Definitely Something More

Posted on Sat Mar 11th, 2017 @ 3:46am by Commander Andrew Knight

Mission: The Space Between
Location: Holosuite Seven: Rick's Cafe Americain, Casablanca, Morocco
Timeline: MD 4 - 2100

Drew, wearing a replica of a US Naval officers mess dress uniform (circa 1941) entered Rick's Cafe Americain. He was immediately greeted by Rick Blain, the establishment owner/operator. "Ah, Lieutenant Knight. Pleasure to see you again." Drew touched one of the shoulder boards. "Actually it is Lieutenant Commander now."

Rick nodded approvingly. "Well, congratulations then Lieutenant Commander. Would you like your regular table?"

Drew shook his head as he removed his headgear and handed it to the hat check girl. "Actually, I was hoping to get a table on the veranda with a good view of the sea. I'm having dinner with someone...rather special."

Rick beckoned for a his maitre'd..

The maitre'd approached and looked to his employer.

Rick pointed to the door leading to the veranda. "Give are newly promoted friend here the best table on the veranda. Seating for two."

Drew followed the maitre'd out and took a seat as the maitre'd struck a match and lit both candles on the table. "Would you like something while you wait?" Drew shook head, but then changed his mind. "If you would please bring a bottle of your best champagne." The maitre'd nodded. "Of course sir."

Dressed in a seafoam green flowy chiffon tea length gown with a lavender capped sleeve bolero jacket covering her bare shoulders, Cara entered the cafe, her long red hair draped over one shoulder and two flowers matching the colors in her outfit on the opposite side just above her ear.

Rick glided over to greet new arrival. Stroking his chin in thought as he stepped up. "If I had to hazard a guess. I would say your here to meet someone very special."

"I am," Cara replied looking around at the cafe. Smiling as she recognized the setting she said, "I suppose you're Rick."

Rick bowed before Cara and raised himself with a flourish. "That I am young lady." He placed a guiding hand on Cara's elbow and started for the door to the veranda. "I gather your here to meet my good friend and dashing young naval officer Lieutenant Commander Andrew Knight. If you'll accompany me."

Cara was impressed with the lengths Drew had gone to. She smiled as she allowed the holographic Rick lead her.

Drew rose from his seat as Cara, guided by Rick stepped out onto the veranda overlooking the sea. He stared at her with adoration and wondered why he had decided to just be friends with her almost a year ago. He moved forward and kissed Cara on the cheek as Rick released her elbow. "You look...absolutely beautiful!"

"Thank you," Cara said and her cheeks turned pink with a slight blush. Drew looked dashing in his vintage dress uniform. "You look pretty spiffy yourself, Commander," she said.

The maitre'd returned with a bottle already chilling in a bucket of ice, the cork already out to allow the champagne to breath. Rick himself poured the champagne into two long-stemmed glasses as Drew seated Cara and then sat back in his own chair. Rick handed both Drew and Cara their glasses, then dug a small flask from the inner pocket of his jacket, twisting the cap off he held the flask aloft as he looked first at the couple, then out over the sea. "Love can be the most wondrous of mysteries, a journey to find happiness in even the darkest of times. May these first steps you take together on that path, bring you joy along your journey." He then took a long pull from flask.

Drew looked at Cara and tapped his glass to hers. "I'll drink to that."

Cara tapped Drew's glass with her own and her eyes sparkled in the candlelight as she took a sip of her champagne. "I don't remember Rick being such a poet. You must have tweaked the program a little," she said, teasingly as she set her glass on the table. She looked out at the waves glistening in the moonlight as they broke on the sand then she looked back at Drew. "All I can say is wow. I didn't know you had it in you," she said seeing a side of the man she had called best friend for the past year that she had never seen before.

Drew placed his glass carefully back on the table and looked around at the holographic representation of the main set from the movie Casablanca. "I have a fondness for early to mid 20th century films and...well...I wanted our first real date to be something unique and special."

"First date," Cara giggled. "Sounds so high school." She picked up her glass and said, "you have succeeded," then took a sip of the golden bubbly.

Drew looked to the building as piano music began to play Till the End of Time. His eyes switched to the lit stone patio just below the veranda. He rose from his chair and held out a hand, palm up. "Would the lovely lady please honor me with this dance?"

Cara took his hand and said, "I would love to," and got to her feet, slipping her bolero off and draping it across the back of the chair.

