Posted by Ensign Chloe Harland (Nurse) in War… War Never Changes - Cestus III - Side Sim Why Chloe Went

Posted by Lieutenant Nathan Harland (Counselor) in War… War Never Changes - Cestus III - Side Sim Why Chloe Went

Posted by Ensign Chloe Harland (Nurse) in War… War Never Changes - Cestus III - Side Sim Why Chloe Went
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻
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July 2383 Starfleet Medical
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Chloe ran down the hall almost taking out two orderlies and a fellow nurse. Seeing the room she needed Chloe reached out hitting the door lock as she grabbed the frame pulling herself it. She was running so fast, she slid instead of walked into the room. The sound of her rubber boots squeaked loudly trying to gain purchase on the cold metal tile. “I’m coming. Don’t hang up. I’m cuh ming,” Chloe said loudly dropping into the chair before the console with a loud huff. There was no way Nate would not know she had hauled it to make it here. Her cheeks were flushed a bright red, her breath came out in heavy pants, her hair had whispies that fell loosely framing her face and her eyes had a bright sparkle to them. “I thought I was going to miss you,” she said leaning into the screen slightly placing her elbows on the table and resting her chin on her fists. “But I didn’t but I did,” she said softer finally getting her breathing under control as she let out a small laugh bowing her head and shaking it. “Can we start again?”

“There you are doll face,” Nathan said with a wide smile as he tilted his head a Chloe. “God I missed that smile,” he said softly as couldn’t help but nearly beam at her as she sat in front of him as he got the first glimpse of her on his screen.

“Hey you,” she grinned looking away shyly for a second before moving her gaze back to him. Chloe did not want to waste a second of her time with him. It was precious and with him gone, she wanted every second.

“So how is the Hartford? Have you picked the brains of the crew? Is anyone doing that hiding maneuver so that you have to seek them out because they are just trying to seek your attention but at the same time claim they are perfectly fine and an introvert? How are your quarters? Did my plant survive the trip,” she threw question after question at him like a drill sergeant in basic training. It was hard not to. They only had a single long weekend together before he left for his placement. Most people would have just choked it up to graduation fun yet for Chloe and it seemed to her for Nathan, there was the possibility of so much more. They left a million messages for each other every day with some on a strict schedule. She woke every morning to a message usually with a picture of coffee and the words Good Morning Doll face. Before bed, Nathan would see a message about her day and how much she missed him. Her message was always a novel while his was typically a man’s couple of short phrases. Regardless of the word count both types of messages showed how much they were on each other’s mind. Throughout the day Chloe sent random images of things she saw. Nathan was more of the quick kiss or happy face as a response. The moments like this were the ones she craved, however, with his schedule and the unpredictability of the ER they often were ships passing in the night.

“It’s all good baby… the plant’s great… the crew is great. I just miss you is all, I miss this…” he said softly as he took a deep breath. He wanted time with her, more than anything. “I miss you, more than you know.”

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September 2383 Chloe’s apartment
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“So I booked the cabin at Lake Tahoe but my sister is not happy with me,” Chloe sat down on her bed adjusting the PaDD on her lap to talk to Nate. “She is still complaining that I am not letting her stay with us and that she had to get her own cabin. I can’t for the life of me see why Meredith is putting up such a fuss. I mean would you want to share a room with us this weekend,” she took a long sip of her coffee blowing over the lip of the up beforehand.

“Does she think she needs to protect your virtue? If it makes her feel better I could tell her I took it the first date” Nathan said with a wry smirk and wink at Chloe as he couldn’t help but have some fun as he took a deep breath. “Besides, I assume she just wants what we have… not everyone is as lucky as us.”

“Probably but my sister’s ability to find her next boyfriend is not my issue. My issue is both of us not falling asleep all weekend once we get there. I had to take five double shifts over the past two weeks to get the time off. It’s worth it though.” Chloe stopped talking for a second as she looked at Nathan’s face. It seemed slightly different. His face was smiling and all his attention was focused on her yet his eyes seemed to look a little less intense. “You look tired,” she said getting a bit concerned for a second.

“Lord… I am so tired. It feels like a constant drain… but I’ll be fine. These chats keep me going doll face.” Nathan said as he pulled the image to his face as he gave it a kiss.

