#✨vibes✨ for sumire

[talshiargirlfriend]

Spy-ay-ay-ay continues to eat my brain. @candiedsumire and @deadheaddaisy I know, I have left you hanging. I promise we’ll get back to the “present day” morning after soon, but first I thought we needed some backstory vibes (that sounds suspiciously like plot talk… 😒)

Set slightly before the gala:

Trip frowned at the control panel in concentration and then several things happened all at once.

There was a high-pitched whine he couldn’t quite place just as a blur of movement flashed through his peripheral vision and he hit the ground hard with a loud thud.

T’Pol had him pinned to the floor as she scanned the area for potential danger and damage.

That was an impressive reaction, even for a Vulcan, and it wasn’t the first time she had responded to a situation so… vehemently. A seed of suspicion was beginning to take root in his mind.

“Are you all right?” she asked him, lightly touching the side of his face and inspecting him for injury.

The other members of the team looked on with expressions ranging from mild surprise to outright shock.

Rostov reached for a fire extinguisher to deal with the sparks from the overloaded panel as Kelly hit the alarm.

“I’m fine.”

Truthfully, he was a little dazed, but he was not about to say so. It had very little to do with shock or the impact with the floor and a whole lot to do with the way her body was pressed against his - for such a slight-looking woman, she was solid - and the intent way her eyes were searching his face in concern. So no, he was not going to admit that. Not for access to all the engineering schematics in the Vulcan Archive.

She pursed her lips and straightened up a bit.

The suspicion began to blossom, painting a dubious expression on his face. “You…”

“We will discuss this later,” T’Pol said abruptly, standing up and offering him a hand in assistance.

He opened his mouth, but she continued in a low voice. “After we have evacuated the laboratory and assessed the situation.”

Fair enough. He accepted her hand and stood up, dusting himself off.

“Later,” he confirmed, meeting her eye seriously.

Later turned out to be after another two days and as many incidents.

“Ok, so what’s your deal?” Trip asked when he managed to get her on her own again.

“I don’t understand the question.” T’Pol said blandly.

Sure, maybe she didn’t, or maybe she wanted to annoy and frustrate him until he gave up. He cut to the chase. “You worked in security before you got here? Or intelligence? Maybe you still do?”

She hesitated, looking at him intently before answering. “Prior to seeking this assignment I was attached to the Ministry of Security as an intelligence agent.”

He nodded. There was heavy security surrounding the project. It wasn’t all that surprising the Vulcans would want one of their own keeping an eye on things from the inside. After all, not everyone on Earth - or within Starfleet - was thrilled with sharing technology and working this closely with their allies from another world. Despite their ongoing cultural revolution, the same could probably be said of Vulcan.

T’Pol unknowingly echoed his thoughts. “Our commitment to honouring Surak’s teachings has led my people to value increased cooperation with Earth as a valued ally. However, there remain those opposed to any sharing of technology, those who view this project and all close ties with your planet as a threat to Vulcan’s sovereignty and future interests.”

She paused. “There are concerns about the safety of key members of the Technology Integration Team. I was asked to assess the credibility of those concerns.”

He narrowed his eyes. “Do you think there’s a chance Matt’s heart attack wasn’t just caused by stress?”

She spoke plainly. “I do.”

As horrifying as that was to contemplate, it was nice to have his own fears validated. His shoulders slumped. “Me too. I mean, sure, this is an important project - monumental, even, and leading it is a lot of responsibility, but he’s healthier than a horse … something just seems off. You never really know what’s going on in someone’s head, but I have never met a man with a better work-life balance than Captain Jefferies. We finish early every Friday so he can watch his youngest kid play baseball!”

Worry for Captain Jefferies and the rest of the team gnawed at him.

“Commander… you are also a key member of the team.”

He nodded vaguely.

She paused and when he said nothing, she added, “In light of recent events I have been tasked with … monitoring you in particular.”

He frowned as he picked up her meaning. “What? They assigned you to be my bodyguard? Gonna stay within two meters of me at all times?” Trip snarked.

T’Pol just looked at him.

“Wait, seriously?”

