A Pair of docs in a paradox on a Dock

Posted on Wed Dec 19, 2018 @ 12:20am by Lieutenant Cassandra Kennings & Lieutenant Nicole Anderson

1,004 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Plaga Navis
Location: Holodeck
Timeline: Evening after returning on board

The air was streaming out of Nicole's lungs. She watched it go in little bubbles as she sank lower and lower. After a moment, her lungs were empty and she came to a gentle rest on a bed of sand. She looked up at the sky through the surface of the water, the silence so absolute she could hear her blood pounding in her ears.

The lake water was crystal clear and she looked around, seeing an underwater landscape stretched out before her. She marveled at the tranquility, then felt her lungs begin to burn and kicked off, fighting density and gravity to claw her way back to the surface.

She broke the surface with a gasp and coughed, flipping her hair out of her face and wiping the lake water from her eyes. She caught her breath and swam the few feet back to the edge of the dock, grabbing onto the edge and pulling herself up.

"That was amazing!" she said, grinning.

"What did I tell you?" Cass said, sitting on the edge of the dock, swinging her feet a bit. "Sally Cato and I used to see who could stay down there longer. It's a wonder we didn't drown, but it was like a different world down there. Looking up at the other side of the surface seemed like looking through the looking glass."

She watched a few small bluefish swim by and toyed with a lock of blue hair. "Every time Daddy took us to Lake Waconda it was an adventure," she said. "I've been wanting to go for a swim like this for a while, so I borrowed Amber's New Hampshire lake program for us."

Nicole sat next to her and looked out over the water to the mountains on the other side. "Why haven't we done this sooner then?" she said.

"Well, I've been busy and you've been bitchy," Cass said, giving her friend a good-natured nudge.

"Fair point," Nicole said. "I've just been thinking of the fun we used to have and I wonder why we don't do those things still."

Cassandra smiled, happy to finally have her friend back. "Well, we're not in our early twenties anymore. We've matured. Well, I have." She giggled at Nicole's eye roll. "Relationships change; that's the natural order of things. Some end abruptly, some stagnate, some grow closer. The same is true for family, and we're a bit of both."

Cass stood up and stretched and leaned on a post at the edge of the dock, watching a bird fly by. "I have a fiance, you have a new head nurse....and yet another friend in the science department." She gave Nicole a sideways glance.

"Who? Camille? Nicole said. "Another wide-eyed Terran dazzled by the brilliance of the galaxy. She's all right," Nicole said, trying to sound nonchalant.

"I see," Cassandra said, amused. "The point is, as you go through life, things will change. We'll still have fun, but in new ways. Some things will change, some things won't, but either way, we'll go where our paths take us: ever forward."

"Well, given you've been a better friend than I deserve," Nicole said, "I hope our paths diverge later, rather than sooner."

"I hope we're friends for a long time as well," she said, warmly and put her arm around Nicole. "Until then," she said, "ever forward." Her palm hit flat against Nicole's back right at her center of gravity and, arms pinwheeling in a futile effort to stop herself, Nicole went face-down into the water, Cass' laughter echoing across the lake.

Nicole's scream of shock was cut off by her belly flop. She felt herself hit the water and immediately tucked her chin and dove under, twisting around and slipping under the dock. She pulled herself along under the dock silently and came up the side, breaking the surface slowly, her eyes blazing with a need for revenge.

Cass must not have seen her disappear, because as Nicole silently pulled herself onto the dock, she could hear Cass calling her name, concern in her voice. As Nicole crept up, Cass stood at the edge of the dock, looking for a body that wasn't there. Just as Cass suspected something was wrong, Nicole sprang, tackling the other woman at the waist and taking them both back into the lake.

As they broke the surface together, sputtering and coughing, Nicole gave a wicked smile. "And some things won't change."

Cassandra pulled several colors of hair out of her eyes and coughed. "I hate you," she said.

"No you don't," Nicole said, lifting herself easily onto the dock. She kicked her feet lazily in the water watching Cass swim up to her. "So what was with you in Sickbay today?"

Cassandra pulled herself up as well and joined her friend. "What are you referring to?" she said.

"The hair, the makeup, the dress. You looked fantastic, don't get me wrong," Nicole chuckled. "Hell, you looked like you did when we first met. But what was going through your mind?"

"I was hoping to charm our newcomer into a more malleable mindset," Cass said. "The whole 'more flies with honey' mindset."

"Yes, well, it turns out that wasn't the kind of sugar he was hoping for," Nicole said. "Thanks for playing along, by the way. Thankfully, he was rather receptive once I got him under."

"Oh I'm sure he'd be very receptive in that position," Cassandra quipped.

Nicole shot her a look. "Don't make me throw you back in. He's managed, that's the point."

Cassandra smiled and nudged Nicole hard as only old friends can do. "So what do we do now?"

"Wait," Nicole said. "We have more pressing matters, currently." She stood up and grabbed a towel. "To that end, we should get to bed. Tomorrow is going to be a long day."

"Agreed," Cass said. She stood up and stretched, then shoved Nicole back in the lake. "Computer, exit," she said, walking quickly off the dock and back to her quarters."

 

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