Posted by Lieutenant Commander Roman Alden (First Officer & Chief Science Officer) in side sim - When Sleep is Evasive

(snip)

“Iced citrus decaf tea, then,” Roman said hopefully. He could give up caffeine - probably - but not the tea. “An icy shower doesn’t sound horrible.” Actually, it sounded like some kind of first world torture, but at least he wouldn’t be passing out on his desk, maybe. His sleep problems may have been partially caffeine but he knew it wasn’t the whole problem and Rand’s tips wouldn’t completely solve anything.

~ Lt Cmdr Alden, XO/CSO

Rand looked at him curiously. Was he joking or serious. She’d never heard him joke, except the other night in the mess. “They’re horrible, but it will wake you up.” She didn’t know what was keeping him up, but she knew from experience that sometimes cutting caffeine didn’t fix it. “I have some decaf tea I can use to make that. Would you like peppermint citrus or lemon ginger tea?”. She stepped into the lift, and with his suggestion requested deck 4, and then off starting a brisk but easy pace just in case he didn’t want to run more.

Yeoman Rand

“Lemon ginger,” he replied as they stepped into the lift. He marched her pace, then sped up to a slow jog. He was actually enjoying their run, though he hoped the physical activity would help him wake up. He got the feeling as used to daily caffeine as he was, Rand’s lemon ginger decaf was not going to do the trick. But he was willing to try it regardless.

~ Lt Cmdr Alden, XO/CSO

Rand matched his pace and then steadily increased it from a leisurely jog to a pace that had them focusing on breathing and maintaining balance and speed. The exertion created a burn in the muscles that would encourage stopping, but she kept going. And then the endorphins kicked in, in response to the burning muscles and lungs, and the discomfort was suddenly gone and the adrenaline and endorphins woke them both up. Rand kept the pace up to the end of the lap. As they rounded the last turn she glanced over to see if he wanted to keep going or stop.

Yeoman Rand

Roman was focused on the run, heading into the next lap without stopping. He felt much better once the endorphins and adrenaline woke him up, and he felt more than up for at least one more lap. He disliked being so tired all the time. It made it more likely his work would be subpar, or that he’d make a mistake. But he hadn’t been able to do anything about it.

~ Lt Cmdr Alden, XO/CSO

Rand grinned as he started another lap. At this point she was settled into the pace and could keep it up for quite awhile. Rand had run cross-country rather than standard track so her endurance was higher than a normal track athlete. As they ran her mind began to wander as it usually did, focusing on tasks for the day, problems and solutions, and reciting lines from old performances. Luckily she didn’t embarrass herself by reciting them verbally. After another lap she pulled a small chain from under her shirt and checked the time - 0500. She began to slow her pace back to a slower jog and then a walk on the next lap. “You can keep going, but I have to get ready for my shift.” For whatever reason Rand was suddenly feeling awkward. She’d enjoyed his company. He didn’t try to show off or make a competition of it. And what conversation there was was easy. So why now was she feeling flustered and shy? She had work to do and so did Alden. She didn’t understand it.

Yeoman Rand