Taking a Breather

Posted on Tue 17th Sep, 2019 @ 6:00pm by Lieutenant Commander Dallas Briggs & Lieutenant Commander Kiara Lena

1,630 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: A Diplomatic Affair
Location: Various
Timeline: MD 10 2200 hours

Kiara had been so busy since arriving on Starbase 109 that she'd scarcely had any time to herself. But now she'd met all the consuls, ambassadors, and diplomats and attended the welcoming celebrations to the Besm Governor and her delegation. Now, she was looking for a little time to get lost on the station. It didn't take much, as she was still finding her way around.

Dallas had ended his shift this evening, doing almost a double shift and decided to look for something new today, but he didn’t want to do it by himself. He found the door to Commander Lena’s Quarters and rang the door chime.

She was surprised that someone would stop by. "Come in," she said, walking into the living room. She had changed into a pair of light brown slacks and a cream-colored blouse while she considered what she wanted to do for the evening.

When she saw Dallas she smiled, genuinely pleased to see him. She took both of his hands in hers and kissed him on the cheek. "Hello again. What can I do for you?"

Dallas smiled back at her happy and conflicted at the same time. He liked Kiara a lot and enjoyed being with her, but on the other hand, he loved Victoria or at least her ghost and he needed to talk to her about Kiara, but she hadn’t been around lately. Dallas had been feeling lonely today and perhaps that was why he wound up at Kiara’s door. “I don’t really know, maybe you could use some company for dinner?”

"I was going to go exploring," she admitted. "I would much prefer to have company." That wasn't exactly true. She would love to have Dallas' company. But as she'd just met him, she wasn't sure if she should admit that just yet. Or at all.

Dallas nodded, "I don't mind doing that."

"Then perhaps we could do a little exploring and then find someplace to have dinner?" Her day was looking a lot better now.

"And what did you have in mind for exploring?" Dallas asked.

"Apparently, there are a number of places I must visit. Tivoli Gardens, more shops on the promenade, some of the observation areas." She shook her head. "Is there someplace you would like to see?"

Dallas smiled, "Well Tivoli Gardens is huge so it would probably take months to see everything. Just focusing on that, there are trails and rivers, horses and boats, just to name a few." Dallas paused, "I really don't have an idea right now, I would prefer to let you choose something, more shopping if you like?"

She considered that and shook her head. "No. Why not find a trail for a walk? Or do you like boats?" she asked.

"We can check out the River Walk if you like, there's lots to do there," Dallas said.

She smiled. "Yes, let's do that. After, you can pick where we go for dinner."

Dallas smiled, "Okay then, we need to head down to deck 1554 for the River Walk, I hear there is lots to do there." Dallas was ready to go, he was ready to do something, anything with Kiara.

"Give me a minute." She slipped into a pair of comfortable walking shoes and returned. She smiled again, her heart doing a happy little dance because she was spending more time with the security officer. She slipped her hand through the crook of his arm. "Ready."

Dallas smiled back as the pair departed her quarters and walked out into the corridor. “So far, what do you find most appealing about the station?” He asked.

She laughed. She couldn't tell him. Could she? No. He wouldn't want to know. "The possibilities. There's so much going on here, I don't think I'll ever get to see it all."

“And what type of possibilities are you thinking of?” Dallas pressed on to see what she was getting at.

"Oh, I don't know," she prevaricated. "Places I might be of help, things I can learn. Anything can happen in a place like this. I could meet new friends, or fall in love. I might take some classes. Painting might be fun. The possibilities are boundless."

Dallas chuckled, “So I guess the possibilities are endless for you then” The two got on a tram that would take them almost halfway of their 40-minute journey.

Kiara watched the map to familiarize herself with the route. She still wanted to spend a day just riding the trams around. Or maybe just half a day.

When they arrived at their destination, she smiled. "The size of this station still amazes me."

Dallas took Kiara's hand and led her off the tram. The two began to walk along the river in the dark with the simulated starry night sky. Being so comfortable to hold her hand, he had forgotten that he was still holding it, but they continued to walk.

She was pleasantly surprised that he took her hand, but she didn't pull away. It felt nice and sent warm tingles up her arm. "How beautiful," she said softly, looking up at the stars.

Dallas watched her face as she enjoyed the sky and stars, "Yes, very beautiful." Was all he could say as he smiled.

There was something in the tone of his voice that made her turn and look at him. She caught her breath when her eyes met his and for what felt like an eternity she was unable to look away.

Dallas slowly leaned in and kissed her on the lips tenderly. His lips tingled at her touch and he didn't want to pull away, but he did. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that." He apologized softly.

"Why not?" she asked. "I rather hoped you would."

Dallas grinned, “You did?” He enjoyed the kiss but felt guilty. He felt that he betrayed Victoria in a way even though she was a ghost to him.

She smiled and gently caressed his cheek. "I did. I hope you do it again." Before he had a chance to respond, she turned and continued walking down the path.

Dallas quickly caught up and walked alongside her. “This is a very nice walk.”

"It is. I think I will have to come back here often." She glanced at Dallas. She would like to come back with him, but either way, she would enjoy the walk.

"What would you like to do next?" Dallas asked.

She thought for a minute as they continued walking. "Found somewhere else in the gardens to walk?"

"We could spend days just on this deck and not get to everything." Dallas said before adding, "But at night, we could always try and catch the river cruise on the steamboat."

Her eyes sparkled as she looked up at him, her excitement apparent. "Could we? I'd love to take a steamboat ride." She'd never been on one before. She'd seen pictures of them, but never actually been on one.

Dallas grinned at her excitement and nodded. "As long as we can catch it before it leaves. I don't know how long it will be until the one after that, but I don't guess it matters, does it."

"Well, let's see if we can catch this one," she said, holding out her hand to him.

As the couple got closer, they heard a loud whistle blow or was it many whistles, "Last call for the Delta Queen!"

"We'd better hurry, sounds like they are going to leave us." Dallas said as he began to walk much faster.

They picked up their pace and barely made it up the slipway before the gate closed. The whistle blew again, followed by the clang of a bell as the boat began to pull away from shore.

Kiara hugged Dallas, still slightly out of breath. She leaned back to smile at him. "We made it."

“Let's go up to the upper level and check out the view.” Dallas said as he took Kiara’s hand.

"Yes." The two found the stairs and climbed to the upper level, pleased that only a couple of people had chosen this particular view. "This is lovely," she said, looking around.

“Yes it is.” Dallas said as he too looked up at the simulated night sky that could not look any more perfect as it did right now. Without looking he took Kiara’s hand in his and smiled.

Kiara wasn't sure what she liked more, the sound of the paddlewheel on the water, the simulated night sky, the trees around them, or Dallas holding her hand. She finally concluded that she didn't have to choose. She leaned against him, enjoying the experience.

Dallas released Kiara’s hand only to put his arm around her and pull her closer. He was torn, he could verbally interact with his wife in which he dearly loved, but he wasn’t sure if that was enough. Deep down inside he knew that he needed the touch of a woman and also be able to touch her. He liked Kiara a lot and was now conflicted and had no idea what to do next. One thing was sure though, he couldn’t tell Kiara about Victoria’s ghost. The only thing he knew he could do right now was to enjoy the moment.

She was picking up on some of his conflicting emotions. She wanted to support him as he worked through his feelings for his wife and his desire to move on with his life because she had to admit to herself, she wanted to be there, waiting for him, when he was ready for another love. She slipped her arm around his waist and lay her head on his shoulder. For now, this was enough.

 

RSS Feed