Dinner Among Friends

Posted on Thu Jul 4th, 2019 @ 11:41pm by Captain Cynthia Jackson & Vivyra & Lieutenant Commander Charlotte Hudson & Lieutenant Jane Sinclair MD, DVM & Lieutenant JG Neza Glenn & Lieutenant JG Ayden Kennett

4,377 words; about a 22 minute read

Mission: Mission 2 - Love ORION Mistaken
Location: Jane's Quarters

Everything was in place.

Jane Sinclair had made all the arrangements. She had some crew bring a larger table and additional chairs to her quarters. She spent the past hour in the kitchen cooking and baking, the Head Chef giving her a hand in exchange for a promise for her to help him with Thanksgiving dinner in a couple of months, and use of some of her fresh food for it. A fair price to pay.

The chef had loaned her a cart with compartments that kept hot food hot and cold food cold. Seven servings of appetizer, main course, and dessert sat inside.

Jane had dressed in a green dress, one that was similar to the red one that Vivyra tried on the night before and a pair of matching sensible wedges. Her blue hair was pulled back into a simple ponytail to keep it away from the food. She also wore her "Kiss the Cook" apron, which during the day had been marred by a dark brown sauce.

Now she just had to wait for her guests to arrive. Even though everything was in order, she was nervous. She wanted this dinner to go well, and for her friends to get to know her lover a bit better.

She cocked her head when she heard the sound of the door chime. Standing and pressing the wrinkles out of her apron, she called "Come in!"

Vivyra came in wearing the black backless dress with the slit that allowed her legs to flow easily as she moved. When she floated in she immediately came up to Jane and gave her a hug and kiss. As she broke it, she told Jane, "You seemed to like me in this so much before that I could not but help wearing it tonight. Was that alright?"

Jane grinned at Vivyra, whose arms were still around her. “It’s perfect, love. Now we just wait for the others. I’m looking forward to this!”

Steffan Haas arrived with Neza in his arm. He always felt proud to have her with him especially since they ’came out’ about their relationship. “Hey everyone.” Stef said with a smile. “Sorry if we’re late. This one could decide what to wear.” He added with a chuckle and playful roll of the eyes.

Neza was in a simple yet curve hugging red dress and her hair was mostly pulled up. "That isn't why...it was my hair," she said with a smirk as she looked at who was already there. "Who all is coming anyways?"

“The four of us,” Jane answered, “Bec, Ayden, and Cindy.”

In the corridor, Bec sighed and looked at Ayden. "I know I made the plans, but are you sure we can't just go back to my quarters?" She gave him a cheeky grin.

"Maybe we can later," Ayden said as he kissed her forehead gently, "But you are right, you did make the plans. Come on, it'll be fun."

When they walked through the doors, Bec's eyes narrowed slightly at how close Jane and Vivyra were, but she didn't say anything about that. "Hey guys," she said with a nod to Neza and Haas. "Looks like we're going to make Cindy the seventh wheel here..."

Vivyra left Jane's side and enthusiastically hugged Bec. "Hi! I'm so glad that you could make it!" She stuck out her hand to Ayden and said, "I'm Vivyra! May I ask who you are?"

Ayden's eyes went wide at the enthusiasm of Vivyra, but accepted the hand. "Ayden Kennett, engineer. I've heard about you just didn't realize you were this...enthusiastic.

Bec stiffened with the hug, but didn't say anything. She looked to Ayden while he greeted Vivyra, but not in a possessive way, just curious to see how he was reacting to the overly bubbly person. "Smells good," she said finally to Jane.

“Thanks!” Jane said. “I hope you all like it!”

"It sure smells good in here, I'm sure it'll taste just as good," Ayden stated as he smiled over at Bec.

Vivyra answered, "Why should I not be enthusiastic? I have Jane here and Cindy and Bec trying to help me out. This is just wonderful!"

Neza looked over at Bec after looking at Jane and Vivyra, still staying on Steffan's arm, "She might feel just a little out of place here, huh?"

Cindy strolled in and asked, "I'm not late, am I?" She looked around and smiled. "It is so wonderful to see everyone here!"

“Wonderful to see you, too!” Jane exclaimed and gave her Captain a quick hug. “But I’m sorry, I didn’t think about how awkward this might be for you dining with three couples. I should have told you you could bring someone. We can still pull up an eighth chair if you want to invite someone along.” And if there isn’t, Viv and I can show you later how three can be company...