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April 2384 Golden Gate Park
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Chloe sat in the park looking out at the bay while she talked to Nathan. It was chilly but warm enough that the crisp spring day air felt good. Things were moving so fast between them but also at a snail’s pace. His impromptu proposal at Christmas was more than a shock but on some level not unexpected. The holiday was perfect yet with his departure so many problems began to rear their ugly head. Her family moved on a sliding scale from absolute adoration to highly suspicious. Her mother and aunts were chomping at the bit to publish the engagement announcement. The problem was Nathan helping out with this task on his end. While Chloe wanted to set a date, it wasn’t something she felt, much like Nathan, had to be done at breakneck speed. Chloe’s response of we are talking about it was met by numerous questions that ranged from Nathan’s desire to actually set one to understand that he had to get enough leave together to actually enjoy it. It was enough to set Chloe on edge whenever she saw a group message from her family. “So have you talked to the Captain about dates?” She tried to keep her tone casual. For the past few weeks, it seemed like the topic of wedding planning annoyed him. “I checked out several places. My family is still pushing hard for the Thomas Manor Inn but it is hard to look at anything if I am not sure even what season we are planning to get married. We can’t really have an outdoor wedding in Boston in December. Oh and did you get that form filled out about your biography. I know it is long but my mom bought out a two page spread in the society section of the Danbury Post. I tried to fill in some stuff but I don’t have anything really on the Hartford.”

“I have been trying to get three months off, save all my time at once… I think we have something. What about august and we run away for the start of the fall for the end of the baseball season? We could watch all the teams on a road trip and then get to the solar system series… watch the Luna Astros win this year without having to bang on garbage cans.”

“Well maybe you could get some fun candid shots of hanging out with the crew,” she suggested. “You know you and the guys tossing the baseball around. You did start the baseball team like you told me you wanted to right?” Chloe knew there was something eating at Nathan just below the surface. His snipped off crisp comments had nothing to do with a lack off a desire to get married. Past that, however, Chloe had no clue why his moods seemed to waffle between happy or mildly interested when she cold commed him from time to time.

“Yes… yes I did,” he said as he looked off the distance. Another day of trauma he say as he shifted his attention back to Chloe.

“Baby are you okay,” she stopped all talk of frivolous things staring intently at the screen.

“Right now… I couldn’t be better doll face… now how has Molly been?” he asked, knowing she was going to be in a play soon he had to hear about how she was going to be Annie Oakley.

Chloe Kendrik nurse

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May 2384 Chloe’s Memorial Day Party
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“Nathan,” Chloe said happily, “I didn’t think you would be calling.” Dropping into the chair at her father’s desk, she smiled at the man on the screen. The sound in the background was a dull white noise. People’s voices could be heard but not the conversation. Setting her beer on the edge of the table she leaned forward kissing the monitor. It was a silly gesture and one she had done in the past but today it was far more silly probably due to the amount of beer she had been drinking. The Kendrick holiday barbeques were an annual event. If Nathan had been in town he would have been there. Luckily though Nathan was not in town. The typically festive event had turned far more political this year with several guests wanting to debate the evils of Starfleet. Several stories had broken in the mainstream media about life after the Dominion War. After two hours of debates, she was just happy for a break.

“And miss a chance to talk to you? Like hell, I am going to avoid that.” Nathan said with a wink as he settled down, removing the dry dirty clothes from his torso as he felt himself wanting to just relax.

“So what are you doing today,” she took a long drink of her beer. Her movements were loose showing how tipsy she was. “Tell me my South Paw Bazooka is making everyone sorry on the other team,” she propped up her feet up on the desk reclining some.

“Oh.. that… yeah they sorry… how are you?” he said quickly changing it. Nathan seldom wanted to talk about here, here was bloody and not something he wanted to keep remembering. He wanted to think about her, more than anything he wanted Chloe.

“Hey play me a song,” she asked wiggling her eyebrows. So many times when they were alone, Nathan would pull out his guitar and play her a song. She loved it most when he was toying with chords to create a melody. His face held such a look of concentration until he found the notes he was looking for. Then Nathan would often close his eyes as he hummed searching for words to match the song.

“A song… I don’t know about that doll face. I am really tired… I don’t even remember where I unpacked it.” Nathan said as he began looking around the room to see where it was at.

“Yeah, I want a song,” she winked at him wearing a huge smile, “so get your guitar and start playing me a tune but not that Throw a bar to your Minstrel thing. Yeah, the tune is catchy but I want an original Nathan Harland.”

