Posted by Lieutenant Commander Faye Calloway (Counter-Intelligence Officer) in Calloway’s Quarters- Mentoring in All Forms

Posted by James Sinclair in Calloway’s Quarters- Mentoring in All Forms

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Faye Calloway (Counter-Intelligence Officer) in Calloway’s Quarters- Mentoring in All Forms
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

Alone in her quarters, Faye stared at her blank screen, her mind so very confused. Finally, she sent a little text message to Dag that simply said BD and was flagged urgent. It was her code for Bad Day. More specifically it meant she was in distress or had dissociated, or both. The Athena was far enough away that she couldn’t just call and expect him sitting there. It would take time. Flagging the message meant that he’d get it no matter if he was on or off-duty, but she’d still have to wait.

So in the meantime so got up from the desk and stroked Tess’ head. “Some day, huh?”

Rolling out her yoga mat, Faye began a flow, not really thinking about what she was doing, just moving. It was something.

~Faye

A half hour later, the comms beeped with an incoming call.

Faye was lying on her back with her hands resting on her chest as she felt her lungs expand fully and deflate. Tess had come to nap not far from her head and every once in awhile, Faye would reach her hand back and pet the top of her head with the back of her hand. But the chime brought her attention fully into focus and she got up, scooping up Tess and carrying her with her.

Daggum sat his comm terminal uniform top on but opened. “Hey, love. You okay? Bad day, huh… why don’t you tell me about it.”

Daggum

Holding Tess, Faye just stared back at Dag, almost blankly, but she was clearly there. She went to say something once, but no words came out. But then she found words, Not many, but she found a few. “So I sent the video mom sent me to you, and it’s hilarious… mostly. But then she called and told me… I have a sister.” It sounded weird to her. Unreal.

~Faye

Daggum stared at her for a minute and then said “I’m gonna assume this isn’t some weird her and Pikelsimer pregnancy, so… a sister? From where? When?”

Daggum

Still, the details were hard to put together, but the basics were simple. “Before Dad. She was sixteen and the guy she was with didn’t want to be a dad, so she had the baby on her own and tried to raise her but gave her up for adoption after a month. And…” Faye shook her head. “I’m just… overwhelmed. I looked Gavin up, Dag, after she sent me her wedding video and Gavin has a wife and a daughter. All this family, Dag, and…” The tears flowed and she wasn’t sure if it was because she was happy, or sad, or what. “And then I was angry, and it took me a moment to realize that I’m angry at her but feel like I shouldn’t be. She kept it a secret all these years, and on top of it, I wasn’t there. They eloped rather drunk, so sure, wasn’t exactly time, but we’ve missed so much and now I’ve missed something else and it hurts, Dag. It just does!” Tess was rubbed her head against Faye’s hand.

~Faye

Daggum let her tears fall and didn’t respond right away. All he wanted was to wipe them away… but billions of kilometers separated them. Finally he leaned close and said “Faye… my love… you haven’t missed it. Because the moment was theirs, no one else’s. Just like that first time we sat down together… that was just us, no one else. Do we share that moment with others? Sure. But the moment itself is only ours. Your mom and Pikelsimer… that is a conflagration of immense willpower coming together. I don’t think anyone being there would have made a difference… and actually they probably wouldn’t have done it if anyone was there. And I know in my heart you were the very first thought she had when she thought about who to tell.”

Faye bowed her head. Yes, she knew it too.

He leaned back a bit and took a breath. “Now… this sister… thats… thats something, for sure. And I can understand you being mad… and you have a right to be. Thats a big secret to keep. But think about it… she was sixteen. You said she raised the kid on her own? Hell, that means she probably ran away from home. Can you imagine the shame… the guilt she has carried all this time? Be mad at the secret, Faye… you have that right. But don’t hold that against the woman. She did what she thought was best, and I can say that because I know she does that all the time.” He paused for a moment and then he smiled. “I just realized… I’m gonna have a sister-in-law. And you have an Aunt and a cousin. Faye… do you see? We spent all this time alone… and now you have a real family. Like… an actual family! That is so amazing! To go so long, so far, through so much s#!+… and now you have an entire family? That’s… Thats crazy and wonderful and scary and just… Faye thats just beautiful. So look at the beauty when you can. I know you are scared. But honey… we have faced so much more that was terrible… let’s try and see how we do facing something wonderful.”

Daggum

She closed her eyes and nodded for a moment, and when her eyes reopened, she was still just overwhelmed. “If it was was just one thing, I’d probably be doing better but I… my brain pulled the rip cord and escaped for a minute because mom called me after Alex and I discussed something we both knew is coming: I’m leaving the Manhattan Dag. It’s too hard being apart from you and my career is the more flexible one of both our at the moment. I have a mental plan of talking to the uppers and seeing about doing what I’ve done here and do it on the Athena. And just talking about the idea of it, Alex knows me too well, Dag, and he flagged my file for transfer six months from now. I’m going to leave after our wedding. Leave on a good note.” All of this stuff was good, but it was a lot and it was bittersweet.

Just then a chirp announced a priority message ad Faye frowned. “Hold on, getting a priority, but… it’s personal. No marker. Gotta be from mom or Pikelsimer.” And with a push of a button, she activated the message, letting Dag listen with her.

=/\= Hey. We’re turning in for the night. Your sister is sleeping in my ship. I’ve keyed the comms so any call from you goes right to her bedside. I thought, if you want, that may be a good time to talk to her if you want. Just the two of ya. No third or fourth parties involved. Comms are open. Use ‘em if you want. =/\= and there was a pause.

=/\= You’ve taken a lot, these past few months. Lotta bad shit… Im glad you are getting some good shit to balance it out. I’ll watch out for Sha. Later, Faye. =/\= and he sent the message priority.

She had no words at first and just looked up at Dag. “Oh, yeah, did I mention the sister, Nadine, is with them out in Tennessee?”

~Faye

Daggum stared open mouthed for a moment in shock, then closed his mouth and said “Oh right… Pikelsimer.” and he grinned and shook his head. He looked back at Faye, a look of the most sincere love he had ever had on his face and said “I cannot wait to marry you in six months. And I cannot wait to have you close, or at least closer. And I love you more than my life, Faye. You are my soul. A soul I didn’t know I had till I saw you. Call your sister, Faye. You aren’t the only one who had this dropped in her lap, right?”

Daggum