Deception: The lesser part of Valour – Step Up 3 - Part 2 - The Agreement
by Commander Chelsea Dunham & Lieutenant Ryan Milarno
Post Details
ON:
Ryan sat forward. "Right then I'll get started tomorrow" he grinned. "And then we practise" he said smiling at Laura. "Meet me here tomorrow" he stood. "Anyway am off now...you coming Chels?" he asked.
"Sure.." was all Chelsea could say. From so confident and proactive a minute or two ago, to so unsure again now, she just smiled weakly at Laura and said. "Nice to meet you, Laura - see you again soon, I hope." before following him meekly out.
As Ryan walked along the corridor striding out, Chelsea had to hurry to catch him up. She fell into step beside him and there were a few moments of silence.
"That looked pretty energetic for someone on sick leave" she joked, smiling at him a little nervously because his pace was worrying her as he seemed upset.
Ryan looked at her. "What brought you to the holodeck?" he asked as they continued walking to the turbolift.
"You" she answered simply. "I finished my shift and you weren't in your quarters so I asked the computer to locate you and came to find you. Is it a problem? Should I just have paged you?"
"Well umm no, that's fine, I just wondered..." he told her.
"I'll keep away in future, when I know you're dancing..... only you never told me you could dance and I had no idea.... " she still felt the need to explain.
Ryan sighed. "I didn't say you had to keep away..."
"But if you'd wanted me there you'd have told me you had this going on.... and anyway I don't mind.... i think it'll be easier on us all if I find something else to do at the times you're training or rehearsing." she said.
"It's not that I didn't want you there" he sighed, clearly getting frustrated, cause he wasnt going to tell her how he felt.
"No, okay, but i think it's better that way, for me too" she said quietly. "Anyway, shall we pass on the Bajoran Festival? Or did you want to go?" she changed the subject.
"I'm not going" he said bluntly. "Think I'll just go back to my quarters"
His use of "I" instead of *we* rang alarm bells with Chelsea. She stopped still.
"Okay, you're walking like the Borg were after you, you're sighing like you have a leaky lung and now you're spending the evening alone. So, why don't you spit it out, hun? What's bugging you.... apart from me, apparently?"
"The fact of the way you acted in there..." he mentioned, stopping himself and turning to face her. "Come on, you know how you acted yourself"
Chelsea took a deep breath. "I was very nice to Laura and about how good you both are. I even suggested you should do more together... what do you want from me? Blood?"
"Trust me even more....it wasn't what you said, it was the way you said things, and how you acted..." He replied.
"I was totally charming! I made a huge effort to be as nice as pie!" she objected.
"It's hard for me with the whole trust thing, you know why... for three years I believed in my ability to tell when someone loves me, now I don't anymore.... and besides, it's not like you're just cheer-leading together - this is .... well, you're asking me to *know* how I acted, and I'm asking you to *know* how different this is to normal situations... you two were doing moves that would amount to divorce proceedings in a lot of cultures!" she said, stopping because she'd confused herself.
"Oh I see, I get it now" he sighed. "I know you haven't asked me, but I'm not gonna stop doing the dancing and me and Laura are just friends"
"Ryan, please don't. I don't want you to stop the dancing. You're so good, i'd never be able to forgive myself if i spoiled that for you. I just need your understanding about how hard this is for me, please?"
"How hard it is? Chels, do you trust me?"
"Yes, completely! It's just hard for me to watch and to not feel insecure. It's not about what you're going to do, it's about how I can't help feeling. If you give me time and don't lose patience with me, I'll get it sorted, I promise!" she told him earnestly. "I know it's not the same as it was before.... at least my head knows... it's just hard for my heart not to want to cling too tightly. I know suffocating you would only do more harm but I need time to work on making myself back off."
Ryan nodded. "Ok, I understand I guess"
"Thanks" she breathed in relief. "Ry, I want you to know how much I really want for us to work, I just don't know how to put it into words without tangling myself up.
"I want us to work too" he said as they both started to walk again. "I just feel like i shouldnt be around somebody else or doing something if you don't want me too"
"But i shouldn't stop you dancing, Ryan, it's something you really *ought* to do... it's part of who you are and anyway I do have to learn to give you space, so why not start now? I have to suck it up this time, i think it's important for us both - don't you think so?" she replied seriously.
"Yeah I do think so" he agreed honestly.
"Cool, so we agree." she smiled, turning to reach up and kiss his cheek. "I can start tonight, if you want an evening to yourself?" she added.
He felt bad but he nodded. "If you don't mind?"
"Course i don't" she lied, trying hard to do what she'd promised and give him space.
"I think I'll go and see the illuminations in the Bajoran Gardens. I know Ed said he's going, I think I'll badger him for a change" she grinned.
Ed wasn't going, he was getting an early night, but Ryan wouldn't know that so she could let him think she was going to be fine so he wouldn't worry.
Keeping the mood light, she chattered the rest of the way back about things that had happened in sickbay today.
OFF.
