On:
Yukari was a little unnerved by the well-endowed Yamataian technician they had miraculously retrieved. She had never heard of such a thing happening before ... but somehow, she was not surprised. The 5th Expeditionary Fleet was strange, if nothing else. But now, once again, she was going to Tom. She walked this time, pacing every step. I have not had time to think yet. I am not ready! She noticed Nyton and Mizuho looking as if they were going to talk, so she quietly stepped by them and back into the kitchen.
The sound and smell of sizzling tuna steaks greeted Yukari as soon as she entered. The table that Yukari had set now had a large salad bowl and a metal tray which held slices of garlic-buttered bread and some sort of diced tomato and mixed oils in a bowl.
Yukari had to smile a little, leaning against the door of the kitchen as it closed behind her. Tom always worked hard, and she did like that about him. He wanted his craft to be right, and she seemed to be good at disturbing him from that. She simply stood and watched.
Tom was oblivious to Yukari's presence at the moment, fixated on his cooking. He gingerly flipped the set of 8 steaks on the grilling rack with a set of tonges. "Lookin' good there..." A lot of steam was rising from the stove, and it was apparant on the sweating Yamataian's face.
A blush touched Yukari's cheeks. She had thought Corro was "manly" because of his demeanor. But Tom was proving himself more the man just by effort alone. The sweat ... Yukari shook her head. I am not thinking!
Tom turned away from the steam and the stove, bringing a sleeved arm up to wipe his forehead. "Whew! Oh! Hello ma'am!" He wanted to check his watch. It had seemed only 15 or so minutes ago since Mara rudely interrupted their 'moment.'
Yukari, on instinct, bowed a little. It felt awkward, but she did not know what else to do. "Do not mind me ... I am just watching."
"Don't do that, ma'am," Tom said with a deep bow. "I should be bowing to you. Standard protocol, right?" He returned to his standing position with a wink. "I thought you were going to your quarters?"
"Officers may still bow to those of lower ranks, as a sign of respect." Yukari did not leave the doorway. She did not want to admit she went immediately to Kotori after wringing her mind over Tom's emotions. "I was called to talk to a new crewmember we did not find out about until recently."
"A new crewmember at this time?" Tom asked with a raised eyebrow. "At a time like this? How strange." He walked to a refrigerator and pulled out a can of juice concentrate. "I take it things are OK?"
"It will be fine. She was cleared to come aboard, and we have not left the station." She will repay this kindess somehow, Yukari muttered in her head. "How is dinner?"
"Fan-TASTIC," Tom exclaimed proudly, extending his hand to motion out to the table. "Did you see my newest creation over there?"
"I did, but I do not understand all of what it is." Yukari walked to the table, taking in the strong smells of garlic and oils.
"It's my own personal variation on Bruschetta," Tom said from the kitchen. "Instead of using plain bread, I've decided to add the taste of garlic to it. I hope you don't mind."
Bruschetta? Yukari quickly looked the term up from Miharu's stores -- Oh! "I do not mind at all, Heisho-san. It smells delightful!"
"Go ahead and try one," Tom said. "Nobody's looking. Just grab a slice of the bread, use the spoon in the bowl to spread some of the mix on it and take a big ol' bite!"
"Ah ... yes." Yukari took a piece of the bread -- it was warm -- and dipped it into the mix. She took a bite and mmmmmed; she was not used to the texture of oil, but it tasted wonderful, and made everything easier to eat. She looked over to Tom, a bit of oil on her lips. "It is very good!"
"You flatter me." Tom turned the stove down a few levels and walked out of the kitchen, wringing his hands with a towel. "Oh, ma'am. You have a spot on your lip there."
"Eh?" Yukari licked her lips slowly with her tongue, eyes looking down toward her mouth.
"There ya go," Tom sat next to where Yukari stood, resting on an open spot on the table. "Is it your first time trying bruschetta?"
"Ah, yes," Yukari said, munching idly on another bite. She was trying not to focus on how Tom looked.
Tom grinned and gave Yukari the thumbs up. "Given how well the cooking has been so far, Mara could've spared us at least 8 minutes."
