Red Wine, Is Just Fine [Part Two]

Posted on Mon Oct 31st, 2022 @ 7:14am by Commander Raiden Kosugi & Commander Liala Ziyal

Mission: The Goddess
Location: Various
3129 words - 6.3 OF Standard Post Measure

Raiden raised an eyebrow at that. "Er, if you want to have wine, have some wine. " a bit of a confused expression in his eyes. He looked at the server. "A red wine please, the real stuff, a bottle of it and two glasses. If you have that." the server nodded, "And we'll figure out what we want to eat while you get the wine."

Continuation

When the server left, Raiden quietly asked Liala. "Were you asking me if it were okay for you to have some wine? I'm not against it, and you wouldn't be offending me, if you wished it. Might help me get a little bit of sleep once we're done eating."

"Ehm..." Liala's cheeks went a bit red on Raidens behalf. "I was actually asking the server for the wine." She let out a little smirk and giggle so he wouldn't feel embarrassed, or at least not as much. She also took a mental note of the trouble sleeping comment. Her doctor mind never switched off at times.

Raiden gave a rueful chuckle, "I definitely misunderstood. Ah well, what's done is done. What will you be having to eat I know that I will be having something that won't sit too heavy on my stomach, a bowl of Pho soup with strips of steak and vegetables. " He remarked.

"That's okay. You're only a man." she teased. "I was thinking maybe a cesear salad with lightly fired chicken through it." Liala answered as she fixed a stray strand of hair behind her ear. For a moment she stared at Raiden getting lost in his features for a moment.

Raiden flashed a bit of a smile at Liala's tease. He noticed she was gazing at him, and he in turn, gazed at her. There was a silence, both seeming to be lost in there own little world, the a gentle clearing of a throat, and Raiden blinked, realizing the server had come back with the wine.

"Oh hello, sorry." Raiden replied with a smile. "Thank you, and here are our orders for our meal." handing him the menu and the requests"

The server gave a nod in regard to that. "Well enjoy the wine."

"Thank you." Liala nodded to the server. "So..." she said sipping her wine. "Tell me something about you that I don't know."

Raiden picked up his wine, taking a look at its ruby red color in the light, then turned his gaze to Liala. "I don't really know what you might know about me. You are a very observant woman and have an innate gift for picking up things about a person." he moved his glass to his lips, taking a mouthful of wine, tasting the full flavor of it, then he continued. "Have I told you much? Have I told you anything about myself? I truly do not remember, except for the fact or well the confession of my having had a crush on you." his voice going low, to where only she could hear his words.

"Well that confession is very important, as I admit to having a little one on you as well. A smart, strong and handsome man with a very intelligent mind. What is there not to crush on?" she asked rhetorically. "You could tell me about where you grew up? Where you're from? I know in counselling we speak about you, but it's different now, in here."

Her answer gave Raiden some surprise. She had or has a small crush on him? His astonishment was a bit visible in his eyes. "You what?" then he decided to answer questions.

"I'm from a city called Monterey in the northern part of California. It has a lovely view of the ocean, has beaches to play on or walk along the sand, watching as the sun is setting. My father's place has a view that looks upon the sea and the sand. You can hear the sound of the waves at night, its rather comforting." Raiden getting a contemplative expression in his eyes. "Perhaps I need to get a background noise generator to create that sound. Thank you, that will definitely help my stress level." Raiden smiling.

"Oh really? I had a practice in Pasadena, but I closed that up well before you were born." Liala giggled. "It truly is a beautiful part of the world." she commented before hearing Raiden come up with his own therapy tools. "You're welcome?" she half asked/answered. "Well, I guess I am glad I can still help you even if it's not in a professional way."

"Talking with you like this made me remember some pleasant memories. Where my father lives, it's been in the family for quite some time. His father had it before he did, and it was a family tradition of martial arts. One son or daughter inherits the martial arts and the training facility as well. The dojo and school are passed down from generation to generation." Raiden stated. He would have said more but the food they had ordered arrived.

"That smells great." exhibiting a great amount of pleasure at the scents that rose from the bowl of pho soup. He added the bean sprouts the slice of lime and sprigs of peppermint that came with it along with some chopped up jalapeno peppers. He took a bite of it, and he smiled. "This is really good!"

Liala was quite happy that she had made him remember something nice. He needed it after all he'd been through lately it was nice to see him smile and simply just be rather than force it. "Oh, so one of your siblings has the dojo now, or does your father still run it?" she asked as she accepted her food. She gave a little nod of thanks to the server before they sped off to wait other tables.

