The Infirmary doors opened with a swoosh and Joshua stepped through them. He looked around the near-full lobby with surprise. This place was a lot busier than the last time he’d been here. Walking up to the reception desk, he gave his name and sat in a chair.

Doctor N’Vea walked to the waiting area holding a PADD with the next patient’s name on it. She read it out clearly upon reaching the waiting area of the Medical Bay, “Doctor Bryant, I am looking for a Doctor Joshua Bryant.”

Clearly, he was some other kind of doctor, not a medical one. Still, she was going to use his full name and title, unless he indicated another preference. There were only so many names, and there statistically could be more than one Joshua Bryant waiting to be seen. It was unlikely there were two with advanced degrees, and if there were well then the Vulcan would have to figure out another way of clearing up the mix-up.

Joshua jumped up out of his chair. “Doctor N’Vea, it’s always a pleasure.” He smiled as she led him into the exam room. Joshua removed his duty jacket and laid it in the nearby chair. “Well doctor, I’ve been taking it easy. I’ve been buried in reports this last week. That’s the thing about reports: they’ll always wait on you.” He sighed and frowned, “Seemed pretty busy in there,” he thumbed towards the waiting room. “I guess people have been skittish since Frontier Day. Do you need to reschedule tonight?”

“Reports are inanimate objects, I would expect them to ’wait on you’,” N’Vea affirmed. She eyes the man confused, what did he mean by asking if she wished to reschedule tonight? How would Frontier Day have affected that at this point? They were still dealing with the fallout but not to the degree that it was affecting schedules to her knowledge.

Joshua chuckled, “Yeah I suppose they do.” He rubbed his chin, “Although sometimes I wish they would grow legs and walk away.”

Shaking her head she said, “I do not see why we can not do your exam now. Do you have any specific complaints or issues we should look into?”

“Yeah, go ahead,” he shrugged. “Things have felt good, actually,” he rubbed his ribs. “Resetting my ribs seems to have done the trick. Are you still able to get out of here at 1700 or should I wait around?”

N’Vea inclined her head, “I see. Yes, that would be fine, my attendance beyond the end of my shift is not a requirement, I can leave at 17:00. I am glad that your ribs are healing after treatment, let us run a scan on them and then we may go.” 

“That’s good to hear. My ‘patients’ aren’t human, so I don’t mind making them wait. I know people can get fussy though.” Joshua smiled, “I have some fun things planned and I’d hate to have to cancel them.”

N’Vea nodded, ”I am often working additional hours. I would suggest that as the saying goes ‘they owe me’.“ 

A quick scan of his rib cage later revealed that everything was healing quite as she had hoped, and that no additional medical intervention was required. Once she was finished with that she bid him to wait outside and three minutes later met Joshua in the hallway, wearing her Starfleet uniform but not the long medical jacket that she often donned during her shift.

“I am ready to accompany you on your tour,” she said.

“Great! You’re in for a treat,” Joshua said. They walked mostly in silence until they arrived at their destination on the Promenade. “I present to you, The Gate Inn,” Joshua said, revealing the tavern like a game show model. “It’s a bit gaudy, but I figure you’d had enough with the bare bones of Downtime.” The tavern had a good crowd, but not busy. Joshua and N’Vea sat at a nearby table. “So what do you think?”

Doctor N’Vea blinked, trying to take in what was before them, “It is very human.”

“But you have to admit, it has character,” Joshua said, handing her a menu. “They do have vegetarian options, or most can be modified to be vegetarian. You don’t mind if I eat meat, do you? I know it can upset people.”

“I do not mind if others eat meat,” the Vulcan said, “my dietary practices should not affect your choices.”

Had she, or any Vulcan, ever got unduly upset with the eating habits of other Federation species there would be no time left for logic, as they would have always been getting angry. Still even in the days when most food was replicated and artificial there was a health benefit to eating a vegetarian diet that she subscribed to. As a doctor, she would have recommended it to the man, but she also knew that part of being a doctor was knowing when to pick your battles. 

A woman dressed as an Old English handmaid approached the table. “What kin I get fo’ ya?” Joshua started to speak and she put up her hand. “Ladies first, my dearest.”

Trusting that ‘Ye Olde Caesar Salad’ was a play on words and not simply an old salad N’Veal gestured with her finger to it, “I will have the Caesar salad.”

“Very good choice ma’am,” the woman said, making note of it on her PADD. “And for you lad?”

Joshua looked over the menu, “I’ll have the lamb stew and an ale.”

“A fine choice,” She made a note on her PADD. “I’ll have it out shortly.”

“Oh neat, they have music,” Joshua observed as the maid walked away. On the tavern’s small stage was a man holding a lute. He made a few adjustments and began to play. It wasn’t loud, but enough to provide nice background music.

