One Hell of a Day

Posted on 24 Mar 2023 @ 9:14pm by Captain Harvey Geisler & Lieutenant Commander Joey Geisler

2,110 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Milk Run
Location: Geisler Quarters
Timeline: Mission Day 1 at 1830

The doors parted, allowing Harvey to enter the Geisler cabin. Immediately, he noticed how silent it was. No dogs. No twins. No Eden, and most certainly, no Joey. Unlike most nights, Harvey hadn't checked in with Joey to see what time she would have been getting off duty. The mission was an unusual one, and he could only assume that Joey, like the rest of the senior staff, had their hands full trying to come up with something to make this mission worthwhile.

For a moment, he considered tapping his badge and asking the computer where everyone was. However, he realized he'd stumbled onto a rare opportunity, a chance to be alone in quarters. A rare moment of solitude that did not involve the ready room was worth exploiting, even if it would just be for a few seconds. Who knew what time anyone would be back home?

There was only one way to start this exploitation... and that was to immediately enter the bedroom and trade his uniform for something a little more comfortable.

It wasn't long after, perhaps twenty minutes or so, that Joey walked through the door to their quarters and took a look around. Things were quiet. A lot quieter than she expected, but they would be considering the babies were currently enjoying the outdoors inside the holodeck with Eden and the dogs. She considered joining them, but how often did she and Harvey get to have time alone together?

Joey stretched her arms above her head, then made her way toward the bedroom. The day had been a long one, but it wasn't the first one she'd experienced, and it most certainly wouldn't be the last. Still, there were a few things she could do to make it better, and the first thing on that list was a hot shower.

The shower was already running, and the steam could be seen escaping the bathroom. While most quarters on Starfleet ships sported sonic showers, Captain's privilege allowed for the Geislers to have had a traditional water unit added to their cabin. Most of the time, Harvey had taken a conservative approach with the unit, but it was clear that he'd been in the shower for more than ten minutes, just standing and allowing the hot water to soften the tension in his back.

Without hesitation, she made her way toward the bathroom when she realized the shower was already going, then made her way inside. Joey didn't remove her uniform yet, with the exception of the jacket, which she'd left on the corner of the bed to be dealt with later. "Hey," she said. "Have you been home long?"

Harvey, whose eyes had been closed this whole time in the shower, blinked and was met with some rather hot steam. He blinked a couple times to ease the burst and answered, "Just a few minutes. The kids with you?"

"No, Eden has them, Rico and Peqeno in the holodeck," she answered.

"Of course," Harvey said, his tone filled with relief. This ship was a lot smaller than the last one, but at least there was plenty for a small family to do. "If they're not due back anytime soon, would you care to jump in?"

"They shouldn't be back for a little while," Joey said as she began to remove the rest of her uniform. She did want to take a hot shower. The fact he was already in it was an added bonus. "I think she took them to give us a chance to unwind a little bit." And, with that, she stepped into the shower.

Harvey couldn't help but smile when Joey stepped in. Between sudden orders to escort a slow convoy, having to wait at the wormhole for said convoy, and then the mountain of paperwork piling up from the task group, the day had been absolute hell. He thought the shower would have helped relieve some tension, but one sight of Joey made all of that melt away. The shower was not spacious by any means, but that did not stop him from greeting his wife with a kiss.

Joey returned the kiss and after a moment pulled back with a smile. "That was a nice welcome home."

"You know," Harvey remarked, "I think the last time we've had a moment like this... it had to be Bora Bora."

She couldn't hide her surprise. Their trip to Bora Bora was about two years ago, give or take a month or so. "Has it really been that long?" Joey found herself asking. "I guess I shouldn't be too surprised, though. Life in space does make it harder to visit places like that. Maybe we should take more advantage of the holodecks. Surfing was pretty fun."

"No argument with me there," Harvey said, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close. "It's amazing when you take a step back and realize how much time we spent in spacedocks for slow moments and then wild rides when we're out here in space. Makes me think how much time could have been spent better, and stopping to smell those roses more often."

"There's no time like the present. We can definitely make better use of our down time starting now," she said as she slipped her own arms around him. "Even on the ship, there are ways we can make things fun for us and the kids."

He smiled and didn't say anything for a few moments. Instead, he locked his brown eyes with hers, letting the steam envelop them both. "You're absolutely right. I think its time for the return of an old mandate. We need to find the joy once again in life."

Joey smiled. Sometimes life on the clock could feel draining. She'd experienced her share of it, and she knew he had, too. Probably more than anyone else on the ship given his role as Captain, which was exactly why she felt it was so important to create distractions that would help take both of their minds off of those things that happened while in uniform. "It's certainly doable, and, I'm sure you'll agree with me when I say a lot of our joy is in the holodeck right now."

