Posts: 8,135
Threads: 731
Joined: Aug 2008
Staff roles: Moderator
"All set, Doc?" the proprietor asked him.
"I am," he replied, "Just have everything brought out to my shuttle." He then paused a moment and quietly said to him, "You didn't see us. We just need some quiet time." The proprietor just nodded his understanding. With that, Doc casually took Ashlea, arm in arm, and escorted her to her seat in the shuttle where they left for his cabin.
It was a relatively short flight but Ashlea would soon find herself landing at a small lakeside pad, a mere clearing in a heavily wooded area. Before they unloaded the goods from the shuttle, he escorted her to the cabin.
The water was clear and inviting with a light wind blowing through the trees. For a moment, he let her soak in the surroundings.
Going inside, he opened some windows to let the air flow through. Inside, it was roomy with an old world atmosphere of wooden floors and old collectibles.
A deck extended off the front with a cooking grill that overlooked the water. Inside, it was mostly open with the kitchen and dining area combined. There was a single room upstairs and three extra rooms down, one of which was a bathroom. The other two were another bed room and a room converted into a study.
Doc stood in the middle of it all. Putting his arms out he just announced to Ashlea, "Welcome to my little escape. I'll show you the stable later."
Ashlea brushed her hands across some leaves from a low hanging branch of one of the trees. She smiled, being here excited her. Being able to go back to a planet without the entire security force after her was something she thought she was never going to be able to do again.
She followed him inside, staying a few steps behind him. "This is..... Just wow." She walked around the room, admiring it. She looked back across at Doc, speaking quietly "This place is amazing... It's so." She stopped for a moment to try and think of a word to explain it "Well, peaceful. Are you sure you don't mind me here?"
Posts: 8,135
Threads: 731
Joined: Aug 2008
Staff roles: Moderator
"I wouldn't have invited you here if I minded you being here," he replied as he stood before her, "no one is going to bother you here."
While she explored her surroundings, he brought in the supplies and gear, putting everything in it's proper place. The liquor cabinet was now replenished with liquors and wines and food stuffs now filled the cabinets. He then unlocked a gun cabinet and placed the ammo inside.
The last thing he brought in was her wardrobe. That's when he was a bit lost. With a bit of a smile of embarrassment, he asked her where she wanted to stay.
"The upstairs room has more space to keep you comfortable if you want it," he said, "I don't mind the one down here...unless you would rather being down here. It's your call."
Ashlea giggled, his embarrassment made him seem less of a businessman. She realized she was going to enjoy this time away. "Well, where do you normally sleep when you are here?" Either way it would be better then the room she had claimed back on Padua, she didn't want to take the room he usually slept in if it was where he was comfortable.
She looked out the window and decided she hadn't ever seen a place this beautiful before. Rubbing the back of her neck again as she thought out loud "I wonder if that will be very cold.." Turning to face him again, she smiled "um, The water that is."
Posts: 8,135
Threads: 731
Joined: Aug 2008
Staff roles: Moderator
After a brief pause of thought, he just smiled. "Why don't you take the upstairs. You'll have more room up there. I don't need a lot of space so I'll be fine down here. I'll bring your stuff up shortly."
He smiled about her question regarding the water. "It's perfect this time of year. Refreshing, clear and yes, very inviting."
Doc removed his overcoat, hanging it up in a closet and then removing his shoulder holster and putting it in the gun cabinet. A large boot knife was unstrapped from his leg and placed in the cabinet as well. He removed his shoes, placing them by the door to his room and he walked towards the kitchen area as he undid his top buttons on his shirt. He was getting comfortable as he enjoyed the light breeze blowing through the house.
What he didn't remember in all of this activity was the pictures upstairs. They were taken down but either laid down in a drawer or placed in the back of a closet, those being pictures of his ex and him together. Pictures of him and his old friends of a life past still were displayed. No doubt it would generate questions at some point.
As he went about his activities, Doc brought her stuff up and finally asked of her, "So, what are you interested in for some dinner?"
Ashlea nodded and picked up a pair of jeans and white shirt "I'm going to get changed, these look a lot more comfortable." She headed upstairs and got changed leaving her other clothes on the end of the bed. She had tied her hair into a loose ponytail, and placed her sidearm on the bed next to her other clothes. She noticed old photos on the wall and walked over to have a closer look. She realized they were of Doc and groups of other people, they all seemed to be happy, having a good time.
