Dinner with

Posted on Fri Sep 28th, 2018 @ 5:38pm by Ensign Avendar Jurot & Ensign Raymond McBain
Edited on on Sat Sep 29th, 2018 @ 12:56am

Mission: Holographic Horrors
Location: Ten Forward
Timeline: 72681.50

McBain stopped at the door of the lounge. He went over the time in his head, his appointment had been nearly an hour. So she would be off duty at 1800hrs. She would most likely change, so what another half hour? Maybe an hour? It was now 1835hrs so he swallowed the nervousness and entered the lounge. He knew few people, he had been very busy since coming aboard. He went to the bar area to give him a chance to check out the crowd. To see if Avendar was there, if she was alone, hoping if she was there she might give him a sign he should approach. McBain did not have much in the way of civilian attire. Right now he was wearing khaki pants, a button shirt and his leather flight jacket. He wore running shoes that were almost stylish. He almost never drank so he ordered a soda from the bartender. He ignored the look he knew he would get, he had nothing to prove in that regard. He had never felt getting plastered had anything to do with manhood. He looked over the tables as he listened to the background music in the room.

Avender had a lovely dinner. Her seat next to the window gave her a wonderful view of the stars. She now relaxed while reading all of the documents in her "welcome aboard" packet. She knew she'd have to learn about all of the crew. That would take time. Still, she had two appointments already today.

She saw McBain enter the bar, but she knew he didn't see her. She decided to have just a little fun. She asked her server to get that man at the bar whatever he was drinking, but make it "very cold" and tell him it's 'nice and frosty.'

We'll see if he can take a second hint. she thought.

A Server in the lounge tapped McBain on the arm and offered him a coke in a frosted glass. "I was told to offer you this nice and frosty beverage. Enjoy." McBain took the drink and watched the Server continue past. He had only spoken to a few people so far. He knew of only three he had mentioned his call sign to. The XO Commander Paris, the medic Dael and the Chief Counselor Avendar. He began looking around but did not see the slim Medic or the busty XO? He was mostly looking for Avendar however, after all she was the reason he was there. He was seldom curious but she had intrigued him. He had expected her to be upset after listening to his 'confession'. He sort of thought of talking to Counselors in that way, like he was baring his soul? Anyway she had sort of flirted with him and he was curious if she liked him or was just using her counselor tricks to get more information from him. He suspected the latter but was interested in the former.

Avender saw McBain looking everywhere but at her. She smiled and thought I thought pilots were supposed to be observant. She also thought about telepathically nudging him, but didn't want to use her skills for something frivolous. No, she thought, lets see how interested he really is. I'll simply wait... She adjusted her long teal dress slightly to show off just a little more cleavage, just in case he saw her.

McBain had been searching among the people moving about as he was thinking Avendar would have just arrived? Most women he had met needed time to change after all. He had not seen her among those near the bar or moving about so had began looking at the nearest tables first. She was a Counselor so he suspected she would be more centrally located so people would spot her more easily. That did not give any positive results so he began scanning the outer tables. Maybe she was one of those that sat in a more remote area to recoup after a days work? He spotted her almost immediately near the wall with a portal looking into space just beyond her. It framed her well like she was in a portrait. She was wearing a long Teal dress with a good bit of cleavage revealed.

The way she was sitting with a PaDD in her hand was quite a picture. Normally he would have looked and appreciated the view before going on his way. She had sort of invited him so he walked over with both cokes in hand. He stopped across from her with a smile, raising both glasses slightly "I was thinking this was an invitation to come join you." His smile grew wider "after all I could see why you might think me too dense to join you on my own. You have had a long look into my behavior." He tilted his head "if I am wrong I understand and will just be on my way." He might be one of the most confident people in the Galaxy when confronted with some danger. Facing a beautiful woman though was a chink in his confidence that was all too obvious.

Avender smiled and fixed her black Betazoid eyes upon him. "Won't you join me? Please sit down," she said.

The rough and tumble macho pilot does have a weakness, apparently. How cute! This could be fun! she thought.

McBain sat down opposite her his eyes not really leaving hers. He moved well even while distracted. "I admit I was looking for you but I was not sure you really wanted me to join you. The frosty coke was a clever invite though." McBain sipped the coke before continuing. "Since you are not working what do we talk about Avendar?"

