Coffee Break

Posted on Mon Apr 20th, 2015 @ 2:26pm by Lieutenant Commander Nicolao & Warrant Officer Awf

Mission: Breaking New Ground
Location: The Promenade

Nico left Piper Medical Center and went in search of food. His stomach growled and he realized he hadn't eaten the day before, thanks to all the excitement and his time at Saturnalia with Eldren. Now, he approached the open air cafe on the Promenade and took a seat. The usual red-haired waitress took his order and once she was gone, he relaxed in his seat, propping his feet in the chair next to him. His coffee came and he sipped it, idly watching the people passing by.

Looking over slowly, Rine smiled a bit. That was in spite of what he was drinking. This dark brew wasn't coffee. It was some kind of stuff they considered tasty on Bajor, but what just tasted like chewing on a liquefied root to him. Still, he needed to keep up the illusion for the time being.

Turning over toward Nico, he smiled politely and placed back his head, "Well now, is this seat taken?"

Nico looked up, curious. It was rare that anyone approached him ever. Then again, it seemed to be rush hour and most of the tables were occupied. He noted the Bajoran ridges and earring and relaxed a little. Then again, maybe he was just tired. Whatever the reason, he nodded and motioned to the chair that his feet were not occupying. Robin would be impressed, he thought.

"Have a seat. Crowded here today."

As well as the ridges and the earring, he had taken to wearing muted color tones that seemed very much in line with what most Bajorans would have preferred. Looking back up a bit he smiled and exhaled, "Thank you kindly." It took him only a moment to sit down, still trying to seem quite natural without an element of the usual nervousness someone in his position might exhibit, "Is it usually this packed?"

"Shift change," Nico answered. He lifted his cup and sipped the coffee. "Notice all the Fleeties that look half asleep form either a long shift or getting up so early?" He actually smiled. "You can wait a half hour and this place clears out in one great exodus. I'm Nico by the way. Not one of the thundering herd preparing for alpha shift."

"Nah, as you can probably tell from the civilian threads, I'm not a Fleetie either. I'm Rine - Lom Rine. It's a pleasure to meet you." He reached over, unsure if Nico wanted to shake his hand or whether he found that to be an awkward gesture. "In spite of the popularity of this place, I never actually got an opportunity to try it. It's rare that you get this kind of a drink outside of a Bajoran-occupied system."

Nico eyed Rine's hand and shook his head, keeping his own hands wrapped around the coffee cup. "Sorry, old habits. As for that drink, you may get a better version at the Bajoran restaurant five decks up. Ha'dara it's called. The food is actually decent." He smiled briefly. "At least I think so. The one time I went there my meal got interrupted twice and I gave up."

The idea of a Bajoran restaurant and all the natural healthy food that entailed just terrified him to be perfectly honest, but he grinned and nodded, "I'm glad you let me know. I'll have to keep it in mind. What happened when you showed up there? Most Bajoran restaurants are run a little better than that."

"Oh it was people I knew, actually, so I couldn't hold it against them. " Nico signaled the waitress for more coffee. "I'll get back there one of these days. Have you been here long?"

"I moved in a little while back, but I've only just got completely comfortable with the place if that makes any sense. I didn't think that I would have liked living in a space station facility at first, since I'm not a spacer at all, but it's honestly a lot nicer than I thought it would be. How about you?" He smiled politely, tilting his head toward Nico.

"Not long," Nico answered. "But it's likely a little easier for me, being a native of this quadrant. And the planet below is a nice bonus if you want real landscape and not the holosuites at Palaxia's." He stopped as the waitress refilled his coffee, left another mug for Rine, then moved away. "But you're right, it's not as bad as I expected."

Having taken the new mug, Rine smiled a bit and sipped in spite of his lack of a taste for it. "I haven't gotten a chance to try all those holosuites just yet - like I said I'm not a spacer, so some of the novelty of living up here hasn't worn off just yet, but I did like my little jaunt down to the planet. Work took me there a couple of times honestly. How about you?"

"The beach took me there and it was worth the trip." The image of Drusilla running into the waves flashed through his mind, bringing another smile. The man across from him had mentioned work, however, and Nico was curious. "What is it that you do here?"

"Well, even though I was technically working, as you can imagine I took plenty of an opportunity there to visit the beach." Rine grinned for a moment and then calmly started to make up a story about what he did here. "I'm a geologist, which is why I never though I would ever have to work on a space station, but plenty of minerals come through here and sometimes there's need of a geological technician. How about you?"

"Retired, for now," Nico answered. "So basically, I wander around, see what there is to see." It was a non-answer and he knew it. But you never knew who might know about something you are looking for. "I've been tied up at Sickbay the last day or so, I have a friend in there. They were roughed up by a Cardassian, but luckily Security found her."

"You look pretty young to be retired; pretty successful I take it?" Soon enough Rine winced at the other's mention of being roughed up, starting to really get into the role, "Roughed up by a Cardassian, eh? Join the club. They should have finished the job back during the war." He narrowed his eyes and exhaled in response.

"Agreed." Nico nodded in response. "Truthfully? I wouldn't mind if the whole planet had been blasted back to the Big Bang. I am curious, though, who killed him. They found him in a storage locker."

"A...storage locker? You don't hear of that kind of thing happening here. I actually thought that the station was safe." The Bajoran then furrowed his brows, "Not saying that he didn't deserve every bit of what was coming to him, though."

"I think this place is about as safe as any installation can be. Whoever did this, I think it was personal. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't grateful, though. One less thing for my friend to worry about, you know?" Nico looked down into his empty mug, wondering how the coffee had gone so fast. Decent conversation, he supposed.

Looking into his own cup, he took a few more sips and nodded, "Sure. I'm not going to pretend that I like to see anyone killed, but it's one less thing to worry about and it's certainly one less of them." Bajorans were supposed to be gentle people, so it made sense that he was slightly doubtful about a loss of life, but he was still apparently glad that a Cardassian bit the dust.

"Absolutely." Nico checked the time and pulled his feet out of the chair. "I need to get going. But I've enjoyed it. Good to meet you."

"Sure, we should meet up again sometime. It was actually really nice talking to you. Like I said, I've been here a while but haven't gotten to know too many of my neighbors yet, so feel free to meet up any time." Offering his customary mock salute, Rine stood again with a polite smile and finished off the rest of his drink in the process.

************
Nico
Testing The Waters

&

Pseudo-Weirdo-Bajoran Lom Rine

As Played By

Warrant Officer Awf