Joshua turned to N’Vea, “So tell me about yourself. What brought you to Starbase Bravo?”

Doctor N‘Vea said, “I was assigned by Starfleet. My last ship lost too many crew during the Borg incident during Fleet Day and has been temporarily shuttered. The remaining crew was reassigned and this was the position that was open for a medical officer. I assume from your question that your being here was more of an active choice.”

“That’s where you’d be wrong,” Joshua replied. “I was assigned here shortly after the Century Storm crisis.” He frowned, “I think it was due to it wreaking havoc across the Paulson Nebula colonies. The Frontier Day disaster has put those missions on hold, but I have been studying the various situations. It’s proving difficult collaborating with their scientists over comms.”

The handmaid returned with the order and set it on the table. “Would there be anything else, dearies?”

Joshua shook his head, “This looks great, thank you.”

The Vulcan eyed her dish and did not comment other than providing a curt nod of acknowledgment. The food looked just as she had anticipated and thus needed no editorializing from her on its suitability. She knew that humans liked, being able to discuss their food, but for most of her kind, it was simple nutrition and not a source of entertainment or a topic of conversation.

The handmaid nodded, “Let me know if you need anything else.” 

“We will, thank you,” the doctor nodded, trying to be polite but not wanting to encourage the woman to talk more. She did not anticipate any further need of the server and while she did not wish to be rude she also had not come here to be friends with the wait staff.

”Query what is a dearie and why would she call us that? Surely we are not dear to her, she does not even know us,” N’Vea asked.

“It’s a term of endearment,” Joshua explained. “It’s her way of being polite.” He chuckled, “I think she’s leaning into the aesthetics of the place a little too much.”

“Why is collaboration more difficult over comms these days?” N’Vea mostly worked with people in her field, and close by so it was not something that she did herself very often. It was interesting, and she wondered if this was also affecting the medical field.

Joshua took a drink of ale, “I suppose it’s a personal thing for me. It’s easy for me to read reports and run simulations, but I have to feel the earth. There’s a difference between reading a moisture report and the feeling of a plant crumbling in your hands. The tactility of it creates an intimate connection with my work.” He chuckled and waved away how ridiculous it sounded out loud, “I’m sorry, I tend to romanticize my work sometimes.”

The Doctor nodded, “It is a fascinating concept, making a simple task seem romantic. I do not have that problem, not cutting into someone’s chest, for example, is preferable. If I can manage to do the same work without surgery both myself and the patient benefit. Even the simplest procedure has risks.“

”Is there much else you ‘romanticize’ besides your work? Or is this emotion confined to plants?”

“Of course!” Joshua chuckled, “Life itself should be romanticized. Every day should be considered a gift.” The cheerfulness left his face, “But, yeah, right now it’s mostly confined to plants. Actually,” he looked at the chronometer on the wall, “finish your salad, there’s something I want to show you.” 

N’Vea wondered if Joshua got mad at people for eating planets and that was why he assumed that she would be upset for his eating of meat. Humans and their emotions were hard to understand for her, even after all her years on Earth and trying quite hard to relate and ‘be more human’. She finished about half of the salad and set it aside, it was mostly croutons and dressing anyway. Much too fancy for its own good.

“I am ready Joshua,” she said using his first name, a change to a more informal stance for the Vulcan.

“Great! Let’s go,” he said, standing up and heading for the door. Walking through the Promenade with N’Vea, he found a nearby turbolift and took it to Sector Bravo-Orange. The doors opened to the Arboretum, flooding them with various plant and tree scents.

“Let’s see,” Joshua quickly scanned through the automated directory. “There! We’re not too late,” he excitedly said. “Come on, it’s not far.” Quickly moving through the winding paths of plants and trees, Joshua finally stopped. In front of them was a cluster of red flower buds.

Doctor N’Vea followed, “Are we meeting an admiral? Your concern for promptness is clearly heightened.”

“Wait for it…” Joshua said intently. He quickly glanced at the chronometer. “Three, two, one…” he ended in a near whisper. Almost on cue, the buds began to slowly bloom, as if awakening from a slumber. It flooded the immediate area with its sweet scent. “I present to you, Zaluzianskya capensis,” Joshua motioned to the now white pinwheel-shaped flowers. “How can you not romanticize that?” Joshua spoke barely above a whisper.

”You can understand the biological reasons behind the flower’s behaviours and the necessity in evolution for them to behave in such a way,” N’Vea remarked but then nodded, “but as you say it is quite aesthetically pleasing.”

“I…,” He smiled and waved away the thought. “You know what? I’ll take it. I’m glad you like the surprise.”