“Agreed,” Ludmilla smiled and set her glass down.
“So, would you like to order dinner?”
“Actually, I would like to order breakfast,” she said, covering his hand with hers. “In the morning.”
* * * * *
Jack awoke to find himself wrapped around the sleeping Ludmilla, who's naked body was curled up in the fetal position. My goodness we're spooning! he thought. But this feels right, like we've been this way since the beginning of time. He softly kissed the nape of her neck and carefully slid from beneath the covers.
Standing naked at the computer display on his desk, Jack quickly checked the watch schedule. I'm setting a bad example for the crew by missing the start of morning watch, not that I'd change what I've done. Ah, it looked like the ever efficient Gretchen had covered for him. Yes, there was an annotation marked for his eyes only. It said, “Hope you caught up on your sleep ;-) you've got forenoon and afternoon watches.”
Jack smiled. We didn't really catch up on rest last night, but there are some things people need more than sleep. He was feeling the painful complaint of a score of muscles he had forgotten he had. Ludmilla had been a tigress last night, in fact..., he turned his back to the floor length mirror on the wall and peered over his shoulder, ...yes, there were long scratches down his back.
On the bed, Ludmilla awoke with a start. “Jack!” she cried, looking around in panic.
He rushed to her. “I'm here, Ludmilla. I'm right here.”
She flew from the bed and wrapped her arms around him, pulling their bodies tightly together. “When I awoke and you were not there, for a moment I thought last night was all just a dream,” she said in a husky voice.
“Oh, it was a dream, but a very real one,” he replied, holding her against him, her naked flesh searing him where their bodies touched. “I've just found you, my lady, I'll not be leaving you.”
Her breath was hot against his neck. “Call me Luda, but only when we are alone, like this.” No one had called her Luda since she was a girl, not even Yuri.
“I hope I will get the opportunity often, Luda,” he murmured. She looked up, turning her face to his. Their lips met, he lowered her to the bed and once more, they lost themselves in each other.
The Bridge, Start of Forenoon Watch, Alter-space Day 4
Gretchen observed the Captain as he entered the bridge. He had a definite spring in his step that had not been present yesterday.
“Good morning,” he said with a smile, “I am ready to relieve you, Lieutenant.”
“I am ready to be relieved, Sir. And good morning to you, it looks like your batteries have been recharged.”
“Just so, Number One,” he said with a dazzling smile.
He's on cloud nine if he's using that 'number one' crap, Gretchen thought. Well good for him, he was in desperate need of some R&R. Not that she couldn't use some herself, but that was another story. “All departments report systems normal. There were no incidents to report overnight. Smooth sailing, Sir.”
“Very good. Lieutenant, I relieve you.”
“I am relieved, Captain.” Gretchen nodded and smiled, then turned and headed aft to find some breakfast. At the helm Bobby winked at Billy Ray, who was there to relieve him. Billy Ray offered a faint, knowing smile and muttered, “At least someone on the Bridge had a good night.”
Jack occupied the captain's chair and said loudly, “This is the Captain, I have the Deck and the Conn.”
Sickbay, Afternoon Watch, Alter-space Day 4
Susan was standing in the sickbay doorway, wondering what was so all fired important that she had to roust herself from bed and appear in person. For two days she had managed to avoid Billy Ray, she was just too mortified by her own behavior to face him. She had also managed to give Gretchen, JT and Ludmilla the slip. She snuck out to the snack bar at odd hours for food and otherwise pretty much stayed in bed, though that was beginning to grow old. She had never been so miserable in her life.
“Ah, I see my patient has decided to show up,” Ludmilla remarked as she stepped from a curtained off patient's room.
Lt. Merryweather must be in there, Susan thought. He was about the only patient left, the other Marines having all returned to duty. Why is she calling me her patient?
“Step into the examination room and strip to your undergarments,” Ludmilla commanded.
“But why?” Susan began to ask, but Ludmilla cut her off.
