A Proper Date, Part 1

Posted on Wed May 29th, 2024 @ 1:10pm by Lieutenant Eirly Andersen & Lieutenant JG Malcom Beckett M.D.

1,423 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: The Menagerie: side stories & mischief making
Location: Deck 11
Timeline: MD 9, 1930 Hours

Malcom showed up outside of Eirly's quarters at precisely 1930 hours with a small bouquet of orchids that he had replicated. He hadn't learned her favorite flower yet, or even if she liked flowers, but hoped it was the thought that counted. He was wearing a dark blue sweater and a pair of gray slacks. A shade different from his usual uniform.

He tapped the chime to let her know that he had arrived.

"Come in!" Eirly called out as she was finishing putting her hair into a low messy bun with pieces of hair that framed her face. She'd opted for a more low maintenance look than normal with subtle makeup including some glittery dark gold eyeshadow and a light lining of eyeliner and mascara with a non-transferrable slightly nude gloss across her lips, whereas her outfit was a short dark blue dress with gold accents that was still classy at just below the knees, and a pair of small heeled shoes to match. She hoped that Malcolm would like it.

The doors slid open to reveal him standing there, and her face broke into a smile, "Hey," she said as she walked over to kiss him on the cheek.

Malcolm embraced Eirly's arm briefly while she approached to kiss him. "You look quite lovely this evening. I'm looking forward to being out with you," he said with a soft smile. Malcolm handed over the orchids, "I brought this for you."

Eirly's eyes lit up and the big smile got bigger as she steadily turned red, "Aw, they're beautiful, thank you!" She turned for a moment to where she thought they might go, and decided on the bedside table so they would make her smile when she woke up of a morning, "And thank you, it's a bit out of the normal for me, do you like it? You're looking quite dashing tonight as well." She kissed him again, this time lightly on the lips, "Shall we go?"

"Aye, you look beautiful," he said right before she kissed him. Malcolm returned the kiss deepening their connection slightly.

"Aye, let's go. I thought I would start you off with a proper meal, before we dive right into dessert. Unless that would spoil your night?" Malcolm teased.

"Isn't that the way it should be?" Eirly asked all innocently as they walked out and down the corridor to the turbolift, "I'm sure I can deal with dinner as well... You're the one in charge of decisions for this date, remember?"

"Of course I do, but I wouldn't want one of my decisions to ruin a beautiful evening for you, would I?" Malcolm held out his arm for Eirly to take as they stepped onto the turbolift. "Deck 11, please."

"I trust your judgement" Eirly replied as she took his arm and put her own over the top of his as they walked over, "So may I ask where we're going, or are you keeping it a secret?" Either way, she was excited and happy to just be spending time with him in general.

"It's nae a huge surprise, but I'll set ye see for yourself. It'll be more fun," Malcolm said with a wink.

He could've shown her anything and she would've been surprised and happy. "As long as you're not blindfolding me for it, I'm fine with whatever you've got planned."

As they stepped off the turbolift on to Deck 9, Malcolm led her a slightly different direction than they way they had taken their first tour through here. "No blindfolds then. Hope you didn't have a bad experience as a young lass?" He asked.

"With food?" Eirly raised an eyebrow as he led the way, "Never. I've always enjoyed food and the finer dining experiences. You should know: Europe can't be beat for food choices. I hope you don't have any bad experiences as a young lad either," She mimicked his accent again on the last few words.

Malcolm chuckled and shook his head both at her accent and at her answer. "Nay with blindfolds. You pullin' my chain now?" He said slowing down as they got closer to their destination.

Just before they got to their destination, she leaned over and whispered, "I can find better uses for blindfolds than teasing with foods." She then gave him a knowing, mischievous smile.

Malcolm stopped under the marquis for Rhythm Kitchen, a restaurant that boasted flavorful food and good music. "I hope you like it, I hear the food is good, and there's a jazz band playing here tonight."

"This place looks amazing!" Eirly said excitedly as she took in the sounds and the smells coming from the restaurant. "How did you know I liked jazz?" Jazz was always the one type of music that she could put on, especially if it was French café jazz, and just chill out to it. "Shall we go in?"

"A lot of wishful hopin'," Malcolm admitted softly into her ear, as he shifted his hand to the small of her back and guided her into the restaurant.

The interior was decorated with images, replicas, and artifacts relating to music of different genres of music from throughout the ages, and from different cultures. An older man with salt and pepper hair approached them.

"Preference for a table or booth tonight?" He asked.

"I'd much rather prefer a booth, if that's okay?" Eirly asked the waiter and looked to Malcolm to see if that was okay with him. He nodded, so she assumed that it was. As they were escorted in, the waiter took them over to a booth towards the back under a black and white portrait of an old jazz band, although Eirly was unsure of what time period it was.

"This is a really, really nice place!" The waiter came back and gave them a couple of drink and food menus then disappeared, so she took the opportunity to look over the drinks one for a few minutes, "Any ideas on what you're going to get?"

"I don't believe I've ever had the pleasure of tryin' Denobulan pasta. Maybe I'll venture into somethin' new and order one of those," Malcolm answered.

"You know what? I might try something different as well and go for the seffa noodles and a rose water lassi," Eirly countered with a smile. She usually stuck to the basics with a lot of food, but this was a date, and she couldn't say no. "Hopefully this all tastes good! And we still have dessert afterwards too, you're probably going to have to carry me back to my quarters because I'll have eaten too much!" She laughed.

"We can take our time, maybe enjoy a little music before dessert. No need to rush through the night," Malcolm responded.

Eirly was happy with the choice of food, the drink and the company, "I don't want to rush things, I'm happy with everything as they are right now," then she nodded in agreement, "Happy to take our time for sure... Could always do a game of twenty questions and get to know each other while we waited, if you want?"

"Aye, I'll bite. What's a planet you've never visited, but would like to?" Malcolm asked, a bit of a cheeky grin on his face as he waited for her answer.

"I've heard Andoria is always quite nice," Eirly replied in a light tone as she thought about it a little bit more, "I mean, how cold could it actually get, right? I feel like I'd love it there. Otherwise I'd love to visit a planet that isn't overly touristy and has beautiful scenery. How about you?"

"I haven't been there either, but I remember seeing a FNS blurb on it once that highlighted quite a few things to do there on a visit," Malcolm responded. "That's a good actually. Mind if I steal your answer?"

"Absolutely." Eirly nodded with a smile. "Maybe you could join me if I get to go there one day?" Now it was her turn to ask the question, "If you could own any type of animal, what would it be?" Random.

"Aye, that's an easy one. If I were living on a piece of land somewhere I'd have a couple of dogs. Likely some lab mixes. How about you?" Malcolm asked.

"I would be living probably back near home, have a couple of snow dogs and a couple of large, fluffy cats. Otherwise, it would be a couple of reindeer." Eirly responded. She could picture the scenarios for both of them.


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