“It was suggested I seduce you to position myself optimally to deal with any developing threats.”

He choked on a breath and stared at her. “I can’t tell if you’re joking.”

T’Pol clasped her hands behind her back, giving away nothing.

The devil on his shoulder gave him a poke. “And you’re sure this isn’t a roundabout way of inviting me into your bed?” Trip asked with a teasing smirk.

She bristled. “Quite sure, Commander.”

He grinned and raised a placating hand. “All right, SubCommander, stand down. I’m only joking. But I still don’t understand. You weren’t originally sent here by V’Shar?”

She gave a faint shake of her head.

“Then how did you get assigned to the project?”

T’Pol raised her chin in defiance. “I expressed my interest and was awarded a position on this team on merit.”

“Oh no, I know. You really know your stuff. But I mean, there’s been a lot of advancement in warp theory and sensor design and well, everything, the last few years. So I guess I’m asking how do you know your stuff?”

“I have followed the scientific developments with great interest, reading papers, viewing seminars, and even attending conferences when the opportunity arose.”

Trip stared at her, incredulous. “I’m sorry. Let me get this straight. You’re telling me you’ve kept current on warp field theory developments, as a hobby, in your free time from being a spy?”

T’Pol blinked and responded seriously, “It is a fascinating field of study.”

He gave a slow shake of his head. “You’re really something else.”

“Is that a compliment?”

“Well, it’s sure not an insult,” he said with a half smile and was rewarded when her lips ticked up slightly in response.

T’Pol looked down and canted her head in the way he was beginning to understand signalled vulnerability.

“I was sufficiently motivated. I find scientific inquiry and developing its practical applications a more fulfilling and sustainable career path than remaining in intelligence work.”

He nodded. “All right. So I’ve got myself a pretty little shadow for a while. Let’s get back to work.”

“You are handling this situation with surprising equanimity, Commander.”

“Well, I figure l’ll have time to freak out later… and I think it’s time we were on a first-name basis, T’Pol.”

[toonycatuwu]

WordGirl Love Live AU: More Info Updates!

Okay, frick it... I'm doing more UTAU covers. They're gonna take a while though, because 2 out of 9 voicebanks in the whole group are finished, those being Becky and Tobey. I'm currently working on Victoria's right now.

So... while we wait and the polls keep getting created, here's some other info:

- Duet and Solo covers will be made.

- Songs that have questionable themes and lyrics will either have their lyrics partially skipped or be completely avoided as a whole (now don't get me wrong, I still vibe with these songs, I'm just skipping them because the characters I'm making the voicebanks for are aged up to high schoolers, which are still minors). These songs include, but not limited to:

Firebird (Karin Asaka)

Diamond Princess no Yuutsu (BiBi)

PHOENIX DANCE (AZALEA)

Love Novels (BiBi) (?)

- Songs that have other languages besides Japanese (English, Chinese, etc.) that will be difficult to have covers of in UTAU will most likely not be done (I still vibe with these songs too, and all of them are bangers). However, short amounts of English mixed into the song are easy to do (y'know, like how the Japanese language sometimes borrows words from the English language). Some of the following songs in these categories that will most likely not be done are:

stars we chase (Mia Taylor)

Toy Doll (Mia Taylor)

Queendom (Lanzhu Zhong)

Ye Mingzhu (Lanzhu Zhong)

(damn, it's sad I can't do the ones that make me vibe the most. I wish I could tho. F in the chat for Mia Taylor and Lanzhu Zhong's music fr)

- Oh, by the way, the original members' voices OR aesthetics will indeed correspond to the new WordGirl universe. The characters do NOT correspond to the original story, ships, and character development.

Becky -> Honoka, Chika, Ayumu, Kanon (protagonists go brrr)

Violet -> Kotori, You, Emma, Keke

Scoops -> Umi, Riko, Ai, Sumire

TJ -> Rin, Kanan, Shizuku, Kinako

Johnson -> Hanayo, Hanamaru, Kanata, Chisato

Tobey -> Maki, Yohane/Yoshiko, Rina, Shiki [+bonus: Wien Margarete] (man you can see the absolute BIAS I have for this man istg 💀)

Victoria -> Eli, Dia, Setsuna, Ren

Eileen -> Nico, Ruby, Kasumi, Natsumi

Chazz -> Nozomi, Mari, Karin, Mei

I haven't decided anything for the rival groups (A-RISE, Saint Snow, R3BIRTH, Sunny Passion)... yet?

