Time With Tim
31 Jan 2018Illeana Grimm-Turner
Location: Unknown SystemDate: 4th November 3303
‘Well, he certainly ain’t perfect, but he’s nice enough,’ Illeana thought to herself as she sat opposite Tim and swirled her glass of red wine. Far from being the romantic walk around Krupkat Orbital Tim had originally envisioned for them, they’d taken to finding a system somewhere out of the way where they could just relax and enjoy each other’s company.
They were sat cross legged on the cockpit floor, in some system Illy hadn’t bothered learning the name of, on a moon orbiting the 3rd planet. The view was spectacular, the bright orange glow of the star cresting over the horizon with a large mountainscape just in front of it. For a brief moment Tim and Illy had to squint their eyes as the first hint of the sun crept up over the mountains, until the canopy automatically tinted to reduce the glare.
Illy gazed at the sight and whispered, “Ómorfos,” as though talking too loud would spoil the moment.
“Sorry, what?” Tim asked.
“It means beautiful,” she said, still staring out into the blossoming glory of a sunrise, “Or it can mean good-looking, depending how you use it.”
“Oh, well then I agree,” Tim replied.
lly turned to see the expression on his face, and found he wasn’t paying any attention to the sunrise. Just staring at her. Realising what he meant, she flushed red and quickly returned her gaze to the front of the ship and took a long sip of wine to hide her embarrassment.
Trying to change the subject back to their previous discussion she asked, “So… You were saying about your first day as traffic control?”
“Sure… Uh, where was I? Oh yeah,” Tim continued, “So there I was trying to work out for the life of me why the hell a Beluga was trying to land on my small pad, and it turns out I’d connected the wrong comms link!!”
“Noo…. Oh, god!” Illy covered her mouth to stifle a laugh. “So what happened next?”
Tim recalled the memory with a smile, “That’s when Jackie came in. She snatched the controls from me, waved off the ship and got the right pilot to come over. Needless to say he was just as confused as me. My boss was furious. So that’s how me and Jackie ended up as partners on the job. We’ve been practically inseparable ever since. She’d only been there a couple of weeks more than me, but she always had my back.”
A very slight tinge of jealousy panged at Illy; “And you two… never…?”
“Dated? Briefly. It didn’t work out though. Seeing each other every day after work, during work, for days out… You get irritated seeing the same person all the time, y’know? So we both agreed to just be friends instead,” Tim said a little morosely.
That was enough to wash the worry away for her. She gave him a comforting smile and reached for the wine bottle to top up both of their glasses.
“Huh… Empty… I guess we’ve been talking longer than I thought,” Illy said rising to her feet. Her legs had gone stiff and her backside a little numb, and, as she rose she stumbled slightly when a wave of dizziness hit her. She giggled.
“Drinking more too apparently.”
Tim rose with her and gathered the empty bottle and the glasses, “Well then, why don’t we put these away and call it a night? I think we’ve both had plenty, and after yesterday I think you could do with a good rest.”
Knowing full well where this was going, Illy took the arm Tim offered and they both wandered towards the rear of the ship to a small kitchenette. They stopped briefly to give the glasses a quick rinse and put the bottle into the waste disposal. All the while they shared fleeting glances at each other and continued to chat.
She led him towards the quarters and stopped just outside her door. She knew what was expected of her at this point, but uncertainty gripped at her. She’d never been here with a man before. There had been boyfriends, but the relationships didn’t last long enough for her to want to give herself to them. Doubt gripped her and she was unsure if she should give into the growing desire blossoming inside her.
“Is everything ok?” Tim asked.
Illeana snapped out of her thoughts. She realised she was staring at the access button to her room. Feeling flushed she stuttered, “Wha… Yeah of course! Why wouldn’t it be?”
With a light chuckle, Tim spoke, “Most people use their hands to open the door, that’s all.”
“They do…” she replied. Her heart began pounding in her chest, hands sweaty, and felt her cheeks turn red. She turned and gazed up at her date.
Trembling, she spoke, “Listen… Tim…”
Tim raised a reassuring hand, Illy sighed, relieved for the moment.
