Posted by Commander Roman Alden (First Officer & Chief Science Officer) in side-sim: New Normal

(snip)

It had upset him - a little. But he’d managed to put it aside so they could enjoy the evening. He hated when his problems derailed plans, and Randy had been trying to teach him strategies to deal with it better. And sitting with her quietly, relaxed and happy, was definitely the best thing she could’ve done for him. Her arms were tight around him and his breaths were slow and calm. He was quiet for a long while, in fact it seemed as though he might be dozing off, until he said, “It’s nice, sitting here with you.”

~ Roman

Rand thought he might have dozed off, she certainly thought she might fall asleep. Rand wondered what he was thinking about. Probably all those amazing animals they saw on Kelmao. As for Rand, in a very rare moment, she wasn’t thinking about all the ‘supposed to’s. She was kind of drifting in the silence and warmth, until he spoke. She moved her head slightly but didn’t lift it. “It is.” Rand didn’t know what to say other than that. It was really nice just sitting there, no stress, no anxiety, just being there with him. She hoped that it eased the memories just a little and gave him something good to remember later.

Rand

Roman wasn’t thinking about anything in particular, instead, he was simply enjoying the quiet in his mind. No flashbacks, no memories, no Jay, no Ardent, just the quiet. Just Rand. It was peaceful. He felt nice and light and as if he were sort of just drifting blissfully… And then he was dozing off again.

~ Roman

Rand woke up some time later. She was warm…uncomfortably warm and…uncomfortable. Ugh She blinked, squinting, the light was still on, and then her gaze focused…on bare skin. Roman. A really goofy grin crossed her face and she turned her head to look at the chonometer. 0415. Almost time for her to get up anyway. She tried to sit up slowly, not to move the blanket, and grimaced. No wonder she was uncomfortable. Her dress had twisted around her and it was ‘fitted’ in places it shouldn’t be, the sleeves scrunched and bunched tightly over her upper arms, and the full skirt was trying to become pant legs. Despite being overly warm now, she’d slept well and was reluctant to get up. She needed to go for a run to wake up. She didn’t want to leave though.

She flipped the blanket off, only for a spot to move and wiggle. It made her heart race for a beat before she realized it was Pipkin. She’d tossed the blanket over the top of her. Rand pulled the blanket back and scooped the little rabbit up and set her on her chest and pet her quietly for a moment and then set her down. Rand tried to scoot gently off the bed but she was caught. Part of her skirt was caught under Roman’s leg. She flopped back, head on a pillow and gazed at the ceiling and huffed quietly before grinning again. She tried to pull the skirt free, but it wasn’t working, and she wasn’t going to wake him up. Maybe it was a sign she should just call out for the day? Only problem was she couldn’t reach the comms button either. Only me. This would only happen to me.

Rand