Post by koko on May 30, 2009 23:41:21 GMT -6
Shore leave. It was one of the few occurrences that everyone looked forward to no matter what ship a person was stationed on, or how old the said person was. The event in itself was a beautiful thing, providing each member of the crew with a variety of opportunities that were not available while meandering through the universe. What a person did with his or her time was strictly their own business, and if one did not wish to share the experiences of the few days they had on Planet Earth, so be it. No one would ask. But there was always that juicy gossip that most everyone was interested in. Maybe a certain rumor that got passed around the crew that caused everyone to glance at the victim out of the corner of their eyes, only to look quickly away when noticed. That was life, and everyone lived it whether they believed it nor not.
But back to shore leave. Some members of the crew had returned to the academy to visit with old professors. They were usually those people who had been studious in school, enjoying every minute of their academics and drowning in a pile of books. There were two types of students to regularly fall into this category: the innocent, shy, and slightly dorky kid; and the proper, stick-up-the-ass gentle-person. Other crew members who were fortunate enough to have relatives close by were paying their obligatory, and sometimes cheerful visit to parents, grandparents, siblings, the whole shebang. Lastly, the majority of the crew was visiting old friends that had yet to graduate from the academy or were also on shore leave but on different vessels.
That was not the true reason for the excitement of shore leave. Oh no. Try as they might to hide it, everyone had that burning, selfish desire to commit some action of sinful nature. And the moment their feet were on the earth, they had disappeared into the throngs of the crowds of general disgusting humanity. Now these pleasures could be enjoyed onboard the Enterprise; most people partook of them on a regular basis. But there was a strange feeling of comfort while being on solid ground to partake of the simple things in life. Not to mention that words travelled quickly, and many people knew a lot more about the goings-on of the ship than they revealed.
So people drank until they puked. They smoked until they thought their lungs were going to give out. They exchanged drugs until the feeling of the high consumed their minds. And they had hot and sweaty, casual sex against the wall of some dorm, bathroom, or utility closet until one of the parties passed out, and the other made off with poor fellow’s wallet.
It was the world as Koko Emerson saw it. Maybe it was not the most accurate of realities, but years of living in the under such circumstances had convinced her otherwise. People could live in their delusional little worlds where such things no longer existed. But as far as Koko was concerned, her reality was pretty damn accurate.
Even so, she had paid the respectful visits as was required of her. A quick call to the academy had proved fruitless. Most of her teachers remembered her as the girl who never did her homework, but passed every test and hands-on lab set before her. She was not stupid – just lazy. Needless to say, those teachers were not ecstatic to see her again. But that was fine by her.
Visiting her sister, Professor Yuuki Potts, was far more important and much more enjoyable. They exchanged the common banter, Koko asking about her health, her husband, the kids, and the students. Yuuki replied that all was well, and that the students she taught, Robotics and Cyber-genetics, were keeping up nicely. Then there was the usual question from their father when they contacted him, asking if Koko was married yet, and she replied that she was pregnant and working on stealing a ring, as always. But it was soon over, for papers needed to be graded, and the young nurse wanted to spend as little time on the grounds as possible.
Which meant there was only one more place to go…
The bar was located only a mile from campus, and Koko had the idea of sporting one of the cadets’ uniforms in order to get the happy discount. Honesty pushed the idea from her head, and soon she found herself standing in the midst of a crowd of people, dancing with a stranger at the far end of the room where the small band was located, a drink in her hand. Alcoholic at that, for the occasion of being able to visit her home planet was rarer and more exciting than she let on. But she had no intention of getting drunk; that stage of her life had come and gone. She would simply enjoy the revelries that were bound to occur that evening.
So she excused herself from her partner, making her way through the paths of heaven to grab a seat at the counter. Surrounded by a sea of familiar faces, not one was person that she was especially good friends with. A frown of disappointment creased her features, but she caught herself quickly and masked it with a devilish smirk and a wink at some poor, unsuspecting boy looking lost and awkward in the crowd. In the dim light, it was difficult to make out the color of his uniform, and even the style was obscured by people walking by. She missed his reaction as she pondered whether or not it was his first time in the bar, trying to remember if that was what she looked like upon her first visit. She doubted it.
