Doing It Right

Posted on Sat Jul 15th, 2023 @ 11:29am by Warrant Officer Iryna Voznyuk & Staff Sergeant Nathanial "Nate" Cusack

Mission: Sojurn
Location: Fancy restaurant
Timeline: Day 337
4802 words - 9.6 OF Standard Post Measure

It was still too bloody cold.

Which was, as it happened, also a reasonable way of describing the reception Nate had received when he'd first stepped into the habitat that had been allocated to the Atlantis crew. Generally speaking, the fallout from his public temper tantrum had been contained enough that the crew had been spared any massive repercussions by proxy but Nate had noticed the glance that had passed between the service personnel when he'd first strolled back in through the doors in a nonchalant effort to behave as if he'd never left. His bright smile had only elicited pale green embarrassment but as he made his way towards the room that was apparently still under his name and verified that the access code still worked, Nate's expression had faded to a dour indecision about whether his return was a good idea. Even a long, hot shower hadn't done much to loosen the knot of trepidation in his stomach, which was a shame because he'd practically catapulted himself off the ship with an arm's-length list of good intentions to follow through on. Now he was less certain they were a good idea.

Maybe it was better to eat in his room after all.

As the afternoon drew closer, however, and an awkward amount of time had passed for him to continue to remain hidden, Nate dragged his eyes from the document he'd been reading and scrubbed a hand over his face. A glance upwards checked the chronometer and then he found himself staring at a wall for a moment whilst he decided what to do. It wasn't as if the opportunity was going to present itself again in a hurry and if it turned out that he'd created a mess that kept following him around, it was probably better that he submit himself to public admonishment sooner rather than later just to get it over with. At the very least, he could always flee with his tail between his legs if it became too much. It was more important to try.

And so, with a whirlwind of activity that saw him cram an hour's worth of preparation into twenty minutes, he changed what he was wearing, trialled a dozen different scents before he found one that didn't leave him smelling like a rutting sea lion, and double-checked a singular detail with the computer before exiting his room and heading down the hallway, around the corner, and a few doors down.

Rather than knock, he activated the internal communicator. When it picked up, he grinned at the surprise in her tone.

"Guess where I am?"

For some people, waking up was be a gradual process that starts with a sense of awareness or a shift in consciousness. For others, it was a sudden jolt as they become fully alert and aware of their surroundings for Iryna there and then it was like a general emergency alarm was going off and she had to respond. "Well obviously right outside the door," The disgruntled sleepy voice came from inside. She sat up in bed and stumbled over to the door and pressed the door release to look at him confused instead of just talking through the door.

Of everything he'd expected, finding her in bed wasn't even close to one of them. Nate paused, blinked gormlessly at the tousle-headed marine, and then frowned in faint amusement, "Were you asleep?" Something about that settled as a punch to the gut that Nate wasn't all that happy reflecting on. It wasn't that he'd expected a fanfare and personal escort at his release from captivity but it was very definitely lunch time on the day that he was able to return to the planet again. Apparently that hadn't rated very high on the excitement level. "Well that's a first, it's well after noon." Keen eyes studied her face as another thought occurred to him, possibly one that should have been an initial instinct rather than a secondary consideration. "You feeling okay?"

“Yeah… I was on night watch.” She said softly. “Why I was not there when you woke up this morning. I did not join you… I thought I told you.” She said having considered she had forgotten to tell him. She stepped back and let him into the room. “Aww and I missed freedom moment.” She said making a sad face looking over at the PaDD she thought she had sent an alarm on.

Had she told him? Nate wasn't, especially when he was in a mood, always the most attentive to small details and he'd definitely been trapped in the ebb and flow of extreme broodiness over the past four days. He stepped into the room, awkwardly trying to navigate residual annoyance to account for fresh evidence that he might, in fact, be an insensitive prick. The file grew thicker. "Been back since just after breakfast, figured I'd settle in first, get some reading done." Flipped around, his hesitancy in tracking her down immediately sounded just as disinterested as his assumptions about her had been. Too full of pride to seem too eager, perhaps. Too used to having them chase him.

He pressed the heel of his hand to his forehead and rubbed. Then, he turned to face her with freshly-resolved humour.

"So, is it too early to take you to lunch?"

