Chemicals and Other Distractions

Posted on Mon Jul 3rd, 2023 @ 9:36pm by Lieutenant JG Gwenwyn Marwol & Ensign Noah Balsam & Lieutenant Irynya

Mission: On the Road Again
Location: Junior Officers' Quarters; Elsewhere
Timeline: Mission Day 3 at 0010

[0200 Hours]

Sleep.

It was not forthcoming. Noah Balsam turned his head and stared at the lightly shadowed privacy field he'd so long erected between his half and Margarar's half of the room. He'd recently been trying to exercise the notion that it simply did not matter what he did: he and Margarar were never going to be anything but cool coworkers. He was in the process of accepting it.

But looking at that field, muted like a shadow filter over the body of the sleeping Antican, that was not what was keeping him up. It was just ideas. Too many ideas. Too many songs to work to on repeat, revisiting their lyrics in a stubborn mind when he should have been sound asleep. Noah, who laid on his back, scratched his chest. It was the last, even possibly psychosomatic, itch of a healed laceration.

For the thirteenth- no, fifteenth- time he revisited the same loop: would the smart probes work, had he built their systems to a nominal spec? Were there even a few milimeters he could have squeezed away from one component, to boost another. He turned over and for the fifteenth time that night, his face was cast in blue white. His fingers worked over a transparent drafting PADD, its bezels and drafted lines aglow in light blue. He sighed because- for the fifteenth time- he felt like he was right and yet, it was fleeting.

Noah tapped the PADD off and fluttered his eyes closed. He needed sleep. Stims made him jittery. Had he missed any a scrap of a millim- NO. STOP. He said in his mind. His eyelids tightened. It was hard to stop a spinning mind. A few things did it: music. Tibetan bells. Masturbation. A quick walk. Noah decided on the last one. He'd try the next to last if it didn't work. Noah was up. he planted his feet. He found PJ bottoms which, across his cheeks read, "1) Pajamas. 2) Pancakes." He found a shirt- a billowy tanktop. He didn't bother with shoes or socks. And he headed out into the low warm light of a night shift corridor.

[Simultaneously out in the corridors]

If she was moving there was no chance she would fall asleep. And if she didn't fall asleep she wouldn't have nightmares. That's what Irynya told herself, at least, as she paced the low lit corridors of the Sojourner.

In reality she knew even if she did fall asleep she would get at most an hour before the nightmares recurred and woke her. Walking wasn't keeping her awake so much as keeping her busy.

There were other options, of course. Wear herself out, something she could do much more efficiently at either the gym or in one of Timmoz's Holodeck programs. She'd considered both, but even then she didn't want to chance it. She could visit Debbie, too. See if she had anything strong enough to put her out. That, though, would chance a hangover and might just mean nightmares without the relief of waking.

She sighed, turning right at a junction and making for the turbolift at the end of the corridor. This was new. Nightmares after a mission ending with conflict were her usual. She knew what she needed to do.

Pausing next to the lift she scrubbed at her eyes, squeezing them shut only to be met with a mishmash of gruesome images. Kestrel with her mangled foot who morphed into Marti and then back. Chaali being yanked out of a pod by a Vidiian, Noah, somehow being yanked with her. His ear torn and torso rent with gashes. Sheldon on his knees on a dirt floor, a sword descending on his neck. Despite herself, her eyes flew open and with them the doors of the turbolift parted.

With a long, low released breath, heart pounding, she stepped inside. The doors whispered shut and delayed, waiting for her request.

But it was only a few moments later that they opened again. Long and lanky Noah swiveled inside, freezing just inside the lift. His hair, a messy reflection of it's usual shagginess. A tanktop. And strange pajama pants with bare feet. "Hi," he squeaked. His voice broke like he was still lodged in puberty- which made him grimace. "Um. Can't sleep?"

Startled, the Risian blinked once and then again, a warm affection for the deer-in-headlights stick bug that had stepped into the middle of her mental spiral. A beat late she shook her head, a small smile on her face. "Yeah. Haven't slept much since we got back. You too?"

Almost playfully feminine and genteel, Noah rested his hands behind his butt and leaned into the wall of the turbolift. His ankles crossed, his upper body leaned toward Irynya with a touch of engagement. "Curse of the Engineer. I'm going o-over a build in my head. Over and over," Noah admitted. "Obsessive compulsive... I-I guess. Thanks for the help with the um, Kazon shuttle. Part." His eyes narrowed. "Why-why are you up?"