Here are the subunits this AU will correspond to:

Comet Cats!! (Becky, Violet, Scoops) -> Printemps, CYaRon!, A•ZU•NA

POWERFLOW (TJ, Johnson, Chazz) -> NicoRinPana, YYY

S3CRET (Tobey, Victoria, Eileen) -> BiBi, Guilty Kiss, lily white, AZALEA (yes, I have a bias for this group too. Guilty Kiss and BiBi supremacy fr ✨)

Before you guys get confused if the lines or songs I give these characters don't match with their corresponding character sometimes, I just do that because 1. bias and 2. just the overall vibe of the song and/or the lyrics. (lol)

- The musical and Link! Like! Love Live! will not be included... I haven't gotten up to date with them X_X

That's it for now, I hope you guys will have fun thinking about this AU, and stay tuned for more updates and possible UTAU covers ^_^✨✨✨

Edit: whoopsie daisy i forgor to tell you that if you have any questions feel free to reply or DM me 😭

[ashthedeadalien]

My thoughts on the new love live superstar episode!

Spoiler alert! Scroll down quickly if you don’t wanna be spoiled

- Ren’s life suck so much

- wait her dad abandoned her? Didn’t they say her dad died last episode? And didn’t they say ren’s mom was sick? Also she died 2 years ago? Didn’t we saw her on the first episode?

- I have really hard time following the plot of this anime for some reason, please explain me some of the stuff in the comments

- but nobody in the music course feel bad for the normal course students?

- lol, Sumire is such a mood here! confrontation? NOPE! GOTTA HIDE IMMA HEAD OUT

- ren kinda reminds me of Quinn from final space (personality wise) idk they just give me similar vibes

- I like ren’s mom’s hairstyle

- ren is a full time tsundere I see

- so her mom used to be a school idol too to Save her school from shutting down? MUSE&AQOURS VIIBES

- imagine if adult Chika comes to re-open oranohoshi again and becomes the principle there, ILL PAY FOR THIS SPINOFF MAKE IT HAPPEN

- and you and riko will join too!! And probably be teachers or vise principles there!!

- imagine if they’ll make a plot twist about ren’s mom being chika and about yuigoaka being oranohoshi! They’ll probably design ren differently if they did this and make yuigoaka look basically like oranohoshi with a few big changes and change the location to numazu

- I don’t have that much thoughts about most of the episode so I’m just skipping to the end

- “no running in the halls, detention for you”

- wow ren gives me vibes of 2 characters this episode? Respect

- not me appreciating how kanon isn’t shy and just has a problem with standing in front of crowds

- gosh!!! I’m almost in tears!!! Also finally a liella outfit I like! (I also liked the tiny stars outfit too but most of theyr outfits kinda suck ESPECIALLY the one in the OP)

- SHE GONNA JOIN THE GROUP NOW SHE GONNA JOIN THE GROUP NOW

- awwww I love those kind of scenes!

- honestly they should do the festival at night it looks so much better at night! Also night has stars which is ✨liella symbolism✨

- kuku just can’t stop teasing sumire I see

- I love this song!!

conclusion: this episode was so wholesome and way less angsty then I expected, funny how episodes I usually think will be angsty are wholesome and episode I usually think will be wholesome are angsty, but what did I expected? Ren is joining the group! cant wait to see where the anime will go from here! will they win love live? and how will they choose theyr name? I have a theory it might happen next episode. Also I kinda forgot what is the meaning of the name “liella” anyway so I’m really curious

[talshiargirlfriend]

“We can’t go in there like this. You need to look… sexy.”

That earned him an Inquisitive Eyebrow of Doom.

He huffed. “I mean, you’re always hot, but you need to look like you’re doing it intentionally. You’re not giving off the right vibe…“ he trailed off helplessly.

