That night after supper Dan and his bunkmates gathered at the back of their room.
"So what should we do to pass the time this evening?" Madsen groused. He looked out the porthole window. The moon was in the corner, distant and glowing.
Dan licked his lips. As good of an opening as I am likely to get. "Well, I don't know about tonight, but...Remember what I told you guys, about myself." They nodded. "Somebody wants to stop by tomorrow night. Says he wants to cook for all of us."
Jensen, for all his protesting that he was cool with Dan, looked less comfortable now. "You have a partner?"
"Umm, not exactly," Dan said, blushing suddenly. "It's sort of a..."
"Date?" Madsen finished.
Dan nodded.
"Cool," Madsen finished. "Anyone we know?"
"Bakala," Dan said.
"That's not an American name," Madsen commented.
"That's the quartermaster!" Kleppie exclaimed. "It is, isn't it?"
"Yeah, we've been talking, hanging out. He says the curfew is just our crew, we can't go to their side, but he can come here. If that's okay with you."
"I'm not," Kleppie said. "But, man, Bakala? I bet every straight girl onboard is going to be so jealous of you two."
"Kleppie," Madsen said. "This might be one of those quit-while-you're-ahead situations."
"I am just saying, he's not my type but he is a hunk."
"Or just keep barreling on, until your foot is firmly planted in your mouth," Jensen joked.
"What? I can tell Jensen his wife is beautiful, but I can't compliment Dan on getting a catch?"
"Anyway," Madsen said, rolling his eyes. "I am okay with it, especially if there is food being offered." The others both nodded.
"Only, I'd like to keep this between just a few of us, if that's okay," Dan said.
"You being gay, sure, we understand," Kleppie said.
"Actually, no. I am fine about that. It's time I was out, anyway. But this date thing, I don't think the captain would approve. And I really don't want some of the others getting the idea they can invite their consortium lovers over to our side and, you know..."
"You and this guy aren't going too..." Jensen asked.
"No, hell no. It's just a date, I swear." He broke off and then felt that goofy grin creep back on his face. "In fact, you know what? It's my first date." He started giggle.
Kleppie was staring at him, eyes wide. "This is a side of you we haven't seen."
"I know," Dan said, trying to control the giggles. "It's just, when you guys were going out for pizza with girls, or making out in the backseat of some car, I was already learning to hide who I was, that whole part of myself."
"You're not a virgin?" Madsen ventured.
Dan laughed again. "No, not by a long stretch. It's just, that part of its one thing. Not to brag, but I have plenty of experience. The other stuff, the innocent stuff, like dating, flirting, I've never done it."
Jensen laughed then, the tension deflating out of him. "Now that is funny." He paused and turned more introspective. "You never think about that, do you? You talk about gay people and you think about marriage, hate crimes... you never think about the simple things, how hard it must be to flirt, hold hands, date, shit like that. Must suck."
"Yeah, sometimes it does," Dan admitted.
#####
The next day, Dan made his appearance for the day while Cheyenne was talking to her son James on the slate. James had inadvertently proven Cheyenne's suspicion right by turning on the web cam almost as soon as his Grandma walked out of the room.
"Hey, Buddy, remember me?" Dan asked. He waved at James' face.
"No," James said. "Were you the healer guy?"
"That's me," Janda said, temporarily stepping into view and waving.
"Oh," James said.
"I am one of your mom's crewmates," Dan said.
"And my friend, Dan Oleson. I've talked about him before," Cheyenne explained. "Anyway, I should probably let you go. I am sure you have a lot of important stuff to do, like homework."
"Call of duty," James hooted and dashed off screen. He popped back momentarily to say goodbye and sign off. Violent video games, that's another thing he won't be doing when I get home.
"What brings you by so early?" Cheyenne asked as she shut down Skype.
"I figured you'd been staying up more during the day, and then going to bed early. So maybe this is the best time to really see you."
"Sure, and?" To his continued blank stare she said, "Come on, I know you, you don't change your routine easily."
"Okay," he admitted, "I might have a date."
"A date? Do tell," Cheyenne said.