"Awkward?" Cindy asked humored. "How could this be awkward with such lovely people? I don't need a date to be made comfortable. I'm just glad to see all of you happy."

“Excellent!” Jane said before clasping her hands together. “Everyone sit down and I’ll start serving.” She walked over to the cart and began retrieving food as others began taking their seats.

Neza smirked hearing Cindy. She herself would have felt awkward being there without a date among all those with dates. Shrugging, she tugged on Steffan's arm. "Come on, time to eat."

Ayden smiled at Bec, "Sounds like it is time for the food. Want to pick a seat?"

She began putting bowls down on the table, stopping partway through the process to look up at her friends and smile. “Our first course is a carrot and miso soup with sesame and green onions. Bon appétit!”

Cindy gushed, "Jane, you go through so much trouble! There really is no need for this huge production!" She then gave a more conspiratorial tone to her voice, "Well, not that I am complaining. It looks delicious!"

“It does look amazing.” Steffan commented as he pulled out a seat for Neza to sit on before joining her on the seat next to her. He rolled his sleeves up as this looked like it was going to get messy.

Neza took the seat that Steffan pulled out for her and couldn't help but laugh when he rolled up his sleeves. "Really, Steff?" She then looked to Jane. "This really does look amazing."

Ayden had done the same, and pulled out a chair for Bec. "Ladies first," he said with a smile.

Jane smiled as her coupled friends all took their seats around the soup. "Such gallant gentlemen," she observed. "Bec, Neza, you have picked well." She took the back of another chair and pulled it out for Vivyra. "For you, my dear."

Bec shook her head slightly as Ayden pulled the chair out for her. She gave him a look before sitting down. "Thank you," she said to him before looking to Jane. "You really have outdone yourself. This smells amazing!"

“When can I dive in?” Haas said jokingly rubbing his hands together. Of course he was willing to wait but wanted to make the evening have a little fun.

Nudging Steffan, Neza frowned, "Patience," she said with a grin on her face.

“I tease!” Haas replied with a massive cheesy grin.

"Nobody wait on my account!" Cindy exclaimed with a giggle. She threw her hair back as she giggled and the platinum waves obliged her by falling right behind her shoulders, almost sad that they were no longer touching her face. Without further hesitation, she took a spoonful, blew on it, and then consumed it. "Jane, it delicious as always!"

“Glad you like it!” Jane said with a smile. “Please, everyone, dig in, before it gets cold.” She turned to Vivyra, who was seated next to her. “The miso, which is a seasoning from a place on Earth called Japan, replaces the salt. I boil carrot, onion, garlic, and other ingredients in chicken broth, though I could use vegetable broth if I wanted. Then I blend it all together so it’s creamy like this.” She took a spoonful of soup and offered it to the Orion beauty.

Neza dug in and let her eyes close slightly. "Jane..you've been hiding your cooking skills from the rest of us."

Glancing to Bec, Ayden took a small bite and smiled. "This is amazing, Jane."

Haas tucked it, “This is amazing.” He after swallowing his first mouthful. “It’s almost as good as mine.” He added with a cheeky wink.

Under the table, Bec gave Ayden's thigh a squeeze before bringing her hand up and tasting the soup. "Mmmm... yum! You'll have to share the recipe," she said giving Jane a wink.

Eyes going slightly wide, Ayden gave Bec a quick glance and smile before continuing to eat.

Nudging Haas, Neza shook her head, "Oh be nice, Steff."

Vivyra took the soup in her mouth, closed her eyes and swallowed. She relished all of the flavors that mixed in her mouth. She looked back up towards Jane and told her, "How did you learn to make such delicious things? I do not know how I would ever go back to my home, now!" She puckered her lips for Jane to kiss her.

In the past, Jane would have felt embarrassed with a public display of affection in front of her Captain and best friends. But today, she smiled at the compliments she received and gave in to the impulse to give Vivyra a big kiss on the lips. She held it a moment, but broke it off to look at her friends. That’s when she realized that while Bec and Neza knew. She didn’t think the others did yet. “Ahem. Well. The reason I invited you all here is I want you to get to know Vivyra here. She’s become...special to me.”

“Special?” Haas asked. Everyone at the table must have wanted to know what Jane meant by special. He just simply asked the question that everyone there wanted to know.