Spinning the seat around, she leaned against the counter, spinning the ice in her drink and licking the fluid from her fingers as she eavesdropped on the conversations around her, wondering what would happen next.
But back to shore leave. Some members of the crew had returned to the academy to visit with old professors. They were usually those people who had been studious in school, enjoying every minute of their academics and drowning in a pile of books. There were two types of students to regularly fall into this category: the innocent, shy, and slightly dorky kid; and the proper, stick-up-the-ass gentle-person. Other crew members who were fortunate enough to have relatives close by were paying their obligatory, and sometimes cheerful visit to parents, grandparents, siblings, the whole shebang. Lastly, the majority of the crew was visiting old friends that had yet to graduate from the academy or were also on shore leave but on different vessels.
That was not the true reason for the excitement of shore leave. Oh no. Try as they might to hide it, everyone had that burning, selfish desire to commit some action of sinful nature. And the moment their feet were on the earth, they had disappeared into the throngs of the crowds of general disgusting humanity. Now these pleasures could be enjoyed onboard the Enterprise; most people partook of them on a regular basis. But there was a strange feeling of comfort while being on solid ground to partake of the simple things in life. Not to mention that words travelled quickly, and many people knew a lot more about the goings-on of the ship than they revealed.
So people drank until they puked. They smoked until they thought their lungs were going to give out. They exchanged drugs until the feeling of the high consumed their minds. And they had hot and sweaty, casual sex against the wall of some dorm, bathroom, or utility closet until one of the parties passed out, and the other made off with poor fellow’s wallet.
It was the world as Koko Emerson saw it. Maybe it was not the most accurate of realities, but years of living in the under such circumstances had convinced her otherwise. People could live in their delusional little worlds where such things no longer existed. But as far as Koko was concerned, her reality was pretty damn accurate.
Even so, she had paid the respectful visits as was required of her. A quick call to the academy had proved fruitless. Most of her teachers remembered her as the girl who never did her homework, but passed every test and hands-on lab set before her. She was not stupid – just lazy. Needless to say, those teachers were not ecstatic to see her again. But that was fine by her.
Visiting her sister, Professor Yuuki Potts, was far more important and much more enjoyable. They exchanged the common banter, Koko asking about her health, her husband, the kids, and the students. Yuuki replied that all was well, and that the students she taught, Robotics and Cyber-genetics, were keeping up nicely. Then there was the usual question from their father when they contacted him, asking if Koko was married yet, and she replied that she was pregnant and working on stealing a ring, as always. But it was soon over, for papers needed to be graded, and the young nurse wanted to spend as little time on the grounds as possible.
Which meant there was only one more place to go…
The bar was located only a mile from campus, and Koko had the idea of sporting one of the cadets’ uniforms in order to get the happy discount. Honesty pushed the idea from her head, and soon she found herself standing in the midst of a crowd of people, dancing with a stranger at the far end of the room where the small band was located, a drink in her hand. Alcoholic at that, for the occasion of being able to visit her home planet was rarer and more exciting than she let on. But she had no intention of getting drunk; that stage of her life had come and gone. She would simply enjoy the revelries that were bound to occur that evening.
So she excused herself from her partner, making her way through the paths of heaven to grab a seat at the counter. Surrounded by a sea of familiar faces, not one was person that she was especially good friends with. A frown of disappointment creased her features, but she caught herself quickly and masked it with a devilish smirk and a wink at some poor, unsuspecting boy looking lost and awkward in the crowd. In the dim light, it was difficult to make out the color of his uniform, and even the style was obscured by people walking by. She missed his reaction as she pondered whether or not it was his first time in the bar, trying to remember if that was what she looked like upon her first visit. She doubted it.
Spinning the seat around, she leaned against the counter, spinning the ice in her drink and licking the fluid from her fingers as she eavesdropped on the conversations around her, wondering what would happen next.