"And a lot of it is here too," Harvey added. One could infer that he meant the shower itself, but Harvey was really meaning every bit of their cabin and ship that they'd labeled their home. "From now on, home is home. Not an extension of the office and Captain's Chair."

"I can live with that," his wife said with another smile. "That being said, there are times that we both need to vent about things that happen on duty, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. So, I think it might be a good idea if we set aside some time to do just that. Whether we meet up after hours for a drink before we come home, have lunch together, or just make the walk home together, we can find the time to get things off of our chests so they dont fester."

"I like this plan," he quickly confirmed. "And, I think we should at least make lunch a daily thing. We should do a couple here with the kids, and then a few with just ourselves. I make a mean replicated potato soup, you know."

"You do at that, and it's one of my favorites, too," Joey said with a bright smile. "I like this plan, too, and I think it will be good for all of us."

She may had just recently joined him in the shower, but Harvey could tell that he'd been in there long enough as his fingertips were starting to wrinkle. Still, he didn't care, as he still enjoyed the water hitting his backside. "I'm glad you like it," Harvey said. "I say we start with lunch tomorrow with the kids. Do you think we can have Eden agree to watch the kids a couple nights from now? I like the thought of meeting at Talons for a drink."

"I don't see why not, but I'll ask her when she brings the kids and canines home," Joey answered, pressing a kiss to his cheek before beginning the process of scrubbing herself off. There wasn't much room inside the stall, but she did the best she could with what she had to work with. "They won't be back for a little while longer. I say we take advantage of that."

"I wholeheartedly agree!" Harvey said with a smile. All he had left to do in the shower was his hair. His hair wasn't nearly as long as Joey's and in the right conditions it could look rather thin or unkept. "I've been thinking," he remarked, running shampoo into his locks. "Should I cut my hair?"

Joey reached up to run her hands through his hair. "Long hair, short hair, no hair... I'll love you no matter what," she said. "That being said, if you want to cut your hair, I think you should. Sometimes, change is good. And, if you decide you don't like it down the line, let it grow back."

Harvey smiled when Joey ran her fingers through his hair. "I can't remember the last time I had short hair," he murmured, placing his head directly into the water stream to rinse out the shampoo. "I don't think it's worth cutting it since I like it when you do that."

"I'm rather partial to it, too," she told him, waiting her turn to use the water. "It's relaxing. For you, I'm sure, but for me, too."

He finished his rinse and stepped aside. It was too cramped to get out of the way, but his movement was enough to let some of the water hit Joey. He did also gently place his hands on both sides of her waist and start to pivot, allowing her to take the brunt of the stream. "You know what's relaxing? Just the sight of you. Even on the bridge, there are times I glance at your station just to help calm my mind."

Joey ran her hands through her hair to help get the shampoo out. She smiled. Hearing things like that made her heart skip a beat and fall a little more in love with her husband. Still, she understood what he meant. "You still give me butterflies," she admitted. "Whether we're here, and I'm watching you with the kids, or I cast a glance your way on the bridge or in a briefing. I had those butterflies the first time I walked into your ready room with Rico after we came aboard."

Harvey chuckled as his smile grew with her admission. It was an exhilarating thought knowing that after all they'd been through, their attraction to one another was still ripe. "I knew that day that it wasn't just another reporting for duty moment. I just didn't know that this was the future that awaited me. Awaited us."

"Neither did I," Joey said as she finished up with her hair, then turned toward him. "I had no idea the moment I walked through the door that that was beginning of what would become the best years of my life. I had no idea that the Black Hawk would change my life so much, and while we've been through some seriously rough things on duty, I would definitely say that the change has been for the better."

He couldn't agree more. Now that he was facing her again, Harvey looked deeply into her brown eyes. Everything around him continued to melt away. Soon, he did not hear the sound of the water, feel the steam surrounding them, and the slight chill of being wet and removed from the direct water source. He could not even feel the weight of shame he'd carried for the last few weeks, much less the dregs of the day and frustration of their current assignment. Only love remained, and it was beautiful.

In that moment, Harvey wondered what it was that he'd done to deserve her. Some questions, it seemed, were better left unanswered. Still numb to his surroundings, Harvey drew close to Joey once more to deliver a kiss.

Joey slipped her arms around him and returned the kiss. She often asked herself how she'd gotten so lucky since she'd boarded the ship. She met the man who completed her, had two pretty terrific children, two dogs that were just as much a part of the family as the rest of them were. There was much to be thankful for, and she truly was.

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