Never Going to Let You Down

Posted on 24 Apr 2016 @ 10:41pm by Ensign Aidan Crehan & Master Chief Petty Officer Mila Rasputin

3,432 words; about a 17 minute read

Mission: Outbreak
Location: USS Black Hawk, Sickbay
Timeline: MD 7

They had been back on the ship for a day and Aidan still hadn’t seen Mila. He expected that to happen, though. She probably had a lot to do to being the Captain’s Yeoman, and having been on shore leave for a bit. And he was kept rather busy in the science labs, too. At least so far. He had also taken care of his studies after shift that the Academy required of him. That had kept him busy for a few more hours. But all of that was work, and work was finished for the day.

Now he was headed to Mila’s quarters with an instructional holo-vid of shuttle surfing for beginners. She had wanted to do the fancy stuff back on shore leave, but he had suggested otherwise, until she had learned and practiced it more. He thought that they might be able to watch it together and he could answer any of her questions.

He stood there in a grey Property Starfleet Academy Athletic Department sweatshirt, a pair of denim jeans, and running shoes and pressed his finger to the door chime. Nothing. That’s odd, he thought. Surely she would not be busy with the Captain’s business or ship’s business at this hour. He rang the chime again and there was still no response.

Aidan waited until he was back in the turbolift before he inquired of the computer for Mila’s location. “Computer, what is the location of Senior Chief Petty Officer Rasputin.”

The computer had responded that Mila was in Sickbay. “Deck 4,” Aidan announced. He hoped that she was alright. Then he wondered if her sore throat had developed into something worse, like laryngitis. That would certainly not be good for a Captain’s Yeoman. The lift began slowing and came to a stop at Deck 4. Aidan exited and started towards Sickbay.

Upon entering he noticed that the place was very full. Finding Mila was going to be difficult, but not impossible.

A harried med tech came up to him. "Sore throat?" he asked, clearly expecting the man in front of him to be yet another victim of the virus.

“No,” answered Aidan. “I am actually looking for someone, Senior Chief Petty Officer Rasputin, to be exact. Could you point me in her direction?”

The tech grabbed a PADD and checked it "Rasputin, Mila A. She would be in biobed ten." He pointed it out to him. "Is there anything else?"

“No thank you,” he said, and started towards biobed ten. Aidan couldn’t tell from this distance if she was asleep or awake. He stepped quietly anyway so as not to wake the other patients. He came up the bed and put his hand on her arm. “Mila?” he whispered.

Mila lay in the biobed with a dark smudge under her hazel eyes which were now bloodshot and tired looking. She offered him a wan smile when she saw who it was and tried to sit up, but couldn't muster the energy for it. "I am sorry, Sir Knight," she said softly. "I...have contracted the virus." She paused to take a breath. "I would have contacted you sooner, but I was told that they found me asleep in my quarters when I did not report for duty."

“Don’t try to get up.” Aidan pulled over a chair so that he could sit and be at eye-level with her. “Shhh,” he said, taking her hand. “Do not say you are sorry, Printsessa. There is no reason for you to be.” He sighed. “It pains me to hear that you have this virus, but know that I am here for you.” He very gently squeezed her hand as he noticed her dark, bloodshot, tired looking eyes. “I wish that I could take this for you.”

She shook her head and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "Nyet, you do not. I feel as if I have been awake since we came back from New Risa, even though I slept and my throat is still sore. I do not regret going with you, though. I only regret that you must see me like this." She tried to give him a smile, but it seemed to be as tired as she felt.

“I am so sorry to hear that you feel worse. And I do not regret going with you either. It was the most wonderful time I have had in,” he paused, “in a long time. But do not feel bad about how you look.” He smiled at her. “I still see the beautiful woman that I saw on New Risa. And I always will.”

With an effort, she managed a warm smile before she turned her head and coughed. With a sigh, she looked back at him. "You are the most wonderful man I have ever met, Aidan Crehan," she said. "I have only one regret at the moment and that is the lack of anything purple on me. I have discovered that they took my toe ring and my brooch my father gave me is back in my quarters still. The royal house has fallen..."

“Oh, uh, Rowan, Aidan Rowan Crehan. You told me your full name back on the planet, but I never told you mine,” he said. “But just because you have no purple on does not mean that the royal house has fallen. Perhaps closed it’s doors for a time, but never fallen.” He put the holo-vid on the floor and started rubbing her arm. “Is there anything I can do for…oh, what about Chow? Were you able to make preparations for his care before they took you?”

"Chow!" Mila exclaimed and tried to sit up again and reached for anything that would help her. "I do not know as I was asleep when they found me. I hope he is okay. I do not remember if he was fed or not and you and I are only two people who know what he likes. Please, Sir Knight, you must help me get up. He needs me!"

A med tech came over at her exclamation. "Is everything okay?" He asked. "You really should be laying down, Miss Rasp..."

"Get out of my way or I will have the Captain assign you to clea..." she suddenly lapsed into a coughing fit and took a minute to get her breath while tears streamed down her cheek. "Please, Aidan," she begged. "Will you make sure he is okay?"