“Just do as you are told and this will all go more easily.”
Puzzled, Susan moved to comply with the Doctor's orders.
* * * * *
Ludmilla kept Susan waiting for around 15 minutes. Stripped down to her bra and panties, Susan was getting quite chilled, goosebumps breaking out on her arms and chest. Why are doctor's offices always so cold? And why do they always keep you waiting?
Ludmilla could have told her that she was being kept waiting, cold and almost naked, to put her at a psychological disadvantage for what was coming next. When Luda and Jack finally managed to say their goodbyes that morning, he had asked her to look in on Susan. The normally gregarious reporter had absented herself from everyday shipboard life for the past two days, ever since the morning she had ejected Billy Ray from her cabin.
The curtain parted and Ludmilla entered. In her white jumpsuit, stethoscope around her neck, she looked every inch a doctor, albeit a very shapely one. “All right, let us see what the problem is here.”
“Ludmilla, I don't have any problem,” Susan pleaded earnestly.
“Are you a Doctor? No! So do not try to tell me what my diagnosis will be.” Breaking the sterile wrapping on a tongue depressor she ordered, “stick out your tongue. Say ah.”
For the next ten minutes Ludmilla proceeded to give Susan a thorough examination. She poked and prodded, listened to various locations with her suitably cold stethoscope, took her temperature, blood pressure, palpated her arms and abdomen, peered into her eyes and ears with a bright light, and tested her reflexes with a tiny rubber hammer—all the things that doctors do to people in examination rooms. She even drew several vials of blood.
Finally, Ludmilla looked up from entering notes on her tablet. “All right, I am satisfied.”
“Satisfied?” Susan asked, totally confused.
“Yes, I am satisfied that there is nothing physically wrong with you. This means that your abnormal behavior over the past couple of days is purely a psychological problem.”
“What?” Susan squeaked.
“I was asked by the Captain to examine you and ensure that you were not injured in someway. Or sick with some communicable disease, such things can be very dangerous on board a ship. Yes, the Captain was very concerned about your deteriorating condition.”
“My what? I'm not deteriorating!”
“No? You are not eating properly, sleep excessively and have avoided all human contact. This is not the behavior of a healthy person, Miss Write.” The last admonishment was delivered with a stern Doctor's look.
“But I'm fine. Is everybody keeping tabs on me for some reason?”
“The Captain is concerned with the health and well being of everyone on his ship. And this is a spaceship, a closed and isolated environment where even the smallest health problems can spin out of control if not nipped in the bud early. So explain to me why you are acting so strangely.”
“Look, Ludmilla, it's nothing really. I... just had a bad experience a few days back and I haven't quite gotten over it.” Susan felt small and defenseless, sitting on the examination table in her underwear while the imposing Dr. Tropsha grilled her.
“And was anyone else affected by this bad experience of yours? Someone who might also be suffering from its aftereffects?”
“Well yes, but,” Susan's lip began to tremble, “I don't know what to say!”
“The first step in solving a problem is being able to identify the problem. So, exactly what is it that you cannot explain?”
“I slept with Billy Ray and I threw him out!�
� Susan bawled, bursting into a crying jag. Her words came in waves, between sharp intakes of air. “I was a total bitch... and now he'll never want to see me again... and nobody will like me... and I'll be all alone...”
Ludmilla sat down on the examination table next to Susan and put her arm around the sobbing girl. Ludmilla was a decade older than the younger woman. Not enough separation to be mother and daughter, but enough to be an older sister. She simply held her and let the crying stop on its own.
“Now, little one, that was not so hard, was it?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, you told me the truth and I did not abandon you. I did not say I will not be your friend anymore. Eh?” Ludmilla handed the sniffling Susan a handkerchief.
“No but, Billy Ray, he'll have nothing to do with me.” The crying threatened to begin anew.
“Now, now. Listen to me.” Ludmilla scolded her in a motherly voice. “Friends do not abandon each other when they do wrong, or even hateful things. That is what being friends means, forgiving each other.”
