#erica ortegas x y/n

[make-me-imagine]

Nebulas and First Dates

Request/Plot: Erica volunteering to teach the reader how to fly a shuttle, but it's actually a ploy to spend time away from the ship and maybe ask the Reader out. Requested by: @onuen

Pairing: Erica Ortegas x GN!Reader

Warnings: None! Just some good ole' fluff

Words: 1.8k

-

You looked down at the the navigation controls and felt your nerves kick into high gear. You knew the basics of automated controls, but flying manual? That was something else entirely.

"Are you sure the Captain said this was alright?" You asked nervously as you looked over at Erica.

She smiled at you and let out a small laugh. "Relax it'll be fine. The Captain agrees you should have at least one lesson in flying a shuttle. I still can't believe you never learned at the academy."

You shrugged your shoulders "I'm not a pilot!" You excused. "And I was busy with all of my other courses. It's not like I don't know how to fly a shuttle, I just don't know how to fly one manually."

"Which is why we are doing this. Computers like to malfunction, and I don't want you going out on a mission and ending up with a malfunctioning navigational control and no idea how to get yourself back safely."

You watched Erica closely as she shut down all the automated controls.

"Alright skipper, your turn" She spoke with a grin as she looked back at you.

You took a deep breath and let it out before slowly, placing your hands on the controls. You bit the inside of your lip as you slowly started to lift the shuttle.

"Alright, that's good, nice and slow." Erica leaned closer to you, hovering her hands over yours to mimic the movement you needed to follow.

As her shoulder brushed lightly against yours, you felt your heart palpitate as you held your breath. Your ears burned hot as you realized how close she was to you.

"Now take us out." She said softly.

As the shuttle began to glide out into open space, you heard a loud, but brief scraping sound on the top of the shuttle. You flinched a bit as you peered over at Erica, whose facial expression mimicked your own.

"Oops." You said softly.

Erica tapped a few controls and you saw the shuttle shield turn on. Looking back over at you she shook her head "I'm sure no one will notice that."

You let out bubbly, yet nervous laugh, making Erica grin at you. She watched you for a moment as you looked back down at the controls, moving up in your seat. You were clearly nervous, but excited at the same time. She couldn't help but admire it.

Looking back out the shuttle windows she began to enter coordinates. "Alright, I entered some coordinates, lets go into warp."

"We're warping somewhere?"

"What, you'd rather practice right beside the ship where everyone can look out and watch you?"

You thought for a moment before you looked back at your controls. "Right, going into wrap."

Erica smiled at this. After the shuttle jumped into warp she checked her monitors. "It's a quick jump it'll only take a few minutes."

You nodded your head in understanding as you stared out the window. "I don't often get to see this." You commented.

"What?"

"This" You motioned your hand out at the warping space in front of you. "Usually I'm in another part of the ship when we're at warp."

"Yeah, that's right." Looking out as well she smiled softly. "It's weird how fast you get used to it."

After a few minutes of comfortable silence, you adjusted yourself in your seat again as you placed your hands on the controls, bracing yourself slightly.

"Coming out of warp in three...two...one."

As the ship jumped out of warp, you looked out in front of you and felt your breath hitch in your throat. In front of you was a large bright colorful nebula like you'd never seen. Bright arrays of orange, red and yellows stretching out, with the edges of green, blue and purple.

Your mouth was agape as you were struck in silence. Finally speaking, your voice came out slow "Is that...the Phoenix Nebula?"

Erica smiled as she watched the shock form on your face. Your eyes were reflecting the lights of the nebula. She was unsure if she would be able to look away, especially when you looked over and met her eyes.

She nodded her head lightly "Yep."

Your smile widened as you let out a soft sigh. "I've always wanted to see it. I was so disappointed when I heard we were coming this far out, but not passing next to it."

"I know." Erica said matter-of-factually, causing you to look over at her with a look of confusion. She cocked her head to the sides as she spoke "I may or may not have overheard you talking to Christine the other night. About this nebula, and how much you had wanted to see it. Plus, it's a good way to learn to pilot manually. The nebulas interference makes it impossible for you to piggyback on automated controls. So I thought it would be a good time to do both, ya know, two birds, one stone."

You grinned at her as you looked back out at the nebula. "It's amazing isn't it?"

Erica finally tore her eyes away from you to look out at the nebula. She took in a deep breath. "Yeah, it is."

"Thank you." You said suddenly as you looked back over at her. "For the piloting lesson, and the quick detour."

She smiled at you and nodded her head softly. "You're welcome."

"I didn't realize you had heard me talking about the nebula to Christine. People tend to stop listening when I start rambling."

Erica smile and shook her head lightly. "I like it when you ramble."

