'Tis a Puzzle

Posted on Tue 1st May, 2018 @ 12:09am by

772 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Brushfires
Location: Deck 101
Timeline: MD 5, 0845

Secondary Operations wasn't Quinn's favorite duty station. In fact, she wasn't sure she was all that crazy about working on a starbase. There was simply too much of everything on Vanguard. The only good thing was the large number of engineers who were available to maintain the base and repair whatever broke. Right now, she was almost hoping something would break and get her out of the operations room. She'd even take a turn down in the maneuvering thrusters about now.

To make her day complete, Spurlock walked through the door, sipping a cup of coffee with the distinctive O & J logo. Wouldn't you know it, she thought.

"Hi-ya Quinn, what are you up to? Spurlock asked.

"Work," she replied pointedly. "Which you seem to have avoided for the start of the day. Didn't your mother teach you it isn't polite to have a treat and not share? Where's mine?"

Weldon smiled as he sipped his on his coffee. After taking the big sip, he sighed and looked to Quinn. "I didn't take you for the coffee type. I'll take care of you tomorrow maybe. But until then, what are you doing?"

"Same answer, work," she scowled at him. "Specifically, I'm recalibrating these Molecular Pulse Compensators from Samurai, the ship that almost wasn't. And I'm not," she concluded, "the coffee type. You can get a hot chocolate deluxe for me tomorrow, however."

"Beggers can't be choosers," Spurlock said with a sneer on his face as he looked over the Pulse Compensators. "Are these things any good?" he asked, with a puzzled look on his face.

"Only for a ship you're piloting that's target practice for our new hot shot fighter pilots," Quinn sneered back. As if my work is questionable! Who does he think he is?

She smiled, sweetly venomous, and said, "I'm sure if you remember where your work table is, you'll find a little work of your own."

Weldon walked over to hi workbench and looked at it. As he did, he loss all motivation to work due to the pile of items sitting on the workbench. "Whoa, when did all of this get here?" he asked as he started going through the parts and PADDS on the bench.

"Oh, I don't know," Quinn said, turning around to watch him. "Maybe while you were at Orchids & Jazz, chatting up the servers and looking for dates?" She watched for a moment more, thinking his sorting didn't seem all that efficient or even useful, before turning back to her own work. I have enough to do without trying to organize my co-workers, she thought. For a moment she missed her last posting and Jared Holland, who had outranked her, but always treated her as an equal. They'd actually been friends. She couldn't imagine that ever happening with Spurlock!

"Uggggghhhhhhh" Spurlock groaned aloud. "This isn't remotely what I want to be doing today." The petty officer said as he slung the items on the workbench around. "I think I'd do better with a fresh start tomorrow. What do you think Quinn?"

Jin-Kyung shrugged and kept working, thinking Yeah, the rest of us will have it all done by then! "Why would you ask my opinion? You'll do what you want to anyway."

With a pained look on his face, Spurlock grabbed at his chest and feigned a chest pain. "Oh, how your words wound me my friend." Weldon then walked over to Quinn and looked her directly in her eyes.

"I tell you what. Let's make a little bet. Whoever gets done with their workload first by 1800 hrs tomorrow evening gets..." Spurlock paused for a moment not quite knowing what to put on the table. He just realized that he didn't quite know Quinn enough to know what would be enticing to her.

"Freedom from the other's company for 12 hours?" Quinn popped out a reply, without thinking.

Weldon scrunched his face up in utter and complete shock when he heard the words come out of Ji-Kyung's mouth. And before he knew it, anger was welling up in his throat. What he didn't know was whether he was angry at the comment or if his feelings were hurt. He quickly attempted to get his emotions in check and was trying to think of a snappy comeback, but for the first time in a long time, his mind was blank.

"....Well, if that's what you really want... that's fine." He made his way over to his work station and sat down to begin working on the numerous tasks that had started to pile up on the desk.

 

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