by Andi J Feron
Seraphine - November 6, 2010
A few weeks after Talon and Elliott’s RNA accident Helen asked me to meet her at the base coffee shop. I sipped my cappuccino as Helen walked over to my table. Piles of magazines were threatening to spill out of her arms, and her coffee was tipped almost enough to spill its contents. I jumped up to help her with some of the items, and we sat down at the table.
“Someone is glowing,” I said.
“Elliott is amazing. I could lay in bed with him for the entire day and be content that was all our day accomplished. In fact, we did that yesterday, which is how I know. I’ve never been with someone who makes me come alive and makes sure I know how much they love me every time they see me.”
“I’m so happy for you, Helen. Finding the one you want to spend your days with is probably the best component of life.”
“I’ve never been happier.”
“According to Talon, Elliott finds a way to bring you into nearly every conversation they have. Talon says Elliott has it pretty bad for you.”
Helen blushed with a big smile. I loved the newness of their engagement, as it brought new life to Helen and Elliott. Helen pulled out one of her magazines and showed me bouquets of flowers. “I’ve decided I want to use cherry blossoms in my bouquets for the bridesmaids. Then mine will have white roses, white lilies with pink centers, and cherry blossoms. Kind of like this one here.” She pointed in her magazine.
“That’s beautiful! I love it. Have you decided on a dress yet?”
“Not quite. I thought maybe we could take a girls’ trip in the next couple of weeks and you could help me decide. I told Elliott this plan and he pouted a little. He didn’t think he could live with me being gone for a few days. I convinced him it had to be that way because he couldn’t accidentally see the dress. Bad luck and all. I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind holding it for me in your quarters?”
I nodded. “Yeah, that would be fine. I’ll make sure to keep it somewhere Elliott won’t accidentally stumble across it if he comes over.”
“I have a question, Seraphine. I want to know if you would be my matron of honor?”
“I would be honored to,” I said. She jumped up and hugged at my agreement. “Let’s coordinate a few days next week, and we’ll find you a dress.”
“I can’t wait to go on this trip with you Seraphine. Those men of ours will have to survive without us for a few days.”
“I’m sure it will be a harsh reality, but they’ll survive if only to see us again.”
We stopped by the leave office to request the same days off as well as a shuttle to Earth. We were told that it would be granted, and I was excited to pack. We walked together to my quarters.
I wanted to give Helen my mother’s necklace. I didn’t know the story behind it, but I knew that my mother loved it. I remembered her always wearing it. The day she died, she slipped it around my neck. She hugged me and told me to always remember that she loved me. I remembered it clearly because I was excited to show my friends at school. Upon reflecting, I realized that it was almost as if my mother knew that day wouldn’t hold good things for her.
Helen always commented on how much she loved it, and when I suggested it for her something borrowed, she jumped at the idea. Besides the little ballerina, the necklace was the only item I had from my mother. I was happy that one of my dearest friends could make use of it on the most important day of her life. She wanted to pack it to see how it would look with the dresses she tried on.
We found Talon and Elliott talking in the living room. Elliott asked Talon to be his best man, and I was happy Talon would be the one I would walk the aisle with. We decided to go to lunch together, and Elliott and Helen only released hands to eat their food.
I enjoyed having another couple to do things with. They would now have a different perspective than the other people we hung out with. Marriage changed the dynamic a bit, and Helen and I would be able to relate on a deeper level. As we got ready for bed that night, I told Talon about the trip I was taking with Helen.
“Sounds fun, but it’ll make me sad coming home to empty quarters,” Talon said.
“This will give you some empathy for the next time you leave me to see Allie.”
“True. Honestly, I think it’s a good thing for you to go on a trip with Helen and enjoy planning her wedding. You never really got to plan ours.”
“I’m kind of glad things happened that way. One, it took all the stress out of the day and, two, I’m grateful for every moment I’ve been Mrs. Cooper. I didn’t need a fancy wedding postponing that.”
