in his ear, "Say something, or you'll make Lisa nervous!"
Rick sat up straight and looked around nervously.
Lisa was busy looking over the menu as Rick tugged on his tie then said,
"Uh...I...I hope you like French food."
Vanessa slapped her hand over her eyes and quickly
made her way to the kitchen. Sammie was busy fixing plates and asked,
"So what did they order?"
"They haven't ordered yet."
"Oh ok, well, how's it going so far," asked Sammie.
Vanessa snorted, "It's going, I suppose. They
both seem very nervous and Rick has started off as his old awkward self."
"Don't worry, give them a few minutes to warm up
and get rid of their jitters," said Sammie, shaking a spatula as she talked.
"As a matter of fact, I quite like French food, except
for the snails," said Lisa in a cheerful tone.
Rick barked a laugh and replied, "Yeah, I can't
imagine ordering escargot. I always have this bad feeling that if
I try one, the little snail will poke his head out of shell, 'Don't eat
me! Don't eat me!'"
The two had a good laugh at Rick's silly comment
and it helped them to get over some of their initial nervousness.
Vanessa came back into the room and asked them if
they were ready to order. Rick had picked up 5 orders from the restaurant,
each one a different entree. Sammie had the idea to print up menus
so that way Lisa and Rick could pick what they wanted to eat, then the
other 3 would go to the Trio.
Rick and Lisa gave Vanessa their orders and then
Lisa asked, "What are we having to drink?"
Rick and Vanessa kept quiet for a moment then Rick
asked nervously, "Uh...what...what did you feel like drinking."
Vanessa waited anxiously for Lisa's reply.
Lisa looked at both of them and a sly smile spread
across her face, "Well...you can't eat French food without wine."
"Oh..." said Rick cautiously.
Lisa waited, wondering why Rick and Vanessa seemed
so hesitant, and added, "Just a little bit anyways."
"Uh...ok, right. Uh, Vanessa, just a little
bit," ordered Rick.
Vanessa shook her head slowly, "Ok, wine.
Yes, just a little bit. I'll be right back."
Vanessa came through the door quickly and Sammie
asked again, "Did they order yet?"
Vanessa didn't say anything but put the piece of
paper down in front of Sammie and then turned to her and said suddenly,
"Lisa's asked for wine."
Sammie looked at her blankly, "Well, you can't have
french food and not have wine, I mean-"
Vanessa stamped her foot, "Sammie!"
"Oh! Right. Well, I guess she should
be ok shouldn't she? Just as long as she doesn't drink too much,"
reasoned Sammie.
Vanessa sighed, "I suppose not, but what if she
wants another glass?"
Sammie looked around, "Well, we could empty out
most of the bottle so that way if she asks for more, there won't be anymore
for her to drink."
"Good idea! But wait. The one bottle
we have is an expensive bottle, I hate the idea of having to throw it out."
Sammie thought for a moment, "Well, there's the
three of us, maybe we can drink some of it."
Vanessa nodded and pulled the bottle out from the
refrigerator. Sammie stopped her before she could pop the cork, "Wait,
not yet! Wait until after you eat or you'll get stupid again."
Vanessa rolled her eyes, "I know Sammie. I've
gotta pour a glass for Rick and Lisa don't I??"
"Alright alright, don't get so snippy," retorted
Sammie.
Rick was shaking his foot nervously, the word association
of Lisa and wine had him worried, but as they continued to sit in silence,
Rick tried to shake off his nerves and said, "You...you look very beautiful
this evening Lisa."
Lisa looked at him and started to say, "Do you-,"
then remembered that she was suppose to be confident, not timid, and so
she finished, "Thank you Rick."
Rick smiled at her and she felt her heart beat a
little bit faster but managed to add, "You look very handsome."
Lisa looked around the room and said, "This is very
nice Rick, thank you. I hadn't expected such a homecoming."
Rick answered, "I'm glad you like it. Sammie
and Vanessa have really worked hard."
"Those girls, I don't know what I'd do without the
three of them," said Lisa seriously.
Rick nodded in agreement, "I know what you mean."
