Posted by Fleet Captain Ghubari Koraia (Captain) in Flashback- Earth, Starfleet Medical (2386)

Posted by Lieutenant Julien Smith (Doctor) in Flashback- Earth, Starfleet Medical (2386)

Posted by Fleet Captain Ghubari Koraia (Captain) in Flashback- Earth, Starfleet Medical (2386)
“Commander Koraia…” the medic said impatiently, clearly not happy with her. Too bad. She didn’t gave a damn if she was making him happy at the moment or not.

“I already did. It doesn’t work. I’m not in the habit of repeating myself to people and I don’t intend to start now.” Uggh, medical people. Acted like they knew everything. Not only was she not in the habit of repeating herself, she also wasn’t in the habit of lying about her state. She had tried it there way and it wasn’t working.

Offering her the temporary prosthetic limb, the medic’s expression all but begged her.

Sitting on the bench as she was, with crutches next to her and her right leg stump still showing sign of fresh surgery and the long recovery ahead, Ghubari could only look up at the well-meaning medic with a look that normally make others cower. The staff at the rehab centre were tougher than most though and dealt with people who were often broken in both mind and body. “I said no!”

The next thing the medic knew, the mechanical limb made of tough metal and plastics was flying clear across the room. “I told you it hurts. I’m not wearing it. Now get lost.”

The medic glared at the recalcitrant commander as if she were a toddler throwing a tantrum, spun on her heels and simply left the room muttering, “stubborn command types.”

Commander Koraia, XO on Medical Leave

Julien had just limped into the main rehab room for his walking practice after the new fitting, when a prosthetic limb skidded over the floor and collided with his own. Leaning heavily on the duranium-enforced crutch, he leaned down and picked it up with his right cybernetic arm.

He looked up to the woman who had thrown it. The look on her face felt all too familiar and he had to supress a smile. The first smile after… he couldn’t remember how long ago. He took the leg under one arm and limped over to her, while studying the healing surgery at her stump and analysing her medical situation automatically. Oh yeah, he knew where she was at, he so knew.

He remembered the state he had been in at that point in time when he had received his cybernetic implants without really being asked… and because he remembered it so well, being here again and all, he tried to give her his trademark lopsided charming smile. His cheek muscles almost screeched in protest after so much disuse and in the first few seconds the expression felt alien on his face.

“Hello there.” he said in his deep baritone, and a black stray curl fell into his forehead.

The dark skinned woman looked up and looked entirely like she wanted to throw something at him too.

While others might have flinched away from the look, this guy stood his ground and kept smiling. Amber eyes in a dark face, Julien thought. How unusual and beautiful. She was not his type of woman, but the touch of wild beauty made him curious nevertheless.

“Can I interest you in a game of football? Whoever manages to kick the other one’s crutch away first has won and gets invited for drinks.” he said.

• Julien

Unwanted and unbidden, a snort erupted from the cranky commander. “You’d win… this time, and I’d still be out the drink, which I really want but am apparently not allowed with all these meds I’m on,” she said in a deeply accented voice with very clear notes of bitterness.

~Commander Koraia, XO on Medical Leave

Julien’s smile just broadened. “Ah it seems like you need a doctor who can, after a look at your file and the meds you are getting, figure out which kind of drink you can have safely. You see, there are drinks that work very well with meds, it’s a question of evading the negative effects of the wrong mixture of substances and dosages…” he cleared his throat
“Well my name is Lt. Cmdr. Julien King, currently in between assignments and as chance has it, I am a doctor… thought not practicing anymore… but that I can do.”

In an instant his whole demeanour changed and he dropped the charmer facade, though the offer wasn’t a fake. Suddenly Koraia could see a reflection of what she felt in his oddly mismatched green eyes as he touched his crutch to his right leg, producing a metallic clang. He suddenly looked oder and very tired.

Julien couldn’t hold the cheerfulness anymore. Something that usually came as easy to him as breathing was now hard and felt like a lie. He had no energy left in him to give, but he was also yearning for something that had nothing to do with his body… or half of it.

“Seriously now, I think you can use a drink and so can I. I yearn to talk about something other than my limbs and their underperformance.” he said and gave her an imploring look.

• Julien