“I’m glad you feel that way. I have wondered if you felt cheated.”
“With you as my husband? No way.”
We invited Petra along for the trip, and she happily agreed. We would be gone for a week, and we decided New York would be the best place to venture into dress shopping. Helen didn’t know what she wanted, but she told me she knew she didn’t want it to be too bulky. She said it would damper the wedding if the dress was too confining. Our men walked us to the docking bay.
“Couldn’t you find your dress in a day? A week seems an awfully long time to be apart, ” Elliott said.
Helen shook her head. “The dress is a big decision.”
“You could wear a curtain for all I care.”
Helen laughed. “Trust me Elliott, you’ll be pleased with the view when I walk down the aisle. You’ll decide a week was well worth it.”
“Doubtful, but you women have fun.”
Talon gave me a long kiss and Elliott gave the same to Helen.
“Seriously all of you! It’s a week, not a year.” Petra shook her head as she climbed into our shuttle.
I was happy they assigned us one of the better shuttle crafts, as we were able to fold without any issue. Folding took hours off of our trip, and we made it to Earth in forty-five minutes. We landed on a base thirty minutes outside of New York City and took a train the rest of the way.
We went searching for a hotel. Petra told us that she knew a good one with a spa that was over the top. We made use of it right away, and I definitely felt that I was finally putting all of my bonuses to good use.
We bought the full body package—a facial, a ninety-minute body massage, and ending with manicures and pedicures. I could get used to this life of luxury. I felt immensely relaxed, which required a nap for the rest of the afternoon. Petra demanded that I get out of bed so we could go shopping. There was a club she wanted to check out tonight and thought it called for new clothes.
“Dang, Seraphine! That’s the one.”
I looked doubtful in the mirror at the royal blue low-cut mini skirt of a dress that Petra insisted I try on.
“Seems like a waste wearing this to a club. I only dress this way for Talon. If he can’t see me, what’s the point?” I intently looked at how much dress this outfit didn’t actually have.
“So take a picture and send it to him, but that’s definitely the dress.” Petra snapped a picture of me.
I sent it to Talon’s com device. I knew it would be hours if not days before he received it. Helen came out wearing a cute red top and skinny jeans that fit well to her petite frame. We all agreed it suited her well and she needed to wear it tonight. Petra chose a sleeveless black dress that only made it halfway down her thigh. We went back to the hotel to get ready. I looked into the mirror and felt silly at how underdressed I was.
“Take the thought out of your mind Seraphine. It’s perfect,” Petra said.
I frowned. “Seems a waste without Talon to enjoy it,” I repeated.
“Not everything on you is for your husband to enjoy. Be your own woman and wear it for you.”
“But it’s fun when my husband enjoys everything on me.” I smiled at the thought.
“I suppose if I had your man, I might feel the same.”
Helen came out from the bathroom. “The dress is quite revealing, but I think you look beautiful as always Seraphine. I know how you feel, I wish Elliott could se
e me right now.”
“That’s what selfies are for, you two sticks-in-the-mud. In fact, come here.” Petra motioned us over. We snapped a few selfies with our arms around each other. I grabbed the little silver purse I bought and crossed it on my shoulder as we headed out the door. The club was huge with four large dance floors. Each section had its own bar with booths to sit at and talk. Helen and I danced together as the colored lights of the club spun around us. Petra was pleased to find an abundance of men she could play around with. Helen and I took a break and downed a couple shots at the bar.
“Want to dance?” A voice said after I downed my third shot of the night. I looked up to see a man with blond hair extending his hand to me. He wore a shiny silver shirt and dark jeans. I flashed him my wedding ring. He shrugged. “So? I won’t tell if you don’t.”
“I’m good. Thank you.”
“You telling me you look this hot and don’t want to play?” He moved closer to me and put his hand on my upper thigh. He leaned in to kiss me, and I slapped him. He put his hands up and walked off.
