A meeting in the Mess...

[Dustin_Marks 0]

October 20th, 2154: 200 Hours

 

 

It was a dark scene in the Challenger's Mess as Ensign Jon Marks sat alone at a table well into his sleep cycle. His eyes looked sullen as he sipped at his ice water and gazed off into nothing. His mind wandered back to the mission on Acamar as suddenly the door opening caught his gaze.

 

Ensign McCellan entered the mess and looked around, looking battered and wide awake. She couldn't sleep. "Hi there," she said to the sullen eyed figure who sipped his water when she came in.

 

"Huh... Oh... Hi," was the only replied Jon could give to Ensign McCellan. Without so much of a second glance, he turned back to his drink, wallowing away in his own thoughts.

 

Jasmine scratched her lids, while they were shut of course, and wandered blindly towards Jon Marks' table. She now identified the figure with the sullen eyes was Jon Marks, whom she vaguely recognized. She opened her eyes again and peered at him while he sipped his water. "Can't sleep?"

 

Jon cracked his neck and sat up. "Nah, not really."

 

"Ah," she said simply and looked about, there were a few other officers there with similiar insomia problems. She decided to sit down and look up at Marks.

 

Jon met Jasmine's gaze and seemed a little uncomfortable with her sitting there. "I don't mean to be rude Doctor, but I just really am not in the mood to socialize. I am kind of... Anti-Social because of the recent events."

 

Jasmine nodded slightly and stood up. "Are you sure you're fine?" She was surprised at herself, this man was a stranger and yet he seems like a friend. Interesting, she thought, now knowing what being on a ship felt like.

 

Jon gazed up at her and tried to size up the situation. Without him ever realizing it, a string of emotion came out. "No... NO! No, I am not fine! I am not fine at all... This whole mission was a disaster and... And..." Jon rubbed rubbed his forehead and bit his lip. "And it could have been easily avoided if I didn't screw up."

 

She knew now what had upset him now. The woman and a particular phaser wound on the foreign woman. "Ah," She said while trying to think thoughtfully. The "accident" or so it was referred that Jon had shot this woman out of pure frustration and literally out of a tree. "Now I see," She said, still thinking. "Hm... Well it is a sort of an accident right? Or is this about something else?"

 

Jon just shook his head. "How could I have known? How could I have possibly known that the Acamarian Woman was in the tree? I saw the group of boars and I reacted in the one way I knew how to save the crew. But because of my stupid brash move, I almost started an interstellar war..." Jon scoffed at the words. "My god... I don't even know you and hear I am laying it all out."

 

"Wow, he knows that i don't know him... Interesting," she thought and nodded. "Well ... it's true that you had no idea that she was there, and well ... it's better to learn from your mistake. Hopefully you will ..." She winced as that last sentence sounded some what harsh and inconsiderate but the damage was done.

 

Jon's eyes opened wide. "My mistake??? How can no scans for intelligent life possibly be my mistake! Pfft... You are just like everybody else on this ship who continues to talk about 'Interpol Marks' and how he thinks with his gun and not his brain..." Jon's face was conveying fury at this point and he had to take a deep breath to calm himself down.

 

Jasmine looked away and bit her lower lip. She did that thing again, saying things with out thinking... It was harsher than she thought... "Er... I'm sorry..." She looked back. "I meant ... don't take it too hard on yourself ... Well ... Er..."

 

Jon was about to reply with another harsh remark, but stopped himself when he saw the apologetic look in Jasmine's eye. He just shook his head and leaned back. "You know... Maybe I should just go home."

 

"What..." She desperately tried to construct a more helpful remark but it took her too long to think. "Wow," she thought. "No ... you don't mean that," she quickly said, not wanting to discourage her colleague already for just one small mistake. She started to turn. "Maybe I should just leave you to your thinking."

 

Jon quickly shook his head and sat up. "No! I mean no... Please, stay. I know this might sound strange, but you are so far the easiest person to talk to. I know you didn't mean what you said, but I don't think you understand what kind of reputation I have had to live up to my entire life."

 

Ensign McCellan stopped and thought about it. Eventually, she turned and walked back to the table. "Ah," She said simply. "What kind of reputation if you don't mind me asking?"

 

Jon had to lean back and half laugh. "Only to live up to the greatest Interpol officer of all time. Detective Thomas Marks... Hero of Interpol. A living legend, a bonified hero, and my dear old Dad."

 

"Wow, I can imagine, sort of, what expectations you need to live up to ... but how do you feel about it?" She said this while wondering why she was suddenly at ease while a moment ago she felt like running away. Perhaps... it was also an effect from being on a ship but she couldn't tell.

 

"How did I feel...," Jon mused. Well what do you say to people who stare at your every move and compare everything you do to what you Father did before. 'You know, Tom did passed that with a higher... Tom shot with this percentage... Tom... Tom...' It was enough to drive a man wild. But then again... Isn't everyone always compared to their parents?"

 

She bit her lip suddenly and quite forcablily, gashing her lip superficially. Also suddenly and forcabily, she was reminded of her parents and winced. "I see. I know how you feel. Have you wondered why? People comparing you to your parents. I think its just absurd but ... " She trailed off as she thought her speech was getting dull. "Well I think in time and with practice you will be as good as your father but ... I don't know..." She shut her self up as this was becoming too awkward."

 

Jon looked at Jasmine for a second and sized her up as he would a possible criminal for a motive. However, he seemed to sense there was something uncomfortable in here talking about her parents and her problems. "Doctor... If I may inquire, do you have a similar problem?"

 

She bit down on her lower bit alittle harder. "Well similar... but I don't want to bore you," she said.

 

Jon perked up a bit. "No please. I would like to hear."

 

Jasmine nodded, released the pressure on her lower lip, and thought of how to make this really simple. "Mommy played the Violin, she wanted me to play it too but I didn't like it... She was disappointed... She wasn't as forceful in instrument taste as Dad ... He didn't quite care and they had many fights on why I was forced ..." She sighed deeply. "It wasn't fun to watch."

 

Jon felt a pressure tighten on his chest. He thought back to the first time he mentioned wanting to join the Starfleet back after he first joined Interpol. The look his Dad gave him and the pain instilled in him by being disappointing. "Disappointing... It hurts... I know. But maybe... Maybe there is something to be learned about people. As much as my Dad didn't approve of my admission to the Acadamy, in the end... He stood by my side. Maybe we should both look back on that. Or maybe... Maybe I should look back on that."

 

"That I agree, but ... it's that when you look through your photo album and you have this picture with your parent with a disappointed face on it ... " She sighed again, knowing that she deleted the file the first time it was recorded, with relief.

 

Jon sat back, realizing he was feeling better and yet Jasmine seemed to be falling into the hole he had originally dug. He didn't understand how or why the roles were suddenly reversed, but he felt compelled to comfort Jasmine as she had him. He put a hand on hers and looked her in the eye. "Things have a way of working themselves out... And I think I just realized the true meaning of that for myself."

 

Jasmine blinked at the stranger in front of her, only he wasn't that strange any more. "I hope you feel better now, things are odd." She found she was too tired to think anything else. "I better go, its getting late." She shook her hand lose from Marks' grip lightly and walked away slowly thinking of what in the world just happened. This also was what happened to people on a starship.

 

Jon nodded and stood up to watch her go. "Doctor McCellan... Thank you."

 

THE END