Ensign Ryden Tarus Kel - More Coffee Talk
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Ryden Kel
Aug 5, 2025, 2:52:49 PM8/5/25
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((Shari’s Café, San Francisco District – Starbase 118))
Ryden leaned back in his seat, his hands wrapped around the warm ceramic mug. He let himself smile... just a little... as Ross clinked mugs with him. There was something oddly grounding about that simple gesture. A shared understanding. A moment of stillness between two people who weren’t great at being still.
Kel: To anxiety and snacks, then.
The mugs clinked softly.
Ross: So! ::he straightened up:: Let's get down to business. Tried these fruitcakes before?
Ryden glanced at the small plate beside his coffee. Crumbs clung to the fork, a few bits of cherry stubbornly stuck to the edge.
Kel: First time today. I thought they were overhyped... and then I took a bite and almost ascended to another plane of existence. So yeah. Worth it.
Ross nodded knowingly, that easy grin of his returning.
Ross: Yeah, I'm always looking for new places to find snacks. There's a colleague - you probably haven't met him, I think he got transferred before you joined the crew... name's Rustyy. We were always scouting new restaurants and cafés. I kinda miss that.
Ryden watched the expression shift on Ross’s face. A little softer. A little farther away.
Kel: It’s weird how those little rituals stick with you. Places you used to go, people you used to go with. They leave a shape behind, even when they’re gone.
Ross nodded quietly.
Ross: I just think it's important, you know. ::he threw Ryden a pensive glance:: To get out there from time to time. Enjoy the simple things, so you don't lose track. Of... the important stuff. ::he hesitated:: Have you been feeling alright lately? You look a little tired, pal.
He hesitated, and Ryden felt the question before it was spoken.
Ross: Have you been feeling alright lately? You look a little tired, pal.
Ryden blinked. He wasn’t used to people asking. Not like that.
He looked down at his coffee, swirling it absentmindedly. The cream made soft spirals near the rim. He could deflect. Joke. But for some reason, he didn’t want to—not entirely.
Ryden didn’t answer right away. He stared into his mug, watching the way the cream settled into soft, cloudy ribbons, swirling without ever fully blending. The silence stretched—not uncomfortable, exactly. Just honest.
Kel: Yeah... I’ve been tired.
He drew in a breath, slowed through his nose, held it a moment.
Kel: Not in the ‘I need to sleep more’ way. It’s deeper than that. I took a Romulan disruptor to the side during the last mission. ::he grabbed at his side... gesturing toward his wound.:: And I’m walking, I’m functional, I’m... technically fine. But I think something in me never stopped bracing for the next hit.
He let the words hang there a second, his fingers tightening slightly around the mug.
Ross: ?
Kel: And then Sam left. No warning. No goodbye. One day he was here and the next... nothing.
Ross: ?
His voice didn’t break, but there was a raw edge to it now... a quiet grief still pressed into the seams of his words.
Kel: We weren’t just... ::He shook his head, eyes flicking down.::... Anyway, It’s been a lot. And I think my brain’s stuck in that place where it keeps looping everything, trying to make sense of things that don’t.
Ross: ?
He looked back up, offering a crooked, almost apologetic smile.
Kel: Maybe it’s a half-Betazoid thing. Or maybe it’s just a Ryden thing.
Ross: ?
He gave a small, ironic chuckle.... just enough to break the tension.
Ryden leaned back in his seat, his hands wrapped around the warm ceramic mug. He let himself smile... just a little... as Ross clinked mugs with him. There was something oddly grounding about that simple gesture. A shared understanding. A moment of stillness between two people who weren’t great at being still.
Kel: To anxiety and snacks, then.
The mugs clinked softly.
Ross: So! ::he straightened up:: Let's get down to business. Tried these fruitcakes before?
Ryden glanced at the small plate beside his coffee. Crumbs clung to the fork, a few bits of cherry stubbornly stuck to the edge.
Kel: First time today. I thought they were overhyped... and then I took a bite and almost ascended to another plane of existence. So yeah. Worth it.
Ross nodded knowingly, that easy grin of his returning.
Ross: Yeah, I'm always looking for new places to find snacks. There's a colleague - you probably haven't met him, I think he got transferred before you joined the crew... name's Rustyy. We were always scouting new restaurants and cafés. I kinda miss that.
Ryden watched the expression shift on Ross’s face. A little softer. A little farther away.
Kel: It’s weird how those little rituals stick with you. Places you used to go, people you used to go with. They leave a shape behind, even when they’re gone.
Ross nodded quietly.
Ross: I just think it's important, you know. ::he threw Ryden a pensive glance:: To get out there from time to time. Enjoy the simple things, so you don't lose track. Of... the important stuff. ::he hesitated:: Have you been feeling alright lately? You look a little tired, pal.
He hesitated, and Ryden felt the question before it was spoken.
Ross: Have you been feeling alright lately? You look a little tired, pal.
Ryden blinked. He wasn’t used to people asking. Not like that.
He looked down at his coffee, swirling it absentmindedly. The cream made soft spirals near the rim. He could deflect. Joke. But for some reason, he didn’t want to—not entirely.
Ryden didn’t answer right away. He stared into his mug, watching the way the cream settled into soft, cloudy ribbons, swirling without ever fully blending. The silence stretched—not uncomfortable, exactly. Just honest.
Kel: Yeah... I’ve been tired.
He drew in a breath, slowed through his nose, held it a moment.
Kel: Not in the ‘I need to sleep more’ way. It’s deeper than that. I took a Romulan disruptor to the side during the last mission. ::he grabbed at his side... gesturing toward his wound.:: And I’m walking, I’m functional, I’m... technically fine. But I think something in me never stopped bracing for the next hit.
He let the words hang there a second, his fingers tightening slightly around the mug.
Ross: ?
Kel: And then Sam left. No warning. No goodbye. One day he was here and the next... nothing.
Ross: ?
His voice didn’t break, but there was a raw edge to it now... a quiet grief still pressed into the seams of his words.
Kel: We weren’t just... ::He shook his head, eyes flicking down.::... Anyway, It’s been a lot. And I think my brain’s stuck in that place where it keeps looping everything, trying to make sense of things that don’t.
Ross: ?
He looked back up, offering a crooked, almost apologetic smile.
Kel: Maybe it’s a half-Betazoid thing. Or maybe it’s just a Ryden thing.
Ross: ?
He gave a small, ironic chuckle.... just enough to break the tension.
-----
Ensign Ryden Tarus Kel
Medical Officer
StarBase 118 Ops
O240109RK1
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