Drew carefully led her down the short staircase to the dance patio and took her in his arms and led her in a graceful foxtrot to match the romantic music coming from the building. He seemed happy to just live in the moment, dancing close and staring into her eyes.

Cara smiled...more inwardly as she applauded herself for having taken ballroom dance lessons several years ago...and lost herself in Drew's eyes as she glided across the dance floor. She felt as if she were floating on a cloud and reality seemed to disappear.

Drew bowed as the final notes wound down the music. He looked up to the patio and saw the wait staff bringing out their food. He leaned in and whispered softly in Cara's ear. "I modified the program to bring a sampling of some of your favorite foods. Hope you don't mind."

Cara looked over at their table and her eyes widened. "I'm glad I didn't wear anything tight," she chuckled.

Drew mounted the steps with Cara's arm tucked into his, only releasing it once they returned to the table and he pulled out her chair for her. He resumed his seat and looked at the fare spread out on the table. He looked up at her with a sheepish grin. "OK...so I guess I may have gone a little overboard on the food."

Cara sat down and looked at each of the dishes, picking up her fork and sticking it into a small piece of Chateaubriand. She smelled of the piece of meat and quirked an eyebrow as she put the piece in her mouth. Chewing, tentatively, she knitted her brows together in surprise. "It's real," she said, incredulously, as the meat melted in her mouth and filled her taste buds with elegant flavors. She helped herself to a couple of slices of the beef then moved on to other dishes.

Drew picked up his own fork and began taking bites of the various dishes and nodding his head at the taste of some of her favorite dishes. He paused between bites and made a sweeping gesture with his hand. "Replicator and holosuite systems utilize a very similar technology."

Cara took several bites of her meal then asked, "so...when did you know?"

Drew paused, his fork halfway between the table and his mouth. He put the utensil down and reached out and took Cara's hand in his own. "To be honest, probably the first time I met you, but, well, I had been assigned to get an entire special warfare group organized to operate in the Delta Quadrant. So, at the time, I thought being friends would be less of a distraction."

Cara had her fork halfway to her mouth and she stopped. Looking at Drew she asked, "why didn't you say anything?"

"I almost did tell you a few months ago." Drew's expression was very thoughtful as he remembered a week just two months before the attack. "You remember when the USS Kitty Hawk had the week layover...and you were spending a great deal of time with Commander Davidson, the ship's First Officer."

"Yes. I remember," Cara said chewing on another bite of her meat. She swallowed and said, "I also remember you were a bit of an ass hole at the time. I figured you were on the rag or something."

Drew nodded his head. "I was so jealous and so...angry. I don't think I slept a wink that entire week." He looked deep into her eyes. "But, I also don't think that I would change a single thing about this last year."

"Well that explains why you suddenly got all buddy buddy again once he shipped out," Cara said putting down her fork and leaning back in her chair. "I guess Meredith's little plan worked after all," she said and looked up at the holographic moon. She wondered if Meredith was up there somewhere, with an I told you so smirk on her face.

Drew smiled as he gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "It gave us the opportunity to get to know one another and become friends. We never had to experience that awkward initial dating stage." He then remembered her kissing him in the turbolift and his follow up kiss in her suite...in only a towel. "Well, OK...maybe we did have a couple of awkward moments the other day." He gazed deep into her eyes. "But I don't feel awkward now."

Cara squeezed his hand and winked. "Speak for yourself. I knew exactly what I was doing," she said. "Got my point across didn't it?"

Drew gave Cara an astonished look. "Wait! What? That would mean.... How long have you felt this way?"

"Ever since the attack when I didn't know if you were alive or dead," Cara said, her voice catching a little. "I knew for sure when you confirmed Ash's report of your interest in Catherine."

Drew reached up and gently stroked Cara's cheek. "When you left me standing in the turbolift, to stunned to speak or even move. I realized that what I thought were feelings for Catherine, were my feelings for you I was projecting onto Catherine." He swallowed an asteroid sized lump in his throat before continuing. "For that, I am sorry to both of you."

Cara smiled and said, "no need to apologize to me. I'm the one who won," and she winked.

Rick appeared again, along with several members of his wait staff to clear the table. He gave both Drew and Cara a twenty dollar gold eagle coin. "Been told if you cast a coin into the Mediterranean on the night of a full moon and make a wish. It will come true by the next full moon. The more valuable the coin, the stronger the wish will be granted."

Cara raised an eyebrow. "I can't imagine what I could possibly wish for," she said then looked, lovingly, at Drew. "I already have everything."