New VTs were arriving in a steady stream to the base and Rick was busy getting the pilots ready with his staff. Their proficiency was increasing with his guidance. Lisa, in the meantime, was busy preparing her teams in the operation of the SDF-3. She knew they couldn't be prepared for all possible scenarios but tried to be better prepared at best.
Rick returned home later than usual because he was trying to inspect the latest VTs with Max. He saw that the light was on at his place so deduced that Lisa was there. He quickly opened his door and was greeted by the aroma of freshly baked cookies.
"You're home," Lisa greeted from the kitchen. She had just finished the last batch of cookies that she had made. As usual, she made more than they could possibly eat by themselves.
"Are we babysitting again?" Rick wondered out loud.
"No, I just wanted to bake cookies," she explained. "Why don't you get ready for dinner?"
Rick jogged off into his bedroom to take a quick shower. He returned wearing the sweatshirt that Lisa have come to love. He thought about how surprised she was to see it when she opened her Christmas gift a month and a half ago.
\flashback\
"Rick, this is a little too big for me," Lisa said when she pulled it out of the gift box. She looked at the dark blue sweatshirt with 'I love my admiral' emblazoned on it. It was something that would fit Rick rather than her.
"That's because that's mine," Rick informed her.
"You gave me a gift that is for you?" she asked with a confused look.
"No," he explained. "Yours is still in the box."
Lisa had thought that the next tissue-wrapped item was the matching pants. When she lifted the paper off, she saw a red sweatshirt inside. She unfolded it and got a chuckle.
"See, I knew you'd like it," he said proudly. He pulled his sweatshirt over his head to wear.
"At least they aren't matching colors," she teased, putting her sweatshirt on. On hers, the words 'I'm the admiral' were stitched on the front.
\flashback\
"Rick," Lisa called out and brought Rick back into the present. "Come on, dinner's getting cold."
"What's the rush?"
"I need to catch the news today. Admiral Reinhart said he has a recruitment segment inserted for new VT pilots. I wanted to see it."
After dinner, Rick volunteered to clean up so she could catch the news. When he was done, he joined her on the couch. He tried to watch the news with her but eventually found her neck a more interesting form of entertainment.
"Rick, just a little while longer," Lisa requested. She wondered why the segment had not yet aired. She was starting to lose interest and Rick wasn't helping.
"You can keep watching," he told her. However, he knew exactly what his kisses were doing to her and hoped that she would yield to him.
Finally the segment ran and it was very brief that Lisa wasn't sure it made the impact that it was intended for. She was a little disappointed and wished that she had been more involved in its creation. She knew that she needed to work on it in the morning. She was about to turn off the TV when a familiar face came on.
"Rick, look," she said, trying to pull away from Rick's playful kisses. "It's Minmei."
Rick barely heard her because he was too drunk with Lisa's scent. All he wanted was to be with her.
"She's having a concert in Monument City," she continued. "Do you want to go?"
Rick continued to ignore her and only intensified his exploration of her neck and earlobe.
"Rick," she finally said sternly.
"What?" he said with half-closed eyes.
"Do you want to go to her concert?" she repeated. She quickly glanced at the songs and concert schedule shown on the ad and saw that Minmei had lined up new songs and a new singing partner.
Rick's reply was barely discernible because he resumed his sensual attack on her neck.
"Rick, I know it's short notice but I'm sure we can get tickets," she insisted. "It would be a nice break from the base for us."
"Stop distracting me," he finally said. "I'm glad Minmei has resumed her singing career but right now, I'm more interested in this pursuit." He showed her what he meant. He pulled her horizontally on the couch and started to explore her mouth with his.
Lisa responded instinctively to his assault and pulled off his sweatshirt over his head. She gasped when her back felt the cold leather couch when he did the same which prompted him to get up and gather her in his arms then moved them into his bedroom.
Rick was up early the following morning. He was already in uniform when a sleepy Lisa opened her eyes.
"What time is it?" she asked, trying to wipe away the sleep from her eyes.
"It's still early," he said and kissed her forehead. "I just needed to get to the base early today to finish up some things. Go back to bed."
"I am in bed," she reminded him.
"I meant go back to sleep," he corrected himself and leaned in to kiss her forehead.
