Attraction - Magnetism
Ripper didn't make eye contact with a single person on his way down to the arrivals area for port nine. He didn't break focus at all as he walked quickly, hooves thumping lightly on the carpeted metal of the station flooring; arrivals deck was about 5 decks down from residential and amenities where the medical bay was located.
His large ears and eyes kept on the swivel as he moved, plotting his course like a starship captain, dashing around people in conversation and those walking slower and with less purpose than he was. He even avoided using the turbolift, which would be quicker normally but with how many people would be using it right now? It was imperative to not be impeded on his journey, either with waiting or the slow trundle in and out of the lift.
Ripper went down the five flights of steps at the end of a quieter maintenance corridor instead. Fewer people and less congestion offered smoother, more efficient travel to his destination. The zebra finally reached the level he intended, a muffled sound of hooves jumping the last two steps announcing his presence to the lack of people using the stairs. Leaving the archway of the stairs he turned right, just in time to see the first trickle of people coming through the arrivals gate and being screened on their way.
All kinds of species, ages, backgrounds and affinities were there with a plethora of different clothes, jewelleries and amounts of luggage with them. His blue eyes scanned the current wave for Cyrillia, nostrils huffing to fuel his pounding heart and the sense of urgency his mind insisted on. No sign, good, he wasn't too late.
Picking his path to be close to the inner ring of the gangway and out of the way of the arrivals he made it through the crowds to stand directly opposite the corridor leading to the airlock, his back against the plant bed adjacent to the information board currently being ignored save for one or two curious travellers.
His ears flicked, eyes darted with each little trickle of people coming through the security gates, thankfully by now his adrenaline rush had started to ease but he was nonetheless anxious. Ripper simply stood there, legs slightly apart and hands clasped behind him, wringing in anticipation. The silver patterning and glossy white material of his uniform glinted in the light of the station like a beacon, surely, he would stick out like a sore thumb amongst the otherwise dull interior décor?
There! A hint of grey! No...just an elephant on their way to somewhere else...black straightened hair! On a cheetah woman...
As time wore on and the stream of people became thinner and thinner, Ripper had to start questioning whether he'd read the passenger list correctly or had hallucinated the entire thing. He shook his head, no. The data pad had been there, he'd talked to Jess, given her a hug, all of that had happened...right?
Some of the security staff started to leave their posts and close the exit lanes as the flow of passengers reduced to be manageable with the remaining crew. Ripper sighed. Maybe he had missed her in the flow of people after all and now he didn't know if she'd stop by his office at all, or if she'd even want to see him.
He let out a small huff, ears drooping back from their attentive state as he suddenly felt very tired, very upset, very guilty and very...alone...
It wasn't an unfamiliar feeling but it hit him, hard. Over time one adjusted to the feeling, got used to their own company with seeing almost nobody but colleagues and travellers. This time however, he was consciously aware of it. There was a dull, tense ache across his chest as his breath stuttered and his eyes watered up, nostrils flared with the mix of emotions coursing through his body right now.
How could he have been so stupid?
Stupid enough to let himself get so attached to this woman, stupid enough to go in without an implant or other protection...stupid enough to think the manifest he'd been given was flawless. He moved position to sit on one of the nearby benches, just sitting as he looked at his hooves and fought back the tears. The deep frustration and apparent despair trying to break free.
He couldn't give in to that, not out here in public and certainly not right now; certainly not when he'd dealt with the loneliness for years only to have the opportunity for it to be gone entirely ripped away from a miscalculation and error in judgment. As he kept himself locked down as best he could, a few tears dripped onto the front of his uniform, reflecting the light of the information board. If he'd been looking close enough, he would've seen not just the light, but a face also now appearing distorted in the tear fluid.
"Ripper?" a voice said, off to his right next to the board. A smooth, calm but concerned female voice. The zebra's ears twitched hearing his name. Suppressing the emotions for now he wiped his eyes with the sleeves of his uniform and turned his attention up to the figure now next to him.
"Rip...are you OK? Were you...crying?" The figure asked after a short silence. Now that he looked up, he saw a blue jumpsuit with copper markings, but no patches of delta logos on the sides of the torso like officers and acting crew might have. A standard Starfleet uniform for someone currently without rank but still enlisted. There were two hooves, shod with what looked like new steel shoes. The fur covering them above the coronary band was a remarkable silvery grey. Looking up, there was a face of course...and one that Ripper instantly recognised.
Iridescent black hair tied into a ponytail that swished whenever there was the slightest movement. Hazelnut eyes that shifted shade as the light changed, glinting with a small reflection on the tear film. Lipstick covered the end of her muzzle, a rich cherry red colour. High cheeks, a rounded chin, a brow that seemed slightly furrowed in concern. The sweetest equine nose money couldn't buy. All covered in that same, fine silvery hair as the hooves.
"Cyrillia?"
Instantly the zebra he was on his hooves and looking over the mare with a mix of disbelief. Confusion dancing over his own features, combatting the earlier feelings as he tried to process her appearance. His medical uniform contrasted her own suit in colour, just as his striped pattern contrasted her fur.
"You look...different...I thought I'd missed you in the crowd, thought I wasn't going to see you again..." he trailed off, losing eye contact with her and going despondent as the negative emotions started to encroach again.
"Ripper..." she whispered, her expression shifting as she realised why the zebra had been by himself, crying so close to the exit portal of port nine. Her suit rustled gently as she reached out to cup his chin and lift it back up, looking him straight in the bleary blue eyes as her hooves came closer. Cyrillia closed the distance until their noses were touching, silky hair to silky hair, sharing breath.
"I thought I'd missed you too..." she offered, before closing the rest of the distance and pressing her cherry coloured lips to Ripper's own black-skinned ones. Her body shuffled closer, pressed up to his chest with uniform against uniform. He reciprocated the gesture, slipping his arms loosely around her waist as their kiss deepened. The people, noise and surroundings all seemed to melt away and disappear. There was just the two of them embracing and kissing in a seemingly endless, empty expanse.