You felt your face heat up at her comment. Unable to repress the smile that spread across your face, you looked down at the navigation controls. You were aware that she was still looking at you, with a wide smile on her face. Probably aware that she made you feel shy with her comment.

Not wanting to sit in awkward silence, you cleared your throat a bit and looked back at the nebula, you smiled again. "I'm surprised at how much it really does resemble a Phoenix."

Erica, still smiling at your reaction to her comment looked out at the nebula, studying it. The longer you looked at the nebula, you could see the main shape did resemble a large bird. The color giving the resemblance of fire.

"Wow, you're right." She said after a moment.

Tapping a few controls to keep the shuttle steady, you swallowed before glancing over at Erica briefly. Taking in a breath, you began to speak, slowly but softly, as if you were telling a story.

"You know, one of the nearby planets has a pretty good view at night of the nebula, only during the summer though. And they have a story that they tell every solstice when it's visible."

Seeing Erica look over at you in interest, you continued.

"They say that a long time ago, there was a deity that would visit the planet in the form of a large bird. It would fly over the planet, watching over everyone. It protected their ancestors from those who might hurt them. But one day, there was a threat towards the planet and it's people. A solar storm, an ion storm, hostile aliens, there's multiple versions. But they say, the deity, this God, met this threat in the sky before it could reach them, sacrificing it's life for the people on the planet. And then it took it's form of the nebula in the sky. And during the summer it returns to look after them again."

Glancing over at Erica, you saw her still staring at you, with a fond smile on her face.

Feeling your face heat up, you smiled bashfully. "I should probably stop rambling and fly the shuttle right?" You let out a soft laugh.

"You can't do both?" She asked with amusement lacing her voice.

You smiled sheepishly as you looked over at her. "I don't think I can concentrate when my mind goes on a tangent." You admitted.

"That's a good thing to practice getting better at." Eric commented. "So, if you can tell me about your plans when we get to the Starbase for shore leave in a few days, while taking us closer to the nebula without getting caught in the distortion waves, we can call that a success."

You looked at her, then to the nebula. "Right. Okay. I can do that." Looking down at your controls you began to pilot the shuttle slowly closer to the nebula, while keeping your eyes on the scanners.

After a moment, Erica let out a soft laugh "Sooo?"

"Huh? Oh right-" You chuckled "Uh, I actually don't have any plans. Except just relax, maybe go check out some of the new exhibits they added in the museum's center. Though I did make the mistake of appearing a bit too interested in Dr. M'Benga's plans, which he took as me wanting to go fly fishing with him. I don't know how to get out of that."

Erica chuckled. "Yeah I don't think I can help you with that one. But, if you're up for it, maybe we could go to that spiffy new restaurant they just finished in the center of the base."

Feeling butterflies in your stomach, you smiled and looked over at Erica. "That would be nice."

You wondered silently if you were wrong for assuming Erica to be asking you on a date, rather then just to hang out. But at least for now, you'd let yourself hope.

As Eric's grin widened a bit she nodded her head once. "Okay, great."

You watched her for a moment as you saw her smiling to herself as she looked back down at her controls. You weren't sure if you were imagining it, but she seemed to be feeling just as giddy as you were. Maybe it was going to be a date?

Feeling the shuttle shake a bit, followed by the beeping of an alarm. You quickly pulled the shuttle back, out of the path of a distortion wave.

Meeting Erica's eyes you smiled a bit. "Told you."

She let out a soft laugh. "You're doing great." She said encouragingly.

Looking back out at the nebula you smiled in awe as you looked at the bright colors surrounding your field of view. Glancing over at Erica, you saw her looking out at the nebula too.

Your heart was racing, but you felt a small jolt of courage. "You know, I think I saw something about a special concert being held at the Starbase as well." You mentioned subtly as you looked out at the nebula again.

You could tell Erica looked over at you as she spoke. "Yeah, I heard about that too. It might be fun to check out."

"Yeah, it would. You wanna go?" You asked casually as you looked over at her.

She smiled brightly at you and nodded her head once. "Yeah, I do."

"Okay, cool. Dinner and a concert then?"

"It's a date." Erica said with a small smile, with a hint of uncertainty in her voice.

You met her eyes and smiled, assuring her, it was in fact a date to you too. Your eyes were locked in fond tension before you both jumped at the sound of an incoming transmission.

Erica answered it, and you heard the sound of the Captains voice. "Erica, Y/n, hows the lesson going?"

You and Erica shared a look before she smiled at you. "Great Sir, Y/n's a natural."

"Glad to hear it. Sorry to cut it short though, we got a request to check out a distress signal, so we need you back here."

"Understood Sir, we'll be back as quick as we can."

