Chapter Two
Straal could not believe what his friend and research partner was telling him. "You're leaving? After we fought so hard to get stationed together!" He shook his head incredulously, his mouth hanging open.
"We can continue our work remotely," Paul insisted. "There's so much we can do without being in the same room."
Paul's plan had gone off without a hitch. The Yamato indeed had been eager to fill more than one engineering position, Stamets' work was impeccable, and his current boss – eager to get rid of him – wrote a glowing recommendation. The transfer would be completed in a matter of weeks; Stamets would board a shuttle headed for Starbase 7, at which the Yamato would restock shortly after.
Straal's face was flushed from a combination of anger and disbelief. He
forced himself to take a few breaths. "Is this doctor really worth it? Isn't there somewhere else in the galaxy you can find a guy who's handsome and has the ability to put up with you?"
"Well so far I haven't been able to," Stamets admitted with a shrug and an embarrassed grin.
"Yeah, no wonder there. And you're never gonna change, are you? You suck, Paul. You make shitty decisions, you need to be in charge of everything, and once you have your mind made up, there's no stopping you." He paused, and then smiled. Straal, too, shared some of Hugh Culber's better traits. "Okay, I'm pissed at you and will hold this against you till I take my last breath, but I give you my blessing. Go get your doctor."
Paul lunged forward and hugged the best collaborator he'd ever had. "Thank you."
"And I hope this doctor is the most patient person ever created. I really do."
Messages exchanged between Paul and Tatsuko:
Paul - Are there any other single men on the Yamato who like other men? I hope I don't have competition already.
Tatsuko - Okay, I'm good but I'm not omniscient. I don't know.
Paul - Well see what you can find out. Also, is Hugh's ex still on the ship?
Tatsuko - I don't think he's going anywhere, but it's a really big ship so don't worry too much.
Paul- You know for sure that they're over?
Tatsuko - Yeah, it's been pretty big news.
Paul – What's his ex's name again? Something stupid like Finnigan, right?
Tatsuko – Phineas.
Paul - Does Hugh still like old movies and - painting? He likes to paint right? Or was it sculpting. Something artistic.
Tatsuko - Stop asking me and ask him, dumbass!
Paul's next step involved mapping out his approach. The paperwork was in and the transfer approved, but how and when to reach out to Hugh? Paul paced around his room as his roommates slept and snored. Options were brought forth, mulled over, and discarded. Hugh would remember Paul; that was not a concern. They had communicated a few times since graduation.
He decided upon a message, text-only to start with. A brief message with a photo. Not a nude photo though, no need to be that forward yet. He reached for his device and tapped, deleted, and re-tapped until satisfied.
"I'll be transferring to the Yamato. See you in about 6 weeks when she arrives at Starbase 7. Want to have a drink so I can hear what you've been up to?"
Simple, boom, don't re-read it too many times. Paul scrolled through and found a recent picture, cropped out the two crew members standing on either side of him, and sent it off to Hugh.
Then he waited. And waited some more, but the device was silent. Paul contemplated trying to sleep. He was due in the lab in five hours, but fatigue was not a concern when you loved your work (if not your boss) and when you were high on the possibility of getting what you wanted. He waited some more, then looked up the current time on the Yamato. It was the middle of the day shift. Well Hugh might be performing surgery, or perhaps he worked nights and was asleep now.
Beep. A reply to Paul's message.
"Paul! It's been too long. Wow, what a great surprise that you're transferring here! Let's have that drink for sure, you can tell me how your mushrooms are."
And a minute later, Hugh sent a pic as well. Also not naked, but he was wearing something other than his uniform. He was posed next to a painting, holding a drink, and smiling.
The next phase of the plan would involve a few messages and calls with Hugh over the next six weeks. Not too many, not too much. He needed to leave Hugh wanting more. But a few occasional check-ins would do the trick.
Paul knew he'd ultimately be successful. He just needed to wait the six weeks and be judicious with his messaging. It would all be worth it. In six weeks' time, he would talk to Hugh, listen to that gentle voice, touch those strong hands. And not too much longer before those luscious lips would be on his.
Two weeks to go now until the Yamato would reach Starbase 7. Time passed at an interminable rate, but Paul survived it by working. He had his lab, he had his mushrooms, and his current boss was slightly less odious now that she knew he was leaving.
When Paul reached his room at the end of his shift, he did as he always did: picked up his device. Tatsuko had left a message.
"Bad news. I think Hugh and his ex are back together."
MORE SOON