(BACKSIM) JP Ensign Nabihah El Sayid & Lt. JG Tiria Hamasaki - An Awkward Conversation
Koihime Nakamura
((OOC: And now I can post this!))
((The Den, Cait Spacedock))
:: The party was winding down, and Tiria was enjoying her second firewine. After the events of earlier, she ultimately felt that allowing the second drink was worth it. ::
oO I wonder why I stopped drinking this. Oo ::Tiria, of course, knew the answer, it was hard to find and she didn’t like letting the control she maintained of her emotions slip. But, she did feel she could .. at least drink more often than once in a six month cycle. ::
::Nabihah was back at the bar, sipping on another Squiz Cola. She still was a bit jittery from the adrenaline of the encounter with the Cardassian Voles and felt rather restless.::
::She scanned the room and her eyes fell upon the woman in the red Qipao. She wasn't too far off, just a few metres away and again Nabihah froze in place at how beautiful the woman looked. Recalling the briefing with Captain Rahman, she was referred to as Lieutenant Hamasaki.::
::Nabihah stepped towards her, feeling slightly daring from the adrenaline. Up until the point when the woman noticed her and locked her green eyes on Nabihah's brown ones. It was almost enough for the scientist to change her mind about the whole thing and turn around.::
::Why was dating so hard? She hadn't gone on a date in three years. She'd justify it to herself as being too busy with Academy work and all. But the truth was, it was so much easier in High School and University. She'd be approached, and then she'd get to decide if she liked that person or not. Maybe there were others who were interested in her, but they never made the first move, so they were no never mind to her.::
El Sayid: Umm… Hi.
::Smoooooth.::
Hamasaki: Good evening. Good job earlier. I’m just glad we got the Admiral back in one piece.
:: Tiria didn’t quite understand why the other woman was so nervous. But.. then again, she seemed to freeze up around her. Tiria didn’t think she had any negative reputation.. Or any reputation at all, come to think of it. Although, the other woman did look rather nice in her uniform. Not everyone could wear dress whites well. And this other woman - Ensign El Sayid? Did. Still. ::
El Sayid: You too Lieutenant. You certainly saved the lives of the people on that barge… Erh, hauler… Thing.
::She patted down the front of her dress uniform. Which made her feel self conscious about the state of it. Yet somehow the other woman still managed to look utterly resplendent.::
:: Tiria raised an eyebrow. Well.. ::
Hamasaki: Thank you.
El Sayid: My name is Nabihah by the way. Nabihah El Sayid.
::The Muslim held out a hand to the other officer and hoped that she didn't notice how it ever so slightly quivered in the air.::
:: Tiria shook her hand. It was.. Nice actually to meet new people. ::
Hamasaki: Pleased to meet you. Tiria Hamasaki.
El Sayid: So umm, what made you decide to wear that dress today?
Hamasaki: Well. ::Tiria muses:: I thought people would be wearing their dress whites. And I was.. Well, I haven’t worn this in a while.
El Sayid: Well I'm glad you did. I mean you loo- IT looks good… With you in it.
oO Damnit Damnit Damnit Damnit. And why is my face going bright red now?Oo
:: Tiria.. had a feeling that she was trying to hint at something. Just a feeling, you know. ::
Hamasaki: Ah.. :: is blushing herself a bit, not entirely sure how to handle this. :: Well. Thanks for the compliment.
::There was a moment of silence between the two women. As Nabihah tried to frantically come up with something to say next, while also trying to gauge Tiria’s reaction to her. She didn’t seem to have blown it yet.::
El Sayid: You work at the helm right? Are you excited to pilot that monstrosity? ::She nodded her head to the huge Galaxy class vessel just outside the window.::
Hamasaki: ::soft smile:: It’ll be a new challenge. But I think I’m looking forward to piloting something much larger than the Norway-class.
::Nabihah chuckled quietly.::
El Sayid: So you’re one of those flygirls huh?
Hamasaki: .. flygirls? Not sure what you mean there
::The scientist didn’t really know what she meant by that either, but she stammered as she tried to put a response into words..::
El Sayid: Well I just meant that like… You have this quiet confidence about you. Like you’re on top of everything.
