Posted by Commander Roman Alden (First Officer & Chief Science Officer) in side - sim: Honoring the Ardent

Posted by Ensign Rand Farquharson (Yeoman First Class) in side - sim: Honoring the Ardent

Posted by Commander Roman Alden (First Officer & Chief Science Officer) in side - sim: Honoring the Ardent
Posted by… suppressed (10) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)
He gave a soft sigh, turned, and exited the room. She was being stubborn. He knew one person who could make her. He’d been serious about telling Randy. It was a quick walk down the hall where he stopped at the door to Randy’s quarters and knocked on the door. Whenever he was there for Rand he knocked softly so he didn’t disturb Randy. Now he knocked hard, trying to be sure to get Randy’s attention. When Randy answered the door, Roman said, “Rand won’t go to sleep and I don’t think she’s slept in the last few days at least.”

~ Roman

Rand sighed as well. He’d left, for the lab no doubt. So what did it matter if she slept or not. Not like he would know. She moved over to the counter turning the kettle back on to warm. Pipkin followed and then thumped Rand’s foot, hard, with her back feet. “Ow!” She lifted her foot and rubbed it. “What was tha for?” Pipkin just stared at her and so finally picked her up.

Randy stared at Roman after he opened the door. He hadn’t expected Alden for several days. Rand? “What do you want me to do? Rock her to sleep and tuck her in?” He wasn’t surprised, she was worried about Alden and that made it hard for her to fall asleep. Of course he hadn’t actually seen her for a few days, except this morning. Alden was serious though. “How many days? Where is she?” Rand’s anxiety got worse, like really worse, when she was exhausted. That meant physical strain, including her heart.

Rand

Roman shrugged. “Two? Three? Maybe longer. I kept sending her to bed but… I am beginning to think she never went.” Roman tried not to yawn in front of Randy. “She’s in my quarters… Making high-caffeine black tea.” He didn’t know for sure that was what she was doing but he wouldn’t be surprised.

~ Roman

“I thought you said Rand refused to give you caffeine after lunch?” She must be tired if he convinced her to give him black tea this late.

“The tea is for her,” Roman said.

Randy pinched the bridge of his nose, took a really deep breath and marched down the corridor to Alden’s quarters. Randy pressed the control and walked in. The first thing he saw was Rand in the process of making tea and the dark circles, slightly red watery eyes and the slump of her shoulders. She was exhausted. Rand looked up surprised to see Randy and then Roman behind him! Roman told on her! And the prospect of facing them both made her stomach churn in a very sick way. Randy took the tea bag from her hands flipped off the kettle, set hands on hips in a way that did not convey his usual sass, “Miranda Elizabeth Arabella Scarlett Farquharson!” And Randy proceeded to launch into a tiraid of Gaelic that was too fast for Roman to catch it all. The words sister, baby, love, heart, sick or ill, and bunny were clear. He gestures to Alden a couple of times. As Randy kept going Rand looked embarrassed and then ashamed and her gaze dropped from his, until Randy said something and tapped her over her heart. Rand started arguing back with him, but she obviously knew Randy was right.

Randy and Rand

Roman didn’t catch what Randy was saying, he spoke way too quickly. But there were several words Roman did recognize and Randy kept pointing toward him so Roman figured Randy was saying something about him. And Pipkin? Roman wished they had a UT. When Randy tapped over her heart he knew Randy was talking about Rand’s incident. Roman stood in the doorway, arms crossed, leaned against the door frame, smiling slightly.

~ Roman

Rand’s hands were tucked behind her back and she looked away from Randy and then back. She was too tired and speaking much too low to speak as fast as he did. But Roman would catch the gist of it. She was apologizing because she made him worry. She glanced away again only for her gaze to fall in Roman. Now under normal circumstances that cocky pose would remind her of that day in her office when he told her he loves her. Tonight however it only made her flush with irritation, he was so proud of himself. She pointed a finger at Roman, switching to English. “What about him. He’s been working near to nonstop triples everyday for a week. The only thing he did was change his uniform.” Randy shook his head, “Don’t change the subject. Besides didn’t you tell me just this morning how released you were he got six hours last night? How many did you get?” Rand glared at him and Randy nodded, “I see. When was the last time you slept more than an hour?” This was rediculous. She was not going to stand her with Roman laughing at her and Randy acting like she was incapable of taking care of herself. Randy loved her, she knew that, but he wouldn’t be worrying if he hadn’t followed her out here. Randy glared at her giving her that big brother look that never failed to get an answer. “Miranda, how long?” But instead she deflected.