After a moment she asked, “Like this?”

Beyond a slight shift in her posture, he couldn’t possibly have said what changed, but he was suddenly incredibly aware of the shape of her. Those soulful eyes and sultry lips…

“How did you -- ?! Uh, yeah. Like that.”

“Let’s go.” She hinted at a smirk.

[talshiargirlfriend]

After over two months,✨vibes✨ have at last returned! Following on from this instalment. The next morning…

Trip woke to early morning light shining on his face. He hoped the fact that T’Pol was already out of bed meant she’d recovered from her inadvertent intoxication. He didn’t relish the thought of a hungover Vulcan, although she had been an undeniably cute drunk, even teasing him with that quip about not getting tired of his face. He smiled a little as he blinked and sat up.

Had Trip been harbouring any secret hopes of waking up cuddled against his Vulcan pseudo-sweetie they would have been dashed, but of course he knew better. He hadn’t even let himself consider what it might be like to wake up with his arms around her, to feel her warm solid weight pressed against him and her soft hair tickling his chin. Nope. Thoughts like that would only get him into trouble.

Vulcans didn’t have a monopoly on denial of feelings. Humans had been practising the same for centuries.

He could hear the quiet hum of voices filtering up the stairs as he crossed the hall to the bathroom. There was Lizzie’s cheerful soprano accompanied by T’Pol’s more subdued alto.

When Trip had agreed to this plan he honestly thought it might be difficult to convince people he and T’Pol were together. Never in his wildest dreams would he have guessed it would be so easy that even his own heart would be fooled.

And if his heart thought he was in love with her… he carefully avoided following that thought through to its logical conclusion.

As he made his way down the stairs he could pick out the conversation.

“… you know the one I mean?” That was Lizzie.

“I do. ‘I am pleased to see that we have differences. May we together become greater than the sum of both of us.’ It is in this spirit that our project was founded.” And T’Pol.

“Yes! And you and Trip are like a personal example of that, the way you complement each other.”

“Our differing perspectives have proved beneficial in our work together. Trip says,” T’Pol paused before continuing in clear imitation of his accent, “‘we make a hell of a team.’”

Trip scoffed. He did not sound like that.

Lizzie laughed, loud and sharp, “That sounded just like him!”

“You and your brother have the same laugh. It is a pleasing sound.” T’Pol met his eye as he stepped into the kitchen.

He smiled. She appeared to be her steady self again.

“Oh Trip, it really must be love if she likes our laugh!” Lizzie giggled.

Trip shook his head at his sister as he squeezed her shoulder and then kissed the side of her head. “Morning, Lizard.”

“Good morning, Hazard.”

Abruptly he realised it might look strange if he didn’t greet T’Pol with similar affection, so he haltingly patted her shoulder and kissed her head, too. “Good morning, T’Pol.”

“You feeling better?” he asked in a whisper.

She didn’t smirk at him or anything, but it was almost like he could actually feel the amusement emanating from her.

“Good morning, Trip. I am well. Thank you.”

Completely unruffled. Well, if she was feeling well enough to revel in his awkwardness, maybe a little payback was in order. Trip decided to put his knowledge of Vulcan customs to use and held out the first two fingers of his right hand.

With a slight hint of surprise T’Pol matched his gesture and pressed her fingertips to his in an ozh’esta.

Her touch was soft and warm. Familiar. He smiled.

… And then she slowly drew her fingertips from the pads of his fingers down to their base. The sensation reverberated throughout his entire body like an electric shock.

It was incredible. It was kind of like she had wrapped his favourite blanket around his shoulders with a gentle squeeze, rubbed her cheek against his, and slid her hand up the inside of his thigh. Simultaneously. By only touching his fingers. He felt warm and content and loved, and honestly, a little turned on.

He knew Vulcans were sensitive to emotions, especially via physical touch, but could they…? Was she doing that on purpose?? Did it always feel like that? Suddenly he understood the appeal of the gesture to Vulcans if it made them feel that well and thoroughly kissed.

He stared at her dumbfounded and was absently pleased to notice she also appeared a bit thrown; the same indecipherable expression from the night before flashed across her face.

