Time of Scorn

Chapter 4: let's play ball!

"Are we going to this baskets tournament?" Cameron asked.

She wasn't dressed, hadn't made it out of bed. She and Harper still woke up at the same time on the weekends, but she enjoyed spending the morning in bed with him. This particular morning, they had been discussing which congress member to have over for dinner next week. Harper wanted to wait and see who was elected captain.

"I think we should," he yawned, settling back down against Cameron.

He didn't look thirty, Cameron thought. She sometimes forgot that he was four years older than her. Now that he was putting the weight he had lost back on, and the bullet wounds on his shoulder and leg were healing, he seemed to lose years.

"I can always tell when you're thinking about my being shot," he observed. "You get this look on your face like you're worried I'm going to evaporate in your arms. Babe, I can tell you I'm fine ever minute of every day, but it does no good if you don't believe me."

Cameron sat up in bed, pulled her fingers through her too long blonde hair. It was touching her shoulders and she didn't really like it. Harper did though. He shifted to sit up and he pulled Cameron into his arms, kissing her deeply before settling back to lean against the wall

"I know," she told him. "But I think about losing you, and I just can't imagine doing this on my own. Having our child on my own. Being on congress. Any of it."

"Well, you don't have to," he replied. "But if we're going to this tournament, we should get breakfast and get dressed. Not necessarily in that order."

She let out a plaintive sigh when Harper got out of bed, rummaging through their drawers for clothes.

"We should recycle your clothes," she observed. "They don't fit. Everything is much too big on you."

"I hope that next year I can stay the same weight," Harper sighed. "I know that from cryo to builds to being shot wasn't part of the plan, but I'm tired of getting fitted at the printers. I feel moonshy for needing new clothes every cycle."

"Well, at least you'll be a well dressed moonshy man," Cameron teased, finally pulling herself out of bed to dress. "We're going next week on a lunch break. Just accept it."

"Oui madam," Harper laughed.

Cameron selected her favorite red shirt and her uniform pants before attempting to comb down her hair. Harper cooked up an egg with spinach and cheese; he was getting better about including vegetables into their diet, but mostly because Madison had been adamant about Cameron eating more. Cameron let Harper fuss over her; it was nice not to be in charge of meals.

They shared a plate because both of them hated washing dishes and then both checked their holo-ribs before purposely leaving them on the counter. Cameron knew that if they brought anything resembling work to this event, neither of them would pay attention.

"Have you looked at the list in cryo?" Harper inquired.

"Not yet," Cameron said. "That's my plan for after the weekend. Well, after the weekend

and after this rotated debate. We've never spent time sorting at who we have in cryo based on their occupation. But of course we'll need that information soon, even if Esperanza was perfectly healthy."

"It so sad that she's sick," Harper sighed. "I wish there was something we could do for them."

"We could buy some of Lully's prints," Cameron suggested. "That way he won't know we're helping him and he'll have credits when Esperanza has to take more work off."