Unbeknownst to Rick and Lisa, Kim had been standing
on the stairway for a few seconds, on her way back down to snap pictures,
and had heard their mentioning of the Trio. She smiled and tried
to keep herself from getting teary-eyed. She was relieved when she
heard Sammie and Vanessa re-enter the room.
"Dinner is served madam, monsieur," announced Sammie,
trying to put on a fake french accent. Vanessa placed Lisa plate
in front of her and Sammie did likewise with Rick. Then Vanessa went
back to the kitchen and soon returned with the glasses or red wine, placing
the full glass in front of Rick and the half filled glass in front of Lisa.
Kim snapped a few pictures as Vanessa said, "Now,
remember if you need anything else, Rick you know how to get a hold of
us, just like we had planned it."
Kim followed Sammie and Vanessa into the kitchen
and each of them chose a plate and put it on a tray. Sammie put a
wine glass on each tray and then filled each glass nearly up to the brim
and put the bottle back on the counter, then the Trio made their way out
of the kitchen and quickly through the living room and back up the stairs
to their room.
Rick and Lisa ate their dinner in relative silence,
only inquiring how each found their dinner and stealing forkfuls of food
from each others plates. When they were finished eating, Rick had
been instructed by Sammie to call she and Vanessa on their cellphones and
then they would come down and clear away the plates. Rick didn't
want to disturb their dinner so he got up and cleared away the dishes himself.
He was about to take away the glasses when Lisa picked up hers and took
a sip. He noticed that it was still over a quarter full and was silently
glad that that was all she had drunk so far.
Rick took his seat and then said, "I...hope you
aren't too tired for a little dancing."
Lisa's eyes lit up. She hadn't danced for
years, and in her daydreams she had imagined herself dancing with Rick.
Now it was about to become a reality. "No, I'm not tired at all.
I'd love to dance. It's been so long..."
Rick grinned at her, "Great, we will dance in a
few minutes. Right now I just want to sit here and stare at you.
You look so beautiful." Lisa blushed slightly.
Rick thought to ask her how her trip went, but then
he decided he didn't want to discuss work at the moment, so he continued
on what he had said previously, "You're so beautiful. I...I always
thought you were beautiful, from the very beginning."
Lisa gave him surprised look and Rick recalled,
"Do you remember when we were on Dolza's ship, and we had fallen into that
resevoir, and I told you that I thought you were a beautiful woman?"
"Yes, I remember."
"Well Lisa, I meant it."
Lisa gave him a bashful look then said, "I've always...thought
you were very handsome. I like the way you look in your flight suit,"
she finished quickly. They both were surprised at her words and blushed.
Lisa suddenly felt a surge of confidence and pressed
on, "It's not just the physical attraction Rick. I...you're a good
man. You're caring and sensitive and strong and you follow your conscious
instead of the rulebook and you taught me how to treat people as people
again, not as someone to give orders to or take orders from."
Rick looked at her and couldn't come up with any
words in reply. He felt the sting of guilt when she told him that
she thought he was caring. He knew that for the past few years he
had been caring to mostly everyone else except her, yet here she was, telling
him that that was one of the traits she loved about him.
He felt the knot tight in his throat and so he stood
up and held out his hand for Lisa to take hold of then walked over to turn
on the music and walked back to middle of the room. Rick pulled Lisa
close to him and said in a hoarse whisper, "All the words I want to say...I...please
listen to these songs, it's all there."
Lisa hugged him, she could feel the guilt eminating
from him and understood that he was too emotional at the moment to say
very much. She herself was at a loss for words too, still trying
to realize that one of the many dreams that she had for herself and Rick
was finally coming true.
The music started with a calm piano introduction and then was joined by a male voice.
Ordinary, no
Really don't think so
Not a love this true
Common destiny
We were meant to be
Me and you
Like a perfect scene
From a movie screen
We're a dream come true
Suited perfectly
For eternity
Me and you
(2)
As the rest of the instruments chimed in, Rick held Lisa tighter.
Everyday, I need you even more
And the nighttime too
There's no way I could ever let you go
Even if I wanted to
(2)
As the song ended, neither of them had said a word
the entire time, but shuffled together, just content to be near each other.