“You alright Seraphine?” Helen asked.
“Yeah, not the first sleazebag I’ve ever dealt with.” I downed another shot, and we hit the dance floor again. A few hours in I was starting to get tired. I looked around for Petra but didn’t see her. After searching the entire club, Helen and I went outside. I opened my com device and saw there were two new messages. One was from Petra telling us to return to the hotel without her because she would meet us in the morning. The second was Talon’s response from my earlier message.
Talon: Tell me that’s lingerie I get to remove when you return.
I smiled at his response. Helen and I decided to take a walk around the city. The city was still very much alive despite it being past midnight. A couple blocks from the club I heard footsteps. I turned around to see the guy from earlier and a couple of his friends rapidly approaching us.
“Not the smartest thing for you ladies to walk around the city this late dressed like that,” the blond said smugly.
“Yeah, that’s just asking for some attention,” his buddy to the right said.
We were going to have to kick these guys’ asses, and I was tired. We kept walking, and the blond grabbed my arm. I quickly grabbed him and flipped him on his back. His two friends grabbed Helen, and one pulled out a knife and placed it on her throat.
“Come on, baby. Let’s take a walk.” He tried to pull her away. He suddenly let out a scream, “I’m burning!” He dropped the knife, and I saw blisters forming on his arms, courtesy of Helen.
“What?!” the third guy yelled before running off.
The one with the burnt arm fell on the ground, writhing in pain. Helen gave him a swift kick for good measure. I projected police driving up, and the other two ran after their friend.
“That was some type of voodoo shit,” the guy with the burnt arm yelped.
Helen and I laughed and continued on our walk. We made it to our hotel and climbed into our beds at ten passed two. After sleeping in, we hit up the dress shops Helen wanted to try out. She decided to go the traditional Chinese route and picked a beautiful flowing red dress with gold designs intricately embroidered throughout the gown. For the bridesmaid dresses, she picked out lavender knee-length dresses with sleeves that went to the elbow.
“This will be the most conservative thing I’ve ever worn next to my uniform,” Petra commented as we tried them on.
The lady who ran the dress shop measured us and promised us that she would have them altered by the end of the week. We went to a couple museums and ate pizza for dinner. I missed Earth pizza. There were places on base that offered it, but there was nothing like authentic New York pizza.
The week flew by. We enjoyed walking through Central Park, then we went to see the Statue of Liberty and spent the afternoon on a boat ride. Toward the middle of the week, we decided to have an old-fashioned sleepover. We put on our pajamas, ordered room service, and watched a couple movies. When the movies were finished, we started talking.
Petra pulled a bag of popcorn out from the in room microwave, “We’ve been teammates for years and hang out every week, but I don’t even know how you guys joined the war to begin with.”
Helen told us her story first. “My parents always wanted me to be a doctor like my older brother, Bao. My younger brother Tim became an engineer, and they saw that as a satisfactory option as well. My grades were good enough to get into medical school, but I didn’t feel that was what I wanted for my life. I started going to the college they wanted me to.
“A friend I met at college invited me to an informational session, and I was hooked. I knew it was the excitement I was looking for. After I underwent capsulization and discovered I was a healer, I told my parents that I was in the medical division of the Air Force. They think I’m an Air Force doctor, and I’ve never corrected them.”
“What about you Seraphine?” Petra asked.
“They got me out of foster care. I was only thirteen, and it was a few months before I met Talon. My mom was killed when I was seven, and my dad went to prison. After that, I went from foster home to foster home. Joining the war seemed better than being tossed around from home to home.”
“Wow, Seraphine! I had no idea.” Helen put her hand on my shoulder as though she was comforting me.
“To clarify, did your dad kill your mom?” Petra tossed popcorn in her mouth.
“Petra! How can you just ask her that?!” Helen’s mouth hung open.
