Mixing Dating with Duty

Posted on Wed 18th Jul, 2018 @ 10:11am by Commander Mikaela Locke & Commander Paul Graves PsyD
Edited on on Wed 18th Jul, 2018 @ 7:24pm

1,524 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Oblivion
Location: Orchids & Jazz
Timeline: MD 5 1845

Mikaela Locke sat in her usual booth in Orchids and Jazz. In itself, this was not an unusual occurrence, given that she often frequented the establishment after her duty shift - in part to unwind, in part to catch up with her friend Jade, the club owner, and in part to feel like she had some connection to the station’s civilian population.

But tonight was completely different.

Tonight was about a date.

She’d chosen Orchids and Jazz simply because it felt safe. Although she had no concerns about the man she was meeting, dating in general was something that made her nervous. Mostly because she’d never really done it. As such, a venue that she had come to know and love, dating back to her first tenure on the station, added an air of familiarity that offered at least a small degree of comfort.

As Miss Lantz walked through the restaurant, pausing here and there to greet customers, she was systematically making her way toward Commander Locke, also known as her friend, Mikaela. Jade arrived only a few minutes after seeing Serena seat her.

"Mikaela! I'd begun to think you might have found something better to do with your time than stop in here," she teased. "It's lovely to see you out of that uniform, too, and looking so beautiful. Is it a special occasion - perhaps your birthday?"

"Um, no, actually," Mikaela replied hesitantly. "It's a date." She glanced down at the black sleeveless silk blouse she had worn over her jeans. It wasn't particularly fancy, but it was about as fancy as she got. Her hair was loose, parted on one side, and she had gone to the trouble of adding some simple eye makeup and a fairly neutral lip gloss.

She looked back up at Jade, unsure. "Do you really think I look okay?"

"I do, much more than just okay," Jade assured her, "and what's more, your date will think so, too." While she was curious about the identity of the date, that would become evident before long. "You have a wonderful evening, relax and be yourself. If there's a special jazz piece you'd like to hear, let me know." She moved on to speak to others, but Mikaela stayed in the back of her mind. Her friend's aura glowed with anticipation, and somewhat with fear, but that was a normal reaction to dating.

Paul Graves stepped inside the entrance of Orchids and Jazz, relieved that his last appointment of the day hadn't taken longer than anticipated. It was bad enough that he hadn't come with his date; coming late would have been--excusable, he supposed, since the reason was related to work, but not at all the message he wanted to convey.

"Hello. I'm joining Commander Locke this evening," Paul said to the doorman. "Do you know if she has arrived yet?"

"Serena seated her a few minutes ago," Reon replied, "to the left of the dance floor, near the front. Would you like an escort?"

"I think I can find it," Paul said. "Thank you." He walked farther into the restaurant. Paul's eyes widened as he located Mikaela and realized that he'd only seen her wearing civvies once before, at his housewarming party. She probably had never seen him wearing them more than that one time, either. Tonight he wore a gray sport coat over a light-blue, button-down shirt, and black slacks. Neither of them had wanted to go more formal than that yet.

Paul walked toward the dance floor and smiled at Mikaela as he neared their table. She wore a black silk blouse that fitted her like crazy. "Hello! You look lovely tonight," Paul said as he pulled out the chair opposite Mikaela and seated himself.

“Thank you,” Locke replied with a coy smile, “You don’t scrub up too badly yourself.”

"My mother will thank you someday for your appreciation of all her hard work. I liked mud pies as a little boy," Paul said.

“So, we’re already talking about me meeting your mother?” Mikaela teased. “That escalated quickly!”

"She and Dad are bound to visit here at some point," Paul said with a look of mock suffering. "Mum loves to shop, and Dad would like to see some of the nature preserves down in Tivoli Gardens. But we're safe for the moment. I've warned them off because of the pirate problem."

Paul picked up his menu. The dinner menus were the old-fashioned kind, made of heavy linen card stock, rather than being electronic. "What looks good to you? I can't decide between the filet mignon or the ravioli. I think I might ask what the daily special is."

As if she'd been waiting in the wings for a cue, Jenna stopped by their table, order PADD in hand. "Good evening, and welcome to Orchids & Jazz. We hope you'll enjoy the music this evening, provided by our new act, Cielo Lindo. Their instrumental music spans the 1920s and 1930s with a smooth sound, and they'll be on in a few minutes.

"We hope you'll return for the food, as well." She smiled at both customers equally. "Tonight's special, in honor of our new musical group, is Mock Turtle Soup followed by Fillet of Halibut, with broiled fresh mushrooms, baked eggplant hearts with butter sauce, and fresh spring peas. For dessert, included in the meal, the choice is strawberry shortcake or apple pie. This meal was served historically in August of 1920 in the Hotel St. Francis in San Francisco."

She paused for a breath. "Do you need a few more minutes to think about your order? Miss Lantz has authorized a complimentary appetizer of your choice, and right on cue, here is a bottle of Piper-Heidsieck, the champagne that dates back to Marie Antoinette in France in the 1800s. Not this particular bottle, of course," Jenna assured them.

A silver cart was wheeled close to the table by a young man in a black suit and tie with a shirt as white as it could possibly be. He was well versed in decanting a wine, and offered the cork to the gentleman. After a suitable ceremony and approval, Arkady Darrell asked, "Shall I pour?"

Paul glanced at the cork and saw that the brand name on the cork matched the label on the bottle. He nodded at the wine steward and slid the cork on its metal dish back to him. "Yes, please," he said.

Then he paused. The wine steward's mind felt...odd. He couldn't read much from it, just the barest hint of--approval? Satisfaction? Pleasure? Whatever emotions the man felt flitted by so quickly that they were almost gone before Paul could discern them. The steward poured with beautiful precision, ending the pour with a slight twist and lift of the arm to prevent wine from dripping out the top of the bottle. Then he dabbed at the lip of the bottle with the serviette. The whole wine-pouring ritual was done in a series of orchestrated yet fluid motions that Paul suspected the man had to have spent hours practicing to perfect.

When the wine was poured, the bottle was carefully placed in the ice bucket and placed conveniently close to the table. With a slight bow, Arkady said, "Enjoy your champagne and your evening." He stepped back once and then turned and walked unhurriedly toward the kitchen.

Jenna remained to take their order. "Will you try our special this evening, or does something else appeal to you more?"

"What would you like, Mikaela?" Paul asked, glancing at her, curious to know what appealed.

Mikaela had maintained a small smile during the whole interaction between Paul and Jenna. It was both formal and easy at the same time and she appreciated how both were unmistakably going out of their way to make this evening special - Paul with his relaxed, and yet attentive, conversation; Jenna with the attention to detail in their service - no doubt at the behest of Jade. She glanced towards the bar area to see if she could catch Miss Lantz' eye, but she was busy attending to another customer, so she quickly brought her attention back to Jenna.

"I think the soup and the halibut sound fantastic," she said, holding the menu up for Jenna to take. "What about you?" she returned her attention to Paul. "Fish take your fancy... or are you still thinking about that ravioli?"

"I think I'm in the mood for the filet mignon," Paul said to Mikaela. He looked up at Jenna. "I'd like the filet served medium, with melted butter and bleu cheese crumbles on top, with sweet peas and a baked potato as the sides."

"I'll have that out for you shortly. Is there anything else I can get for you while you wait? Perhaps a loaf of our stone-baked Brioche with lashings of real butter?"

"Well, it's no surprise that bread is into pain," Paul said with a wicked look at Mikaela.

Jenna grinned and said, "I'll take that as a yes." She walked away, shaking her head and thinking she'd never seen that pun coming.

 

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