Rick laughed quietly and said, "Do you know, Max
told me that one time Exedore told Miriya that you and I were made for
each other."
Lisa stopped and said in disbelief, "Are you serious?"
Rick laughed again and replied, "I'm telling the
absolute truth. And you know what? I totally agree with him."
Lisa looked into Rick's eyes and saw that he was
sincere and it prompted her to kiss him lightly on the lips.
Rick wore a large grin and pulled Lisa to him again
as he listened to the next song.
You put your heart up on a shelf
I know it's hard to be by yourself
You need someone that's true and strong
Baby someone just came along
(3)
I am that man
You're trying to find
I am that man
You had in mind
And I'll give you all my love
'Til you understand
I won't give up
'Cause I know
I am
(3)
The song helped Rick keep his confidence up and he
felt that he could make it through the rest of the evening without getting
too tongue-tied.
Rick nuzzled Lisa's hair then said, "I'm sorry I
never would allow myself to see how much you needed me, and...how much
I needed you. I guess, I guess I was scared to get too close because
I always thought that someone like me, would never have a chance with someone
like you. I suppose I clung to Minmei because we were alike, both
immature, bratty, and a bit arrogant.
Please don't think that I had never wanted to be
with you until now. You had haunted me off and on ever since we met
and even more so after we became friends. You know, I actually
had wanted to ask you to dinner, that time when you left for Alaska Base,
to try and get your father to negotiate with the Zentraedi. After
we had left Minmei's restaurant and after the skirmish, I had gotten off
duty and I had wanted to find you so I could ask you to dinner, but I was
so dead tired and it was so late and then, the next day, you were gone.
You don't know how empty I felt without you, and
I was too proud to admit it too. I can't believe I could be so stupid
to let it get to the point where it took you saying goodbye to make me
realize how much I loved you and needed you."
Rick drew an uneven breath and hung his head.
Lisa kissed him on the cheek and spoke in his ear, "Rick please don't do
this to yourself."
Her voice was so calm and soft and it's pleasant
tone made the hair on the back of his neck stand up, as it had often done
before, although he had never told her about it.
Lisa asked suddenly, "Do you have a song list?"
Rick, taken off guard momentarily, went to pickup
the list and came back and handed it to Lisa. She scanned it and
then asked, "Can you get Kim down here? I've got an errand for her."
Rick scratched his head and stammered, "Uh, yea
sure, hang on."
Moments later Kim bounded down the stairs and saluted
Lisa, "Yes Admiral, your wish is my command!"
Lisa grinned and then wrote something down on the
song list and said, "Get me this song please."
Kim looked at the piece of paper and then her eyes
lit up in recognition. She tapped the paper with her finger and said
loudly, "This is perfect! I'll be right back!"
Lisa winked at Rick, "I can play song tag too!"
Rick smiled and the couple waited patiently for
Kim to return. After 5 minutes they heard her come running down the
stairs. She held out the disc and said, "Here you go!" proudly. Then
she raised her arm and waved her hand, "Wait wait! Lemme get some
pictures!"
Rick and Lisa struck a few poses for Kim then she
thanked them and ran back upstairs.
Lisa started the song and then put her arms around
Rick's waist and rested her head on his shoulder as the vocals started.
Well I, I still can remember times
When the night seemed to surround me
I was sure the sun would never shine on me
And I, I thought it my destiny
To walk this world alone
But now you're here with me
Now you're here with me
And I don't regret the rain
Or the nights I felt the pain
Or the tears I had to cry
Some of those times along the way
Every road I had to take
Every time my heart would break
It was just something that I had to get through
To get me to you
To get me to you
(4)
As the song ended, Lisa couldn't stop the tears from
falling. She lifted her head up and looked at Rick and asked, "Do
you understand now Rick?" She could see tears in his eyes as well,
as he nodded firmly.
They held onto each other in silence for a few minutes
then Rick felt he had gotten his emotions under control and went to change
the mini-disc and went back to Lisa, wearing a devlish grin on his face.
"Uh oh. What's that wicked smile for?
You have something planned don't you?" said Lisa with a twinkle in
her eye.