Aidan stood and turned to the med tech, “I can take care of this. Please? One hundred-eighty years of dealing with people has taught me a few things, young man.” Aidan didn’t pull rank with his age very often, but at times such as this he felt it appropriate.

The med tech nodded in deference to Aidan, but stayed to keep a close eye in case Mila freaked out again. He prepared a hypospray of a mild calming agent in case it were needed off to the side.

He turned his attention back to Mila and put his hands on her upper arms. “Mila Anastasiya, please lay down, for me if not for yourself.” There was a look of compassion and pleading in his eyes. But it was mingled with a slight touch of…insistence.

"For you," Mila said and laid back on the biobed as she tried to get control of her tears and emotions. "But please, just make sure that Chow is okay."

“Thank you. Now, of course I will make sure Chow is okay. I will even take him to my quarters, if he allows it,” said Aidan, “and take care of him there. What kind of boyfriend would I be if I did not? Now, to take care of those tears.” Aidan pulled from his pocket a napkin, a purple napkin, unfolded it and began wiping her tears from her face. “There, now that’s better,” he said leaning down to kiss her on the forehead. He paused just above her as he rose back up and looked directly into her eyes. “I decided to carry it with me today. And I am glad that I did.” He then put the napkin in her hand. “The royal house will never fall.”

She took the napkin and then his hand while she looked up at him. "You are a true gentleman, Aidan Rowan," she said. "I want you to know that you are unlike any man I have ever met and I hope to never meet another like you. It would make the universe a less unique place and I would no longer be the luckiest woman alive."

Aidan smiled at her and at sat back down, rubbing her arm. “Thank you for your kind words, Printsessa.” He breathed deeply and sighed. “No woman has been so sweet or spoken to me as kindly as you have, just now or since we have been getting to know one another. I am glad you are the luckiest woman alive, because that means that we have something in common. For you make me the luckiest man alive.”

Mila tried to give him another smile. "Just promise me...if anything happens to me, please take care of Chow. I would not trust him with anyone else."

“You have my word, Mila. I will take care of Chow,” he said. “But…don’t talk like that. Nothing is going to happen to you. Starfleet has the best doctors and medical technology around. You are going to be just fine. We are going to be just fine. You will see. Every day, after my shift is over and I am finished with my studies, I will be here with you for a while. At least until the Doctor kicks me out or you get better. I do not care who sees or who knows.”

She nodded. "I am sorry, but I feel so bad. I should not feel as if I had no sleep when I could not wake up today," she said. "I know you will take care of Chow and I appreciate it, Sir Knight. I just wish that I could shake this off and come to join you. He has a program in the holodeck where I was teaching him something called Parkour. He is a very quick learner, but I cannot do it now."

“When you get through this and then have the proper rest you need, you will come join us,” he said. “And we may even have a welcome home party for you.” He grinned. “Then you can continue teaching him this Parkour on the holodeck. I would offer, but it sounds like something that would break several of my bones.”

"Nyet," Mila said with a shake of her head. "It is designed for his size. I would not wish you to break anything, Aidan. I just want to be out of here. I am certain that my duties will be piled high by the time I am released and I will never be able to be caught up."

“You said that you have assistants. They should be able to handle some, if not most, of the work,” he replied. “But work is something you should not be thinking about right now. You need to be focused on getting better.” He wished he could put his arms around her and hold her close. He wished there was more he could do. “Other than caring for Chow, is there anything else I can do for you, Mila? Anything at all?”

"Da," she said. "Do not get sick. I could not come and visit you if you do and I would feel very bad." She paused and looked at him. "I am getting deep feelings for you, Aidan," she said softly. "I do not want to hurt you if anything happens to me, but I do want you to be happy."

Aidan scooted his chair closer and leaned his head next to hers. “I am glad to hear you say that, Mila, your feelings for me. I have begun to feel deeply for you as well." He paused, before continuing. "You bring feelings to the surface that I have not felt in a very long time. And I like them. But as far as my happiness, as long as we are together, I will be forever happy. But for now, while you are ill, know that I will stand by you, I will hold you up, I will be your strength,” he whispered.

A medic walked by at that time singing. "Never gonna give you up, never gonna let you down. Never gonna run around and desert you, never gonna make you cry. Never gonna say goodbye. Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you."

Mila blinked with a confused look on her face. "What...was that?" She listened as he continued to sing as he kept walking. "Can you find if that is a song or what the rest of it is?"

“I can Mila. I’ll be back in just a moment.” He walked over to a medical technician and asked of they had a regular, non-medical PADD. He pointed him to table in the corner where. Aidan picked one up and walked back to Mila. “Let me see, ‘Never gonna give you up, never gonna let you down.’ It’s working…there. It appears to be a song from twentieth century Earth. Here is the text.” He started to hand the PADD to Mila, but paused. “Unless you are too tired to read it. In that case, I can read it to you.”

"Would you sing it to me?" she asked him softly.