“It’s okay, it’s well in the past. Yeah, he got twenty-five years, and I was sentenced to a childhood in foster care. ”
“Oh my word! Seraphine!” Helen placed her hand over her mouth and looked like she might cry. She hugged me.
“I didn’t know they even recruited kids that young,” Petra said.
“I think they see it as helping kids out of the system and giving them a purpose. Trust me, it turned out a lot better than if I had stayed where I was. Plus I wouldn’t have met Talon. What about you Petra?”
“Nothing too crazy. I’m from a military family. My dad was a general, and I have seven brothers who all went into the military. I didn’t want them to show me up, so I joined too and scored high on the ASVAB. I was placed in an intelligence unit and eventually recruited to this war.”
Both Helen and I widened our eyes. I wasn’t sure if it was because of the seven brothers or because Petra’s backstory was one I would never have guessed.
“Is that really all that shocking?” She asked, laughing.
“You don’t exactly pursue intellectual matters,” I said.
Petra laughed again. “I have the brains, but I find men more fun to chase than books. And I’m not completely wasting it fighting the war and all.”
“What about all your brothers? Any of them join the war?”
“Nope, all of them have lame Earth duties.”
“That’s strange. Why would they not recruit them with your ability tier being so high?” Helen was thinking along the same lines I was.
“Oh, I was adopted. My brothers weren’t, and they have little to no level of the ability chemical. They weren’t skilled in much, so they were never seen as worthy recruits.”
We talked into the early morning, and I learned a lot more about Petra and Helen than I had in all the time I’d known them. We slept in the next day and went to an art museum in the afternoon. I was in my element and realized how amazing it would be to have one of my paintings hanging in a New York art museum.
On our last day in the city, we stopped at the dress shop to collect our dresses. The seamstress had done an excellent job, and our dresses fit perfect. That night we got dressed up and were going to find a fancy restaurant to eat at. We walked down to the lobby, and I heard Helen let out a squeal and take off running toward the hotel entryway. I glanced up to see her jumping into Elliott’s arms. Next to him was Talon, and as soon as he noticed me, he walked straight for me.
“Damn, Mrs. Cooper.” His eyes
looked me over before he gently grabbed my face, kissing me.
Petra shook her head. “You two men couldn’t wait one more day.”
“We got tickets to The Phantom of the Opera.” Elliott held up some tickets.
“How did you get those? We were told it was sold out for weeks,” I said.
“Some of us have connections.” Ajax walked into the lobby with Fayard.
“Ajax knows one of the managers,” Talon said.
“He’s my cousin actually, and he owes me. Long story,” Ajax added.
“The real reason we’re here is because our wedding venue received a cancellation and said they could take us in three days if you want Helen,” Elliott said.
“Seriously?! We have the dresses. Let’s do this!” Helen beamed.
“What about our leave? We only put in for the week,” I pointed out.
“Taken care of. Parks gave us another couple weeks,” Talon said.
We went to the front desk and worked out the room arrangements. The guys changed into their suits and we grabbed dinner before the show. The show surpassed my expectations, and I was captivated for the entire duration. Ajax and Petra decided to hit up the clubs afterwards, but the rest of us called it a night. I took a shower and put on some pajamas. Talon was in his black boxers and a white T-shirt.
“That’s too much clothes, put on the blue one you sent me a picture of,” Talon requested.
“That wasn’t lingerie, that was a dress. I wore it to a club.”
He looked a little disturbed at the information. “There was nothing to it.”
“Yeah, it was a warm night.”
“Either way, I wouldn’t mind seeing it in person.”
“Why when you can see this instead?”
I slowly unbuttoned my shirt, teasing him a little by drawing out the process. He turned the TV off and helped me out of the rest of it. I kissed him and he lifted me onto the bed. We were both on our knees before he pulled me back on top of him. I shivered slightly, and he pulled the covers over us as he continued to kiss me. We laid facing each other as our legs became intertwined. I missed him. Even though the girls-trip was necessary and fun, Talon was my favorite escape.