“He hasn’t eaten in a week. Not really. Three sips of broth and honey in his tea Do. Not. Count!”

Rand

Roman stood quietly, his pose unchanging. He was trying not to look too cocky, his goal wasn’t to make her angry. Then she tried to turn it around on him and Randy stayed on topic. That was a smile Roman couldn’t hide. Finally she blurted about his eating habits and Roman shrugged, a relaxed and easy movement. “My appetite hasn’t come back. And I ate some of the meat out of that stew.”

~ Roman

Rand’s attention was now squarely focused on Alden, and Randy had to suppress a sigh. If Alden wanted him to convince her to go to bed he needed Rand to pay attention to him. “Miranda?” It was said low and quiet, to get her attention, but that wasn’t happening.

Rand started to fist her hands on her hips, but was still holding Pipkin, so the effort was lost. “Four pieces! And before that a single bite of toast the day before, not even half a cup of yogurt two days before that. The only reason you’re standing is you aren’t dehydrated because you drink too much tea!”

“The tea keeps me awake,” Roman said with another shrug.

“Well if I can’t have it to stay awake neither can you.” It made perfect sense to her.

Randy rubbed the back of his neck. “What does his eating have to do with you sleeping?” He looked from her to Roman and back. Rand wasn’t going to tell. Roman wanted her to stop ‘nagging’ so what did it matter how she felt, or that she had to go to extremes to make him be half way reasonable. Or, unable to see that she herself was being unreasonable.

Rand

Randy

Roman didn’t want to say anything to irritate her further so he didn’t say anything at all. His cold pasta was still on the table, untouched, a fact he’d rather not call attention to. His pose was, however, suddenly less cocky and he wasn’t quite looking at either of them.

~ Roman

Neither was saying anything and Randy was getting ticked off. “Someone better explain....Now.”

Rand had put Pipkin down and was twisting her hands in front of her. Randy started tapping his foot. She was sufficiently anxious now to be fully awake and Randy could see it. The way her eyes were starting to contract and her breath wasn’t even, and he could see where her pulse had picked up in her neck. She was going to have a panic attack, and she did it to herself with this childishness. “I told him I wouldn’t sleep until he ate.” It was barely a whisper.

Roman, seeing how distressed Rand was, had begun to move toward her. But when Randy turned on Roman, Roman froze and looked at him.

Randy turned on Roman, his face far too composed to be reassuring. “You mean to tell me, that instead of taking a single bite of your food, so she would go to bed - rather than staying awake and worrying about you - you thought it would be best to be stubborn and then come get me? That your stubborn English pride is worth more than reassuring her?” He turned back to Rand. “And you, Miss Scarlet,” it came out with a horrible Southern American drawl. Rand hated that part, the name, the character associated with it, and Randy knew that. She was weak and selfish and idiotic and not worthy of the title ‘lady’ or ‘woman’. “You decided to play on your delicate health and his feelings for you to manipulate him. You of all people should know better.” Rand stepped back, the back of her leg bumping a chair, and she sat. Randy was angry and more disappointed. He was looking at the ceiling as if seeking guidance.

When Randy said she was staying awake and worrying about him he glanced at his food and made a face. It had nothing to do with the pasta, any food in the universe would fail to seem appetizing to him right now.

Randy blew out a breath. “Obviously you both care about each other more than you realize. But you are also selfish, seeing only the problem, that if fixed, will make you feel better. Not what the other actually needs.” Lord’s and Ladies, he didn’t want to say it, he didn’t believe it, but maybe it would shock them both into thinking rather than reacting to say they were more harmful than helpful to each other. But he didn’t want to do that, he didn’t want to push them that far.