Tim’s face softened, “Illy, I know what you think I’m expecting,” he said.. “But it’s not a requirement. I’ve had a great time tonight and that’s all I wanted. I’ll sleep in the guest quarters tonight.”
Confusion flashed behind her eyes and Illeana didn’t know how to respond. She felt rejected; but on the other hand, she was surprised with Tim’s empathy.
“Thank you… Tim,” she replied, leaning forward and giving him a lingering kiss on the cheek before pulling him into a hug which he returned. With that, they both smiled at each other and she stood watch while he walked a couple of doors down and entered the guest quarters with a friendly wave.
Flicking the switch to her own room, the door slid open and she stepped inside before closing the door again. Striding across the room she flopped face down onto her bed and hugged the pillow tight. Her mind awash with the transpiring events of the evening. She smiled inwardly falling asleep, grateful that she had given Tim a second chance.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Location: Unknown System
Date: 5th November 3303
Taking her place in the cockpit chair, coffee mug in one hand, dataslate in the other, Illeana mused over the previous night’s happenings. It was a good thing too, as she had received multiple messages from Stacy. Illy rolled her eyes. She loved her sister very much, but sometimes she was a bit relentless. Taking a sip from her coffee, Illy tapped out a quick response.
| Hi Stacy Everything is fine. Tim is-- |
Illy pursed her lips tapping a finger on the slate. 'How to describe Tim. That is a good question. Great? Too generic. Amazing? Calm down, girl, you’ve only known him 48 hours. Less than that even.' Frowning, she decided to change the message mid-stroke.
| Hi Stacy The past couple of days have been a whirlwind. I’ll give you a call later on and tell you all about it. Love Illy xx |
Much Better. She certainly didn’t have anything negative to say about Tim, apart from his apparently shocking timekeeping skills. Placing the slate into its pocket on the side of the cockpit chair, she leant back and curled her legs up underneath her as she stared out at the scene in front of her. Even with the sun directly above the ship, the horizon was an amazing view. It brought her a sense of joy and she couldn’t help imagining herself stealing off in an SRV and driving up and over the mountains, before parking it on a ridge and gazing out over the brightly lit terrain far below them. She felt a firm pressure in her hand. Looking down she saw Tim had intertwined his fingers with hers and her heart leapt with joy.
Illy snapped out of the daydream and sat up, yelping as she sloshed hot coffee over herself. She wiped at the coffee stain on her flight jacket but gave it up as a fruitless endeavour. The daydream had told her one thing, it was time to confess her feelings to herself. She liked Tim. He was sweet, funny, charming and certainly not a bad looker. But she wondered, did he feel the same way about her.
She didn’t get the chance to consider the thought too much, as movement from outside the cockpit drew her attention. Taking it as a sign Tim was awake, she began powering up the ship systems to let them warm up before they set back off to Rauras so Tim could get home. At once the whirring and clunking of the engines filled the vessel and several displays lit up with automated system checks.
Leaving the onboard computer to its business, Illeana spun her chair around and made her way towards the kitchenette with her now empty mug.
As she stood at the sink rinsing her mug, Tim’s voice called out from behind her. “Hey there, GT”
“Timothy Machiavelli, I’ve told you before!” Illy turned with a mock scowl on her face. “I said only certain people call me that. Close friends. To be specific.”
“Full name? I must be in trouble.” he raised his hands in mock surrender before changing to a more challenging stance. “Then I have to ask, do you consider us friends?”
“I… Uhh… Well sure, I guess so,” she replied, unsure where he was going with this.
Grinning, Tim took several large strides and closed the gap between them. Trapping her between the sink and himself he clasped both her hands in his and moved his face barely a couple of inches from hers.
“Is this close enough, then?” he said, flashing his cheeky grin.
Illeana leered at him, at a loss for how to handle this unexpected turn of events. Smiling, he let the the moment linger before he pulled back again and let her hands go As he did so, she couldn’t help but feel a small sense of disappointment. As she searched her feelings she became aware of the awkward silence she had created.
Realising what she had wanted from the encounter she mumbled, “Could’ve gotten closer if you wanted,” .
Tim squinted scrutinizing her soft facial features, “What was that?”