Rick cocked his head to one side, "Quite possibly
my dear. You see, Sammie and Vanessa gave
me a crash course in dancing this afternoon and I intend to practice
what I've learned, and you're going to come with me! So, you better
kick off your shoes 'cause the pace is gonna pick up."
Lisa opened her mouth to reply her resistance but
Rick thought to add, "You're not chicken are you?"
Lisa's eyes went wide and she exclaimed, "Chicken?!
Who are you calling a chicken!? You'll see, I'll show you!
You won't be able to keep up with me!"
Rick smiled a satisfied grin. He knew that
challenging Lisa was the easiest way to get her to dance to something faster.
He watched as she tossed her shoes to the side and then ran back to player
to start the song.
"Come on! Show me what you got Admiral!" teased
Rick, as he took off his jacket and loosened his tie.
"You'll be sorry!" warned Lisa, smiling.
Baby, baby, baby, baby
Don't you know that you're so fine? (Yeah)
Baby, baby, baby, baby
I think about you all the time (Yeah)
I guess it's time to say baby, baby
How you make me feel when you come to mind
I can't keep my cool baby, baby
I can't hold it inside
I can't wait each day
Just to see you walk
Trying to move in close
To get to where you are
(5)
During the song, their little dance battle,
they watched each other. Lisa was amazed that Rick could move so
well, thinking that being cockpit bound most of his life would have had
an effect on him. The smile couldn't be wiped off Rick's face.
Lisa could see that he was absoulutely having a blast. Rick could
not recall Lisa ever being so loosened up. She was moving with fluidity
and grace and just the sheer enjoyment of the moment was something that
Rick could still not believe he was witnessing. Gone was the 'old
sourpuss' and in her place had grown a woman full of charm and sexiness
and it nearly drove him mad.
After the song was over they stood there resting
for a moment. Rick raised his eyebrows at Lisa, "Well, I must admit,
I'm impressed. Shall we call it a tie?"
Lisa holded her arms to her chest then shrugged
on shoulder, "Very well. That way you won't feel so bad about losing."
Rick growled and started tickling her. Lisa
tried to move away from him and ended up near the mini-disc player and
backed into it, causing the disc to skip a few tracks and then play.
The piano chords that started resonating from the speakers were ones that
Lisa knew by heart. Rick looked at Lisa and the smile disappeared
from his face as he saw the most intense look he had yet seen from her.
She pulled him over towards the middle of the room and they stared at each
other, barely moving.
Lisa knew how dangerous this song was for her.
But now that she had him with her, and knew that he was hers, she didn't
care, didn't feel inhibited. This song had been one that she never
stopped listening to, it had become a sort of theme song for her.
It had been the ultimate pinnacle of angst for her for so long and now
it could become the ultimate personification of hope and happiness.
There's so much life
I've left to live
And this fire's burning still
When I watch you look at me
I think I could find a way
To stand for every dream
And forsake this solid ground
And give up this fear within
Of what would happen if they end, you
I'm in love with you
(6)
Lisa wrapped her arms around Rick's neck and they moved more in step with the music.
'Cause I'd surrender everything
To feel the chance, to live again
I reach to you
I know you can feel it too
We'd make it through
A thousand dreams I still believe
I'd make you give them all to me
I'd hold you in my arms and never let go
I surrender
(6)
"I love you," whispered Lisa. Rick tightened his embraced and kissed her on the neck before saying, "I love you," in return.
A thousand dreams I still believe
I'll make you give them all to me
I'll hold you in my arms and never let go
I surrender
Every night gets longer
And this voice's getting stronger baby
I'll swallow my pride
And I'll be alive
Can't you hear my call?
I surrender all...
(6)
The singers voice was powerful and passionate and brought out every one of the emotions that Lisa was feeling at the moment. She cautiously began to kiss Rick on the neck but quickly moved to his lips as the vocals of the song sent shivers down her spine.
A thousand dreams I still believe
I'll make you give them all to me
I'll hold you in my arms and never let go
I surrender
(6)
Lisa couldn't control herself any longer and started kissing Rick so feverishly that they both sank to their knees.
