The Double Date

Posted on Mon Oct 23rd, 2023 @ 5:13am by Senior Chief Petty Officer Mason Malone & Jerant van Rijn & Lieutenant Xavier Leiko & Ensign George Paxton

Mission: Character Development
Location: Holodeck
2424 words - 4.8 OF Standard Post Measure

George fidgeted slightly outside of the holodeck, nervously awaiting Jerant, Xavier and Mason. This double date was the first date that he'd agreed to with Mason since he had asked for space. In truth, that was all he needed. With all of the chaos from the pirate attack, crawling through jefferies tubes and trying to hold down engineering without either Finn or Sturgis had been quite a challenge and he'd just needed time and space to process it all. The past week since they'd reconnected with the other parts of the ship and he'd returned to being alone in his quarters had provided him the time he needed and illuminated the fact that he missed Mason.

The program they had selected for the double date was randomly picked by the computer since no one had expressed any particular preference of activity. 'Segway Tour of 21st Century Tampa," was the title and it involved some sort of ancient Earth vehicle with two wheels. George had done some limited research on this device called a 'segway' and the whole thing was a bit odd to him. He just hoped that the double wheeled standing unicycle would be easier to operate than it looked.

"Alright George?" Xavier asked as he came around the corner and saw the engineer looking rather nervous outside of the holodeck. In truth, he didn't just see the nerves, he felt them too. Waves of anticipation rolled from the young human, like pure energy that was almost possible to see. The feeling excited the Betazoid but he didn't show it. "Doing okay?"

"Oh, yea, fine...just a little, you know, antsy." George sheepishly smiled. "It's been quite some time since I've been on a double date. Plus I'm not too sure about this...this program the computer randomly selected." He nodded towards the screen at the entrance which was displaying an overview of the program. "Though I will say I approve of the weather...Tampa? Feels like back home in Louisiana." George took in a deep breath of the hot and muggy air.

"The human managed to randomise a program that's earth-based, sure," Xavier said teasingly.

It wasn't long before Mason and Jerant arrived, the pair obviously discussing some linguistics issue, judging from their animated discussion in an alien language. Jerant nudged Mason as they came closer, considering it impolite to continue in a language even though the UT would likely pick it up. "So where are we going?" He asked as his hand slid into Xavier's, squeezing it gently.

Mason did walk up to George's side but seemed a little careful in his greeting, holding back on being affectionate. "Somewhere warm, it seems," he smiled.

Xavier felt the slight tension between the other couple and gave Jerant a knowing look. Sometimes being a telepath was more intrusive than he would have liked and he couldn't help but wonder if this double date had been a good idea.

Jerant returned the look, somewhat covertly as he too felt the tension.

"The program says it's some town named Tampa. Somewhere in Florida it looks like. We're supposed to get on...those things," George pointed to the segways that had been placed about a block away. "I guess it's a tour. The guide appears once everyone gets on the device and completes the instructional portion." He looked somewhat nervously between Xavier and Jerant before smiling at Mason. Though he wasn't terribly excited about his chances on the segway, he was excited to be spending time with Mason.

Xavier studied the two-wheeled devices, his brain trying to work out the logistics of how you were meant to stand up and not fall flat on your face. "The safeties are on right?" He asked, trying not to sound too worried.

"I hope," Mason said as he walked up to one. "Segway," he read as he stepped up to the plate, finding it somewhat unbalanced. "I hope I don't get seasick..."

Jerant walked around another, studying it. "I'm no engineer, but surely it shouldn't be too difficult? And surely it's safe or this wasn't an actual means for transportation?" He grinned at the other men. "Seems like she for lazy people though," he added, now glancing longingly at the buildings he'd rather be scaling instead.

