Catching Up... Part III

Posted on Wed 7th Aug, 2019 @ 5:06pm by Commander Mikaela Locke & Captain Andrus Grax
Edited on on Sat 10th Aug, 2019 @ 12:58am

650 words; about a 3 minute read

Mission: A Diplomatic Affair
Location: Deck 600 - Orchids and Jazz
Timeline: MD-05: 1845

The beautiful strains of Moonlight Serenade echoed around Orchids & Jazz as Jade and her band entertained the clients of the club. In her favorite booth, Mikaela Locke sat opposite her old friend and the region's new director of intelligence, Andrus Grax. Their dinner had been mostly small-talk, but Mikaela had a sense that something was bugging Grax that he hadn't shared yet. She looked across the table at him. He wasn't looking at her, rather his attention was focused on Jade and the band.

"They're good, aren't they?" she asked, mostly rhetorically, but looking for a way to draw him back into the conversation.

"Yeah, really good," Grax replied enthusiastically, without really looking back at her.

"Andrus."

"Yeah," he replied - again, not really looking back at her.

"Something's bothering you."

His attention was suddenly back on Mikaela, even as the song began to draw to a close. He eyed her cautiously, as if wondering whether to say what was on his mind, before eventually sighing, as if realizing that he couldn't keep a secret from her.

"I do have something I need to tell you," he said.

"Okay," Locke replied with an expression that suggested there was nothing he could say that would surprise her.

"Jason's decided to stay on the station," he said gently. "He's going to be on my staff."

Mikaela looked at him with a look of confusion. "I know," she eventually said, clearly bemused.

"You know?" Grax asked, surprised.

"Of course I know," Locke replied, "I'm the station XO, remember? I authorize the personnel transfers. Come on," she continued, incredulous that Grax wouldn't have made the connection. "You know how Starfleet installations work - why would you think I wouldn't know that?"

Jade noticed that the discussion at Mikaela's table had grown more intense, and she decided to keep playing, since she was enjoying it so much. There were those who said music shouldn't be a person's therapy, but she thought they had the wrong end of the stick. Music was one of the best therapies she knew, both for player and listener. The band swung into something a little more dramatic, Sweet Georgia Brown, and Lantz thought how nice it would be to have a song that made your name live on for more than 400 years.

Grax noted the change in music and fleetingly wondered to himself if Jade was either a telepath or, perhaps, just had amazingly good hearing. He made a mental note to follow that question up later before quickly pushing it to the back of his mind and returning his attention to Mikaela. “I guess...” he began slightly lamely, “I guess I hoped I could tell you before you saw the paper work.”

Mikaela raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed. “I thought you were a better liar than that,” she said, her tone slightly cold now.

“I guess I’m just not used to lying to my friends.”

“Why did you think it would even bother me?” Mikaela continued, choosing to ignore the implications of his last statement.

“Perhaps, because I know you?” Grax replied, trying to maintain an aura of genuine concern, although the reality was he was losing patience with his former protege. “You love to play the Ice Queen, but deep down I know that your break up was tough and....” He paused, trying to find the right words. “I guess I just don’t want to see you get hurt again.”

“Well, thank you for your concern,” Mikaela said coldly, “But I think it can navigate my own emotional stability.” She stood up. “I think I’m gonna skip the coffee,” she said, looking past him towards the stage. “Tell Jade to put the meal on my tab.”

Grax opened his mouth to speak.

“Goodnight, captain,” she cut him off and strode towards the exit without another word, leaving Grax alone.

 

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