“…and these are your quarters.  Your belongings were transported earlier, so you can feel free to unpack and decorate as you see fit.”  Ensign Alanna Barker led the new counselor, Ensign Sam Soojin, into the small room.  “You have a separate bedroom and a living area with a small kitchen available with the standard equipment.  What questions can I answer?”

Sam looked around and felt some semblance of her former home on the Mercy returning to her heart.  “This…is very nice, Ensign Barker.  Thank you.”  She nervously fidgeted with her hands as she glanced around her new quarters.

Barker stepped into the room and let the door close behind her before she asked, “Is…everything OK?”

Soojin placed her bag on the ground and leaned against the kitchen bar, “I’ve been moved around a lot since I graduated and became an ensign.  I…I’m just hoping this is somewhere I get to stay, you know?”  She wondered what Barker’s story was, and quietly hoped they could be friends.  She didn’t have any friends that she knew on the Olympic.

Alanna smiled sympathetically, “Sam…I know how you feel.  I landed here because they needed someone to manage the resulting organizational chaos.  Before that…I wasn’t sure where my home would be – or if I’d end up bouncing around the various fleets for the rest of my life.”  She encouraged the fellow ensign, “You are where you’re supposed to be.”  She handed her the PADD with the rest of her welcome information and left the young counselor in her room.

A few hours had passed.  She’d hung a few posters, some memories from the Academy, and the few items she treasured from her childhood.  It had started to resemble a home, cobbled together as it was.  She was startled by the chime to her quarters.  “Enter?”

The figure that stepped through the door shocked her, “Captain Halsey!”  She stared at him as he smiled widely and accepted her running hug as they embraced until she pulled back, “Sir…what are you doing….here?” He explained the events of the last few days, and she felt her smile fill her face.  “I’m glad to see you here, sir.  I was worried I wouldn’t have…well, friends.”

Halsey faux punched her in the shoulder, “You’d have made friends no matter what, Ensign.  I’m hosting a small dinner for the medical and counseling team.  Milty seems bound and determined to beat me at my own game in the kitchen.” Sam gave a nod. They caught up on what each other had been up to and confirmed the time for dinner.  When Halsey left, she felt relief pouring off her shoulders.  The Olympic felt a little smaller and a lot less lonely now.