The waitress' name was Natalie. She took Cherry to the common area the waitresses shared away from the bustle of the bar and they talked at length. It was a homely space, full of cosy soft furnishings and personal touches, images and color. It was clear that many of the waitresses also called Velasy's home, and Cherry found herself feeling both safe and comfortable sitting there with Natalie, a steaming cup of hot coffee in her hands.
Natalie shared her story -- how she'd grown up on a poor, remote and very rural colony, decided to leave to find a more exciting future and worked her way from station to station before finally ending up on Apollo. She was a little older than Cherry and the younger woman was rapt by her stories of adventure.
It was probably these that finally made up her mind to refuse Velasy's offer.
Natalie, after listening to Cherry's own story, fully agreed. There was a whole galaxy to explore, she said and Velasy's was only one small corner of it and would always be there for her if she wanted to come back.
By the time they'd finished their conversation, it was really very late and Natalie offered Cherry an unused bedroom to crash for the night, which she gratefully accepted.
In the morning, Natalie pointed her in the direction of where she could find herself some cheap travel by signing on to the one of the many cargo ships and mining vessels that departed daily from Apollo. There was always a shortage of skilled crew, and Cherry had taken the classes.
Well-raised girl that she was, Cherry felt the only polite thing was to tell Velasy in person of her choice. She worried a little about finding herself in another sexual trance, but she needn't have. He was kind and gracious though disappointed and offered her a warm welcome back should she change her mind.
After she left the bar she took some time to explore the station a little. She did some shopping too, replacing her bodysuit and heels with a plain white tank top and a pair of functional black cargo pants. Completing a look she felt would make her appear an authentic deck hand was a pair of strong ankle high boots. She tied her fiery hair back into a straightforward ponytail.
Then it was on to 'The Happy Pirate' at another docking area on the far side of the station, recommended by Natalie. Unlike Velasy's den of unrestricted debauchery, The Pirate was a place for doing legitimate business, signing on hands or negotiating cargo contracts.
She did her best to convince herself that she wasn't standing out when she entered The Pirate. It was busy but the crowd was not rambunctious. No music underscored the din of voices.
She approached the bar and ordered a drink, enquiring of her server if he knew of any captains looking for a hand. He laughed a little and with a broad smile said, opening his arms wide so as to indicate the entire bar, "Take your pick!" She smiled back nervously.
She stood there a while and scanned the place. There were some aliens there, but most of the clientele were human. For several minutes she did her best to gauge the body language and style of the various captains. Evidently, there were no uniforms on the ships these people commanded.
Just as she was about to chastise herself for procrastination, her gaze fell on a human male. Maybe mid to late thirties, she guessed. His sandy hair was cut neatly short and a faint beard covered the lower part of his face.
She immediately liked the cut of his jib.
He seemed serious by expression and he wasn't drinking. From Cherry's vantage point, the bargain he seemed to be driving looked to be to his advantage. The squat alien sitting opposite him looked far tenser although she admitted to herself that she was still very much a novice at reading alien body language and facial cues.
As she watched the negotiation unfold, she took in the rest of him. The tight black t-shirt he wore under an open sleeveless jacket that had obviously seen plenty of action hugged the skin. His pants and boots looked well-worn too. Nothing too fancy, she thought. That'll do nicely.
The negotiation ended as hand shook claw and the alien departed. Before the captain could leave, she took her chance and approached his table.
"Hi there. I'm Cherry... ah Cherry Rosso. Are you by any chance in the market for any new crew?" Inwardly she recoiled at the tenor and tone of her question. She'd wanted to sound worldly and experienced but she felt more like a tourist asking for her jacket at a lost and found.
He didn't respond immediately, but regarded her thoughtfully. She noted he was fixed on her eyes and wasn't looking her up and down or staring at her tits and she instantly knew she'd picked the right captain.
"I might be Cherry. What kind of skills you got?" She listed the courses she'd taken as impressively as she could.
"Not bad Cherry. How many space hours you got? You look pretty young."
This she had anticipated to be her Achilles' heel. So she turned on the best charm she could find.
"Space hours? I got the amount of time it took to get here from Earth on the shuttle," she said, hoping honesty was the best policy.
His eyes widened a little in surprise and she carried on quickly.
"But I'm a quick learner Captain and a hard worker. I never went in for all the VR bullshit back home -- I wanna do real things, fly real ships, have a real life. You won't find a more motivated hand than me sir, I promise you."
She was sure he seemed to be softening, so she pressed on.
"I'll even work my first cruise for free, so you can evaluate me." Once she'd said it she was immediately concerned it might have sounded like she was offering to fuck him for the job, which she hadn't intended. She'd prepared herself for this possibility, and would have had no problem doing it, but her instincts told her this particular captain would not have appreciated the suggestion.
Again, he said nothing for a time, still regarding her thoughtfully before, at length, he stood up.
"Well Cherry, I am down a hand and I've just agreed a pretty lucrative contract so I could do with the help... but there's a hundred more experienced hands looking for work on this station I could hire right now..."
Her heart sank a little, she could feel the let down coming as he paused.
"Fuck it. I like your attitude Cherry Rosso. Welcome aboard the Emperor 16," he concluded, thrusting out a strong hand in her direction. Cherry was a little shocked so it took her a second to shake it, his powerful grip bringing her back to the moment.
