A Little Advice

Posted on 15 Sep 2012 @ 9:10pm by Chief Warrant Officer 3 Lamar Darius & Commander Scarlet Blake

2,311 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Episode 01 - Project Sienna
Location: USS Galileo - Deck 4, Counselor's Office
Timeline: MD 09 - 1030 hrs

[ON]

Lamar tugged on his uniform jacket as he stepped out of the turbolift and onto Deck 4. It was strange; despite being the most busy and active deck on the ship, he had not spent much time there other than the occasional physical checkup in sickbay or to search for a specific crew member. Perhaps it had more to do with the nature of the deck and the fact that it housed all of Galileo's science and medical labs...and those happened to coincidentally be places that he was not especially fond of. But alas, one pressing matter had forced him into the midst of blue-collared personnel, and he walked casually down the corridor as he made his way to the counselor's office. When he arrived at the designated gray door, he paused briefly and tapped the door chime, uncertain of who or what was going on inside. He didn't want to interrupt a session already in-progress.

Scarlet glanced up from the padd, lifting her eyebrows with mild surprise. She checked the clock to make sure she hadn't lost track of time. It wasn't often she got unexpected visitors in the office. A lot of the time, it was hard enough getting booked appointments through the door. "Come in," she called out, letting the padd drop on the table as she stood lightly.

The doors parted with a swish and the chief stepped into the office. A quick glance around the room revealed a rather calm and relaxed atmosphere, with a large couch and several chairs scattered about the room. It was quite a departure from the LCARS-intensive engineering and operations offices, and it put him at ease slightly. Finally, his eyes settled on a rather attractive dark-haired counselor who stood behind her desk. A quick check of her rank pips revealed that she was an officer, and Lamar identified her as probably being Ensign Blake, the newest counselor to have arrived on board. "Good morning, ma'am." he said with a polite nod as he stepped further into the room.

"Good morning," she nodded in return smiling as she watched him, trying to place him. She moved forward to him, removing herself from the work she'd been looking at so he knew she had her full attention. She glanced to his rank and it fell into place. "Chief of Boat," she nodded with a smile, taking a breath. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Master Chief, I'm Ensign Scarlet Blake. Would you like to come in for a drink?" she offered, motioning to the sofa, but her eyes remained on him as she gave a gentle smile. It was a more delicate way of asking if he needed to talk to a counsellor.

Lamar once again glanced around, this time with a bit more hesitation. Being inside of the counselor's office made him feel slightly out of his element, but he sucked it up and tried to remain focused on his initial reasons for coming. "Um...sure..." he replied with a slow nod, then followed her lead and took a seat on the sofa. "Ice water, please." he added as he adjusted himself into a comfortable position.

Scarlet moved back to him with a glass for each of them, taking the seat opposite him. "Here we are," she caught her breath as she sat back, crossing her legs as she watched him with a small smile. Her eyes shone as she took him, tilting her head gently. "I don't bite," she promised, but with an edge of humour to try and tempt him into a real smile and ease the atmosphere. "Just the same as any other crew member."

"Thanks." he replied as he took the glass from her then drank a long swig of the cool water. After setting the cup down, he looked back up and held her gaze for a long moment before giving her a small smile. "Well, I'm actually here because I need a bit of advice....with relationships." he said. He wasn't sure if she was the right person to be talking to relationship advice, but figured that she was as qualified as anyone else on the ship. And like Lilou, she was a woman, so it would probably help to get her perspective on the situation.

"Ah," Scarlet nodded with realisation, flashing him an easy smile as she leant back comfortably in her chair, so she wouldn't be too crowding for him. "One of the most awkward things to talk about, right? But one of the things we need to talk about most," she chuckled gently, understanding all too well. "Is it about a relationship you already have?" she asked, starting slow so he could take his time to work out what he wanted and needed to say.

He nodded in reply, then quickly stopped and tilted his head in thought as he attempted to explain the situation to the best of his ability. "Well...that's sort of the problem, I guess...I'm not exactly sure if we are technically in a relationship. But we enjoy each others company...at least I thought so." he explained, then paused a moment to take another long swig of water. "For a while I was getting the feeling that there was something a bit strange with her. A couple times when we were hanging out, she had a mild panic attack. Well, that's what I thought it was, but I don't know too much about such things so I sort of shrugged it off. And then with all the recent stress from combat..." his voice trailed off as he started to ramble a bit.

Scarlet smiled gently, shaking her head. "No, keep going, you're working it out as you go. Has it felt as if the signs of stress have been related or because of your closeness with her? Or do you think it's stemming from outside factors?"

"A little of both, I suppose." he answered with a shrug. "I really didn't think much of it until right after the attack, just attributed it to combat stress, you know? But then...something happened, and she admitted to me that she's a bit...prejudiced against Marines. And well, I happen to be a former one, like yourself, so you can imagine it's been a little strange for me lately." he added with a sigh.

Scarlet nodded, a slight frown coming to her at the words. She could relate to it; sometimes the perception of marines wasn't as good as it could be, which she'd always thought was a shame. "How did it make you feel?" she asked quietly, trying to establish what, exactly, the effect had been on him.