Suddenly the door was thrown open to the small study and a familiar face burst into the room. “Aunt Molly can you....Uncle Nate,” Molly squealed seeing the face on the screen. Running up to the monitor she hugged tightly. “I joined the little league. I am going to be a short stopper,” she grinned showing a pumpkin smile with her front two teeth missing.

“Yes! I am so proud of you jolly molly!” Nathan said as he beamed at her with pride and joy. “You must be quick, only the fast young ones get to be shortstop.” Nathan said with a beaming smile.

“Can you come see one of my games? Please, please, please,” Molly asked clasping her hands and jumping up and down in a begging motion.

“I don’t know… but I will try baby girl but I am a long way aways… it’ll be awhile before I am back.” Nathan said, unsure really when he would get to come. Life wasn’t really what he expected out here.

“Yes Uncle Nate,” Chloe said from behind her niece. “Please please please,” she joined in Molly’s chant.

“Oh now I am getting double-teamed… okay fine but you gotta tell my commanding officer why I left.” he said with a wink at them both.

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June 2384 Italian Riveria Shore Leave
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Chloe stepped out onto the balcony wearing a thin black silk robe. Taking a seat at the small iron table, she poured herself a cup of coffee and topped off Nate’s as he studied a PaDD. The warm Mediterranean breeze ruffled his hair. It was much longer than the last time she had been with him. So much had changed since she spent the week with him in Tahoe. Not that she was complaining but his body was the most dramatic. As a baseball player, Nathan had the lean, toned body of an athlete. Now as a neurosurgeon, Nathan’s muscles seemed to have muscles. He had always worked out yet this trip, he seemed to have almost as much a desire to work out as he did spending time with Chloe.

“Baby, I was thinking that maybe we should go to that small bistro for dinner. You know the one outside that museum we went to a few days ago. The one that said it was American Italian,” she let out a long laugh grabbing a peach from the fruit bowl. The fruit was exceedingly sweet causing some juice to dribble down her chin. Wiping it away with the back of her hand she chewed it slowly mulling over the topic on her mind.

“Sounds great… when we heading out?” he said as he felt his tummy growl. “I could eat a targ.”

A smile crept across her face as she thought, woe this is our first married decision. While they still hadn’t set a date Chloe had no doubt it would happen however since he gave her a ring she was duty bound to at least mention her idea.

“So I had an idea. Hear me out,” she held up her hands like it was the most exciting plan she was about to sell him. Her eyes had that happy sparkle to them like the time she rented the Lake Tahoe Cabin and when she took a week off of work to meet him halfway across the Galaxy because he got an unexpected shore leave for two days. Whenever Chloe got one of her great ideas she wore the expression she was currently directing at him. “I am putting in for a transfer from Medical. I started to look for ships last week. I had hoped to know what ship to get us the “My Fiancé is on the blank” matching shirts. Well okay,” she let out a happy laugh, “I was going to make it but what do you think?” She stopped to take a breath smiling at him.

Chloe

“Medical ships… I don’t know Chloe bell… I want you safe… I like a place to come back to that isn’t the stars…” Nathan said as he took a deep breath, he didn’t want to be out there more than he needed… and her moving out to the stars as well was the last thing he wanted. Back on Earth… that was what Nathan craved.

Nathan Harland

“We can when we want to start a family and such,” Chloe moved around the table to sit on his lap. Straddling him she interlaced her fingers behind his neck so she could lean back and hold on to him. “However we can spend the rest of our twenties actually doing something more memorable than just working. Travel the stars, see exotic locations,” she said leaning forward to kiss his neck as she continued speaking, “join the sixty two-mile club around every planet we get into orbit of?” Chloe kissed his neck slowly savoring his scent. No matter how many clothes of his she stole on these shore leaves, the scent of his soap, cologne, shampoo…the smell that was uniquely Nathan Harland drifted away far to fast. “There would also be a lot more of this,” she bit his shirt and pulled so that snapped back from her teeth to around his neck.

“I will be able to make you dinner, clean up your quarters, nag you for leaving stuff out, move stuff so that you have no idea where something is when I put it back in the right space,” she laughed looking at him. Her face was barely able to contain the excitement she felt inside. “It will be a thousand to one odds we can get the same ship buhhhhhttt,” she drew out the word slowly and slightly hesitantly, “our odds would increase substantially if you got Mickey to pull a few stings,” she bit her lip waiting for him to reply.