A Joint Post Between:
Lt Ryan Milarno
Chief Medical Officer - DS5
&
Lt (jg) Chelsea Adams
Assistant Medical Officer - DS5
by Commander Chelsea Dunham & Lieutenant Ryan Milarno
Post Details
| Title | Step Up 3 - Part 2 - The Agreement | |
| Mission | Deception: The lesser part of Valour | |
| Author(s) | Commander Chelsea Dunham & Lieutenant Ryan Milarno | |
| Posted | Sun Nov 30, 2008 @ 2:05am | |
| Location | Corridors | |
| Timeline | 19.30 hrs - Station Day 3 |
Ryan sat forward. "Right then I'll get started tomorrow" he grinned. "And then we practise" he said smiling at Laura. "Meet me here tomorrow" he stood. "Anyway am off now...you coming Chels?" he asked.
"Sure.." was all Chelsea could say. From so confident and proactive a minute or two ago, to so unsure again now, she just smiled weakly at Laura and said. "Nice to meet you, Laura - see you again soon, I hope." before following him meekly out.
As Ryan walked along the corridor striding out, Chelsea had to hurry to catch him up. She fell into step beside him and there were a few moments of silence.
"That looked pretty energetic for someone on sick leave" she joked, smiling at him a little nervously because his pace was worrying her as he seemed upset.
Ryan looked at her. "What brought you to the holodeck?" he asked as they continued walking to the turbolift.
"You" she answered simply. "I finished my shift and you weren't in your quarters so I asked the computer to locate you and came to find you. Is it a problem? Should I just have paged you?"
"Well umm no, that's fine, I just wondered..." he told her.
"I'll keep away in future, when I know you're dancing..... only you never told me you could dance and I had no idea.... " she still felt the need to explain.
Ryan sighed. "I didn't say you had to keep away..."
"But if you'd wanted me there you'd have told me you had this going on.... and anyway I don't mind.... i think it'll be easier on us all if I find something else to do at the times you're training or rehearsing." she said.
"It's not that I didn't want you there" he sighed, clearly getting frustrated, cause he wasnt going to tell her how he felt.
"No, okay, but i think it's better that way, for me too" she said quietly. "Anyway, shall we pass on the Bajoran Festival? Or did you want to go?" she changed the subject.
"I'm not going" he said bluntly. "Think I'll just go back to my quarters"
His use of "I" instead of *we* rang alarm bells with Chelsea. She stopped still.
"Okay, you're walking like the Borg were after you, you're sighing like you have a leaky lung and now you're spending the evening alone. So, why don't you spit it out, hun? What's bugging you.... apart from me, apparently?"
"The fact of the way you acted in there..." he mentioned, stopping himself and turning to face her. "Come on, you know how you acted yourself"
Chelsea took a deep breath. "I was very nice to Laura and about how good you both are. I even suggested you should do more together... what do you want from me? Blood?"
"Trust me even more....it wasn't what you said, it was the way you said things, and how you acted..." He replied.
"I was totally charming! I made a huge effort to be as nice as pie!" she objected.
"It's hard for me with the whole trust thing, you know why... for three years I believed in my ability to tell when someone loves me, now I don't anymore.... and besides, it's not like you're just cheer-leading together - this is .... well, you're asking me to *know* how I acted, and I'm asking you to *know* how different this is to normal situations... you two were doing moves that would amount to divorce proceedings in a lot of cultures!" she said, stopping because she'd confused herself.
"Oh I see, I get it now" he sighed. "I know you haven't asked me, but I'm not gonna stop doing the dancing and me and Laura are just friends"
"Ryan, please don't. I don't want you to stop the dancing. You're so good, i'd never be able to forgive myself if i spoiled that for you. I just need your understanding about how hard this is for me, please?"
"How hard it is? Chels, do you trust me?"
"Yes, completely! It's just hard for me to watch and to not feel insecure. It's not about what you're going to do, it's about how I can't help feeling. If you give me time and don't lose patience with me, I'll get it sorted, I promise!" she told him earnestly. "I know it's not the same as it was before.... at least my head knows... it's just hard for my heart not to want to cling too tightly. I know suffocating you would only do more harm but I need time to work on making myself back off."
Ryan nodded. "Ok, I understand I guess"
"Thanks" she breathed in relief. "Ry, I want you to know how much I really want for us to work, I just don't know how to put it into words without tangling myself up.
"I want us to work too" he said as they both started to walk again. "I just feel like i shouldnt be around somebody else or doing something if you don't want me too"
"But i shouldn't stop you dancing, Ryan, it's something you really *ought* to do... it's part of who you are and anyway I do have to learn to give you space, so why not start now? I have to suck it up this time, i think it's important for us both - don't you think so?" she replied seriously.
"Yeah I do think so" he agreed honestly.
"Cool, so we agree." she smiled, turning to reach up and kiss his cheek. "I can start tonight, if you want an evening to yourself?" she added.
He felt bad but he nodded. "If you don't mind?"
"Course i don't" she lied, trying hard to do what she'd promised and give him space.
"I think I'll go and see the illuminations in the Bajoran Gardens. I know Ed said he's going, I think I'll badger him for a change" she grinned.
Ed wasn't going, he was getting an early night, but Ryan wouldn't know that so she could let him think she was going to be fine so he wouldn't worry.
Keeping the mood light, she chattered the rest of the way back about things that had happened in sickbay today.
OFF.
A Joint Post Between:
Lt Ryan Milarno
Chief Medical Officer - DS5
&
Lt (jg) Chelsea Adams
Assistant Medical Officer - DS5