And Away We Go, pt. 2

Posted on Sun Oct 6th, 2019 @ 11:38pm by Lieutenant Commander William Gunnison & Cole Gunnison

Will looked out over the beach in the late afternoon light as he sat at the bar, sipping some fruity non-alcoholic drink that the bartender had recommended ("Actually, it's a more common request than you might think," the bartender mentioned at Will's request at something non-alcoholic, before preparing the drink Will now held. "This has been rather popular.") Will watched Cole out frolicing in the waves. 'Ah, to be young again!' Will thought.

A few moments later, a human woman slid into the seat next to him and ordered something that almost sounded Klingon-like. The bartender seemed to know what it was, though, and turned away to make it.

"Hello there," the woman then said to Will.

"Hello," Will said a bit cautiously, feeling a bit wary but not wanting to be rude.

"Nice day," she said.

"Indeed," Will said.

After a few moments, she said, "A bit reserved, aren't you?" She held up a hand. "Let me guess - you're Starfleet, here on shoreleave from one of the three ships currently in orbit, and someone on board delivered a lecture about being wary about anyone who seems to be interested in you on a personal level, because of the various con artists and scammers around here. Am I right?"

"Yes, you are," Will said.

"They're definitely words of wisdom, and it's good you're paying attention to them. It'd be nice if more people actually listened to them - make my job a lot easier." She held out her right hand, while presenting a Starfleet ID in her left hand. "Lt. Cmdr. Laura Ellison. I'm part of the JAG office assigned here. I've had to help bail out more than a few members of Starfleet here over the years."

"Lt. William Gunnison," Will said, taking her right hand in his. "Chief of Operations, U.S.S. Astraes."

She thought for a moment, the said, "Forgive me for asking, but would you be related to Kelly Gunnison?"

"Yes, she was my wife."

"Hey, I thought you looked a bit familiar," Laura said. "I went to Harvard at the same time Kelly did. I wanted to talk to you at the funeral and offer my condolences, but never had the chance."

Just then, Cole came over. "Wait, is this Cole?" Laura asked incredibly.

"Yes, it is," Will replied.

"Uh, hi," Cole told her.

Laura introduced herself to Cole. "Admittedly, you probably don't remember me," she added. "The last time I saw you, you were about yea high." She held a hand up at the level of a very young human child.

"So, what brings you out here?" Will asked

"It's quiet out here," Laura said, as the bartender handed her her drink. "Not nearly as crazy as most of the resorts on this planet, and after dealing with their craziness at work, I'm not in the mood for dealing with it during my time off."

"Good point," Will said.

They chatted as they finished their drinks (Cole had grabbed a chocolate milk). "So, what are you guys doing for dinner?" Laura asked. "I know a nice, fun little place nearby, if you haven't got any other plans. My niece is tagging along with me," and Laura pointed at a girl nearby who looked to be about Cole's age, "while her parents on a work-related trip, and it would be nice to have someone her own age to hang out with."

"We haven't got anything planned," Will said after glancing at Cole, who nodded. "What time?"

Laura mentioned a time, and where to meet them. "We'll see you then," Laura said.

"Indeed," Will said.