STF

When Paparazzi Hide in the Bushes

Posted June 8, 2023, 11:13 p.m. by Ensign Rand Farquharson (Yeoman First Class) (Jennifer Ward)

Posted by Commander Roman Alden (First Officer & Chief Science Officer) in When Paparazzi Hide in the Bushes

Posted by Ensign Rand Farquharson (Yeoman First Class) in When Paparazzi Hide in the Bushes

Posted by Commander Roman Alden (First Officer & Chief Science Officer) in When Paparazzi Hide in the Bushes
Posted by… suppressed (30) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)
Roman smiled and nodded. “Whatever is easier for you. I just don’t want them to worry you.” He checked the time and unwillingly released her from their long hug. “I have to get back to work. I’ll see you after shift?”

~ Roman

Rand let go reluctantly. “Yes. I should actually be done on time today.” After he left Rand returned to her work, she deleted the letter, but the words haunted her.

Rand

The next morning when letters and personal data came in off comms, the Comms officer duty delivered a data disk to Rand. “Addressed to you and the Commander. From… Mr. and Mrs. Caliano?” He shrugged and handed her the disk. “Figured you could take it to him with the reports.”

~ Roman

Rand took the disk with her usual smile. “Thank you. I’ll make sure he gets it.” Caliano? That was Jay’s parents wasn’t it? Addressed to both of them? After yesterday’s mail, Rand was afraid to know what it said. That was nerves though, right? Roman had only ever had good things to say about them. They still wrote to him regularly no matter what. They cared about him.

It wasn’t exactly regular. In the time Rand had known him, he’d gotten a letter on his birthdays, both last year and this year, holidays like Christmas, and after the news that had reached Earth that he’d been attacked and was hurt. That letter had shown up while he was still unconscious in sickbay. Each time they showed up he was fairly private about it, like he liked them, but they bothered him, too. Like anything concerning Jay he refused to speak much about it.

By the time she got to the lab Rand had convinced herself they loved Roman very deeply and if the Caliano’s were concerned about her maybe they were right. She carried the reports in and took a seat on her stool. “We have a letter from Mr. and Mrs. Caliano,” she said quietly setting the disk on top.

Rand

When she sat on her stool and told him about it, he turned to look at her. “We?” Roman asked, grabbing the data disk curiously. Then he realized, “They must have seen the news.” He put the data disk into his personal PaDD and opened the letter, setting the PaDD up so they could both see it.

Dear Roman and Ms Farquharson,

Roman! Why didn’t you tell us you were engaged? When did you get engaged? When are we meeting her? The lovely Ms Farquharson is beautiful. What’s she like? Where did you meet? We hope the media isn’t giving you trouble like that last time. How are you doing? Have you recovered from that incident last June? We heard they caught the responsible party and were greatly relieved.

Ms Farquharson, we do hope Roman isn’t too stubborn to show you this letter. When we heard about the engagement, we went ahead and watched some of your old shows. You seem absolutely adorable and positively lovely and we apologize we haven’t been able to meet yet. Are you marrying on Earth? Or somewhere else? If you do come home, talk that stubborn fiance of yours into a visit, will you? We haven’t seen him since his last vacation… six years ago now, I believe. It would be simply fantastic if we had the chance to see you both. We hope the press isn’t giving you too much trouble either. They’re such pests!

Wishing both of you the best,

Henry and Maryann Caliano

Reading through the letter Roman looked increasingly embarrassed. He hadn’t told Rand he’d never responded to their previous letters. Nor that they’d not seen him in that long. At least they seemed to like her. He gave Rand a sheepish look.

~ Roman

Rand was grinning and a little pink in the cheeks. They liked her. Or at least they thought they did. It had to be Mrs. Caliano who wrote it. Only mom’s got away with teasing their sons like that. And she wrote to her. Rand wanted to write her back. Mrs Caliano seemed lovely. Rand would write to her right away. Oh…maybe she shouldn’t? Roman was very private about anything having to do with Jay. It might upset him if she did. OH! But she wanted to. They obviously loved Roman very much, unlike his family. Social protocol dictated that you must respond to a letter, in some away. Acknowledge it. Well except for the one from his family. That was rude and harassing and that fell under a totally different set of rules. Mrs Caliano had written to her specifically. She could include a response with Roman’s at least?