Right here, right now (6)
Lisa tugged on Rick's tie and he quickly untied it and threw it off. Lisa's hands trembled as she started to undo the top buttons of Rick's shirt. He helped her by undoing a few buttons from the bottom up.
I'd give my life to live again
I'll break free
Take me, my everything
(6)
When all of Rick's buttons were undone, Lisa ran her hands over his bare chest and looked at him, worried that she had gone to far. He answered her by gently pushing her onto her back and continued the kiss that had been interrupted.
I surrender all to you
(Right now)
Right now
(I'd give my life to live again)
(6)
Lisa let the tears fall, she was too happy to try and contain them.
(I'd give my life to live again)
I'd give my life
(I'll break free, Take me)
Take me, take me
(my everything)
My everything
They were so wrapped up in each other that they hadn't
heard the doorbell ring until the song finally faded out.
Upstairs, the Trio heard the doorbell ring and tried
to figure out if they should answer it or not.
"Maybe Rick and Lisa left?" wondered Sammie.
"But what if they didn't," said Kim with raised
eyebrows.
The doorbell rang for a third time and the three
women looked at each other.
"Well," started Vanessa reluctantly, "I'll go stand
in the hallway and see if I can figure out if they're home still.
That way I won't be distubing them. If they are still here then we'll
just let the doorbell ring until Rick or Lisa answer it. If they
are gone then of course I'll answer it."
"Who would be visiting at a time like this?" asked
Sammie.
Kim shrugged and then hussled Vanessa out of the
room.
After the third ring, Rick sat up and said in an
annoyed tone, "I guess I better go answer it."
Lisa stood up and fixed her hair and smoothed out
her dress then followed Rick to the door. Rick, having forgotten
to button up his shirt, also forgot to check who was at the door first,
and swung it open.
"Hello Rick. I'm sorry, I know it's late but-"
Minmei stopped mid-sentence, noticing that Rick's shirt was unbuttoned.
Rick was startled at having forgotten to button his shirt before answering
the door and he quickly buttoned it up as Minmei walked inside.
Rick closed the door then froze as he saw Minmei
and Lisa looking at each other. He looked at Minmei and saw that
her lip was quivering a bit. He looked at Lisa and saw a completely
unreadable look.
After a couple of seconds of deafening silence,
Lisa gave Minmei a nod of acknowledgement and told Rick, "I'll be in the
kitchen." She turned and walked through the kitchen door, proud and
elegant.
Minmei watched Rick watch Lisa and felt her anger
grow. "I just came by to return some of your things. I was
unpacking and found them. I guess I had taken them home by mistake
when we were evacuating," she said slightly sternly.
"Thank you Minmei," said Rick flatly. He turned
around to go open the door for her but Minmei had made her way further
into the room. She looked around and then faced him and said sarcastically,
"Well, isn't this romantic. I hope I wasn't interrupting anything
Rick."
Vanessa ran upstairs to give her report to Sammie
and Kim. "S--t! S--t! S--T!!!"
Kim got up quickly, "What is it?"
"That...that..." sputtered Vanessa as she was pointing
towards the door. "That B--CH is here!"
Sammie wore a disgusted look, "What?! What the hell
is Antell doing here?!"
Vanessa threw up her hands in exasperation, "NO
NOT ANTELL, you idiot! MINMEI is here."
"WHAT?!! Damn her I'm going down there and-," yelled
Kim.
Vanessa put a restraining hand on Kim's shoulder.
"No! Don't get into the middle of it. Let's just hope she goes away
quickly and quietly."
Sammie, remembering the newspaper interview, speared
a finger at Vanessa and said angrily, "Since when does Minmei go away quickly
or quietly, you saw the interview!"
Vanessa backed away from her, "Ok ok. But
we shouldn't get involved."
Kim thought for a moment, then hobbled to her desk
and pulled out a tape recorder. She hobbled back to Vanessa and held
it out saying, "Here, go stand on the stairs and record what that twit
says."
Vanessa's mouth dropped open, "I can't do that!!"
"Why not?! Look, what if she turns around
and tells some lies to the newspaper reporters, or worse, what if she makes
up something and tells Lisa?? This way, we got her on tape and she
can't claim anything," retorted Kim.