She was looking through the room, finding a picture of the two of them upside down in the back of one of the draws. She was pretty and the two of them looked to be completely at ease. Ashlea ran her thumb across the woman in the photos face shaking her head slightly before placing the photo on the top of the draws, face up, closing the draw again. She jumped as he entered the room, not expecting him to have come up quite so soon. "I... The pictures, they are nice." She smiled apologetically, feeling like she had invaded his space. She was hoping he wouldn't notice she had pulled the other photo out of the draw. "You look like you were having fun."
She thought for a moment "I'm really not sure about dinner... I can't say I thought about it." She wasn't going to tell him she had resigned herself to the fact that she wasn't going to eat tonight before she had even left Padua. It had been a tight week for credits and she wasn't able to afford to, so she had pushed the thought of food from her mind.
Posts: 8,135
Threads: 731
Joined: Aug 2008
Staff roles: Moderator
Doc ducked back around the corner, not realizing he had disturbed her with a quick "sorry." He wasn't used to having a guest here as only once before had someone visited besides his hired stable boy who watched after his horses.
"Um.....we have time," he replied to her dinner reply. He quietly returned downstairs and started putting some of his own things away.
The only sound going through the house was their conversations and the breeze. While in his room, he quickly changed into a pair of shorts, his loose, paritally unbuttoned shirt staying on and untucked and a pair of sandals. He then took a large pitcher, filled it with water and tea bags and put it out in the sun where it would spend the afternoon.
As he stood just outside his front door, the lake was before him. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes and enjoyed the clean, crisp air. He was at ease and relaxed.
Out of the corner of his eye was the stable. He needed to go to it but wasn't yet ready. Besides, his livestock was well taken care of. Instead, the fire pit on his patio caught his attention. He needed some wood for it as he planned to cook over it. With that, he came back inside to grab something cold to drink.
She put the clothes away, finding more pictures hidden out of sight while doing so. Eventually she returned down stairs and made her way outside waiting for Doc to return. She took a seat on a chair close to the fire pit, curling her legs up under her. She had missed the fresh air, and being able to sit outside in the sun. It didn't take her long to realize that this would be a perfect place to just watch the stars at night - something else she had greatly missed.
Ashlea was looking out across the lake, she was quiet but her mind was not. As he walked outside again she quietly asked a question, seemingly out of the blue "When ignoring the problem doesn't work, how is one meant to quieten their mind when they worry about everything there is to be worried about?"
Posts: 8,135
Threads: 731
Joined: Aug 2008
Staff roles: Moderator
Doc handed her a drink, a simple glass of cold iced tea as he sat across from her with his own. Her question made him think. He was a doctor of pediatrics, of general practice and dentistry but not so much of psychology.
"Professionally," he explained, "I'm not sure." He sighed in thought, "I have few people to talk to myself so I just don't know."
He sipped his tea and thought and then looked at her, "I guess I'm not doing so well myself there."
He placed his glass on a stump next to him. Leaning forward and clasping his hands, he looked forward, "I do know having someone to talk to, to gain perspective, is a great way. Another person doesn't always have the answers but I do find that they have ideas and sometime the tools needed to find the answers."
He sighed again, "It's been awhile."
He then sat back, took his glass and another sip, "When I was taking care of children at the Bretonian refugee camp on Gran Canaria, I found them to be great listeners. So many had lost one or both parents so I found that they enjoyed listening...and being listened to."
He looked to her again, "Let me listen to you. Maybe I can give some insight."
Ashlea was quiet for a moment before shaking her head slightly "I guess it just comes down to that I'm not happy." She didn't want to burden him with her problems, she didn't think that was fair. "You don't need to hear about this though, its not very exciting."
When he mentioned the children she frowned "Children in Refugee camps? I.... They don't belong there." She sighs and shakes her head, sipping her iced tea. "I've both seen and done things that shouldn't have even been thought about. They were done in fear of what would happen if I didn't." She pauses a moment "I don't like living in fear. Even here, I am worried about what will happen when I return home." She looked across at the lake "You will have the station, Moka has agreed to that... Rogues who don't tend to listen to leadership, however... We'll see."