Joint Personal Backlog - Lt Entek & Civ Malley - "Seriously, Daddy Issues?"

Posted on 241503.16 @ 9:38pm by Lieutenant Katilya Entek MD, PsyD

Mission: Holy Cow

Katilya Entek was sat in the ship's lounge, where she had been all morning. Part of the luxury from arriving inexplicably early for her assignment meant one thing to her; a chance to get a reading on the people that occupied the space around her. She enjoyed watching people and working out exactly what it was that made them tick, and it was far easier to do in a social space such as this. She had made the furthest table from the door at the back of the room in a corner her home; it gave the best vantage point to watch and learn. She was drawn into a conversation a couple of tables over. Hushed enough to be inaudible but the body language said everything. The two were arguing over something. As she watched she picked up subtle clues, a downward flicker of the mouth and eyes, an accusatory finger, clenched teeth. Whatever they were rowing about it was certainly big and most probably personal. Yes. The people here were interesting alright.

Katilya was almost oblivious to the person walking up to her and yet with an eerie sense of timing looked around and up at the person standing before her.

"You know, people watching can be dangerous," the tall man said. He was quite rugged looking, "Shrink?"

Cocking her head to the side she looked the man over assessing his emotional state, calculating possible reasons for his presence and, eventually, settled on the fact she didn't need to be quite so guarded all the time. She smiled a little and lowered her head just slightly. "They're about to break up", she said simply nodding in the general direction of the table she had been observing. "Katilya; the... shrink" she added by way of an introduction.

"Jonathan," he smiled, "though most call me Nathan. As for those two," he nodded over to them as he sat down, "They always fight. Yet they are still together."

"Take a seat why don't you" she said with a subtle hint of sarcasm as the man sat down at her table. Katilya leaned back in her chair, raising her arm up and letting it drape on the back of the chair. "So, Jonathan... what exactly do you do onboard?" Katilya asked turning her attention away from the rowing couple for just a moment as someone new piqued her curiosity.

"You're a shrink, take a guess," he replied a little playfully, sitting forward.

The corner of her mouth turned up with amusement at the man's comments. "Well... Let's take a look shall we", she quipped giving the man a once over and pursing her lips as she thought. "You're cocky enough to invite yourself to sit down without asking, confident in yourself and fairly astute of others. Then there's your physique and general demeanour". She paused a moment and tapped a finger against her chin as she weighed up possible options. "You're most likely either a fighter pilot or security" Katilya concluded before turning her interest to the couple, "they won't last" she said wistfully.

"Pretty sure 20 years in, they will," he chuckled, "and you're wrong. Try again."

"She's turned her body language outwards and her eye contact isn't focused. He's boiling; angry. One of them cheated; you might not have noticed the Klingon at the bar who keeps looking their way trying to catch someone's eye. It may not be soon; but they wont last". She raised a brow; it was unusual for her to be wrong. "Well put me out of my misery then... Do you even do anything?"

"Bar tender and ex marine," the man replied, "So I guess you weren't far off."

Katilya couldn't help but laugh "Seriously? Marine turned bartender... wow..." she said with a subtle hint of sarcasm. "Guess I wasn't far off then... so... what kinda bartender comes to a table without a drink?" she said watching the man for a read.

"One who's just finished a shift and wanting some company," he easily replied, "I know it's quite a job change, but some injuries mean you can't play ball any more. So hell, I'm here, still in starfleet, just serving for them a bit differently."

She smiled at the man sat opposite her, he was interesting enough. Useful to know information. "What kind of injury?" She asked leaning forward a little and taking a sip of her drink.

He saw it then: he'd captured her attention. This man though liked control, so just gave a simple answer that left it open to interpretation, "Pride."

Katilya quirked a brow upwards and rested her arm on the back of the chair as she leaned into the cushion once again. "Unless you kept shooting too early I'm not really sure pride moves you from Jarhead to serving drinks" she quipped, finding him amusing.

"No but Pride tends to come before what actually happened," he chuckled.

