Some Down Time

Posted on Tue Aug 30th, 2016 @ 4:07pm by Aelyn Radt & Lieutenant Ryan Rose

Mission: Bad Moon Rising
Location: Lounge

Ryan looked up from the medical journal he was browsing when he heard his own stomach growl. He was not surprised to note it was already 7pm. He'd once again gotten distracted by the latest surgical procedure posted in Starfleet's medical journal. It was probably time for him to at least peruse it outside of sickbay though. He hopped off the bio bed he'd been sitting on and headed out, making his way to the lounge. He didn't quite feel like going to a set of empty quarters and eating alone. At least in the lounge there would be people around.

The lounge was fairly busy, and not just because the Alpha Shift was due for dinner, and a lot of crew were currently occupying the table and bar while the work crews worked to finish the refit by the windows and upper observation deck. Ryan made his way to the bar instead of the replicator, deciding he'd have something besides just water.

It took a moment before anyone came to check on him, and she came in the form of a half Caitian woman in lovely robes with long flowing sleeves. "Sorry for the wait there, cutie, we're still getting things up an running. What can I get for you?" she asked as she pulled some used glasses from the bartop and wiping the surface down with a clean rag.

It was a bit embarrassing. At twenty six years old, being called cutie was still enough to make the tips of his ears blush. He just hoped it didn't reach his cheeks. "It's fine." He assured her. "Half cranberry juice, half club soda?" He asked.

"Coming right up," Aelyn replied with a smile, grabbing a clean glass and mixing up the drink. "So, how are you enjoying the Hammersley so far?" she asked in an attempt to make idle conversation as she set the drink before him.

"Actually this is only the fourth place I've seen. Sickbay, the gym, my quarters, and now here. But so far, from what I've seen she's a fine ship. Sickbay is top notch." He looked around. "And this is quite the lounge for a starship, very impressive."

"We're still getting things situated here, but I am loving the space I have to work with," Aelyn replied as she tidied up some things behind the bar. "So Sickbay, does that mean you're a medical officer?" she asked.

"Yes. I'm a doctor." Ryan replied. Ryan didn't have an ego about being the CMO, and didn't feel the need to mention it. But he did take pride in being a doctor. It was the main reason he preferred to go by Doctor rather than rank. "How does one become..." Ryan paused. "Bartender, bar owner?" He really wasn't sure how it worked.

Aelyn chuckled slightly. "Well, I hardly own the space," she admitted as she continued to keep herself busy with tasks behind the bar, which at the moment included cutting up some fresh citrus fruits for drink garnishes. "My uncle got me into it. I, uh, needed a change of pace, so my uncle took me on at his bar. At first I was just waiting tables, learning to make drinks; I found it to be rewarding, so I learned more, then my uncle pulled some strings got me set up here. What about you? I'd imagine being a doctor would have to be an aspiration you strive for over a long time."

"Usually that's the case, yes. I'm not different in that respect. Of course it was sewing up teddy bears and mending tears in jeans long before it was medical school." He sipped his drink. "You make a mean half cranberry juice half club soda." He grinned.

"Well, I'd have to be a really bad bartender to mess up a drink that simple," Aelyn countered with a grin. "Can I get you anything else?"

"Got any pretzels or peanuts?" Ryan asked. He really wasn't craving a full meal, but he was up for a snack.

"Yeah," Aelyn replied, wiping off her hands to get a bowl and scooped up some mini pretzel sticks stored under the bar. She set the bowl near Ryan and continued with her tasks behind the bar. A waiter came up to the bar for a few drinks, which Aelyn then started making; it was starting to get busy with dinner to be served soon, but she loved all this energy around her, and she smiled as she worked on the drink order. "Dinner is going to be served soon, you sure you don't want more than pretzels?" she asked Ryan as she worked. "I hear the chef makes a killer onion soup; he even makes the mozzarella on top by hand," she said to tempt the cute doctor.

Ryan thought about it, but not for very long. "That does sound good. I'll have a bowl." He did have a few more pretzels while he waited though. He decided to sit back and people watch for just a bit. As the CMO he knew everybody, but he didn't know any of them well. Sure, he could tell you when and if they'd had their appendix out, but not their favorite color. It was something he hoped to rectify with a ship posting. The crew wasn't so large that with just a bit of time he couldn't know all of them by more than just the outline of their medical file.

Aelyn nodded, then finished up the drinks she was working on and sent the waiter back out to deliver the drinks to their appropriate tables. Then she popped back into the kitchen to check on dinner, returning with a tray in hand with a steaming bowl of savory onion soup, a thick slice of toasted bread topped with a gooey broiled mozzarella floating on the surface. "Let me know if you need anything else, cutie," Aelyn said, setting the soup before him, popping some salt and pepper on the bartop in case he needed them.

Ryan managed not to blush, this time. The soup was remarkably good, and Ryan finished it and the bread. He was just about to contemplate dessert when his combadge chirped and he got called back to work though. "Thanks for the drink and the soup." He called after Aelyn.

"Anytime," Aelyn called back with a smile. "Don't work too hard now," she added, giving him a friendly wave before returning her attention to her lounge. Yep, good first day!