When his lips met mine, it was like worlds collided. Kissing him felt so right, and I could feel the fireworks in my heart exploding. His soft lips moved with mine and he held me close. His hands moved around my waist and back as my hands made their way into his hair.
After a long while, when neither of us had any air left in our lungs, we reluctantly pulled away from each other. I looked into his beautiful blue eyes until the sound of scattered applause distracted me.
Still holding on to Lucas, I craned my head to find the crew of Seaquest watching us. I had forgotten that we weren't alone in the launch bay. Some of the crew was applauding us, and Captain Hudson was just watching Lucas and I with one eyebrow raised. Blushing, I turned back to Lucas.
He studied me for a minute, and I took that opportunity to move in and kiss him again. This time was longer, and maybe even better, if that was possible. Lucas broke it off and looked at me softly.
"I love you, Shelby McIntyre." My heart fluttered at the phrase.
"I love you too, Lucas Wolenczak." His eyes gleamed as he kissed me for a third time. This time, however, was cut short.
"Ahem," Captain Hudson cleared his throat. Lucas and I sighed, then removed our lips from one another and turned to face the Captain.
"I wouldn't normally do this, but since you two seem to have recently, er, confirmed certain feelings, and I don't want to see them, I'm giving you two the rest of the day off." Captain Hudson shifted uncomfortably.
"Thank you, Captain," I said.
"Thank you, sir." Lucas and I, holding hands, turned to go.
"Oh and, um, just remember," Captain Hudson was clearly uncomfortable. "You guys have plenty of time to be stupid, so save the stupid stuff for when you're not on my boat."
I blushed and Lucas chuckled. He nodded to the Captain and led me away, far away, to my quarters.
"What are we doing here?" I asked.
"We're going someplace that Piccolo won't be. Hopefully, no one will come here." Lucas opened my door for me and ushered me inside. When I was in my room, he followed me in and shut the door. I looked at him, confused, and he gently pinned me against the wall.
"I love you so much," I said.
"And I love you even more," he responded. Then Lucas kissed me.
•••
It was nearly supper time, and Lucas and I were strewn about my bed, my head resting on his chest and his arm cradling me. I was so happy, happier than I could've ever imagined. Having Lucas in my life gave it new meaning, and I thought of it as I laid beside him. I had only known him for a few days, and I was already madly in love. And knowing that he loved me back was a dream come true. I didn't know there were fairytales when it came to being in the Navy.
I sat up a bit, just so I could look at my boyfriend. The word didn't seem right.
"What are you thinking about, Love?" Lucas asked sweetly as I stared at him.
Love. That was it! Lucas wasn't just my boyfriend, he was the love of my life. And our first kiss had been two hours ago.
"You." I smiled and kissed his cheek before laying beside him again.
"Good thing our kisses didn't get interrupted this time," he said.
"Don't even get me started," I sighed.
It was like the Universe didn't want us together, even though I loved Lucas more than life itself. And he knew that. Lucas was why I was still here today.
"Well, we should probably get dinner soon," Lucas said, gently tracing my face with his finger.
"Mm, probably," I agreed. Lucas kissed me briefly before jumping off of my bed.
"M'lady," He announced in a horrible British accent. He bowed and stuck out his arm.
"Why thank you, good sir!" I played along and linked my arm in his as he led me out of my room and to the cafeteria.
When we got there, it was bustling with what seemed to be everyone on the boat. Lucas and I grabbed our food before heading to one of the only tables with empty seats. However, Tony, Lieutenant Henderson, and Commander Ford were all seated there, as well as a Dagger whom I had never met.
"Hey guys," Lucas said, sliding into an empty chair. I sat in the chair next to him and smiled shyly at the group of people.
"Hi Lucas," Lieutenant Henderson responded. Then she turned to me. "I don't think we've been formally introduced yet. I'm Lonnie," she stuck out her hand for a handshake.
"I'm Shelby," I replied, shaking her hand. She smiled and I smiled back, before turning to everyone else.
"And you know that I'm Commander Ford, but you can call me Jonathan," Commander Ford piped in.
"Just as long as you call me Shelby," I laughed.
"Oh, and this is Dagwood," Lucas said, gesturing to the Dagger at the table. "Dagwood, this is Shelby."
"Hi, Dagwood!" I chirped.
"Hello, Shelby," Dagwood replied in a soft voice. I smiled before diverting my attention to getting my chair closer to Lucas. When I was close enough, I leaned over and laid my head on his shoulder.
"I see that you two seem very happy together," Lonnie said to Lucas and I. I blushed and Lucas grinned widely.
"She's perfect," he said, turning his head to kiss the top of mine.
"And he's amazing," I responded, grabbing Lucas' hand and holding it tight.
I could've sworn I saw a look of remorse flash across Jonathan's face when he looked briefly at Lonnie, but I shook it off. Their business was their business.
"Just as long as you two don't kiss because I am NOT watching that ever again, especially if I'm eating." Tony pretended to gag and Lucas rolled his eyes.
I sat up straight again, not wanting to cause anymore discomfort, when Captain Hudson entered the room. Instead of heading over to the line to grab food, he made his way towards the center of the room instead.
"Ahem," Captain Hudson cleared his throat and all the chatter in the room died down immediately.
"Next week we will be taking a shore leave. The Seaquest has its annual inspection next week, so we'll be docking at the UEO base in Hawaii and spending a couple of days on shore. You will be relieved of your duties then, and can enjoy the beautiful Hawaiian sun, sand, and surf, but I highly recommend that you stay in groups or pairs. We don't know who or what could come for us. That is all, thank you for your time." Captain Hudson walked away and the room immediately filled with an electric buzz. I could tell that everyone was already talking about Hawaii.
"Hawaii, how exciting!" Lonnie exclaimed.
"I wonder how hot the Hawaii chicks are," Tony thought aloud.
"Doesn't matter," Lucas said, wrapping his arm around me. I smiled and he leaned in for a kiss.
"Later," I whispered, shooting a glance towards Tony. Lucas reluctantly leaned back to how he had been sitting before, but his arm was still secured around me.
"Dang, Lucas, you should have Shelby teach you some self control. She's amazing at it!" Tony said.
"Or maybe I just don't want to kiss him anymore," I teased. Lucas frowned at me and I smiled before whispering in his ear.
"It was a joke. I love you," I whispered.
"Mm, not as much as I love you," he whispered back. I wanted to kiss him so bad, but I wanted to be considerate and not make anyone uncomfortable.
Ignoring my desires, I finished the rest of my meal while having pleasant conversations with Tony, Lucas, Jonathan, Lonnie, and Dagwood. We talked about what we were looking forward to in Hawaii and planned what excursions we should try and participate in.
Eventually, when we were all done eating, we went our separate ways. Lucas walked me back to my quarters, his arm still wrapped around my waist.
He stopped when we got to my door and I leaned up to kiss him. He held me tight and I held onto him as we kissed passionately. After a while, I reluctantly pulled away.
"I love you, Mr. Wolenczak."
"I love you too, Ms. McIntyre." He kissed me again, but this time he broke it off.
"Someday," he whispered, "you will be Mrs. Shelby Wolenczak. I swear it to you." Then he kissed me briefly, but I was too stunned to kiss back. I stood there, frozen, as he walked away.