Sammie grabbed the recorder from Kim and said, "Fine,
if Vanessa won't do it, I will."
"Wait! Alright, I'll do it, you stay here
Sammie," said Vanessa with resignation. Vanessa took the recorder
and quietly opened the door.
Lisa didn't know how to feel about Minmei's appearance. She had long resigned herself to the fact that she and Rick were cursed and would always have their happiness be interrupted at the most inopportune moments, by Minmei. Lisa kept reminding herself that it was she who Rick had been kissing just a few moments earlier, not Minmei. Lisa went to the refrigerator and looked around, found the bottle she was looking for, and pulled a glass from off the shelf then poured her glass full and took a drink.
"I hope you're having a good time tonight Rick,"
continued Minmei, in a bitter tone.
"I think you'd better leave Minmei," said Rick,
trying to control his temper.
Minmei turned around and replied arrogantly, "Why?
So you and your GIRLFRIEND can get back to what you were doing? What
were you doing anyways? I bet I know where you two were headed.
Anyone with eyes can see the look on her face. She wants you so bad
it's pathetic. Poor, desperate Lisa. I bet she's so desperate
that she'll lie down for you if you just snapped your fingers."
Rick grew livid and had to stop himself from slapping
Minmei across the face. He was so angry and he needed to show her
how angry he was that all he could think to do was pick up a glass from
the table and throw it against mantle. "YOU B---H!! HOW DARE YOU SAY THAT!
WHO THE F--K DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!!" shouted Rick.
Minmei was startled. She had never seen Rick
so angry before, not even at Lisa.
From the kitchen, Lisa had heard the glass shatter
and then Rick's shouting after that. She took another gulp of her
drink and laughed smuggly.
Minmei managed to get up her nerve and return, "Don't
try and fool anyone Rick. You're only with her out of guilt and pity."
Minmei saw the flames in Rick's eyes and cowered,
because she was sure that this time he would strike her. Instead,
Rick picked up a wooden chair and ran with it to the mantle and smashed
it against the the fireplace. He stormed back over to Minmei and
yelled, "DAMN YOU B---H!!! YOU DON'T KNOW S--T ABOUT MY RELATIONSHIP WITH
LISA!! YOU DON'T KNOW S--T ABOUT ANYTHING BECAUSE YOU'RE TOO WRAPPED
UP IN YOURSELF TO NOTICE ANYTHING ELSE IN THIS WORLD, YOU SELFISH, BRATTY
LITTLE...!!"
In the kitchen, Lisa had slid down to the floor
with her drink still in hand. The other hand she kept covered over
her mouth to keep from laughing hysterically. Rick was giving Minmei
hell, and Lisa was enjoying every minute of it.
Before Minmei could think of a reply, Rick, still
steaming, unleashed another verbal volley. "You think you know all
about my relationship, we'll you are WRONG!!! You know why I'm with
Lisa?? It's not out of pity or guilt, it's because I LOVE HER! She's
beautiful, brave, intelligent, she listens to me and has always been there
for me. She's got a witty sense of humor and she's noble and honest
and she's all the things YOU'RE NOT! So don't give me your bull---t
and don't you DARE ever put her down and don't you even QUESTION why I
love her! And you of all people, should be the last to open your
mouth. Did you think that I wouldn't hear about that interview you
gave. You LIED!! How dare you go around giving people the impression
we're going to get married, why don't you just tell them the f----ng truth!!"
Rick put his hands on his hips and lowered his voice
a bit as Minmei started to sniffle, "I believed you when we agreed we could
still be friends, and I was willing to continue to be friends of you, but
if you're going to keep pulling this s--t then you can forget about it!"
Minmei stared at him for a moment then crumpled
to her knees and started to cry, "I'm so sorry Rick! Please don't
hate me! Can't you see, everyone's abandoned me, I feel so alone.
I still love you! I'm so sorry, I didn't mean what I said, I was
just so angry and I'm so scared of being alone."
Rick resisted bending down to her and comforting
her. She had pulled this several times before and he had always fallen
for it, but not anymore.
