The Morning After

Posted on Wed 13th Mar, 2013 @ 12:57pm by Colonel Horatio Drake & Lieutenant JG Xavier Lee

1,860 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: http://sb109.sim-station.net/index.php/sim/missions/id/3
Location: Deck 600: Upper Promenade, Orchids & Jazz
Timeline: MD-04 - 0545 Hours

ON:

Drake had run out of scotch an hour ago and decided that he had better start his ritual of getting ready. In this day and age there were many immediate and complete remedies for a hangover... you could be completely drunk one minute and the next, completely sober. Drake, on the other hand, actually liked the hangovers. They reminded him that he had been drunk the night before and that he had experienced, at least a little, relief from his torment. It also reminded him that he could go back there tonight, if he so wished.

Over the past year and a half he had needed to become an expert in hiding the fact that he drank. Firstly from his friends and family, then from Counsellors and lastly from his colleagues in Starfleet. He had slowly compiled a ritual to go through every morning... by the end of it, not even a doctor could tell he had been drinking.

Presently he walked quickly into Orchids & Jazz, the place filled with the smells of a hundred freshly ground coffees and the like. His exterior was fresh and exuberant... on the inside he felt like shit.

Marching up to the almost empty bar, he recognised Serena from his last visit with Paul - their dinner had been interrupted by the discovery of Section 49 Alpha. In fact... that had only been the evening before.

"Morning!" He had forgotten her name but didn't want to let on.

"Oh, good morning, Colonel," Serena said, looking up. "You're a few minutes early, but I imagine Ms Lantz won't mind if I serve you. Ready for a cup of O&J special Blend, or are you looking for something more exotic? Perhaps an Irish Kiss?"

The mere mention of the word 'Irish', perked Drake's attention - it was just what he was looking for. His excitement was short lived, however... could the station commander be ordering an alcoholic drink, at this time in the morning, regardless of the small amount of actual alcohol? Perhaps it was synthahol? He decided to give it a go regardless. His mood was rapidly declining, as it usually did after a night thinking about Patrick. He would do what he usually did... take it out on Starfleet personnel, not on civilians.

"Ah, an Irish Kiss sounds interesting! May I ask what's in it?" He asked, playing the naive card.

"What's supposed to be in it is a secret, but I'll tell you that what we actually put in it is synthahol. If you want the real thing, I'll make it that way, but Ms Lantz would take a layer of skin off me if I told you the ingredients. Let's just say they're very ... Irish," she winked at him.

Xavier had been sleeping for just over an hour when the nightmares had pulled him back to reality. He woke with a start, cold sweat glistening his forehead. At first he couldn't work out why he was naked on the floor, but then the heavy breathing of Giellun brought it all back to him and he smiled, at least something good had come out of the last day.

Xavier felt stiff and uncomfortable, the floor was no place to sleep, and he now knew that sleep was impossible so he decided to start the day early, not that the day ahead was going to bring anything but misery. He had a quick sonic shower and pulled on a fresh uniform. He left his quarters without waking his boyfriend, he did leave a note as Giellun would only worry about him. Xavier started heading towards his office but decided against it, he needed food and coffee, lots and lots of coffee. He made his way instead to Orchid & Jazz, the ambiance of the quaint old-school hangout was exactly what he needed right now.

As he walked in he expected to find the place deserted, alas he was wrong, but pleasantly so. Colonel Drake was propping up the bar, being served by the bartender who had quite possibly saved his relationship with Gil. Xavier strolled over, wondering if this was an appropriate time of the morning for idle chit chat. "Can't you sleep either?" Xavier asked Drake, probably a little too casually for the station's commanding officer.

He smiled at Xavier, the officer had proved himself twice in the past day alone, he had earned the right to be informal at this unholy hour. That and the fact that Drake couldn't give a damn about that sort of stuff anymore. "No" he replied, simply enough... not sure if there was any need to elaborate. He would, naturally presume, that Section 49 Alpha was the cause of his unrest. Of course, he would be wrong.

Serena nodded at the new comer. She recognized him, but didn't know if he wanted to be recognized, so she'd wait for a clue from him. Sooner or later, she'd have an opportunity to ask him how things worked out for him, and in front of the base commander was probably not the best time. "Looks like two night owls needing a cuppa Java this morning. What can I get for you, Lieutenant?"

Xavier looked up at the woman he had come to admire. "Just a strong cup of coffee and a toasted bagel please," he said as his stomach grumbled. "With some scrambled eggs."

