Two Hours is Too Short
Posted on Sun Jan 31st, 2016 @ 2:17am by Lieutenant Riley Sukotav & Ensign Reva Madhava
Edited on on Sun Jan 31st, 2016 @ 2:18am
Mission:
Further Challenges
Location: Riley & Reva's Quarters
Riley & Reva’s Quarters *
Two hours. He had two hours and then it was back to the lab. There was no guarantee he’d be able to get away before she left at 0800 either, so he’d better make the most of it. He breezed into his quarters, already calling her name.
“Reva? Commander Leroy has given me two hours and then I’ll be back for an all-nighter.”
“What?” She came out of the kitchen in a decidedly-cooking-unfriendly outfit, even though she was holding a spoon that appeared to have chocolate on it. “That bastard! That’s not okay, Riley! All night when I’m due to leave for who knows how long in the morning?”
He leaned in and licked the chocolate from the spoon. “That’s good. What is it? And is there more?”
“Of course there’s more. I brought enough home for both of us,” she stepped away and put the spoon on the counter. “Two hours? We’re supposed to have a nice dinner and then all night...,” she started to tear up.
“I know.” He wrapped her in a tight hug. “But we may have information you all need to know before you go. I will get away to see you off at 0800, no matter what. I promise. You’ll be fine and you won’t be out of communications range so you can call me anytime you want. You’d better.”
Sniffling, she nodded against his shoulder. “I won’t ever take being in your arms for granted.”
“Nor will I.” Riley knew that to be a profound truth, as close as he had come to losing her. “This will give you and Six plenty of time to catch up though. And you’ll get your hands on all sorts of tech that you and Janus will be tinkering with non-stop I’ll bet.” He smiled, hoping to cheer her up.
She leaned back and looked up at him, smiling. “That is the silver cloud on this lining,” she said then frowned, “That’s a strange saying, you know.”
Riley chuckled. “Silver lining of the cloud,” he corrected. “Tell me, can dinner wait a bit?”
“Of course, it’s take out.” She smiled; they both knew she was an awful cook. “Are we having dessert first?”
“Oh, absolutely. I can grab something while I am working if I have to but I won’t have you in the lab.” Riley smiled and scooped her up. “I only have two hours after all.” He carried her off to the bedroom.
Naked under the sheets, Reva gently kissed Riley’s bare chest. “This is always better than dinner.”
“Agreed.” He snuggled her in closer. “No offense to your cooking, you understand. But we can eat anytime. You must try not to worry, my darling. Six will keep you safe. How much time do I have left?”
“Not enough,” she murmured. “When I get back, we’ll continue the wedding plans. Do you want to eat before going or can we stay here till you go?” This time, she checked the actual time. “You have twenty minutes.”
“Then the next ten, I’m staying right here. Then I’ll jump into my uniform and hurry back to work.” He turned to kiss her gently. “I love you. If it was possible, I’d marry you right now before you go.”
“I love you, too, Rye. If we had more time, we could have made that happen.” She snuggled closer to him. “But that’s okay, it’s something for us to look forward to.”
“Absolutely.” He sighed and kissed her once more, taking his time. Finally, he gave up and threw back the sheet. “I have to go. You know Commander Leroy. Not a minute late or else.”
“I know. Tell him I hate him,” Reva grumbled, even as she pulled him back for another long kiss. Letting him go, she said, “Go on. I love you, Rye.”
Riley began to laugh once more. “I’ll be sure to tell Commander Leroy that.” He hurried off to run through the shower. A few minutes later he emerged, in uniform and ready to go. “I’ll see you in the morning before you go. Get some sleep.” He leaned over to kiss her once more.
“I could stop by Sciences if you can’t get away,” she offered.
“Good. I’ll call you early and let you know. Now? Get some sleep.” Riley tapped his comm badge. “Sukotav to Transporter room three. Site to site transport, my quarters to Galileo.” Moments later, Riley vanished in a swirl of blue.
Seeing him disappear like that and knowing that in just a little while, she’d be off on a mission and wouldn’t have him near her, Reva broke down and cried herself to sleep.
************
Riley Sukotav
Reva Madhava