Lisa didn't argue further and went back to sleep. When Rick's alarm clock rang, she got up with a start and leaned over his side to turn the annoying clock off. She got ready for work but not before checking on her present for Rick. She had carefully hid it in a drawer that she knew he hardly opens. She had thought of giving it to him the night before but got distracted. She smiled as she ran her fingers on the edge of the silver frame. It held the very first picture they had taken together as a couple. It was her Valentine's gift to him.
"Good morning Admiral Hayes," the lieutenant who was assigned to drive her around greeted her when he arrived.
"Good morning Jimmy," she greeted back. She had learned his name since the last time she asked him for a favor. He was a young man who was trying hard to grow a beard until she suggested that he looked better without it. He had taken her advice and has since stayed clean shaven.
"Happy Valentine's Admiral," Jimmy said shyly. "I hope Admiral Hunter has something special planned."
Lisa had no clue what Rick had in mind but was excited to see how the day would unfold. But she couldn't dwell long on that thought as Jimmy once again started talking about a girl named Jenny he was trying to impress. She smiled and gave him some pointers on how to make the day special for Jenny.
"Good morning Admiral," Cindy greeted her when she arrived at her office.
Lisa smiled sweetly and asked Cindy to follow her into the office to help her with the new recruitment ad that she wanted to use. She still couldn't believe that Admiral Reinhart had let the one that aired get through. It was completely vague.
"Oh my," Lisa said as she entered her office. Her desk was full of flowers of all colors and scents.
"Admiral Hunter had brought them in this morning," Cindy said from behind her. "I suggested the coffee table but he insisted we put them on your desk."
Lisa looked at the flowers and found the one that she was looking for in the middle of the floral arrangements. It was the flower from Exedore's plant. The other flowers seemed to lend all their colors to it. She had brought it back with them on their last excursion to Breetai's ship and carefully nurtured it in her quarters.
"I know all of the other flowers except that one," Cindy noted.
"It's exquisite isn't it?" Lisa asked, picking it up for a quick whiff of its scent. "Can you help me move the rest onto the coffee table?" She picked up on Rick's message regarding the various other flowers that surrounded the special one at the center.
Before long, even Cindy's table was surrounded by flowers because the coffee table ran out of space. The lone flower left on Lisa's desk was the one Rick brought from her quarters. The white flower with streaks of different colors proudly stood in its delicate vase.
Lisa and Cindy finished their work before lunch. It was then that Lisa decided to hunt for her beloved pilot.
"Louie," she greeted his aide. "Is Admiral Hunter at the hangar?" She could see from the open office door that he wasn't in.
"No Admiral Hayes," Louie replied. "He and Commander Sterling went to Monument City."
"Monument City?" she wondered out loud.
"Admiral Reinhart had requested them to instruct some pilots," he informed his superior officer.
Lisa knew that Rick and Max had been repeatedly requested to show the maneuver that won them the wargame but she hadn't expected them to pick that day to go. She was a bit upset that she wasn't informed but decided that it was Rick's prerogative and wouldn't question it.
"Admiral Hayes," Cindy said when she absent-mindedly walked back to her office. "I've cleared your afternoon schedule." She had hoped that this would allow her boss some needed break to go on a romantic getaway with Rick.
"Thanks," Lisa said, still deep in thoughts. "If you'd like to take the rest of the day off, you can go." She actually gave Cindy the rest of the day so she could be alone. She didn't feel like having Cindy hovering over her while she wondered why Rick had chosen that day to go to Monument City.
"Is there anything I can get for you?" Cindy offered as a parting shot. When she didn't get anything, she got ready to go.
Lisa stared at the phone on her desk. She picked it up to call Admiral Reinhart's office to locate Rick.
"Hello," the aide replied on the other end.
"Hello, this is Admiral Hayes," she spoke on her end. "Is Admiral Reinhart there?"
"Admiral Reinhart isn't here Admiral Hayes," the aide spoke loud enough that Admiral Edwards overheard.
Admiral Edwards approached and signaled the aide to hand him the phone.
"Admiral Hayes, Admiral Edwards here. How may I help you?" He had a wry smile on his face. "No, Admiral Hunter and Commander Sterling left hours ago. They should be back at your base by now. Are you unable to locate them?"
Lisa tried to keep her temper in check on the other end of the line. She politely thanked Admiral Edwards and ended the call.