She took a bite of her salad, and the taste was exquisite as well. To be honest it would be pretty hard to go wrong with a salad, but the chicken was succulent and moist... often they overdid the meat.

"He does still run it, and it maybe my sister who will carry on the tradition, or my brother when he is old enough." his tone was carefully measured when talking of this particular part. "Father wasn't happy when I chose to go into Star Fleet instead of taking up the reins of the family dojo. He felt that I had betrayed him, due to him not wanting me to go into Star Fleet. it cost him his older brother." Raiden replied, taking a bite of his pho once more.

"It might just have been his worry masquerading as anger." Liala answered then taking a bite of her own meal. "If his brother was lost in service then it is only natural for him to worry about his son taking a similar route. You've hardly had an easy go of it recently." she said trying to make him see his father's point of view. "Although, I am quite happy you joined, otherwise I'd never have met you." her eyes lingered on him for a moment before picking up her glass of wine and taking a sip.

There was a bit of a flash of something that came to Raiden's mind, then he spoke, "I've been in contact with my family, just to check on them, due to well, the nightmare I had. It seems that my father and my brother are starting to come around, and not be so angry anymore. Dad even spoke to me, I think my mother and sisters may have gotten through to them. It eased my mind though, very much so, especially knowing that they are safe and also on the look out for things that just are not kosher."

Raiden picked up a few more bites of his pho, all the while gazing at Liala, then his next bite of the soup paused in mid air, the broth dripping from the noodles back into his bowl. Something just hit him. "Liala are you seeing someone? I think we spoke of this, something like that. Are you dating the Captain?"

Liala smiled. It was nice to hear that Raiden and his family were mending fences. It was never nice to know that family didn't support what you had chosen for your life, it made things... difficult to enjoy. For Liala it was fine, she had a long life to live and knew at some point a career change may suit her people's needs more but for now she was happy where she was, and who she was with.

"David and I were 'something', but I am not sure I'd have called it dating." Liala admitted. "Enjoying each other's company." she adjusted the term. "But no, I am not seeing anyone, or dating high ranking officers... unless you get promoted quickly." she teased.

"Okay then that will put me out of any running then." Raiden commented. "Since I am just a newly minted Lieutenant Commander. There is a reason why I was wondering about you and the captain as he said a rather strange thing to me when I had spoken to him earlier. He said that a little birdy told him that he and I were hunting the same prey. I am now wondering if he meant that he and I were interested in the same person. As in you. Perhaps I am reading things wrongly though. "

"Well I cannot speak for him, he's a very complicated man." Liala laughed softly. "I'd hope I am not being compared to prey. I can't imagine being hunted is fun... suppose it depends on the hunter." She looked out to the stars for a moment. "Maybe he was more interested than he let on, maybe not. I suspect though he moves on quite quickly. I for one am quite happy sitting here having dinner with you." she looked back at Raiden. This talk of David was not really the most comfortable of subjects.

Raiden picked up his wineglass once again, taking a drink from it. Then lowering it, he remarked. "I won't bring that up again, Liala." Raiden replied. "And I agree, lets enjoy the rest of the dinner with just you, me and the stars." giving her a brilliant, charming smile. "Liala, what would be your favorite flower? Do you like roses? Or are there others that you like the best?"

"Oh random question time." Liala grinned. "I do likes roses, but also lilies, snowdrops and I love a lotus flower." she said as she ran through them in her mind. "Not that a lotus is easy to get into a bouquet. Need a big glass bowl for that..." she said as she began to talk to herself a bit.

"Lotus are very beautiful, and so are water lilies floating upon a pond with koi fish swimming beneath" Raiden drank a little bit more of his wine, had a few more bites of his pho. Raiden was feeling a sense of peace descend upon him, would it be due to eating good food with good company? Was the wine helping as well? Or even, his mind was finally tired enough for Raiden to sleep. Or all of the above? Either way whichever the answers would be, it felt like a weight was lifting up from his shoulders well at least for now.

"They are, although I am afraid, I am not familiar with a koi fish. You'll have to educate me on that." she too took a sip of her wine as she had finished her salad. She could feel him relax and it was quite pleasing to see. For so long she'd wished to see his shoulders drop a little, to let some of the world he was carrying go.

"I've got some images of them on my computer in my quarters." Raiden responded, "So if you'd like I can show them to you, don't know if you have time tonight. Perhaps at a later date?" Pouring himself a refresher of his wine, then Raiden offered it to Liala. "would you like a bit more?"

Liala tipped her glass to let Raiden pour a refill as she mouthed thank you whilst considering his offer. Her cheeks were going a little rosy as they always did with red wine. "I've got plenty of time, its still pretty early and I'm not on duty until later anyway so. Depends how tidy you've left your quarters Mr Kosugi." she teased.