“Good morning,” he repeated distractedly before turning toward the coffee maker to compose himself.

“You know, you’re a grown man, Trip. If you want some quality time with your girl, you don’t have to sneak off like you did last night,” Lizzie piped up.

Oh my god.

Trip scrubbed a hand over his face before turning back toward the table. “Liz, it wasn’t like that! She didn’t feel well and —“

Lizzie laughed and waved her hand in dismissal. “T’Pol already explained about the sweets not agreeing with her, but you should see your face!”

She turned toward T’Pol, “See? I told you! Thirty years old and he still gets embarrassed at the mere mention of sex. Look how red his ears are! Isn’t it adorable?”

“It is rather endearing,” T’Pol agreed.

“There’s not enough coffee in this kitchen to deal with you two,” Trip grumbled.

Lizzie stuck her tongue out at him. “You’re such a crab in the morning. You’ll be pleased to know I have to leave in a minute to get ready. Aunt Maggie is doing my hair and makeup.”

“Where’s Mom and Dad? They’re usually up by now.”

“Out for a morning walk,” Lizzie said nonchalantly.

Trip narrowed his eyes. “And you wouldn’t have suggested that so you could corner T’Pol for a little sister chat, Miss Nosy?”

“You wound me, Big Brother!” Lizzie gasped, hands over her heart. She couldn’t hold back her grin for long. “T’Pol, I’m really glad we had a chance to talk this morning.”

“As am I — “

“Don’t you dare say ‘Ms Tucker’!”

“… Elizabeth,” T’Pol conceded.

“Huh. I didn’t think that would work!” Lizzie beamed. “All right, I’ll see you both in a few hours!”

Trip shook his head at his sister’s departing back and picked up his coffee mug.

“You want some breakfast?” he asked T’Pol.

“Elizabeth suggested there’s a special meal you prepare when you wish to impress someone,” she said, the very picture of wide-eyed Vulcan innocence.

Trip closed his eyes and leaned back against the counter. “Of course she did.”

“Ok, brown butter banana pecan pancakes it is!” He grabbed a mixing bowl from the cupboard and casually spoke over his shoulder, “Yes, it’s the same breakfast I made the day after the gala.”

She tilted her head, but before she could speak he mustered up all the swagger he could. “Honey, I’ve been trying to impress you since the minute you walked into the lab.”

T’Pol looked down into her teacup, hiding her face for a moment. When she looked back up at him she said, “Perhaps you will eventually be successful.” Her lips twitched slightly.

He laughed as he continued gathering ingredients. “Remind me again why I brought you with me.”

“You could not bear to be apart from me for two days,” she said drily.

He blinked and then recovered himself. “Yeah, yeah.” He gestured with the knife in his hand, muttering, “Next time, we’ll go see your family and I’ll tease you the whole time.”

As he began slicing a banana, he could barely hear her murmured “I’ll consider it.”

—

For @candiedsumire and @deadheaddaisy my most ardent enablers 💕

We’re approaching Speedwagon time (I can’t fight this feeling anymore… 🎶) and I really wanted to try a first kiss with a twist. What do you think?? Thank you for sticking with me 💜

[talshiargirlfriend]

Spy-ay-ay-ay ✨vibes✨ for @candiedsumire and @deadheaddaisy and anyone else who cares about this silly fake dating au not-a-fic

A bit more backstory before we return to present day and (maybe) let Jonathan Archer redeem himself and start having some epiphanies.

Set between the gala and the visit home.

—

An incessant beeping pierced through his sleep-addled brain, and Trip was off the couch and on his feet before he was fully awake.

Fire alarm.

Evacuate.

T’Pol?

She was already at his side handing him the robe off the hook on his bedroom door. He stopped to put his shoes on at the door, and together they made their way down the stairs and out into the courtyard.

It was a small building with only six units, so it didn’t take long for everyone to reach the evacuation point.

There was a pair of men outside he didn’t recognise. Something in the brisk way T’Pol nodded at them gave him pause. Starfleet Security maybe.