Rand’s thoughts came to a screeching halt, and she stared at him and his sheepish look. “Roman!” she hissed quietly. “You never wrote and told them you were okay? Deagh Mhorairean agus Mhnathan! (Good Lords and Ladies) They are probably out of their mind worried. You need to write them.”

Rand

Roman’s cheeks colored slightly as several sets of eyes turned towards them, overhearing Rand hiss the commander’s first name at him and then chew him out. He was mostly focused on Rand though. “I… I was going to, and then… Well, you were hurt and…” Yep. He was making up excuses. He had never written them back in all truthfulness.

Not because he didn’t want to. He wasn’t sure why. It just made him feel… Really, really guilty. So he quietly kept their letters, every single one, on a data disk in his violin case. That way he knew he had them, but he didn’t have to look at them.

~ Roman

Rand was totally oblivious to her little faux pas. The officers were more watching Rand than Roman because she was the one who had crossed into the familiar rather than the professional. Their relationship was no longer a secret, and Alpha shift felt a little more invested than anyone else. They didn’t spread gossip but they were certainly all willing to follow along as things unfolded. Franks grinned, finding Rand’s outburst cute and endearing, even knowing Alden wouldn’t appreciate it, so he turned and was suddenly very busy at a table on the other side of the lab.

“Well, I’m not hurt now. You have to write to her and tell her you’re okay. She seems lovely. Will I get to meet her?” Rand was excited which drew more attention. Who was the ‘she’ Rand was talking about? Alden’s mother? He never spoke of his family, they didn’t think Roman liked his family. Especially after the incident last June. Rand looked at him, her voice dropping lower, “What happened last time?” She was totally oblivious to the fact they were in the lab.

Rand

“I will, I will....” He sighed. Then Roman grinned and chuckled. “Well, yeah… I was going to take you to meet them. I mean, we are going to Earth, aren’t we?” He replied quietly. Her second question made him pause and frown. “Harassed me last time I was on earth because of one of my sisters.” Rand was being adorable with her excited questions but the subject was clearly making him uncomfortable and not because they were in the lab.

~ Roman

Rand was too excited about hearing from someone who obviously adored Roman almost as much as she did to notice he was uncomfortable. “I wonder how they found out we were engaged? The photos were all before that. Accurate speculation in one of the articles? I don’t remember reading that though.” Due to Kovan and Roman’s efforts Rand hadn’t seen all the articles that had been published, including one of Roman proposing. Rand seemed to shrug it off, the media was always spinning tales and managed to get things right part of the time.

His comment about his sister seemed to dampen her spirits a little. How many times had Randy been harrassed because of her. “Oh…I’m sorry.” She’d hated them bugging Randy because of her. She could imagine how irritating and disruptive that was for Roman. Especially since he had very little to do with his family. Her excitement wasn’t to be deterred however. “I can’t wait to meet them.” Even as she finally got to work on the reports and caring for Nibbles she was still thinking about it. They had to come to the wedding. Even if Roman didn’t invite them, she would do it. She was supposed to right? They meant something to Roman and they loved him. Yes of course that was what she was supposed to do, for him.

Roman shook his head. “It was years ago, it’s fine.”

They watched her performances and liked them. Yes Rand knew she was good, but it still always made her quietly happy to know people enjoyed it. “Saoil cò am fear as fheàrr leatha… (I wonder which was her favorite…)” she muttered to Nibbles as she fed the mouse.

Rand

Roman got to work, but he seemed out of sorts… Different out of sorts than he had been lately. Instead of grumpy and irritable, he was quiet and moody. When Rand went to play with Nibbles, Roman dropped the data disk into a desk drawer. When she left the lab to go do other duties, Roman left several minutes after her to work in his office.