Susan blew her nose and looked at Ludmilla teary-eyed.
“And when it comes to love, you must forgive even more. You think that Billy Ray hates you and will not look at you again. You are a stupid little girl.”
“What?” Susan asked in a quavering voice.
“Bill Ray has been moping around, punishing himself, trying to figure out what he did to you! Trust me, men usually think that it is their fault.”
“Why?”
“Because it usually is. But not this time. No, you must fix this because you caused the problem.”
“He'll never forgive me! I suck!”
“Do not be silly! Look at yourself. You are an angel, so beautiful that you attract men by the score. Your problem is not getting a man but having too many. The secret is to sift through your admirers until you find a man worth keeping, and then hang on to him.”
“Really?”
“Of course. I know something about such matters. I am not so unattractive to men myself.”
“But what can I do? I know he hates me.”
“Here is what you do. Put your cloths back on, get something to eat—love on an empty stomach is a bad idea. Go to your room and fix yourself up, take a shower, set your hair. Then, be in the main lounge when Billy Ray gets off watch.”
“But what do I say? How do I explain that I was a total idiot?”
“Just walk up to him and say ‘Hello, I'm sorry, can you ever forgive me?’ Believe me—if he is the man you think he is he will forgive you.”
Hope dawned in Susan’s eyes. “You think so?”
“Of course. If he does not, then he is a fool. But he will forgive you. Tomorrow morning you will both wonder what the trouble was all about. Trust me, Susan, I know about men. They need a woman's guiding hand—but that means that we must be the responsible ones, the grownups.”
With that, Ludmilla gave Susan's shoulder an encouraging squeeze and left her to get dressed. Well, it is up to her now, she thought. I have done what you asked, Jack, captain of my heart, and it almost makes me regret not having a daughter of my own.
Chapter 16
Captain's Sea Cabin, Afternoon watch, Alter-space Day 6
Susan was standing outside of the Captain's sea cabin. It was the beginning of afternoon watch and she had hoped to catch the Captain at lunch, but he had not made an appearance in the mess. After checking with members of the bridge crew coming off watch, she discovered that the Captain had retired to his sea cabin when forenoon watch ended.
Putting aside the nervous flutter she felt in her stomach, Susan knocked on the cabin door. She had been working up the courage to speak with the ship's commanding officer for two days now—ever since she and Billy Ray had reconciled.
Two days ago, when Billy Ray came into the lounge at the start of second dog watch, Susan was at the bar waiting, just as Ludmilla had told her to be. When he saw her he stopped, she stood up from her bar stool and walked over to him.
“Hello, Billy Ray.”
“Hello, Susan,” came his cautious reply.
“Billy Ray, I'm sorry,” she said, anxiety straining her voice. “I'm a total idiot. And I should never have treated you the way I did.”
“I'm sorry too,” he began.
“No, you have nothing to be sorry about,” she interrupted. “I was confused and I lashed out at you. I was a bitch, can you ever forgive me?”
“Well, yeah, I guess so. But I would never say you were a... what you said.”
“Thank you! Thank you!” she said, throwing her arms around him. Then she kissed him in front of everyone, both as an act of contrition and to seal the deal before Billy Ray had more time for thought.
They spent the night in her cabin and she did not throw him out in the morning. In fact, he was almost late for his watch. Since then they had spent what overlapping free time they had together. Ludmilla was right, both of them came down with willful amnesia, neither one able to remember the tiff of a few days ago.
Strangely enough, Susan found herself at peace with the Universe, a feeling she had never felt before. She didn't know if this was love, but she did know she was happy. It was that happiness that made her realize she needed to talk to the Captain. Not about Billy Ray or herself but about JT.
Gretchen had given both Ludmilla and herself a prod when they were adrift in the relationship department. And Ludmilla had straighten her out when her relationship with Billy Ray had foundered. Now both she and Ludmilla seemed to be on top of the world, romance wise, but Gretchen remained a solitary creature. Hence the need to talk to the Captain about JT.
