"Not As Skin Deep As Some Might Have Believed"
[Previous post: "Operational Return ", written by the expert Serena Switt]
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Stardate: 60322.1245
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Sickbay
Susan walked into sickbay to find Lea leaning over one of the biobeds.
The CMO looked positively depressed which made Susan glad that she had
decided to drop by.
The sound of the doors closing made Lea realise that she was no longer
alone. Upon seeing Susan, Lea reached for a couple of medical tools on
the tray next to her and greeted the Cns.
"I was wondering when you would come for me to smooth out those
wrinkles." Lea said trying to hide her feelings. The CMO did not have to
pretend for very long as she met the eyes of the other Ensign. "You are
not here for your nose are you?"
"Depends," Susan said, "on what you want me here for? I can be here as
a patient, as the ship's Cns or as a friend. It's really up to you."
Lea grinned. The offer made by Susan had been greatly appreciated,
that had been easy to see. It made sense since the Cns and CMO were the
only ensigns on the senior staff. That they worked next to each other
had only made their friendship that much more inevitable.
"I think I could use a friend right about now," Lea said through a sad
smile that Susan immediately responded to.
While Lea worked at removing the Bajoran ridges from her friend's nose,
Susan listened to what the CMO had to say. At first Lea had not said
much, but after a few minutes the emotions came out in bucket-loads.
"I just can't help but feel responsible for what happened. I somehow
managed to get captured once again and was the cause for the mission
being cancelled. There are times I wonder why Captain Simmons keeps me
around. At least the other CMO didn't get in the way of missions. Well,
he didn't get in the way of anything since he barely *did* anything. I
guess I could look at it as my being the lesser of two evils, but it
still leaves me as being someone that needs to be carried. It would be
nice if I could feel like I'm carrying my own weight at least, but the
mission starts it seems to all fall apart. Maybe I should ask to be
transferred to the base. At least there I wouldn't end up tied to a
chair, unless there is something about Koneki that I don't know. What do
you think?" Lea asked, ending her longwinded unwinding.
"What I think?" Susan asked, curious if she was going to be given the
time needed to reply. "You have been spending too much time around
Maya. You are starting to sound like her."
Lea and Susan looked at each other for a few moments before laughing in
unison.
"If you truly want my opinion," Lea continued, "I think that you
leaving would be a huge mistake. If there is any chance for David to
reconsider his decision, it will be because those people who care about him
are here. Not thinking of David, there are also many people who would
miss you a great deal. I for one would not trust anyone with my nose."
Lea and Susan laughed once again. The discussion between the Cns and
CMO had been completely unprofessional, and for that Lea had been most
grateful. It had truly felt as if she had been speaking to a friend,
and that alone helped her feel better.
"Do you think he is actually going to go through with it?" Lea asked,
referring to David and his decision to leave.
"I'm not sure," Susan replied, their little chat having taken a sudden
turn on the serious side. "David doesn't strike me as the type of
person who changes his mind at the drop of a hat. So, if he has made his
mind to leave, it would take something major to make him reconsider. I
am just at a lost to figure out what that something could be."
Lea placed her instruments away after having finished with Susan's nose
and looked around sickbay. "All I know is that this place is going to
feel mighty empty without him. No more shattered knuckles, bruised
muscles or other temper related injuries."
"Don't count him out yet," Susan smiled. "There are surprises around
every corner, so who knows what will come through that door next and the
impact it will have on our lives."
As if waiting for that fictitious something to come stepping through
the doors of sickbay right there and then, Lea and Susan diligently
watched the door. After a few minutes, the two of them looked at each other
again and started laughing.
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Ensign Lea Summers 2005 post #232
Tiffany Rose {lady_tiffany_rose@mail.com}
Chief Medical Officer
USS ANUBIS