Raiden grinned towards Liala, then took a drink from his glass. "It is very tidy, the only way to- for it to be." He didn't add his other thoughts though. Raiden kept it clean, very very clean just to make certain he would know if someone had been in his room without permission. He also had placed some monofilament fibers which would also if disturbed would give indication of a disturbance as well. Consider him slightly paranoid right now? Indeed Raiden would be considered that.

Liala sometimes wondered if Raiden remembered that not only was she a psychologist but also an empath and could see and feel most of the feelings and whatnot from him as he spoke, and did not speak. Mostly though she'd 'turned off' her empathic sense, at times it was nice to be surprised by things, by people's behaviours.

"Glad to hear it. I can be a bit of a clean freak myself. I don't miss the days of sharing quarters..."

"Well then after dinner we can go to my quarters and I can introduce to you what Koi fish are. They are really quite beautiful." Raiden replied.

When they reached his quarters, Raiden paused for a moment. "Just to let you know, there isn't anything remarkable about my quarters, it is just a bit spartan like as in I don't have anything personal showing. Its just standard run of the mill quarters. I've just not gotten around to personalizing it." then he opened the door to let them inside. He did though do a quick scan before Liala went completely into his quarters, and he returned to her side with a smile. "Its all clear."

"You don't have to defend how your quarters look Raiden. We are only just on board the Gladiator and even my own are a little bit dull looking. It's funny how much I had to put into storage to move across." she mused to herself as she felt a little resistance from him as they entered before he gave a strange comment. "Well thank you. I didn't know your quarters were so dangerous." she joked. The wine clearly had done a little more to stop her filter from working. "Your quarters look most unremarkable." she added trying to relieve some anxiety about going back to his quarters.

He gently took Liala by the hand and led her to the sofa there, "I'm sorry, ever since what happened on the Arcadia, I've been a bit paranoid. In fact I've been in some aspect sleeping with one eye open." taking a seat upon the sofa. "I feel afraid sometimes in going to sleep." looking into her eyes. He released her hand and leaned back.

"I am the last person you need to apologise to. I know you've been through a lot and I can try to understand how you feel. We all have our traumas, mine being the loss of my world and yours..." she fixed a stray hair that had fallen loose and tucked it back into place on his head. "Well... I can try and help. Lie with you until you fall asleep. I can be quite cosy." she smiled at him realising her hand still hovered at his face before then slowly lowering it.

Raiden reached up once more taking her hand, before it could leave completely, bringing her hand back to his face, and closed his eyes. This time he didn't flinch like he had before. "Your hand is so soft, and yet there is strength in it." he whispered. "And you would share my bed, to make certain I will sleep? Are you certain you wish to do this?" his eyes opened and a questioning look was there, searching for an answer. "I don't know it would seem like I'd be taking advantage of your offer, of you."

"Could be I'm taking advantage of you." Liala shyly smiled a little realising how it looked from the outside looking in, but then again there was no-one else looking in. "I will protect you in my own way. I'm not much of a fighter but I know I want to do this. It feels right." She could feel the warmth of her hand on his face, she'd always had warm skin. "If you don't feel comfortable with it, with me?" her question hung in the air with a hesitation that seemed to last forever.

"Liala, I feel comfortable with you." turning his head to kiss the palm of her hand. Then Raiden wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, Raiden leaned in and gently brushed his lips across hers.

Goosebumps formed all the way up her arm when he kissed her palm. It was like electricity coursing through her veins and so much of it so that she hadn't noticed the shift in his body until his arms had enveloped her whole.

Their lips connected and all she could feel was the urge to grab him closer. The surge of energy she could feel in the pit of her stomach almost bursting from her as she threw her arms around him. One hand pushing through his hair whilst the other almost clawing him down the back.

With her pretty much being in his lap, Raiden slid his arm beneath her legs, pulling her into his arms and rose from the couch, and carried her toward the bed, still kissing her. He paused though, to look into her eyes with an unspoken question, as if to ask if she was agreeable to what may come next. Raiden wanted her, to be close to Liala, but if she didn't want, he'd stop.

When Raiden paused she looked at him with fire in her eyes. She could see the question on his face and her answer was the same as his. Being that she was being carried at this point she couldn't exactly pull him forward so she simply just bit his bottom lip playfully as her answer.

Raiden gave out a playful growl, finishing carrying her to his bed. It wasn't too long after when the lights went out, and only the light from the stars provided light, for the two wrapped in each other's arms.

END