Month 8 Day 30
(Shore Leave Day 1)
2020 Hours
Bugalu
Bugalu stepped off the hotel lift and stopped, surprised to
recognize the captain joking with a young couple at the entrance to the hotel
restaurant. After a moment of watching, it became apparent the 2 younger members
of the threesome were not a couple by the way they both doted on the captain’s
every word. Well, captain’s not wasting
any time getting to her relaxation. Guess I never thought about her that way
before.
The threesome moved into the restaurant, and Bugalu slowly
moved forward, a bit rueful about his dining choice for the evening. I may have gotten one of the cheapest
rooms at this hotel for the night, but I should have known at least some of the senior officers would choose
a swanky hotel at the base of the space elevator to start
their R&R. Well, too late now. As soon as Mac gets done in the salon, we’ll
have our meal and settle in for the night. She’s been awake almost 2 full days,
so she must be ready for some sleep.
“Good evening,” the hostess greeted him. “Do you have a
reservation?”
“I do,” he stated. “But I’m a little early, and my friend
isn’t here yet.”
“Would you like to wait here or at your table?”
There were a few chairs lining the wall; he’d be able to see
Mac when she arrived. “I’ll wait here, thank you.”
He hadn’t been sitting for more than a minute or two when a
commotion brought his attention to the hostess' station, where a beautiful redhead
clutched at the marble-topped podium before lurching out into the hotel lobby.
“Mac!”
She whirled to face him. The slit skirt swung around her
legs, and she wobbled on the extreme heels of her shoes. “Bugs!” He hurried
forward and she crushed him in an embrace. “Let’s go! I have to get out of
here!”
Without eating?
“What’s wrong? What happened?”
Her face was pressed against his neck. He could feel every
shudder of her body, every time she wobbled uncertainly on her extra tall shoes.
“I don’t feel well,” she groaned. “I may be sick.”
“Take your shoes off and get on the elevator.” He scooped up
her heels as she ran for the lift. On the 2nd floor, he rushed down the hall,
leading her to the room he had rented. Holding the door open, he pointed her
toward the bathroom. He could hear her retching and wondered if she needed him
to hold her hair out of the way. No,
she’s got it up. He glanced at the heels he still held, placed them next to
her duffel bag in the open closet area. They
match her dress perfectly. And what a dress! Never thought I’d ever see her in
a dress like that. Her father wouldn’t approve. Space, Matt would have had a melt-down, and his thoughts on women had started to mellow by the time she got to
the Academy.
The retching had stopped. After another couple minutes, he
heard a subdued, “Bugs?”
He stepped to the open bathroom door. “How can I help?”
“Could you... put me to bed?”
He helped her climb to her feet. “Maybe I should call
MacGregor.”
Her legs seemed to wobble as she walked. “I’m pretty sure
it’s something I drank,” she answered.
“What did you drink?”
“I don’t know. He wasn’t drinking whiskey.” Having reached
the side of the bed, she put out an arm to steady herself against the wall.
“Did I vomit on the dress?”
He dutifully looked for any mess on the red fabric. “I don’t
see any.”
“Good. It’s expensive. Get me out of it. I can’t sleep in
it.”
He hesitated for half a second, tried to remember a time when
Davo or Makena had arrived home drunk, and he had helped her get to bed without
their parents finding out. He unfastened the dress down the back and it slipped
to the floor. Still shaking, Mac managed to push the blankets away and climb
into bed. Bugalu pulled the blankets over her before he retrieved the dress
from the floor and hung it up.
“Bugs.” He returned to her side, and she reached out to take
his hand. “I wish all my brothers were like you. And I’m sorry.”
A tear escaped from one of her eyes. He used the corner of
the sheet to dry it. “Sorry about what?”
“I was trying to make dinner special. Instead, I messed it
up.”
“Not your fault. I thought I arrived at the restaurant early,
but I must have been late, because you were already inside, looking for me.”
“They had to make so many alterations to that dress, I assumed
I was late, so I went in. Instead of you, I found... someone who... thought he
knew me, and I ended up drinking something I shouldn’t have, and now we didn’t
even get any dinner. I don’t want any, the way I feel, but I bet you’re
starved.”
“I’ll order room service and watch a movie while you sleep.”
Her bottom lip trembled as another tear leaked out. “I feel
so stupid, Bugs! What was I thinking?”
Who did she find? Someone
caught her attention without making her angry - another first - but it really
has her upset. He wiped that tear away also. “We all
make mistakes, Mac. We have lots of time to eat together.”
She tried to smile, but couldn’t manage it. She rolled over,
raised her head to look around the tiny room. “Where are you going to sleep?”
“On the floor. There’s an extra pillow and blanket in the
closet.”
“That’s not fair! There isn’t enough floor in here for a
midget to sleep!”
He chuckled. “Mac, on my first full shore leave, 6 of us
shared a hotel room this size for 2 nights. I’ll be fine.”
“It still isn’t fair. I’ll have to think of some way to make
it up to you.”
Bugalu did not let his first thought slip out of his mouth,
because he was her adopted brother, and that thought was not suitable for a
brother to say. Instead, he drawled, “We’ll talk tomorrow. Get some sleep.”
