Dinner Meeting

Posted on Wed Nov 18th, 2009 @ 2:29am by Lieutenant JG Drew O'Connell & Lieutenant JG Yvette LaFaal

1,667 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Shoreleave - Welcoming Old Friends and New
Location: The Golden Crown
Timeline: Backpost

Drew stepped into the ship's lounge, a small but tasteful room which was not standard to every Nova Class vessel. It was late, so the lighting had been lowered to 'set the mood'. The light sound of piano music played in the background and Drew was surprised to see an actual piano being played by one of the crew. He smiled and shook his head. The whole thing smacked of an actual date, not a work related meeting. It was exactly the wrong message he wanted to send to Yvette LaFaal...

Finding an empty table near the center of the room, purposely avoiding the quiet, secluded corners, Drew set himself down and began arranging PaDDs he had brought. They were mostly filled with data about his department and hers, personnel and equipment which they could share. He had just placed one on top of another, in priority list, when he looked up to see her enter. "Lieutenant LaFaal," he said, approaching her quickly. "Please join me, I've saved a table over here."

Yvette had taken hours to get ready, finally settling on a long black dress that hugged her figure almost seamlessly. It accentuated every curve of her body and thrusted her cleavage together making it even more enticing. She had also let her hair down to fall about her bare shoulders before she pinned it up with a delicate but intricately decorated wooden rod from China on Earth. Pale pink cherry blossoms hung from the end almost the same shade as the lipstick she had applied. Now all that remained was a few loose strands of hair that curled into slight ringlets and hung framing her exquisite features.

She tweaked her dress one last time to make sure that the long slit to one side was in the right place before entering the lounge. The sight caught her breath as the image that was before her was exceptionally romantic. Piano music playing, dimmed lighting and the room was almost deserted.

She wove her way through the tables and made it to the table. Drew was sat looking even more hansome in the dull lighting and his piercing blue eyes looked straight at her. "You look very hansome, Lieutenant".

Already flustered by her choice of dress and the way Yvette LaFaal filled it, Drew moved to her side of the table. Pulling the chair out just a bit, he waited until she had sat down before pushing it in slightly. If anything, Evelyn McCree had taught him manners. He was surprised by her choice of dress, he himself had chosen to wear his duty uniform, assuming this was still just a work related meeting. He was clearly wrong with that assumption. Moving to his side of the table, he sat before he responded, "Thank you. You are stunning. I wish I had known this was a casual meeting, I would have worn something...more appropriate."

Something then dawned on her. 'What if he thinks this is just a work meeting. If so why did he go to all of this trouble.
She fumbled around for something to say, not sure if she had completely misread the situation. "Thats fine Lieutenant. I always dress like this off duty".

Instantly she winced as she said it. There was no way in hell he would believe that one.

Drew smiled eaily. He knew that she had put more effort into the dress than she admitted, still he would let her off easy. With a lighthearted chuckled, he agreed, "To be honest, this is how I dress off duty too." Once the words were out of his mouth, he instantly wondered whom they had come from, the Andrew O'Connell of the 'Challenge' days would have called LaFaal on her choice of dress and even admitted he could sense her attraction. It likely would have got him smacked for his remarks as well. Who the Hell am I? he wondered to himself.

With a very tentative voice, Yvette had to ask. "Have I missread the situation tonight. This isn't a date is it?"

Drew shifted uncomfotably in his chair before admitting, "No, that wasn't the intention, Lieutenant." He tried to smile at her, but it came off as half-hearted as it felt. Staring at her crestfallen expressin, he decided to press on. "However," he said, pushing aside the PaDDs before him, "Work isn't everything we have to do in life. Maybe we could just spend some time getting to know each other. That is, afterall, what my intention was in the first place."

With her cheeks burning like a red light bulb she tried to regain some of her dignity. Gently she pushed some of the soft hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear. With a deep breath and a forced smile she faced the Intelligence Officer face on.
"Well, then Lieutenant," she turned to formality to try and regain some semblance to the meeting. "Lets see what we have."