Alarmingly, as Noah leaned toward her Irynya's body reminded her of the alternative options for sleep that she had already discarded. She pushed that thought to the back of her mind. She'd deal with her body's betrayal of her later. She was too tired to do more than recognize that Noah was a safe place for her and so she relaxed easily into connection with him, in ways that she knew could prove alarming to him from previous experience.

His question of her drew her attention away from her temptation to fixate on him and back to the reasons they were both there. "I was glad to help," she commented, stalling. "You can ask me for help on fancy flying things anytime." Her mouth curved into a wry half small as she said that before she sighed, hands finding each other in front of her. She laced her fingers together and ran the thumb of her right hand roughly down the pointer finger of her left as if the physicality of that motion would help. "Curse of an anxious person," she finally answered. "Nightmares are back. I was just thinking about seeing if someone in sickbay would give me a sleep aid." She didn't add that she knew about those from Kennedy and the times when he had needed them to address his own nightmares.

Noah's eyes followed the small movements of the Risian, still in his receptive but planted lean from the wall. "Have you um... seen Bracco? About it? Them, I mean?" His eyes squinted and he waved a hand. "I mean if-if she helps. Sorry." He looked at the door. They still weren't moving. "Um, deck two." He stated. Whining to a gradual build up of speed, the lift went into motion, toward Sickbay- and Bracco's office as well.

"Not yet," Iry admitted, "I have an appointment though. So I will." She studied her fingers then looked up at the engineer, shifting so she was leaning his way as well. The move closed some of the space. "She helps, but at the moment it's just a need to sleep thing. If I can get some sleep in it'll be easier to work through." Her lips pursed, pulling her mouth to the side and she shrugged. "I always get nightmares when something goes wrong on a mission."

Before Noah could fully formulate his answer, the turbolift was easing to a stop. The doors whispered open to a long corridor- and the personage of Lieutenant Marwol. Noah glanced at Irynya and then out.

Gwenwyn had announced to his commanding officer off his decision to disembark from the Sojo, or what Gwenwyn called "The ship of dreams" During his voyage he dreamt of bygone eras where he was once aboard the Adelphi as a General Surgeon. Dawning nothing but the basic uniform.

The turbolift doors whooshed open, and 2 humanoids exited and walked down the corridor, knowing he wouldn't be able to sleep after uncovering his grammatical mistakes with his resignation letter. "Can I help?" Gwenwyn called out, approaching them from behind he extended his hand and gave them his best smile with his biggest brown eyes to ease them. "Doctor Gwenwyn Marwol, all the doctors in sickbay are on standby for emergencies. They won't be focused on you."

The Risian had met ber friend's glance and then gave an almost imperceptible, albeit tired, shrug before stepping out of the lift. She recognized the Assistant Chief Medical Officer--he'd been on their last mission, but with a different team. But recognition was as far as ahe went. With two new people leading Sickbay and Iry's history with the last CMO she didn't often avail herself of Sickbay. Thankfully she hadn't really needed to. Besides, the ACMO appeared to be going elsewhere.

She paused, though, turning back at the doctor's question though how he knew they were bound for Sickbay tickled her curiosity. Were they that obvious?

"Ehm..." She began in somewhat un-Irynya-like stutter. She really was tired. She recovered quickly, though. "Lieutenant Junior Grade Irynya," she offered, extending her hand, "and... Maybe? I was hoping someone would give me a sleep aid." She made no mention of Noah's insomnia, not wanting to presume that he would want the same.

Shaking the officer's hand "You're not the first," He said, moving his hand towards the shaggier and taller person. "Lots of people are having trouble sleeping after..." He made no mention of Booth's name, not wanting to start rivers of tears. He awaited the taller person's reasoning as to why he came with her, secret lovers? Or a secret crush?

"Mi-midshipman Noah Balsam," Noah said, rubbing his hands together like a cricket which, after fidgeting and shaking the Doctor's hand, he put them under his armpits. The youth was clearly joint hypermobile and had the build of someone who had probably been raised in far less gravity than Earth. "I'm-I'm just with-" he swiveled at the hips to face Irynya, "With her. I'm. I'm fine." He nibbled his lip. "How-how're you?" He asked.

