Miss Me?

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

"There's always next time." Kurt said with a smile, his hand reaching out to grab her and squeeze it gently. His head had begun to hurt, likely a side-effect of the drugs that had been given to him to numb the pain on his back. He shifted again, this time however he moved closer to the edge of the bed, closer to Jamie. "There'll be other vacations, maybe some place less wild next time."

He mused for a second. "Or some place more familiar."

Tatooine, or Naboo. Somewhere they didn't have to worry about camping and Manka cats, not that he blamed her for the situation. They had both made the decision to come here, had both made the decision to go exploring. Kurt didn't blame Jamie in the least. She had stuck to her principles when she had prevented her from shooting the Manka Cat, and although it cost him some pain he wouldn't have her any other way. He motioned for her to come closer, planting a small kiss on her lips when she did.

"Don't worry so much." Kurt told her with another gentle squeeze of her hand. "I've had worse injuries."

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"I guess." Her voice was solemn, almost defeated. "This was our first time going somewhere. Just the two of us. I wanted to make it special." Jamie raised a hand and ran it up through her golden hair, scratching at her head. "I ruined the whole thing. The memory is ruined. Every time I think back on this now all I am gonna see is what I caused." The kiss made her smile, returning a more relaxed look to her that had momentarily faded as she continued to pace in circles within her own mind, replaying the scenario over and over again in an attempt to piece together what had transpired. All she could remember still was yelling at Kurt not to pull the trigger. It was at that point everything had gone black, and she had awoken to find him gravely injured, having carried her a ways away somehow. "I can't help but worry about you. It's a package deal." Perhaps Kurt had suffered worse injuries, though if that were the case and he wasn't simply trying to reassure her of herself, those injuries were not attained while the two were together. That meant in her eyes that they didn't necessarily count towards her need to worry for him and what she had done.

"The doctors want to keep you overnight to monitor you and to make sure that the wound doesn't get infected. After all, I did mash a bunch of wild berries and leaves into your bleeding body. I'm sure that didn't help with the preventing infection angle." That much was true, but at the very least she managed to prevent him from bleeding out all over the jungle floor and dying on her right there. That would have been the most tragic first vacation imaginable. One that she was already having a hard enough time living with as it were. Had things gone worse she would likely have lost her sanity.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

"It'll be fine." Kurt reassured her.

"I can stay over night." He said quietly as he once again brushed her lips with his own, a small nudge trying to reassure her again. "You can find a hotel to stay in. My pants are somewhere I assume, I have more then enough credits for you to find something nice."

He wondered briefly if his pack had been collected, if his blaster had been.

That blaster had been his fathers and the loss would wound him slightly. It wouldn't be devastating, if only because when he returned to Tatooine eventually and told his father just how he had lost it the old man would get more than a kick out of it. Kurt smiled at the thought, then squeezed Jamie's hand again. There was no doubt in his mind that whatever had happened, however it had happened, it would be perfectly alright in the end. "There will be other vacations. I promise. Even if this was our first one, it doesn't have to be the best."

It wouldn't be, he was certain of that.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie gave him a look. Her eyes, tilt of the head, crinkle of the nose, and push of her lips all combined into one silent expression that practically shouted are you even serious?! The idea that she would leave his side to go to some kind of ritzy hotel alone was absurd to her. "No." She said bluntly, still maintaining that long, drawn out stare for some time. "I'm not going anywhere. I'll sleep right here in this chair if I have to." She would point to his clothing that had been collected, though the shirt was beyond salvageable and would likely need to be simply tossed. "Your clothes are here on the table, but your shirt is hardly more than a wash rag now. It got kind of shredded." The blonde would have laughed if the shirt wasn't stained all over in Kurt's blood. There was nothing really worth laughing about there.

