"A Little Bit of Time"
by trylikeafool@gmail.com.
Disclaimer: You know the drill.
Synopsis: A melancholy evening for Riker on the eve of a life-changing day.
Rating: G
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Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the U.S.S. Enterprise E found Will Riker sitting
by the fire. It was a chilly night bordering on cold he thought even though
his first officer didn't seem to notice.
Will sat with his knees up and his arms draped over them. The firelight whispered
over his face and suggested a hint of melancholy. Riker took in a cleansing
breath and let his head fall forward slightly.
"Thought I'd find you here," Picard said as he rounded the fire and
sat next to his comrade. Truth was, he noticed when Will had slipped away from
his bachelor party early and was concerned for him. It wasn't like Riker to
leave a party early-especially his own.
Will glanced at his captain and then turned his gaze upon the fire. "I've
just been thinking about tomorrow." His voice seemed small in a way that
caught even more of Picard's attention.
"You left early. Do I not throw a good party or something?" Picard
saw a smile flicker across Riker's face mirroring the flickers of the flames
in front of them.
Will drew in another deep breath as his smile faded. "The party was great,
although I think Worf was enjoying himself more than I ever could."
The captain chuckled at the thought of the burly Klingon throwing himself into
all of the chaos that goes on at such a celebration. He definitely had been
enjoying himself. Probably still was. "I'm sure he'll feel the effects
tomorrow." He let the words linger in the air before adding, "Speaking
of tomorrow, you're not getting cold feet are you?"
Riker's brow shot up and he looked at Picard fully. "Deanna would have
my head if I were. No. She and I have been waiting for this. It's just that
we were so eager to get here at this point that we looked past having to give
up a lot of things once we did get here."
Picard eyed the old fashioned pot of coffee sitting on the ground next to him.
He reached for it and a spare cup near by. Slowly, he let the liquid drain into
the dark blue mug and savored the smell of fresh coffee just brewed over the
fire. "We've spent a good many years together. But we all knew that it
would have to come to an end. You can't go through life in the same place."
"Why not?" Will turned sharp eyes on the captain and Picard backed
the cup of coffee away from his lips as he was about to drink.
He stared at Riker for moment and then completed his motion to drink. "I'll
tell you why not. When we get too comfortable, too familiar with something,
we tend to take it for granted. We start to relax our minds and our bodies and
that can impair growth. You can't learn as much staying in one place. That's
why the Enterprise exists. It's why Starfleet exists. Just think what our lives
would be like today if man had opted to stay on Earth. It's our comfort zone.
But just look at everything we would have missed out on."
Riker smirked and readjusted his arms. "Well, when you put it like that…"
he trailed off and shifted his eyes to the stars. "What we leave behind
is not as important as how we've lived?"
Picard raised his eyes to Rikers, genuinely surprised that you younger man had
remembered what he'd said years ago. "We've all lived wonderful lives on
the Enterprise together. But there's so much more out there to do and see. We've
had our time."
Will nodded absently and continued his stargazing. "You know, it was really
hard for Deanna and I to make the decision to leave. You and everyone else mean
so much to us. It would be perfect if we could just get married and stay on
the Enterprise."
"But Starfleet has other plans for you. You need to go. If you get any
better they might just demote me and put you as captain. So I'm going to see
to it that you get onto your own ship before that happens."
Riker chuckled and shook his head at the friendly jibe. "The only reason
I'm so good is because I've learned everything from you."
"Now that I will not argue." He raised his cup and Riker did the same.
"Here's to lessons learned and new adventures."
They clinked their cups together and the sound of tin hitting tin crackled through
the sounds of the Alaskan night. "I'm not sure what's going to be more
of an adventure. Marriage or the Titan."
"Well, if you ever need advice on your adventures on the Titan, I'm only
a subspace communiqué away. However, if it's advice on marriage, I can't guarantee
any."
They both laughed at the prospect and Riker pitched what was left of his cold
coffee on the ground. "I wonder if Deanna's party hit it of as well as
mine?"
They both looked in the direction of Riker's large log home across the field.
The lights were on and inside there were high-pitched voices of females having
a good time. They could even make out some sort of strange music playing. Picard
drowned it all out with his voice, "I think that's a yes, Number One. I'm
not sure you should have let them use your house for the party."
"It'll be all right. Beverly said they weren't going to do anything too
wild. Of course, I was stupid to believe her."
Picard clapped Will on the shoulder and stood. "Well, it's going to be
a long day tomorrow. I think I'll turn in. You should too."
Riker glanced up at his captain and then shook his head. "No thanks. I
think I'll stay here a little longer."
Jean-Luc hesitated for a moment and was tempted to stay as well. But he decided
that Will probably needed some time alone on the eve of a life-changing day.
"Very well. But consider this, Will. We do have very little time left together
but your life from here on out is inside that house right now. It pains me to
know that I won't be able to share in that life with you as fully as I want
to. Life isn't perfect. It's just tolerable at times like these, save for you
marriage tomorrow. But we all have to grow up sometime and accept the fact that
things have to change. It may not be pleasant. But it is good for you. I couldn't
be happier for you and Deanna. Your life will change many more times as mine
has over the years. This is simply another one that I have to get through. And
I will, just as you will. In time, this will all be just a happy memory and
we'll just be distant friends that see each other on occasion."
"You could never be just a distant firend-"
"But I will be," Picard cut him off. "It doesn't seem like in
now, but it will. I promise you. I've been through this before and I assure
you that it all works out just fine in the end. I'll see you tomorrow."
Riker didn't say anything. He sat there on the cold ground and listened to the
captain's retreating footsteps in the grass. Would this all end up a distant
memory? Would Picard become just another friend in his past that he'd had the
pleasure of serving with? Would all of them? He could swear that he felt something
wet on his cheek but he didn't bother to brush it away. He would let it fall.
Tomorrow his life would change and soon after that it would change again. Was
he ready? No. He could never be ready to leave these people. They were his family.
They always would be. He would make sure of it.
Will sighed and poured the rest of the pot of coffee onto the fire causing it
to go down a little. It didn't burn as much. A loud shriek came from inside
the house followed by a herd of laughter. He smiled. Maybe it wouldn't be so
bad after all. He would miss them. But he had Deanna with him through it all.
Together they would build a new life on the Titan. Soon there would be a new
family to get to know and children to consider. Who knew? The way things were
going between Picard and Beverly, they could be back at Earth this time next
year for another wedding. Maybe two years. He hoped that they would.
Riker stood and finally decided to head back to the Enterprise. He would roam
through the corridors and memorize every detail about his flagship. Then he
would go back to his quarters and try to get some sleep before his wedding.
What a thing that would be.
He threw some dirt on the fire, effectively smothering it. With one last glance
at the stars from the ground he tapped his communicator and requested to be
beamed up. In less than 24 hours his life would change. All of their lives would
change. But for the first time, he knew that everything would be all right in
the end. It would just take a little time. Blue light shimmered around him and
the tingle of the transporter enveloped him.
END