Destined | Christopher Pike

Chapter Fourteen

If Emma was being honest, she hardly ever went to bars even when she reached the legal drinking age. Her parents, more so her mom, was worried about her image. That she would do something if she drank too much that would jeopardize her future in Starfleet. She would go out with her fellow cadets every once in a while, but she was always extremely careful and attentive. Now that she was only weeks away from being an official member of Starfleet, she felt like it was appropriate to drink publicly.

It was still a bit of a cultural shock as they walked into the bar Chris had chosen. It was loud, crowded and smelled like booze mixed with sweat. Part of her loved it. While many of the bars around the area were quite modern, the particular one Chris had chosen seemed to closely resemble the ones she had seen in older movies.

They walked to the bar and sat down. A table in the corner of the room that was less crowded might have been preferred, but since it was just the two of them, they didn't want to take up too much room. Emma looked around the once to make sure no one she knew was there. While Chris and her weren't together and had no intentions of being together, she didn't want to start any rumors.

"What are you going to have?" Christopher asked her.

"I think I'm going to start off with just a beer." She answered.

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Start off?"

"Well, I haven't exactly decided if I want to get hammered or not." She admitted.

"Alright. One beer it is." He flagged the bartender down who then slid over two drinks. Chris looked briefly at her from the corner of his eye as she brought the bottle to her mouth. "I'm going to pry."

"You are?" She asked with an amused grin.

"Why aren't you honest with your parents about not wanting to enter the Captain's program?"

He really was going to pry, she thought to herself and put the bottle down. "I'm not sure, honestly. Part of me thinks I'll disappoint them. I mean, look at them. My parents have done very well for themselves. The science department is important, but they want me to be a leader, an example and I don't know if I am that."

"So, what do you want, Emma?" He asked.

"Getting deep, aren't we?" She teased. "I...I don't know. I guess I want to be the best member of Starfleet I can be. I want to make everyone around me proud. Maybe get married one day. Have a few kids. Oh, I would really like to discover a planet and name it after me."

Marriage. Kids. It was all the same thoughts he had and some of it would have came true. He never remembered seeing the two of them having kids in his vision. Although, he didn't know if he wanted kids. He didn't want to leave them without a father.

"What about you, Captain Pike? What do you want?" She asked.

"That's easy; to be the best Captain I can be. To establish something that outlives me. A legacy, you could say. I think the marriage and kids thing has kind of sailed away from me." He said and took a large sip from his drink. He hated talking about the future, especially with the person he had a future with.

"I think you've already done a good job establishing a legacy. You're one of the best Captains in Starfleet. And you never know, you could meet the love of your life tomorrow."

He chuckled. "I think I'm a little old."

"You're not that old."

"That old, huh? I don't know if I should be insulted or thankful." He paused as his thumb drew circles along the condensation on his glass. "Emma?"

"Yes?"

"Whatever you decide to do, whether you become a Captain or Science Officer or you leave Starfleet altogether, you're going to excel at it." He said.