Final Goodbyes

Posted on Thu Oct 31st, 2024 @ 8:21am by Lieutenant C'Mila Juli
Edited on on Tue Nov 5th, 2024 @ 4:54am

0 words; about a 1 minute read

Mission: Like Sands Through The Hourglass
Location: USS Luna
Timeline: Ten days prior to MD 001

Lieutenant C'Mila Juli had received word earlier in the morning that she would be transferred off of the Luna for a special assignment. Always a bit of a thrill seeker, she didn't have all of the details yet which made the prospect even more exciting.

She sat barefoot on the floor of her quarters surrounded by various things she'd been lugging around with her through the years, a large half-empty tote pushed off to the side. She hadn't seen some of this stuff in quite a while - the tote often remained tucked away in storage. Keepsakes - mementos that she never bothered to unpack. Some of the stuff she kept around were painful to look at, so she made it a point to live her life looking forward.

Pictures and trinkets from her childhood were reminders of what she had left behind when she chose a life for herself in Starfleet over her family and their ties to the Syndicate. She liked to pretend that it wasn't a painful goodbye. Actually it wasn't at first. When she was a teenager she was so certain of her principles and her place in the world and everything seemed so black and white. It was later that she started to feel the sting of the finality of those goodbyes and questioning whether or not it really had to be one or the other. Toward the end of her twenties the world started to look a little more gray and the colors seemed to blend more with each passing year, and she recognized that at 33 she was still quite young. But it was her parents who had shut that door, And Juli was too stubborn to reach out an olive branch - too afraid of getting hurt again.

She reached out and picked up a small silver disk. When she turned it on it cycled through holo-images of her with her siblings, parents, and grandparents. She had lost track of time of how long she'd been sitting there when the door chime suddenly startled her.

"Just a minute!" She called out as she wiped a tear from her cheek and hurriedly snatched up a handful of items, including the pictures and dumped them into the tote. "Dang it," she muttered to herself as she made sure nothing was out that she didn't want to explain. She was pretty sure she knew who it was, and she'd hoped to save this conversation. She placed the lid on top the container and situated herself in the middle of room before finally announcing, "Come in!"

Tyler walked in, "Hey" he said tenderly, scanning the state of her quarters noting the tote and atypical state of disarray as he entered. "Were you going to let me know at some point or was I just supposed to figure it out?"

"I just found out today. I'm sorry. I forget how small starships are sometimes," Juli replied. She was only sorry that he'd found out. "I was going to tell you."

"It's not that small. Open positions and personnel movements are kind of hard to keep from the A-Chief of Security." Tyler looked hurt, as he walked over to the pile of stuff on the floor. "I thought we were getting somewhere, Jules. You and me. I didn't even know you had put in for a transfer. Was it because of me? Did I do something wrong? You could have just said something."

Juli let out a sigh. "No, you didn't do anything. And I didn't put in for a transfer. This was - is... I was told. I don't even know the details."

Tyler seemed slightly relieved at the revelation. "But we are replacing you here. So it sounds permanent. Do we try to make this work?" He posed the question, though he didn't seem hopeful.

She went and picked up and old tunic and a sword that had been lying underneath it and moved them over to the tote.

"From Orion?" Tyler asked.

Juli looked at him with a solemn sadness. "You know I don't like to talk about that."

"I'm not asking." he put his hands up in a sign of truce.

Juli let out a sigh and looked at him apologetically. She offered her right hand for him to take. Tyler reached out and took her hand in his. He gave her a solemn nod as he led her to the couch and they sat down.

"Let me have it then," Tyler said.

"It's not like that," Juli said. "It wouldn't be fair to either of us. I don't know where I'll be, if we'd be able to see one another. And while you've been very patient with me, I know you want more from me than I've been able to give."

Tyler took a deep breath and nodded. "I'm not going to fight you over this," Tyler said calmly his blue-gray eyes still looking at her with compassion. "I love you. I don't know why. A classic case of the heart wants what it wants I guess. I know I had hoped you felt the same way. For a while it felt like you did."

Juli shook her head and started to say something but Tyler stopped her.

"It's okay. I hope you find what you're looking for. I really do. Clearly it's not me. But, you can't keep going through this life alone, Jules. I know you've been hurt and it's hard, but if you don't learn how to trust people - someone and let them in, it's not going to get any easier later."

Juli withdrew her hand and started to stare past Tyler as he talked. When there was a break she spoke up, "This is Starfleet life though, isn't it? I didn't mean to hurt you, but I'm going where I'm told. We all signed up for the adventure, and you know I was bored here."

Tyler snickered. "Right," he said standing up. Juli followed suit and started walking him to the door.

"I didn't mean... " Tyler started to say, but Juli had opened the door for him. She looked at him and into the hallway, her meaning clear without her saying a word. Tyler took the hint and left without trying to continue to say more.

Once he was gone, Juli took stock of the sight of her common room and leaned against the wall next to the door. She looked up at the ceiling and contemplated the next few days. She'd write him a note or something before she left.

Time to pack.

A Post By

Lieutenant C'amila Juli
Chief Science Officer
USS Herodotus DTI-30656

RSS Feed