Posted by Captain Dante Knight (Commanding Officer) in Starfleet Academy - Daye’s Fourth Class Flashback - Spring Term

Posted by Lieutenant Natasha Daye (Doctor) in Starfleet Academy - Daye’s Fourth Class Flashback - Spring Term

Posted by Lieutenant Natasha Daye (Doctor) in Starfleet Academy - Daye’s Fourth Class Flashback - Spring Term
Posted by… suppressed (1) by the Post Ghost! 👻

Snip

He nodded as she spoke, he knew what she meant and was glad she hadn’t begun with the ‘I respect you are with Ashley’ line because as she said, the fact he was with Ash didn’t come into her line of thinking at the time, and that wasn’t her fault, because Ash hadn’t been in his line of thinking either. What they had done was amazing, fantastic and intimate, but right now both of them needed to understand what that meant for them. For Dante, that meant he had to understand what it meant for he and Ashley.

He smiled at her and put down his milkshake, leaning forward across the table and placing his arms on it, his finger gently tracing a random pattern on the top of her hand. He wanted to touch her, more, really, but they needed to talk. Before things got too deep and too far and people got hurt. Only thing was he really had no idea what to say, so he bit his lip softy in thought before he said what he felt.

“If I said Yes, Tasia, that you were just a fling, then I would be utterly, completely lying” he told her, speaking quietly. “You are so much more than that. You deserve more, and you are worth so much more to me. Maybe I only realize it now, and not just because of the locker room.” He grinned wider at her, she was so easy to be with, to talk to. When Dante had been able to spend time with her he found time seemed to blink out of existence as if it didn’t exist. They could spend an hour or two together, but it had always felt like minutes and their conversations were never finished.

“If I say No” he told her, and now his face frowned slightly in thought, “I don’t want to make you think I don’t respect you or expect more when I walk out that door and head back to my room, I mean, right now I don’t ever want to walk out that door and head back to my room. I want to see you again, Natasha. I want to get to know you better and talk about your day, but I don’t love you either. Not yet, but I do like you, a lot if you hadn’t guessed already. I do love Ashley and I don’t know exactly what I am feeling anymore. Things with Ash have been, odd. We’re not like we used to be, not as close.” Dante was sure in himself that if he truly loved Ashley, he wouldn’t have ended up naked with Nat in the women’s locker room. That kind of accident didn’t just happen, you didn’t just go from hand to hand combat training to ‘was it as good for you as it was for me’ by random chance. The intent had to be there, and Dante had definitely had intent where Natasha was concerned. That meant Dante now felt very uncomfortable about what he had done to Ashley and he had to get his head around that.

“I can’t say there is a chance for us, not yet.” He admitted to Nat, looking at her directly. “It wouldn’t be fair to you, but I do want to get to know you and see you again, I just need to sort out where I am with Ash. Does that make sense, or am I rambling like a 13 year old on his first date?”

Cadet Knight

“More like a sixteen-year-old who can’t figure out who to take to prom,” Daye let out a breathy half laugh and shook her head, “and while I am not in command school, it was a tactical decision on my part to sleep with you. I think I scored a win for the home team.” At this point Daye wanted Dante to be somewhat relaxed about what they had done or at least make it appear she was relaxed about what they had done. Natasha was a big girl. If she never saw Dante again she would survive and accept that door was closed yet that didn’t mean it wouldn’t hurt like hell. Looking past Dante, Natasha saw that hell approaching.

Seeing the change in Natasha’s face, Dante sighed slightly. “Looks like we are going to need to finish this discussion later” he said to her quietly, “It never seems to work out quite right for us lately does it?”

“More like a Dabo girl looking for a way to let the house score,” Ashley said coming up behind Dante. Not wanting to add any more drama to the situation but not wanting to act like it didn’t exist, Ashley moved from behind her boyfriend to beside him. “Dante we need to talk,” Ashley said in a firm voice. “Natasha, would you mind giving us some privacy?”