Drew smiled genuinely this time. Deciding a change was in order, he asked, "Would you excuse me for a few minutes. I promise to come right back. Who could keep such a beautiful woman waiting?"

Now she was confused. In one breath he was saying that this was not a romantic meeting, but in the next he was referring to her as beautiful. Still, the comment was not an unwelcome one. This time her cheeks reddened with a warm sense of pleasure and a small smile tugged at her lips as she lowered her eyes from view. "You flatter me Lieutenant," she brought her pool like eyes back up to meet his. "I'll be waiting here."

A few minuteas later, Drew returned to the table, his Starfleet uniform changed in favor if a simple black shirt and black slacks. Sitiing across from LaFaal, Drew looked into her confused eyes. With a smirk, he answered the unspoken question. "Now it's a date, Yvette."

She still felt silly having misunderstood the situation, but his attempt to lift the evening was more than appreciated.
"You don't have to do this, Lieutenant!"

"Please," he responded, "It's Drew. Of course I don't have to do this, but I want to." Drew looked up as the waiter approached their table. "Ladies first," he said as he motioned to Yvette.

Yvette giggled slightly before looking to the waiter. "Butterfly Chicken with taglitelle and green pesto please!"

"I'll have the steak and garlic potatoes, please." When the man had taken their orders and departed, Drew asked, "Tell me about yourself...what brings you to the Archimedes?"

Yvette took the breifest of moments to consider this question. Her problem with it was this; was it a simple question or a complex one. In the end she decided to answer it as if it were a simple question. "Same as always. Starfleet needed a Diplomatic Officer and I was avaliable. Or at least that's the simple answer."

"And the not so simple answer?" he asked. It was now a question begging to be answered.

"Something I would prefer not to discuss", she said very softly trying to duck out of the conversation and the direction in which it was heading she asked the same question of him. "What about you, Lieutenant. What brought you to Archimedes?"

Drew supressed a laugh. Whatever her simple story was, his was likely to be simpler. "Same as yours, the simple answer is easier. You can copy your answer and paste it here if you like."

The waiter returned to their table and placed their food orders before them. It was a brief interruption but one which was welcomed. It broke the strained silence between them. Dropping the prestense, Drew decided he would be the first to extend some trust. Besides, the Archimedes was full of oddball characters with strange stories. Taking a sip of the beer before him, he sighed before launching into the story. "Alright, Yvette, one of us has to give...I'm here as a result of actions I took after the loss of the USS Rook. I think this ship is a place to hide away the people Starfleet wants to forget about. Seems I'm one of those people..."

"Drew... Why would you say that", her heart strings had been pulled and she extended a hand to hold his across the table. It was a completely unconcious move, but in the same token completely natural. "You are a very interesting and engaging man. You can trust me on that." She smiled with her last statment meaning it from the heart.

Drew looked at the extended hand. He felt as he could feel her pity through it. He didn't need her pity, worse he couldn't stand it. Retracting his hand in a manner which was slow enough not to seem uncomfortable for her, his demeanor grew more serious. "I appreciate the gesture and the compliment. Truth is truth, Yvette. Starfleet would rather I go away quietly but they're prepared to make some noise as needed. For now, I just need to fly under the radar."

His rise in ire caught her flat footed. "I'm sorry Lieutenant. I didn't mean... I was just trying to... I'm sorry!"
With the apology she climbed from her seat. "This was a bad idea from the start. Again I'm sorry Lieutenant".
She bobbed her head slightly before making a rapid exit for the door and making a beeline for her quarters, hoping that she could forget tonight.

Drew looked down at the uneaten meal before him. He shook his head silently, downing the rest of his beer. 'Another one fails the O'Connell Challenge,' Drew thought bitterly. He had tried, at least as much as he was capable. With a sigh, Drew pushed away his plate, deposited his napkin on the table and headed home for the night. He also made a promise to himself that their next meeting would go better.

 

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