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

Posted by Ensign Rand Farquharson (Yeoman First Class) in side-sim: New Normal

Posted by Commander Roman Alden (First Officer & Chief Science Officer) in side-sim: New Normal
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

The day went fast, at least for Roman, but that was because unlike the day before it was busy. He took his bag with them to breakfast and then stashed it in the lab for the day. In the morning starting at 0600, his usual paperwork, in the afternoon, he was running around the ship on XO business. Finally, at the normal 1700, he was off duty and he headed straight to his quarters. He figured he could wait for dinner till Rand came by. While he waited he did something he hadn’t done since before Kelmao - he pulled out his violin and started playing. No specific tune, just whatever sounded good. A hopeful melody. He left the case open on the bed next to him.

~ Roman

Rand’s day was busy, it was always busy. Reports all morning, then she was restocking the supplies in the conference rooms, the yeoman pantry, her own small one in her quarters, and taking care of Roger’s uniforms. Then she was in the lab at lunch visiting and working with Nibbles. She seemed more active lately. Usually she was hiding in her den when Rand arrived, but she’d noticed that lately Nibbles was out and moving around when she arrived. She’d made note of it along with a question asking if anyone had noticed more activity. Rand was curious if Nibbles was just anticipating her arrival or if she was simply more active. Her afternoon was just as busy. She was on her way from the conference room to Rogers’ quarters to check on her cat when she paused - in the quiet of the corridor - she heard music. Violin music. Roman was playing. She’d never heard him play. She was tempted to knock on the door, but she didn’t want his music to stop. Instead, she paused to lean against the wall to listen. It was beautiful, but she didn’t recognize it. It was faint in the hallway, and soon the noise of people moving about drowned it out. She moved off quickly, in a hurry to finish her rounds and reports, and shift for the day. Rand knocked on his door at about 2010, already changed into lounge pants and a comfortable shirt. She was so ready for the day to be done.

Rand

Roman had paused briefly to let Pipkin out, make sure she was fed and her cage was clean, and then he kept playing. He was playing a similar melody to before, but it had changed, he’d added to it, changing some of the notes, adding or changing technique. He’d occasionally stop, and repeat part of it, sometimes with a subtle difference. When Rand knocked, the music stopped abruptly, and Roman set his instrument down and pressed a button to let the door open. He was wearing a plain shirt and pajama bottoms, his violin set carefully in the case, still open on the bed. Pipkin was cuddled on the bed in the place Roman normally slept. He smiled at Rand as she came in. “You’re later than usual. Captain keep you busy?”

~ Roman

The music cut off briefly and Rand cursed herself for knocking. For interrupting something so lovely. When the door opened she entered, and noted the case open on the bed. In sickbay he had said he didn’t want his violin because he couldn’t stand. If he was practicing, that meant his leg felt better. He was able to stand on it for long periods while he played? Just like watching him workout had brought a moment of clarity to Rand, seeing him in pajamas did the same. While he’d been on bed rest it was one thing, but Roman was always formal, always proper. If made her feel good knowing he felt relaxed enough around her to let go of that formalness and let his relaxed mental state show in his attire.

He had started out standing, now he was sitting on the bed, his back straight, his feet planted firmly on the ground. It wasn’t as good as standing, but it was better than laying down, or being reclined as he was in sickbay, unable to pull his feet over the edge. His choice in clothing was a sign of his comfort around her, alongside his relaxed accent.

She nodded to his question. “She had several communiques to draft back to command tonight and wanted them just so. And then the comms officers was having trouble getting a signal from a subspace relay. Captain asked me to stay until they all went through.” She remembered a conversation they’d had one night, late, in the mess hall about talent. Roman had obviously practiced a lot with his violin, but he had talent too. Rand had heard enough musicians in the galley to recognize it. She walked over to him and hugged him. Then glanced at the violin. “You play wonderfully. I can come back later if I’m disturbing you.” She didn’t feel like he didn’t want her there, but in all this time she’d never heard him play, so he might prefer to keep this to himself, and she was okay with that.

Rand

Roman nodded. If they were important, it made sense to make sure they went through properly, as unfortunate as that was for their evenings together. Then she came over and hugged him, and while it was unexpected, it was never unwelcome. He hugged her back. “Thank you. It’s like a piece of scratch paper, I play what sounds good, tweak it, and then let it go,” he said. He glanced at the violin case, resisting the temptation to put his hand over it. There was something he didn’t want to talk about in there, but he didn’t want to offend her, either. “No, I’d rather you stay, in fact, I was hoping we could get dinner together.”

~ Roman

“It sounded lovely.” Rand had been around him long enough to read his facial expressions and the feelings that flit across his eyes. There was something personal about the violin. She didn’t think it was the music but…something. Normally Rand was anxious and worried when there was something that she could tell was not said. Worried she’d offended or done something awkward or inappropriate. She was learning, though, that things not said between them were okay. That time was all that was needed. They could tell when they were ready (as long as they weren’t harming themselves). She didn’t have to worry she’d done something wrong. So seeing that look pass over him she only hugged him again and smiled. “Dinner sounds lovely. Since you look ready for bed, how about I go get a tray, and you can finish with your music. It should only take a few minutes.”

Rand