Lamar considered her question for a moment. "Honestly, it didn't upset me too badly...wouldn't be a good Marine if I didn't have thick skin." he answered with a small grin, then took another drink of water from his glass before setting it back down. "But it's frustrating to know that she sees me in a different light simply because of my career background."

"Did you explain that to her?" she asked gently, holding his eyes. It was an understandable frustration. Especially if it felt misplaced. Who a person was and what they did were often two separate things that crossed over in life.

"Yes..." he replied, then changed his mind. "Well, somewhat." he admitted, "I told her not to judge an entire group of people based on just a few people's actions...and I think she knows that...but still, I feel like sometimes there is a part of me, the Marine part, that she doesn't approve of."

"Perhaps you should tell her openly that it made you feel a little upset and frustrated, and maybe uncomfortable?" she suggested lightly, watching for a reaction to see if she was on the right path. "Maybe it will help her see it from your side of things too. Which is just as 'human' and vulnerable as hers," she chuckled softly, glancing down. "And yes, even marines are allowed to have a vulnerable side," she smiled back to him. "Even though we don't like to admit it all the time. But sometimes being urged to look at something from the other person's perspective can be useful. It might even help her move forward a little."

The chief shook his head. "Perhaps. I'm not too worried about my own feelings, doc. No offense," he began, "I'm probably more worried about Lil--I mean, her." he explained, slipping up and almost breaking the anonymity of the conversation. "I don't know if it's healthy to keep such ill feelings suppressed and bottled up inside."

"Generally, the answer's no," Scarlet replied honestly and bluntly. She didn't need to sugarcoat anything for him. He was clearly a no nonsense, practical man. "You could, perhaps, urge her to talk it out with a counsellor. However, a person has be to ready and willing to explore it for themselves. If she's not, it could make her less willing than ever to talk about it, more likely to bury it, if she feels she's being pushed into it," she shook her head with a slight frown. "Have you broached the subject of her talking this through with a counsellor?"

"Do you think that's a good idea?" he asked hesitantly, remembering the secretive and threatening nature of her incident. She had told him that she couldn't discuss it with anyone, that no one would believe her; the word of an enlisted engineer versus that of an XO's. "I'm not too sure she wants to tell anyone about it. Hell, she barely managed to tell me after I confronted her."

Scarlet nodded with a frown, thinking it over. It was always a delicate balance and everyone was so different. "It sounds then as if she's still very closed off about it. And the last thing you want to do is make her feel she can't trust you if she feels you're pressurising her, although I know you wouldn't," she met his eyes, giving a slight nod. "Perhaps it's something you could broach a little yourself?" she suggested. "She clearly trusts you. She's got through that difficult first step of just telling you about it all. Perhaps if you broached it gently, she would feel comfortable opening up a little about it to you. If you were willing of course. It's amazing how much healing can be done from just getting some of that poison out of the wound, even if it's just a little at a time to someone who cares rather than a professional. And of course, we can always support you."

Lamar considered the counselor's advice for a long moment. "Perhaps. But from what I understand, her problem is rather...complex, and seems as though it's causing her a lot of emotional turmoil. Especially as of late." he said, then paused to take another drink of water before setting the glass back down. "I don't know, maybe you're right. I don't really want to bring up the issue with her since it seems to be a sensitive subject, but I wouldn't feel right if I just sat there and did nothing."

"Of course," Scarlet nodded with understanding, frowning seriously as she met his eyes. "No one would expect you to give her therapy, or even guidance if you didn't feel you could. But you'd be amazed at how much just sitting with her and listening might do. Letting her start to get some of it out, and knowing there's someone who cares enough to sit quietly and give her the time to just listen, to say it's important that she does, because she deserves to be happy and free of the pain," she shook her head gently, letting out a long breath. It wouldn't be easy either way, for either of them. "And you never know, getting over that first barrier, talking to you, might help her consider going the extra step to a therapist."

A long moment passed before the chief responded. "I see your point." he said, silently in agreement with her. "Baby steps, right?" he said with a small grin.

Scarlet returned the smile easily, giving a brisk, firm nod to the military man. "Always the baby steps."

He rubbed his hands on his legs, happy that the session had so far been productive. He was worried going in that it would have been rather uncomfortable, but the counselor in front of him had been welcoming and hospitable. "Well, thanks for the advice, ma'am. I was a bit worried that this would be a bit...awkward, but I like your suggestions."

Scarlet shook her head with a soft chuckle, standing gently as she took the cue he was ready to leave. "Trust me, all of us find relationships and personal dilemmas awkward to talk about. You come back and find me whenever you want, okay? Even if just to get a bit of support in the situation."

Lamar smiled one last time and gave her an affirmative nod, then rose to his feet and smoothed down the front of his uniform jacket. He took one final long swig out of his glass and set it back down on the table. "You got it, doc. I appreciate your time." he said, then gave her a mock salute and headed towards the exit and out into the hallway with a swish of the doors.

Scarlet watched him leave with a small smile, folding her arms lightly. There was nothing as frustrating and difficult as knowing someone you cared about was pain, but not quite knowing how to ease it. She hoped they could work it out one way or another.

[OFF]

--

MCPO Lamar Darius
Chief of the Boat
USS Galileo
NPC'd by Lirha Saalm

Ensign Scarlet Blake
Counsellor
USS Galileo

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