Everyone needs a friend

Posted on Tue Jun 25th, 2019 @ 11:58pm by High Commissioner Jasmine Haynes & Patton O'Sullivan
Edited on on Thu Dec 1st, 2022 @ 11:05pm

1,866 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Atlantis
Location: CSTO Office
Timeline: 2429-12-02, 14:00

ON:

The first thing Patton did when leaving the Admiral’s office was send a message to Lieutenant Commander Haynes. He wanted to start on a positive note with her. Patton wanted things to flow smoothly and the best way for that to happen was for him to know her expectations. One would think that the rules and regulations set the tone but in reality different people had different ways of doing things.

Having received a summons, Patton grabbed a bottle of water and headed to her office to meet with her. He was in a relatively good mood, despite the Admirals reference to him needing all the help he could get. He rang the buzzer and waited for her to answer.

Jasmine was recalling her night out, the night before. Talking with the bartender, brought up memories, she was not ready for. She was doing her best to shift through them. "Enter," she called out, as she heard the intercom buzzer to her office going off.

Patton walked in and started to speak but paused when he saw Lieutenant Commander Haynes. No one had told him how beautiful she was. He gave himself an inward shake and spoke confidently. “Lieutenant Commander O’Sullivan.” Patton identified himself. “I am the Hazards Commander as well as your assistant.”

"Have a seat Commander. I was starting to wonder if the Admiral was going to fill that role." She said, not really offering any more feedback, into what she was thinking. As she looked at Patton, thinking to herself, okay why him?

Patton took a seat and waited a moment. “You didn’t know I was filling the position did you?” She hadn’t made any gesture or emotion to give it away but he sensed he wasn’t her first choice.

"We have been a little preoccupied as of late, first with the new president, they the incident with the Governor." Jasmine said, being a little cold. She was little on edge, cause most guys tried to hit on her, and she was not ready for that. Not yet at least. She still hand strong feelings for John.

“Understood Commander,” Patton nodded. She seemed to be all business so he would follow her lead. “Anything you need from me or do you have a schedule for when you’d like me to work your department. That way I can schedule training with my people around it.”

"You run your team as you see fit, we will work on a bridge rotation schedule down the road, first get acquainted with your team." Jasmine said, not trying to be mean. She did not need him distracting her, with his good looks or his ability to assist her. She wanted to keep her distance.

“Sounds like a plan, Commander,” Patton replied. She obviously was here for the job and nothing else. He had worked with crew like this before. He waited to see if there was anything else or if she was going to send him on his way. It was a shame really because beyond her striking beauty he had hoped they could be friends, have more than just the business relationship but she had set the tone and there was no way he would cross that line, he had worked too hard getting here.

"You can call me Jasmine, I use to be go by Jazz. But I think its a time for a change. Ya, I think I want to be called Jasmine." She said to him, more re assuring herself, than him.

“Okay, Jasmine,” he relaxed a little. “I prefer Patton. I have had nicknames over the years but why have a name your never going to use?” The truth was he hated it when his parents called him Paddy and he never took to Pat.

"Paddy sounds cool, my name sounds like a musical instrument." She said, with a slight smile on her face.

Patton smiled. Paddy had always sounded dumb to him but when she said it. “Well all right.” He said finally.

"To paddy or my name sounding like a musical instrument. I use to go by Jazzy." She asked, a little concerned, he would start calling her Jazzy. A name that John called her before, in her past life. She considered that part of her past. She needed a fresh start.

“You May call me Paddy,” he said with a slight smile. “Somehow you don’t seem like a Jazzy to me but Jasmine seems to suit you.”

"Thank you Paddy." Jasmine said, as she went on. "I assure you, at one point in my life, I was a Jazzy. But that's now behind me." She said.

“We all change,” Patton nodded. “It is a part of life.” He wondered what changed her. It wasn’t his business but he couldn’t tell but he curious.

"Life can be a cruel bitch at times, you know?" She half asked him, thinking about John. The universe was a cruel bitch, and she did not deserve this fate. Her choices lead her to Starfleet One. Lead her away from him. Now she was suppose to move on, how do you move on?

“Been there,” he nodded, thinking of his last assignment. “But I try to think that things are bound to get better. When you hit the bottom of the barrel only one way to go.”