“Yes, Steffan, special,” Jane said, smirking at him. “As in, I like her a lot.” She looked back to Vivyra and gently brushed a strand of hair behind the Orion’s ear as she looked into her eyes, a smile now on her face. “She fell into our laps and I feel like I found something I’ve been missing.”

Vivyra beamed. “Jane is very special to me too! And, Cindy and Bec, I have been trying to find a way to adequately thank you for taking me on board and trying to find and help the others at my home. So, Jane offered to do this. Isn’t she the best?!”

Cindy shook her hair behind her shoulders and simply said, “We are glad to be of assistance, Vivyra.”

Bec's eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly, but then she fixed her expression. "Agreed," she said nodding and glancing at Cindy before looking back to the apparently happy couple. The lovey-dovey mood between them was almost too much and Bec found it hard to focus on the food. "Quite nice of you to do this, too, Jane," she gave the blue haired woman a half smile.

“Thanks, Bec,” Jane said, reaching her hand across the table to give Bec’s hand a quick squeeze. “It means a lot. Now enjoy your soup everyone! The main course is waiting!”

Vivyra also reached her hand across the table to touch Bec's hand, "Have you given more thought to our lunch discussion?" she asked with a sly smile.

Neza had been sitting there eating her soup and listening. Seeing them happy made her smile, even though it still sat a tiny bit odd with her. But she didn't let it bother her. Instead she laid her head against Steffan's shoulder for a moment before smiling at him and going back to her soup.

Ayden looked over at Bec's expression and frowned, leaning over and whispering, "You okay?"

Cindy blew on her soup and ate another bite, wondering what Vivyra was talking about with Bec during lunch. Perhaps it was past time that she had a private discussion with Bec. She cleared her throat verbally, trying to catch everyone's attention and decided to change the subject before what looked like might be trouble started. "I was going to save this for a briefing tomorrow, but given that most everyone is here, I thought I would tell all of you that our navigators have been able to pinpoint a likely location for Vivyra's home planet."

Vivyra pulled her hand away from Bec and ran around the table to Cindy and gave Cindy a big hug. "Really?! That's wonderful news! And are you going to save all of them, too?"

Cindy flushed at the hug. "Um, there are matters that need to be discussed, Vivyra." She looked at Vivyra and her cheeks flushed again. Quickly, Cindy turned away and said, "Um, perhaps tomorrow morning. Um, why don't you, um, sit and eat while we sort it all out. OK?"

"Certainly, Cindy!" the beaming Orion replied as she jumped into Jane and gave her a large hug and kiss.

Bec had looked at the hand that touched her, but was then distracted by Ayden and the hug to Cindy. "Fine," she whispered to Ayden, giving him a smile. She looked to Cindy and tilted her head slightly, trying to figure out why Cindy was suddenly not so confident... and blushing. She turned back to Vivyra and finally answered her question. "No, Vivyra, I haven't. I've not had any time, and I need to chat with Cindy."

Vivyra looked perplexed. "About what?"

Unsure what to make of how Bec was acting, Ayden simply gave a nod, but it seemed something was bothering her. He listened to the conversations, but from an engineering perspective, it didn't mean much to him.

Neza's eyes lit up, "I wasn't sure if they'd found anything since I went to go check on the team, Cindy. Guess I should have kept up!"

"No need to worry about that, Neza," Cindy said with a hand gesture that indicated that it was of little concern, her face returning to normal. "You know how navigators are. They only seem to be able to connect with one or two individuals. The rest of their time is spent pouring over data."

"Nothing you need worry about, Vivyra," Bec shook her head. "Just some work related things, it's rather important that I talk to her, and then I can spend some time thinking about our chat." She smiled, though she looked quite tired and it didn't quite reach her eyes.

Vivyra looked at Bec skeptically and gripped Jane's hand tightly. "OK," she simply replied to Bec in a slightly morose tone.

"That's why I am a scientist, though I still pour over data all the time." Neza sat back as she finished what she had been eating.

A few minutes later, Jane saw that everyone had finished their soups. With a wide smile on her face, she tried to pry her hand free of Vivyra’s, and had to tickle her green lover to get her to release. Once free, she stood and gathered the empty bowls and dirty spoons and put them back on the cart. “Vivyra, can you give me a hand please, love?”