Minmei stayed on the floor for a few moments, then
finally got up and wiped her eyes. "I'm sorry Rick, really I am.
I don't know what came over me. Please! Please tell me you
don't hate me, please tell me we can still be friends!"
Rick walked Minmei to the door and said flatly,
"I...I don't hate you Minmei, and we can still be friends."
Minmei wanted to hug him but she decided against
it and instead held his hand, "Thank you Rick. Again, I'm really
sorry I made you so angry. Please, if Lisa overheard anything I said,
please apologize to her for me."
"I'm sorry Minmei, I said some things just now that...it's
just, you made me so angry," apologized Rick.
Minmei shook her head and said, "It was my fault,
I'm sorry."
Rick closed the door and leaned against it to take
a deep breath and calm himself down. He walked through the kitchen
door and froze when found Lisa leaning against the far counter, with a
glass in her hand.
"Is she gone?" said Lisa with a smirk.
"Lisa, you...you shouldn't be drinking this," said
Rick anxiously as he walked up to her and took the glass.
Lisa looked at him as if he were crazy and laughed,
"Why not?"
"Uhh...because...it's not good for you."
Lisa furrowed her brows, "Not good for me?
But everyone says it's healthy."
"Well...they...they're wrong. Besides, you
already drank some earlier and that was enough."
Lisa narrowed her eyes, "I did not."
"Yes you did, now, you've had enough and I'm not
letting you drink anymore," said Rick, holding
steadfast.
Lisa shrugged, "Ok, if you say so, but I don't understand
why you're getting so bent out of shape, it's just cranberry juice for
goodness sakes."
Rick gave her a startled look and stammered, "Cran...cranberry
juice?" Then he smelled the glass and took a sip.
Lisa chuckled when she saw his look of recognition
and asked, "Yes, it's cranberry juice. What did you think it was?
Wine?"
Rick couldn't hide his expression fast enough and
Lisa felt a cold chill run from her head to her toes. Did he know
what happened during Christmas?
Rick saw Lisa's look of realization and scrambled
for a way to avoid the topic. "I...don't mind me, I'm just still
trying to cool off from my argument with Minmei."
When Lisa didn't come up with a reply, Rick took
her in his arms and said quietly, "I'm sorry. It seems that Minmei interrupted
us yet again."
Lisa sighed and absently played with Rick's hair.
"It's alright, I'm used to it by now."
"I wish that we could go somewhere where we wouldn't
be interrupted," mused Rick.
They remained silent for awhile then Rick pulled
back from Lisa a bit and winked at her, "I've got it! I hope you
still have your flight suit!"
Lisa, bewildered as to why she would need a flight
suit, told him that she still had one and Rick pulled her upstairs.
On the way to their room, Rick knocked on the Trio's door and told them
that he and Lisa were going out and didn't know when they'd be back.
They arrived at the airfield in a relatively short
amount of time, thanks to Rick's speeding, and hurried to the hanger.
The nightshift hanger officer greeted them and Rick told him that he and
Lisa were going out for an unplanned patrol, just to get away from things
for a little while. The hanger officer gave them no troubles at all
and radioed up to the flight officer that he had given them permission
to take off. The flight officer, hearing that it was both Lisa and
Rick who would be on patrol, raised her eyebrows and smiled and instructed
her technician to allow the Admiral and Captain free reign.
"I hope you've digested your dinner by now, 'cause
I've got a few tricks up my sleeve. Some old flying moves I haven't
tried in ages!" said Rick over his shoulder.
Lisa rolled her eyes and smiled and also made sure
her seat harness was secured, then sat back and waited for the acrobatics
to begin.
Rick did a climb a couple thousand feet up in the
air, then stalled the engines and nosedived. Lisa bit her tongue
to keep from screaming as they were only 300 feet off the ground but still
nosediving. Rick suddenly pulled up and hit his afterburners and
barrel-rolled a few times, leaving Lisa dizzy after it was over.
Rick looked in his mirror and saw that Lisa was trying to regain her sense
of balance after his little maneuver and decided he had put her through
enough for the moment, and also because he didn't want to catch the attention
of any Zentraedi lookouts that might be in the area.