"Why does a person have to hit bottom, to learn?" Jasmine asked him, being a little on the defense end. She was curious, why people felt that way. Or was it a saying, to make people feel better. If it was, how?

“How else will we?” Patton countered. “From the time we are born we learn from life’s lessons. Touch the stove you get burnt for example.”

"Some of us can learn from the mistakes of others." Jasmine said, as she listened to the man speak about needing to hit rock bottom. "I've suffered enough, do I really need to hit bottom?" She asked herself?

“Sounds like you already have,” Patton replied quietly. “I am working my way up, how about we do this together? I can use a friend?” And who knows where it may lead he thought to himself.

"There is no us, just so we are clear. We are working colleagues." Jasmine said, thinking to herself, it was a little presumptuous of him to think, that cute little line was going to work. Her heart, was still hurting for John.

“We just met,” Patton returned. “I wasn’t asking for a date, just a cup of coffee now and then and some conversation. I don’t know you well enough for anything remotely close to that.”

Jasmine realized that she was a little defensive. But she was surprised that he was defensive too. What was his deal? Why did he need to be defensive? "Isn't that why we have staff meetings?" She asked him, what he was describing was a basic staff meeting. What he said, was more like a date.

“I don’t want to talk about work,” Patton explained. “Well I mean we can but I want to get to know you, be friends.” He shook his head. “I’m not good at expressing myself.”

"Are any of us, I am probably coming across as a witch, minus the w and add a b." She said, trying to be humorous. She was not sure if it was working.

Patton smiled. “I may be wrong but feels like your cautious and there is nothing wrong with that.” His eyes lit up. “So coffee later and I can fill you in on what makes Patton tick?”

"Fine just coffee." She said, hoping she was not making a mistake with all of this. She did not want to lead him on.

“Sounds good,” Patton nodded. “Six. O’clock work for you?”

"Are you unpacked, and ready to go?" Jasmine asked him. She would prefer him to work on settling in, over having some coffee with her.

“I pack light,” He replied. “You want to give it a couple days?” Patron didn’t want to but he wasn’t going to push too hard either.

"Pack light, are you not planning on staying long?" Jasmine asked, she surprised. John had a lot of stuff in his quarters, when they first got together. Why didn't this guy?

“A week before I left there was an accident,” Patton explained. “I lost everything.”

"Sounds like you need to shopping, next time we visit a colony or a port." Jasmine said, with a big grin on her face. She was poking at him a little bit.

“I am told I have no taste,” Patton confessed. “I tend to buy jeans and tshirts.”

"You will figure it out." Jasmine said, almost telling him, she would help him. But she did not want to give him the wrong idea.

“True that,” Patton nodded. He had hoped for an olive branch but she was one tough but to crack. “In the meantime it is jeans and black T-shirt’s or work clothes.”

"if its a lunch and your on duty, uniform. Any other time, is your call." Jasmine said, seeing what he was trying to do. But she was not sure, she was ready for that.

“Of course,” Patton looked at her. “I don’t normally change into street clothes until I’m home for the day.”

"Do you spend a lot of time at home?" Jasmine asked.

Paton wasn’t quite sure how to answer that without making him seem like a hermit. “Not as a rule.”

"What do you spend most of your free time doing?" Jasmine asked. Was he a stay at home guy, a big drinker, or a dreamer? Adventurer? She was not sure, but since she asked the earlier question, she really had no other choice, but play this scenario out.

“I am not a big partyer,” Patton confesses. “I am not opposed to going to a party but I don’t drink alcohol a lot. I don’t like the way it makes me feel.” He smiled. “I like playing games, trying new things. This last assignment I was kind of a hermit but not my choice, long story.”

"I see, well that is a surprising. you seem like the partying type." Jasmine said, as she waited to see what he said next.

“There was a time,” Patton nodded. “But I could feel myself slipping and I knew I had to make a decision on who I wanted to be.”

"Are you sure your Irish?" Jasmine said, she was irish, and before John went into his comma, they loved to party.

Patton grinned. “I am definitely Irish. I am not saying I don’t like to have a good time, I just want to remember it is all.”

"Sound like an old man." Jasmine grinned, actually liking the fact, but she was not going to tell him that.

“Not that old,” Patton said with a laugh. But wiser indeed.”

"Will see about wiser." Jasmine said, with a grin on her face. "We have a lot to do, let's get started." Jasmine said, as the scene starts to fade.

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