Chapter Text
Christine felt swamped. She didn't lose that feeling in the next two weeks. She tried seeing less of Riley, even to the extent of breaking dates for "last minute rush work", but, no matter when she left the sickbay, Riley would be waiting to walk her to her quarters. Every day she would resolve that she would not accept a date from Riley, no matter what, and every day, somehow, she and Riley would end up at the same place, doing the same thing. His espionage system was phenomenal.
Riley never spoke of his love again, or even of his expectations from her. He remained patient, confident, and persistent. Once, when she had desperately accepted a date from someone else, her whole evening was spoiled by Riley hovering around her and her date. He didn't say anything, didn't reproach her; he was just there. Her date became so exasperated that he did not ask for another date. And he evidently spread the word because no one else asked her either.
She continued to get gifts, flowers, candy, hand-written poems and a large toy tribble, also handmade. The worst was his serenade directed to her during an impromptu amateur night. She couldn't decide which hurt more, his attention to her or his singing. When she tried to talk to him about breaking up, her soft heart shied away from being too harsh, and every time she hesitated, Riley moved into implant himself closer to her.
Uhura, once she understood what was happening, made Christine's life miserable by keeping track of each incident, every remark, and every gift that Riley gave to Christine. She also kept Christine up-to-date on the latest gossip and what Christine's odds were in the ship pools. Because she couldn't take the whole thing seriously, she was greatly enjoying Christine's discomfort. She needled her about "your Kevin" until Christine could have cheerfully throttled her.
By now the whole crew was watching them, and Christine found herself avoiding the more crowded areas, unable to face the stares and whispers. Riley was perfectly content with the more intimate meetings. At this time, he had firmly convinced himself that there was no other woman for him, and that in time, Christine would return his love. In fact, he was puzzled as to why it had taken him so long to recognize this great truth.
As with all situations, this one, too, reached a crisis point. For the first time in three months, the ship was orbiting a planet that offered a chance for liberty. True, it was a little primitive, about 20th century Earth, but still everyone in the crew welcomed the opportunity to get off the ship. Everyone except Christine, that is. Riley had big plans which included her, and she felt overjoyed when it turned out that she and Riley were on different liberty shifts. She held her breath until she learned that, try as he might, he couldn't get anyone to trade with him.
Christine was even enjoying her duty shift, knowing Riley was safely planetside, when Dr. McCoy came into the office, holding a tape, and with a coy smile on his face. "Nurse, there has to be a change in the schedule. Jamison's kidney went bad and will have to be replaced. I want you to assist. That means you will have to take your liberty now if you want it."
"What about Marty? She is already on liberty and will be back in time."
"I can't get a hold of her and I'm not risking that she might be hung over or otherwise out of condition to assist." He turned and walked to the door, throwing over his shoulder, "Besides, this way you can be with Riley."
Christine fumed as McCoy's laughter floated back to her. She couldn't believe her luck. For the first time in weeks, she had been free, and now it looked like she would be trapped again. Then her brain began to work like it was supposed to. After all, Riley was already gone and there was no reason why she had to join him. If anything, spending her liberty without making any effort to find him just might convince Kevin that she wasn't "falling" for him.
With a light heart, she changed her clothes, picked up her liberty pass, and headed planetward. The city was bustling and exciting. Christine felt the blood surging through her veins. Her eyes stung a little from the smog, but she felt this was one of the brightest days of her life. She wandered along the crowded sidewalks, window shopping. Suddenly, she heard a voice she knew and dreaded.
"Christy! Hey, Christy!"
Without hesitation, she plunged into an entrance of the planet's underground vehicle service. She pushed her way through the crowd, automatically picking up a payment token, and entering the first empty pod she came to. The pods were big enough for two people and ran on an electrified monorail. She lost a few minutes trying to figure out how the pod worked, randomly punching out a destination, any destination. The delay cost her; Riley caught up with her.
Bare seconds before the pod started speeding through the maze of lighted tunnels, he slipped into the empty seat, breathing hard. Christine tried to stop the pod, but she was too slow. Riley grabbed her hand, holding it tight.
"What a great surprise!" he declared. "How did you get off early?"
Christine had reached her limit. She was tired of feeling trapped, and she would be damned if she could see any reason to keep up this farce. She forcibly snatched her hand back and scowled at Riley.
"Now hear this, mister, 'cause I'm only going to say it once! We are no longer 'a thing'. I don't love you, and I have no intention of trying to. I no longer want to see you, except on ship's business. No lunch, no dinner, no art, nothing." Catching her breath in a gasp, she bulled right on, giving Riley his own tactics. "And no more gifts. If you ever give me anything else, I'll dump it straight into the disposal chute. I'm my own person, and I belong only to me." She had finished, and she felt heady. Kevin looked stunned.
"But ... but, Christy. Just give it some time and..."
"No, Riley," she said firmly. "I've had all I'm going to take. You are a nice guy, Riley, but you are too damn pushy."
As if to emphasize Christine's new freedom, the pod slid to a smooth stop, and the doors snapped open. Christine got out gracefully, and Riley scrambled out after her. She faced him and quietly said, "Enjoy your liberty, Lieutenant." Then she disappeared into the crowd.
Riley moped around the streets, reviewing her words. He didn't even have the heart to give a wolf whistle to some of the lovelier local girls. Finally, he turned into a small, quiet place for lunch. He sat at a back table and brooded over a large whiskey.
"Hi, Riley. You sure look blue. Missing Christine?" He looked up and there stood Uhura, smiling down on him.
"She threw me over. What did I do wrong?" he asked plaintively.
Uhura slipped into the seat across from him. "You made assumptions you shouldn't have. You gave Christine no chance to know the real you. All she saw was a façade, an actor playing a role." Riley looked even more woebegone, and Uhura felt a stirring of pity. She continued, more kindly. "A woman likes to know she is attractive to a man, Kevin, but she also wants to know the real man. Not some ideal. After all, it's not like you aren't a handsome, interesting man."
"And Irish," laughed Riley, his spirits rising. "Thank you, Penda, you've given me a lot to think about."
* * *
Later that evening, Uhura and Christine were in Uhura's quarters, discussing the whole thing. "I hated to be crude about it, Penda, but I had had all I could take," Christine said defensively. "I just hated to hurt his feelings, though."
Uhura stretched leisurely on the bed. "Don't worry. When I saw him later, I think I convinced him it was for the best. You'll see. Knowing Riley, he has started on his new campaign. Poor girl."
They both started laughing. The door chimes rang, and Uhura went to answer it, still giggling. There stood Sulu, with roses in his hand and a laugh at the back of his eyes. Uhura took one look at the flowers, complete with a discrete note, and her eyes flew to Sulu's face. "No," she said. "It can't be..."
Sulu nodded and thrust the bouquet into her hands. "Compliments of Mr. Kevin Riley."
Uhura shook her head and backed away from Sulu, staring down at the roses as if they were snakes. Behind her, Christine started laughing again. "No, no, no..." Uhura whispered, horrified.
THE END