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CSO Quarters - Side Sim (Tag CMO)

Posted June 30, 2020, 11:27 p.m. by Lieutenant David Michaels (CSO) (James Harrison)

Posted by Lieutenant Sage Brennan (CMO) in CSO Office - Side Sim (Tag CMO)

Posted by Lieutenant David Michaels (CSO) in CSO Office - Side Sim (Tag CMO)

Posted by Lieutenant Sage Brennan (CMO) in CSO Office - Side Sim (Tag CMO)
Posted by… suppressed (14) by the Post Ghost! 👻
NE Norris was working a little late in the main labs. Most of the other crew members had cleared out and she was sitting alone at a terminal, reviewing data from one of her latest experiments.

Then she heard a noise coming from the CSO’s office. She hasn’t realized that Lt Michaels was still on duty. None of the science team had seen much of their department head as of late. She had never been one to pry, so she didn’t ask many questions.

But now, hearing what appeared to be the sounds of crying, NE Norris slowly got up from her stool and made her way over to where Lt Michaels’ office was. To either side of the door were window panels. She gingerly made her way closer and peeked through. She could see Lt Michaels seated at his desk. His head was buried in his arms on his desk. The man was sobbing uncontrollably.

NE Norris raised her hand to tap her comm badge and call the Counselor, but then she paused. She had recently read a memo to the crew about the departure of Counselor Dekker. She frowned, not wanting to leave Lt Michaels alone, but not feeling confident enough to go in and console him.

Biting her lip, she hit her comm badge and called the only other person she could think of who might be able to help.

=/\= NE Norris to Doctor Brennan. Could you please come to the Chief Science Officer’s office? There’s a bit of a situation. =/\= her tone did little to hide her uneasiness and worry.

-NE Norris

The com came over her badge just as Sage crossed the threshold of her quarters. She was tired from working a full shift with three emergencies and wanted only to spend the evening with Cal. As she looked at him across the room, she lifted her hand and tapped her badge. =/\=This is Dr Brennan. Has their been an injury?=/\=

—Sage OOC: Just making it seem like she really is tired :)

OOC: I know you’ve been on vacation, so this is a friendly bump :)

OOC On vacation? During the Corona????

OOC: I went on vacation before things got bad. Been in a bit of a creative slump recently but I’m trying to get back on track

IC:
=/\= No… =/\= Came the hesitant reply from NE Norris =/\= Lieutenant Michaels has been in his office for a long time, and he’s been… crying =/\=

-NE Norris

OOC: Not sure where this falls in with Riley’s disappearance…

Crying? Why wasn’t Norris calling Riley? Seemed like he would be a better choice for emotional support for David. What was going on? =/\=I’ll be right there. Brennan, out.=/\=

A few minutes later, Sage walked into the Science department and headed directly for David’s private office. She saw NE Norris standing outside looking uncomfortable. “Is he still in there?”

—Sage

OOC: Just to be on the same page, I would assume this happens after Riley is taken and I’d also assume that the Captain would notify the crew of the departure of the ships Counselor.

IC:
NE Norris nodded. “Yes, I was going to call Counselor Dekker, but…” The woman chewed on her lip nervously. “I’m sorry to bother you, ma’am.”

-NE Norris

Riley…she took a deep breath and nodded at Norris. “You can go now. Thank you for calling me.” With a heavy heart, Sage raised her hand and chimed the inner office door. “David? David, its me…Sage. Can I come in?”

—Sage

There was silence for a few moments, then through the side windows around the door, Sage would see David slowly get up from his chair and come towards the door. As the door swished open, there stood David, looking disheveled, his face wet, his uniform wrinkled and the slight odor of sweat and grime coming off it. Behind him, the office was a mess. PaDD’s and equipment lay about haphazardly, there were several un-recycled food trays on his desk.

David looked at her, his eyes a full swirl of emotions. Sadness. Pain. Despair. Fatigue. He stood there, his eyes looking at her, yet through her. “I.... he....” He tried to speak but couldn’t find the words. His eyes began to well up and tears slowly trickled down his cheeks.

-Lt David Michaels, CSO

OOC: There is no physical description of David in his bio, i.e. height, weight, etc.