"Are you ok back there?" asked Rick cheerfully.
"Yes, I'm fine," answered Lisa.
"Sure you are, I see your eyes dilating," teased
Rick.
Lisa laughed but didn't reply. Her attention
was transfixed by a field of flowers that had come into view. Rick
slowed down and brought the plane down in Gerwalk mode, then he helped
Lisa down from the co-pilot's seat and waited for her reaction.
"Rick, this is amazing, how did you know about this
place?"
"I had spotted it a few months back. There's
more flowers now then there were last time. I'm surprised they were
able to multiply, despite the cold weather. I guess that's a hopeful
sign, don't you think?"
"It sure is," said Lisa as she wandered around the
small field.
Rick followed a couple of paces behind her and said
quietly, "Maybe...this could be our picnic spot."
She turned around and looked at him for a moment,
both of them remembering what had happened the last time they tried to
go on a picnic.
Lisa saw the cloud hovering over Rick so she perked
up and latched onto his arm and said, "Then it's settled, this will be
OUR picnic spot."
A breeze blew in, making both of them shiver and
they walked back to the VT. Lisa was waiting for Rick to boost her
up into her seat when he announced, "I have an idea. You know how
to fly one of these things don't you?"
"But, but that was a long time ago," protested Lisa.
Rick jumped up into the co-pilot's seat and threw
the helmet down at her, "No excuses, come on, let's go."
"But...but..." stammered Lisa as she put on her
helmet and climbed into the pilots seat.
To Lisa's great relief, after an hour of flying,
she and Rick landed back at the airfield safe and sound. When they
climbed down from the plane, someone from the maintenance crew complimented
Lisa on her landing and asked her how come she didn't fly more often.
Rick looked on proudly as the men continued to compliment her, then he
took her hand and they headed for their car.
When Rick and Lisa were out of earshot, one crew
member remarked, "Well I'll be...did you ever think you'd see them together
finally?"
"I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it
with my own eyes!" said another.
Rick and Lisa arrived home around 3am and were happy
to be someplace where it was warm. They held each other's hand as
they trudged upstairs. Once in their room, Rick looked at Lisa and
said, "I can imagine you must be exhausted by now. I hope you had
a nice evening tonight, despite Minmei."
Lisa came over to him and wrapped her arms around
his waist, "I did have a pleasant evening, regardless of Minmei.
I actually got a kick out of you giving her a tongue-lashing."
Rick smiled tiredly and kissed Lisa on the forehead,
then walked over to the couch and started fixing his blankets.
Lisa hesitated for a moment then put a halting hand
on his arm, "Rick...why don't you, I mean, I wouldn't mind if you...would
you like to share the bed? There's a lot of room and it's more comfortable,
I don't mind."
Rick cleared his throat nervously, remembering how
passionate they had become just before Minmei interrupted them. He
looked at the bed, then at the couch, then at Lisa and saw that she was
waiting for his answer. He smiled and then picked up his pillow and
tossed it over to the bed.
Lisa went into the Trio's bathroom to change and
Rick changed in the room and then climbed under
his covers on his side of the bed and couldn't help feel a little bit
nervous as he waited for Lisa to return.
He heard the door open and then close quietly and
felt Lisa crawl under the covers beside him. He turned towards her
and touched her cheek and said softly, "I had a great time tonight. You
looked so beautiful. And then when we went for a midnight flight,
and all the ground crew guys were complimenting you, I was so proud."
Lisa smiled in the dark and leaned over to hug him.
"Thank you Rick, I had a wonderful evening tonight. Probably the most fun
I've had in years."
Rick held her tighter and said, "Don't worry, from
now on you'll have a lot of more days like this, minus Minmei of course,
if I have anything to say about it."
Rick rolled over and leaned on his back, preparing
to go to sleep, not trusting himself to hold onto her any longer.
Lisa gave him a quick kiss on the cheek then moved over more to her side
of the bed, not trusting herself either.
"Goodnight Rick."
"Goodnight Lisa."
=================
Author's notes:
You can find my notes here: http://www.geocities.com/sphersian/chapnotes.html
:)