"Coffee first, and I'll have breakfast for you shortly." Serena turned to the Colonel as she shot the eggs and bagel order back to the chef's PADD in the kitchen. "Could I interest you in that orange juice and some breakfast now?"

"Oh no breakfast for me, but I'll take you up on the orange juice... as Irish as possible please!" He hoped the server was using the term orange juice for his alcoholic coffee, or else there was going to be a Hell of a confusion going on. Should he have made it so obvious that he was ordering alcohol in front of a subordinate? The woman behind the bar seemed clued up... she would have probably got a more subtle hint? The truth was that he didn't care... just simply no longer cared about that sort of thing.

Serena made two coffees, one a Irish as possible, and refused to speculate about the Colonel, as she had not overtly recognized the lieutenant. One thing she had learned, from years of managing Orchids & Jazz with Jade, was that people were entitled to privacy, no matter what she learned about them. She had become adept at disciplining her mind not to form opinions or judge anyone based on the one side she saw in the restaurant.

"Here you are, gentlemen," she said, smiling and setting down two cups. "I'll get right on that breakfast, Lieutenant. And Colonel, if you really want orange juice, I have some freshly squeezed this morning from a blend of navel oranges and raspberry oranges from Sevastra. Of course, Lieutenant, you can have some, too, if you like."

"I'll stick with coffee thank you," Xavier said as he eyed Drake's drink suspiciously. He was certain it wasn't just coffee in the cup but could he really blame the Colonel? If he could stomach it, he would love a drink right now, the problem was would he stop? "And thank you for your advice the other day, it seemed to do the trick."

Serena smiled at him, her eyes sparkling for a moment, before she went to get his breakfast from the chef.

Jade walked in promptly at 0600 hours and saw that there were already two customers being served by Serena. She locked the sliding doors in open position, knowing that within ten minutes, there would be a line at the coffee bar. Her silvery knee-length dress shimmered as she headed for her office. This one had a row of orchids chasing each other around the hem.

As she walked by their table, she stopped to speak to Colonel Ashton and Lieutenant Lee. "Good morning!" she said with a cheerful grin. "I can never keep the duty shifts straight. Just as soon as I think I have it, you all change your schedules. So are you two heading out for the day, or going home for some sleep? Because I have to tell you, none of the coffees here are designed to foster sleep."

"Ahhh, sleep," Xavier said with a hint of sarcasm. "I think I vaguely remember what that is."

Drake produced a grin that would have fooled even the most suspicious of characters. "Well, you know what they say... no rest for the wicked!" He toasted his coffee in the air and took a long sip, not caring about the possible burn, just wanting to get to the caffeine and alcohol".

As the hot liquid made it's way down into his stomach, he could feel that first feeling of alcohol hit him. He never knew whether it was just a placebo effect... he didn't much care... he just knew that he loved it.

"How are you, Ms. Lantz?" He inquired.

"Lovely, Colonel. Life on this station is good. I have some people signed on for the planning committee of Tivoli Gardens. Next, I think I need to track down the bear in his den. Hieronymus Block, that is. The Head Gardner. I've heard he's a bear, but I hope I can get him interested in the project. How's the other matter progressing? Rumors are dying down a bit. Lack of fuel, I think."

"I'm pleased to hear that. We should have some solid answers at some point today, depending on the state of the equipment that was left down there" he looked down at his steaming sup of coffee. "If they don't present any answers, then all we've really got left are the autopsies". His tone of voice indicated that he expected very little to come from those.

Jade rested her hand on his shoulder for a moment. "Whatever happens, you'll have done all you could for the people you discovered. It didn't happen on your watch, but you've done your best to try to find out what happened to them. If there's a way to find justice, I'm sure you will."

The only way Drake could describe the feeling was like life being breathed into him after death. The gentleness of her touch coupled with the tone of experience and calmness in her voice could convince even the most insane serial killer to find peace.

Changing the subject, she added, "Now, business awaits. If there's anything else either of you need, I know Serena will get it for you. You have a good day, and come back for dinner, on me. Tonight's special is barbequed pork with baked potato and homemade cheese-spinach bread. You'll deserve a treat, both of you. Be my guests." She walked away before they could refuse.

"Well, looks like we've got a date tonight then, Lieutenant!" He laughed... then nearly chocked on his next sip of coffee, having realised what he had said.

OFF:
A Post By:

Jade Lantz
Owner, Orchids & Jazz
&
Lieutenant (JG) Xavier Lee
Chief Operations Officer
&
Colonel Ashton Drake
Commanding Officer

 

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