“Let’s go out to the lake,” Octavia suggested but did so in a way that she probably wasn’t likely to take no for an answer. It was mid-morning on a Sunday and while they both normally ended up at the base at some point during the day, she was ready for a break after the last couple of months with mission after mission. She was betting that Becker could use one too, even if he wouldn’t admit it out loud. “We can get a boat or hike to the falls.” She put on a smile. “We could both use a day off. What do you say?”
Thankfully, without too much hemming and hawing, he agreed, and they set off. They packed something small for lunch so they wouldn’t have to hurry back. It was a nice day, and Octavia was glad that it wasn’t too hot outside with the clouds keeping the sun at bay most of the time.
“It’s been a while since I came out here.” She’d been to the beach and on runs on the trails in the mountains but not to the lake or falls. Sometimes it reminded her a lot of home more than some of the other areas.
Becker had just about said that he was heading to the base. He spent too much time there as it was, and while a part of him was about to argue it, he decided not to. He’d say it was because he agreed with her, but in reality, the way she said it made it clear that they were going and that was that.
The sun felt good, Becker wondered if he’d ended up getting paler with all the time he’d spent inside with his current job. Sometimes he wondered if they’d ever get a real holiday, not just a day here or there that Octavia forced them to take.
He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been out here so he just nodded. “Seems one of the few areas here that isn’t constantly changing with arrivals and departures and strange magic.”
“And it’s generally peaceful,” she added. There might be something crazy to happen in the water while they were out on the lake today, but usually, there wasn’t anything too out of the ordinary going on here. Being at ease outdoors was something that had been fairly consistent for Octavia across all realities. Back home, in Atlantis, and their fake lives in Breckentale. It was why she’d also really liked going out to the cabins the handful of times they’d taken the time away.
There were a few small boats at the small dock on the lake, and they were on the water within a few minutes. Fishing wasn’t really Octavia’s chosen hobby, but she almost wished she’d brought supplies or a pole or two.
Out a bit into the water, the motor slowed and most of what they could hear was the water moving or a few birds in nearby trees. “Being out here can almost make you forget what’s going on elsewhere. For me, anyway.”
Becker had his eyes shut as he felt the warmth of the sun on his skin. He was doing his damndest to not think about everything he really should be doing or reading. He vaguely remembered hearing about how going up the chain of command wasn’t always as thrilling as it sounded and he really couldn’t agree more.
Laughing slightly as he opened his eyes, having let her take lead on driving the boat he sighed. “I wish I could, but I have had a few moments here and there where I haven’t thought about the stacks of paperwork I know are on my desk.” He sighed.
“Beer?” Yes, he’d made sure they had beer for this outing.
“Hey, I said almost,” she said with a small smile. Compartmentalizing was something Octavia had gotten good at a while ago. Life was different here though, so it wasn’t always that easy. Plus, she knew it was even harder for Becker because of his position.
“Still, this is better than being at the base,” she said. There would always be work to do, but there had at least been a little bit of a lull lately after the numerous missions the last couple of months. “Thanks,” she took the beer that was offered.
“Did you ever think we’d still be here three years later?” She asked him after a moment. It felt like a lot longer than three years, though. Memory upgrades that spanned years probably had something to do with that.
Becker took a couple of sips thinking about it, did he think he’d be here after three years? That was a hard question and he shrugged as hs answer at first as he took a moment to really think about it.
“Don’t know,” he admitted. “After living in Breckenridge, not the other world Breckentale, guess never really thought about what or where was next. Didn’t really expect three years ago to be sitting on a boat on the lake with you.” He didn’t mean it negatively, it just wasn’t something that crossed his mind.
“Suppose at one point I didn’t really picture fighting dinos as being part of my job description either. Running a base of some soldiers, some not, that never crossed my mind.” He admitted. Sometimes it irritated him, the egos on some of the people was maddening.
Sometimes Octavia had forgotten that Becker and some of the others had already done the world-hopping thing once before ever coming to Atlantis. Her life here felt like a lot longer than three years because of her memories, but how much longer would it feel if this wasn’t the first place she’d been? She thought about home sometimes and her life there. Not as much as she used to, but she still thought about it. There was a lot about home that she missed, but she’d stopped entertaining the idea of ever willingly going back a long time ago. She knew who and what she’d become in the bunker, and that wasn’t someone Octavia wanted to become again whether she remembered this life or not.
Breaking from her thoughts, she smirked at his words. “No, I bet you didn’t,” was all she said and took a couple sips of her beer. She never thought they’d be here either three years ago, but life didn’t usually turn out as expected. She’d come to realize that even as a child. “And I never thought I’d be the leader of the last of the human race.” Octavia tilted her head a little and looked at him. “I’m kind of jealous of your dino-hunting though.”
They were nearing the opposite side of the lake, and Octavia sat up a bit to see what was up ahead. “Do you want to stop here and eat a little something or hike over to the falls first and then eat?”
Becker laughed softly, deciding not to comment on her leader of the last of the human race, he knew it wasn’t an easy topic and right now he wanted them to just enjoy being out and about away from the seriousness of their lives. “Oh, I don’t know if you’d be saying that after a future creature tries to eat you.” He teased lightly. “The dino’s though, most weren’t that bad.” Alright, some of them were that bad, but none as bad as Helen.
“Let’s float, snack, maybe fish,” he offered. The falls and hiking did sound nice but so did sitting in the sun and being somewhat lazy for a little bit longer. He reached over and pulled her to his side wrapping his arm around her. “Just relax.”
Knowing her luck, Octavia would only have run-ins with the biggest and nastiest of the creatures Becker dealt with during his home world adventures. They still sounded exciting and in a much cooler way than the 'adventures' she found herself in at home.
"Relax? I'm more than happy to take advantage of that offer." The boat engine idled, and she sat back and leaned against him a bit. They were out in the middle of a lake with no one around, and their devices were pocketed and put away. Closing her eyes, she let the sun shine down on her. Yeah, this was nice. Float, snack, relax.