PNPC Nurse Katrina Pelley - Staring at the ceiling

[Jon Van Pelt]

((Nurse Pelley's Quarters, Deck 14, USS Juneau))

Katrina lay in bed, arms folded behind her head as she stared at the ceiling, listening to the soft humming of Juneau’s engines moving through the ship. She was going to miss that ambient sound, she realized. Word about their transfer to a new posting on Ring 42 had seeped through bit by bit after Juneau had left the Oort Cloud behind them. It hadn’t come as a total surprise as in recent months the crew of both the Juneau and the Grace Hopper had made some remarkable scientific discoveries down there. The gigantic ring, with its countless biomes, was almost a universe within a universe. Whoever was able to establish a permanent foothold there, would be first in line to explore it further. Who knew what else would be out there, waiting for them to be discovered and explored?

Pelley: ::whispering to herself:: Denali Station.

A name that sounded exotic and alien, yet apparently it was named after a place on Earth, just like so many other places and ships in the Federation and Starfleet.

Suddenly her inner musings were put on hold by a loud snore. She smiled as she looked to her left, at the man that was laying beside her in bed, partially covered in sheets.

She remembered the first time they had met. They both were part of an Away Team sent down to Ring 42, to an ancient city called Deolia, to help find a group of missing Starfleet officers from the Grace Hopper. They hadn’t really spoken to each other, during or after the mission, and if she was being honest, he hadn’t really left a lasting impression on her.

It wasn’t until their last mission, hunting down pirates in the Oort Cloud, that they saw each other again. She had treated his head injury down in Sickbay after he returned from a rescue operation aboard a freighter that, from what she’d heard afterwards, had tried to ram Juneau. It was only when he was sitting on the biobed and she was taking his readings with her tricorder, that she noticed his piercing blue eyes. And though he wore a beard, he still had that boyishness about him. She usually didn’t fall for his type, but there was something about him that tickled her just enough to want to get to know him a little bit better.

Unfortunately, in the chaos that was Sickbay at the time, there wasn’t a real opportunity to go beyond the patient-nurse conversation, so she decided to just shrug off the feeling and continue with her work. And she probably would’ve forgotten all about him if she hadn’t bumped into him at the Clanhouse the next day. 

They started talking, mostly about their work and life aboard Juneau, but the more she looked into his eyes, the more she felt drawn to him. As they left the Clanhouse, he suggested walking her back to her quarters. Maybe it was out of some force of habit as a trained Security officer, or perhaps he was just trying to be gallant: whatever the reason was, she felt flattered so she simply smiled and nodded.

As they arrived at her quarters, both of them didn’t seem to find the right words to say goodbye. In that moment of silence, their eyes locked, exchanging feelings they both weren’t able to speak out loud. She took a step closer as he leaned forward. As their lips touched it was almost as if electricity moved through her, as if charging every cell in her body.

They met the next day. And the day after. Until they ended up here, together in bed.

Suddenly he turned around, snuggling up to her.

Kendrick: ::with sleepy eyes:: Morning. 

Pelley: ::jokingly:: Well, hello there, Mr. Morning Breath.

Kendrick: ::still sleepy:: Is it that bad, huh?

Pelley: ::chuckles:: No. I’ve smelled worse.

Kendrick: ::smiles:: What a romantic conversation to start the day. ::noticing she was already awake before him:: So, what were you daydreaming about just now, Nurse Pelley?

Pelley: Our transfer.

At the word ‘transfer’, he rolled back over, folding his left arm behind his head as he looked up at the ceiling.

She turned on her side, placing her right hand on his chest.

Pelley: You don’t seem happy.

Kendrick: Should I be happy then?

Pelley: I don’t know. ::waving her arm up in the air:: There’s a whole new universe out there for us to explore. Isn’t that why we joined Starfleet?

Kendrick: I joined Starfleet to explore the galaxy, moving from one planet to the next. Not to be stuck in one place. ::slightly irritated:: I might as well have stayed home. 

As he spoke of ‘home’, she realized they hadn’t really talked about home or family.

Pelley: So I guess you didn’t grow up on a starship?

Kendrick: No. I spent the first 18 years of my life aboard a space station, with nothing to look at but a blue gas giant. 

Pelley: I can see how that could get boring after a while. So. ::pause:: Does this mean you won’t be joining us to Denali?  

Kendrick: Do I actually have a choice in the matter?

Pelley: Of course you do, you could stay here aboard Juneau, or request a transfer.

Though they weren’t officially in a relationship, a part of her quietly hoped he’d be coming with them to the city.

Kendrick: And disappoint the Captain and the rest of the senior staff? ::shaking no:: No. ::firmly:: I’ve already disappointed too many people in my life. I don’t want to add another name to the list. 

She'd hoped he'd say he’d be transferring to Denali Station, to stay close to her, but she tried not to look too disappointed. His mood seemed somber and just as she was about to ask more about his youth and the family he grew up in, they heard a chirp coming from his combadge.

Autrejour: =/\= Ensign Autrejour to Lieutenant Kendrick. =/\=

John turned towards the nightstand and picked up his combadge.

Kendrick: =/\= This is Kendrick, go ahead Ensign. =/\= 

Autrejour: =/\= Sir, we’ve just received a message from Starfleet Command with the security protocols for the Awards Ceremony. =/\= 

Kendrick: =/\= Thank you, Ensign. I’m on my way now. Kendrick out. =/\=

He threw his combadge back on the nightstand and turned around, leaning in for a kiss.

Kendrick: ::smiling:: Guess duty calls. ::jumps out of bed:: The top brass are arriving for the Ceremony and Command apparently thinks we can’t handle things without them.

She watched him as he tried to get those sexy legs of his into his pants.

Kendrick: ::turning round, facing her::  I’ll see you tonight?

Pelley: ::disappointed:: No, I’m sorry. I’ve got night duty in Sickbay this week.

Kendrick: ::looking somewhat disappointed:: Okay. Breakfast then in the morning?

Pelley: ::smiling:: Okay. 0800 hours, Clanhouse?

Kendrick: ::putting on his uniform jacket, smiling:: It’s a date.

She smiled back at him and threw a goodbye kiss as he left her quarters. As the doors closed, she laid her head back to rest. If she didn’t get enough sleep today, she knew she probably wouldn’t make it till the end of the week.

===

Nurse Katrina Pelley simmed by:

Lieutenant John Kendrick 

Acting Chief Security and Tactical 

USS Juneau 

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