Comments | gold_ambition: Freebasing

gold_ambition

Freebasing - [open]

Jun 23, 2010 08:31

James had arrived late last night, met Ensign Landon, and found the bar. It was a good start so far, but it really didn't bode well for his time here. There was little to look forward to, other than Tina: nothing much happened on a starbase, and he was going to be forced to continue his "treatment." He could start up classes. Get a job doing... ( Read more... )

69 dude!, !commodore tandy, !roger korby

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rn_chapel June 24 2010, 02:18:20 UTC

It was a little silly to be surprised to see someone she knew very well would be coming to the station eventually, but Tina was. Maybe because she had assumed that James would contact her as soon as he arrived. Which he clearly hadn't. Not that that was bad, or meant anything, or anything.

"James," she called out, before she could talk herself into pretending she hadn't seen him so that she could wait for him to see her first. "Hi! I didn't realize you were here."

gold_ambition June 24 2010, 02:40:29 UTC

James hadn't been sure of his strategy until just that moment. Because it had bothered him, how much he'd missed her. How certain he now was that if he hadn't decided to come here before, he would have after one day of knowing she wasn't on the same planet.

And that scared him.

And so he didn't know what he was going to say when he saw her next, until he caught the slight tremor in her voice, the awkwardness in her phrasing. I didn't realize you were here. Was that disappointment that he hadn't run right to her rooms?

Was that what she thought of him?

He turned to face her fully, smiling a reasonable approximation of a friendly smile. He forced his voice to be casual, even. "Hey, Tina," he said, as if his stomach hadn't lurched at the sound of her voice. "How's it going?"

rn_chapel June 24 2010, 02:43:13 UTC

"Good," Tina said automatically. "Or well. Whichever of those is grammatically correct. I mean, I'm fine. How are you?"

Did he look uncomfortable, or was she just feeling awkward enough for both of them?

gold_ambition June 24 2010, 02:50:17 UTC

"Glad to hear it," he said. He was trying not to look uncomfortable. He was trying to look cool, unflappable. "I'm good. Nice trip here, excellent welcoming committee when I arrived. I'll be starting up my classes again--you should come by."

rn_chapel June 24 2010, 02:57:56 UTC

Tina was moving past slightly embarrassed and flustered, and starting to head towards mild confusion. She should "come by"? He seemed so nonchalant, all of a sudden, when before...

Maybe a few days away from her was all James had needed, after all.

"Of course," she said. Casual. Friendly. Not weirdly disappointed.

gold_ambition June 24 2010, 03:00:51 UTC

James was hoping, rather desperately, for disappointed. He'd settle for weirdly so. But it was hard to tell.

"You pretty well settled in already?"

rn_chapel June 24 2010, 03:07:23 UTC

Tina nodded. "All unpacked and everything. Though my new quarters still look empty." Which wasn't a bad thing, and Tina's smile was broad. They looked empty because they were something like four times as large as her old berth.

gold_ambition June 24 2010, 03:11:26 UTC

James nodded. "Well," he said, "it's not like you'll have them to yourself for long. They baby," he clarified after a moment. He should leave, he thought, while she was still confused.

rn_chapel June 24 2010, 03:22:18 UTC

"She gets her own room," Tina said, with some relish. "I have more than one room. Silly to get excited about something like that, I know, but my old quarters didn't even have room for a couch."

If he wanted to leave before she completed the shift from confused to another emotion, he'd have to hurry. Tina's moods were mercurial even without any outside manipulation, and she was already heading into "enthusiastic."

gold_ambition June 24 2010, 03:30:28 UTC

James sensed this about her--either that, or he knew her well enough by now.

"Well," he said. "I should let you get wherever you were going--glad we ran into each other."

In another minute, he was going to invite her over or profess his love again, and all would be lost.

rn_chapel June 24 2010, 04:37:50 UTC

That pushed Tina firmly back toward confused, with a shading of slightly hurt. She wasn't used to being brushed off by any of her friends. And particularly not James.

But she wasn't about to protest that she hadn't been going anywhere, or suggest that she could buy him the beer she'd promised, or anything like that. Really. She wasn't.

"Yeah. Sure."

gold_ambition June 24 2010, 04:52:26 UTC

He had her off balance. That was good.

Right?

James was confused now. He didn't feel good, but he reminded himself that that was because he was pathetic. Being cool was better.

"I have some things to take care of," he added for good measure. "But I'm sure I'll see you around."

rn_chapel June 24 2010, 04:56:03 UTC

"Yeah," Tina said again. That was a pretty transparent excuse. He really was brushing her off. What the hell? "Okay, well. Bye, then."

Tina's feelings were at least as transparent, try as she might to look impassive.

She felt an ice cream craving coming on. She turned to move toward the cafeteria before the conversation could get more excruciating.

gold_ambition June 24 2010, 05:17:29 UTC

James felt terrible. Something was horribly wrong. He should feel glad she was falling for it, that her disappointment at his harsh treatment was written all over her face.

He felt like shit. He was decidedly not used to feeling like shit. And he didn't feel like he'd protected himself at all.

He slumped against the wall as she went, at least as confused as she.

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