Ephriam exhaled in relief as he collapsed down onto the sofa in his quarters. He relished the feeling of slight relief on his feet as the throbbing feeling from having been standing on them for several hours in a row began to ease. Truthfully he was exhausted to a new degree, which was saying something considering the baseline at which he kept himself paced. 

“Computer. Play a relaxing piano concerto on low and dim the lighting in the room by thirty percent,” immediately the lighting softened and he recognized the second movement of mozart’s twenty-third concerto begin to play lightly in the background. It had been a busy and productive couple of days on the Hathaway – his team in particular had been comsumed in assisting with repairs, much like other departments and personnel across the ship. 

Ephriam’s eyes shifted down right to a pile of PADDS on the corner of the sofa. He slowly reached out and picked up the top one which held the most recent version of data related to the thesis he was working on for his doctorate. This work had been particularly neglected since he accepted his posting on Hathaway and took on the challenge of being a new senior officer in general on a starfleet vessel. His intentions were in the right place but his drive had been somewhat diminished in weeks past, an unusual thing for him.

His eyelids felt heavier all of a sudden as they drifted through a generous conglomerate of data – perhaps related to the fact he had dimmed the light and put on some very relaxing music. He became acutely aware that his subconscious had already decided that this work would go no further today. The soft concerto seemed to reverberate more than it should, in a dream-like quality and his eyelids grew heavy and closed. 

There was that moment between awakness and sleep, a blissful second or two of complete relaxation. It was rudely interrupted by the soft classical music being replaced by a loud beeping indicator, “Incoming communication from Aldas and Clarice Adrasin. Do you accept?” the computer voice echoed in his mind and Ephriam sighed as he pulled himself away from that joyous moment of rest. 

His parents had a talent for calling at the most inconvenient of times and this was certainly no different. He did however feel a sense of guilt, as he had neglected to return not one but two of their recent communications. It was time to take the verbal flogging that was ahead of him. 

“I accept,” he pulled himself up off the couch and quickly stretched. With a tug down on his uniform he walked over to the small workstation in his quarters and worked up a smile for both his parents as they popped up on display. Both looked well and rested. The familiar wood cabin background behind them and the beaming colorado sun made him long for home. 

“You look unwell,” Ephriam noticed the smiles that had started on both of their faces quickly faded into a joint look of concern. His mother led the conversation. “Are they feeding you? Are you sleeping? I told you doing this thesis and being a chief science officer was going to push you over the edge. I knew it. You’re so capable Effie but you push yourself too hard.” The statements seemed to transition into a type of ranting monologue – he had endured many of these over the years. He was smart enough to know it was best just to let her get it out. His father eventually tapped her on the shoulder, as if he was tag teaming for his turn in a wrestling match. 

“I think what your mother is trying to say, son, is that you are working very hard and you have been through a lot this past month. We have been worried about you… We know you and Commander Fasek were so close and that his loss has especially been hard on you,” there it was – his father had an uncanny talent for getting straight to the point but also digging right into what was beneath the surface. It must have been the bond the two of them had from their betazoid heritage. He had always had most difficulty hiding his feelings and thoughts away from his dad.

It had been nearly a month since Commander Fasek had been tragically killed in the events of Frontier Day. His closest friend and mentor had been on Starbase One when it was attacked and was one of many who were killed. To say Ephriam had been devastated would be an understatement. He had immediately accepted his current posting on Hathaway and had truly not dealt with the loss. 

He could tell his parents had a look a validation on them now and there was no going back. “You’re right.. I miss him so much,” tears began to form in his eyes, but he managed to hold them back. “I still don’t want to believe he’s gone.”

“You need to see someone hunny. You haven’t given yourself time to process this and it is showing. Promise your dad and me that you will at least talk with someone, okay? Please, Effie, that’s all we ask,” they both looked so empathetic at that moment, like they wanted desperately to reach through the screen and embrace him closely. Ephriam nodded in response and agreement and his parents both sighed in relief. 

The conversation between the three continued for another forty minutes or so and thankfully moved away from the topic of Ephriam’s lost mentor. “Alright hun, I think its time we let Effie get some rest. Don’t you?” his father gave him a knowing smile that told him he knew his son was on the verge of tipping over from exhaustion. The three said their goodbyes and Ephriam drug himself back over the sofa, this time he collapsed even harder onto it.

“Computer…. please put in a request to see Counselor Gray, provide a copy of my itinerary to best match up an empty time slot in my schedule,” the computer acknowledged his request and the concerto he was listening to began to play softly once more. 

Ephriam knew it was time to talk about his dear lost friend and mentor, for better or for worse, it needed to be done.