“Ash, that’s beneath you and yes, we do need to talk.” Dante said, swiveling around to look at her.

“You mean like go to the bathroom for a minute or,” she let her voice trail off looking at Ashley. Daye knew exactly what Ashley wanted but she wasn’t going to just be dismissed.

“I mean get up from this table and don’t come back,” Ashley stared her down with all the rank and power her standing as a junior classman alloted her. “Unless you want me to put you on report for being off campus without a pass. You do have a pass don’t you fourth class Daye?”

“Ash really?” Dante said, coming out of the chair and coming to his feet beside her. “Leave Nat alone, we’re just chatting. We’re not talking here though, you and I can go elsewhere. Nat is clear, she was with me.”

“No, but you know that so cut the bully tactic.” Daye dropped the rest of her burger on the table and brushed off her hands. “Besides I think I am no longer hungry. Goodbye Dante,” she said turning and heading for the door. Everything in Nat’s being wanted her to turn around and slug the redhead now occupying her spot. The only reason she did not was Natasha was hoping Ashley Madison would dig her own grave with Dante Knight.

Cadet Natasha Daye

Dante watched her leave for just a moment before turning to Ashley. He found that at that moment he just wanted to be with Nat, as awkward as the conversation had been and with what they had done, Dante hadn’t wanted her to just walk out like that. He knew, though, that it was for the best right now. “Ash we need to go. Walk, back to mine, whatever. We can’t talk here.” Dante found that he was deeply angry at the way that Ash had treated Nat, okey so things had happened that really shouldn’t have, but that didn’t give her the right to try and deliberately make Nat uncomfortable and frustrated. Dante knew that he did care for Nat, and letting someone make her feel like less was not going to be okey no matter what excuse Ashley had for it. No matter what the future held for them both, Dante wouldn’t let Ash treat Nat like she was not important or special to him, including snide little comments and swipes.

Dante headed for the door himself, a different one than Nat had left by. If Ashley wanted to talk, she would walk with him. Stopping outside on the sidewalk, he turned to Ash. “You want to talk?” He asked her, “About what Ash, graduation? The Wellington? John? Or do you want to take more immature shots at Natasha?”

Cadet Dante Knight

Ashley looked at Dante with an expression of deep hurt. She opened her mouth to speak but no words came out. Instead she blew out a long steadying breath between her pursed lips. “I want to know that you love me?” The tone was sincere. Ashley’s face lost the hard edge of anger and softened to the face he had fallen in love with almost three years ago.

“I want to know we can survive any bump or bomb in our relationship,” she said on the verge of tears. “Was I harsh to Daye? Probably but you have no idea what a gut punch it was to see you looking at her the way you were. You used to look at me that way. As if nothing in the world mattered but me. So yes I was jealous. Insanely jealous,” Ashley’s voice was beginning to take on that higher pitch women moved to right before thier emotions took over from logic.

“That half smirk is my smirk. The way you raise your one eyebrow and stare at me critically right before you break out laughing at something I said is my eyebrow raise,” Ashley reached up and gently traced his eyebrow with the tip of her finger.

“Everyone thinks I will get a commission and a ring when we graduate but right now all I want is to know that if I reach for your hand you will take it. Yes we do need to talk but not here. Not on some street corner.”

Looking up and down the street Ashley saw where they needed to go. “We have an all night liberty. Come with me,” she reached out her hand but waited for Dante to take it. “Let’s spend the night over there and for the next few hours lets just be Ashley and Dante. I don’t want to be cadet Madison and cadet knight. Nothing we have to say can’t wait until morning but if we don’t stop for a second and remember why we love each other we could be lost. I…I just need to be with you,” Ashley said almost begging. “Please. Come with me.” Ashley had no idea what Dante was going to do. So she waited in front of him on a street corner with her hand out ready to folllow his lead.

Cadet Ashley Madison.