Data stood in front of her door at 1800 hours on the dot, just as she had said. He was looking forward to seeing her outside their duties.

The doors opened and she stood in front of him, a pleased smile on her lips. She wore a black dress with a wide skirt which ended a little above her knees. The upper part had long sleeves, as tight as the fabric around her slender waist. Her hair was tied into a ponytail behind her left ear with a black band with a black rose attached and fell over the skin of her exposed shoulder. Her feet were clad in black four-inch boots and red tights.

"Hi, Data. It's nice to see you." She said and hugged him.

He rubbed her back lightly. "I too am pleased to see you, Rina."

"What do you have in mind, mon ami?"

Mon ami, my friend. He did not know why he was pleased to hear her calling him that. He looked her up and down. She was a quite pretty, young woman, even if he knew that her young appearance was an illusion, considering her real age. He did not mind, though. He appreciated her company and friendship too much to care.

"I have prepared a program on the holodeck." He held his arm out to her. "Shall we go?"

She smiled and hooked her arm through his. "We shall."

As they walked down the hall, a few people passed. He expected Rina to pull back, not many women had wished to be seen with him arm in arm in public, but she did not. Data even felt her fingers lightly caressing his upper arm.

"Are you ok?" she asked, concern visible in her eyes.

"Yes, I am only surprised that you kept holding my arm in front of others. Are you not afraid of gossip?"

She shrugged. "Not really. I, if you will excuse my choice of words for a moment, give a shit about what people think or say. If they want to talk about us, no one's stopping them." She lowered her eyes. "I can let go, if that's what you want." She started to pull back when he quickly laid his hand over hers.

"No. I do not want you to let go. I would not have offered you my arm if that was my wish."

She sighed with relieve. "I'm glad to hear that." And again she rested her hand in the crook of his arm, her fingers hardly noticeable stroking his biceps.

They reached the doors and stepped through. As the doors closed they stood on a meadow with the moon and the stars shining above. Data watched as Rina closed her eyes and breathed in the flowery scent of the warm summer night's air. When she reopened her eyes they were sparkling.

"Where are we?"

"I know you spent your youth in Bavaria, so I chose the botanic garden in Munich for our appointment."

He took her hand, led her to a blanket on the ground and sat down with her.

"You remember that? I put it in only one sentence out of thousands and you still know where I lived as a teenager?"

"I cannot forget. And you spent a great amount of time there. According to your record you attended a boarding school in Munich and after your excellent Abitur you studied law, philosophy and a few semesters psychology at LMU. Afterwards you worked a long time in Munich."

She blinked a couple of times and then shook her head, smiling. "You're amazing, you know that?"

He frowned. "Why do you think that?"

"Well, I babbled all the time and you never told me to shut up. You even listened to everything I said. I've never met a man who did that. For most of them I was just a girl who tended to talk too much."

"You are my friend. Of course I listen to you and I too was told that I – babble."

"No problem. I'm sure you have a lot in there to talk about." She tapped her index finger gently against his temple. "It would appear that we have something in common."

Data took her hand from his head, lightly stroking the back of it.

"You seem not to have any reservations to touch me."

Rina's cheeks turned red in something which Data knew was embarrassment.

"I'm sorry, I-I won't do it again i-if it bothers you."

She started to pull back but he held onto her hand firmly but not enough to hurt her.

"It does not. On the contrary, I appreciate your closeness to me very much."

She looked first at their hands then into his eyes. He saw a small smile creeping on her lips and felt her fingers closing around his hand, squeezing gently.

He returned her smile. She released him and stretched out on her back, her head resting on her crossed arms.

"What do we do now?"

He laid down next to her. "I do not know."

She looked up at the stars then raised her hand and pointed at a constellation, telling him the names of every star and the antic story behind it.

"…but maybe I should tell you something you don't already know."

"I do not mind. How do you know all that?"

"Latin class. I learned not only the language but Roman and Greek mythology as well, including stories about the stars."

They spent the whole evening like this, watching and talking about the stars.

When it was time to go, Rina stood up, stretching as she did.

Unfortunately the heels of her boots offered no hold on the uneven ground and she twisted her ankle and fell, landing on top of him.

"Are you alright?" He asked. Her startled yelp gave him quite a reason to worry.

"Yes," she groaned and lifted her head. Her eyes went wide as she found herself almost nose to nose with him and her leg between his. Her blush returned, this time in a deep scarlet color.

She rolled off him and sat up. "Pardon, I mean sorry. I …"

"It is alright, what about your ankle?"

She moved her foot and hissed with her face twisted in pain. "It hurts."

Data did not hesitate. He stood up, put one arm behind her knees and the other around her upper body and lifted her up. He felt two shaking arms going around his neck and her head on his shoulder.

He carried her to sickbay where Dr. Crusher immediately ran a tricorder over Rina's right leg.

"You have a torn ligament and a crushed joint capsule. I'll give you something for the pain."

The doctor went to work. After five minutes she was finished.

"Spare it for a while. That means flat shoes for at least one week. Have an eye on this, Data. You're free to leave."

Rina slid down from the bed. Data helped her to her quarters. She turned to face him.

"Thanks for walking me home. You're really sweet."

"Thank you and you are welcome. How do you feel?"

"Better. It's too bad that you have to look down in order to look into my eyes."

"Our difference in height is no problem for me. Your size is appropriate for your figure."

She raised a brow with a smirk. "Did you just say that I'm attractive?"

"You are considered attractive by many men on board, including myself."

She smiled a small blush on her cheeks. "Thank you."

"You are welcome. If you will excuse me, I have to go on duty."

"Of course. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Good night and pleasant dreams."

He turned to go.

"Data!" He looked at her.

"Yes?"

She took the few steps towards him, stood on her tiptoes and tenderly kissed his cheek.

"Bonne nuit, mon ami." And she disappeared through her doors.

He stood there for a moment, baffled. He had not expected her to do that. It had been a pleasant experience.

"Hm." And he stepped into the lift with a tiny half smile on his face.