~ Roman

Roman was quiet, which Rand expected. He didn’t like to talk about anything having to do with Jay. She had accepted that a long time ago. Of course she couldn’t quite grasp that Roman wouldn’t want to talk to them. That it hurt too much. Even after all this time, they still wanted to hear from him, be part of his life. They were happy for him and a positive part of his life. So, in Rand’s mind that meant everything was fine. During one of her breaks, she even had a conversation with Pipkin about what she might write.

Rand

The letters used to be more frequent, before the attack. They would write him every time they wrote Jay. Which had been just about weekly. But after the attack, when he hadn’t responded, they dropped off to just on his birthday and holidays.

On one hand, it had always made him a little happy that all this time later they were still trying. On the other, he… he just couldn’t write them back. And he knew that must hurt them. But he still kept doing it. And eventually they would stop trying, and if that happened he didn’t know what he would do.

When lunchtime came, he went to find Rand so they could eat together.

~ Roman

Rand’s morning rounds had ended a little early and so she was in their quarters, sitting on the bed - reading a script. Not out loud and certainly not in an animated fashion, but she was reading it. She was having trouble with it, remembering some of the details of her memories, but she was trying. She looked up when he entered, “Ròmanach.” She happy to see him and maybe a little surprised until she looked at the time.

Rand

Roman smiled. He loved when she called him Ròmanach. “Miranda.” When he saw she was reading a script, he smiled and sat by here. “Which one are you reading? Do you want me to do lines with you?” He asked, excited for her. She used to love her scripts. And her choosing to read one… Maybe she was starting to like them again? Having an easier time remembering?

~ Roman

Rand leaned into him, and kissed him, like she had the night he had proposed. “King Arthur. It is an adaptation of the 2004 cinema production. This one presumes Arthur was a Roman calvary officer around the time that Rome began to pull out of Britian.” She glanced at it, “It’s kind of long, and…” She sighed, “I’m having a little trouble with some of it. Maybe tonight?”

Rand

Roman wrapped her up in a hug, melting into her as they kissed. When it broke off her kept her in a hug, looking down at her with one of those looks of his. “I think I’ve seen that one.” He smiled down at her, “Tonight, then. If you’re feeling up to it. Do you want lunch?”

~ Roman

Rand cuddled into him. That look always gave her butterflies. “Yes, lunch. Then I’ll go see Nibbles.” Rand looked around, “Where did Pipkin get to? She was up here on the bed for awhile.”

Rand

Roman looked around the room. There was wiggling under the covers, and when he flipped the covers up, Pipkin twitched her little nose at them. “Here she is.” He picked her up gently and set her in her cage, closing the door behind her. Then he went back to Rand. “Ready for lunch?”

~ Roman

Rand grinned and poked Pipkin’s nose as it twitched at them, “Silly girl.” Rand stood up, setting the script on the side table. The movement put her close against him. She put her arms around him and squeezed. “I love you.”

Rand

Roman looked down at her as if he hadn’t expected that, then smiled and hugged her back, squeezing her tight to him. “I love you, too.” He just hugged her for a minute, looking content and more relaxed than before.

~ Roman

Rand rested her head against his chest, tightening her arms around his waist, content and happy. She laughed softly when his stomach growled. “Okay, let’s go eat.” If he was that hungry she wasn’t going to linger, he needed to eat.

Rand

Roman kept hugging her for another moment. “Okay.” Then he walked with her down to the galley, arm around her. He let her pick somewhere to sit and picked up their food, then sat with her.

~ Roman

Rand always chose the table at the far end of the room. She chose it so often that it had u officially become their table. It was always empty when they came for lunch. Rand grinned watching as Roman collected their tray.

Gorshin was in an exceptional mood since the new supplies came in and he could really cook again. He was piling the food on to everyone’s plates regardless of any protest. He was whistling and singing as he moved back and forth.

“Cooking really is a calling for him, isn’t it?” Rand looked at her plate and sighed. This was enough for 3 meals at least.

