I do not own the Orville or any of the characters, just borrowing them for a moment. I do own Amara, however.
Claire released Alara from Sick Bay after going over what she would need to do in order to provide proper nutrition for the baby. Despite Claire telling her to go straight to Captain Mercer regarding this before telling the father, Alara found that she needed to tell Gordon first.
She was worried about how he would react, what he would say. After all, they had never considered that she might have gotten pregnant that night. She already knew that no matter what, Gordon needed to know.
She reached his temp quarters and rang the bell to let him know that someone was there. Seconds later the door opened and Gordon stood there.
He looked surprised to see her there. His eyes were wide as he looked at her.
"Hey Gordon," she said with a smile. "May I come in?"
He looked indecisive, as unsure if he should. "I'm actually on my way out," he said firmly. Alara blinked at the tone from him. She didn't know why that tone bothered her, but it did.
"Oh...' she said confused. "I just..."
Gordon didn't wait to hear what else she had to say. Instead he gently moved her out of his way and walked away from her down the corridor.
Alara stood there in shock. Gordon had never walked away from her like this before, not once. She was so surprised that she stood there even after he turned the corner and disappeared. Gordon had never talked to her like this, treated her like this, as if she wasn't anything to him at all, not even a friend.
What the hell was going on with him?
Alara tried several times over the next few days trying to get Gordon alone so they could talk. He always had a convenient excuse or was rushing off somewhere. Mostly he just walked away without even acknowledging her.
It hurt, more than she had thought it should. They were just friends.
Maybe it was hormones.
She decided on her own, since getting Gordon to talk to her seemed to be a nearly impossible task, how she was going to handle her pregnancy. Of course that meant speaking to Ed.
She had yet to bring it up with him, but knew that she had to do so soon. Claire was already getting onto her for not doing it yet and threatened to do so herself. Alara had to assure her it would be done by the end of the day, which was rapidly approaching.
She arrived at Ed's office and rang the bell. She took a deep breath and then heard him call out "Enter."
She walked in ad stopped. Ed wasn't alone.
Gordon was standing next to Ed, looking at something on Ed's computer. He glanced up when she walked in but then immediately looked away. He was actively ignoring her.
"Am I interrupting something?" she said softly. "I can come back."
Ed smiled. "Not at all," he replied. He turned to Gordon. "We'll go over this some more later on," he said.
If Ed noticed Gordon was acting strangely, he said nothing. Gordon only nodded and quickly walked out of the room, brushing past Alara without a glance or a word. Alara ignored the pain at his rejection.
Ed gestured to the chair in front of him. "Please, have a seat."
Alara took a deep breath to push the pain from Gordon's quick exit from her body as she took a seat in front of Ed.
"Tell me what's on your mind," he said with a friendly tone.
"I'm afraid that I have some...news, sir. News that would make it impossible for me to do my job for the next year."
Ed's smile faded and he looked at Alara in seriousness. "Anything serious?"
Alara shook her head. "No...not particularly. Dr. Finn has requested this of me and, as ship's doctor, I am obligated to listen."
"Medical leave?" Ed said before leaning back in his chair. He seemed to really be confused on this as he looked at her. "Are you sick?"
Alara shook her head.
Ed leaned forward, his arms coming up to rest on the table, his hands intertwined. "I'm afraid I'm going to need a bit more information. If you aren't sick or..."
"I'm pregnant, sir."
Ed's eyes widened, his thought only half finished as Alara's words hit him. "Pregnant?" he said surprised. "As in...with child?"
Alara nodded. "Yes, sir."
Ed leaned back, his eyes still as wide as dinner plates. "That's so...surprising. I mean, congratulations."
Alara smiled. "Thanks," she said. "You are the first person, other than Dr. Finn, who knows."
Ed's eyes narrowed slightly. "You haven't told the father yet?"
Alara shook her head. "He has been avoiding me," she replied. "I don't know why."
"Who is the father?"
Alara debated telling Ed. He was her commanding officer and he would probably need to know that two of his senior officers were going to have a baby together, but at the same time, with everything going on with Gordon right now. She just didn't want to talk about it.
"Honestly sir, I would prefer to keep that to myself for now," she said firmly. "In fact, I would like to keep this whole conversation and my pregnancy a secret as well."
"I'm pretty sure that will be near impossible," Ed replied. "Most women, no matter the species, shows signs of pregnancy. People will notice."
"Not if I'm on Xelaya."
Ed blinked. "Your home planet?"
