Post 18 - Sleepless in Suraya

Posted on Tue Feb 16th, 2021 @ 11:37pm by Andrew Munro

Mission: The Waiting Game
Location: Suraya Bay, Risa
Timeline: Shore Leave Day 2: 1900 Hours

[ Bayside Apartments ]
[ Suraya Bay, Risa ]
[ Shoreleave Day 2: 1900 Hours ]

The hot humid air felt like it was dragging Andrew down, impeding his climb up the stairs to his apartment. It'd been a long day at the lab and he hadn't slept well the night before. Hopefully, he would be tired enough to avoid a repeat of that tonight.

The door gave a confirmatory chime as it verified his identity and slid open, allowing a wave of refreshingly cool, dry air from inside the apartment to wash over him. He stepped inside quickly to avoid letting too much of the hot air in. As nice as the tropical climate could be, he enjoyed having a refuge from it.

He left a trail of discarded clothes behind him as he headed for the bathroom. He'd have to pick them up later, but it felt good to just cast them off as he walked. The cool air kissed his body, but his skin still felt a bit icky, with a few layers of sweat dried onto it. A quick shower would take care of that though.

A rumble in his stomach as he emerged from the shower reminded him that he still had to eat. He didn't bother getting dressed, no point really when the air was a comfortable temperature and no-one else was present. The clothes on the floor were casually kicked to the side on his short trip over to the replicator.

"Screw it," he said to himself, deciding he was going to opt for comfort food tonight. "Large haggis supper with a double portion of chips and brown sauce. Oh, and a large glass of Irn Bru."

The plate materialized with a large cylinder of fried batter and a mound of thick-cut fries beside it. He'd tweaked his replicator settings so that it 'knew' he didn't want crisps when he ordered chips. A tall glass of fizzy, clear liquid in an unnatural shade of orange appeared alongside it. He carried both over to the coffee table and flumped himself down onto the sofa.

He checked his messages again like he'd been doing several times an hour all day long. The twinge of excitement at the new message indicator soon faded as they were revealed to be work messages. One request for access to lab equipment and two meeting requests. He sighed and countered the disappointment with a mouthful of batter encrusted spicy offal.

The previous night he had lain in his bed, alone, staring at the ceiling. He had tried closing his eyes but the events from that afternoon kept playing in his head. The handsome stranger with the hypnotic yellow eyes that he'd met at the barbecue. Beefy, hairy, strong and interested or so it had seemed. The man had returned his flirting and had even led him down to the ocean where they had kissed.

In his mind, he could still smell the man's musk, feel the texture of his tongue and feel the strong hand where it had braced and held the back of his skull. Even in memory, it felt deep, it felt glorious. 'Björn' had been his name. It seemed so appropriate since it was the Nordic word for 'bear'. "He could maul me anytime," Andrew thought. The kiss had come close to it.

But Björn had pulled back after that kiss. It was true that any longer and they would have been missed at the barbecue, but something was wrong. Just as he'd sensed the connection between them, he'd sensed a distancing between them at that moment. Had he pushed too far, too fast? Had he been too clingy? He kept asking himself if he'd done something wrong but then again he hadn't gotten any signals to suggest that was the case before that point. Perhaps they were leaving? But he was sure that they'd said they were staying a couple of weeks. What went wrong? The question tugged at his mind, insisting that it be answered, but only one person had that answer and it wasn't him.

Eventually, he found sleep in a bottle. A nice Tamnavulin from 2385 that he'd acquired via his Ferengi neighbor. A few glasses of the whisky had relaxed his body and eased his mind allowing sleep to take him. It seemed like a great idea at the time, but today had been rough

Björn had suggested meeting again, but may have been trying to spare his feelings. Andrew was sure that Björn wanted to but didn't know if he would. So he checked his messages again and again, hoping for the best.

Only a few chips were left on the plate now but the meal was sitting heavy in his stomach. Andrew opted to leave them and downed the remainder of the orange beverage instead. It was still fizzy though and only served to increase the pressure in his stomach. A belch burst out of him and echoed around the apartment, relieving the pressure and leaving him with a sense of satisfaction. Andrew's eyelids felt heavier. It was still early, but he wondered if he should take advantage of his drowsiness to catch up on sleep.

The chime of a new message arriving interrupted Andrew's thoughts. Excitement banished all drowsiness in an instant. There it was.
Björn Kodak. Andrew realized that he hadn't even known the man's last name. He played the message and the excitement intensified. Not only was the suggestion of brunch or dinner there, but the smile was there again. More than a smile! A grin, and a double-entendre! Whatever the problem had been, Andrew wasn't sensing it anymore.

Andrew quickly brushed the crumbs from his beard and invoked the reply function on the message. "Björn!" he began, not even attempting to conceal his excitement. "Great to hear from you! I am working tomorrow, but I'd love to meet you for dinner afterward. How do you feel about Mexican? A few guys at the lab have been going on about a place they found over in the resort on Isle Delfino, I think it's called 'Cocina de Carlos'. Let me know if you fancy it and I'll book a table. Would 7 pm be ok?". Andrew realized that he was grinning and consciously tried to reign it in. "Anyway, let me know," Andrew finished the message with a suggestive wink before hitting 'Send'.

Andrew composed a second message, text only this time, requesting a day off for the day after tomorrow. Whatever happens tomorrow night, it wasn't going to be cut short because he had work the next day.

With that done, Andrew made his way into the bedroom and lay on top of the bed, staring at the spot on the ceiling that was so familiar from the night before. His thoughts were now going over what could happen tomorrow, with a degree of excitement. It seemed that he wasn't going to be sleeping any time soon tonight either.

=/\= A mission post by... =/\=

Andrew Munro
Biologist and Furry Floozy