Getting to Know You
Chapter Ten : My Eyes Adored You
Uhura
Her arms loaded with bags of groceries, Nyota punched the code into the pad beside the door of the party room she and her friends had rented. Going inside, she set the bags on the work counter at the left end of the room and looked around. This was a large, rectangular room, with the door in the middle of the wall that fronted the hall. The opposite side of the room was all windows that looked out over the bay, glittering in the sunlight. The end of the room where she stood was the kitchen, with work counters and appliances built in. Then there were two rectangular tables, with chairs spaced around them. The opposite end of the room contained a large fireplace, with real logs in a rack beside it. There were low couches, big soft chairs, and lots of floor pillows scattered about in front of it. The space between was empty, perfect for dancing or games. It was well worth the cost, they were going to have a great time today. She heard voices in the hall, and Gaila and several others came in, laden down with more food, cartons of beer and wine, and music disks. Time to get busy.
Spock
He stood uncertainly in front of his closet. Of course his uniform would not be appropriate. Captain Pike had cautioned him on more than one occasion about proper 'casual' dress. But what degree of 'casual' was this? They would be inside, so a heavy sweater would not be necessary to combat the cold, damp weather. Slacks, certainly. He chose a dark navy pair, adding matching socks from the dresser drawer. Black leather slip on shoes. A long-sleeved turtleneck pullover in the same navy as the slacks. Perhaps the light blue shirt over it? He would have to leave the collar unbuttoned to be comfortable over the turtleneck. Dressed, he stared at himself in the full-length mirror on the bathroom door. He had never before appreciated the reason for that mirror. Would she find his appearance acceptable? And why did that make him ... nervous? With a small sigh, he turned from the mirror and headed into the small kitchen of his quarters. She had said he did not need to bring anything, but he was sure that was not correct. His research into human customs had indicated that when a 'pot-luck' event occurred, all attendants were supposed to bring something consumable. He retrieved the bottle of chilled wine, setting it into the insulated container he had purchased the day before. From another shelf, he selected the container of marinated vegetables. With his contributions in hand, he exited his quarters and headed for the party rental center.
***
He stood in front of the door with the large number 16 in raised letters. He hesitated. From within he heard music and voices. She desired his presence. She wished him to experience this 'holiday'. For some reason she found it important, therefore he had come -- and he would go in. In a moment. From behind him he heard voices. Turning his head, he saw two of the technicians from the computer lab struggling down the hall under the weight of a large cylindrical metal object. A 'keg' he thought it was called. As he watched, it started to slip. Quickly darting forward, he caught it before they completely lost hold.
"Thanks, man!" The technician looked up and realized who the helper was. "Commander Spock, sir. Uh, thanks for helping us."
Spock shifted the weight of the 'keg' more fully onto his arm. "If you will take the items in my other hand, I will carry this."
The confused technician took the wine and vegetable containers and proceeded to the door, while Spock took the full weight of the keg and followed. The other technician darted ahead to tap the door plate. "Hey guys, where does this go?" he called out as he entered the room.
Spock heard a familiar voice answering. "Over there on that stool we set up next to the stack of cups on the counter." He carried the keg over to the designated spot and set it down. Turning, he retrieved his items from the other technician and carried them over to the refrigerator, opening it and sliding them inside. Turning back towards the room, he observed the activity going on. He was grateful to see that only about half of the occupants of the room were cadets. The remainder was a mixture of technicians and instructors. This was an acceptable activity then, he had had a few thoughts that he might be interfering in a cadet-only group, where he might not be as welcome by the others as he apparently was to Cadet Uhura. Sensing that his position might interfere with the work going on in the kitchen part of the room, he moved along the window wall towards the other side of the room.
Standing in the corner, hands behind his back, he studied the others in the room in curiosity. Two young women he did not recognize were setting out stacks of plates and piles of eating utensils at one end of the first table. Others were assembling dishes of both hot and cold foods and setting them down along one side of the table. Two men were moving the chairs away from that side of the table and placing them against the window wall. Nyota and her Orion roommate were in front of the oven with large fabric mittens on their hands, bent over and trying to manipulate a large object that was obviously causing them some problem. They were talking to each other, and kept changing their positions. They appeared very frustrated.
"Can someone help here? This thing is REALLY heavy, and it's HOT."
He crossed to her side. "What help do you need?"
She tilted her head up in surprise at hearing his voice. "Oh, I didn't realize you were here." A wide smile lit up her face. She pulled off the fabric mittens and handed them to him. "Could you please get the turkey out of the oven? Both of us together couldn't manage it."
He looked at the items in his hands. He didn't think they would fit, but he would try. Seeing his confusion, she took one of the padded mittens and held it open for him to slide his hand in. Surprisingly to him, his hand slid in comfortably. She held out the other and he slid his other hand in. Reaching down, he lifted the large pan out of the oven and set it down on top of the stove. Beside him, the Orion girl slid the hot rack back into the oven and closed the door. She lifted the lid off the pot and revealed an extremely large roasted bird. Someone passed him two large implements that looked like pitchforks with very short handles. What was he supposed to do with these?