As the transmission ended, you took one more look at the nebula before you began to turn the shuttle around. Though you were sad to leave the nebula behind, your thoughts were soon distracted by the excitement of what shore leave would bring for you and Erica.

xx End xx

I suck at endings lmao. But I hope you liked it!~

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[make-me-imagine]

Where My Soul Waits For You

This is Number #11 in my Soulmate AU Series; you can find the masterlist of fics here.

Soulmate AU Prompt: You and your soulmate have the same unique tattoo, that represents something related to how you meet.

Plot: As Y/n joins the Enterprise crew to help with negotiations for a possible new Federation planet. Both Y/n and Erica expect to meet their soulmates on the planet that reflects their tattoos. But what neither of them know, is that they've already met.

Pairing: Erica Ortegas x GN!Reader *reader is an Intelligence Officer

Warnings: None~

Words: 2.9k

A/N: This was written for the Femslash event being held by @discoveryfemslashfortnight for the prompt "AU"

-

Standing in front of the mirror, Erica ran her hands through her hair. As her eyes caught on the reflection of her tattoo, she paused in her movements. Looking down at her arm, she gently ran her fingers over the tattoo.

She remembered the first day it appeared, right around the time she joined Starfleet. It appeared later than many other's tattoos did. Causing her to fear that maybe she didn't have a soulmate at all. But when it finally appeared, she got so excited when she saw it, she couldn't stop showing people.

It wasn't very big, and was located on her upper wrist of her left arm. It depicted a colorful planet of oranges, pinks and tans, with rings around it. She had never seen a planet like it in her years in Starfleet so far.

But she waited impatiently for the day her eyes would see it for the first time. Because she knew it meant that she would meet her soulmate.

The tattoos always had something to do with how you meet your soulmate. She figured it meant her soulmate lived on whatever planet it was that she had on her arm. Or at least that was where they would meet. But when that would happen, she had no idea.

Every time the Enterprise visited a new planet, she held an anxious excitement that it might finally be the planet. And every time it wasn't, she grew more and more disappointed, and even more impatient as time went on.

The thought of her soulmate sat heavily on her mind as she finished getting ready and made her way to the bridge. They would be going to another new planet today, well, new for her.

And maybe, just maybe, today would be the day she set her eyes on the planet that held her soulmate.

Was her soulmate anxiously waiting for her as well? Wondering when they would finally meet? How often had they run their hands over their tattoos, thinking of each other at the same time?

- - -

Your eyes were glued to the screen as the projected planet reflected the one on your own arm. A mix of anxiety and excitement sat in your chest.

After learning of the Starfleet mission to hold a meeting with the government of a planet called Xalis, that had previously rejected joining the Federation, you were tasked with prepping the Captain of the Enterprise for the meeting on planet.

Once you saw that the planet was the one on your arm, the one symbolizing how you would meet your soulmate, you convinced Admiral April to let you go down to the planet with Captain Pike. Luckily for you, you had known the Admiral for a long time, and he was more of a romantic than he would admit.

Your thoughts were interrupted when the doors slid open and Admiral April himself walked in.

"Admiral." You greeted.

"Lieutenant Commander L/n." He greeted professionally, before you could see a soft smile grace his face. "Ready?"

You nodded, repressed your own smile. "Yes Sir."

"I know I don't have to remind you that you are going down to the planet for an official and very important Federation meeting, that is the primary mission at hand."

"Yes, Sir."

"That is where I need your primary focus. But, with other matters, I wish you the best of luck."

"Thank you Sir."

"The Enterprise is arriving now, they are awaiting your arrival. Good luck Lieutenant."

You nodded your head at the Admiral as he turned to leave. Taking a deep breath, you walked over to the window, and looked out, seeing the Enterprise approaching. Grabbing your supplies, you made your way to the transporter station.

- - - - -

"Lieutenant L/n has been beamed aboard Captain." Spock announced.

"Thank you Mister Spock. Alright, everyone, listen up."

Erica turned in her chair as Pike began making an announcement.

"Today's mission is fairly simple. We're going to the outer quadrant of a non federation system to the planet Xalis. To meet with a highly advanced civilization who previously rejected joining the Federation. A week ago, they elected a new board of officials, who are more interested in joining the Federation than the last. The planets government system is a bit more complicated than we're used to, so, we will be joined by an Intelligence Officer, assigned to us for the mission by Admiral April. Lieutenant Commander L/n will aid us in understanding the people we are to meet, and help with the negotiations. So, now that we have our new Intelligence officer, we'll be on our way. Everyone understand?"

As a cacophony of 'Yes Sir's" met his ears, Pike met Erica's eyes and nodded.

Erica smiled as she turned to her controls. "Planet Xalis, here we come."

