Backpost: Surprise!

Posted on Sat Jul 18th, 2026 @ 2:34pm by Captain Samuel Woolheater & Legate Andrinn Orin

Mission: Interlude
Location: Orin's Quarters - Deck 14
Timeline: Early Evening
2211 words - 4.4 OF Standard Post Measure

(( Early Evening - Consul Orin’s Quarters – Deck 14 W-O ))

Sam cleaned up pretty well.

Fresh as a daisy even. All freshly showered and a freshly minted uniform hot out of the replicator.

In his right hand he held a bottle of wine he picked up while out and about on shoreleave. And his left hand, two glasses. He was looking forward to seeing Andrinn again. He wanted the wine and his visit to be a surprise. So he didn’t let on that he was going to pop by Andrinn’s quarters on deck fourteen.

The last few weeks had been long. Too long.

Sam wasn't entirely sure when he'd started looking forward to these conversations with Andrinn as much as he did. But somewhere along the way they had become one of the best parts of his day.

He pressed the chime and found an itch on his chin. He was already starting to sandpaper up with stubble. “Dang beard grows fast.”

Orin was sitting on one of the chairs in the room when he heard the door chime ring through his quarters. He had been reading a leatherbound book and put it aside for a moment with the bookmark inside of it to save the spot. "Enter!" Orin said as he got up, so he could face the the door.

The door slid open. Sam stepped inside carrying a bottle of wine in one hand and two glasses in the other. For a moment, he simply smiled. Seeing Andrinn had become one of those things he found himself looking forward to without really noticing when it had happened. Could have been that mountaintop experience though.

“Good evening", he said. When Sam was relaxed and not at any kind of alert, his cadence and his drawl started to show in both a visual and audible way. His speech was slower and more deliberate and his Southern style drawl was more prominent and the Pacifican clip was less present.

He lifted the bottle slightly.“I come bearing gifts.”

Andrinn couldn't help but chuckle as he looked at what Sam had brought with him. He put the book down on the coffee table and got up and said with a small laugh, "Yeah, I can tell."

His eyes drifted briefly toward the leatherbound book resting nearby before returning to Andrinn. “Though now I'm wondering if I've interrupted something interesting.” The words carried no real concern. If anything, they suggested the opposite. He looked entirely pleased with himself for showing up unannounced. As if he had outsmarted the ship's top Diplomatic Officer with his surprise.

Sam stepped into Andrinn's quarters and offered one of the glasses. “I thought we might share this?” He couldn't read the language on the wine bottle. "The guy at the shop says it's good."

Andrinn's eyes looked back at the book he had been reading before looking back at Sam before replying, "That old thing? I've had that for the better part of a hundred years and just now got around to reading the thing. But, I would enjoy that. Any certain occasion for it though?"

Andrinn gracious accepted one of the glasses as he waited to hear Sam's explanation as to why. But, in his heart, Andrinn didn't really need one.

His eyes lingered on Andrinn for a moment. “The last few weeks have been busy. I figured that was reason enough.”

Andrinn smiled as he clinked the empty glass against Sam's empty one and said, "Well, to.....just having some time together that isn't on duty. How have you been with getting back to duty onboard?"

"Well, for starters, I was able to find deck thirty-two without asking anybody" he grinned back.

Andrinn shrugged shyly as he said, "I mean, that's definitely a start! We aren't like Admiral Kirk on the refitted Enterprise!"

Sam barked out a laugh. "Thank God for that."

He set the bottle on the table and finally took a seat. "If I had to ask directions every time I wanted coffee I'd never get anything done." He glanced toward the leatherbound book again. "Hundred years, huh?" A faint grin tugged at one corner of his mouth. "That's either a ringing endorsement or the worst book review I've ever heard."

Andrinn shrugged before saying, "I'm literally an old man! But, I also only have so much time to actually get reading done. So, I decided to finally pick that book up and finally start reading it."

"You look good" Sam said as he withdrew a multitool from his pocket and proceeded to uncork the wine.

"So do you, Sam. Really dang good," Andrinn said with a smile as he closed some of the distance between him and Sam. He pointed to the multi tool and asked, "Always carry around a multitool like that in your pocket?"

Sam glanced up from the bottle as the cork finally gave way with a soft pop. The compliment hit a little harder than he expected. He looked back toward Andrinn and smiled, softer this time. "Yeah. What did you expect when dating a Marine brother?" The multitool clicked shut and disappeared back into his pocket. He grinned, "Old habit. I guess I just like to be prepared."

He poured the wine carefully into both glasses before continuing. "Spent too many years carryin' gear. Pocket knife. Multitool. Flashlight. Spare batteries. Usually enough stuff in my pockets to survive a small disaster." A faint chuckle escaped him. "Nowadays I mostly use it for opening wine and fixing things I probably shouldn't be touching."

He handed one of the glasses over. His eyes lingered on Andrinn for a moment. "Thank you, by the way." The words were quiet. "For that. Its been too long apart." Sam lifted his glass slightly. "Seeing you helped."

Andrinn took the second glass from Sam and took a sip of the wine that Sam had brought with him. He saw that Sam was looking him over and Andrinn didn't say anything until Sam spoke again. "But, feels like just yesterday when we were like this too, you know? Just the two of us. Heck, I even remember sharing the space on that ice world a while back. Remember how cold that place was?"

As Andrinn thought about the ice planet where the crew had stayed for a bit when they first came to this side of the universe, Andrinn laughed and shivered at the same time.