"Not at all." She assured leaning up to stroke his cheek for a moment before she stepped back and took him in. "You look smart... did you dress up for me?" She wondered thinking if she had anything to wear that would be anywhere as nice but they she had a memory of the replicator that the Realian had told her about in reception, theres did anything like clothing and other things unlike the replimats on the ship that just did food.

A slight half-grin was more reminiscent of his usual confidence. Nate stuck his neck out towards her. "Cologne and all, though I'm not entirely sure their selection has anything close to my usual preference." Luxuries like aftershave hadn't been a thing for a while, experimenting with local products was as good as it got. "New jacket though, they don't seem to have docked my credit balance." He'd half-expected to come back to nothing and had wasted very little time reducing it to exactly that in case they had a change of heart. "Good thing too because I blew the rest of on this."

It was a jewellery case, of sorts, a little clasped affair adorned with pearlescent shell. Inside, the delicate chain supported one delicate, crystalline pearl nestled inside a metallic setting that reflected the colours of the ocean in certain lights. They were a local thing, as best he could tell, and probably resembled one of those cheesy souvenir opals people always bought back home but it was pretty, and she was pretty, and he'd been a dick. She deserved something frivolous for a change. "Probably do not want to ask how they farm these," he advised, leaving her to hold the box whilst his hands nervously settled on his hips.

"Blew..." The woman started but look at the box that he passed over to her and smiled. It was beautiful and not at all something she had expected Nate to get her, he did not seem the type but there he was surprising her, to say the least. She took the box and took it out the box to look at it better. "It is beautiful... thank you." She whispered looking slightly stunned. "I won't ask but I can imagine." It had to be similar to how pearls used to be farmed back on Earth.

"I'm half worried it might involve some sea cow's digestive tract." He couldn't help himself, and once the imagery was out there, it did its best to spoil the moment. That hadn't really been his intention but Nate, for reasons he hadn't really counted on, felt intensely awkward gifting something that was so clearly a romantic gesture. He meant it as one, wasn't about to deny it, but it was the culmination of a lot of thinking he'd done amidst his brooding over the past few days and now he felt oddly vulnerable to have to admit to it. "I liked it anyway," he said quietly. "I thought it would look good on you."

Iryna was not used to gifts so she blushed but nodded. "Thank you." She whispered putting it on and moving to the mirror to admire it even in the shirt that was acting as her pjs it was perfect. "I love it." She assured. "Even with potential of cow digestive tract." She teased just a little watching how vulnerable he looked stood there watching her for what she was sure was a sign that she did not like it.

There was a brief moment where Nate averted his eyes but it lasted only long enough for him to check out the floor at his feet before he fought back against his unease. He wasn't a man who typically turned away from challenges, especially not when they were tousled from sleep and blushing as if nobody had ever bothered to extend a gesture that carried such a wealth of esteem and humility. He was sorry, and Nate might not have been good at saying it, but he'd gone out on a limb in an attempt to prove it otherwise. "Hopefully we can work on making it a reminder of something worthwhile," he replied gently, not without some resignation for the shoddy start he'd made in that regard.

The woman turned and took three quick steps so she was in front of him. He was trying so much and had over the last couple of days that she could not help but admire him more for it. "I want to work on that too." She whispered leaning up to kiss his cheek. "It is beautiful." She brushed her thumb along his lip for a moment before kissing him there.

Another thing Nate had spent a decent amount of time thinking about was the fact that he had allowed a lot of this, the affection and physical intimacy, to fall on her to initiate, and whilst the intention behind that had been to convey a sense of control and respect, it wasn't permitting him to be particularly open to pursuing what Nate was pretty sure they'd agreed to consider this. He hadn't wanted her to feel pressured, had needed space himself to figure out how to navigate the swiftness with which her opinion of him had changed, but they were either doing this or they weren't. And they couldn't very well do it if he stood there with his hands on his hips every time she moved into his orbit.

His hands against her waist pulled her closer.

"Hence why it suits you," he murmured against the remnants of the kiss, smiling with a degree of smugness for the intentional charm.

"Mmmm hmmm." The woman agreed leaning up to recapture a kiss from him. "Relax... I want to kiss you and more eventually..." She added teasing him as her arms move around his neck to keep her balance as she leaned up on her tiptoes.