Aidan chuckled. “You, Printsessa, were not in attendance at the Cadet Karaoke session in Talons. I was not that good. However, for you, I will try my best to sing it; as softly and as close to you as I can, mind you. You know, I might bring you decaffeinated tea or coffee for this.” He leaned as close as he dared and began.

Oooh.
We're no strangers to love.
You know the rules and so do I.
A full commitment's what I'm thinking of.
You wouldn't get this from any other guy.

I just wanna tell you how I'm feeling.
Gotta make you understand.

Never gonna give you up.
Never gonna let you down.
Never gonna run around and desert you.
Never gonna make you cry.
Never gonna say goodbye.
Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you.

As Aidan continued to sing the song as best as he could and as softly as he could to Mila.

She smiled. "If you bring me decaffeinated anything in the mornings, I will personally make sure that all of your Academy records vanish and you are listed as a person of suspicion and wanted for crimes again all species everywhere in the known galaxy, Aidan Rowan Crehan."

Aidan leaned in again and breathed the words in her ear, “I know you will. That is one of the things that makes you exciting. Get better soon, Mila Anastasiya Rasputin.” He sat up, staring into her eyes, and gave his girlfriend the roguish grin he was famous for.

"I will," Mila promised before she turned her head and gave him a kiss. "I promise you that I will. You will not get rid of me that easily, Sir Rogue. I now owe you and I pay my debts."

Ohhh did he want to kiss her. And not just a little peck on the cheek. He wanted to wrap his arms around her, dip her backwards, and press his lips to hers for minutes. But that would have to wait for a while. Instead he settled for a kiss on her rosy lips. “I look forward to it, Printsessa.”

She smiled and rested her forehead against his for a moment. "When I get out of here, Sir Knight," she said softly. "I promise you that the drink on New Risa will work."

Aidan thought for a split second. He shouldn’t have had to think at all. He knew that she could see his eyes go wide, especially as close as they were right now. “The Purple Panty Dropper,” he said quietly. “If, and only if, you are ready. You know I will not push you.” He had his suspicions, but he wanted to put that out there. “And if you are ready,” he grinned, “well, I look forward to preparing several of the drinks for you.”

Mila nodded. "I know, Sir Knight and we will know when the time is right. "I did not say how long it would be after I get out of here. For now, though, and I am not trying to chase you off...but could you please look in on Chow for me? He is probably worried and hungry."

Aidan laughed. “No, you did not say how long it would be.” He grinned and shook her head. “You are a mystery that is full of surprises. Another thing I like. And yes, I will go look in on Chow for you and let him know what his happening. I will also feed him, don't worry. Oh, access to your room? The last thing I want is for security to toss me in the Brig for breaking in to the CO’s Yeoman’s quarters.”

"Oh!" she said. "I am sorry I forgot. My authorization is J-W-714-Delta. Thank you so much, Aidan. Remember, he eats pistachios, yogurt and grapes. One bowl of each, twice a day. As for me being a mystery, I am who you see before you, nothing more, nothing less."

He put his hand on her arm. “Pistachios, yogurt, and grapes twice a day in separate bowls, certainly. I like that; you are what I see. Nothing hidden about you, just things yet unknown to me. Of course those will come along as I get to know you.” He leaned in and gently kissed her. “Rest well, Printsessa. I hope that you will find sleep and if you do, sweet dreams.”

Mila returned the kiss. "I will try, Sir Knight, and as time goes by, we shall both learn more about each other. Give my love to Chow and let him know I have not forgotten him." She tried to put on a brave front, but a tear slipped from the corner of her eyes and she reached up to brush them away. "Stupid. I should not be crying. I am a Rasputin and we do not cry."

“No,” he said, “not stupid, never stupid.” He stood and cupped his hand around her cheek. “We all cry, most do so in private.” He half-smiled and somewhat dropped his head. “Some do in public. But I will not tell a soul. I promise. And as for Chow, I will do as you ask. Is there anything else you need before I leave?” He picked up the holo-vid he had brought with him.

"Thank you, Aidan." She looked at the item in his hand. "What is that?"

“Oh, I was bringing it to your room for you to watch, if you wanted. It is an instructional holo-vid for beginner shuttle surfers. Once you get the basics in there, I can start teaching you some of the fancy moves you saw me perform. But I can leave in your room when I go to check on Chow.”

Mila smiled. "One day, we will both get a chance to do it again, but I thank you for remembering it," she said. "Keep it and when I get out of here, I will watch it with you."

“I will then. It’s a date.” He grinned and winked. Before heading out, he grabbed her hand and squeezed it. “I will be back tomorrow to check on you and let you know how Chow is doing.”

"I will be here, sadly," she said as she gave his hand a soft squeeze in return. "Until the morrow, Sir Knight."

"Until the morrow, Printsessa." It was hard for him to leave her in this condition. Before walking out the doors, he turned to look at Mila, smiled and winked.

Mila waved as he left, then turned her thoughts inward and silently begged for the medical staff to find a cure before it turned lethal.

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