Pros and Pretzels

Posted on Wed Mar 13th, 2024 @ 7:01pm by Lieutenant Xex Wang & Ensign Mei Ratthi
Edited on on Thu Mar 14th, 2024 @ 5:06pm

Mission: Mean Green Queen
Location: Deck Four: Mess Hall
Timeline: Mission Day 5 at 1430

Mission Day 5
Deck Four: Mess Hall
1430

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Xex was craving something, but he wasn’t sure exactly what it was he wanted. Food, of some kind, but did he want salty or sweet? Something bitter? Bittersweet?

Probably not the last. He was rarely in the mood for things either bittersweet or sweetbitter. He had enough of those in the medical profession and rarely wanted them to carry over to his food, his personal life, or anything else that didn’t pertain to medicine. Let the younger generations drink the bitter dregs and feast on the drama it provided. He was too old and too tired to want to deal with any of that anymore.

Unless there was a compelling reason for it.

He snorted. Jex and the rest of the children would chide him for getting so philosophical- especially when he was simply after a snack. So he focused on his original question: what was he craving? He still couldn’t figure it out by the time he entered the mess hall and decided that perhaps a tray of samples would be in order. If he couldn’t figure out what he wanted by the end of that, then it wasn’t food he wanted, and he had a different problem altogether.

The hall was quiet at this time of day. Mid-way through a shift, those who’d come in after finishing work had left, and those coming in before the next shift hadn’t arrived yet, leaving but a handful of people who apparently had nothing better to do than linger over a meal while they read or watched something on their PADDs.

It was quiet enough that, though Xex wasn’t paying attention to much but his own thoughts, he still heard a soft ‘ow’ and could quickly pinpoint the source of the pained expression: one Ensign Mei Ratthi, who sat at a nearby table with a hand pressed to her mouth while she glared down at a cup of something steaming.

“Are you alright, Ensign?” he asked.

Ratthi looked up in surprise like she’d been caught doing something she shouldn’t have been. “Oh, I’m fine.” She rubbed her upper lip with her thumb, and her cheeks reddened. “It’s just, you know, when you order ‘black coffee, hot’, it’s good to remember that your coffee will be hot. I think I burned the roof of my mouth a bit. That’s all. I’ll survive.”

"I should hope so," Xex replied, one corner of his mouth curling with amusement, "I'm not prepared for any lifesaving just now." Jerking his chin at her steaming mug, he inquired, "Can I get you something to go with that?" While it was undeniably a polite request, there was something just a little desperate to it, as though he were hoping particularly hard that the answer would be 'yes,' and then the decision about what to eat would be made for him.

"I guess?" She blinked at the mug and the blank spot on the table next to it like she hadn't realized there was no food there. "Some strawberries? And pretzels. Yeah, I think that'll do. Thank you! I've been a little preoccupied. Hadn't actually thought about eating. In the place where we go to eat."

Xex ticked the two requests off on his fingers, and said, "You got it," his own preoccupied expression easing considerably now his own decision was as easily made as hers. He put the order into the replicator, and it hummed pleasantly until the food-- and a steaming mug-- appeared in the slot. Xex scooped all the dishes onto a tray and carted them back to Mei's table, half-sliding into a chair across from her and then pausing at the last moment, "May I?"

"Of course!" she said brightly, stowing the stylus she'd been toying with and turning her PADD's screen off to give him her full attention.

A pleased smile eased Xex's silvery features and he finished seating himself, sliding one bowl of strawberries, and one of pretzels across the table to Mei, and keeping an identical meal for himself. The steaming mug, he left alone, giving it a stern stare. "Fool Mei once, shame on you. I shall not be making the same mistake." With that, he plucked a strawberry and popped it into his mouth. Chewing contemplatively, he cocked his head to the side, and observed around the strawberry, "That is some preoccupied if you're forgetting to eat. What's on your mind?"

"Nothing much. Just the future. My career and where it's going. Little things," she said, tucking an errant curl behind her ear before selecting a pretzel to nibble on. "I mean, I know what I want to do, it's just a question of whether I want to do it now or later. Initially, I thought I'd just do it later. There was so much to do when I came aboard Sojourner , what with the data that needed compiling and cataloging, and then the whole thing with Shaddam IV and the dust and . . . everything else, there didn't seem to be enough time, but since we got back from that station, it kind of feels like I should do it now, you know? Get things started before it's too late."