Beside him, Nyota held out a large platter. "Lift the turkey out and set it on the platter so it can be carved. Just slide those prongs underneath from both sides and lift up."
Following her instructions, he easily lifted the roasted meat out and set in on the indicated platter, immediately moving one hand underneath as it began to dip.
"Oh, thanks, it's heavier that I thought it would be. Guess I should have expected that. Let's set it over here on the counter. Can you carve?"
Could he carve? He was uncertain what he should reply. Never having eaten meat in his life, he had no idea how a turkey should be prepared for serving. He looked at her sparkling face - if she wanted him to carve, he would carve. "I can only attempt it if you will offer instruction."
"Okay, here's the knife." A long serrated blade appeared in her hand, handle towards him. Removing the padded mittens from his hands and setting them and the large forks down on the counter, he accepted the knife.
"And here's the fork." A long handled fork with two large tines was presented to him next. "Use the fork to hold the bird still near where you're going to carve. Start with one of the legs. Cut off slices about a centimeter thick, parallel to the bones."
"I can cut them exactly one centimeter thick." It was very pleasant standing here next to her, helping her. That should be illogical, but it did not seem so. Her bubbling laughter was so appealing.
"It is not necessary to make them so exact - or all the same thickness. Just start cutting slices off. I'll get another platter." She walked down the counter a few paces, opened one of the cupboards, and drew out another oval platter, which she set down beside the one holding the turkey.
Carefully, he began to slice the meat. Although he did not eat meat himself and had not been exposed to it often on Vulcan, since coming to the StarFleet Academy, he was often in the presence of others eating meat. And of course, it was served at every meal in all the mess halls. So he was familiar with smell of roasted meat. However, he had never observed the texture up close before. It was interesting how the different layers of muscles reacted to the pull of the knife blade. Completely absorbed in this new experience, he did not notice how Nyota watched him, so was very surprised when she reached across and touched his wrist.
"You're going to get your shirt cuffs messed up. Here, let me fix them." He watched in fascination as she unbuttoned his shirt cuffs and turned them up twice, leaving the navy sleeves of the turtleneck exposed. At no time did her fingers touch his skin, and for some highly illogical reason that seemed like a great loss to him. Giving him a little pat on his arm after she finished the second one, she turned to the other side and began to carry other things to the table, leaving him to continue with the carving.
When he had finished with the second leg, he looked about for more instruction, but she had her head inside the refrigerator, passing dishes out to her Orion roommate and another young woman. He cocked his head to the side, appraising the bird before him.
From his other side, someone removed the platter containing the already sliced meat and replaced it with an empty one. "How about some of the breast now? Some of us really like the white meat."
He turned to see who was speaking. It was one of the technicians who had been carrying the keg in. "How should I proceed? This is the first occasion upon which I have attempted this 'carving'."
With a laugh, the young man pointed to the rounded side of the bird. "You're doing better at it than I would, for sure. Just start taking slices off there."
With great concentration, he began carving slices off the side of the bird. It quickly became apparent that the direction of the knife blade was of extreme importance. Drawn in the wrong direction, the meat tore instead of slicing smoothly. After a few experimental slices, he found the correct angle and began slicing neat layers of meat and laying them on the platter. Unexpectedly, there was a nice rhythm to the movements. In only a few moments, he realized that he had removed all the meat from one side of the bird.
"Hey, that's plenty to start with. You can stop now." She smiled at him as she retrieved the platter and set it on the table. "Did you bring those luscious looking marinated veggies?"
"Yes, I determined that, in contradiction to your instructions, it is traditional for each participant in a 'pot-luck' to bring something consumable, so I prepared a dish. I deduce that this was acceptable."
"Yes, unnecessary, but very nice. And if you brought that nice white wine, you could go ahead and open it and pour me a glass. The corkscrew is over by the fridge." With another blinding smile, she was off to pull on the padded mittens and open the oven again, removing a pan of small bread rolls.
He picked up the indicated corkscrew, retrieved the wine bottle from the refrigerator, and opened it. Looking about, he found a collection of wine glasses on the counter and poured out two glasses of the wine, setting the bottle back in the refrigerator. Turning around, he watched her set the bread on the table and turn back to him, taking one of the wine glasses from him, careful not to touch his fingers.
She sipped and let the wine settle across her tongue, concentrating. Then she smiled at him again, "oh, this is so nice. Let's fill up our plates and sit down and eat."
Following her to the end of the table, he watched what she did and copied her actions. He picked up a plate and eating utensils, nesting them between the fingers of the hand carrying his wine glass. That hand was getting full. With the other hand, he began to add food to his plate. There were both hot and cold vegetables, something that looked like a jelly of some sort, fruit salad, bread, and other items besides the meat. Not to mention a whole section of pies and other desserts. He took a small serving of almost everything on the table, except the sweets, until his plate, like everyone else's, was heaped full. Following Uhura away from the serving table into the other part of the room, he watched her sit her plate down on a small table and seat herself on one of the floor pillows. He was quick to follow her example.
