Posted by Lieutenant Faye Calloway (Mission Specialist) in Calloway’s Quarters- Always Time for Dinner

Posted by Lieutenant Kiama Naim (Chief Science Officer) in Calloway’s Quarters- Always Time for Dinner

Posted by Lieutenant Faye Calloway (Mission Specialist) in Calloway’s Quarters- Always Time for Dinner
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

Well that was a consideration, wasn’t it? Faye nodded. “I think that would be really helpful, thank you. I’ll ask my mom too and it’ll only be a week and we’ll be docked so I can check on her once or twice.” Faye blew out a breath as the thought of the week ‘away’ crept back into her mind. Yes, she was absolutely excited but the nervousness that had been there earlier swept over her rather suddenly. She swallowed it down but her dear friend was telepathic and the creature at her feet (whose head perked up immediately) was empathic and so Faye knew she wasn’t about to let it slide.

“You are most welcome,” Kiama replied gently as she looked at Faye rather intently. But she didn’t say or ask anything just yet and instead gave her friend some time and space first.

Tess let out a ‘mew’ and Faye stroked her as she inhaled deeply at looked at Kiama, uncertainty in her eyes. “You know how I told you before about having worked in kitchens and I told you that I had worked on freighters and stuff?”

~Faye Calloway

Kiama nodded and replied softly, “Yes, I do remember.” She also remembered that she got the feeling then that there had been more to it then Faye had been ready to share. She was still under that impression and it made her wonder if Faye was feeling ready to share a little more of her story. For her friend’s sake she hoped she would. Whether it was with her or someone else. “Do you want to talk about it?” she offered, hoping that Faye knew that saying no was okay.

~Kiama Naim

Faye nodded. “I have been, actually. I had… a bad moment just before Lieutenant Wyatt left the ship and I spiralled a bit again but this time it led to this story coming out. And as someone who is dear to me I want to share it with you too, because I spent a lot of years hiding from whomever Faye Calloway was. As I unravel all the pieces of my life, I am getting to know who she is and want to share her with everyone else in my life. But… it’s not an easy story to tell and I know from experience recently it’s not an easy story to listen to. I can give you the simpler version of it, or I can delve into details. Whatever you feel is best for you, I’m okay with.” And she meant it too, rather deeply.

~Faye Calloway

Kiama nodded, a soft and caring smile playing across her face. Reaching for Faye’s hand, she said gently and sincerely, “Thank you. It means a lot that you want to share this story with me.” After a few moments of contemplation, she continued, “Thank you for the heads up about your story to being easy to listen to. If it’s okay for you, I’d like you tell me all the details you feel comfortable with. I think I can handle that.”

~Kiama Naim

Touch had been one of those things Faye had avoided or found uncomfortable. It had always been a strange game of wanting connection and fearing it to the point of avoidance. For a period of time in her life, connection would have destroyed her. But it had never bene this all or nothing then. She saw that now.

Squeezing Kiama’s hand gently, Faye didn’t let go as she started to speak. Her other hand ran along Tess’s soft fur as the cat slept. But it would quickly shift and Tess, even new to Faye, understood the intensity of the emotions from her new companion. Faye told Kiama about life on Tracken and her mother’s disappearance, and the lead up to the Dominion’s assault on their colony. The massacre and the very brief escape.

Bracing herself. Faye told Kiama about the mercenaries and Kodell. About being a slave and that was how she came to understand the value of being a servant in a household, even if her experiences had a different connotation than Kiama’s friend in her kitchen, or Faye’s work on the freighter’s and doubling as a cook. But most importantly she explained how she was still struggling to reconcile her time with Kodell and her feelings for Daggum. That despite all his reassurance (and Alex’s too), a part of her was terrified than when things shifted between them towards the physical, Faye would react in a way that would damage something between her and Dag.

Her head slightly bowed, Kiama closed her eyes more than once while she listened to Faye’s story. Between her own vivid imagine and the emotions she sensed from her friend it wasn’t difficult to understand how rough and traumatising it must have been for her. She didn’t interrupt her though and just listened closely, still holding Faye’s hand and giving her all the time and non-verbal support she needed.

Pulling her hand away gently, Faye swiped away the moisture from her cheeks. “It’s so unfair, Kiama!” she lamented. “I’ve waited all my life to feel like I do about Daggum and it pisses me off to have this other… thing, looming,” she said, sudden;y rather aware of the anger. Where had that come from? Tess nestled in closer and Faye focused on the tactile sensation of petting the purring the cat.

~Faye Calloway

“Yes, it is,” Kiama replied softly, tears glistening in her dark eyes as she looked at Faye. “You have every right to be angry and upset over it,” she continued and after a short pause asked gently, “Is there anything I can do? Would anything help you prepare or feel prepared for the physical part of the relationship between you and Daggum?”

~Kiama Naim