A Night to Remember
Posted on 19 Apr 2026 @ 3:24am by Lieutenant JG Ryan Collingway & Alura Ryn
Edited on on 19 Apr 2026 @ 3:37am
1,058 words; about a 5 minute read
Mission:
The Starfall Carnival
Timeline: Just before opening ceremony
///Starbase 369///
After getting a tongue-lashing from security over the importance of not losing his communicator, Ryan was issued a new one and resumed his wandering. A few more stores had opened with interesting merchandise. Ryan had fun going through them, but his eyes were also constantly on the clock.
Just before opening ceremony, he and Alura had met at an agreed upon spot. He was holding two servings of ice cream. "The dessert truck is packed," he explained. "I wanted to beat the lineup."
Alura was already half turned toward the growing crowd when she spotted him, eyes bright as she took in the sweep of people gathering and the layered promenade alive with movement and anticipation. There was a kind of energy to it that she felt more than saw, something humming just under her skin.
And then
Ice cream.
Her entire focus snapped back to Ryan with immediate delight.
“Oh, you are my favorite person right now,” she declared without hesitation, stepping in to accept one with both hands like it was something ceremonial rather than dessert. “You absolutely saved me from making very poor, very impatient decisions in that line.”
Then, without warning, her gaze dropped very deliberately to his lower back.
Examing.
Her head tilted slightly, as if assessing something that was not there.
"Um...what are you doing?" Ryan asked in bemusement.
“I do not know,” she said lightly, circling half a step around him with exaggerated suspicion. “I heard a rumor. Something about you being a rabbit.”
Her eyes flicked back up to his, bright with mischief.
“I am just saying, I expected more evidence. Maybe a little tail. Some commitment to the role.”
A grin broke through as she straightened, clearly pleased with herself.
Ryan's eyes widened. "I...might have ticked off a magician who promised to turn me into my soul animal. No wonder Walkins and Sorensen left." He cringed. "Oh no. I'm going to have a lot of 'Ryan the rabbit' jokes tomorrow, aren't I?"
Alura’s eyes lit with immediate delight at that, a flicker of confirmation that the rumor had some truth.
“Mm, you are absolutely not escaping that,” she said, laughing softly as she took another bite. “I heard they took a rabbit to sickbay and called it Ryan. I cannot wait to hear what really happened now. You know how stories get on this ship…”
She shook her head, still amused.
“I cannot believe there was even a thread of truth to it.”
The stage lights surged brighter, drawing her attention as the carnival director stepped up to the mic, her focus shifting instantly to the rising energy of the crowd.
They had arrived early enough to have a decent view in the middle, although the area was filling up fast with people. The director gave a speech, and then introduced Vice Admiral Maclaren. Ryan had never met her before. She had the look of someone who saw and took note of everything and everyone in front of her. Her speech was controlled but welcoming. Everyone clapped when she was finished
Then came the light show. For a few minutes Ryan was dazzled by its beauty. His engineering mind came up with a few ideas of how they did all this visually. Each possibility was very impressive. "Wow," he couldn't help but say.
They had paused eating ice cream. Ryan touched Alura's hand, perhaps unconsciously so.
Alura stilled as the first wave of light rose.
It began as a shimmer, then climbed into sweeping arcs that traced the curve of the promenade. Gold fractured into white, then scattered into streaks that moved like something alive overhead.
The first meteor fell.
A bright line that cut across the station and broke into a cascade of smaller lights, drifting and fading like embers.
Her breath caught, soft and unguarded.
“Oh… that’s new,” she murmured.
More followed, dozens now, layering into a sky that had not been there a moment before. She barely noticed the ice cream in her hand.
When Ryan’s hand brushed hers, she didn’t look down. Her fingers shifted, then slipped easily into his, natural as anything, her attention still fixed upward.
“Told you,” she said quietly, a smile in her voice. “Worth the rumors.”
"Enjoy, not analyze," Ryan quoted with a smirk. "You were right."
He thought about Melinda for a moment. Her death was a reminder that he couldn't take things for granted. Connections didn't always wait around for the right set of circumstances. He had done a lot of things wrong ever since meeting Alura. He pushed her away when they first met. He pushed away just as hard when he discovered he liked her, too afraid of messing it up.
This time, he took a chance.
And kissed her.
Alura felt the shift before she fully processed it.
The words, soft and warm at her side.
The closeness.
And then his hand was no longer just there.
And then—
The kiss.
For just a fraction of a second, she stilled. Not pulling away, not startled, but caught in the quiet sincerity of it. The kind that didn’t ask permission out loud, but still somehow did.
Her fingers tightened gently in his.
When she leaned back, it wasn’t far. Just enough to look at him, her expression softer than it had been all evening, the bright energy settling into something warmer, steadier.
“You finally stopped overthinking,” she murmured, a small smile finding its way in.
There was no teasing edge to it this time. Just quiet approval.
Her thumb brushed lightly against his hand, still laced with hers.
“Good,” she added, softer still.
Then her gaze drifted back upward as another cascade of light fell across the promenade, but she didn’t let go.
Ryan had anticipated a lot in that moment-rejection, awkward apologies, slinking away when it was convenient among others things-but none of that happened. Instead, it was something he could only dream of. "Yeah," he admitted with a chuckle. "I do tend to do that."
He didn't know what would happen going forwards. But he was happy to find out. "Not anymore," he promised.
He squeezed her hand, and they enjoyed the rest of the show.
Lieutenant (JG) Ryan Collingway
Engineering Officer
USS Arawyn
Alura Ryn
MWR Director
USS Arawyn
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