A Touch of Home

Posted on Thu Sep 5th, 2019 @ 6:20pm by Commander Dominic Aldrich & Crewman Recruit Zeria

Mission: For Whom The Bell Tolls
Location: Holodeck
Timeline: MD 08 1900 Hours
1700 words - 3.4 OF Standard Post Measure

Dominic had set all of his plans in motion. As he sat with the band, he played the lead trumpet. It was something he hadn't done in a while. Despite everything going on, he had been sleeping better and was overall happier. There was nothing to do but wait. The scene was set as one of the old jazz clubs he would frequent in his younger days back home, "The Spotted Cat." It was the place he fell in love with the trumpet. As his lungs struggled to keep up with the pace, he silently chided himself for not keeping up with practice. Despite his rustiness, there was a light tone to his notes. He was dressed in a thin black suit with a thin red tie. The top button was undone and the tie was hung loosely. He simply had to wait for Zeria to arrive as he played the chorus of "When the Saints go Marching In."

As she approached the holodeck, Zeria was feeling rather nervous. Dom had asked her to meet him here and she assumed this must be some kind of date he'd concocted but she really had no idea what he was up to. So far they'd really just bonded over books, the plants she'd grown and meals together. Of course he talked about his home and sometimes his family. So she shouldn't be nervous because they'd been friends for so long before they became something more. She pressed the chime and took a calming breath, ready to put a smile on her face.

With all of the hustle and bustle, Dominic didn't see the door open. He was at the height of the song. When he breathed, his eyes opened just long enough to see Zeria at the edge of the room. He wanted to run over to her, but wouldn't just abandon the piece like that. So, he continued playing while locking his eyes on her.

She smiled slightly. A burst of adrenaline sparked through her at his expression. This was something she hadn't known about him. What else was there? She found a seat at an empty table and smoothed down her hair wavy dark hair. Zeria had chosen to wear something a little bit different. The dress was a little more form fitting, dark blue in color with just a hint of shimmer to it. When the music stopped she clapped enthusiastically, even standing up to applause.

Setting the trumpet down, he waved to the band to go on with the set without him. Another trumpeter took his place as they played a softer, slower tune. Leaning in, he kissed her forehead and said, "You look absolutely amazing." He then sat next to her.

"Thank you," her face might have held some color, either from the compliment or the look he'd given her earlier. "You look very handsome as well but I didn't know you could play and what is this place?"

"If I'm being totally honest, I didn't know I could still play. I haven't touched that horn in over two years. Well," He said thoughtfully, "I guess seven technically. That's even more amazing. Hard to do though, I practiced for days before deciding to do all of this." Then he looked around. "This is a program of a place my family used to go all the time before my father died. IT's a holo-replica of a place called "The Spotted Cat." It's an old, old jazz club back home in New Orleans. It's somewhere between lower end and luxury clubs." He then brought his attention back to her, "Since I'm not sure when we'll take that trip back the Earth, I wanted to show you what I could."

"It's amazing! It's like the resorts at home, at least what I imagined their bars must have been like. It's not like I was allowed in any of them." She was busy looking around before it dawned on her what he'd said. "You spent days practicing just for me?"

Dominic grinned, "Any time we weren't together and I wasn't working. Zeria, you have moved me to feel alive again in ways that I haven't been able to feel in a very long time. I feel like a shy little boy around you sometimes and it makes me all the more enamored with you." As the song ended, the band went into a rendition of "Fly Me to the Moon." Dominic stood, held out his hand, "May I have this dance, Ma Cherie'?"

She couldn't refuse him, not after she'd found out what he'd been up to and all the planning he'd put into this. "I'm not a very good dancer," she whispered at him. "Not a lot of times or places to practice on Marga III." But she took his hand anyway and stood up.

As they got to the dance floor, Dominic whispered in her ear, "I'm not a great dancer either, but I think we can be good together." He then placed his hand on the small of her back and took her right hand in his left and began to sway with her. He the atmosphere wash over them. The rest of the computerized crowd all but disappeared to him. "There is no place I'd rather be than here in your arms," he said.

"You're quite the romantic aren't you?" Zeria felt the heat on her face but she didn't know if it was because she was embarrassed by all this attention or just because they were pressed closely together dancing. Dominic had never exactly ignored her. They'd met quite often on the planet to discuss things or be an ear for him when he needed to unload. And he'd had a lot of things on his mind when trapped on her planet for five years. But there had always been this imaginary line within him. He never crossed it and she never did anything to make him cross it. But now she felt he had erased the line and had completely drawn her into him, holding nothing back.

He slowly twirled her out and back in. "There is something about you that has shattered my world in a wonderful way. I was closed up for so long that I thought I was happy. For once in my life, I'm glad I was wrong on my hypothesis. If that makes me romantic, then I'm guilty as charged." The song ended and he kissed her hand. He led her back to their table. "Now for dinner." A waitress brought over two bowls of crawfish etoufee. As she set them down, Dominic smiled. "I found my mom's old recipe and did my best to make it. I'm sure it's not perfect since some of the items were replicated, but all of the herbs were taken from your hydroponics bay."

She shook her head but she was smiling. "I didn't do anything but provide friendship, you just decided to trust someone again." Anger flared through her when she thought about what this Erica woman had done to him. There was no excuse for it. She could understand deciding that someone was not for you, but to just leave like that . . . "I'm sure it will be delicious, as I've never had it I can't judge." Zeria stopped him for a moment, grabbing his hand and turning him towards her. "I'm so glad you're happy again." She stared into his brown eyes for a moment before letting the moment go.

"Me too," he replied with a genuine as she let go and he began to eat. "How has your integration into the crew been going? I know it wasn't particularly easy at first, but I'm hoping it's beginning to feel a bit more like home."

"Everyone has been really nice to me. Especially the captain, letting me putter around in the hydropnics bay and make it my own place. But honestly, I haven't poked my head out much except when you come around. I need to work on that and make some friends. But, I never had very many friends on Marga III either, so it's not bothering me. I'm happy here," she assured him.

Finishing the bite he had taken and feeling that he was close to the right taste, Dominic replied, "Excellent. I'm glad you've gotten more comfortable on board." He then smiled and lightly laughed, "And if you need help making friends, well, let me know when you figure it out and you can teach me some things."

"You know how to make friends," Zeria joked. "You just keep wandering back into their work space and asking them questions. Your method works quite well. After all you ended up with a mate and a friend." Zeria tried the food for the first time, letting the flavors float around on her tongue for a moment before chewing.

Dominic smiled, "Well, if our relationship is an example of how to make friends, then I'll just transport into the middle of everyone's garden and crush their flowers. How do you like the food? Be honest."

Zeria laughed at his comment. "It's good, I like it. It's different from anything I've had before. But you know what the food was like on Marga III." Zeria spent a lot of time trying to identify what she thought it tasted like but gave up and just enjoyed the meal.

"Yeah," he said, "it wasn't......flavorful. But then again, I have very picky taste buds due to my raising." He wiped his mouth as he finished his entree'. He took it all in and then said. "When you finish, I have dessert waiting for you back in my quarters."

Zeria raised her eyebrows at this. "Okay . . . . More surprises?" She shook her head, but was more amused and perhaps a bit embarrassed by all the attention.

As she finished eating, he stood, offered his arm and asked, "Shall we go, my love?"

She nodded, stood up and took Dom's arm. At least there was no cleanup to do, the holodeck would take care of that. She followed him blindly out but with nothing but trust in her heart.

_____________

LCDR Dominic Aldrich
CSO

Crewman Zeria
Hydroponics