That earned her a pair of raised eyebrows, which somewhat interrupted the kiss for the time it took to convey his amusement. Wrapping his arms around her waist became a necessary anchor, which seemed entirely calculated but Nate wasn't about to complain. Instead, he blinked at her. "You and your 'more eventually'." He understood her hesitation but, in an effort not to explode from the constant mixed messages, Nate had opted for outright amusement at how much she seemed to battle her own libido when it came to exercising the restraint her insecurities demanded. "No dessert before you eat your lunch," he grumbled, inciting direct open combat by bypassing her kiss to nuzzle his nose into her neck, nudging the chain where it rested.

The woman pouted for a moment as he pulled away from the kiss and spoke. It was true, she was very much teasing him and herself in the process which was not what she wanted. "Mmm, I better get dressed then hadn't I then." She whispered smiling at the nuzzle on her neck.

"We can just take you like this," came the threat, delivered as heated breath against the skin just below her ear as Nate battled his own compulsion to stay on the right side of teasing her. A slight heft of his arms, tightened around her waist, lifted her feet off the floor and made good with an attempt to waddle towards the door with her still in her sleepwear.

"Nate!" The woman cried as she lifted off her feet just a little. "Stop... I have... nothing else on." She cried thinking she was about seconds from showing her bottom to the world. The shirt might be hitting mid thighs when it was not being assisted by Nate pulling up a little.

There was a gentle thud as her back touched the wall beside the door and, in a moment of utter smug contemplation, Nate allowed his buried face to emerge just enough to dig his nose into her jawbone, just below the ear. "Is that a problem?"

The woman squirmed a little at the way he pressed against her and the wall. Not many men could make her feel that vulnerable in a way by hauling her around like she weighed nothing. “Only if I show my ass off to some poor person out in the corridor.” She pointed out quietly as her hands moved into his hair.

An over-exaggerated sigh extended his pantomime, though Nate was very aware of the appearance of the thin line in the sand again. They kept getting to this point, faster and faster each time, and though he could feel the inevitability of pushing his luck fast approaching, it wasn't in his current plans. A date. He'd given her a gift, now they went on an actual proper date because guys who didn't want just one thing invested in the relationship outside of the bed first.

Apparently.

Nate did wonder if those guys weren't just idiots.

"Fine, you win." He pressed a lingering kiss against her cheek and finally pulled back to look at her. "But only because I don't want to share."

The woman could very much feel her resolve stretched so thin it was almost at breaking point. The tension was almost too thick that she nearly felt like she was choking on it. “Wait outside. Ten minutes I’ll be ready.” She whispered tugging the shirt back down to cover herself properly and pressed the door release open.

A grumble was Nate's way of protesting that he always got booted to the other side of the door but it was at his behest and would likely be the better choice in the long term. He wasn't sure what cosmic powers had decided that he was the logical choice to break her streak of abusive relationships but he'd had four days to muster up the balls to try. The accentuated pout of a bottom lip disappeared behind the swish of a closing door and Nate found himself standing in the corridor. There wasn't anyone around but, suddenly, ten minutes felt like forever. He shoved his hands in his pockets and tried his best not to loiter.

The woman was closer to 15 minutes but she soon appeared looking a little more scrubbed up than she suspected him or anyone had seen her since the night of Captain Morgan’s party before the ship had left port. She wore a dark blue coloured dress that shimmered in a way that said it was some type of material that was uniquely from Relea. Her hair was up in a quick slick high pony tail and she had just the smallest touches of make up around her eyes. “I took a little bit longer.” She admitted slipping into the heels that she had replicated too.

"Worth it."

Nate had, after several minutes of pacing, arrived at the decision that leaning against the opposite wall would be the least likely way to attract suspicion. At least that way, arms folded casually across his chest, he gave the appearance of someone patiently waiting and not an agitated vagabond casing the joint. He didn't move at first, using his vantage to get a good look at her, and made no attempt to hide the admiration as his gaze scrutinised every last detail that had gone into her five-minutes-late. He pushed his shoulders off the wall and held out his arm. "You going to be warm enough?"

“I have a jacket.” She went back into the room and tugged on the jacket before joining him properly. It was not thick but it would offer some protection against the snowy weather. “Or at least some type of protection.”

