The final semester was finally over. Exams had been taken, papers turned in. All that was left was the uncomfortable wait. If Arietta's thesis was approved by her department, she would be permitted to graduate on time and join the crew of the Enterprise.
The upside was that she had an entire week to watch underclass cadets scurry, henpecked and sleep-deprived, to their final exams. A week to sleep in, walk along the waterfront, and unwind.
The downside was that, in a week's time, she might discover she needed to spend another whole year at the Academy. This meant that the time she might otherwise be spending relaxing, sleeping in, and walking along the waterfront was, in reality, spent pacing her dorm room, staring uncomfortably into space, and generally drinking herself into oblivion.
Arietta wasn't sure if she was more intimidated by the possibility of having to repeat her thesis, or serve on the Enterprise. None of her friends were coming with her. The fleet was still rebuilding after the incident with the Narada the previous year. Most of her friends would serve Earthbound, at least for the first few years, programming the computers that would run the next generation of starships. She would be thrust into an environment populated with a group of people who had already come to know and learned to trust one another.
One of whom she'd surely already offended, she reminded herself tersely.
It was a rare day with no clouds in San Francisco, and Arietta was perched on the edge of a bench overlooking the bay. She had spent so much time sitting and stewing in her dorm room that T'Lin, her roommate had, as exasperatedly as a Vulcan could, kicked her out.
A shadow momentarily obscured the rare sunshine that was settling on her shoulders, and she reflexively swiveled toward the source.
"Oh, not you…" The words escaped her before she could censor herself. Great.
"Good afternoon, Cadet Knight." He answered her without a beat. "May I join you?"
"I mean, considering you can probably already tell that there's a 100% probability of me saying something extraordinarily offensive, if you'd still like to, you're more than welcome." She sighed, training her eyes back on the bridge and trying not to flush crimson.
"If you would prefer to remain alone, I can certainly speak with you another time." He replied. Arietta noted that he had not moved from her patch of sunlight.
"No, please. It might take my mind off of… Everything."
Spock drifted to the other end of the bench and sat down. After gazing somewhat expectantly at Arietta for a moment, he blinked and directed his gaze in the direction of her own.
"I have always… admired the architecture of this planet." He said at length.
"I think I'll miss it." Arietta replied, dismissively.
"Many of your friends are remaining behind at the conclusion of this year."
"I have to soak up the sun now. I might not get another chance…" She drifted off. Finally, she turned to him.
"Did you… follow me out here? Or do we share a love of random wanderings in similar directions?"
"I am unsure of what you mean. I simply wished to… apologize."
"What on Earth do you have to apologize to me for?" Arietta looked at him as if the points of his ears had suddenly dropped off.
"I realize that my presence must have been most stressful for you at what can only be assumed to be an already stressful time. I did not wish to cause you such distress."
"Well… Thanks." She replied. "I mean… Thanks."
"It was probably an unwise strategy for me to attempt to catch you during study sessions, however I was unable to locate anyone who could tell me of any other activities you frequent on campus."
"That… paints me in a really unattractive light, thanks for pointing that out." She muttered darkly, turning her gaze back to the bridge.
"Perhaps I should leave…"
"No." She wheeled around. "Please? I'm sorry I'm so testy, I'm just… I'm waiting to hear back about my thesis, and I don't know if I'm gonna be stuck here for another year… Not that I don't want to be in such a beautiful place, but a whole year? And it's not like a commission on a ship like the Enterprise comes along every day… But that's intimidating too, like, who the hell thinks I have any business on the Enterprise?"
She fell silent, reflexively brushing a stray strand of hair from her face. Spock was watching her with what could only be described as the Vulcan equivalent of a smile, or the most neutral smirk in existence.
"I am certain you will perform admirably."
"It's not… It's not the performance part I'm worried about…" She trailed off.
"Does it intimidate you to be entering a situation in which you are unfamiliar with anyone?"
"I'm sure you're all great friends, I mean, you all could have DIED."
"I am not certain I follow you." He replied.
"Well, everyone had to learn quickly to rely on one another, and to adapt to differing personalities. I feel like I'm going to come in, and I'm just… not part of the club. Metaphorically speaking."
"Do not think of it in that way. After all, you do have at least one friend on board." At these words, he rose from the bench.
"What? Who?" Arietta screwed up her face. Again, he simply answered with that maddeningly indifferent smirk, turned, and began to walk away.
"Did… did you mean you?" Arietta jumped up from the bench. "Dammit… I'm SORRY!" She yelled after him as he strode away.