Hamasaki: Ah.. I’ve learnt that it’s kinda important to be sure of yourself to what you do know. But I’m not sure I’d say I’m on top of much of anything anymore. It’s been a ... interesting time now that I’m in Starfleet. I think that part of it is that I’ve .. well, this is my second career, and I hope I learnt something from my first.
:: Tiria rather thought she was just good at projecting confidence, even when she wasn’t sure about anything. It was one of the command skills you needed to learn, actually. That said.. Was she good at it? ::
El Sayid: Yes, I know what you mean. I’ve been studying the past eight years and now that I’m actually an officer I feel like… I don’t know anything at all.
Hamasaki: Science, right?
El Sayid: Yes. My specialty is Astrophysics but I consider myself a student of all sciences really.
::The conversation was starting to feel more comfortable now. As the two spent the next several minutes getting to know each other with a quid pro quo of questions.::
Hamasaki: I actually have a hobby of inscribing scrolls with older poetry. Usually Japanese waka poetry, but I’ve found a few other poems from time to time to inscribe. It’s a fascinating thing to see the changes in language, and how poetry reflects things.
:: Tiria could have probably gone on. Poetry and reading were something she was very passionate about. Especially with access to the clashing trends often caused by the cultural cross pollination the Federation brought about.::
::Nabihah couldn’t help but think it was cute the way that Tiria’s green eyes lit up when she spoke about something she loved, just that moment the music changed into a slower song that Nabihah recognised.::
El Sayid: Hey, umm. I like this song… Would you like to… dance?
:: Tiria thought about it. Maybe it was the firewine, but..::
oO I don’t think she’d expect me to mope her forever. Oo ::Tiria nodded. Besides, it was just a dance with a pretty woman. And she .. just felt tired of doing nothing all the time :
::With her heart thumping Nabihah took the elegant woman’s soft hand and lead her onto the floor.::
El Sayid: Do you want to lead or shall I?
Hamasaki: I haven’t :: Tiria smiles at the other woman. :: I will.
:: Tiria .. wasn’t really sure what dance to start with, but as it was a soft tune, she started with a relatively slow dance. ::
El Sayid: Lucky for you, I used to take dancing lessons when I was in high school.
::She flashed a grin at the helmswoman. And as they began moving she immediately stepped on Tiria’s foot.::
Hamasaki: I hope you passed them. :: wry amusement::
:: Not that Tiria minded too much. It was definitely the wine. ::
El Sayid: Heh, er well. High School was longer ago than I remember.
Hamasaki: I know that feeling well.
oO I don’t think I’ve seen anyone from that time of my life.. in nearly 16 years.. Oo
::The two continued moving about the dance floor, and the more time Nabihah spent with Tiria’s hand on her waist, the more she decided she liked the feel of it there.::
Hamasaki: So. The Shoals. What do you think of it? ::Tiria decided to open up a bit with directed small talk, as she slowly got used to the movement and some of the steps came back to her. ::
El Sayid: To be honest I haven’t had the chance to spend a lot of time there. When I first came aboard the Veritas we were in the Menthar Corridor. Since then we’ve been all over the place.
Hamasaki: Well, as you may have been able to guess. I’m from the Shoals. I’m always curious what people think of it.
El Sayid: I’ll have to let you know. ::She said with a sheepish grin.:: I didn’t know for sure, but I wondered where your accent was from. I didn’t quite recognise it. What planet?
Hamasaki: Havley’s Hope
El Sayid: When were you last there?
:: Tiria had to think about that. It had been forever. She didn’t get the time last time with the chase to find Lenik.. And she wasn’t sure she’d have the chance for a few years. ::
Hamasaki: About.. Six years ago.
El Sayid: Oh, did something happen?
Hamasaki: My parents were.. Less than happy I joined I left the Shoals, and even less happy that I joined Starfleet.
::Nabihah nodded along as they kept up their simple dance. The party was definitely winding down and few people were still out on the dancefloor.::
El Sayid: I’ve always had a good relationship with my parents and my sister. Unfortunately she didn’t really get along with them, she’s always getting in trouble for something. I think I spent a good chunk of my childhood standing up for her.
Hamasaki: Ah.. my sister has a better relationship with my parents, but admittedly, she always tries to help me out when she can. ::wryly:: The joy of being the younger sister.