"We don't have too far to go," Nate replied mysteriously, the first hint at having made an actual reservation. If he was honest, he hadn't originally planned that far ahead, but 15 minutes had been plenty of time to make up for lost opportunity. He took her by the arm at first, because it was the gentlemanly thing to do and if his father had been useful for anything, it was drilling in formal etiquette. Once they reached the doors that would send them briefly out into the wind, however, he switched to holding her hand precisely because it felt less rigid, more like he actually wanted to be there.

It gave him an opportunity to twirl her slowly as they moved before an arm across the back of her shoulders huddled her close for a brisk jog towards the shelter of an enclosed street. Not a lot of the city was wide open to the elements, which made sense, but the pockets in between that were certainly reminded you not to take the temperature controls for granted. Returning her hand to his, Nate took the lead by dint of necessity if not somewhat lacking in expertise. He was pretty sure he'd already opted for the longer route. "I swear it got colder down here." Glancing across at her, he added, "You okay? I think we're nearly there."

“Have not fallen over in the heels yet.” She laughed shaking her head a little against the snow that was falling. It was a beautiful afternoon even with the snow, it was perfect for whatever he planned she was sure. “Possibly. The snow seems to be heavier.”

"Probably a storm front coming in," he groused, in a tone that suggested he wouldn't put it past the weather to have prepared one especially to welcome him back. "Come on," Nate added, stepping up to a door and holding it open, "Let's get you inside before you tempt fate any further."

It was a multi-plex building that held several establishments. On the ground floor, a large food court area not unlike the one he would wisely be avoiding for the rest of his stay, and several gift shops that opened up onto the surrounding streets. Nate lead the way to one of the glass elevation pods and ushered Iryna inside before a squinted grimace at the controls saw him push what he hoped was the command for the top floor. His intent was out of the bag then, for the top of the building sported a sprawling arboretum-style restaurant that revolved slowly to take full advantage of the view. It was one of the highest establishments in this part of the city and was rather difficult to miss.

“I never tempt fate.” The woman commented with a sigh thinking of how it had nearly been her in the stairs on the Babel planet. It could been her buried under the tower instead of King. Her dark thoughts were soon adrift as she took in the view and the fact they were pretty much alone apart from a few off-worlds. “Wow…” was all she managed to murmured as they were shown to a table that was towards the edge with an amazing view.

"A view from the top of the world," Nate commented as he moved to hold out her chair, sneaking in a cheeky wink to cut through the somewhat misogynistic practise. It was hardly the case that he didn't think her capable of holding her own, he'd been on the receiving end of her sparring too many times to believe Iryna needed assistance with anything much. What she clearly did need was to feel valued, however, which accounted for the quick kiss to her temple as he pushed the chair in for her and moved to take his own.

"I figured it was a compromise. We're up high enough that you can look at the snow as much as you want and I don't have to end up face down in it." A glint of mischief also accompanied his sideways nod towards the empty dancefloor off to the side. "Plus, it's about time I took you dancing somewhere properly built for it."

Iryna looked at the dance floor open mouthed at everything that was going on from the location to the forethought to the inclusion of dancing. “I quite liked out shuttlepod dancing.” The woman comment leaning across the table to touch his hand as a Releaian came over to offer menus.

Nate, careless of the interruption, turned his hand over to give hers a squeeze and winked. "Well, that's going to be all we're stuck with long-term so making the most of other options while we have them is probably smart." He glanced up then and sat back, making his first priority to order the drink allocation in advance so they could make use of the replicator technology embedded into the table's central display. That done, they could order from the screen without moving and the drinks would just arrive via space voodoo, as far as Nate could tell.

"They don't seem to have any weird shrimp fritters on offer," he joked, a call-back to his own cooking attempts. There'd been more than one occasion where he'd brooded over ruining that success by taking himself out for four-day's worth of further practise. Helping in the mess had been one of the options Iryna was trying to prod him towards, and though he'd spent the morning reading documentation for another potential avenue, there was at least some appeal to the experimentation side of culinary expertise. They were unlikely to have the food to spare his attempts at creativity, however.