"Of course I can!" Vivyra replied enthusiastically before hopping up and giving Jane another kiss before the pair disappeared.

A moment later, the two came back with plates and set them around the table. Once the last plate was set down, Jane stood proudly, straightening out her apron so “Kiss the Cook” remained visible. “The chef has prepared for you today roast beef with a tomato, tarragon, and arugula salad laid on top of the meat, with garlic mashed potatoes. I also have a red wine that pairs nicely with the meat that I’ll put out in just a moment.”

Cindy clapped her hands and said, "You're incredible, Jane! I've said it before and I'll say it again, you spoil me. There really was not a need for all of this."

"You are going to spoil us, Jane," Neza said as she watched the food come out. "And wine too?"

Ayden smirked at the apron and then looked at the food. "My goodness...this looks amazing."

Bec shook her head at the elaborate meal. "You're outdoing yourself here, going to make it harder for any of us to top this," she said with a smirk.

"I'd burn water," Cindy admitted.

“I’ve heard Starship Captain’s make the worst cooks.” Haas commented with a playful smirk.

"Steff," Neza stated as she eyed him, "Now be nice. I'm sure Cindy can cook something."

"Oh, no, it is quite true!" Cindy assured them. "You would think that I would be able to cook. After all, it is merely chemistry and I came up through science but somehow it completely eludes me." She shrugged and continued, "I'm much better at knocking people around on courts, fields, and pitches."

“Then I’ll just need to cook for the both of us,” Jane suggested, “and you work off all the calories for both of us. That’s how it works. Trust me, I’m a Doctor.” She grinned widely as she poured everyone wine. She set the bottle down and gave Vivyra a peck on the cheek as she took her own seat. “Dig in everyone. And I’ll ignore the fact that Vivyra’s the only one to listen to the apron. Again.” She winked at the Captain.

Cindy shook her head at Jane but gave Jane an amused smile. For some reason, though, she noticed she was having difficulty making eye contact with Vivyra. "If you say so, Jane. I'll accept your medical expertise."

Bec made a point about being obvious that she was rolling her eyes at both Cindy and Jane. She smirked, however, as she tucked into the main dish. "I can cook," she said after savouring her first bite of steak. "I just choose not to, I'd rather be sparring."

"I can cook...ish," Neza stated as she took another bite. "Though I'm no where near as good as you guys. But this really is amazing, Jane."

Ayden smirked at the comment, "I don't think I want to end up on the other end of your sparring, Bec."

Bec winked at Ayden, but didn't say a word. She'd get him later. Instead, she continued to nibble at her food, savouring each bite just so she didn't gobble it down and look like a glutton in front of the others.

Cindy continued to eat, amused by the small talk of her crew. She asked everyone, "So, why are none of you signed up for my racquetball league? No demotions for beating me, if you can, you know?" Cindy had a competitive look on her face, wondering if anyone would take the bait.

"Because I'm no good at racquetball, Cindy. Only played one time," came Neza's voice as she gave a small shrug.

“I rather prefer to get my ass handed to me in different ways,” Jane joked. “Being utterly destroyed by you in sport is less appealing than you might think.” She looked to Vivyra. “Do you enjoy sports? I know that like me you enjoy a good swim, but did you play competitive games back at the school?”

"No," Vivyra answered easily. "We were encouraged to work together."

Cindy told Jane, "We have different divisions. You can play in the novice group. Or, I could just swim with you. I do enjoy a good swim. It is good cardio and low impact."

Jane considered it a moment as she chewed her beef. "I could try a novice group, and then cool down in the pool after." She looked over at Vivyra. "I'm actually a bit confused. You were encouraged to work together? I thought maybe you were being prepared to be, um, distributed individually. What would you work together on?"

"I prefer more contact sports," Bec said with a shrug. "Racquetball has never been interesting to me. If you want to play football, either version, or wrestle, I'm down for that." She grinned, but it faded when she caught Jane's question to Vivyra. There was another red flag in Bec's mind about their Orion guest.

"I LOVE contact sports!" Cindy replied over enthusiastically. "Too bad we don't have a football field. I can't say that I've ever wrestled but I would be willing to learn."

"I could teach you," Bec said with a grin. "But I'm not playing racquetball. I'll spend all my time in sickbay if I do."