As the lift doors slid open, Erica looked back, seeing Una entering onto the bridge with someone she had never seen before. 'Wow' the thought entered her mind before she expected it, but she was not surprised, you were certainly attractive.

The Captain approached you with his hand stretched out. "Lieutenant L/n, Captain Pike, welcome aboard."

You smiled and nodded your head as you shook his hand. "Pleasure to be here Captain. Thank you for allowing me to join you."

He smiled and nodded before he turned towards the bridge. "If you don't mind, would you briefly brief my crew on what we are heading into?"

"Of course." Looking around, you met the eyes of the crew, your eyes lingering on those of the ship's pilot. 'Cute' you briefly thought before you began to speak.

"Xalis is a small planet on the outer ridge of a system they refer to as 'The Xalissian Sector'. They pride themselves in their technology and government systems. They haven't had any war on their planet for nearly three hundred years, which is why the Federation was originally interested in befriending them. But, Xalis at the time was run by officials who had no interest in being in the Federation. Mainly because they feared we would bring them into a war they wanted no part in. With the newer officials being more interested, and wishing to negotiate a treaty with the Federation, that would allow them to be a part of it, without having to be involved with any wars or battles we might find ourselves in, we might just make some new friends today."

Erica smiled as she listened to you speak. You seemed interesting, and nice. Much better than some intelligence officers she's met. When you finished speaking, you and the Captain made your way off off the bridge to discuss the mission more.

Erica looked down at her controls and let out a soft sigh. This mission felt different, but she didn't know why. She didn't want to be hopeful for no reason, but she couldn't seem to stop the jittery feeling taking over, that seemed to grow the closer they got to Xalis. It was three hours to the planet, maybe she would feel less anxious by then.

- - - - - -

"So, Y/n, what's it like working on a Starbase?" Erica asked as she watched you from across the mess-hall table.

You took a sip of your drink, as Nurse Chapel and Ensign Uhura watched you as well.

"Much less exciting than being on a ship." You admitted. "I've been transferred to multiple different ships a few times, but they never let me stay."

"Why?" Chapel asked.

"A lot of Captains don't like having an intelligence officer, many think it's a pointless job when they already have a second in command and a security chief."

Uhura shrugged her head. "I can see how that would make sense, but you'd think having a Intelligence Officer on board would take off unnecessary stress from the second in command and security chief, so they can focus on their primary jobs."

You pointed at her. "That's what I always say, but-" You shrugged "They never listen, so I just get bounced around as needed."

Erica watched your closely "Maybe Pike will take a liking to you."

You smiled at her and she felt her heart jump a bit.

"Maybe. It would be nice to actually have a place to belong."

Erica watched you closely, unable to shake a feeling that she knew you. Or unable to shake an attraction that was forming. But reminding herself that her soulmate was waiting for her somewhere else, she shook the thought away.

"We'll put in a good word for you." Christine smiled, making you chuckle.

"Thanks."

"Erica, we are approaching Xalis." Jenna's voice came through Erica's comm.

"Got it, I'll be there in a minute."

Stretching, you stood with Erica, she watched you "You coming to the bridge?"

You shook your head. "No, I'm going to get prepared to go down to the planet. I have a feeling this is going to be a long negotiation."

Erica watched as you left the room, before she looked down at Christine and Uhura who were smirking at her.

"What?"

"Someones got a crush." Christine teased.

Erica tapped her covered wrist. "Someones got a soulmate."

Christine rolled her eyes as Erica left, "Someones in denial."

- - -

As Erica sat down at the controls, she heard Pike enter the bridge. "Whats our status Erica?"

"Coming out of warp Sir, in three...two...one"

When Enterprise jumped out of warp, Erica looked up and felt her breath catch in her throat. The planet was just ahead, it as a relatively small planet, the atmosphere made up of bright oranges and pink clouds, with rings around the planet. Identical to the one on her arm.

Jenna, recognizing this, looked over at Erica with a startled look, who turned to meet her gaze.

"Something I should know about?" Pike asked as he noticed this exchange of looks.

As Uhura entered into the bridge her eyes locked on the planet and she let out a soft gasp, making the Captain look between them with a confused look. Looking back at the planet, he realized it did seem familiar.

"Wait a minute..." Pike trailed off as he looked down at Erica.

She looked back at him, her face a bank stare of shock. As realization hit Pike, he stood and and walked over to Erica. Gently taking her arm, he pulled down her sleeve, and lifted her arm.

Comparing the tattoo to Xalis, he let out a soft laugh. "Well would you look at that."

A smile finally spread across Erica's face as she met the Captains gaze. "Permission to come down to the planet with you Captain?"

He smiled at her "I think that could be arranged."