"As I've read your file, I know all about you. You could always ask ME questions. Or not. After all, you're the confident man." She smiled broadly then sipped her drink.

"Excellent point. I guess the first question is me having dinner with you going to cause someone to be justifiably jealous." McBain raised an eyebrow "I have a thing about not hanging out with married women, or even women with a significant other. That is unless that other person is present least ways. I have enough problems without making more problems for other folks."

Avender smiled, maybe a touch sadly. "There was someone. He was assimilated by the Borg. He's currently in the Delta Quadrant. And besides," she raised her eyebrows, "I've already had dinner. You are late."

He had certainly miscalculated that, She had changed and eaten in a little more than a half hour! Something to remember she did not take long to get ready to go out. McBain nodded his head covering the time he was thinking "I do apologize Avendar for being late. I made an error in my calculations obviously. I am sorry to hear of your misfortune as well. It has to be very hard on you knowing he is sort of alive but maybe forever gone just the same. I have never been really attached to anyone but I am not unaware of the feelings of loss." He thought of his sister, someone he knew of but had rarely been able to even visit. He knew that was not even close to what Avendar most be feeling.

McBain's attitude and bearing shifted in barely discernible manner. No longer did he see her as a possible hot date, as she was in pain. His eye now looked at her as a possible friend who might need someone to talk too. "I know you just came aboard as I have, were you on a ship or base before? As you know I just came from the Academy, so I was anxious to get back out among the stars."

Avender looked down at her drink for a moment. She took a sip, then placed it on the table a few inches in front of her, leaving a clear view of her ample cleavage. She then looked back at the man across from her, as she slowly ran her finger around the edge of the glass. "Yes, this is my third assignment. I was previously assigned to a starbase, then to a hospital ship. This is my first assignment on a exploration vessel."

She leaned forward just a little bit. "And I was teasing. All I've had is a piece of fruit. I'm still up for dinner if you are." She flashed a mischievous smile.

McBain noticed how she kept making her cleavage more pronounced and smiled. He was a guy and he needed little incentive to look where she wanted anyway. His eyes returned to hers when she mentioned she had not eaten "I would be honored. Are you ready to order or do you need a menu?" He looked around once he spoke to see if there was wait staff? "Come to think of it I don't even know if they have servers in here, this is the first time I was in the lounge." He laughed easily. If no one shows up I will walk over to the bar and find out how you order a meal in here?" His first assignment had been on a patrol class destroyer and they had no lounge staff except at the bar. His second assignment had been a strike carrier and they had some staff in the lounge but he had mostly eaten in the mess hall back then. He saw someone who looked like wait-staff and waved for them to come to their table. He glanced over at Avendar. "If I make a fool of myself feel free to laugh."

"Ok, as long as you do the same, we have a deal!" She said, laughing.

Luckily for McBain the person was a waitress and she did have menus. She offered one to each person "Will you be having a drink while you wait?"

McBain shook his head "I already have but Avendar anything for you?"

Avender raised her glass and said "I'll have another of these, please."

The waitress nodded "right away, I can take your order when I return." She walked away to get the drink.

McBain looked at the menu "I think I am going for a real meal, pork chops, twice baked potato, broccoli steamed in soy sauce." He smiled as he realized he had not eaten a big meal in many days. "How about you Avendar, see anything you like?"

"That sounds interesting. I think I'll have the same. I really don't know much about your planet's cuisine, aside from the desserts that is."

Avender sat back a bit to a more relaxed pose. "Humans tend to forget that Betazoids may look like them, but we are different species. After all, you evolved from primates, and we evolved from amphibians." She looked thoughtful. "And yet our species are sexually compatible..." she said, her voice trailing off.

"I understand we are different and also compatible." McBain felt the heat in the room rising and felt foolish. She was so totally out of his league. Not only that but she had someone, someone she still cared about. It was wrong to think of her in a sexual manner when she was vulnerable to her past. He swallowed the lump in his throat as she was very enticing. He could not figure this out as she had to know even without her mental abilities that she was turning him on. She was all woman after all. Thankfully the waitress dropped off her drink before he said anything stupid. "If I may? The lady has decided to have the same meal as me. Could you bring us two Pork chop dinners. Both with twice baked potatoes and broccoli steamed in soy sauce. I believe we will order a dessert later as well."