"It is very smart. I see these on most tables. It is amazing how they've adapted simple things to make things easier." The woman smiled and shook her head as she went through the food options. She grabbed a server despite the terminal and asked a few questions about food which the woman happily spoke about before leaving them to it. She quietly ordered the only thing on the menu that was not seafood and iron-rich on the Realian's suggestion. She had been feeling run down thanks to anaemia for a few days but iron infusion had not quite brought her back up to her usual self yet but some iron-rich food would. It was most likely why she had slept through her alarm.

Nate, on the other hand, was possibly the only crew member not getting sick of eating seafood. A similar chat sought to identify the fish of the day from the live specimens he'd watched blinking dopily at him through the glass walls of the living area of the habitat and, deciding that he wasn't in the mood to risk accidentally eating anything that looked like it had uncles that would beat him up in his sleep, he ordered the shellfish and hoped they weren't a likewise intimidating size.

After that, and because she was after something far more particular, Nate contented himself with just watching. Behind them, the slow rotation of scenery continued, though the sensation itself was not too jarring. As far as he could tell, the restaurant would move itself by a set degree once every ten minutes or so and then settle to allow some time to appreciate the new vantage. The sensation, when moving, was not unlike being on a boat, he decided, which was also something he intended to pursue before their time on the planet was up.

"So," he eventually said, as the server moved off and it was just the two of them with their ridiculously garish drinks. "Did you manage to have any fun without me?" It was an impish question but it rested on an element of sincerity. Bad enough that he'd been left with nothing to do except mutter his way through inventory management.

“I went ice swimming with Samuel's and Cheng yesterday. Was breath-taking literally and figuratively.” She said lucky to have not turned blue but it had been good. “So yeah I have had a bit of fun and got off the ship. What have you done anything other than brooding?” She wondered looking out the window for a moment before back at the man.

Ask a stupid question. At this point, Nate could hard claim the high ground when it came to keeping his emotions in check and, whilst jealousy hadn't really been much of an issue in the past from his point of view, there was still a niggle that came from opportunities missed. It wasn't the same as possessiveness, he told himself, just the compounding frustration of having been denied any chance to join in.

"Actually," he retorted after pulling a face at the sourness of his drink, "After you left me to it, I did some...thinking." Several reputable sources would have called bullshit on his capacity but it was true, seeing her in the midst of his confinement had provoked a fragile flicker of optimism. At the very least, it had brought out his pragmatic side. "Been reading up on what Starfleet expects out of its medics." There was an awkwardness behind his words, the inability to admit that she'd been right and that, with no viable alternative but to stay behind on a planet that would eventually turn him into fishbait, he needed to find something that gave purpose to the next leg of their journey.

The woman looked stunned at him before she sat up right and smiled softly. That took a whole lot of balls to admit and it made her admire him more that he had listened and actioned what she had said. “And what have you found?” She wondered over her drink drinking in the sight of him looking awkward and no where near as cocky as he normally looked.

There was no amount of self-awareness in the world that would have stopped Nate from rubbing at the back of his neck then, his gaze turned for a split second towards the rest of the room as if nervous that they were being overheard, and then he looked back, sheepish and uncomfortable but committed to speaking up. "Not as bad as I thought," he admitted, clearing his throat. "I'm a little rusty on protocol." Wasn't he always? "But the skillset's not that different to what my first rounds had me doing." Without doubt, the biggest challenge was wading back into the sense of failure and defeat that had seen him dump medical as a career option in the first place. He was one sloppy bandage away from feeling too inadequate even for nursing duties.

She could see what that admission had cost him and smiled more, it was change in him that was nice to see. “I am proud of you.” Iryna said softly as she lent over to take his hand to stop his uncomfortableness. She was proud that he had taken the first steps into reclaiming something he had lost.

"Don't speak too soon." It was blatantly obvious that he wasn't used to praise, had done very little to earn it in droves from the most outspoken people in his life and their voices tended to drown out the admiration of people who didn't realise Nate Cusack only existed to be someone else's punching bag. He offered her a half-smile, gave her hand a squeeze and tidied his insecurity behind self-depreciation. "Be my luck they stick me on janitorial duty."

“I will speak now and proud. You have made the first step.” She commented looking just as proud and fond of him as her words portrayed. It was the first step that was the hardest.