"I suppose." What was done was done. There was little she could do to change the outcome of what had transpired. She was no time traveler, and she certainly had a long way to go when it came to any kind of mastery of the Force. She couldn't even use it to scare off the animal. She had no lightsaber, the trademark weapon of a Jedi. She was really just a girl with a raw talent that she may never fully grasp, and a bit of athletes blood in her noble veins. Nothing more. The full reality of just how painfully average she was hit her all in that one sudden moment like a freight train. And in that split second she understood just how small she really was.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

He frowned for a moment. Part of him understood, he wouldn't have left her side either, but he didn't exactly want her sleeping in that chair for however long they decided they needed to keep him. Shifting slightly Kurt managed to back up in the hospital bed, moving until he was just about squished against the edge of the bed. That made enough room for Jamie to crawl into the space beside him, something that the doctors would likely object to but then against Kurt had never really been one to listen to directions.

"Come on." Kurt said as he pulled on her hand.

"We'll figure it out tomorrow." He said quietly, suddenly realizing that he was still quite tired. "Get me a new shirt for one."

Not like that would be all that difficult, though he would look a bit silly, a walking billboard for some gift shop they would find on the boardwalk he was sure.

Either way, he didn't particularly care right now. He was alive, he was with Jamie, and in the end that was what mattered. He would probably have to explain to Kaile what had happened, and pay one heck of a hospital bill, but neither of those things really concerned him right now.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

A giggle that comprised of no sound but instead of just a few puffs of air and a shake of the head later and she was already in the bed beside him. Taking extreme care not to tangle or pull on any of the half dozen wires or IVs trailing from one end to the other Jamie found herself a mostly comfortable spot and pulled the few blankets that were provided over the two of them. A second or two to fluff the pillow they'd have to share and she plopped her head down beside Kurt with a warm, genuine smile. She could finally relax knowing that he was alright, knowing that everything was going to be alright.

"Tomorrow." She agreed with a nod. "Tomorrow we'll figure it out, and we'll get you a new shirt."

The blonde glided a single hand over his chest, the softness of his skin a delightful feeling to her, the slow, steady rise and fall of his chest serving to relax here as she closed her eyes, taking one last look at him, placing one last kiss on his lips before she began to allow herself to slip into unconsciousness.

I love you. Had she said that aloud? Jamie honestly had no idea. Perhaps. It was too late to tell. She had already succumbed to the grip of slumber.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

The morning went just as Kurt had expected, the nurse found Kurt and Jamie sleeping in the bed and disapproved quite a bit. There was yelling, then a quick check-up by the doctor. Kurt was told the bacta patches on his back and Jamie was told to help reapply new ones at the end of the day. An hour or so after that Kurt and Jamie once again stood on the sidewalk outside of the hospital, Kurt with a shirt that one of the orderlies had kindly given him before leaving.

"Alright." He said with a slight stretch, wincing against the pain in his back. "Lets salvage whats left of our vacation."

They still had a day before they had to go back, and Kurt wasn't about to drop Jamie off back to her training a single minute before he had to, it just wasn't in him. Even with the slight winces of pain and the limited mobility he had Kurt still wasn't willing to end their time together.

"I'm sure there's something we can do here." Without him bleeding all over everything.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie kept a skeptical eye on Kurt as they walked down the sidewalk. Any sign of dizziness, fatigue, or nausea and she would immediately stop them in their tracks. The day was much like the others had been thus far, warm, beautiful, and full of sunshine. The street was quite active with hundreds of travelers passing by in either direction, each with their own agendas and desires of sights to see and visit. Kurt's and Jamie's plans hadn't exactly come to pass as well as she'd have liked, but there was still time to make the best of the situation. That morning when she awoke she'd realized one dreadful factoid however; The camera full of photos she'd taken was left on the island. The other personal affects were of little consequence to her. A backpack, some supplies, and a bit of clothing. The camera though had the only evidence of their travels and it was gone.

"Would you like to grab something for breakfast? I'm sure we can find at least a dozen places to eat something more pleasing than hospital fare. We can find something fun afterwards."