Erica met Jenna, and then Uhura's eyes, who smiled at her in excitement and wonder. As Erica looked back at the planet Xalis, and began taking the Enterprise closer, her heart beat heavily in her chest as she tried to steady her hands.

This was why this mission felt different. It was like she knew somewhere deep down that it was finally time to meet her soulmate. And she couldn't be more ready.

- - - - - -

As you entered into the transporter room, you had a momentary feeling of confusion as you saw Erica standing beside the Captain. But the anxiety of beaming down to the planet where your Soulmate surely waited, pushed the thought aside.

Your mind rotated the same thought over and over. Primary mission, hold the negotiations, and then find your soulmate. Maybe your soulmate would be a part of the negotiations. That would certainly make this whole thing a lot easier.

That ideal thought was proven incorrect however, when you met with the official council of Xalis. The warmer temperature of the planet allowed you to see their arms easily, as they wore more revealing clothing. Looking for any matching tattoos, you were disappointed when you saw that those who had tattoos on their arms did not match your own.

Even with that disappointment lingering in your mind, the negotiations went as well as you could hope. After leaving Captain Pike to finish the deal, you made your way through the center of the city, overwhelmed with the amount of people the small planet seemed to have.

As you walked down a set of stairs, you spotted Erica, leaning on a banister as she looked out at a bright pink waterfall leading into a large lake in the center of the city.

Erica was startled when someone appeared beside her, turning, she saw you leaning against the banister. "Oh, hey, the negotiations over?"

"Mostly, Captain Pike is finishing up now. It went well."

Erica watched you for a moment, "You seem quite subdued for someone who helped achieve something that has been in the works for nearly ten years."

You smiled and let out a soft breath "Yeah, I was just expecting...more, but it doesn't matter. What did you come down here for? I thought you were going to be in the meeting as well."

"Oh no, I came down for something else, to find...someone...but, it didn't happen."

"You've been here before?" You asked with piqued interest.

She shook her head. "No, no, this is my first time, I just-" she cleared her throat as she pulled up her sleeve, revealing her tattoo. "When I saw that Xalis matched my tattoo, I thought I would find my soulmate here, but there are so many people, I just- what?"

When Erica looked back over at you, you were staring wide-eyed down at her tattoo. Slowly, you looked up and met her gaze. "That was why you came down to the planet?"

"Yeah?"

Erica's heart picked up pace as she watched you grab your own sleeve and being to pull it up.

"I originally wasn't supposed to come down to Xalis for this negotiation but, when I saw that Xalis matched my tattoo...I requested to come."

Erica's breath caught in her throat as she saw the identical tattoo on your own wrist, perfectly reflecting her own.

Your eyes met as the tension rose between you, the silence was heavy as neither of you knew what to say or do.

Finally you spoke, your voice soft. "Seeing how many people were here, I thought it would be impossible to find my soulmate...I didn't stop to think I had already met them."

Erica let out a soft laugh as she shook her head. "I knew there was something about you, that seemed so...familiar, but I was so determined to think my soulmate was on the planet too. But, the tattoo didn't mean this is where we would meet, it's just-"

"Why we met." You finished her thought.

Erica nodded and let out another soft laugh. "Imagine if we spent all our time here looking for someone else, and never figured it out."

You chuckled "I don't want to imagine how crazy that would drive me."

Erica looked around, letting out a soft chuckle "God, I always thought about the moment I would meet my soulmate, I never thought about what to do after."

You laughed "Neither have I. But I guess one way to start, is by telling you you were right. Pike did take a liking to me, and asked if I wanted to stay on the Enterprise. I told him I'd think about it, mostly because I was waiting to meet my soulmate to decide what to do, but, now I know."

Erica grinned, "You're gonna stay?"

"Well obviously." You said with a laugh.

Erica laughed as well "Just checking."

"Hey you two." A voice broke in.

Looking over, you saw Captain Pike and Commander Spock approaching.

"What's got you two so happy?" Looking over at Erica he smiled "Find what you were looking for."

Erica smiled as she glanced at you and then back at Pike. "Yes Sir, but not how I was expecting."

As Pike cocked his head in wonder, you and Erica stretched out your wrists, showing your matching soulmate marks. Pike and Spock's brows rose in surprise.

Pike grinned "Well, isn't that something." He met your eyes. "I was wondering why April insisted you come to Xalis with us."

You shrugged your head as you and Erica locked eyes again.

"So, I assume this means you are going to accept my offer of staying on the Enterprise with us?" Pike asked cheerfully.

You met his eyes and nodded "If you're certain your okay with it, yes Sir"

Erica raised her hand up "If it's left to a vote, I vote yes."

Pike looked over at Spock "What do you think Mister Spock?"

