Cuts & Bruises

Posted on Mon Oct 17th, 2022 @ 3:53am by Chief Petty Officer Julius Law & Lieutenant JG Karen Lamont

Mission: In-Between (S1:E3-S1:E4)
Location: Sickbay
Timeline: Mission Day 24 at 2330
2264 words - 4.5 OF Standard Post Measure

After Lyra's stunt in the Holodeck, Julius actually escaped with some scrapes. He grunted annoyedly again and then departed for Sickbay, still wearing nothing but the thick metal belt, leather skirt, and arm scale-male that made up his gladiatorial outfit. He had scrapes and cuts all down his arms, legs, and torso, but thank the gods she had turned the safeties back on before she had sabotaged his program.

It was the tale end of Beta Shift and he expected a room full of people hoping to leave soon. He strode in confidently, nevertheless, not letting his state of undress bow his head one bit.

He doubtless got a few looks. Not all entirely disapproving. Karen, however, was entirely professional as she walked briskly towards the new patient. If she had quickly scanned her files in the moment before she rose from her desk, she didn't show it. She spoke like she kept all her patients at the top of her mind. "Rough training session, Chief?"

"You could say that." he said, his dark eyes moving over her. She was attractive, and he focused on her large eyes. "I've sent more people down here than have sent me. But I guess every fighter has his day."

"It's what we're here for," Karen said. "I'm Dr. Lamont. Come sit on a biobed for me." For now, she didn't show a reaction to that gaze beyond a small smile but it was certainly noticed.

"Nah." he said, shaking his head defiantly. He folded his extremely powerful arms over his chest and looked completely set in his mind and unapologetic about what he was saying. "I just came down here to use one of your dermal regenerators. It was a holodeck fight and they got me all over. I don't need any doctoring."

"Humor me," she insisted. "You're probably right but you know how doctors worry."

"Worry about someone else." he said, shaking his head. His expression was not unkind, but had no hint of a joke or the will some might have to give in under pressure. "Scrapes and bruises, nothing more. Just give me the regenerator and I'll return it later on."

"It's my duty to worry about everyone on this ship," she pointed out stubbornly.

"Look, I don't know if you have a savior complex or some shit like that, but I'm not here to make you feel good about yourself." he said, shaking his head no again. "I'm not stripping what little I have on off in here so you can do the job yourself. It'd give everyone in her a show they wouldn't forget. So lose that duty bullshit and give it to me."

His eyes found the pouty lips in her attempt at a protest. She seemed determined to fight him for some reason, though she really didn't seem the type to him. He bet she was highborn and sweet. They weren't on Terra anymore though, and he was bowing to Ladies and the daughters of Lords. He reached toward the device in her hand to try and take it from her, though he did so slowly so she wouldn't think he was about to strike her. Beyond that, he was focused on his goal.

"I don't have a savior complex. I do, however, have a particular position and role on this ship and I am sure you are familiar with the relevant protocols." She said it as if something official might come of it, but she already knew it wouldn't. It would have been petty and, frankly, his department head was the last person in the universe she wanted to talk to of late. She turned. If he was really willing to force things, he doubtless could have gotten the regenerator himself but he couldn't just pull it from her hand right in front of her. She grabbed a medical tricorder instead and briefly scanned him. Only then did she hand him the regenerator. "You may use a private room in Sickbay. No need to give anyone a show."

He watched her outstretched hand for a moment before reaching out and grabbing the device from her. His fingers met hers for an instant before he pulled them away with the device. She really was quite pretty, and the relaxing of their conflict allowed him to realize that. He was no skirt chaser, however, and so he merely offered her the shadow of a smile.

"Thanks." he said, his voice softer now. "Show me the way? I don't know anything about this place. I avoid it as much as I can get away with. I suppose that's why I've never seen you here. The name's Julius. Julius Law."

She smiled as he took the regenerator. "Right this way," she said, walking towards an unoccupied room. Her hips swayed slightly as she walked. "I've noticed a lot of security people and Marines make extremely reluctant patients," she admitted. "It's nice to meet you, Julius. I'm Karen." She'd given her last name earlier.

He watched the swaying of her hips without hesitation, unapologetic like everything he did. But he didn't stare or gawk, but returned his eyes to her face even as they traveled.

"We can be a tough crowd. That must get annoying for you, I guess." he said, watching her expression. She seemed much relaxed that their confrontation was over.

"A little," she admitted, though her expression seemed relaxed, even friendly, at this point. She was smiling. Not broadly. Just a soft, gentle smile. "But there's no one better to have around when the shit hits the metaphorical fan."

"Damn straight." he said, cracking a smile. He stopped outside the room and turned to her. "Doctors and Nurses are more for after the battle. Those soft hands are for healing."

Her smile grew. "You noticed my hands, did you?" Ok. Down girl. She glanced briefly at his rather rougher hands and then nodded. "Just bring it back to me when your done, Chief Law." Not to a nurse. It just slipped out that way. She stepped back to let him go in.

"I did. I noticed the rest of you too." he said with a slight incline of his head. He didn't offer a friendly smile, but his eyes scanned her as if to suggest what he meant. Yet, still, he didn't pursue or truly consider the thought. He walked into the room and paused, turning around just as she was walking away. "Wait, come back...I can't reach my back."

