Everybody Knows This is Nowhere

Part 7 - Tentative First Steps

It took a few weeks before they could get together the semblance of a party. There were plenty of other things to do – and T'Pol was insistent on looking for planets for agriculture – but Captain Archer wanted some of the shuffling of personnel to at least begin already. The tension was palpable. It was only a matter of time before couples would start to form, so his idea was to nudge them along.

The Observation Lounge was decorated for a beach party. There was no real sand, but a large metal disk – it was a replacement transporter pad, truth be told – was pressed into service. It was bolted to plastic side walls and the whole thing was made watertight. Then it was filled with water, thereby creating a small wading pool. Tripp and the remainder of Engineering worked on creating other reminders of the beach as well. They fashioned wire and tubing into what looked like palm trees and even islands.

Chip Masterson promised music. He gathered up every beach and summer tune he could find, even very old ones, and created a massive playlist for the festivities.

Lili, Craig, Brian and Will put together beach fare, including replicated chicken from a formula they had gotten from the database. They grilled it with a tomato-based barbecue sauce and hoped that it would pass muster with the rest of the crew.

It felt absurd to be holding a party in shifts, but it was the only way to truly have good coverage. The night shift went first. Security Crewman Deborah Haddon found herself talking to Chip as he adjusted the volume level and fretted over whether the music was just so. "I swear," she said to him, "it's worse than if you were trying to negotiate peace with the Klingons, or something."

"Heh," he smiled a little, "I just want it to be right. Uh, Deb, speaking of right, you do know that it was you and me, right?"

"Why do you think I'm talking to you?"

"Aha."

Ethan Shapiro found himself with Karin Bernstein, and it was very uncomfortable. "I guess I ended up with Josh," she ventured, referring to one of the two other Jewish men on board, Josh Rosen.

"Yeah, you did."

"Ethan, I know what else happened. To you, I mean. I don't know what to say."

"Nobody knows what to say anymore," he shrugged. "Rest assured, I won't do that. That isn't something that's gonna be on instant replay, or anything. I am not gonna attempt suicide over you. Not, uh, not again, that is. We're cool."

"Oh, uh, okay. Josh, huh, I wonder why not Andrew?" she said. Andrew Miller was standing nearby, with a plastic cupful of cola in his hands that he sipped on occasion as he looked around a bit furtively. Karin left Ethan's side and went over to talk to him. "You look lost."

"Oh, uh, Shelby isn't on the night shift."

"Oh," Karin said, the light dawning, "did she convert?"

"I guess so," he said, "you were with Josh. I, uh, heh, it's funny. I got good at helping out Doctor Phlox. I delivered your daughter."

"Amazing," she shook her head and walking away, feeling as if he had seen her naked.

Security Crewman Mark Reilly chatted with Pilot Sterling Hutchinson as Security Crewman Azar Hamidi and Tactical Ensign Aidan MacKenzie looked on. "So I ended up with Ingrid. And it was after a riot! I have no idea how, or even why, they'd be fighting over me. How weird is that?"

"I dunno, man," Sterling replied. "I got Christina Parsons from the MACOs. How'd I land a honey like her? And I barely talk to her. What gives?"

Josh Rosen came in and made a beeline for Karin. "Sorry I'm late," he said, "Tucker and I got to talking about how to maintain the field better. Did I miss anything?"