All around them people were sitting down with their food, some on the floor, others in the chairs scattered about. A few people stuck to the end of the table that was not covered with serving dishes. Many small conversations sprung up around the room as people talked while they ate. The room hummed with satisfaction. He tasted everything on his plate. Some of the items were strange to him, others more pleasing. The dark red jelly in particular, with its sweet and tart flavor, was interesting. "What is this that I am eating?" He held out a small amount of the jelly on his fork.
"That's cranberry jelly. The cranberry is a small fruit, very tart. Do you like it? Some people don't - you don't have to finish it if it's too tart."
"I find it quite appealing. It is not anything that I have eaten before."
"Well, it's hard to find except at Thanksgiving and Christmas. It comes in cans and keeps quite a while though, if you wanted to stock up."
He considered this. It would make an excellent addition to his pantry. He did like to find new foods that were easy to prepare and this seemed to require no preparation at all, except chilling. When he realized that others were going back to the table for more food, he obtained a second helping.
When everyone had eaten so much that they could hold no more, the dishes were collected and piled into the dishwasher. Leftover food was sealed into containers and stored in the refrigerator for later in the evening. When the tables were cleared, Spock was amazed to realize that several hours had passed, but no one seemed to be leaving. Perhaps there was more to this holiday than just eating? Standing near the windows, in his customary stance with his hands behind his back, he watched the occupants of the room as they began other activities. His attention was caught when one of the other men in the room began unpacking a 3-D chess set.
"Anyone willing to give me a game?" The man called out, receiving a number of loud exclamations in return. It seemed no one was willing.
Spock tilted his head and thought. There were other types of games being played, and the man had requested an opponent. He looked towards the kitchen area where Cadet Uhura and her friends were still cleaning up. He walked over to the small table between two chairs where the chess board was set up and introduced himself.
Uhura
When the kitchen was clean, she turned around to locate Commander Spock. There he was, playing chess. He appeared to be enjoying himself. In fact, he had appeared to enjoy the whole day, even though he had been quiet and restrained, as usual. She was glad she had invited him. She looked out the windows, where the sun was setting over the water, turning it to bronze. This was certainly a nice place to have a party.
Seeing that someone had found a view screen and tuned in the sports channel, she wandered over to the group seated there to check on the status of the day's games.
***
Growing tired of the sports, she rose and looked around the room. Commander Spock was still playing chess. His opponent did not look like the game was going the way he had anticipated. That man had won so many matches that hardly anyone would play with him any more. He certainly wasn't used to losing. She wandered over, standing behind Commander Spock's shoulder to observe the game board. Oh, Commander Spock was winning, there was no doubt of that. Lieutenant Jervis only had three pieces left on the board, while Commander Spock had only lost two pieces. The game would be over soon. She stood there watching as one elegant hand reached out to move one of his pieces.
"I believe that is checkmate, Lieutenant. It has been a pleasurable game." Spock rose from his chair and turned toward her. He looked like he might be getting ready to leave and for some reason she did not want that to happen. Before he could open his mouth, she opened hers.
"If you have finished your game, perhaps you could help me with something, Commander?" Think quick, Nyota, what was there that you could need him to do? Over his shoulder she saw the fireplace, still empty. Great! "No one has built a fire yet and it would be so nice to have one. Do you know how to build a fire?"
Spock looked at the cadet. She had such a pleading look on her face. Apparently she did not know how to build a fire, which was something he had done many times. It was certainly not something that would present any problem for him. He followed her over to the fireplace and began to assemble the logs in a way that would create a good draft, explaining each step in the process as he went.
Nyota watched in fascination as Commander Spock taught her how to build a fire, something which in actuality she had done many times. Several others drifted over to watch the flames start and settled down on the pillows in front of the small blaze. She settled down herself, and pulled another pillow over next to her. When Commander Spock finished with the fire, she patted the second pillow and, after a moment's hesitation, he sat down beside her, folding his legs into a neat form that told her that he sat this way often. He did not seem to be completely comfortable, though. His back was ramrod straight. Searching for a way to get him to relax, she had a brilliant idea. She began to repeat his fire-building instructions back to him in the language they had been practicing in for the past several weeks. After she had finished, she went on to another language. Eventually, she realized that they had been conversing in at least eight languages for over two hours and people were starting to break away and leave. It had been such a lovely day, she really didn't want it to end. Sighing, she rose and gathered up the food she was taking back to her dorm room. She handed the Commander his empty vegetable container and the insulated container he had brought the wine in. The wine had long since been finished. As she handed him the container, she looked into his eyes. There was something there that she had not seen before, but she wasn't sure what it was.
"I shall walk you home, cadet. It is quite dark outside."
Suddenly the evening had a perfect ending.