Trip did a quick head count of the neighbours while T’Pol surreptitiously pulled a scanner from the pocket of her dressing gown and quietly investigated the situation.

A few minutes later a handful of firefighters had arrived at the scene. One nodded toward T’Pol who stood quietly talking to Lynette from downstairs and her two small children. “She’s good in an emergency,” he said with approval, looking her up and down.

“Buddy, you don’t know the half of it,” Trip muttered.

Was it ridiculous to get territorial about a relationship that didn’t really exist? Of course.

Did that prevent Trip from being affronted by the way this guy was looking at his Vulcan fake-girlfriend? Absolutely not.

The man turned to Trip curiously, “Is that your wife?”

“Yep,” Trip said shortly. The man lifted his eyebrows in acknowledgment and turned to speak to one of Trip’s neighbours.

T’Pol looked up then with a raised brow of her own as she started walking toward him. So she’d probably heard that wife comment. Well, he was just playing along with her plan!

The young woman who had been speaking to the firefighter turned to Trip then. She looked vaguely familiar with wavy brown hair in a haphazard ponytail and her hands tucked into the cuffs of an oversized sweatshirt.

“You’re from the second floor. Starfleet, right?” she asked him.

“That’s right. I’m an engineer. Commander Charles Tucker. Trip to my friends and neighbours.” He smiled, nodding to T’Pol as she approached, hoping the darkness concealed the way he was still blushing about that wife remark.

“It’s nice to meet you, Trip. I’m Lieutenant Carter - Rebecca! - from the food sciences department. I’m in 3B. Right on top of ya,” she said with an exaggerated wink.

Trip gave that the courtesy laugh she was angling for and couldn’t help smirking at the way T’Pol stood several centimetres closer to him than usual. Apparently the weird territorial thing wasn’t just on his side.

“And this is my, um, my, uh, partner SubCommander T’Pol, a warp field specialist.”

“It’s agreeable to meet you, Lieutenant Carter.”

“It’s nice to meet you, SubCommander.”

Lieutenant Carter raised her hand in a Vulcan salute just as T’Pol reached out for a handshake. After a second they shook hands and the odd tension evaporated, although T’Pol stayed glued to his side, her hip brushing his slightly.

“I’m gonna go see if there’s any news on when we can get back to bed,” Rebecca said with a small smile as she left.

Trip turned to tease T’Pol about being close enough to climb into his robe, but he was distracted by her warm breath in his ear as she leaned in to whisper to him.

“I have found no evidence of arson. This appears to have been an accident with an unattended candle, but we should continue to exercise caution.”

A few minutes later the firefighter who had been ogling T’Pol confirmed that the building was safe and they were all clear to return to their apartments.

There were some cheers and commotion as everyone headed back inside. When T’Pol stepped back to follow him, Trip immediately felt the chill in the air again. Glancing around, he noticed Rebecca was still in the courtyard, flirting with the firefighter who’d activated his territoriality. He should probably try to shake that off before he embarrassed himself.

Once inside, Trip found himself bouncing with nervous energy. He turned to T’Pol.

“There’s not much point in trying to go back to sleep. You fancy a little adventure?”

Her eyebrows shot up. “Have you not had enough excitement?”

He grinned at her. “Nothing too crazy. I’m gonna jump in the shower and then go for a walk and watch the sun rise. Get dressed if you want to come with me.”

Apparently T’Pol was game because she was dressed and ready when he came back out. Either that or she just wasn’t letting him loose on his own. Well, either way she was good company.

Trip relaxed as they walked. Most of the time they were quiet, but they talked through an injector issue they’d been having and T’Pol told him a little more about her previous assignments.

They stopped to watch the sun rise over the river, but he found himself frequently looking at her instead of the view. She really was striking, with the planes of her face lit by the early morning light, eyes sparkling and hints of wonder and appreciation sneaking into her otherwise blank expression.

As they walked back they smelled fresh baked goods a block before they reached the little coffee shop on the corner.

“I've wanted to try this place for months,” Trip sighed. Before he could decide whether to try talking T’Pol into stopping, she preceded him into the shop

A few minutes later Trip had a hot coffee and an enormous fluffy cinnamon roll in front of him. T’Pol sipped her green tea and remarked about the volume of sugar he was consuming.