Admiral Edwards handed the handset back to the aide with a smug look on his face. Then he ordered the aide to contact the hangar.
"Hello, this is Admiral Edwards," he identified himself. "Is Admiral Hunter's VT still there? Good." He wondered what sort of trouble Rick would be for not being back at base by now. He relished the idea that Rick might be in trouble with his commanding officer.
"Rick, this is the seventh store we've tried," Max said, rolling his eyes at Rick. He was glad that they had changed into civilian clothes because he was sure they would cause a stir in their uniforms. As it was, they practically ran from one store to another.
"If it takes all of them to find it, I'll go to each one," Rick said adamantly. He had dragged Max with him to search for the one thing he has had his mind set on getting on this trip to Monument City.
Do you even know what you're looking for?" Max asked. "I can't believe out of all those shiny things we've seen so far you haven't seen one that outshone everything else." He couldn't help joking at that moment. He knew what Rick intended but wondered how long it would take them since he was eager to get home to Miriya.
"I'll know when I see it," he assured his complaining companion. He talked to the jeweler and tried to convince him to show him the best of his rings.
"I have something in the back room that might interest you," the balding jeweler said. "Wait one moment."
Rick waited in eager anticipation for the jeweler to return with another tray of rings that were clearly prettier than those he had already seen. And then there it was, a solitary that indeed outshone everything else. His eyes were transfixed as he imagined it on Lisa's ring finger. He smiled like a fool and pointed to it like a child at a candy store.
"A good choice," the jeweler noted. "This is quite a flawless specimen." He pulled it out of the tray to show Rick and Max.
"How much is it?" Rick ventured to ask. His and Max's eyes widened as they saw the amount.
"Wow!" Max exclaimed. "That's one serious rock."
"I'll take it," Rick managed to say. He didn't care how much it was as long as he could have it.
"Whoa, are you sure Rick?" Max tried to be the voice of reason to Rick's seeming recklessness.
"It's the one I want to get her," he declared with certainty. He couldn't wait to see Lisa again as he waited for the jeweler to size the ring.
Lisa finally picked up the phone to call the hangar and check whether Rick had returned.
"No Admiral Hayes," the ground crew officer said. "Admiral Hunter hasn't returned yet."
"Can you please tell him to report to me as soon as he arrives?" Lisa asked, trying to maintain a level voice.
"Yes Admiral." The ground crew officer wondered why but didn't question his superior.
Lisa stared at the flower on her desk. Suddenly it didn't hold as much appeal as it did earlier. She wondered if it was because of her mood. She waited patiently in her office until dusk. She finally decided it was time for her to go home when Jimmy called her in her office.
When Jimmy had left her at the curb of her quarters, she contemplated on which place to go to. She didn't know how she decided to go into Rick's quarters. She just realized she was in his place when she noticed his sweatshirt on the couch when she neatly folded it that morning. She picked it up and inhaled the perfume she got him for Christmas from the fabric.
As if in a trance, Lisa sat on the couch and turned on the TV. She was greeted by a close-up of Minmei singing at her concert. She had forgotten that it was a televised event. She tried to watch for a few minutes before turning the TV off and reclining on the couch and hugging the sweatshirt.
"Admiral Hunter," the ground crew officer called his attention when he got off his VT. "Admiral Hayes asks that you meet her in her office immediately."
Rick saw the urgency in the man's eyes so he wondered if something was wrong.
"Are you going to give it to her in her office?" Max asked.
"I don't know," Rick answered his friend. "Why don't you go home to Miriya and I'll let you know in the morning how it went."
After a quick goodbye to Max, Rick hurried to Lisa's office. When he opened the door, it was dark inside. He turned on the lights and saw an empty room except for the flowers that he had given her. He looked for the special flower but couldn't find it. He deduced that she must have taken it home. His assumption was confirmed by Jimmy who asked where he had gotten it, hoping to get one for his Jenny.
"It's not something you can buy," Rick informed Jimmy. "It's a plant that we got from space. And for some reason it only blooms one flower each time."
"It's alright," Jimmy assured Rick. "I'm sure Admiral Hayes loves the flower. She held it close when I dropped her off a few hours ago."
Rick arrived at the same curb where Lisa was a few hours ago. He wondered why there was no light in either his or her place. He decided to go into hers with his key. When he didn't find her, he picked up the phone to try to locate her.