George walked over to one and touched the handle, which triggered a hologram's appearance. "Hey there!" The young man had an overly excited energy surrounding him, as if he was just busting at the seems to tell them everything he knew about these strange devices. "Welcome to Segway through Tampa! I'm Jerry. Let's start with a tutorial on how to use our state of the art transportation devices." He motioned towards the biped motorized vehicle and hopped on one himself. "As you'll see, the platform is quite stable as you step on it. To move you merely need to lean forward and VOILA! The vehicle moves forward. Now to slow down or stop just lean back in the opposite direction." Jerry performed the motions and then eagerly instructed the others to do the same.

George very hesitantly stepped on a Segway. His palms were already a bit sweaty at the thought of the motor skills needed for the vehicle and he said a small prayer that he wouldn't make a fool of himself. "Whoa," the engineer leaned forward and tightened his grip on the handles as the vehicle moved. Simultaneously, everything the instructor Jerry said about leaning back to stop, left George's mind and he found himself suddenly racing down the road at an increasing speed.

"Sir!" Jerry moved in pursuit. "You need to lean back!"

"What?!" George shouted in return, holding on for dear life."

"Lean back!" Jerry shouted again but it was too late. George had found an alternate stopping method via a pile of boxes outside a local shop.

Xavier had played sports his entire life and liked to think he was in good shape. He stepped onto the segway and finding his centre of balance wasn't nearly as difficult as he thought it was going to be. Watching George shoot off, Xavier was enveloped by a sense of fear from the human. He leaned forward and the segway moved as promised. Using the balls of his feet, he leaned forward a little bit more to increase his speed, leaning back he stopped right beside where George crashed. "Are you okay?"

"George!" Mason cried out, watching in pure horror as his partner took off on the two-wheeled contraption. His horror increased as Xavier sped off after him even though the Betazoid seemed to be more in control of the device. "Is he alright?" He called out, not even daring to follow on the Segway.

"I'm fine," George dusted himself off. "Just got a little ahead of myself that's all. Now," he looked at the segway. "This time I'll take it a bit slower." George hopped on once more and very cautiously moved forward just an inch before immediately pulling back to ensure he could stop this time. With the operation settled, he made his way back to the main group. "It's really....it's not so bad once you get used to it," he awkwardly smiled.

Mason breathed a sigh of relief but couldn't resist walking around George to verify for himself that the man was alright. "Seems this thing requires finesse," he said as he carefully stepped onto one.

Jerant eyed the thing suspiciously as he stepped on, gingerly testing it's function. "That was very brave, chasing after George like you did," he told Xavier, "and dangerous. I sure hope the safeties are fully functional? I really don't want any of us to get hurt."

Xavier rolled his eyes for comedic effect. "You jump off buildings for fun, we fight pirates for a job. If we can't handle a primitive mode of transport, maybe we shouldn't be wearing this uniform, erm... no offence Georgie boy," he said turning to the human and grinning slightly.

"True enough," Jerant grinned, "except I don't wear a uniform. Rather, I don't have to because I'm not Starfleet." He moved forward slowly, testing it further. "So how does this turn again?"

"You just lean, lightly!" Jerry the program spoke up once more. "Well, it seems you've all become accustomed to the segway. Are there any final questions I can answer before your tour guide arrives?"

"I think I'm good now," George said. "As long as the guide takes it a bit slow."

"I have a question," Xavier said rasing his hand and then quickly putting it down on the handlebar again for fear of toppling over. "What's the top speed of these things and who's up for a race?"

"I am," Jerant answered boldly even though he was still struggling to make it do his bidding.

"So am I," Mason added, looking at George next. "George?"

George held up a hand in surrender. "You three have fun, I'll referee. Lets say, first one around the block and back here wins?"

"Are you sure?" Mason asked carefully, not wanting him to feel excluded or left behind. On the other hand, he didn't want him to feel pushed into something he wasn't confident about either.

"I'm sure. I'll enjoy watching you three race much more. One of these days maybe we'll do a gator wrestling competition or something. That's a little more my speed," George smiled.

Jerant lined up with Xavier and grinned at his partner. "Do we take bets on who wins?" He challenged, "because I'll bet Mason will just straggle and not even make it to the finish."