Spock rose a single brow as he looked at the Captain. "I have always suggested the use an Intelligence Officer would have aboard the Enterprise. And, considering what has now occurred, it would be...cruel, to not allow Lieutenant L/n to stay."

Pike smiled as he looked back at you. "I agree. Welcome to the family Y/n."

You grinned as you looked back at Erica, as your heart fluttered. "Thank you Captain."

"Well. We have a few more tings to clear up with the Xalis council, why don't you two go get to know one another a bit more, we'll let you know when it's time to leave."

"Are you sure you don't need me anymore Captain?"

He shook his head softly with a smile. "We can handle it."

As he and Spock left, you and Erica locked eyes again, as your smiled reflected each others. "So, wanna get some lunch?" Erica asked.

You smiled and nodded, "Yes, I do."

Turning, you began making your way towards the city, arms brushing as your hearts fluttered, and butterflies rampaged through your stomachs. All this time you had been waiting for one another, waiting for the moment you could plan the rest of your lives. It was definitley worth the wait.

xx End xx

This did not come out as long as I wanted, nor did I really know how to end it, lol, but I hope you enjoyed it!

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[make-me-imagine]

A Perfect Couple

Prompt: Favorite Trope - 'Fake Dating becomes real dating'

Pairing: Erica Ortegas x GN!Reader

Plot: When Erica runs into an old academy acquaintance, who happened to have a very obvious crush on her. She panics, but takes the opportunity to tell a little lie to get out of an awkward situation.

Notes: This is for the FemSlash Fortnight Event being held by @discoveryfemslashfortnight. The prompt for today is 'favorite trope' And though my favorite trope is actually Soulmate AU, I will be writing that for another day in this event! *Since Erica's sexuality is not confirmed, I used gender neutral pronouns and a gender neutral name in reference to the "acquaintance"

Warnings: None!

Words: 2.4k

-

When Erica saw the familiar face across the room, she felt a jolt of panic course through her. 'Oh God.' She thought with panic as she quickly turned and left the room. Of all the people she had to run into at the Starbase, why did it have to be them?

Of course they had to be here during the same time, both probably on shore leave, both probably going to the same places.

Not paying attention as her mind began to race, she almost collided with someone going around a corner.

"Oh, Sorry! Oh Erica, hey." You let out a soft laugh.

Meeting your familiar eyes Erica felt a jolt of relief, as well as butterflies flutter through her stomach. "Y/n, hey." She said with a drawn out breath "Sorry, about that."

"It's alright, you in a hurry?"

"Yes and no." As she was about to explain she heard her name being called. Glancing back, she saw the one person she had been running from, approaching.

"Aw crap." She muttered.

"Who's that?"

"Someone I really want to avoid. Do me a favor?"

You nodded your head. "Of course."

As said person approached, Erica turned quickly and feigned a smile, as her hand gently grabbed yours, both out of mild panic, and to help sell a ruse.

You looked down at her hand in yours, surprised, feeling your heart flutter. Looking up, you meet the new person eyes briefly before they looked at Erica.

"Taylor! Hey, long time no see!"

As you watched Erica get pulled into an awkward hug, you waited silently beside her.

"It's so good to see you." Taylor said with a smile as they left their hand on Erica's shoulder for an almost awkward amount of time.

Erica let out a soft, clearly uncomfortable laugh. "Yeah, you too." Looking over at you Erica met our eyes before turning to speak to Taylor. "Uh, this, this is Y/n, my partner."

You felt your heart jump, as your ears felt hot. But you smiled and went along with it as you reached out your hand. "Hi, nice to meet you."

You saw their face fall momentarily before they smiled and again and shook your hand. "Nice to meet you too." Their voice had clearly changed tone a bit as they quickly looked away from you and back to Erica.

"We should hang out some time, how long are you on leave?"

"Uhh, only a few more days, but we got a lot of stuff planned, so I'm not sure when I'd be able too. But if I find a moment, I will definitley reach out so we can meet up."

"Great, cool!" Taylor replied, though clearly not convinced.

"So yeah, its great to see you! But we got a reservation to make, so we gotta scurry. But I'm see you around yeah?"

"Yeah, definitely. Bye!"

As you and Erica turned to leave, Erica kept her hand in yours. Glancing back at Taylor, you noticed how they were still watching you.

As you rounded a corner, you spoke softly. "An ex?"

Erica let out a small laugh. "No, definitley not. But they were very, very, in to me at the academy. I turned them down like three times, but they never got the hint. They seem nice on the surface, but trust me, they are not."

You grimaced a little. "Yikes."

Erica saw another Enterprise crew member walk by, their eyes widening a little in surprise. Erica looked down, realizing she was still holding your hand.