"It's nothing, Bakala wants to make me supper tonight. For me and my mates."
"Bakala?" Janda asked. "The quartermaster?"
"Yeah."
"Ooh, Mister Dan's got himself a hunk."
Cheyenne laughed. "A hunk. Wow, I want all the details."
Dan blushed. "It's nothing. We've been messing around, you know, just casually. He wanted to do dinner and I've been thinking, maybe it's time to see what it's like, to have a steady guy sort of thing."
"You know, most of us do dinner first and messing around second," Cheyenne said with a laugh.
"I don't know," Janda joked, "his way makes sense, too. That way you work up an appetite."
"See, the advanced space society types agree," Dan said. "Anyway, I'll bring him around one day, see if he meets your approval. In the meantime did you hear the news?"
"What news is that?"
"They announced where the solar stations are going this morning," Dan explained.
"I hear you guys made out like bandits," Janda said. "Four stations out of ten."
"Umm, that's America, the continent. America, the country, as in the United States of America, got one," Dan said.
"Oh that's right, I get that confused. Why is the continent named the same as the country? You guys should change your name or something."
"Don't let my mom hear that," Cheyenne groused. "She'll be telling everyone how you are going to force us to take a new name. Anyway, we're getting one?"
"Yup, it will be parked over Denver, Colorado. Canada got one, too, over Quebec. Mexico City and Rio De Janeiro in Central and South America. They figure the Quebec station will send power down throughout the entire eastern seaboard, all the big cities like New York will benefit. Mexico City station will have power to spare to send northwards and sell to Southern California. And the Colorado station will power most of the central U. S."
"Cool," she said.
"Did you hear about Kamchatka?" Janda said. "They're getting one."
"Really?"
Janda laughed. "Both China and Russia snubbed Princess Sarasvat's attempts at diplomacy, so she snubbed them right back. Gonna put a station in the fledging nation. When they come around, and they'll have to eventually, they can buy energy from Kamchatka. It will give that nation some real bargaining power."
"Serves them right," Dan said.
They talked for a long while. Cheyenne's mind kept returning to the same thought. Colorado was a long way from Norfolk. Since talking to Lana about the stations she had felt better. She had this vision of staying somewhere above her home, the kids coming up in the space elevator every weekend, more often if possible. When she started to feel better, maybe she could even go down to see them. But there was no way for her mom to get the kids all the way from Norfolk to Denver. They didn't have the money, and would mom even be willing?
"You seem distant," Janda commented. "Are you okay?"
She shook her head, wishing it wasn't Lana's day off. Lana would understand. Then again, these men would too, she decided. "I am worried about my kids. I mean, I know I have to stay for more treatment. I was hoping to stay on the station, to be able to see them, occasionally. But that's better than being somewhere else and not being able to see them at all, right?"
"Yeah, I think that's a workable solution, isn't it?" Janda asked.
"But Colorado is a long way from home, isn't it?" Dan guessed. "That's closer to my neck of the woods."
"Space elevators are quick and easy," Janda said. "Before long the kids will be able to ride it themselves."
"Yes, but getting there isn't. We don't have the kind of transportation you do. It would be hours on an airplane to get to Denver," Dan explained.
"And the cost," Cheyenne said. "I don't have that much money back home. And who knows when I can work again."
Dan snapped his fingers. "I am have some other news, and it might just help. Now that the stations are coming, banks are starting to speculate in Consortium energy. I've already spent about half my pay. And it was pretty lucrative, too."
"Speculating in Consortium energy? How is that helping?" Cheyenne asked.
"Its just a means to an end," Dan said. "I can convert the money I make here into American currency, even though we don't have an official political solution to money exchange yet. And the exchange rate definitely favors the Consortium."
"So you could work, even a few hours a day," Janda said, catching on, "and convert it to your money."
"And that could pay their plane ticket at least," Dan finished.
"Lana and I can help too," Janda said. "We both make decent enough wages, especially with all the extra hours we've logged on this mission."
"Thanks guys," Cheyenne said. She was glad they were trying to help, but she wasn't sure. Still, it meant a lot that they were trying.