Posted by Ensign Chloe Harland (Nurse) in Graduation Week - Earth 2383

https://www.star-fleet.com/core/stf3/outpost42/notes/62762/ Original post
Snip

“I was thinking two things I still don’t know about you,” she said letting out a huge sigh.

“What are you thinking dollface,” Nathan asked softly as he reached up to brush the hair out of her face as he looked intently into her eyes as he felt himself melting slowly at this moment. Time had seemed to slow down with her around as he couldn’t stop staring deeply into her.

“The first is that I have no idea what side of the bed you prefer to sleep on but more importantly,” she turned her once solemn expression back into a happy smile, “what is your middle name?” There was no point worrying about the future. She could not control that no matter how hard you wish or try. She could control the present and right here, right now there was no other place in the universe Chloe Kendrick wanted to be.

Chloe Kendrick

“I sleep on whatever side lets me melt into your body… and my middle name is Tyler,” he said softly as he began to shift from his spot wanting her to follow his lead to let the two get up as he popped up before offering his hand to her. “Come here, there is a view I think you will like,” he said as he waited for her to grab onto him before he showed her what he wanted.

“Tyler,” she said looking at him wrinkling up her nose and letting lines crease her forehead as it did when she was in deep thought. “You don’t seem like a Tyler to me,” Chloe announced as if they were discussing name options instead of her getting a response taking his hand.

“I see you more as Nathan Alexander. Nathan William or Nathan Orlando,” she threw out several name combinations. “Not that Tyler is bad but it just is two syllables and most names vary the syllables like Chloe Anne,” she clapped out the syllables in her name. “My first name as two and my middle has one. You are two with both in your names. Takes the punch out of yelling it when you are a parent. Logan Alexander,” she belted out imitating her best mad mom voice. “Eva Grace,” she thew out another name. “When you have that varying sounds yelling it really lets you know you are in trouble,” she said threw gritted teeth avoiding direct eye contact much like kids did when they got into trouble.

“So are we leaving,” Chloe tried not to sound disappointed as Nathan appeared to be leading her out of the park through another entrance.

Slowly he lead her to the left-hand side of the stadium, which held the kid zone with miniature batting field and Coca-Cola slide. There was also a prize for the new Tesla Extreme Hovertruck. The truck left for the perfect place to see relax and look up at the stars on a perfect night such as now as the pair began to climb the steps that lead them up to the area.

“Get up here…” he said as he pressed down on the back of the track which let her have access to the back to climb up she moved off to the side into the security shack as he came back with several emergency blankets and some large pillow cushions. “They keep these in storage for emergencies but they make the best padding for this truck,” he said as he tossed them onto her as he climbed up.

“You know from experience,” Chloe asked not sure she wanted the answer. The Nathan Harland she met at the bar was the Nathan Harland she knew by reputation. The Nathan Harland she just played baseball with was a man she knew nothing about. Chloe hoped the man inviting her into the back of the pickup truck was the latter.

“Not nearly as sordid as it sounds, trust me,” Nathan said with a soft smile as he looked over at her with a soft longing look. He wasn’t lying, he somehow felt a compelling desire to not lie. Nathan knew how to twist everything to get his way, charming and dark, brooding and seductive. He was everything a woman wanted when she was trying to find something away from the normal droning men that crowded the clubs, bars, and social venues they went to. Here though, in the darkness of night with nothing but the moon and stars to light his path Nathan knew wanted to let nothing come between them. She was electric, fire and ice, and he didn’t want to lose the sensation the crept down his spine every time he looked over at her.

Making a pallet he let her sit down as she sat on the edge of the truck as he began to make a place a bit warmer than the cold rubber lining. “Okay, this is a place I see the stars after night games always. I loved coming out here as everyone left. I don’t know… something about this location… the waves crashing and seagulls cackling… I always felt at home here. Growing up at Martha’s Vineyard it was always an ocean breeze and soft misty evenings.” he said as he leaned back as he stretched back as he let her rest her head on his chest as he let his arm wrap around her.

Nathan Harland

“Martha’s Vineyard…huh small world. We vacation there a lot at least when I was a kid. We tended to stay in Oak Bluffs but I loved going to lighthouse beach. Does your family own a place on the water or is it more inland,” she asked looking over at him.

“It is right off the coast yes… my grandparents owned it… but it was just my father and my growing up there. Much to the annoyance of my aunts and uncles who wished they had inherited the land. I don’t have a lot of good memories from there, but the ocean breeze was certainly one of them. Soft and delicate…” he said as ran his finger across her face before letting his hand rest behind her as he leaned in to kiss her once more as he let that spark he felt every time fill the void he had never known he held. Softly as their lips separated Nathan laid back as he let her pull in close to him.

Chloe wanted to believe what he was saying. She also wanted to believe that Nathan did like to stargaze alone and not that this was just a ploy by him to end the night with the proverbial bang. Rolling onto her back, Chloe pulled his arm around her neck so that she could hold his hand right hand with her left. The position made him have to keep his elbow at a ninety-degree angle but it also kept his fingers interlocked in hers. There was only one way to find out. “So Mr. Astronomer what is that big yellow star,” she grossly pointed in the direction of the one indicated using their intertwined hand.

Chloe

“I have no clue…” he said softly as he looked at it. “I never took astronomy expect for the one time with a Christopher Robins who insisted I take it cause he was TA in the class and we could pick the women,” he said chuckling, knowing how it all sounded while he was on a date as he looked over at her. “Nothing ever stuck with those women… maybe I wasn’t going to the right places,” he said softly as he felt his stomach lurch at that moment every man knew when he suddenly felt very scared of what he was thinking.

Chloe Kendricks had everything Nathan had ever wanted in a woman, and he sadly had only met her six hours ago. A pang of regret and longing filled him as he couldn’t shake the sensation that something terribly important was happening right in front of him, and if he blinked he might miss out on the chance to find the person he would end up with for the rest of his life. That thought was silly, Nathan thought. Six hours is never enough to learn anything, let alone if you loved someone. This might be true, but it didn’t make his stomach stop with the butterflies as he felt his throat go dry as his mind began to go blank in the perfect simplicity of the moment they shared.

Nathan Harland