Sam smiled into his wine glass. "Oh, I remember." A soft laugh escaped him. "I don't think I've ever been that cold in my life." He leaned back into the couch, shaking his head. "Whole planet felt personally offended by the concept of warmth." His eyes drifted toward Andrinn. He met those dark eyes of his.

"I remember the soup." A beat. "Actually, that's a lie. I remember all the soup blending together into one giant bowl of soup." The grin lingered for a moment before softening. "But I remember sharing...can we call it a tent? Sharing living space with you. Sharing a good night and a good morning with you."

He looked down at the wine glass in his hand. "Funny what sticks." The room grew quieter. "I remember waking up and hearing you moving around." A small shrug, almost shy but not quite. "I remember your cold hands finding the only warm places on my body. He laughed a little. Cold hands were better than any alarm clock. He paused a bit longer and then said. "Best part was being alive. Knowing somebody else was there."

His eyes lifted back to Andrinn's. "Didn't seem important at the time." A faint smile touched his mouth. "Turns out it was."

Andrinn lifted the glass to his own lips and took a sip as he said, "The good thing for you mister is that Trills.....or at least this Trill tended to run warm. But, I knew back then I had a warm heart in yours. So, it was nice."

He raised his glass slightly. "I think that's what I've missed most." Not the ship. Not the job. "You."

Andrinn quietly looked down at his glass before looking back at Sam and asked, "Me? Why me?" He knew the answer, but wanted to make sure it the answer that Sam was thinking about.

Sam sat quietly for a moment. "Waking up next to you, on a frozen planet, when every part of me was frozen...that's more than nice. I think I grew out my fur coat during those months." He chuckled and drained his glass and poured another for both of them. The wine glass turned slowly between his fingers as he considered the question.

Why me?

A dozen answers came to mind. Most of them sounded terrible. A faint smile touched one corner of his mouth. "Because you're easy to be around." The answer arrived without drama. Without hesitation. His eyes lifted to meet Andrinn's. "I know that don't sound very romantic." A soft chuckle escaped him. "But it's true."

He leaned back slightly. "Most of my life I've spent around people who needed something." A finger tapped lightly against the stem of the glass. "Orders." A beat. "Reports." Another beat. A finger tap on the wine stem. "Problems." Another small shrug. "And that's fine. Comes with the territory." His gaze settled on Andrinn again.

"But with you..." Sam searched briefly for the right words. "...I don't feel like I have to be anything other than myself." The room was quiet except for the distant hum of the ship. "I don't have to be Captain Woolheater. I'm not a number, or a...anything." A small smile. "Don't have to be the Marine." Another. "Don't have to be the guy who's supposed to have the answers." His thumb moved along the glass. "I can just be me. And...I don't get to be me around a lot of folks." The smile softened. "And after a while I realized how rare that is." A brief pause followed. Then, because he was still himself, he ruined the seriousness just a little.

"Also, you're easy on the eyes." He took a sip of wine. "Figured I oughta include at least one shallow reason so this conversation doesn't get too respectable."

Andrinn couldn't help but chuckle and reply, "Coming from the handsome man in my cabin with a bottle of wine and some good excuses to come see the senior diplomat on board....it's a honor and privilege to call you many things. But, to call you Sam is the best one of all."

"Thank you, Andy. That means a lot coming from you."

Sam held Andrinn's gaze for another heartbeat before setting his wine glass down on the table. A quiet smile settled across his face. "You know..." He leaned back into the couch and patted the cushion beside him with one broad hand. "You don't have to sit all the way over there." The words carried no pressure, only invitation. "I've spent enough time missing you."

His smile turned just a touch sheepish. "Figure I'd rather fix that while I've got the chance." He waited, leaving the choice entirely to Andrinn.

Andrinn chuckled as he picked his glass up and made his way over to where Sam was sitting. He sat down next to Sam and looked him over for a good solid minute. "I.....I don't know. I just didn't want to overstep anything. It feels like we're starting all over again a little bit. Not in a bad way. Just....a reintroduction and it almost feels like the first time that we met and started dating. I've got those butterflies in the pit of my stomach all over again."

Andrinn eyes came up and looked into Sam's, softening as he watched the way younger man. "For someone who has lived several lifetimes over, I.....I've met a lot of guys in my life. But, nobody quite like you, Mr. Woolheater," Andrinn said with his own little sheepish smile.

It seemed like Andrinn had relaxed more as the minutes passed. Into his best self. That quality he possessed so effortlessly at making other people feel relaxed now he seemed to allow that to himself. And Sam's smile lingered, though it softened around the edges. For just a moment he searched Andrinn's face, as though committing it to memory all over again. Andrinn's handsome features, always there in abundance, mixed with a refreshing energy that Samuel found attractive as well. The butterflies Andrinn spoke of? He understood them. They'd never really gone away for Sam either.

"Well..." he said, his Georgia drawl settling comfortably into the room, "that's a relief." His shoulder brushed lightly against Andrinn's as he settled into the couch. "'Cause I've only ever met one Andrinn Orin." He lifted his glass.

"And I'd kinda like to keep getting to know him."

Andrinn walked back over and clinked his glass against Sam's as he replied, "And I'd kinda like to keep getting to Sam Woolheater too. Cause, he's a pretty good guy!"


[OFF:]


A Joint Post by:

Legate Andrinn Orin

&

Captain Samuel Woolheater


OOC Thomas: Many thanks to Jonathan for his patience while this JP was being written. It is a pleasure to be back with you all :)