09-16-2025, 12:11 PM
Riley slowed to a jog, then finally gave in and stopped, hands braced on her knees as she caught her breath. A few steady pulls of air later, she dropped onto the grass beside the track, legs stretched out in front of her. The ache in her thighs was sharp but familiar, almost welcome. She tugged at the hem of her sleeve, rolling it higher. A flicker of the tattoo on her arm showed when she leaned forward, but she didn’t think twice about it.
T’Varen joined her a moment later, lowering herself into a seated stretch with the same precision she brought to everything. Not a hair out of place, not even a hint of strain. Riley gave her a long look, then snorted. Not even breathing heavy. Unbelievable.
“You could at least sigh a little,” Riley said, reaching for her toes. “For show, if nothing else.”
“It would be illogical to simulate fatigue I am not experiencing,” T’Varen replied, folding forward with exact control, fingers touching the soles of her shoes like it was the easiest thing in the world.
Riley huffed out a laugh, shaking her head. “Illogical. Sure. But it wouldn’t kill you to fake it once in a while. Makes you seem less… I don’t know. Alien.”
That earned her the faintest flicker of an eyebrow. “I have no need to disguise myself as approachable. Efficiency is sufficient.”
Of course it is. Riley leaned back on her hands, the grass cool under her palms, eyes tracing the path they’d just run. Her chest still rose and fell a little fast, sweat running down her temple. She glanced back at T’Varen. Still calm. Still Vulcan. “You’re telling me you don’t get even a little satisfaction from smoking me on that track?”
T’Varen didn’t answer right away. She shifted seamlessly into another stretch, posture as straight as if she’d been carved that way. “Satisfaction is irrelevant. I completed the exercise as intended.”
Riley gave her a sidelong grin. “That’s Vulcan for yes.”
The smallest pause. “That is a misinterpretation.”
Riley laughed, a real one this time, short and sharp. She shook her head and pulled one knee up to her chest, hugging it tight as her muscles cooled. One of these days I’ll catch her off guard. She won’t know what hit her.
For a while, they stretched in companionable silence. The only sound between them was the shift of fabric, the scrape of shoes against the grass. Different as they were, Riley liked the balance of it. She needed the push, the reminder that there was always another step to take. And if she had to put up with Vulcan logic to get there… well, she’d survive.
T’Varen joined her a moment later, lowering herself into a seated stretch with the same precision she brought to everything. Not a hair out of place, not even a hint of strain. Riley gave her a long look, then snorted. Not even breathing heavy. Unbelievable.
“You could at least sigh a little,” Riley said, reaching for her toes. “For show, if nothing else.”
“It would be illogical to simulate fatigue I am not experiencing,” T’Varen replied, folding forward with exact control, fingers touching the soles of her shoes like it was the easiest thing in the world.
Riley huffed out a laugh, shaking her head. “Illogical. Sure. But it wouldn’t kill you to fake it once in a while. Makes you seem less… I don’t know. Alien.”
That earned her the faintest flicker of an eyebrow. “I have no need to disguise myself as approachable. Efficiency is sufficient.”
Of course it is. Riley leaned back on her hands, the grass cool under her palms, eyes tracing the path they’d just run. Her chest still rose and fell a little fast, sweat running down her temple. She glanced back at T’Varen. Still calm. Still Vulcan. “You’re telling me you don’t get even a little satisfaction from smoking me on that track?”
T’Varen didn’t answer right away. She shifted seamlessly into another stretch, posture as straight as if she’d been carved that way. “Satisfaction is irrelevant. I completed the exercise as intended.”
Riley gave her a sidelong grin. “That’s Vulcan for yes.”
The smallest pause. “That is a misinterpretation.”
Riley laughed, a real one this time, short and sharp. She shook her head and pulled one knee up to her chest, hugging it tight as her muscles cooled. One of these days I’ll catch her off guard. She won’t know what hit her.
For a while, they stretched in companionable silence. The only sound between them was the shift of fabric, the scrape of shoes against the grass. Different as they were, Riley liked the balance of it. She needed the push, the reminder that there was always another step to take. And if she had to put up with Vulcan logic to get there… well, she’d survive.