Yukari's eyes fell to the floor. She swallowed, laughed a little nervously, and realized she had oil on her lips again. She licked it off.
Tom picked up on her emotion rather quickly. "If I may borrow one of your terms, ma'am... was I a bit too forward in my actions?"
"No," Yukari said quickly. She then looked up. "I ... must become accustomed to them. That is all."
"I'm sure I'm like a bulldozer in a rice field sometimes," Tom said, grabbing a piece of bread himself and putting some of the topping on it. "I'm surprised I haven't accidentally mortified you to death yet!"
"You have done no such thing," Yukari said quietly, but firmly. "I am not intimate with love and other strong emotions. No more."
"Mmm..." Tom crunched on the bread and chewed it thoughtfully.
The silence hung in the air.
" ... " Yukari felt awkward. She did not know what to say. She finished her brushchetta, licking as much of the oil off her lips as she could, but they glistened in the light just a little. A tissue is needed for this food.
After he finished his piece of bread, Tom cleared his throat. "Perhaps we've jumped the gun a bit, so to speak. Let's take a few steps back and access our current situation. A lot's happened in the last... 36 or so hours."
He continued. "I am in love with you, and you are with me, I... assume, right?"
"Ye ... yes." Yukari had said it. And she believed it.
He nodded. "That's good, very good. Nevermind the fact that we have quite a few ranks between us in this army and all that nonsense. We'll figure out how to make things work given that we'll probably have limited time to see each other. What's more important to me, right now, and I say this while barely containing my carnal desire for you--WHICH I might add we almost indulged in, blast you Mara..." Tom was rambling a bit now.
"...but what I was meaning to say is that, well, I want to think about your emotions too here. I want to know what you want in a relationship, but more importantly, what makes you tick, ma'am."
I have much to consider, Yukari thought. She knew that, yet thinking it seemed to drive it home. "I will ... Tom."
"Have you been in love before, ma'am?"
"No," Yukari said. "I do not think so."
"Oh," Tom said simply. "I'm... honored to be the first you trust with your love and friendship."
She could not bring herself to ask if she were first or not. Somehow, on the ship, it did not matter. "It is nothing ... I am glad it is you. I would not want anyone else."
"That's so sweet." Yukari's honesty picked him out of his own nervous doldrums. "Honestly, when I confessed to you ma'am, the words just poured out of me, like they were pulled out of my soul by your very presence. I can honestly admit that I've never had those kinds of feelings for a person before... the intensity. But this is new territory for me too, ma'am. We might stumble and fall and wipe the scrapes from our knees, but at least we'll do it together."
He looked up into her eyes. "All I ask is that you hold my hand for the trip."
Yukari smiled warmly, genuinely. She lowered herself to his level and took his hand. "We are stronger, better, together. It must be this way." She awkwardly kissed his hand, not sure what else to do.
Yukari's smooth, delicate lips sent the hairs on Tom's arms dancing. He could only return the favor with his own kiss. "When you kiss a hand, you do it with a bit of finesse, like this. Not too soft, but not too hard, either. Don't worry, ma'am. I'll let you practice on me as much as you'd like!"
Yukari blushed as he kissed her gloved hand. She smiled at him, nervously, as if hesitating on what to say. "I ... want to practice this." She leaned in and kissed Tom's lips fully, deeply, for the briefest of moments, before pulling back. She felt like she had more oil on her lips than before; she licked it off.
"Ohhhhh ma'am," Tom said with the barest hint of a desperate whine. "You don't know how badly I want to pracitce this... and more." He pulled her body back to his and again kissed her deeply on the lips, this time for several moments, rubbing his hands up and down her back.
The kissing went on for what felt like several minutes, but as Yukari pushed away gently and came up for air, her internal clock told her not even a minute had passed by. "Tom, wait ... " Yukari said, breathing a bit heavily. "We ... we should not. I cannot. Not here. As much as we want to, soon we will be joining the crew and we must be able to talk to them. And I cannot talk when I am thinking about your stubble on my skin."
PAUSE