No words were necessary in that instant. Sage simply crossed the threshold and wrapped David in a hug. Of all the others on the ship, she and David had been the closest to Riley so his loss was a living, breathing thing to them. Her own eyes clouded with tears, but she used controlled breathing to keep them from taking over. This moment in time was about David and helping him to get passed his initial debilitating grief.

“I’m sorry, David. I miss him too…”

—Sage

OOC: I guess I never copied over the bio when we switched over. I think it’s still on the Genesis page that Julia made. I’ll have to get it copied.

IC:
David accepted the hug and put his arms around her. The closeness of another person instantly helped remind him that he was not alone. After a few moments, he pulled away again, wiping at his face with the sleeve of his jacket. “I’m sorry to be such a mess.” He said softly, looking down at himself. “I just…” He took in a deep breath, exhaling slowly.

“It’s all my fault.” He said, his eyes focused downwards, true sorrow in his voice.

-Lt David Michaels, CSO

She knew he was going to say something like that. It was a normal reaction to feel guilt when someone you cared about was missing or hurt. Everyone wondered what they could have done differently that would have ended up changing the bad situation to something better or skipping it altogether.

“It isn’t your fault, David, but tell me why you think it is.” She moved toward a place to sit, knowing it was going to be a long night.

—Sage

“How could it not be?” David asked. “Everything with Jackson, that’s more about me than anything else. He knew that he would never get me to go along with him, so he took the one thing that could hurt me the most. Riley.” He paused. “I can’t even go back to our quarters, Sage. All his stuff is still there.” He ran a hand through his greasy hair. “As if the Captain didn’t have reason enough to dislike me, then something like this has to happen. I honestly never thought Jackson would go as far as to kidnap Riley.” He shook his head in despair. “I don’t even know where he would have went, or when he would have went. Riley’s out there, somewhere, and there’s nothing I can do to get him back.”

-Lt David Michaels, CSO

“If Riley being kidnapped was your fault, don’t you think I would hate you too? He IS my best friend, after all. There’s no reason for Cal to blame you for his disappearance. He knows you wouldn’t do anything to hurt Riley. It was you EX who did it, not you.”

She didn’t like that Michael was blaming himself, even though she knew it was a normal reaction. “The only person you can control, David, is yourself. Also, while you’re here, you are bound by certain ethical guidelines that don’t allow you to take special precautions against threats from the future. What could you have done to keep Jackson from taking his revenge?”

—Sage

David let out a sigh. “You’re right.” He said. “There wasn’t anything more I could have done.” He paused, his gaze drifting off for a few moments. “What about all of his things? I haven’t… I don’t know what to do.”

-David Michaels, CSO

Growing in confidence, David stood. “You know what, let’s go there now. I haven’t been out of this office in a few days and I could use a shower and a fresh change of clothes.” He barely gave her a chance to say anything, taking her by the arm and leading her out of his office and towards the turbo lift.

Once they had reached the quarters, David entered but stopped just inside the doorway. Everything was as it had been when Riley had still been living there. There was one a book Riley had been reading laying on the coffee table. One of Riley’s uniform jackets was draped over the back of a chair. The sight of it all made David draw in a deep breath.

At least he was willing to listen to her and not just take the blame unconditionally for Riley’s disappearance. “Come sit with me, David.” She patted a place on the couch next to her. “Do you really want to deal with all of that right now? Or do you want a little time to just get through the worst of the sadness first?” It was an important question and she would support whatever he wanted. “If you want his stuff out of here now, I’ll help you pack it up and we can put it in one of the cargo bays to keep until he comes back.” Sage refused to entertain the idea Riley would be lost to them forever.

David walked over and took a seat. Part of him didn’t want all of the constant reminders that Riley used to be here, and now he was gone. But then part of him didn’t want to forget, and having all of Riley’s things around would keep the memories fresh.

“You can always keep your quarters this way for a little while. If in a few months you’re ready to put it in storage, I’ll help you then too. It’s really up to you, David.” She sighed and ran a hand back through her hair. It would be really good to get to her own quarters and wrap herself in Calvin’s embrace. Extremely grateful she wasn’t the one dealing with a missing partner, Sage looked over at David. “So what do you think?”

—Sage

“I think I’ll leave it the way it is,” David said, his eye catching a holo-frame on the wall where a few images of David and Riley played in a slow loop. He let out a sigh. “I just miss him so much Sage,” He said.

OOC: They were in David’s office but I’ve made it work, also changed the location for us

-David Michaels, CSO


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