Avalon

•18•

Management

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Noel knew one thing about his long lost friend that made him feel confident about what he was going to do. Nate may be a rather mouthful and handful when it came to certain things but he was always loyal to himself and his own morals and rules.

It did make Noel proud in a way nothing else made.

The plan now was to try and guess if the guy will pop up at the event. Noel surely was on the list since he kinda resembled a hero among pilot and space traveling community that had suffered some life changing injury or condition and were left with a disability. He was the one of lucky ones still capable to be mobile enough to go back on the ship and work.

And he still carried this quiet wish to have Nate along. The guy had always been against being confined on the ship and be under orders. It was a thing from their past and it was easily understandable however Noel was just being a sap.

He missed his friend dearly and wanted him to be okay. There always happened things to both but somehow they hit Nate much more so Narcho always worried.

Now that he actually knew a bit more about this Gala Noel pretty much guessed his buddy may surely pop out of a shadow anyway. It just was his nature and a way of putting food in his mouth. It wasn't easy for a folk like Noel too. He actually had food prepared already in the common room so it wasn't like he had to buy something. He still had to do his piloting part to have the privilege of having food and then his other guilty pleasures.

About being a spacecraft slash ship the size of a small town pilot or whatever was a lot of conflicting things. Noel always had loved flying and steering things whether it was a car or a boat or spacecraft. It was the general joy of being up and front of some sort of vehicle. That was his proverbial drug. But ever since his devastating injury doing anything was a challenge. Mostly the prolonged sitting in the big pilot's seat was something Noel was getting most irked about. Having his spine fused made life suck on most days. Like any movement was limited and being stuck in one position made stiffness worse.

But what was worrying was the possibility of his condition worsening. Yes getting older was no fun if you got limitations and illnesses before you're mid twenties.

But he still worried about Nate more than himself. Because some mention from his doctors from few times he ended up in enough trouble that Noel was contacted to get some shit done they couldn't otherwise.

So he obviously knew his friend had some issues doctors found worrisome.

Like hell he'd leave if this is something the man keeps up his old ways to get money to fix, one day Noel decided sternly with a fist through bathroom door. He could function just as well being on ground and off his disability money somehow somebody decided he deserved enough. He'd give it to Nate if it could make him see he can live his life without crime.

Wishful thinking but he cared too much for his own good.

That would only become a problem if he went overboard with some of his own shit and Nate just made him see how much mess he was. Because it's happened before and they always ended up cuddling and with all the lecturing properly distributed. As if he ever followed what Nathan expressed and vice versa. And they both equaled each other's annoying quality of fussing and ignoring their issues and over exaggerating worry for each other.

Now it just made himself wonder what happened over the years to both of them that they now behaved like old married couple. Because for some reason every single hospital staff believed they were actually a couple and treated them like one. It did make things easier though. Like last time he was so getting all the info he needed about what shit Nate got himself into and that barely cost him a bat of an eyelash. Every single nurse tripped over their little toes to feed the worried boyfriend every detail and paperwork. They probably would anyway since they were each other's proxy but somehow neither checked the actual paperwork and for some strangest reason they weren't that frantic the moment they discovered Nate made the fly. It kinda worked well enough and he was indeed able to leave in peace instead of getting lecture of life from medical personnel. Nothing to enjoy about it. Been there done that. Not fun no profit.

With a last effort to push the thoughts about Nate out and away from his mind so that he could get back to deck and do some co-piloting done for the day. Despite his pile of painkillers and possible other side substances in his system they always at him be because hello, guy with disability here so it was a pass. He just had to log into journal and push some buttons, right.

Like old days when they had to push through training day of full physio and other exercises that generally drained all of them to hard levels of exhaustion.

It once again brought back the vague memory of the guy that looked like Nate's twin. For all he could recall that boy was not the most strongest. Neither was Nate but it was kind of situation they just had to survive because nobody could actually be sure were any of the weak ones went after being noted by the big mean looking men.

It was scary enough to go through that experience.

To get your own ass beaten to pulp seven times over and handed to yourself in shreds wasn't something a young teen or kid would ever want. It was toughest thing to go through while being so young so that having your life literally torn to shreds and handed back to you to try and glue it back.

Nope, that wasn't the experience he ever wanted or needed but it just happened and they accepted the faith.

Pretty much how he accepted his injury and ever existing possibility of returning to wheelchair full time. It also wasn't how he wanted his life because occasionally having to use walker thing to get all the way to deck and back was enough of embarrassment to last a month let alone if he had to rely on his dingy frekkin' chair that looked worse than a garbage and he wasn't like those fancy elite people who just snapped their fingers to get the beat tech available.

Nope it was him and they made sure while he got accepted on the Enterprise and even welcomed warm enough the untold subtext clearly noted boldly that he will never become elite and that they deduced enough about Samara incident to know he never has been elite and never will.

So be it, he made himself a name to respect and that was all. Yes, he got invited to the Gala but was it what he'd been lolling for? Noel decided the only thing he will care about is gonna be Nate and himself. The rest could go fuck themselves and die. For all he cared he got his bills paid and had enough left to save up and more to afford his indulgences.

It wasn't like any meds would help him now nor he ever planned to do some crazy scientific experimental surgery with false hopes to suddenly have his back all sorted out to the original state, which wasn't the most perfect either. If he could live with that he will be okay and only that truly mattered.

But he still had a party to attend and in roughly a week his time on Enterprise will be served until he was needed again and judging by the standards it won't happen for another year after the Gala. Which was fine and dandy. He was already getting tired of the walls and carpets that greeted him every morning or what resembled a morning. And the liquor collection in his little bar cabinet was almost reached to the last bottle so he knew it was time to get back home.

Maybe he will actually get a new shiny wheelchair to look spectacular enough for an entrance. Or a more equipped walker that overshines anything less nice.

Or maybe he will put on his most shiny and best tailored uniform suit and still simply roll up to the entrance red carpet in his dingiest wheelchair in history just to piss the fuck out of the elite and to top it sweet talk himself into someone he once used as bait for the marks. Because that would be the best laugh of the year and just so worth for a night to become his old persona on job he never wanted to do again.

Chances were endless and why to spend all the fanciest alcohol of the universe on sappy whines when he could outshine all even if inside his mind.

So Noel "Narcho" Alisson put on his daily face and shuffled off to the deck with most badass attitude and evil just below surface and took his task of the day straightforward and stern. There was indeed a certain reputation he earned and maintained with pride. Because he indeed was a badass guy and just fuck ya'll.