"How about I watch," said Neza smiling. "Not that I don't mind a good workout by any means."

Ayden shook his head, "You...don't want to face me, Cindy. I do have some practice in the game." He smirked and looked at the others.

“Just a reminder,” Jane said with a grin, “that while I can and will set broken bones and repair torn ligaments, I reserve the right to deny pain medication for injuries suffered doing something foolish. Like challenging dear Cindy to a full contact sport.” She put more meat onto her fork. “We may not have a football field, Captain, but next time we visit a Class-M planet we could make one. It’s just grass and goal posts, right? Oh wait, to be clear, this is that nonsense you lot call football, right? Not the game we played on Vega that our English colonists brought with them?”

Cindy's head swivelled towards Ayden. "Practice? Well, I hear that makes perfect," she told Ayden, her eyes alight. "When and where?" she asked greedily, all other thoughts leaving her head, including discussions of football.

"In a practice match, right?" Ayden said as he finished another bite. "Not quite sure when my schedule is free," he grinned, glancing to Bec.

Noticing the glance from Ayden to Bec, Cindy gave Bec a quizzical look before telling Ayden, "Well, just you let me know when you want to be spanked and I will be happy to oblige."

Neza couldn't help but smirk at the comment. "Careful, Cindy, he might actually beat you."

Ayden shook his head at the way the statement was worded from the captain. "I'd rather not bring spanking into it, but when I'm free from engineering, I will let you know."

Jane struggled to keep a straight face as she finished her meal, hearing Cindy talk about spanking the XO’s flame. “We’ve talked about sports and games, but what about some other hobbies? Anyone enjoy music or dancing? Or some other art?” She smiled and winked at Bec as she remembered their fun in the music room. “Bec’s heard me play, and Cindy’s heard me sing, but I’d love to know if others like music or art too.”

"That's not what you said to me, Ayd," Bec grinned cheekily and winked at him. "I like music, usually only listening to it though. I'm not much of a singer or player."

Nudging Bec, Ayden shook his head. "Shush," he whispered before looking back to Jane's question. "Does getting my hands dirty count?"

Neza sat and fiddled with her dinner. She could have sworn a moment ago that someone had come here with her. Now, something just didn't feel right, and she didn't catch Jane's question.

Bec looked toward Neza and frowned. Why was there another nagging feeling that someone was missing? She shook her head and turned back to the others. "Depends on how you're getting your hands dirty, I think," she said.

Vivyra laughed at that comment, as did Cindy. Vivyra spoke up, though, "I can dance. I love to dance. I also can sing. Music makes me feel free."

"I think you knew what I meant," Ayden stated, catching Bec's look over to Neza. Something felt off. But it wasn't his place to really say anything.

Cindy noticed the awkward silence and finally said, "Well, this has been a great night! But, I should probably get going. I think that I have to get to some reports. Silly work, right?!"

Jane checked a chronometer and her eyes shot open. “I didn’t realize it was that late! Dessert was going to be some cookies that the ship’s Chef offered me, but you can take them for the road.” She got up and found a small plate containing seven chocolate chip and peanut butter cookies. She frowned when she counted them. Why would she have grabbed seven if they were only six eating? It was too late to be asking such things though.

Eying the chocolate chip cookies, Neza grabbed one and gave a small smile. Something still felt off, but she would figure it out later. “Thank you, Jane, for all of this. It was amazing.”

Ayden waited for the others to grab their cookies. He was the only male there, and he was going to be a gentleman about it.

Cindy grabbed a cookie and started wolfing it down in an unladylike fashion. She shrugged an apology if anyone cared about her poor manners on this subject. "My favorite!" she squealed happily.

Bec snagged a peanut butter cookie and grinned as she took a big bite. "Thanks, Jane," she said after swallowing.

Looking over what was left, Ayden grabbed one of his own and smiled. "Thank you, Jane."

“You’re all very welcome,” Jane said. “Thank you for coming over. And thank you for letting me share with you, my best friends, how happy I’ve been lately.”

"Thank you again, Jane!" Cindy told Jane happily. She then made a hardly noticeable motion at Bec, indicating she should leave with her. "Like I said before, you can cook for me any time!" Cindy started heading for the door which opened obediently.

“Have a good night, everyone!” Jane said with a smile as her friends filed out, leaving her and Vivyra to clean up and enjoy the rest of their night.

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