The main stretch of road they were on dragged on for as far as the eye could see, curving on the horizon as the roadway bent around the island towards the west. All along the road were an endless stream of merchants, vendors, shops, restaurants, and entertainment. It wouldn't likely be difficult to find a place they would enjoy for both food and entertainment for a day. Jamie simply wondered how long Kurt could spend walking at a time before his back began to bother him. Time would likely answer that question soon enough.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Breakfast.

That sounded like something he could do. He smiled slightly and slipped his arm around the small of her back, his fingers clasped onto her hip and dragged her a hip closer. "Alright, let's go find something to eat."

Perhaps they'd be able to ask someone at the restaurant where they could do something fun and interesting. He smiled and began to walk, Jamie falling into step with him at the same time as they began to move on the boardwalk. The place was crowded, tourists streaming up and down the boulevard. All of them looked quite pleased with themselves, staring up at the signs, watching the oceans, dreaming about living in paradise. He wondered briefly again what it would be like to live here, though this time it was more about dealing constant tourism.

Tatooine saw none of that, in fact the only people who ever came to his homeworld were criminals or people forced to land there because of some sort of criminal activity. Nobody wanted to go to Tatooine, not even most people who were born there.

"Does Naboo get a lot of Tourists?" He asked Jamie. "I mean, I've been there, but only really the starport."

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Careful not to instinctively place her own hand on Kurt's back Jame instead clasped her hands together in front of her as she walked beside him. Jamie was a curious type, looking at all of the people they passed and wondering what their own stories were, where they came from, what they did for a living, what they'd seen. It was a small game she liked to play by herself inside her own mind. It served as a good way to pass the time, though if anyone could ever read her thoughts they might think of her as some kind of sociopath. The girl was careful not to stare too long at any one individual in an effort to not make anyone uncomfortable. Instead, she simply offered a warm smile and a waive.

"Not really." Naboo was far enough from the galaxy's core that most rarely traveled to the planet unless there was specific need. It was unlike many of the core worlds in a number of ways, and also outside of the primarily war-centric eye of the storm between the Sith and Republic. Besides the weary traveler, royal dignitary, or political engagement, not many people found themselves on Naboo for any reason. "It's not really a tourist planet. It's beautiful, charming, and lush. But it's not the same as this world. It's quaint. You'll have to see for yourself."

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

He smiled slightly. "What if I get arrested again?"

The walk was starting to hurt slightly, with each step his back arching a little bit and causing a slight pain to crawl through his spine. He wouldn't have noticed it ordinarily, but the heat as causing his shirt to stick to the bandages and that in turn was pressing the whole mess into his wounds. The sensation was unpleasant, and without even really thinking Kurt began to steer Jamie towards one of the restaurants that they passed by. A few of them were filled, but surprisingly most had only a handful of people in them.

"You wouldn't want to be associated with a criminal." Kurt joked as they meandered towards the restaurant. "Bad reputation and all."

He wasn't worried about getting arrested again, not really anyway. He wasn't a smuggler or anything like that, even if The Messa would have been perfect for something like that.

In truth he was more worried about seeing Jamie's parents, or rather, properly meeting them. There was no doubt in his mind that they would remember him, mostly because...well they were the ones who had first had him arrested for kidnapping their daughter.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"Planning on getting yourself into more trouble at my home are you?" She joked as her direction was suddenly shifted towards one of the restaurants. The girl over exaggerated the change by flailing her arms and swinging her right leg out before adjusting with Kurt's new intended destination. "A criminal huh? I believe you have to be charged and found guilty to get yourself that label." She tapped his nose and kissed his cheek. "You haven't earned that title yet." Jamie laughed as one hand wrapped small fingers around the handle of the door leading into the flashy, vibrant looking restaurant. "Unless of course you have something you'd like to tell me?" Feigned curiosity filled her tone, as if she was pretending to be suspicious of something, prodding his side a bit with her free hand's index finger.

