17. The Warmth #5
"So," he said. A pause.
"So," Charlie repeated.
"I have a proposal. Next Earth Night. I want a slot."
Charlie raised an eyebrow at him. "A slot."
"A speaking slot. Five minutes, maybe seven. I just want to share some findings with the crew."
"Findings?"
"About Led Zeppelin."
Charlie bit her lip. "Let me just make sure I have this right. You want to share some findings. About Led Zeppelin. To a room full of aliens."
"A brief cultural presentation, yes. About the single greatest musical achievement in the history of your planet, Charlie.
" He held up a finger before she could respond.
"And before you say anything, I've already started organizing all my notes.
I have talking points and audio samples. But I may need a chair."
"You always have access to a chair."
"I need a designated chair. A 'Tavi Talking Chair.' There's a difference."
Charlie looked at Tavi's face and saw the earnestness there. The absolute conviction that a three-foot-ten Tessarae had something urgent to tell the universe about Jimmy Page's guitar tone.
"Okay, Tavi," she said with a soft laugh. "You get five minutes."
"Seven." Charlie eyed Tavi, but he didn’t back down.
"Six."
"Deal." He was already walking away, his datapad out while muttering something to himself about 'Whole Lotta Love' and "criminally underappreciated bridge sections."
Charlie shook her head, smiling. Whatever had started here tonight, it had already taken on a life of its own.
Charlie laughed but then took a chance to look around the room.
Crew members were talking to each other, laughing, discussing Earth and many of the topics she had covered tonight.
Some were even playing songs on their datapads, talking to one another about what they liked and new tracks they were discovering in real time.
She saw books and data tablets lining the walls around them of pieces of Earth and its history Charlie had discussed with Orion prior to this evening, and there were crowds around each one.
Charlie thought there was something fitting about that.
Stories about Earth, told in a room built to hold stories from everywhere.
The library was warm and full and loud of happy people. Happy people that were happy because of what she shared.
As her eyes scanned the crew members standing around, she began looking for someone in particular. Someone who said she'd be here.
Someone she couldn't see in the throng of people throughout the library.
Charlie's eyes moved around the room, slower this time, maybe having missed her. But as she made more than two circles again, she realized she hadn't missed anything.
She looked toward the door as one last ditch effort, hoping to see her leaning against its frame, or even walking away, having been there but departing now to return to her duties.
But no. Reyna wasn't there.
She said she'd be here.
Charlie let that thought into her brain but forced it out almost immediately afterward.
She didn't dwell on it. Reyna was the captain, of a major organization starship.
She was busy. Hell, she was always busy.
That's what made her a good captain. There were a million reasons why she might not have been able to make it, and every single one Charlie thought of made complete sense.
But the honest truth was that something in Charlie dimmed, just slightly, in a way she pretended not to notice.
But, of course, Tavi noticed, because Tavi noticed everything. “You keep looking at the door,” he said.
“I'm looking at the room.” She emphasized the word room just a little too much.
“You're looking at the door, Spark Plug.” He said it without teasing, which was rare enough that Charlie looked down at him. “You know, for someone who talks about going home all the time, you sure act like you left something here already.”
Charlie opened her mouth to correct him and found she didn't have the correction ready.
“It's me, isn't it?” Tavi asked, the teasing coming back in. “You're going to miss me, aren't you?”
Charlie laughed softly. “You caught me.”
“I knew it.”
They laughed together. Then Tavi looked up at her, and she saw in his eyes he knew it wasn't the reason.
“It's easier,” she said finally. “It's just easier if I don't get too attached to a place I'm... leaving.” It was the truth, but it also wasn't what Tavi asked.
He just nodded, letting the gap sit there as he stood beside her.
Tavi was already talking about the next Earth Night while Maren was suggesting a formal schedule.
Charlie watched as Borran produced a second round of food that nobody had asked for but everyone was reaching to grab, and the library was alive.
The night had gone well. The crew was happy, engaged, and fully invested in learning all the quirks about Earth.
Perhaps this could become something. Something Charlie could bring to the crew, the Emberkind, the Coalition even.
It was working.
But she couldn't stop the feeling that she just wished Reyna had seen it.