El Sayid: You and Farah would likely have a lot in common. ::She said with a grin.::
:: Tiria noticed that fewer and fewer people were on the floor, but she was enjoying the dance with the other woman. She smiled, though. ::
oO I haven’t enjoyed this in so long.. Oo ::Tiria finally felt ..alive again, in many ways. ::
::The final song for the night was announced, as well as last calls for drinks. But Nabihah didn’t feel like leaving the dancefloor.::
El Sayid: Oh, I love this song.
Hamasaki: What song was it?
El Sayid: It’s old. A Heart of Faith, 2157.
::The slow romantic song continued to play as Nabihah’s hand on Tiria’s shoulder moved just a tiny bit further down her back, bringing the two women a little closer together.::
Hamasaki: It’s a nice song.
:: Tiria’s tastes ran more towards more poppy songs, and she found herself a surprising fan of the brief fad of Neo-Jazz Revival that occurred around the time of the Dominion War, but.. This song was nice. Or it could have been who she was dancing with. One of the two, surely. ::
::Their eyes were locked and Nabihah couldn’t look away even if she had wanted to. She was lost in the other woman’s deep green eyes. For a moment she thought that the woman might bend forward and plant her lips on her own. Her heart beat fast and…::
::The song ended much too soon and the two officers stepped away from each other. Nabihah tried not to look disappointed::
oO I was so tempted. Oo :: Tiria smiled, though. She was a bit disappointed as well, but hid it as best she could. ::
Hamasaki: That was a really nice night, and you danced very well. Thank you for dancing with me.
El Sayid: Thank you, you too.
Hamasaki: It’s.. ::Tiria looked at her watch. It was a holowatch, but still...:: oh, wow, it’s getting rather late.
El Sayid: Umm, yes. I suppose. It is.
::Nabihah fidgeted with her fingers while her face turned bright red, she didn’t know really want the night to end but it was, and she might have to return to her quarters soon.::
El Sayid: I had a good time. Dancing. You know, and uh, getting to know you. And I umm. ::Her face turned an even brighter shade of scarlet, if that was even possible.:: I really like you. And I would like to stay in touch… If you want to.
::She stood in place looking at the ground, awaiting Tiria’s response.::
Hamasaki: I would be happy too. ::A blush was on her face.:: We should exchange comm frequencies.
El Sayid: ::Her face broke out in a huge goofy smile.:: Yes that would be nice.
Hamasaki: Here’s mine. ::Tiria had a brighter blush.:: I can be terrible at letter writing, but I’ll try not to be. I’ll .. speak to you later, I suppose. I should get on board the Astraeus - I have an early shift tomorrow
El Sayid: Me too.
::She didn’t want the woman to go. Nabihah leaned forward a little bit. She thought about maybe giving her a kiss on the cheek, but didn’t want to be too forward.::
:: Tiria noticed the lean in.. and was unable to fight the urge anymore, and gave her a kiss on the cheek. It felt .. fast, to do this before the first date, but wasn’t this the first date? ::
oO I’m sure I can justify it somehow if I have to. Oo ::Tiria blushed. Honestly, it just seemed right. ::
::Nabihah’s cheek felt warm and her heart was all aflutter. Tiria’s face had also turned red, almost the same shade as her dress. Filled with sudden daring, Nabihah stepped up on her toes and planted her lips onto the other woman’s mouth.::
::It was nice. Soft. But Nabihah quickly stepped back. She didn’t want to stop, but they hadn’t even gone on a date yet.::
Hamasaki: ::blushing intently:: Well. I need to get some work done before the morning, so I’m afraid I’ll have to cut this short. ::softly:: Sadly. ::Tiria’s blush was fading but still there.:: Thank you for the dancing.. And .. the night.
:: Tiria headed out.. And there was a smile on her face, despite the document she was working on. ::
::Nabihah couldn’t take the smile off her face as Tiria walked away, she took one last wistful look at the beautiful woman who looked knockout gorgeous in the form fitting red dress before heading back to the transporter room herself.::
A JP by
Lt. JG Tiria Hamasaki
Chief Helmswoman
USS Astraeus
C239112CA0
And
Ens. Nabihah El Sayid
Science Officer
USS Veritas
V239604NE0