Pulling open the door the two were met with a wall of upbeat music and a rather stunning looking Zeltron woman serving as hostess. A wide smile painted across her face at the sight of Kurt and Jamie as she rushed over to greet the two. "Welcome! Welcome! Two this morning? Right this way if you would, follow me mhm!" There was quite a bit of eagerness to the way she spoke, and a bit of a shimmer in her eye as she looked at Kurt in a way that made Jamie teeter on the edge of uncomfortable. Having never met a person from Zeltros, and only heard of them in passing she was entirely unaware of their rather outgoing nature.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

The woman said some pleasantries, though Kurt honestly didn't hear them.

He'd never liked Zeltrons, or rather, since an incident he'd had while on shore leave he hadn't liked them. He and a few other guys from his unit had visited Zeltros for a three day pass, at the time the party planet had been a part of the Republic and visits there had been a common affair for soldiers and pilots alike. The time he had spent there had been...well, Kurt couldn't actually remember any of it.

The three days were completely and entirely gone from his memory, a blank that he couldn't recall even if he tried. His friends remembered, though they had never deigned to clue him in on what had happened, not before their passing anyway. Ever since then Kurt had never dared to go near Zeltros again, the same holding true for it's denizens. There was something about them, their ability to influence ones thoughts and emotions...well, it made Kurt weary of just exactly what could happen around them.

Better safe then sorry.

"I'm sure there's at least one planet where I've done something criminal." Kurt said as they began to wander over to their table, quiet enough that the Hostess would not hear. "You wouldn't hold that against me, would you?"

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"That, my darling, depends entirely on what it is that made you into a criminal in the first place." The two were seated, the woman placing both menus on the table before leaning over, resting her head on her elbows atop the seatback behind Kurt's head. "Your server will be over in just a minute. Can I start you with something to drink?" The question was certainly posed to both guests, though was clearly more directed towards Kurt as she lingered just beside him, the smell of her fruity perfume and hormones nearly palpable through the air. Jamie's blue eyes drifted for a moment from Kurt to the woman, teeth biting the inside of her lip to repress whatever thoughts she had tumbling around her mind to instead simply ask for water.

The woman gave a nod, clicking her tongue before dropping her sight back down to Kurt, posture shifting ever so carefully so to look more on display than before. Is this normal? Jamie thought to herself. She wasn't accustomed to foreign places or people. Perhaps this was just how things were on other planets with other species of humanoids. It certainly didn't help sate her escalating jealousy that this woman was flaunting her rather voluptuous figure towards Kurt. Beneath the table Jamie fidgeted with her feet, rubbing them together rather forcefully to keep herself from speaking out until the woman left. Kurt may or may not have noticed the strain in her face as she sat quietly for those few moments.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Kurt looked over the menu for a moment, remembering the drugs he had taken and the bacta that was still working at his back. Alcohol of any sort was likely a bad idea, especially considering that Jamie would likely disapprove. He thought for a moment then addressed the Zeltron, taking notice, though not quite appreciating the fact that she was jutting her chest out nearly into his face. "Just some tea for me."

The woman perked slightly, bouncing on her toes and saying something that he couldn't quite interpret before sauntering towards what he assumed was the kitchen.

He turned back to Jamie, noticing a slight bit of red in her face and a tiny twitch that was running over her features. The pilot was confused for a moment, then shot a glance back towards the Zeltron. He'd never really dealt with jealousy before, not in any real sense. There had been a girl or two on Tatooine, during school, but that had never been serious, Jamie was. He frowned for a moment then quickly reached out to grab Jamie's hand. His thumb stroked over the back of her palm.

He didn't want to say anything, lest he embarrass her, but he also wanted to reassure her.

This was something entirely new for him.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie's tension relaxed slightly as the woman meandered away from the table, leaving the two alone. The stiffness to her muscles began to dissipate a bit more the further away she got, and altogether when Kurt placed his hand on hers. A sheepish half-smile parted her lips before she looked out the window to avoid her face flushing into a full-on embarrassment. It seemed Kurt understood her feelings enough to know she wasn't overly comfortable with the attractive woman presenting herself to him directly in front of her. The blonde drew in a heavy breath, holding it for a few moments before releasing it and turning back to Kurt with a warm smile. After all, she knew it wasn't his fault that she seemed a little too interested in him.