The waitress nodded and left not writing down such a simple order.

McBain watched her walk away briefly before turning back to Avendar. "I admit I have met very few Betazoids. Do you enjoy dancing? I think we could find a place over there where we could give it a go if you would do me the honor. McBain did like to dance. It also gave him a reason not to talk too much and make a fool of himself. He stood offering her his arm.

Avender looked up at the tall man and leaned forward a bit. "Don't we have a delicious dinner of pork chops coming?" she said in slightly mocking tone. She smiled mischievously again.

"That we do, that we do." McBain repeated himself stalling for time. Being around her and not drooling like an idiot was not all that easy. Keeping his eyes on her eyes was not really all that good of an option as he could get lost in those dark orbs. The whole point was he was trying to behave like a gentlemen. "Still I believe the key here is they are coming. As in not here as yet?" Mcbain let a smile escape, that was a good line, he was mighty pleased with himself for that one! "Maybe a dance around the floor will help build a better appetite." He noticed her cleavage and his face began to redden a bit. His eyes leaped back to hers trying to behave "you know for the food?" Well so much for being cool and suave under pressure!

"I think that you just have NO idea what to say to me, and that you are scared stiff," Avender said. "That's not my professional opinion, though. After all," she said, "I'm off duty." She giggled and used her left hand to flip her hair off her shoulder.

McBain nodded and sat back down. "Guilty as charged. I find I often ask that one wrong question. The question that makes the person I am speaking to the least comfortable. For instance I saw no ring or visible show of you having a significant other so I asked trying to be humorous if there was someone. Only to find out it was a callous question. I think you are a very attractive lady. I am trying to not make a fool of myself by staring at your obvious assets. You have likely already figured out I don't spend much time social with people, let alone beautiful women." McBain took a deep breath, "I am not smooth Avendar but I am honest. If you would rather I take my dinner to another table I completely understand."

"I'll take honest over smooth anytime," Avender replied. "And thank you for the compliment."

She lifted her glass as if to toast him. "Don't you feel at least a little more comfortable having gotten that elephant out of the room?"

"Admitting I am a social pariah?" McBain laughed softly lifting the coke she had sent to him at the bar. "I will enjoy your toast Avendar. I can not say I feel a lot more comfortable but you seem happy so I will consider it a good sign." He glanced over to be sure no one was near enough to listen before facing her. "Would you tell me one thing. In the spirit of honesty. Do you do that posing of your cleavage to everyone or just guys like me? Guys who are so totally socially inept." He felt it a fair question, it might be something she just did. Like the way he moved deftly through a room due to hours of training. He was curious if it was just a natural thing or she was trying to attract him. Not that she need even try on that score.

Avender laughed. "So direct!" She leaned forward. "Well, Frosty, a girl has to keep some secrets doesn't she? I wouldn't have hinted for you to join me if I didn't wish you to do so. Unless I make you too uncomfortable?"

The position she took was not lost on him and he shook his head. "I will take your reply as permission to enjoy the view." His smile grew as he looked back to her eyes. "The only part that made me uncomfortable was trying to be polite and not be rude." McBain was sure he had been losing the fight there anyway. "You see I do enjoy being around you so I did not want to make a bad impression." Having said that it was easier not to focus his eyes on her breasts, which surprised him. "So what do people talk about? Wait I can think of something! What do you like to do to relax? Do you like hiking for instance? I am an outdoors kind of person but I do enjoy reading history."

"I meditate to relax. I love nature, and my holodeck programs reflect that. I also have become quite knowledgeable about history. Having worked at Temporal Investigations, I've had to learn a lot. I've even met some historical figures! Well, from certain timelines."

The dinners arrived. Avender looked at the pork chops and asked "so how do terrans eat this? With utensils, with our fingers?"

McBain picked up his knife and fork "the nice thing about pork chops is you can eat them as you like. Since I have veggies I will use the utensils, but say if they were barbecued and I had frys as a side dish. I would just use my fingers. I knew a MACO back in the day would get barbecued ribs and wear a white shirt when he ate them just to prove it could be done. I served with him over a year and we used to have ribs about every break. He never stained a shirt that I ever saw. It was quite a feat!" As he spoke he moved his eyes between Avendar and the pork chop he was cutting into bite size morsels.