Rand

“We have the best fed crew in the fleet,” sighed Roman, looking at his very full plate. It was things he liked, too, French onion soup, meat and potatoes, things like that, but so much he could never finish it. And he wasn’t feeling very hungry. He dipped a spoon in the soup, “We can save what we don’t eat. We’ll be fed for days.”

~ Roman

“We do. We’re very lucky.” Rand grinned. “I’ll ask for some containers and take them back before I start my rounds.” Rand loved Gorshin’s soups, but she was actually hungry today. She dug in to the meat and potatoes. Eating more than she had in a while in one sitting. In between bites, Rand rambled about the different things she had been doing all morning and the requests the new Captain had made.

Rand

Roman listened while she rambled on about her morning tasks, glad she was eating more. He finished the soup at least, but he definitely didn’t feel hungry for anything else. When she’d finished talking about her morning, he sighed softly once again, “We should just take a long, private lunch in our quarters.”

~ Roman

Rand paused with her glass just touching her lips. Her face turned red and she glanced around. Had anyone heard him? “Yeah, o…okay.” It wasn’t like they hadn’t put in a ton of extra hours over the last weeks. And everything was up to date. But…that wasn’t like Roman. Play hooky?

Rand

Roman looked at her. He’d been mostly joking, really, but he hadn’t expected her to say yes. It wasn’t like him to not work. But… The only thing that was really distracting from the whole letter thing was Rand. So, why not? He smiled, giving her one of his looks. “Okay.”

~ Roman

If possible, Rand turned even more red and flustered when he looked at her like that. “I…uh…I’ll get containers.” Rand got up and made her way over to where Gorshin kept the containers and then returned to her seat. She managed not to spill anything, but she kept giving Roman shy glances the whole time. When it was all stored and the empty dishes stacked, “Ready?” She asked softly.

Rand

He hadn’t embarrassed her too much, had he? She was giving him those shy looks and she was red as a tomato. He nodded when she asked, put an arm around her, and walked with her out of the galley.

When they arrived at their quarters, he pressed the control for the door, then stepped in with a soft sigh. “Maybe a break will help… I wasn’t able to focus well on work anyway.”

~ Roman

Rand stepped in before him and set the containers in the small ice drawer under the counter. She turned and looked at him. She was starting to get the idea that something was bothering him, and that that something was the letter from the Calianos. If it was, she felt bad for being so excited about it. “We’ve been working non-stop for a few a couple of weeks. It was bound to catch up with us.” Rand walked back over to him and slipped her arms around him and hugged him. She looked up at him, flushing brightly, “Anything I can do to help you take a break?”

Rand

Something was bothering him, and it was the letter. He didn’t want her to feel bad for being excited, though. The letter was for her too and the Calianos were wonderful people. They always had been. He wasn’t sure why he kept not writing them, but he didn’t want to think about that right now. It brought up too much for him. “It was.”

Rand hugged him and Roman hugged her back, squeezing her tight to him. Then he bent his head down, resting his forehead against hers. He loved when she blushed like that. “You know what’s always relaxing to me?” He gave her a playful look and spoke softly, his voice a husky whisper. “Kissing.”

~ Roman

Rand looked up at him, partially through her lashes. There was no way Roman missed the shiver that chased down her back at his look. Her voice was equally soft, “Oh…good.” Her teeth tugged at her lower lip a moment before her arms slipped over his shoulders, and she kissed him.

Rand

Roman didn’t miss it. He loosened the hug, instead pressing a hand against her back to press her closer to him. His other hand rested gently against the back of her head as he kissed back. Everything else melted away and all that was left was the two of them, his body relaxing, letting go of some of the tension he’d been holding.

~ Roman


Later, Rand was curled beside him, the blanket tucked around her. It was warm, comfortable, and she would much rather stay there and drift off than get up. But reports had to be collected, processed, compiled, and filed. Along with a myriad of other tasks she had to complete before she was done for the day. “Do ya think ya can concentrate now, Ròmanach?”

Rand


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