"How's your back feel today?" Had she already asked that? Perhaps. Though for the moment she simply wanted to clear the air both figuratively and literally of the woman who had just left her pheromones lingering at their table. "Is now a good time to ask and try and piece together what happened yesterday?"

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

"It hurts." Kurt said with a smile. "But I'll get over it."

He squeezed her hand slightly.

Then she asked about yesterday. He frowned slightly, closing his eyes for a moment as he began to concentrate. Most everything was a complete blur to him, everything had happened fast. He was partially used to it, everything moving quickly and without any structure. That was the life of a pilot, it had been that way when he had flown with the Republic especially, war made for a lot of chaos. He tried to remember what happened, tried to pull something out of his mind.

"We can talk about it." Kurt said as he opened his eyes.

The parts that he did remember were mostly before he had...well before he'd passed out and become rather delirious. He remembered the pool, the Manka Cat, what Jamie had done. He remembered running through the forest as fast as he could, the rest was all a blur.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Despite knowing how things inevitably turned out, Jamie was still a bit eager to understand what had exactly happened during her blackout, and she figured that Kurt might too be curious of what happened during his own state of delirium, if he too had trouble remembering exactly what went on. The whole day was mostly a disaster, one that her ankle hadn't quite forgotten yet either. The soreness of that was prominent this morning.

"I remember seeing the cat rustling in the tall grass, then it charging at us." Jamie paused, wiggling her nose from side to side to jog her memory. "Then I remember just praying for it to stop in my head, just basically pleading with some unknown entity to just make it understand we weren't there to hurt it, and maybe it didn't quite want to eat us." One hand covered the other as she looked down at the table, slightly ashamed of what she was about to say. "And I remember slapping your gun away when you tried to shoot at it." Her eyes shifted back up to Kurt. "Then I remember having a lot of pressure or pain, I don't exactly recall which, in my head. And...Then I just felt dizzy."

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

He frowned slightly, his fingers wrapping around hers.

There wasn't really an easy way to say what he was going to, no way to put it easily. Kurt didn't blame her of course, he couldn't, but the situation was difficult not to be perceived in that way. "You succeeded...kind of."

Kurt paused for a moment.

"It froze for a few seconds, looked at you when you did your thing, and I don't think it wanted to attack us...but..." This was harder then he thought. "You passed out. Fell into the water. The moment the cat saw you fall down it jumped towards me and swiped."

That was really the only way that he could put it. Very likely the creature had been scared, terrified at the situation. Kurt couldn't understand it completely of course, but the thought of having someone...something probe your mind and tell you to do something, then have it suddenly be gone? He would lash out too, and he was supposed to be the more evolved life form. That was why he didn't blame Jamie, why he didn't even really blame the Manka Cat. Of course shooting it would have solved everything immediately, but that likely would have caused it's own problems.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"I...." A hand reached up to scratch her head, confusion filling her mind. "I don't know what I was doing though. I was just talking to myself." Was that the Force or something? "I just remember talking to myself. But...There was so much..." It was difficult for her to relay what she felt or was thinking in any tangible form. "I don't know, it's like my head was full or something. It felt so heavy. I couldn't focus or think." She shrugged. It was something that if Kurt hadn't felt himself he likely wouldn't quite understand exactly what it was, because even Jamie couldn't fully express it. "I don't like how it felt. It was scary."

The hostess from a minute ago returned, placing down their glasses and introducing their waitress. A human. Oh thank you. "This is Delilah, she'll be taking care of you today. Have a great day." The Zeltron said, winking to Kurt as she strut back towards her post near the entrance, turning back to run her tongue over her lips.

"Do you folks know what you'd like or do you need a few minutes?"

[member="Kurt Meyer"]