Posted by Lieutenant Corinne Dalton (Scientist) in Ships In The Night No More (Tag Dalton)

Posted by Commander Dr. Royal Sinclair (Executive Officer) in Ships In The Night No More (Tag Dalton)

Posted by Lieutenant Corinne Dalton (Scientist) in Ships In The Night No More (Tag Dalton)
Posted by… suppressed (7) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

Royal looked at her for a moment and then said “How about we just decide now to make our very own successes and failures together? That way we aren’t using either of us as the bar for if it’s going good or not?” and he took his drink back and took a sip.

Royal

Cori nodded, smiling softly at him. “Sounds like a plan. Which begs the question, what makes for a successful date in your mind?”

~Corinne Dalton

Royal reached across the table and took her hand in his.

“Another one after it.” he said with a smile.

Royal

He eyes pierced her in a way she couldn’t describe. Her hand felt so dainty in his but she squeezed back with a fierceness that surprised hr (especially given how weak her body was still). Cori matched his smile and nodded. “Well, I think we’re off to a great start. Does that mean disaster consists of no follow-up date?

~Corinne Dalton

“Either that, or they say ‘I’d love to, but my husband would get jealous.” he said and laughed. “And yeah… that has happened.” His thumb moved back and forth lightly on the back of her hand.

Royal

A chuckle slipped from her lips as his thumb soothed something deeper in her that Cori wasn’t quite sure she could qualify in this moment. “People are weird that way. Like why go on a date at all if the option of a second isn’t at least on the table. Then again I’m not the best example because I did an awful lot of one-night stands before I tried relationships. At least those people knew if there wasn’t going to be a follow-up.” For the time being she was content just talking to him and being in contact. The food before her held less interest than the man that held her gaze.

~Corinne Dalton

“Nothing wrong with a one-night stand as long as everyone is aware that’s what it is.” Royal said in a somewhat thoughtful fashion. “There was a time in my life when I was a fan of them.” and he grinned slightly. “But I think I may have diverged slightly from the familial proclivity to promiscuity. My granddad never married. My Da was the result of a week long fling. She dropped him off on Sinear’s doorstep nine months later and no one ever saw her again. I think my Da wanted to be the nuclear-family type, but it just made him resentful when that’s what he got. I’m glad my Ma didn’t have to deal with him too long. It probably would have turned ugly.” He used his unoccupied hand to take a drink. “After she was killed, Da tried to start up his carousing again…” and he shook his head dismissively, “… but his ‘glory days’ were behind him.” He took another drink. “When he’d get particularly drunk, he’d yell about how Ma stole his youth from him.” and he laughed. “And everytime the words left his mouth, Sinear would lay him flat before they were even done reverberating in the air.” and he chuckled.

Royal

Cori grinned. “People are definitely complicated. I was fortunate to have Kip and Janey’s kind and calm love as an example. Theirs was not made of passion but of companionship and deep care. They loved each other in such beautifully small ways, but I think after I left for the Academy I was afraid of anything like that so went the opposite. And as you well know, my relationships have run the gamut. At least I know what I don’t want, so that’s progress.”

~Cori

Royal looked at her for a moment and then asked “Why were you afraid of that kind of connection? And that was the Academy… how do yiu feel about it now?”

Royal

Cori was thoughtful and plucked a spring roll off the plate (that one she remembered) and took a bite. The crisp layers of the wrapper shattered in her mouth and gave her a moment to work through how to explain it all. “Because I kept losing people,” she said at length. “The Klingon war with the Federation was hard on Ajilon. Not only did I lose my adoptive parents but we lost a lot of other people I knew and cared about. Then I was a few year later on my own. Everything was different at the Academy. I needed time to heal those loses before I could let anyone in so close. And then I did when I met Levi and that whirlwind romance not just destroyed my body, Royal, but my trust. Even when I could trust someone enough to let them in, I held back. I did it with Alexander, and I know I did it with Jarred. Maybe that’s why we couldn’t pick back up after I returned. Or maybe we had just changed and been through too much.” Corin shrugged and popped the rest of the roll in her mouth.

“Now? I’m still scared. But it feels like what I have to lose is less… overwhelming. I guess I feel like I have agency in my own life again. I don’t expect it all to go perfectly, or even well at times, but I’m not okay going my whole life alone. I just need to make sure I keep a balance. Autonomy and connection.” She grinned at him and waggled her brows. “Look at me and all my personal growth.”

~Corinne Dalton

Royal smiled and said “Nothing I didn’t expect from the strongest woman I have ever known.” He lifted a slider and popped it in his mouth. He chewed thoughtfully for a while, took a drink, and then said “Well… I really hope that I can help you with that. I don’t want you to be alone, either. And I certainly don’t want you losing yourself into someone. Not even me.” and he grinned slightly. “And I’ll be totally honest… a good portion of that wanting to help you is totally selfish on my part. I want this-” and he gestured back and forth between them, “- to be a thing. A real thing.” He took anbreath even as he turned slightly red. “And there it is. My ulterior motive.”

Royal