Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Achilleas Petrakos (Chief Science Officer) in Side Sim: The Likable Hornet Date (Open for Any to Join)

Posted by Ensign Iyun Riani (Scientist) in Side Sim: The Likable Hornet Date (Open for Any to Join)

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Achilleas Petrakos (Chief Science Officer) in Side Sim: The Likable Hornet Date (Open for Any to Join)
Posted by… suppressed (6) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

Achilleas tilted his head and smiled back as he took Ria’s hand in his. That was probably the fastest he’d seen her pray before eating but he waited, not that it was very long, for her to take a bite before dipping one of his chicken fingers in sauce and likewise started eating. “I didn’t know if you’d be interested.” He said between bites. “But I got some fruit to share. Thought it might go well with the wine.”

CSO Petrakos

“Maybe afterwards as a dessert,” Ria replied. “For it does sound nice, I’m just not sure how hungry I am.” She smiled softly before taking another bite, not sure of what else to say. So instead she just continued to eat slowly while contemplating all that had happened today and this evening in particular. In many ways these first few days on the Starbase hadn’t gone at all as she had expected. But for the most part those unexpected things made her now feel very happy.

~Ensign Iyun, Scientist

Achilleas nodded as he didn’t know what to say either. He ate his chicken and fries while sipping at his wine and occasionally took some fruit. “The Commander seems like a nice woman.” He ventured a topic. He wanted to break the awkward silence and thought this might be a relatively safe approach. Was it safe to talk about another woman when on a date though?

CSO Petrakos

“She does,” Ria agreed without hesitation before taking a sip of wine. She hadn’t found the silence between them awkward, but at the same time she didn’t mind that Achilleas had broken it. It was now that she was finding herself feeling a little awkward though. Not because he had brought up Dira, but because she didn’t know how to put her thoughts and feelings about their encounter into words. For a moment or two she chewed on her lower lip, thinking. “It was nice meeting her. Yet …” she started and then her voice faltered slightly. She took a deep breath, held it for a moment and then exhaled slowly before adding softly and a bit in a rush, “Being around senior officers just makes me very nervous.” Her cheeks turned a deep shade of scarlet and she stared intently at her salad.

~Ensign Iyun, Scientist

Achilleas nodded thoughtfully as he took another sip of wine. “I can understand that.” He said while not being aware that he technically qualified as a senior officer since he was a department head. “I had an informal meeting with her after she joined us on the starbase and she seemed very approachable, which is a good thing since I’ll need to report up to her and the Captain.”

CSO Petrakos

“That’s good,” Ria replied before helping herself to some more of her salad. “I think feeling like you can approach your direct superior is important,” she mused after another moment of silence. Their conversation had slowed down a little, but Ria didn’t mind that at all. She never felt like every moment needed to be filled with conversation and hoped that Achilleas felt the same. Yet at the same time the sort of small-talk like conversation they were having while finishing their meals was nice as well.

~Ensign Iyun, Scientist

Achilleas leaned back in his chair, the food on his plate vanquished, the fruit mostly demolished, his libations run dry. He wasn’t stuffed but he was certainly satisfied with the food, the drink, and most definitely happy with the company. It was nice to relax and enjoy the moment with the conversation being simple. As the second glass of wine had him buzzing a little, he smiled at Ria before standing from the table. “Are you ready?” He asked loud enough to be heard over the music.

CSO Petrakos

Rising to her feet as well, Ria smiled back at Achilleas and stepped around the table to get close to him. She then put her hand in his and rested her head a against his shoulder for a moment. “I am,” she replied, probably rather unnecessarily considering she was standing next to him and all. Lifting her head off his shoulder and turning slightly, she looked shyly up at Achilleas and asked, “Shall we … call it a day, or …” Her cheeks turned pink and she slightly dropped her gaze. “Or would you … would you like to spend a bit more time together. Just … just the two of us somewhere a little more quiet?” She wasn’t sure why she was feeling so nervous again and wished she wasn’t. Despite the awkward beginning it had turned out to be a lovely evening and Achilleas was a kind and gentle man. ‘Hopefully he won’t think I don’t want to spend time alone with him just because I’m nervous,’ she thought to herself and managed to hold back a sigh.

~Ensign Iyun, Scientist

Achilleas nodded his head and smiled at Ria before leading them out of the bar. When they were far enough away to hear their own thoughts again and in some privacy, he answered back. “I was hoping to have some time alone with you all day. First was meeting the Captain, then accidentally going to a busy bar. After meeting up with the Commander and hoping to have the evening turn out better than it started, which thankfully it did, I wanted to whisk you away from there and just be by ourselves. So I most definitely want to spend more time alone. Are… um, you alright with going back to my quarters again? Yours won’t have any privacy and I doubt we could book a holodeck on such short notice.” His face was a bit red at the thought of being alone and not needing to hold himself back because of regulations and professionalism.

CSO Petrakos

Ria looked him full in the eyes as she nodded. “Yes, I’m fine coming to your quarters with you again,” she said softly. She felt her heart beat a little faster in her chest, but not at all in an unpleasant way. The smile on her face widened and her cheeks turned even redder as she thought of being alone and not having to worry about getting into trouble. There were still things to consider and to worry about, but at least that big one was dealt with. Looping her arm around his, she rested her head against his shoulder again as they walked down the corridor towards his quarters. It wasn’t long till they were in sight of his door and with each step they took, she felt the nervousness and excitement rise more and more within her. She wasn’t sure if anything would happen, this was their first official date after all, but it was possible. She both wanted more to happen and at the same time felt incredibly nervous about the prospect. Were they both ready for it? Or would it be okay, maybe even better if they waited some more and took things slowly? All those thoughts and questions raced through her mind while she was also trying to sort out her emotions.

~Ensign Iyun, Scientist