Randy

Roman dared to ask a question after remaining silent for Randy’s entire lecture. “What does she actually need?” It was an honest question - but he also wanted the attention away from him and his eating habits. He could swear the two of them thought he was going to starve to death or something.

~ Roman

Randy nodded, he heard the sincerity of it, but shook his head. “I can’t tell you that.” He held up his hand forestalling an argument. “No more would I tell Rand what you and I talk about, would I tell you, Cmdr, what she and I talk about. I am, for you both, a counselor. Unless I had express permission to do so, and in this instance I still wouldn’t.” He looked at Alden, “You need to hear it from her, not through me, and she needs to speak for herself, not hide away with her anxiety from it. You need to listen and understand that even if it doesn’t seem an issue to you, it is to her. And then tell her what you need.” He turned back to Rand and knelt, one finger raising her chin to look at him. “You need to breathe.” And he waited, squeezing her hand in rhythm while she did. “You need to tell him, the truth, because what you are ‘supposed’ to do is be honest, with each other, and then listen with compassion, and respect his needs the way he will yours. Otherwise you two don’t deserve each other.” He stood and walked to the door. “And that is as far as couple’s counseling as I go. I’m too involved to be unbiased.” And he slipped out the door.

Randy

Roman had been about to argue when Randy put a hand up, stopping him before he began. What Randy said next made Roman content to be quiet. He didn’t particularly feel like talking about anything he and Randy spoke about. He waited while Randy spoke to Rand and then Randy slipped out the door. Roman looked at her, unsure if he was supposed to say something or wait for her to.

~ Roman

Rand did not want to talk; she just stared unseeing into the middle distance, her hands figiting with the belt of her robe. If she told the truth Roman would say she was nagging, so what was the point? The point of Randy’s comment was stop Rand from getting stuck trying to decide what she was supposed to do. He went ahead and stopped that before it started. Randy was right though, she had been more concerned with easing her own fear, and wasn’t truly thinking about what Roman needed. “I’m sorry. Really. My behavior was selfish and insensitive.” Truthful “I am going to worry no matter what you say.” Honest “but I won’t bother you about it anymore.” Respectful. Not what she needed, but that didn’t matter, worrying about what she needed had been wrong.

Her arms hurt, as her nerves felt like they were misfiring up and down the length. She rubbed them absently. If she could leave, and not deal with this she would. But Randy wouldn’t put up with it.

Rand

Roman sat on the bed with a small sigh. Wasn’t he the one being selfish? After all, Randy had a point. Roman could’ve taken one measly little bite to avoid this whole issue. Avoid making Rand panic and angering Randy with both of them. Tell her what you need. What did he need? Even he didn’t know, how was she supposed to? If there were some magic word or action that could make him feel better and eat and sleep normally he’d love to know what it was. “No. I was wrong to call it nagging. It isn’t healthy, I know that.” He said after a moment of silence passed between them. Then, “What can I do to help you worry less?” Eat, he was sure. A suggestion besides that was what he hoped for.

~ Roman

His behavior wasn’t healthy, but was he saying that to appease her or did he really see it? Rand was quiet and then shook her head, being reminded of her thought earlier that evening. Roman, retired, and still missing meals and appointments for his science. “I don’t know if there is. Anything you might do would be so markedly contrary to your personality you would no longer be yourself. I don’t want that.” She was rubbing her arms again, squeezing the muscles as if they were hurting or sore. Tell him the truth, be honest and then listen. “I…I…need you ta understand, that no matter how insignificant you think the issue with your leg was, for me it wasn’t…you…you almost died.” Her voice dropped and then broke, but she wouldn’t look at him. “You…you act like … like it was nothing. But it wasn’t…it isn’t nothing to me. And when you decide to neglect yourself, again, it terrifies me. I almost lost you, and I don’t want that to be one reality.” Her voice was strained and she squeezed her eyes shut. She didn’t want to cry. She didn’t, as Randy said, want to manipulate his feelings that way.

Rand