Iry noted Noah's response with a quick glance in his direction and a slight concerned narrowing of her eyes. Gratitude wound through her as well. They hadn't had time to discuss where Noah was headed or if he might want to come with her. She was glad, all the same, for his support. Beyond that she said nothing, waiting politely for Marwol's reply to her friend's question.

[Marwol]

After all the basic pleasures were done, Gwenwyn's hand motioned ahead towards Sickbay but he pushed past without brushing shoulders so he was leading the pack into Sickbay, making small talk along the way. Once he'd brought them into the medical bay, waiting area he quickly headed into a consultation room past the rows of seating.

The room was a typical 4x4 office space, designed to be efficient but comforting to the paint. Using the panel next to the door, the room's light came on, bright as a star compared to the "night mode" the ship was in. Pointing to a set of chairs beside a desk that was against the wall Gwenwyn asked "So... You say you're having trouble sleeping?" Washing his hands in the sink close by.

Blinking, Irynya glanced from the chairs to Noah and then back to the ACMO who, she noted, was sanitizing his hands. It was such a familiar gesture, that for a moment her stomach twisted in a somewhat unpleasant fashion and, with a shrug in Noah's direction she sat, perching on the edge of the chair, nervous energy suddenly coursing through her.

"Umm... yeah..." she answered slowly. "You'll see it in my file." She glanced over at Noah again, her forehead crinkling slightly with consternation. "I... umm... get these nightmares after missions where things go wrong. Uh..." Another glance then this time down to her hands which she'd returned to running a thumb roughly over her pointer finger. "Particularly when my friends are... hurt."

Anticipating the obvious question she quickly added. "I have an appointment with Dr. Bracco tomorrow, but I haven't been able to get more than an hour of sleep at a time since we got back."

"M-maybe she needs an enema," Noah tried to interject some humor. He'd sat and had done so in silence. His walk to clear his head and reset had turned into something else altogether. He'd folded his arms across his skinny body. He ducked his head and shifted a shoulder up, briefly hovering his nose under an arm. His nose wrinkled, displeased. "Sorry, old, uh, film reference." He waved a hand, dismissively good natured.

Watching Noah with the amusement of someone watching a friend do something that makes no sense Iry raised her eyebrows at his assessment of his bodily scent. "You smell like human boy," she remarked, with a chuckle. "Were you expecting roses?"

"Roses w-would've been better," Noah muttered.

Eyes rolling in amusement Iry turned her attention back to the ACMO, holding in any teasing comments about sonic showers and helping that could easily confuse someone who wasn't already familiar with the dynamics of their friendship.

Gwenwyn couldn't help but smile at what he thought was a cute couple. With the story laid out before him, it was an easy diagnosis. "Lt Irynya you have Insomnia. "He said getting straight to the point, giving no facial expression to ease her. "I'm going to give you some sleeping pills and I'll make a note to put in your time slot with Bracco tomorrow about this... Simply set a bedtime." He finished ending the discussion with a smile, ejecting himself out of his seat and strolling along the floor to the medicine cabinet he turned around and asked one final question. "Are you allergic to anything?" The computer terminal wasn't on, and this was just a small way to improve his bedside small talk.

There was a certain pleasure in being taken seriously by Marwol and Irynya graced him with a genuine smile of appreciation. "Nothing medicinal," she commented. "Just..." and then she rattled off the name of a plant native to Risa. "Makes my nose stuffy," she concluded with a sidelong glance at Noah. She couldn't help but be curious what he'd think of this mundane and yet ultra specific revelation.

Surreptitiously she elbowed Noah in the bicep, prodding him with the hard ball of her joint. He may not have claimed a need for medicinal intervention, but she knew he, too, wasn't sleeping.

Noah winced away from the bony intrusion into his almost-as-bony bicep. "Ey," he protested anemically, unsure of why she'd just elbowed him. What'd he missed, socially speaking? Noah frowned for a moment then looked on in passive support: this was after all not his business aside form being in the proverbial sidecar. He didn't know the Risian plant. He wondered if Jyl-eel Tor might have. He soon folded his arms lankily over his chest and waited, feeling self-conscious of his attire.

"Then here is your medication," Gwenwyn said passing on the small bottle as he approached the swirl chair and sat down in it. "Now, these are sleeping pills, take 1 before bed." The terminal computer was starting up and Gwenwyn gave it his full attention. "As I said, I'll make a note of this in your appointment with Dr Bracco who'll provide the care you'll need."