“Well, after the night we had we deserve a little comfort food!” He went for another bite with gusto, amused by her slight look of distaste.

“It’s really good. You wanna try some?”

“No, thank you,” she declined, but after watching the way her eyes flicked from his mouth to his plate repeatedly, he cut off a section and placed it on a napkin for her in case she changed her mind.

He’d had a half-baked idea of taking Natalie here during a weekend visit that had never materialised, but this was better. Life was so crazy right now, he really didn’t have time for a girlfriend anyway.

[talshiargirlfriend]

Guess what I’m going to ask about!

Did you guess Spy-ay-ay-ay? 😁❤️🙏

I need you to know that I was planning to leave off any that had been asked about last time, but then I thought “I have to keep spy-ay-ay-ay for sumire!” 😅

The AU not-a-fic that has haunted me all year.

Double feature ✨vibes✨

Trip stared at her, incredulous. “I’m sorry. Let me get this straight. You’re telling me you’ve kept current on warp field developments, as a hobby, in your free time from being a spy?”

T’Pol blinked and responded seriously, “It is a fascinating field of study.”

And part two, the conversation alluded to in the ballroom scene:

As the rest of the team headed out for lunch, Trip slumped down at his computer terminal to read the message again and have a good old-fashioned sulk.

Clearly things hadn’t been that serious between him and Natalie - she’d never even visited for the weekend when he’d invited her - hadn’t so much as seen his apartment here - but still.

A single line of text brushing him off. Signed Love, Nat. She hadn’t even bothered to change the automatic signature, he noted sourly.

“Commander?” T’Pol lingered in the doorway. “May I ask you something?”

“Sure, T’Pol, come on in,” he sighed. With Captain Jefferies in meetings all day, Trip was acting head of the project. He sat up straight and tried to look the part. “What can I do for you?”

She seemed oddly hesitant. “Are you displeased with the team’s performance?”

“What? No, things are going great.” Had he unintentionally said something insulting? He didn’t think he’d been particularly critical. “Did I say something harsh?”

“No,” she assured him. After a pause she added, “However, you are less… enthusiastic than usual. I wondered if perhaps there was something amiss.”

Trip snorted, “Nothing amiss here in the lab. Just woke up to a ‘Dear John’ this morning.”

At her puzzled look, he clarified, “Girlfriend broke up with me.”

T’Pol’s eyes widened and she looked down. She seemed uncomfortable, even a little embarrassed. “I apologise for intruding on a personal matter.”

“Nah, it’s ok. It’s kinda nice you noticed, actually. It’s just - she couldn’t even be bothered to call! Just dumped me via text! Makes a guy feel kinda worthless, you know?” He tried to shrug it off.

She frowned slightly as if considering whether she did in fact know, and then did that little head tilt that reminded him of a woodland creature. “You possess many positive attributes,” she ventured.

Trip grinned at that. “Well, thank you, SubCommander. I appreciate your assessment. C’mon, let’s get out of here. I’ll buy you lunch.”

“Are we not joining the others in the dining hall?”

“Figure of speech,” he said as he briefly placed a hand on her back to gently guide her out into the corridor. “You sure I wasn’t rude to anyone?” he asked with a sidelong glance.

“You were somewhat brusque with Mr Rostov, but he did not appear offended.”

“I doubt he even noticed. He only has eyes for Kelly.”

“He is enamoured with his mate,” T’Pol agreed.

Trip chuckled, “Enamoured, yes. Mate, no. Maybe someday. He’ll have to admit to himself he has a crush on her first.”

T’Pol raised an eyebrow at that. “I confess my understanding of Human mating customs is limited. They seem needlessly complicated to me.”

Trip leaned in conspiratorially, “If it makes you feel any better, we don’t really understand them ourselves.”

She gave him a hint of a smile, and it made him feel lighter somehow.

-

Thank you for the ask and the continued enabling encouragement! 💕

( @deadheaddaisy peep your babies getting a mention 😁)