Xavier considered the three of them, they were all physically fit young men. Mason a security officer who trained heavily, Jerant the unassuming interpreter who liked to jump off buildings during his spare time, and then himself. ~We'll dust Mason,~ he said telepathically, ~then they'll be two, and I'll dust you too.~

"Ready?" George uncharacteristically bellowed as if announcing a race in a stadium. "On the count of the....three, two, one, GO!"

Xavier didn't wait for Jerant to reply, he leaned forward on the segway and started to move. He went slowly at first, there was definitely a balancing act of moving quickly and not toppling over, but after finding his centre of gravity he was at full speed. "Seeya suckers!" He yelled in delight.

Mason was left well behind, struggling with the Segway as Jerant sped off too. Not as fast as Xavier, but certainly faster than Mason. He didn't dare go top speed at first, needing to find some confidence in the electrical vehicle first. "Wait for me!" He called out, speeding around the first corner, taking it way too wide. "Whoaaa, easy Jer," he scolded himself, almost losing his balance.

Meanwhile Mason was ground to a halt in the corner. He has no issue with obstacle courses, but somehow this was an obstacle he has trouble conquering. "Come on," he urged the device, "come on. Move!"

"You have to lean forward, Mason!" George shouted from down the road with a slight chuckle as the scene unfolded. He had his money on Xavier, but it seems like Jerant was motivated enough to give him a run for his money.

Mason laughed to himself as he wondered if the referee was supposed to be cheering him on. However he did as suggested and the thing started to move again. Xavier and Jerant however, were long out of sight. So he turned around and headed back to George. "No chance now so I'll keep you company," he said, "I know I love obstacle courses but not ones including electrical vehicles."

"Look, here they come!" George pointed down the road as he saw the pair of racers round the corner. Xavier was ahead but it looked like Jerant still had a chance.

Xavier was having the time of his life, the speed of the segway and the wind through his hair was nothing short of exhilarating. Unfortunately, he could hear Jerant behind him and it sounded like he was closing the gap. Xavier was heavier than the other Betazoid and the only way he was going to win was by going faster. He pushed forward, hoping to gain more speed and win the race, but in reality, he toppled over onto his face, the segway landing on top of him and Jerant sailed past.

Jerant all but screeched to a halt, choosing to run back rather than use the treacherous device. "Xav!" He called out as he approached, already reaching to pull the heavy machine away. "George, Mason, some help!" He called over his shoulder. "Xav are you hurt? Talk to me, to us."

Xavier rolled onto his back his shoulders rocking up and down. "Why... didn't... you... carry... on...?" He managed to say in between fits of laughter. He wasn't even sure what was funny, the fact he had almost won or maybe the fact he couldn't handle a primitive earth device. "You... could... have... won..."

"I can still win," Jerant chuckled, reaching to help Xavier up. "I'm surprised you think I care about winning, when you could've been hurt. I really don't care about winning, the race was fun enough." He glanced the man over. "You sure you're alright then?"

"Yes you goon, we're on the holodeck," Xavier said as he got to his feet. He had finally stopped laughing and now his ribs hurt. He watched as George and Mason trotted over and then smiled at the three of them. "Last one to the finish line is on waste extraction duty," and he ran as fast as he could, leaving the fallen segway behind.

How has he managed to forget that? Jerant jumped to his feet and raced after Xavier. "Better run faster then," he laughed, breaking into a sprint.

Mason glanced at George then shrugged. "I guess we run then?" He smiled, grabbing George by the hand and starting to run after the other two. "C'mon, I want to know what that was all about."

George panted as he arrived back at the starting point, slightly out of breath from the run back. "Well, I think Xavier got a bit of a surprise advantage and beat us all to the finish line. Nice work," he chuckled.

"What can I say?" Xavier said, panting heavily. "I'm just super fit. Right, can we get some food now, please? I could eat a whole targ to myself."

"Food it is," Jerant smiled, seemingly not so much out of breath as the rest. "Let's go."