Maria strolled through the wide corridor, nodding as she passed by other officers. She stopped at T junction, looking left and right.

“Shit.” She muttered.

The new ship was a damn maze. The corridors were larger, they wormed through the ship in the most nonsensical pattern. She would concede that maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration but still, she had grown used to the layout of the Resnik. Clean, efficient, round and pancake like. Merrimack was a different beast with soft carpets, luxuries as far as the eye could see, and many, many more desks.

She took a left, confident it would take her to a turbolift. She could have asked the computer for directions but that just felt like cheating plus even the tone of the computer’s voice on the new ship seemed smug and a tiny bit condescending. On some level she assumed she was just exaggerating, grumpy about her increased workload and was taking it out on the new ship but that wasn’t a conclusion she was willing to arrive at today.

Over the last few months she had worked with Izzy on getting the Merrimack ready to go. Her portion of the responsibility was really just helping with staffing decisions and getting duty schedules drafted; Izzy had handled everything else. With Aakon on leave the responsibility of getting the ship prepped for its maiden voyage had fallen to Izzy and despite her insistence that command didn’t come naturally to her she had handled it with little issue.

She turned yet another corner but letting out a sigh of relief seeing the turbolift symbol on the door at the end of the short corridor.

“Thank God.”

The lift arrived quickly, whisking her up the bridge. Again the stark difference between the Resnik and the Merrimack shown though even in the lift; dark, elegant reds and oranges colored the walls. There was a small display that showed a small outline of the ship with a small moving dot showing the current location. Hell, she barely felt it move. 

As the lift slowed to a barely imperceptible stop a soft chime sounded and the doors opened to the expansive Bridge. An Ensign that Maria didn’t recognize say in the center chair.

“Is Commander Broska in the Ready Room?”

The Ensign turned and nodded.

She crossed the bridge, tapping on the control panel next to the door before it opened a few months later.

Lieutenant Commander Isabella Broska sat behind the large, mahogany, desk in the back of the room. The desk itself was littered with PADDs and more than a few empty coffee cups. Izzy glanced up, a smile quickly coming across her face. “Morning Maria.”

“Anything new this morning?” Maria crossed the room over to the replicator. “16 ounce Iced latte, quad shot, with caramel.”

“Aside from you trying to send yourself into cardiac arrest with caffeine, about the same.” Izzy placed the PADD in her hand at the top of the stack to get left. “Looks like we’ll have a few people offload at Betazed but I think we’re operational.”

Maria sat down in front of the desk, tucking her legs under each other in the chair. “What time are we arriving at Betazed?”

Izzy glanced at the chronometer. “We should arrive in the system in the next 20 minutes, right around 0430 Betazed time.”

Maria snorted. “That’s an early wake up time for the Captain and Jackson.”

“Jackson is always up at the crack of dawn so I’m sure he’ll beam up the moment we enter orbit. Aakon tends to be the one dragging his feet in the morning but Betazoid traffic control is giving us a 90 minute parking orbit. Gives him plenty of time to get up and go.” Outside the wide window behind Izzy the blue streaks of subspace gave way to the inky black of space as they arrived just outside the Betazed system. 

Maria took a sip of her latte, eyes peering at Izzy over the rim of the glass. “I bet you three holodeck slots that he and Jackson beam up at the same time.”

Izzy leaned back in her chair. “You really think there is something there? Not that it’s any of our business.”

Maria shifted in her seat. “They left on leave together and we’re picking them up together, from Aakon’s home planet at that. I don’t know. Hopefully there isn’t anything that won’t complicate command duties.”

“I’ve known the Captain for over a year now; he’ll keep a clear head.” Izzy stood, picking up numerous PADDs and doing her best to arrange them. “Even if something does happen, we’ll deal with it. We have each other’s back; always have and always will.”

Maria nodded, tipping her glass towards Izzy in acknowledgement. She wasn’t wrong. Starfleet had all but forced them to take a long leave of absence after the Resnik had been disabled. Part of the reason, she surmised, was because Starfleet had lost enough ships that it would take time to repair and deploy them with crew; the other part was the trauma of the loss and events of Nightfall. 

Izzy had been her backbone during the time. Maria had returned to Earth to spend time with family and Izzy had as well so they were easily able to meet up weekly for dinner and wine; the best kind of therapy, if you asked Maria. Once orders came down reassigning them to the Merrimack Izzy had been quick to jump in, requesting to handle the preparation of the ship for launch so that the Captain had more time away. The request was approved quickly, partially because the Captain hadn’t been cleared to return to duty quite yet at that point, but Izzy had been ready to fight to give him more time. 

“Any idea where the plan is to send us after we pick up the Captain?”

Izzy shook her head. “Nothing they’ve communicated to me. Task Force Command alerted me that Captain Caldwell will be speaking with the Captain at 1130 so we’ll get our orders then I’m sure.”

Maria scrunched up her face. “Caldwell would be the last person I’d want to deal with right after getting back from vacation.”