Feeling her ears burn, she let go "Sorry about throwing you into that so suddenly."

You smiled at her, feeling a bit disappointed as she let your hand go. "It's alright, I get it. If you need me to help you get away from them again, just let me know."

Erica felt butterflies in her stomach as she smiled at you. "You sure you wanna promise that?"

You shrugged your shoulders. "If it helps you to get away from them, yeah. I know you'd do the same for me."

Erica smiled at you, feeling a mixture of bashfulness and gratefulness wash over her. "I would." She confirmed. "Well, it might be a bit awkward if they see us walking around separately when I said we had a reservation."

You repressed a grin. "True. I know a place with great food, that takes walk in's?"

"Sounds good."

You smiled at each other as you began to make your way across the base. Both of you repressing a mix of giddiness and nerves.

---------

Erica was smiling to herself as she headed back to her hotel. You and her had just finished lunch, and were planning to hang out again later on. These might not be real dates, but she was enjoying them nonetheless. Plus, the idea of dating you, whether fake or not, was causing her to feel an almost alarming amount of giddiness.

Looking up, she saw Christine heading her way rather quickly.

As soon as Christine got close enough, she reached out and smacked Erica in the shoulder.

"Hey Christine, wha- Ow! What the hell was that for?!"

She began whispering in an angered tone "What didn't you tell me?"

Erica rose a brow in confusion and alarm, "Tell you what?"

"That you and Y/n were dating!?"

Erica felt her heart palpitate. "What?"

"Thompson said they saw you and Y/n holding hands earlier."

Erica opened her mouth in realization. "Oh, that." Gently grabbing Christine's arm, she pulled along with her, as she began to explain what had happened.

"So, you two are fake dating?" Christine let out a soft laugh.

Erica shrugged her shoulder. "Yeah, and honestly, it's pretty nice. I mean, I can't help but feel like, Y/n likes it too."

Christine smiled at her. "Do you think you will end up real dating?"

Erica smiled and mumbled. "I don't know, maybe."

She pointed her finger at Erica, "Well if you do, I better hear about it first. I don't want no second hand knowledge again."

"Yeah, yeah. Don't get your hopes up though. I could be completely wrong. How many people has Thompson told by the way? He didn't tell a bunch of people right? That might get complicated."

"I told him not to tell anyone until I talked to you. But I'm not sure if I can trust him. "

Erica felt a wave of anxiety. Will you get upset if a rumor starts?

Christina brushed it off, "I'll talk to him again, don't worry. So, what are you and Y/n doing later anyways?"

Erica felt her heart pulsate, as a wave of nerves came over her. "Well, we were gonna go to the unveiling of the newest lake, apparently there's gonna be boats, or something? I don't know. But It should be fun, as long as we don't run into Taylor."

"Well if you do, you'll have an excuse to act all couple-ly with Y/n."

Erica smiled, but shook her head. "You're enjoying this too much."

"Of course I am! I've been saying you and Y/n would make a perfect couple for ages now, at least now, you have a chance of seeing that I'm right."

"Okay, okay, I get it. Now come on, I gotta go change."

"Ooh, gotta look nice for your date." Christina continued to tease her as they walked.

----------

When Erica saw you standing by the entrance of the parkway, she felt a wave of excitement wash over her. She didn't often get to see you dressed in non-starfleet clothes, it was almost refreshing.

'A perfect couple' Christine's voice echoed through Erica's mind, as butterflies rampaged through her stomach.

"Hey." Erica greeted as she walked up to you.

You spun around to face her, and smiled brightly. "Hey."

"Ready?"

As you nodded, you and Erica headed in together, wading your way through the small crowds of people.

You hadn't gotten far, when Erica felt you slip your arm through hers. Erica looked over at you in mild alarm, as she felt her heart skip a beat. As you locked eyes with hers, you motioned your head lightly, and Erica realized what was happening.

"I think they may have seen us." You whispered.

Erica cursed under her breath before she looked back a bit. She could see Taylor making their way towards the two of you, and she felt a jolt of panic. Seeing a group of people beginning to pass between the two of you and Taylor, Erica quickly grabbed your hand.

She whispered in a rushed voice. "Come on!"

You let out a surprised laugh as Erica pulled you along. You ran through another crowd, your hand tight in hers. Zigzagging between small pop-up shops and food stops, you finally stopped when you got to the lake.

Locking eyes, you both began laughing.

"Maybe warn me next time. I would have worn better shoes." You said breathlessly.

"Sorry, I panicked. I really did not want to run into them, especially not after we just got here."

"It's alright. That was fun. And exhausting."

Erica chuckled as she looked around, making sure Taylor was no where in sight. As her eyes landed on the lake, and a small line of people forming for small boats, she smiled.