"I had ribs when i was at the academy. Oh I was SUCH a mess after that! My classmates made fun of me for weeks!" She picked up the pork chop, and, grinning, tore into it. "Sometimes, a lady just has to eat! And I feel comfortable enough around you to be myself."

She looked over at McBain, with a wicked gleam in her black irised eye.

McBain stopped cutting and looked into her eyes. "I am glad you feel like that. Knowing what you do about me, I take that as a true compliment. Thank you Avendar." His smile broke out as he looked back to his plate, He used his fork to spear a Broccoli spear, a cut piece of meat and than swirled it all in his potatoes." He began eating with relish as the food was very good here. After the immediate urge to eat slowed he swallowed his last bite. "I never like greens as a kid, so I used to dip them in chocolate pudding." He laughed "everything tastes better in chocolate pudding."

"Yes, i know a lot about you. And if I wished I could learn everything I wanted from your mind, and you wouldn't even know it. But what fun would that be?" She smiled. "No thrill of the chase."

McBain felt the challenge and on one hand wanted to push back and see if his resistance training was as good as he thought. On the other hand he wanted her to feel comfortable with him, the idea she now did was compelling. In fact he did not feel a need to even try to defend his mind from her. Logic won out as she had already said she was not interested in trying. On top of that any resistance he originally felt evaporated as he processed what else she said, she was chasing him? He tilted his head smiling wider, "I am not sure the chase would be that interesting? I mean I would have to not want to be caught if it were to be a proper chase." McBain sighed "I will make an effort to be interesting, I mean if the chase were to be too easy you might lose interest."

Avender giggled. "There are many ways to chase, and many ways to elude capture, Frosty." She sipped her drink. "But a man of your experience knows that."

She sat back a moment and stretched. "Mmmm, am I the only one who finds these chairs uncomfortable? In any case, how is your pork chop?"

McBain shook his head, "I am rather good at evasion when I need to be. In this case however I have no desire to escape. On the other hand, I do not wish to appear too easy and boring? I will have to think on this problem a bit more." His voice had a sort of joking tone. His eyes were staying on Avendar's more though as if he was trying to see her intentions. "I think it is great, but than I am no connoisseur of fine food by any means. Most of my meals as a kid were fast food items. As an adult I have eaten more field rations I think than regular meals." His laugh was light and free- he was not into charades. He spoke the truth as he understood it. "If you have someplace more comfortable, we could take our desserts there." He laughed again and shook his head "I do think I am entrapped just yet, I think I still have some wiggle room?"

"Entrapped is such a... I don't know... a strange term," Aveneder said, leaning forward, to rest her chin on her folded hands. "However, the answer is 'no,' I don't think you are. Besides, a caged animal fights harder. Aren't wild horses more of a challenge? Oh, look! Dessert!"

The waitress placed two chocolate ice cream sundaes on the table. "Mmmm chocolate is the pinnacle of Terra's contribution to the galaxy's cuisine!" the Counselor said.

"I know of no one who would argue very hard against that statement." He nodded, thanking the waitress before returning his attention to Avendar. He savored the first spoonful quietly, she was it appeared content to stay here, so he was as well. The chase seemed to be at an end for the time being. "Avendar did you grow up on betazoid?" He ventured into another question warily, hoping this would not be another sore subject for her.

"I was born and raised on Betazed, yes. My first time off world was when I attended Starfleet Academy," Avender said. She licked her spoon. "Did you know that for some species, chocolate is an aphrodisiac?"

McBain shook his head, "I know guys have been bringing women chocolate pretty much since it was discovered. I know some women who would kill for chocolate." He laughed softly as he shook his head. "I honestly think the need for coffee drinkers to have coffee is stronger than the urge for chocolate." He had been eating as he spoke, He looked up into her eyes and swallowed. "I have a feeling you are talking about something else Avendar? Have I missed something I should have been aware of?"

Avender laughed. "would you believe I'm allergic to Terran coffee? It makes me break out in hives!"