She didn't understand the Navy reasoning that kept Gretchen and JT apart, when it was obvious that they were attracted to each other. All she knew was that for Gretchen to even consider a relationship with her ex-cameraman, JT had to be an officer and could no longer work for the Lieutenant.
She heard the Captain's voice call “Come!” as the door slid aside. Here goes nothing, she thought. Swallowing once, she stepped through the open portal to face Captain Jack.
“Miss Write, what brings you to my door today?” Now what? Jack wondered. She and Billy Ray had obviously worked out their problems, since the laconic helmsman was back to being his cheerful if reserved self.
“Good afternoon, Captain,” she began. She had gone over this conversation a dozen times in her head before working up the courage to actually talk to Jack. Since the voyage had begun he had somehow grown more imposing, becoming a larger figure than the man she had interviewed for the evening news ages ago. “I was wondering if I might have a word with you about JT.”
“Mr. Taylor? Regarding what, specifically?” came the Captain's neutral reply, as he motioned toward a chair. “Please, take a seat.”
Susan nodded her thanks and sat down. “You know that JT used to be a Green Beret? A sergeant in the Army?”
“Yes, indeed. That was why I asked him to be part of the shore party at crater Bruno. Why do you ask?”
“And you know that he went back to college when he got out of the Army and earned a BS in electrical engineering and a Masters in Astronomy?”
“Yes, again. Which is why he is filling in as the ship's navigator. I sense you are building up to some larger point.”
“Yes, Sir. I was just wondering why he wasn't an officer like Rajiv and Yuki? I mean, aren't people with college degrees usually made officers?”
“There is a bit more to becoming an officer than that, but I see the logic behind your question. Has JT mentioned to you that he would like to be an officer?” That would really be a surprise, Jack thought. If JT wanted a promotion Jack was fairly certain that he would have asked on his own.
Instead of answering the Captain's question, Susan changed course, “And given his experience as a scientist, wouldn't it make sense for him to be part of Dr. Gupta's department? I mean, JT is both an engineer and a scientist. He is practically the only person on the ship who can make heads or tail
s out of what Yuki and Rajiv are saying when they get into one of those heated conversations they are always having in the lounge.”
“Yes, I fully agree that JT is a valuable addition to the ship's crew.” There is something else at work here, some motivation other than trying to get her friend a promotion. Why would she want JT to be an officer and report to Dr. Gupta instead of Lt. Curtis? Susan was sitting quietly, looking at him expectantly.
Oh, of course! A smile spread over Jack's face as full understanding dawned on him. On a number of occasions, Jack had caught his First Officer casting admiring glances at the handsome camera man. Knowing Gretchen, there was no way in hell she'd violate regulations and do something about those desires—not without a change to the organizational structure.
“Well, to tell you the truth, I was thinking about reorganizing some of the expedition’s personnel in light of how important the scientific aspects of the voyage have become.”
“Yes, Captain?” Susan prompted.
“Initially, the scientific personnel were not going to be part of the regular crew. Partly because the scientific staff are not use to any kind of naval discipline and partly because their duties do not mesh well with the day to day operation of the vessel.
“I have been thinking of keeping Mr. Adams and Mr. Medina in engineering, with Jo Jo assuming the position of chief engineer. I was then going to put our two physicists into their own department, but now that you mention it, JT might also be a good fit for the scientific staff. He could continue to man the navigation console when needed and act as a liaison between the scientists and the rest of us mortals.”
Susan smiled brightly, “I think that would be a wonderful idea, Captain!”
“As for promoting him, we really do not have a rigid rank structure for the crew—this isn't an actual Navy vessel. Basically, other than the ship's officers, the deck division is run by Chief Zackly, GySgt Rodriguez takes care of the Marines and engineering will now be in the hands of Chief Engineer Medina. Members of the science staff would be accorded status equivalent to officers, as they are currently.”
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