She turns and walks back towards him, stepping into the room. "Ok," she said, closing the door behind her. "So you can get some use from a doctor?"

"It's more worry a doctor will get some use from me that slows me down." he said turning his bare back to her and looking back at her a bit. "Sometimes softer hands do the trick. Just hope yours aren't too cold."

"They're not," she says but the machine doesn't require more than the most trivial touches anyway. "I know that sometimes we want to fuss over stuff you guys could probably walk off fine," she admits, "but my job is to try to keep you operating at peak efficiency out there."

"I like the sound of that. Sounds like its worth my time." he remarked as she started to run the dermal regenerator over his skin. He closed his eyes as he felt the distinct itch of the tissue healing super-fast. "Hey, I must be pretty good to get a beautiful woman alone in a room with nothing but a few scars and an argument over medical equipment, huh?"

She laughed at that, easily and naturally. "In this room, it's not so hard. In another room, you'd have to..." She paused a moment, considering something as she continued to heal his scrapes and bruises. "You'd have to at least buy a girl dinner first." She smiled playfully.

"I don't normally make it through dinner. I'm a bit rough around the edges." he responded, not sounding sad or self conscious, but toughly stating facts. "I don't charm too much and I speak my mind. I've been told it makes me fantastic in bed and the biggest headache a woman has ever had outside. But the woman who said that was fucking stupid, so who knows?"

"Stupid or not, was she in a position to know?" Karen asked, since they were being direct.

"She was, but that was a long time ago." he said, stretching his sore neck. "Doesn't matter now though. I stay focused on my business, so I'm not a lover or headache to anyone anymore. You seem kind of curious though."

"Not really about her," Karen replied.

Noticing that she was done with his back, he turned around to face her. His expression was serious but, as he made eye contact with her. His interest was undeniably there. It had been a decently long time since he’d bothered to be romantic with anyone at all, so physical intimacy had been off of his list. Besides being hit on heavily by some women and ignoring it, his mind rarely drifted in this direction. He kept himself focused.

“But you’re curious about me?” He asked, reaching out and taking the dermal regenerator out of her hand. He began to run it over the cuts on his arms and chest. “I’m assuming it’s a professional curiosity, right?”

She gave it to him easily enough this time. "It's a friendly curiosity," she answered. "Besides," she said with a playful smirk, "you brought it up."

“I did.” He said gruffly. “Not sure why though. Guess, for some reason, I’m a bit curious about you too.” He speculated, giving her a look unfettered by the need for approval. “I normally don’t give that sort of…curiosity the time of day anymore.”

"I'll take it as a compliment," Karen said, noncommital for now but not excactly uninterested.

He reached for the metal belt at his waist, pulling up some of the leather straps to heal cuts on his legs. For the most part, he had directed his attention toward the task at hand and hadn’t looked up at Karen for a long while. When he was done, though, he turned his attention to her.

“Come to think of it, your name is actually familiar to me…” he said, furrowing the brows on his handsome face as he thought up the reason. “You wouldn’t happen to be the Doctor that spends her nights with the XO, are you?”

She looked more than a little surprised at the question. She had been discrete for Andrei the whole time she was with him, despite having wanted very much to be publicly at his side. Now that he'd decided that was what he wanted, just not with her, had he been telling humiliating stories around the ship? She took a moment to remind herself she had no idea where Julius had heard it. People had doubtless seen them coming and going in the corridors from time to time. "I've spent my nights alone recently," she told him honestly.

“Well he’s under my boss presently.” Julius said with a somewhat boisterous deep chuckle. He did seem to temper it with the knowledge she probably wouldn’t find it as funny as he did. “Be honest, Karen. Are you over it or are you fucking angry?”

"I know where he is," she answered in a tone that made it clear just how unfunny she thought it was. "It's still an unhappy thought when it crosses my mind but I think about it less and less. It wasn't on my mind at all until you brought it up." She shrugged. "I'm not really the vent about the ex type and this would be a terrible setting for it if I were."

“They say the quickest way to get over one man is to get under another.” He said, as he reached for the armored sleeve he’d come in with from the holodeck program. He picked it up, turning back to her and looking every bit a capable gladiator. He shook his head. “Maybe you should give that a try instead of trying not to think about him. None of my damn business though. Anyway, I’ll get out of your hair.”

"It's a thought," she admitted. Her gaze was certainly appreciative of the figure he cut in that armored sleeve. "I know you're not going to come to Sickbay except kicking and screaming but I hope I'll see more of you around the ship, Julius."

“If you want to see me bad enough Doctor, you will.” He said, giving her a wink. He could sense her interest, and despite his own, he didn’t Perdue romance. It normally fell on him. “I’m going to get out of here. Good talking with you.”

He gave her a hungry expression but didn’t smile and said no more. He stole a glance at her body, unrestrained and unworried about offending her with his wandering eyes, and then turned to leave.

It would have been a bit hypocritical for Karen to take offense at that gaze. She had been looking at him too. Though maybe a bit of hypocrisy was called for. The man was certainly frustrating and infuriatingly sure of himself. From utterly manipulative and calculating to abrasively direct and raw? Surely there was a happy medium to be found. "We'll talk again," she decided and followed him out, heading back for her office.

END