Lister met up with Alex again several times over the following weeks, to go the cinema or have a drink, or just generally hang out. They got on so well and had so much in common that Lister felt it was a shame they'd not met sooner. He thought about how much easier things might have been if he'd had someone like him to talk to after the crew got wiped out, instead of Rimmer. Maybe he wouldn't have had to feel so alone all that time...
When Friday night rolled around, he got back to his quarters to find Rimmer and the others waiting for him. "Hi, guys," he said amiably, "What's up?"
"Don't you remember, bud?" Cat asked impatiently, "We're all meant to be going to see that vintage movie they're showing. That one about the toys with the really old computer graphics!"
"Oh!" Lister bit his lip. He did remember Kriss saying something, but he hadn't really registered it at the time. "Sorry, guys. I'd love to come with you, but I promised Alex last week that I'd go over and watch the game with him."
Rimmer made a disgusted noise, "Haven't you seen enough of that git recently?"
"He's not a git!" Lister snapped, "And you'd be a fine one to talk, even if he was. Anyway, I promised."
"Rimmer's got a point, Dave," Kriss said gently, "We've hardly seen you recently;" she looked a little uncomfortable, "And...well...it feels odd not having you around."
"Yeah," the Cat chimed in, "It's thrown the whole group all out of sync! Especially me! Cats don't like change! Everything smells all wrong when you're not with us!" Kryten patted him soothingly on the back, and looked up at Lister, "I am inclined to agree, sir. It would be nice for us all to spend the evening together. And after all, it is just one football game."
Lister faced the group with a slightly pleading expression, "Look, guys, I'm sorry if you feel like I've been ignoring you, and I know it feels sort of weird for me to be spending so much time with someone who's...well, someone outside of us; but I don't think you understand why I need this."
"You need to watch the football?" Rimmer asked with disdain.
"It's not the football, that's important, you gimboid," Lister said, frustrated.
"Well, what is it then?"
"It's having a friend!"
"But we're your friends."
"A normal friend!" Lister burst out. The others stared at him, confused and slightly affronted. He sighed and carried on; trying to explain.
"It's like this," he said. "You guys...You're like my family and I love you, but there's something missing in my life. I don't think you understand quite what it means to me to have this kind of friendship with someone after all this time. Just a nice, normal, guy friendship. Someone who I can watch the footie with without them commenting on how well the kits are tailored," he looked at the Cat, "Or how difficult they must be to wash," he turned to Kryten, "Or what a moronic sport it is," Rimmer frowned uncomfortably, "Or having to stop and explain the rules every five minutes," Kriss looked down. "Someone who's never battled shape-shifters, or been erased from history, or heard of a white hole or dimension-jumping! Just somebody normal!"
The other members of the posse looked silently at their feet. "Do you see what I'm saying?" Lister asked softly, "This is the first chance I've had in six years to get away from all that. To just be me, Dave Lister, without all the crap of being the last human alive or an intrepid space adventurer. This is my chance to be the person I could have been without all that. And as much as I care about you guys, and wouldn't change what we've shared for anything, I would really like that chance. So, please, don't make this so hard for me."
Kriss, Kryten and the Cat murmured soft apologies. Rimmer folded his arms and looked away. "Come on, man," Lister prodded, "I'm not ditching you! I just need a little time with other people now and then."
"Look, you just do whatever you like, Lister;" Rimmer said, standing up disgusted, "You've never let me hold you back before, so why should you start now?"
"Rimmer...!"
"Okay, okay!" Kriss held up her hands to quiet them, "Just calm down, both of you. How about this? Tomorrow night we'll all go out to the Jungle Club on E deck. Dave, you invite Alex along and maybe we can all get to know each other a little better. I think that would help to solve a lot."
"Okay," Lister said quietly, then looked over at Rimmer.
"Fine," he snapped, folding his arms.
It was a date.