Nodding, Irynya shuffled the bottle away into a pocket before yawning widely. "Worst part about insomnia. You're tired... you just can't do anything about it," she murmured half to herself and half for the benefit of the two men there with her.

"Any after effects I should worry about? Like... make sure you're awake a certain amount of hours before piloting the ship?" she asked with a self-deprecating chuckle.

"Well, addiction mostly is a major effect," Gwenwyn said, pausing for a second as if he was searching the medical database he carried inside his head "Headaches, drowsiness and Diarrhea." Again pausing but awaited the budding laughter of the young child in appearance officer that sat beside her. "As for piloting, nothing should affect you but you might sleepwalk into the path of a shuttle... Yes in my experience it has happened and no they did not survive."

This time Marwol did get it. As he had stayed still and politely attentive, Noah had watched the interaction. It was his turn to bump his shoulder into Irynya's. His nose wrinkled. "I-I think the Sojourner counts as driving heavy machinery?"

Instinctively, perhaps because she was tired and Noah was comforting, she leaned into the shoulder bump rather than drawing away in mock annoyance. They were sitting close enough that she could so she adjusted slightly so that her shoulder was still brushing his and sighed. "Heavy is an understatement," she quipped wryly. "Sleepwalking is really a possible side effect?" She asked in follow on to her question, this time her tone was open and curious with perhaps a tinge of concern. She imagined herself climbing into bed with Sheldon much to her roommate's intense discomfort and dismay, or worse wandering the corridors in a state of semi-dress.

"Studies of this medication have shown increased sleepwalking activity," Gwenwyn stated, arm up on the desk, body facing his patients at the side of the cheap desk. "But the medication has Prolonged drowsiness; Depression, anxiety and boredom are the 3 major effects of using this medication long time... This is why Dr Bracco will assist you or provide a specialist with making it short-term."

Frowning again, Iry turned her head slightly so she could glance at Noah's face as if somehow he might have some kind of hidden reaction that she should be taking into account. It was a nervous and instinctual action, one she didn't even register as indicative of their closeness before she turned back to him. "How long before a shift would you recommend waking up to counterbalance the drowsiness?" She asked in follow up. "I'm... not sure I should take this tonight yet. I have an alpha shift tomorrow."

"Then take them earlier, because you will be out for a good 7 hours," Gwenwyn stated, he followed in his mother's footsteps but was in her shadow, dealing with patients who ask questions with answers is why he chose to be a surgeon, to avoid them. God had other plans.

Irynya's frown deepened, brows creasing and making the gold disc on her forehead seem to almost tuck inward along the line of the symbol at its center. She chewed the edge of her lip a moment, thinking, and then with an expression that still bore her uncertainty she nodded. "Thank you Dr. Marwol. I'll make sure I have plenty of time when I take it."

"A-are you ready to get some sleep?" Noah asked, having bowed out so patient could discuss with doctor. He smiled, albeit nervously, glancing between the Risian and the Human. He swayed up into a stand and tugged on his pajama top. He rubbed his neck.

Tired eyes lifted from the bottle in her hand to her friend and for a moment Irynya was struck with a warm appreciation bordering on relief that he had come with her when he could have chosen anything else in the moment. They both should have been sleeping after all. "Yeah," she said, answering as she got to her feet and stepped out from the confines of her chair.

She stretched as she got to her feet, shirt ever stubbornly refusing her hips, rolling up and revealing a tan strip of belly before she dropped her hands, tugging her shirt back into place almost absently. "Thank you Doctor," she said, some of the weariness in her expression creeping into her voice. "I appreciate your help."

Noah smiled a nervous smile at the ACMO with a flicker of a finger wave near his chest. "Th-thanks. I'll try and knock her out. I'll start reading from my diagnostics procedures manual to, uh, me. Too."

Whether the double entendre had been intended or not, Irynya's eyebrows popped and a catlike smile spread across her face. She moved close to Noah and threaded her hand underneath his arm, resting it on the inside of his forearm and resting her head against his bicep for a moment. "Come on," she said with a look that said all sorts of unspoken things as she leaned into the likely unintended implications.

"Good night doctor," she said and then turned, arm in arm with Noah, and made for the door.

=/\= A Sleepless Night By =/\=

Lieutenant JG Gwenwyn Marwol
Assistant Chief Medical Officer

Lieutenant JG Irynya
Assistant Chief Flight Controller

Midshipman Noah Balsam
Systems Specialist