First date gone wrong (part 1)

Posted on Fri May 10th, 2013 @ 5:33pm by 1st Lieutenant Kara Melo & Captain Cameron Bourne

1,033 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: What Dreams May Come?
Location: Holodeck 5

Cameron was standing in holodeck 5, looking through the programming list for the right one. He was wearing his Marine Dress Blues complete with white gloves and cover. After finding the one he wanted, he snapped his fingers, "there, computer activate this program and stand by" he said, walking outside.

"Acknowledged" the computer answered

Kara found a dress. It was a rich sapphire blue. As she didn't wear high heels, she opted for a pair of low-heeled sandals. She left her hair loose and headed for the holodeck to meet Cam.

She saw him standing outside the holodeck doors and stopped for a moment. There was nothing as handsome as a man in dress blues.

"Hi," she said as she approached him.

Cam turned to face Kara, and was surprised how beautiful she looked, "wow, you'd never guess that you're a Marine. You look great" he said, smiling at her

She felt her cheeks grow warm at his compliment. "Thank you. You look great, too."

"Thanks, i scrub up well hay. Anyway, shall we?" He asked, holding out a hand, motioning towards the holodeck. As the doors opened, they revealed a large ballroom complete with dancers and a live band playing grand music, "what do you think?"

Kara stepped into the holodeck and looked around. It was very impressive. "Wow."

Cam smiled at her reaction, "well, i've got to set a good first impression" he said, taking hold of her hand. To say he was feeling nervous would be an understatement, he had to clench his free hand just to keep himself from shaking. Putting on a confident smile, Cam started to lead Kara into the ballroom

"You already have set a first impression," she assured him. "This is to see what happens next."

Looking around at the scene before him, Cam nodded to himself, "i assume you know how to dance?"

"A little. You know, the basic steps. Do you?" she asked.

Cam nodded, "I know a few steps" he said, putting a hand on her waist and taking her free hand in his, "just follow my lead"

After they had danced for a while, each one stepping on the others toes at least twice, Cam nodded towards an empty table just off the dance floor

Pulling out the chair for Kara, Cam called over the waiter before sitting down himself, "I hope you're hungry, this place makes beautiful meals"

"As a matter of fact, I am," she said, smiling. "What do you recommend?"

Just as Cam was about to speek, the waiter walked up carrying two menus, each one leather bound and died Royal Red. The letters were all gold leaf that had been pressed into the leather or scribed on the page in beautiful caligraphy. "Would sir or madam care for a drink to begin with? Tonight's favourite seems to be the Muscato Rosa, a lovely rosé wine with a fruity taste" the waiter said, flipping open a small writing pad.

The Meals on the menu ranged from wild duck in a red wine juss to a simple chicken schnitzel served with potato chips. Looking over the menu, Cam smiled, "I made a few changes to the program, I wasn't sure what you liked so I tried to make it as wide a selection as I could. Each one is a dish either from earth or based on an earth recipe"

"So, going back to my question," she said, looking over the menu, "What do you recommend?"

Smiling, Cam looked up at the waiter, "we'll have Two orders of the Penne Carbonara, and a bottle of Shiraz" he said, closing his menu and handing back to the waiter

That sounded good to Kara. "How are you adjusting to being Marine CO?"

Cam shrugged, "alright I guess, a lot more paper work than being a platoon leader, but you get used to it. I've been thinking about who to punch up to XO, got any ideas?"

"Not really." The XO would have to be an officer and at the m oment, Cam was the only one of those. Then again, Cam was acting XO while he was a non-com. An idea flashed through her mind, but she was loathe to mention it.

"Well a great help you are" he joked, rubbing the back of his neck. As the next senior Marine, Kara would be the one who took over if anything happened to him, at least until a replacement was transferred in.

Just as he was about to say something, a waiter on the other side of the ballroom popped the cork off of a bottle of wine. Hearing the pop, Cam mistook it for a gun shot and hit the deck

Kara was glad they were on the holodeck and not in a real restaurant. Still, she was a little embarrassed that her date hit the floor. She also found it funny.

She looked down at him, trying not to laugh. "Seen to any good counselors lately?"

Giving an annoyed grunt, Cam slowly stood up and retook his seat. He couldn't believe he just did that, and right in front of his date to boot. This was not how he wanted the evening to go, "No, I haven't been in to the counsellor yet. I've got an appointment with him though so that's a start I guess" he said, an embarrassed smile coming to his face

She shook her head. "Good. You should add this to the list of things to talk about." Her smile faded a little and she continued. "I'm worried about you. Your PTSD is pretty bad."

Cam smile dropped, this wasn't a subject he wanted to discuss, but maybe that was part of his problem. Trying to keep his composure, he forced a smile back onto his face, "well, I've been able to keep a lid on it for years"

She put her hand over his and squeezed it gently. "That lid is slipping." She looked in his eyes, worried about how he'd take this. "Cam, I care about you and I want you to be well."

(To be continued...)

2nd Lieutenant Cameron Bourne
Marine CO
USS Calypso

Staff Sergeant Kara Melo
Alpha Platoon Leader
USS Calypso

 

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