PL - Roomies (Aboard The Aldrin Part 1)
Posted on Fri Mar 17th, 2023 @ 3:05am by Ensign Kato Reon
651 words; about a 3 minute read
PL - Roomies (Aboard The Aldrin Part 1)
By Ensign Kato Reon
Reon beamed aboard the USS Aldrin. He was taken to his quarters which was on a lower deck by a red-shirted Trill junior-grade Lieutenant. He entered his quarters and when he walked in, he was overcome with the smell of what seemed to be some kind of food. There was some smoke that made the air a little cloudy, and some heat radiated from the direction of the back. The smell became stronger as he walked closer. It reminded him of the food he tried at a Tellarite Restaurant on Earth his second year at the Academy. It was not pleasing and made him somewhat tense up as he went to the corner.
There was a human male in a blue shirted uniform who looked like he was cooking something between two heaters and two pans. He was wearing an apron over his uniform. The man was almost Reon's height. He had tanned brown skin and neatly combed black hair. By the way he was moving between the two pans and handling the instruments to cook what he was cooking, also while trying to handle spices to put into them, he saw Reon standing there and somewhat became startled, "Oh! Didn't see you there."
"I apologize if I startled you," Reon told him, "I'm Kato Reon. I'm going to take a guess and say I'm your new roommate."
"Ah," the Human put the instruments down, turned off the heaters, patted his hands together, then approached him with his right hand extended, "I'm Mario Ortega. And yeah, looks like we're roomies."
Reon took his hand and gripped it, then looked over his shoulder, "Uh... What is it you were... Uhm, cooking? There... If I may ask."
"Huh?" Ortega said, then turned back to look at the smoking pans, then back to him, "Oh! Right. Uh, actually... You want the truth?"
"Well, let me start by asking you this... Do you normally cook like this every night?" Reon asked him, hoping he would say no because the smell was not palatable.
"No way. Actually...." he sighed, "There's someone on the ship I've been trying to... Curry favor with... And she told me, in passing, that she always had a thing for men who know how to cook. Especially if it's Anjori Calb Steaks and Kelbeh Pancakes. What you saw was... my first attempt, which you probably can tell, wasn't going great."
Reon gave out a smile, "Ah, trying to work your way into the heart of a lady through her stomach, eh?"
"You know the saying?"
"I've heard that a lot from my human friends while I was at the academy... and from some programs I've used on the Holodecks over the years."
"I've really really wanted to get close to her for over two months," Ortega admitted, "Now that I know that she and Lieutenant Brewster broke up, I think I can go in for my moment. I hope you're okay with me, doing a little trial and error with the cooking until I get it right."
Reon shrugged, "No problem. You might want to use the environmental controls to absorb the smoke though. Anymore, you'll probably trigger the fire suppression system."
"Right."
"Well, it was nice to meet you, Mario. Which one is my little room?"
"The one on the left. I have the one on the right."
"Great. Thanks," Reon said. He turned around and started toward his new room, then he turned around once more when he was a few feet away from his door, "By the way, are there any other things I need to know about you, other than the fact you're willing to go to great lengths to win ladies over?"
Ortega chuckled, "Uh... I don't think so."
"Just making sure." Reon smiled back, then turned and proceeded to his new room.
TBC
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