"What did you do? Fall over and hurt your knee?" She said with a distinct level of condescending sarcasm. Katilya reached for her glass and drained it before setting it down, looking back to the bartender.

"No, I fell down a cliff we were scaling and injured my back," he replied and sat back in his chair.

"Well now we're getting somewhere, Nathan" she commented with a smile. "How long ago was the accident?" Even though she hadn't even reported in, the young Cardassian couldn't help but fall into counsellor mode as she talked to the man who had found his way to her table.

He smirked, "You're a shrink. Pretty sure you could guess." He needed control again.

"I probably could Nathan, but there's a time and place. Clearly the injury was a defining point in your life. Becoming a marine is a lot of hard work; you must have felt a lot of different emotions when you were told you'd never do it again?" Katilya asked with a more soothing tone to her voice.

"You know as well as I do that there is no such thing as an ex marine," he replied almost mocking her, "once a marine, always a marine."

Katilya smiled a little, "true enough... but a broken marine isn't exactly useful for the Corps... you must have felt something?" She asked again.

"I'm exactly where I want to be," he replied, in control, "Opposite a beautiful woman after my shift."

Katilya smiled and shied away as she tilted her head. "Sweet of you to say..." She said allowing the tone of her voice to soften. "So what can you tell me about the people onboard... Not everyone is as nice as you", she asked playing with her hair a little and not meeting her gaze with his.

"I can tell you that everyone is their own. Everyone is nice once you get to know them, but it's who you choose to get to know," he replied somewhat mystically.

She nodded slowly still not looking up from her empty glass. "Anyone you would recommend avoiding?" She asked simply allowing a vulnerability to show in her voice.

"Yourself," he answered openly, "You alone are the biggest threat to yourself."

"Deep... For a marine turned bartender", she quipped. "It's easy for you isn't it? Sidle up to a table and claim a stake... I've struggled with fitting in my whole life and... Most people are nice enough but some people not so much. Any advice As to who to steer clear of I'd appreciate," she asked looking up at him hopefully for some help.

Nathan smiled, "I'm afraid I cannot help you. The people I see in here, are perhaps not the same people outside of these four... five... however many walls."

Her persona changed almost immediately as she relaxed her body language and the vulnerability melted away. Running a slender finger around the rim of the glass she looked the man over again and sighed. "You fail as a bartender as well then... seriously? No gossip?" she taunted.

"Gossip? I prefer to keep it to myself. Don't want to break confidentiality. You'd know something about that," he replied, "I can tell you that the XO is a single mother but she's far too guarded for one. Then there's a few women on here too career orientated. A lot already have 'dibs' on them by the men in here. Safe to say, I know what I know."

"I'd love to crack that skull open and take a look," she quipped with a small. "You've given me some interesting things to mull over though... I mean who knew there was a broken Marine working the bar... Have you thought about counselling?" She asked.

"People come to a bar to be counselled because it's easier to talk to a bar man than a shrink," he replied.

She laughed a little and shook her head, "people talk to bartenders because normally the bartender has pretended to be their friend all night while plying them with alcohol... They don't face their problems just hide from them. Is that what you're doing - hiding in a bar because you can't face your injuries?" Katilya asked.

"Isn't that what all men do with beautiful women? Pretend to be their friend and ply them with alcohol so they mask their daddy issues," he replied, "I'm not here to get 'shrinked'. You're off duty."

"Oh... Wow. You really have no sense of modesty do you?" She asked shaking her head and rising from her seat having decided she'd been entertained enough. She picked up his drink pouring it slowly over his head as she walked behind him. Leaning in, she whispered, "a good counsellor is never off-duty and you need to cool off... Book an appointment sometime. As for my daddy issues... Well he was murdered when I was six so can't help you there, broken marine boy."

=/\= End Log =/\=

Lieutenant Katilya Entek MD, PsyD
Chief Counsellor
USS Enterprise NCC-1701 F

Jonathan Malley (NPC played by Scarlet)
Bartender
USS Enterprise