Xex had to give the young ensign points for ignoring his amused snort. 'Nothing much, just the future.' Not like that encompassed the whole of an individual's potential, the inherent promise lying as yet unrealized in each being... nothing like that. Shaking off the philosophy that seemed to keep sneaking into his thoughts, he popped a pretzel into his mouth. "Well, I will say this," Xex said, swallowing his crunchy bite of pretzel and frowning slightly, as though to better understand the dry, salty taste that slid past his tongue. Almost visibly shaking himself from the sensation, he continued, "Hukatuse Tugamik was many very interesting things, but I'm not sure I would have classed 'inspiring,' as one of them. Until now, of course." He took up his mug and tipped it toward her in salute, intending to take a cautious sip. By the time it reached a few millimeters from his face, however, he was quite certain it was still too hot, and abandoned the exercise, opting for another strawberry instead. "Too late for what?" he asked, with genuine curiosity, "What things are you intending to start?"

"My doctoral program." Xex's brows arched with interest and a hint of surprise; she seemed so young! But then, it was for the young to have ambition. Anxious to make sure he didn't interrupt her, he smoothed his features and popped another strawberry into his mouth as she continued. "I finished up my master's degree not so long before I got here. Command was kind enough to let me defer my first posting for a couple of years so I could study with the Aenar. Two whole years in the Andorian wastes. Sounds awful, but it was worth it. I got to liking arctic places after a while." Mei popped a strawberry in her mouth, though that didn't do much to hide a nostalgic smile. When she'd swallowed, she went on. "I thought I'd wait for a while to start the next phase, until I'd had some more practical experience, but I've been on two away missions so far, and on the first I saw a crewmate die, and on the second I saw another crewmate almost die. Mortality. Kind of makes you stop and reassess things, doesn't it?"

Xex had lifted his mug to try again not to scald his mouth but froze in place as she mentioned the Aenar. "You... studied with the Aenar? What an opportunity, Mei!" Xex's enthusiasm appeared entirely genuine, his gray eyes alight with interest. He nearly vibrated, as though he was finding it difficult to stay in his seat. Certainly, he was squirming around like a hyperactive five-year-old. He carefully put his mug down so as not to spill it. "Tell me about the wastes. Surely you didn't actually--" Xex cut off, and with a visible effort, he reigned in his curiosity, grabbing a handful of pretzels and popping them into his mouth in an effort to stem the flow of his questions. The somber bent of Mei's explanation did not lend itself to being grilled about her postgraduate studies.

In fact, in contrast to his earlier struggles, his expression dropped unprompted into seriousness. Although he dealt with mortality more than your average humanoid, it was the nature of his work to postpone that inevitable fate, even as he accepted that inevitability. It was a juxtaposition he once rebelled against, and now simply struggled with. Daily. Mei though, would not have yet had years to grapple with these uncertainties, and her reassessment seemed entirely reasonable. "It does," Xex agreed of the reassessment after a somewhat painful-looking swallow of his mouthful of pretzels. He washed it down with the coffee, which was not still hot enough to scald, but not yet cool enough to be comfortable to drink, if his grimace was any indication. His sober expression lightened as one corner of his lips lifted in a half-smile. "What is it the ancient humans said? About seizing time? Certainly I subscribe to the theory of 'no time like the present.' You plan to start your studies on board, I hope?"

Mei's eyes widened at the barrage of questions like she was startled she'd inspired such an outpouring. "Carpe diem is the phrase you're looking for, I think. Seize the day," she said, picking the last few to answer. "And yes, I'd have to start here, since my assignment here lasts for a while yet. You're stuck with me for now. I just can't decide if I should go ahead and start or wait some more. Post-grad degrees are a bit time-consuming. And it's not like I have all the time in the world here. But the idea of being Doctor Ratthi is tantalizing. So. I don't know. I've been thinking about it almost non-stop since we got back. It seems like there are pros and cons on both sides, and I'm just stuck in the middle. The very indecisive middle."

"Well," Xex said matter-of-factly, "I'm quite certain you would make an excellent Doctor Ratthi. As for how to go about doing it..." A contemplative look settled over his features, and he drummed the blunt fingers of one hand on the tabletop while sipping at his coffee with the other. "I do believe this is the perfect case for a classic 'pros and cons,' in this case we shall set it out as 'pros and cons for starting your study here on the ship.'" he said with a slight uplift of tone, arching his brows at her as if for permission. At her amused nod, he grinned back and abandoned his coffee mug to the edge of the table before sliding all four bowls of comestibles closer to himself. He combined all the strawberries into one bowl, then all the pretzels into a second bowl, heedless of whether or not Mei was still eating hers. Plucking a strawberry, he said, "Pro: you are on your way to becoming Doctor Ratthi much quicker." He dropped the strawberry into an empty bowl. "Con: Your free time will invariably be taken up with study," he said with grave certainty and a very serious look at her, as though to say, 'trust me, I know.' As he was already 'Doctor Wang,' it was likely that he did. He dropped a pretzel into the second empty bowl and lifted his eyebrows at her in invitation.