"Wanna get a boat?"

You followed her line of sight and smiled. "Yeah!"

After making your way to the front of the line, you finally got a small boat and made your way out onto the water. Erica insisted on paddling, while you sat across from her.

You looked around with a smile as you gently let your hand drift in the water. "This is nice. I'm surprised they didn't open this up sooner."

"I think they had to make sure the water wasn't gonna kill anyone."

You paused blankly as you quickly lifted your hand out of the water. "Why, whats wrong with the water?"

Erica let out a laugh. "Nothing! I promise. They just have to to extensive testing after the lakes form to make sure they are safe to get in."

You looked over the side of the boat and hummed.

Erica smiled out of amusement. "They also wanted to make sure they got rid of all the giant space fish."

You rolled your eyes "Okay, now that's just ridiculous."

Hearing a thud underneath the boat, both of your eyes widened as you stared at the water. As you saw a boat paddle drift by, you both let out soft laughs.

Reaching in, you grabbed the paddle "Now I can help!"

"We don't need three paddles!"

"What if a giant space fish jumps out of the water?"

Erica shrugged her head "Then we might need three paddles."

You giggled softly as you set the paddle down, allowing Erica to continue to paddle the boat.

Erica watched you for a moment, a soft smile on her face. "I told Christina about what's going on."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, uh. Thompson saw us holding hands earlier when you first met Taylor. He went a tattled to Christine, who found me and hit me."

"Hit you? Why?" You laughed.

"She thought I was keeping our relationship a secret, so she got upset. So I explained what was going on. But, the problem is, I'm not sure who else Thompson told."

She saw you thinking for a moment, before you shrugged. "It's not that big of a deal to me."

Erica stopped paddling, letting the boat begin to drift a bit. "It's not?"

"Not really. I mean, if anyone asks about it, we can just tell them the truth. I was helping you avoid someone."

"Yeah, right. But what if no one asks and they just assume we are together?"

You shrugged a bit and let out a soft laugh, "Do you want to make a public service announcement once we get back on the Enterprise?"

Erica laughed and rolled her eyes. "No, I just want to make sure I don't cause any problems for you because you helped me."

"It's fine Erica, I promise. It might actually save me from some unwanted attention myself."

Erica felt a small pang of jealousy. "From who?"

"Well, Thompson for one."

"No!"

"Mhm."

"No wonder he looked so shocked when he saw us holding hands." Erica laughed.

You chuckled, as you looked down at your feet. "Was Christine disappointed when you told her we weren't actually together?"

"Yeah, how'd you guess?"

You met Erica's eyes almost shyly, and Erica felt a pang of realization. "Oh, she's such a busy-body."

You looked up fully at Erica, and let out a soft laugh. "She's not one for subtlety."

"No, she is not."

Erica watched you for a minute, as you seemed to be avoiding her gaze. Erica knew Christine. She wouldn't tease Erica about you, until she knew Erica had feelings for you. So surely she wouldn't tease you either, unless...

"What?"

Erica broke from her thoughts as you spoke. She gave you a look of confusion.

"You're staring at me."

"Oh, sorry." She chuckled. "I was just thinking about something."

"About what?"

Erica stared at you for a minute, before she found the courage to speak. "Uhm, would you, maybe want to turn the rest of the day, into a date?" Before you could respond, she continued briskly. "Not as like a fake dating thing to fool Taylor anymore. I mean, like...an actual date."

"An actual date?" you asked softly.

She nodded lightly, and you smiled, nodding. "Yeah, that would be nice."

Erica rose her brow "Really?"

"Yeah." You giggled. "I would like that."

Erica smiled brightly. "Great."

You smiled at each other for a moment, before the moment was broken by a beeping sound, signalling your time on the boat was up.

"Oh." Erica exclaimed softly as she began to paddle the boat again.

You lifted up the spare paddle. "Sure you don't want help?"

Erica let out a soft laugh. "Alright, go ahead."

She smiled as you excitedly began to paddle along as well. You locked eyes for a moment, and shared a smile. As your eyes grazed over the shore, your face fell.

Erica looked back, and saw Taylor walking along the shore, obviously watching the two of you. Looking back to where you parked the boats, she locked eyes with you.

"Make a run for it before they get there?"

You nodded while repressing a smile. Tension filled both of your guts as you pulled up to the docking bay. Climbing out, Erica's hand slid into yours again, as you both began to run back towards the crowds.

As you ran side by side, your shoulders brushing, and hands intertwined, you both felt a childish giddiness take over. You were not going to let Taylor ruin your date. Not now that it was a real one.

xx End xx

Had some trouble with this one, and I'm not sure how I feel about it lol. But I hope you enjoyed it!

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