“Same.” The PADDs on the desk had now been organized into three neat and tidy stacks. “But Aakion accepted that fourth pip so that’s his problem now. If she wanted to talk to me I’d bribe Dr. Malar into pulling me from duty due to some mysterious virus.”

“We don’t have a second officer so I think she’d still find a way to get to you.”

Izzy shrugged. “Technically you would be next in line, even though you aren’t command certified.”

“If there is one thing that would make me end our friendship, that would be it.” She took one last sip of her latte. “I will do a lot of things for a good friend but that is not one of them.”

A soft chirp sounded in the room, signaling an inter-ship comm line opening. “Commander, we’ve arrived at Betazed and have been cleared by traffic control to enter a parking orbit.”

“Noted. Enter orbit and begin cargo and personnel transfer. I’ll reach out to the Captain.”

“Yes ma’am.”

Izzy looked over at Maria. “Thankfully that won’t be a problem seeing as we’ve arrived. Come on, let’s get the final prep items done before we wake the Captain up.”

Maria stood with a sigh. “I really need to get a third pip after all this work.”

—

Down on Betazed Aakon stirred in bed, having slept on and off for most of the night. He pushed the sheet aside and did his best to quietly sit up on the edge of the bed to avoid disturbing Jackson. He glanced over at the numerous suitcases that lined the far side of the room; after talking with his mother the evening before he had told Jackson to not bother with trying to keep the facade of sleeping in separate beds. Jackson hadn’t had much of a reaction beyond a smile and a nod; not enough for Aakon to get a feeling about how he felt. Despite their friendship and their physical relationship, they didn’t have the emotional relationship for Aakon to fully open his Betazoid abilities and get a better understanding of how he felt, especially considering Jackson was human. Even if Jackson had been his imzadi it would be a violation to just read his thoughts despite how natural that would be for him to do.

He stood and walked over to the terrace door that they’d left open, leaning against the silky soft curtains. The yard below had been returned to a pristine state with no indication of the dinner, dancing and festivities that had taken place throughout the previous afternoon and evening. He missed this. The nights in soft beds with luxurious sheets, the double doors that could stay open to let in the breeze, home cooked meals each day, the laughter of family and the telepathic connection they all shared when near one another; like a low hum that settled deep within him in the most wonderful way. Could he walk away from Starfleet, from a life he he loved, to come back to this? 

The sound of Jackson rustling in bed pulled him away from his thoughts as he turned his head to look at the bed. Jackson had turned over onto his back, stretching his arms above his head. His previous thoughts went to the back of his mind as he took in the view of tan, muscled, skin that was peaking above the edge of the sheet that covered Jackson from the stomach down. He felt the usual surge of physical attraction that always arrived when he looked at the other man but there was something else buried under it. Affection? A yearning for something more? An emotion he refused to give a name too? It had been there for weeks now, if not longer. How long had he made the choice to ignore it?

Jackson’s eyes slowly blinked open. “You’re up early.” His voice was heavy with sleep, crackly and deeper. Again Aakon felt that pull of something else.

Aakon smiled. “Perhaps I’m just nervous about the new ship?”

Jackson snorted, eyes closing once again. “I’ve lost count of how many mornings I woke up, got ready, and made enough noise to wake the dead all while you snored away in bed. Nothing get you up this early short of red alert klaxon.”

Aakon’s face changed to one of mock indignation. “I do not snore.”

A half smile formed on Jackson’s face. “How would you know?”

Aakon shrugged. “You’ve never complained before.”

Jackson turned on his side, facing Aakon. “My momma taught me it was improper to say something rude when you’re a guest.”

The word guest bounced around in Aakon’s mind. It was uncomfortable. He wasn’t sure he liked the characterization of Jackson as a ‘guest.’ The implications of that feeling twisted  deep in his gut.

“Hey.” Jackson’s voice was soft in the darkness and you didn’t have to be a Betazoid to pick up on the concern that laced his voice. “Everything ok?”

“Yeah, I’m ok.” Aakon clearly did not extinguish Jackson’s concern, judging by the look on his face. “I promise. It really is just my nerves; I’ve been out of the center chair for a while.”

It wasn’t a lie but it wasn’t the total truth. 

Jackson nodded, smiling in a way that yet again tugged at that something Aakon felt. “Ok. We aren’t due on the ship for another two hours. Come back to bed and we can enjoy our last few hours of freedom. I think I have a few ways to calm your nerves.” He gave Aakon a little wink.

A smirk crossed Aakon’s face. This he could handle. This was what was familiar. “Really? I thought you’d need some rest after last night.”

“You’d think but I just woke up and spotted a gorgeous man with no clothes standing in the doorway of the veranda with the Betazed moonlight behind him.” Jackson sat up, allowing the sheet to slide down.. “You’re practically a damn romance holonovel cover. It’s pretty difficult to avoid thinking about some improper things.”

Aakon laughed, stepping towards the bed. “Well, who am I to deny you your improper thoughts?”

The coil of unresolved emotions and feelings that had settled into the pit of his stomach remained but for now there was distraction aplenty and that was something Aakon wouldn’t argue with.