Realising she’d said that louder than intended she stumbled over her words in shock, “Umm… Nothing! I… Just… I Need to go change my jacket, and we can...uh, we can head back to Rauras.” To emphasise her point she gestured the the coffee stain on her jacket and trouser leg.
She felt heat rise in her cheeks as she turned back to the sink and continued rinsing the already clean mug. She set the mug on a rack to dry and found Tim standing behind her, watching her, with an unconvinced expression on his face.
Illy flashed an innocent smile as she walked past. “Feel free to help yourself to coffee, or I have some dehydrated juice in the cupboards.”
Tim replied with a smile and shook his head. Moments later there were unfamiliar sounds filling the kitchen as he began his search for his ingredients, presumably for his own coffee. The racket was kind of comforting. Illeana had to admit to herself another thing she never expected; having someone else on board the ship felt kind of... homely.
Tim was quite the catch as far as Illy was concerned, and although he was a bit more forward than she liked, it was something she felt she could get used to. Besides, it kept her on her toes, and his behaviour last night showed he could restrain himself when he needed to.
Her time with him had been very enjoyable, and their trip back to Krupkat Orbital was just as fun. He even began teasing her as she began landing the Cobra but she got the last laugh as the Elefthería touched down almost completely silently and on her first try. she couldn’t help but feel smug as her companion nodded, clearly impressed.
But then it was time to say goodbye. Illy was long overdue a visit to her family and she was sure that Tim had his own life to get back to. So it was with a mixture of both joy and sadness that they found themselves facing each other, holding each others hands.
“I had a really nice time GT.” Tim said quietly.
“Me too… I...Uhh… I hope we can do this again sometime?” she replied, a little bit of nervousness creeping into her voice.
“Definitely. I promise,” he replied, smiling like he always seemed to be.
“Ok, good,” she said, staring into his eyes. “Well, uhh, goodbye then.”
“Alright then, goodbye, Illeana,” Tim said, leaning forward and giving her a peck on the cheek.
As he began moving away, Illy couldn’t help but feel a longing for him to come back. Each step he took down the ramp left her more and more disappointed. She knew what she needed to do, but couldn’t bring herself to do it. It wasn’t until he had reached the end of the ramp that she seized the resolve that was building up inside her.
“TIM, WAIT!”
She ran down the ramp just as Tim turned to face her. In a flash she wrapped her hands behind his head and kissed him passionately. For a moment he didn’t reciprocate, and Illy feared that she’d just made a big mistake. But all of that was washed away when he grabbed her by the waist and pulled her in closer. The kiss seemed to last forever, her mind a swirl of emotion and hormones as she became lost in it.
As suddenly as it began, it was over. They pulled apart and gazed into each other’s eyes. Silence filled the air until a wolf whistle shattered the moment. Illy turned to the source of the noise and glared at a grinning dock worker who promptly turned his attention elsewhere, pretending to be busy.
Tim chuckled and shook his head, “I’ll definitely be wanting to see more of you now,”
Illeana quietly whispered to him, “Oh you will. You most certainly will,” before pulling away and making her way back up the ramp. “You just be prepared to take me on the date you promised next time.”
“Deal!” Tim called back, watching her retreating back before stepping onto the docking pad.
The docking ramp door closed down behind her as she made her way back to the cockpit. She sat in her pilot's seat bursting with joy. With a quick flip of a finger she sent in a request to depart and began spooling up the engines. A moment later the nav computer had plotted a course for Arbog.
Time to go home, Illy
The ship was spun around by the landing pad, she was vaguely aware of a message that pinged in. Looking up, her heart skipped in her chest. .
| Hurry back, GT Already missing you Tim x |
With a smile on her face, she nudged the ship forward and out through the mailslot to begin her journey home. She couldn’t wait to tell Stacy everything.
Sorry for the long wait, and thanks for your patience. Thanks as always to Stryker Aune, and Phisto Sobanii for their insights. Special thanks to Marra Morgan for giving an insight into meeting the RL Mr Morgan, as well as Jemine Caesar for sharing her experiences also, while also giving it the once over with those magic pens of hers.