A Roof Over My Head

Posted on Mon 26th May, 2025 @ 4:16pm by Commander Paul Graves PsyD & Commander Mikaela Locke

1,178 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: From The Ashes
Location: Docking Bay 89
Timeline: MD-01: 0917

Mikaela took a step back, undoing herself from Paul's embrace, although retaining hold of his forearms. She looked up at his face. 'Damn,' she thought to herself, 'How is he prettier than I remember?'

"Hey," she said, a coy smile, of almost childlike innocence, playing across her face.

"You are a sight for sore eyes," Paul told her. "How was the trip back?" He fell into step beside her as they left the docking bay. "I'm guessing the mission went well." That was all he planned to ask about the mission in public.

"Hmm," Locke nodded, casually, "It was all good." Just as she could tell he was holding back with his questioning, she would fill him in on the details that she could disclose at a later point. "How have things been on the station?"

"It's changed a lot in the past 18 months," Paul said. "Some things will be the same, but others might be quite a shock." He glanced at her. "I guess I'd better tell you now, but we have a new XO. She's the second one we've had since you left on the Falcon. The first was a Vulcan; now we have a Trill. We have a new CO, too. Navarra wasn't here long before she was transferred out to command the Samurai."

Mikaela didn't immediately respond. She had known that she would almost certainly be replaced as station XO from the moment she agreed to Grax's offer of the Falcon mission, but this was the first time she'd actually heard it said out loud. It stung more than she'd thought it would. "It's not a surprise," she eventually replied, trying to hide the disappointment in her voice, despite knowing that that was pretty pointless. This was Paul, after all. He would sense it, even if she weren't doing a terrible job of disguising her emotion.

"Agreed; there's no way they could have held your position open for 18 months; they had to find someone to fill it," Paul said, "and it couldn't be me. On the other hand, unless you're burning to make it to captain, this could be a good thing." He looked at her. "We could actually go on a vacation together, now, Mikaela. I know they'll find you something. We have two open department head positions at the moment, both of which I think you could qualify for." Paul gave Mikaela a wry look. "I know it'll be a step down, and that's a hard pill to swallow--but you would still have a home here, if you want one."

That felt like a loaded statement. Mikaela wasn't completely sure if Paul had meant that as generically as he had said it. 'Did he mean a home here, or did he mean a home with him?' she mused to herself. It seemed like he was still all-in on their relationship, and that was a good thing, but eighteen months with little to no contact had been a long time. Her feelings for him hadn't changed in that time, but there was a sense that there would be some rebuilding required if they were to return to the place they had been in before she left.

"I guess I'll be needing an appointment with the captain, then," she replied as lightly as she could. "Also," she mused, "I've only just realised that the new XO will be in my old quarters." She frowned. That thought hurt too. She had liked her suite. Not only was it one of the biggest on the station, one of only two that spanned two decks, along with the captain's suite, but also because she had spent the best part of five years getting it exactly the way she wanted it - only for someone else to swoop in and redecorate. "I guess I'll need to make a request to have some guest quarters assigned for the time being?" It was legitimately a question. Despite overseeing the entire executive branch of the station for many years, she didn't really know how that worked. She'd never had to request quarters before - she'd simply been assigned them, along with her billet. Yet another thing to remind her that she currently held no position on the station that she had had so much responsibility for, for so long.

"You're welcome to move in with me," Paul said, "but I don't know if it's fair to invite you to do that when we've been apart so long and will need some time to get re-acquainted. I don't want you to feel pressured." He had the sense that she really liked having her own space, no matter how she felt about him. Living together might be in their future--he hoped so--or it might not.

"Um..." Mikaela paused. She was surprised that Paul had suggested moving in together so soon after her return and, in one sense, it was a nice surprise - it was another confirmation that his feelings for her hadn't changed and that he was eager to pick up where they had left off. But he was also right: They would need time to get reacquainted. "Thank you," she finally replied, genuinely, "But I think you're right, we might need a bit of time before we take that step. However," she continued quickly, hoping to soften the blow before disappointment set in too deeply for him, "How about I come over for dinner this evening, once I've got guest quarters assigned and my paper work sorted?"

"That's completely fine," Paul said. "Do you want any particular kind of food, or shall I surprise you?" He mentally ran through some vegetarian dishes he knew Mikaela liked.

"Surprise me," she replied, almost without hesitation. She loved Paul's cooking. He was an excellent chef and had a natural ability to make dishes that looked amazing and tasted sublime. Besides, having gotten used to living on a station with so many outlets that cooked food from scratch, eighteen months on a tiny ship with only replicated food had made her desperate for something - anything - authentic. "How about I stop by one of the outlets on the promenade and pick up some real wine?" she offered.

"Oh, please do," Paul said. "I almost never pass up wine. I'll come up with something that I hope will be a tasty surprise, and then something very decadent for dessert. Does that sound good to you?"

Mikaela smiled gently. "That sounds amazing," she said. "I'll go and get myself sorted, get some quarters assigned and get my effects off the Falcon and I'll see you later." She stood on her tiptoes in order to stretch up and kiss him on the cheek. "Thank you for coming to meet me," she added softly, "I really appreciate it."

Paul slid his arms around Mikaela and kissed her back. "I couldn't wait to see you again," he said. "I'm so glad you're home."

 

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