Chloe

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August 2384 Starfleet Medical
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“So you aren’t going to do it,” Aimee stated, forking a piece of fruit off her plate and popping it in her mouth. Her facial expression was innocently inquisitive yet her gaze spoke a different conversation. Aimee had known Chloe for almost a year now and in that time she was both the angel on Chloe’s shoulder and the devil. It was not that Aimee was out to influence Chloe’s life one way or another. She just wasn’t attached and having a single friend when you weren’t at times led a person to make decisions they would not normally make. Forking another chunk of mango out of her salad she nodded as if probing Chloe to answer with a wordless stare.

“How can I do it,” Chloe leaned back in her seat crossing her arms over her chest. Looking around at the busy lunchtime landscape she let out a huffy sigh.

“Because that ring is not on the left finger yet,” Aimee used her fork to indicate the large diamond on Chloe’s right hand as if to provide a visual reference. “Until it goes on your left hand you can do what you want and even when it is only your right,” Aimee leaned in conspiratorialy, “you can still do what you what.”

Picking up a grape Chloe lobbed it at her friend, rolling her eyes. “That is why you are never going to get married or last more than a month in a relationship.”

“Harsh,” Aimee feigned a sour look and then shrugged it off. Chloe did have a point though on some level. Aimee wanted what she wanted the second she wanted it which at times did fly against the give and take required of most relationships.

“No that was Nate in Italy when I told him what I was thinking about doing. He totally freaked out talking about how I had no idea what being deployed was like and that I needed to stay put where I was safe,” Chloe felt a sharpness to her tone that was meant for Nathan than it was Aimee. Her life had always been safe: that was why she chose to join Starfleet. Life was not ideal in Starfleet especially with her fiance halfway across the galaxy but it held the chance for more than the normal nine to five life Earth held except in the end that is what she was assigned. Coming out of the academy she didn’t have a choice in assignments but almost a year in, she was at the point to change that.

“Safe,” Aimee let out a hearty laugh. “When has Nate ever been the guy to play it safe? His psych term paper on the validity of The Milgram Shock Experiments of 1960 to how it applies with mindless obedience to authority almost got him expelled,” she grew serious looking at Chloe. “Everyone knew it was a thumb into the face of Starfleet and its current agenda and yet he didn’t give it a second thought.” It was easy to see why Nate wanted to take care of her. Chloe wore innocence like a hooker wore heels but Aimee wanted to make sure her friend was making the decision that best fit her and not the decisions people wanted. “He was in a band for Pete’s sake that played the bars when he was in the academy. If Nate is saying he needs to play it safe then he is just two halves of the Easter pot or whatever crazy thing you and he said all the time.”

Chloe let out a huge laugh at the botched analogy. Colloquialisms were not Nathan’s things, Aimee was right about that one. Taking a sip of her drink, Chloe let her friend continue to advise her.

“Nate is not into the tame, quiet girls. He wants a wild streak in them to match that rebel rockstar vibe that is just lurking under the tight collar of his Starfleet uniform. I am telling you. He wants you to surprise him and not be Susie homemaker.”

Chloe let out a laugh throwing her head back. “You have no idea who Nathan really is then, trust me. He might have been into that with the plethora of other screaming groupies as his feet on stage but he has settled down now. He wants a real home with a man cave for all his baseball stuff and one of those recliners I hate because it doesn’t match anything yet he claims if it goes so does he,” Chloe drifted into the imaginary life her and Nate dreamt about. “He is more stable,” she paused letting her mind drift to the place that brought up this conversation about transferring in the first place.

“And exhausted, moody,” Aimee stated, reminding Chloe verbally of the concerns she had been stating regarding her fiance. “He isn’t sleeping and has lost weight. You yourself said he looked like he had the flu the last time you spoke to him but Nate denied it saying he was fine. Chloe,” Aimee leaned forward placing her hand over her friends, “whatever is going on one thing is clear. Nathan Harland needs you with him. Not here or in Connecticut or planning a vacation. He needs you at his side helping him with probably just extreme homesickness. We see it all the time so why can’t Nate be experiencing that? Not everything has to be a white zebra diagnosis.”

Chloe looked down at the brilliant stone. Aimee was right. Nate would never tell her to come but everything in her gut told her that he needed her with him.

Chloe