Her lips twisted as she contemplated the collections of strawberries and pretzels. Then she picked up a pretzel and dropped it into its corresponding bowl. "Con: a lack of free time means I'll have more trouble making friends on the ship. And I do want to make more friends." She rested her chin in one hand and stared down at the strawberries, coffee cop in her other hand as she pondered the next point. After a few moments, she picked up a berry and put it in its proper bowl. "Pro: there's a lot to be learned out here, and my doctoral work would mean I would get to share more of it with the academic community."

"Pro: you would have an excellent excuse to get out of away missions," Xex said, with a lively twinkle to his eye as he plopped a strawberry into its bowl, then held up a cautionary finger, "should you want it." He reached out for another strawberry, but paused, hand hovering over the bowl. "If you were to wait, where would you most likely be completing your studies after the Sojourner? Home, perhaps? Or back to the Andorian Wastes?" His lips twitched, but he managed to control an outright grin at the suggestion.

"You're really interested in the Andorian Wastes, aren't you?" Mei grinned brightly for a moment. But her smile quickly dimmed. "That's a problem I hadn't thought of. My family moved around so much when I was growing up that nowhere really feels like home. Betazed, maybe? We stayed there for about six years when I was little. Otherwise, there's nowhere, really. Makes me a citizen of the galaxy, but it also makes it hard find a home base, as it were. So I guess that is another pro for the bowl." She reached over and put another strawberry in its place. "I won't have to search for a place to conduct my studies from like I would if, say, I waited 'til I got out of Starfleet."

Xex's hands clutched the edge of the table, as though to stop himself springing to his feet. His silvery features were alive with interest. "I've never been," he explained earnestly of his interest in the Wastes. Almost visibly, he shook himself and firmly reigned in his curiosity. This conversation was about Mei's future, not her past. There would be time for that later; after all, it wasn't as if they lived far apart. Nodding as she plopped the strawberry into its bowl, he hummed contemplatively. "What about your fellow anthropologists aboard? Will they be a help or a hindrance to you?" he asked, hand hovering back and forth over the two bowls.

"I hope they'll be a help, even if it's just defining some term or other. I know Starfleet people are just as flawed as anyone else, but they don't seem like the type to try to sabotage my career out of jealousy or something. So I guess that's another pro? Having help near to hand if I need it?" She dropped another strawberry into the bowl. "We keep this up, we're going to run out of strawberries. Which, I guess, is part of the point. Although, now that I think of it, I have colleagues nearby, but I won't exactly have a thesis advisor nearby. And given how long it can take communications to get back and forth between us and the Alpha Quadrant, that distance is a definite con." There was a soft 'clink' as a pretzel dropped into the 'con' bowl. "But then again, didn't Ensign Balsam finish up his Academy studies here? So all this can be done. It's just trickier than being there in person. I really sound like I'm talking myself into doing this, aren't I?"

As Xex listened with every evidence of intentness, a little smile appeared on his lips. It only widened as Mei continued, until he was full-on grinning by the time the rhetorical question was asked. And if there was one thing Xex loved to do, it was answer rhetorical questions seriously. He looked very carefully into each bowl, and if anything, his grin widened. "I believe the evidence speaks for itself," he said, gesturing expansively at the bowls, like someone unveiling a prize. "Although this experiment is obviously subjective, so too is the question we are answering. I have found the wisest course to almost always be listening to that little voice that is trying to talk me into-- or out of-- something. Pursuing your studies on board might not be the easiest option, but for myriad reasons," he nodded at the bowls, "perhaps it is the best?"

"I'm starting to think so," Mei said, selecting one of the remaining strawberries and popping it into her mouth. She chewed slowly, gaze distant while she thought something over. "I mean, studying for your doctorate isn't easy, no matter when or where you're doing it. So I've heard. So I might as well start where I've got a place to live and people to help me out while I'm doing it. I'm always going to be busy with something while I'm doing this, so maybe it will take longer. But that's okay. If I get the degree at the end of it, does it matter if it takes three years, or four?" She shrugged, then looked back up at Xex and grinned. "I suppose it's time to find that application and fill it out so I can get it sent out."

"Exactly!" Xex agreed, following her lead and popping the last remaining strawberry into his mouth. Around the juicy fruit, he said, "Even if it takes four years, at least you won't be stuck someplace boring." Certainly his time in the Delta Quadrant thus far could not have been described as boring. Swallowing the berry his face took on an almost-painful looking expression that was both hesitant and enthusiastic at once, as though he wanted to ask her something, but wasn't entirely sure how. Falling back on habit, he dove in directly. "Would you... like help?"

Mei hesitated for a moment and looked like she was about to say 'no', then stopped. "Yes. I would love some help. I should get used to asking for that, since it's going to take a lot of help to get through it." She laughed, and it sounded half-nervous and half-relieved. "So. Where do we start?"



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A post by

Lt. Xex Wang
Chief Medical Officer

and

Ensign Mei Ratthi
Anthropologist