Here goes Nothing - Breakfast with a Surprise, Pt. II

Posted on Wednesday February 12th, 2020 @ 10:38pm by Cadet Freshman Grade Chloe Graydon & Cadet Freshman Grade Caleb Johnson & Lieutenant Commander Freya Mannerheim

1,447 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Shakedown Cruise
Location: Officers' Lounge, Deck 3; Cadet Graydon's quarters, Deck 2
Timeline: Day 4 - 0515hrs

Chloe looked over at Freya. “So where do you think is going to be best to catch him?” She asked, trying to think of somewhere private they could go.

The Lieutenant paused and pondered the question for a moment before answering. "I'm really not sure, to be honest. At least not now. You sure you want to talk to him now, not after his shift?"

“No, no, needs to be now...otherwise he could find out another way...how well do you know the Chief Medical Officer?” She asked.

Freya shook her head. "Not well at all, I'm afraid. I only needed medical assistance once, and Ensign Hartmann took care of that. You might know her, the half-orion girl? She helped me fix my leg when it decided to stop working. I've only met Doctor T'vek in senior staff briefings, never had much to do with him."

Chloe sighed. Sickbay wasn’t exactly the best place to have this conversation, and it was going to be awkward enough as it was. “Reckon you could pull rank and drag him away?” She asked, smiling at the stupid suggestion.

"I can drag him away now, if you want it to be like that," Freya replied, smirking at the suggestion. "Although that would interrupt his breakfast quite drastically. I can order him around for you, though, just tell me where to drag him to."

“My quarters? I dunno...” She replied, unsure if her quarters was the best place to do this. She’d moved into one of the spare quarters on deck 2 after the argument with her mother yesterday.

"If you feel that is the right place to go, then sure. I'd have dragged him to my office, but I haven't got one so that is not an option unfortunately."

“Quarters it is then. Shall I meet you there or?” She left the question unfinished, not sure she liked the other option of the question.

"That is entirely up to you, Chloe." Freya looked around. "Where is he anyway?"

Chloe looked around. “Second table from the door, hidden behind the big security guy.” She said, spotting Caleb.

Freya nodded and quickly straightened her uniform, making sure her jacket was clasped closed. "Okay. Go to your quarters then, I'll see you there in a few minutes."

Determined, she walked over to the other cadet, who was in the middle of his breakfast. "Cadet Johnson," she said, assuming the commanding tone and posture she had been taught at the Terran academy. "There is an urgent matter we need to discuss. In private. So if you would follow me?"

Caleb looked up, jumping at the sudden interruption. “Of course Lieutenant, my apologies, you made me jump.” He answered. He grabbed his unfinished breakfast burrito in one hand, eating as they walked. “So, urm, where are we headed?” He asked.

"A good friend of mine wants to talk to you," Freya said as they reached the turbolift. "Deck two," she called out, setting the lift into motion. She completely ignored the Cadet's attempt at further conversation, wondering to herself what Chloe had even seen in him, until they finally reached deck 2. After a short walk, they were outside Chloe's quarters, and Freya quickly pressed the buzzer. "Lieutenant Mannerheim," she said, announcing their presence. "I've brought the cadet, as you requested."

Caleb looked nervous as they waited to be let in. He hadn’t been here that long, so what could he possibly have done wrong.

Chloe sat inside her quarters, off to the left hand side of the door, so she wasn’t immediately visible when someone walked in. “Enter.” She called simply, trying not to let any emotion creep into her voice. This was going to be hard enough as it was.

Freya nodded to Johnson. "In we go," she said, as the door opened and she entered, almost immediately spotting Chloe. "Cadet, you wanted to see this one? Well, here we are."

Chloe nodded. “Yep...that’s the one.” She answered, her voice breaking slightly as she felt fresh tears well up in her eyes. Why was she sad? Caleb had left her, without even a word to her face, but she’d got over it. She’d moved on. Or so she’d thought.

Caleb turned to the direction the voice had come from and took a step back. “No...no, no, no. You shouldn’t be here...I can’t do this.” He said, turning towards the door and trying to head out.

Freya swiftly took a step to the side and blocked the cadet's exit. "Why the hurry, Cadet?", she asked, shaking her head. "Not so keen on the reunion, are we?"

Caleb shot a dirty look at Freya, before turning back to Chloe. “What do you want?” He asked, a nasty tone creeping into his voice.

Chloes face changed to a very hurt look. “Why can’t you just be at least civil? Why so aggressive...what happened to us?” She asked, the tears now spilling down her cheeks.

“Fine.” He answered. “Why did you get your friend here to drag me here? Why couldn’t you just leave me alone?” He asked.

“Because you need to know...I’m pregnant...” Chloe answered, as tears continued to fall.

Caleb just stood there. He didn’t know what to say. From the looks of her Chloe also didn’t know what to say.

Freya sighed. "Johnson. So you really have nothing to say to this?" She shook her head and turned to Chloe. "I can see if I can pull a few strings and get him off this ship. I can't see him being here doing you any good."

Chloe shook her head. “You loved me when it happened...what changed?” She asked.

“You know what changed. I thought this was all going to end up being some long distance thing. I never thought we’d end up on the same ship...I still love you...I just need some time to think.” He answered.

Chloe nodded. “Come and find me once you’ve decided what you want then.” She replied, motioning for Freya to let Caleb past.

Caleb nodded and took this as his cue to leave. He quickly manoeuvred around the Lieutenant and left.

Chloe sat there in silence, so many thoughts rushing around her head.

Freya took a deep breath and walked over to Chloe, putting her hand on her shoulder. "You okay? This can't have been easy for you."

Chloe shrugged. “I don’t know how I feel. Part of me wants to scream, another just wants to cry, another part is happy it’s over...” She replied.

The Lieutenant was silent for a moment, before finally speaking. "I know that feeling very well, Chloe." Her hand slipped into the little pocket she had strapped to her leg and took out something that she held in her closed fist. "Secrets are hard, Chloe, but it can be equally hard to share them. Especially if you don't really know who you can trust with it. Believe me, I know that better than anyone on this ship."

“I’m sure you’ll find someone you trust, just like I found you to trust, when I most needed it.” She answered, giving a small smile. “What we want comes to us when we least expect it. Or at least that’s what I’ve been told before.” She said, trying to give some good advice but seeming to fail miserably.

Freya chuckled. "And when it happens, we often won't even know it's what we wanted in the first place. What seems to be the worst thing that ever happened to you may well turn out to have been the start of things turning for the better."

She opened her hand and gazed at the thing in her hand - a badge, shaped like a dagger, seemingly impaling the planet Earth. "'Blessings often come in the disguise of a curse', my grandfather once said," she finally said after a long pause. "And this may turn out to be one of these situations."

Chloe looked at the badge, puzzled. “What’s that?” She asked.

Freya smiled. "A reminder of things that I left behind. Another one of those hidden blessings. I might tell you the story at some point." She smiled and walked towards the door. "Anyway, I'm probably already close to running late for duty, so I better get going. Call me if you need me, okay?"

Chloe nodded. “Thank you again. And I’m sorry if I made you late.” She called as Freya headed for the door.

Freya turned around. "Any time. That's what friends are for."

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