Alara nodded. "We are stopping at Starbase 239 soon to drop off Amara as well as pick up our next shipment of supplies. I'll leave with Amara and head to Xelaya from there. Amara was already thinking of going home for a visit anyways."
"I see," Ed said softly. "Of course, leave is granted. But Alara..." Ed stopped before letting out a deep breath. "I really think you should tell the father before you leave."
Alara had wanted to, tried to, dozens of times. She thought back to how Gordon had practically ignored her just now, rushing out of Ed's office as if she was a plague victim and he was afraid to get sick. As if she meant nothing to him at all, not even a crew mate. She shook her head.
"No," she said firmly. "I tried multiple times already and he has ignored me at ever turn. I'll try again when I return. Maybe then he'll be willing to listen."
Ed looked like he wanted to say more, ask more, but instead just smiled at her.
It was then Alara noticed that the entire time they had been together in this office alone not once had her heart thumped wildly in her chest like before, she hadn't gotten worried she would misspeak or that she would blurt out her feelings. It was like she was never in love with Ed in the first place.
"Promise me though," Ed said drawing Alara's mind back to the conversation. "You will return in one year."
Alara smiled, her first real smile in days. "Of course, sir," she replied.
They arrived at Starbase 239 only two days later. Alara continued to try and speak with Gordon, but he continued to ignore and avoid her. She knew that she wasn't going to be able to tell him before she left and leaving a letter was not her style.
This news needed a face to face conversation, a conversation Gordon seemed determined to avoid.
Amara had been surprised when Alara had told her that she would be traveling with her Xelaya, but had welcomed the company.
Alara still had told no one else of her pregnancy. She had sworn Ed and Claire to secrecy, but they weren't gossips so she had no worries.
She took her small back and walked down the corridors to the shuttle bay. Everyone she passed said good-bye. She had run into John in the bay as well. He was going to pilot the ship down to the starbase and load up the supplies. Amara was already on board, for once on time.
"Are you sure about leaving?" John said. Although everyone was aware of Alara's upcoming leave, no one knew why. Rumors flooded all areas of the ship from drug abuse to bored with the job. Surprisingly no one mentioned pregnancy as a possible reason.
"I'm sure," she replied. "I have to do this."
John nodded saying nothing more as he boarded the shuttle, even though he looked like he had more to say.
Alara looked around the bay one last time before getting on board herself. She took a seat next to Amara as John booted up the shuttle and flew it out of the bay.
On the bridge Gordon was forced to watch Alara fly away. He knew it wasn't forever. Everyone was aware the absence was for one year. 365 days without her here.
He was grateful for this separation. It allowed him to be himself rather than the unfeeling asshole he had been the last several days. Alara had come to talk with him, several times, and he never did listen to what she had to say. It wasn't going to be the words he wanted to hear the most from her and anything else would just hurt him. If he allowed himself just one more moment of time with her alone he would never let her go again.
This was for the best. His role as "teddy bear" was over.
"Why did she need the year off?" Kelly said once the shuttle had docked with the starbase.
That was the million dollar question. Alara had requested a year away from the Oville, a year that had been granted as well. And no one, except for Ed, knew why.
"She had...personal business to attend to," Ed said. Gordon could hear in Ed's tone that there was more to that story, much more.
"Seriously Ed," Kelly replied firmly. "Both you and Alara have been acting strange lately since this leave was approved. What the hell is going on?"
"Kelly, it was told to me in confidence. All will be revealed in a year, just wait it out."
Gordon heard Kelly let out a frustrated sigh, the same one he wanted to let out himself. Although he knew that he couldn't be at Alara's side, he still was worried about this. It was out of character for her. It only made him wonder what could have happened to make Alara want to get away.
Had she confessed to Ed?
Gordon's eyes widened as he pondered that thought. Kelly had said both of them were acting weird. Was it possible that Alara had confessed to Ed and he had rejected her feelings? Was she heartbroken? Was she hurting?
The thought of Alara in pain angered him so much that he almost stood up and punched Ed in the face. Instead he took a deep breath and calmed himself.
He couldn't punch Ed. First off, the man was his best friend. Secondly, Ed was his commanding officer. Thirdly, if it wasn't for Ed, Gordon wouldn't even be sitting in this chair at this moment.
Plus, he wasn't sure that was the reason she was leaving.
He would have to wait on Alara. Maybe, when she got back, his feelings wouldn't be as strong and he would be able to come to her as a friend and listen to her concerns. He would find out then whether or not Ed deserved to be knocked sideways for breaking Alara's heart or not.
For now, he would need to be patient, something he was rarely good at, and wait for Alara's return.
It was going to be a long year.