Late Night Farewell

There was something about studying in an empty mess hall that really got her focused. Maybe it was the way the PADD's backlit screen only illuminated her tiny reading spot in the endless dark; maybe it was the all-consuming quiet, Tasha didn't really know. All she could focus on was that she had a ten am test the next morning and if she was going to remember everything Jerold L. Perkins wrote on deep space security protocol then she had to really get cracking.

The time stamp in the upper corner of her reader flashed 1:30 AM.

This was getting ridiculous.

Another test; more long study hours preparing for an Academy exam. Four years of her life and another two left… She was going to run herself aground by then.

But she was determined to graduate. In fact, she would never forgive herself if she didn't. She wasn't about to be raised up from the hell of Turkana IV to be beaten down by a few multiple-choice tests. She just had to remember, damnit, what Perkins kept babbling on about. Every other sentence was starting to blur. She was sure she just read the same word half a dozen times.

Safety lights over the entrance doors cast halos of light in the corners of the room.

"Human optical receptors are quite poor when compared to species of similar composition. Reading in near dark may lead to blurred vision later in life."

She jumped when she first heard the voice, coming up to her table; she had been so focused on her reading. The PADD was dropped as she twitched in surprise, clanking down on the table. Before it could bounce again onto the metal a pale hand shot out to catch it.

"Data! You scared the hell out of me."

The android came around her position at the end of the table sat down primly across from her. The light from the PADD illuminated the smooth lines of his face as he caught her gaze. "My apologies, that was not my intent."

Tasha folded her arms, "Do you always roam around here at night?"

"I do not need to sleep, as humans do. I am usually in the terminals scanning additional information. However this night I could not… keep my focus. I did notice a heat signature coming from the mess hall room but I did not know you were here." The corners of his mouth twitched; it could be a smirk if Tasha really concentrated, "Do you always study here at night?"

Tasha curled her lip at him in jest as she checked the time, "Not usually this late, the time must have got away from me." She sighed heavily, "Not that it makes a difference. I can't remember a thing. I'll fail tomorrow for sure."

"Is it not a human adage that one's positivity can be a significant factor in determining one's changes of success?"

"Mmm," she hummed, trying not to agree with him.

"Ah," he noted, spinning the PADD around to have a look. "The works of Dr. Jerold Lee Perkins, foremost authority on deep space security protocol. His main thesis surrounded the continuous clash between maintaining a safe environment for a ship's crew whilst still being able to comply with the unfamiliar customs of new species. He always insisted that ships' safety was paramount and that the discomfort of some life forms would be a needed sacrifice to maintain- "

"Data, you've read this?"

"Dr. Perkin's work has been uploaded into my memory."

God did she wish she cold do that.

"Must be nice…"

Data tilted his head just slightly to the side, "It is my experience that humans too can memorize facts."

"Not as fast as androids unfortunately," Tasha folded her arms over her chest. If she'd let him they'd soon lapse into another theoretical conversation on the follies of human nature. It was a conversation she found herself engaging with him on a regular basis.

It was all too easy to slip into discussions like that with Data. She remembered their first conversation in their teambuilding class as freshmen. Tasha found it effortless to talk to the android; no leering subtext, no push and pull and awkward silences- well, Data could be said to have his share of awkward social situations but that, in Tasha's opinion, made him all the more likeable.

On one occasion he had asked, hesitantly, about her life on Turkana IV. She had initially dismissed the conversation but could tell it was less Data trying to pry into her life and more Data trying to study the human condition. Once she got over the initial sing of her childhood, laughable as it was being used as a textbook, she was able to untie her tongue. He was thankfully silent during her recount and he seemed to listen with a thoughtful, almost sad expression on his face. If she didn't know better she would have thought he was trying to be sweet; but then, that was impossible…

Pulling away from the memory she found herself frowning at her friend, "You said you were unable to focus. What's wrong?"

He looked hard at the table before saying slowly; "I was summoned to the Vice Chancellor's Office this evening."

Tasha stared at him, unblinking. "That…" She was about to say the Vice Chancellor's Office rarely offered good news, but this was Data they were talking about. It was hard to imagine he had done something so grievous as to warrant an Academy time out. Hell, they'd make him a Professor before they'd expel him.

"They are graduating me."

Tasha's jaw dropped. For a brief moment jealousy swelled within her before it melted into pride and honest astonishment. "Two years early?" Data nodded slowly, folding his hands.

"I am unsure how to analyze their decision."

"Data, that's two years of Academy just shaved off! This is wonderful! You should be ecstatic!"

"I am incapable of-"

Tasha waved her hand to silence him, "Yeah and all that but come on. Why are you not even a little bit…" she searched for an appropriate term, "content with their decision, logically speaking?"

She was not use to Data being unable to form sentences, but there he was, looking lost. "I understand that they feel the amount of information I've accumulated to be sufficient enough to warrant a diploma-"

"Damn right they do."

"But I do not feel as if I have learned everything I can about Starfleet- about humans."

"You're worried about interacting in the real world, not just some Academy classroom."

He caught her gaze, "Yes."

Tasha tapped her fingernail on the table, thinking. "You didn't turn them down did you?"

"I told them I must… think before making a decision."

"Uh-huh…"

Inactivity on the PADD turned the display screen off, plunging the pair into darkness. Tasha let out a shaky sign, laying her forehead down onto the metal table. Closing her eyes felt so very nice. She could fall asleep right then and there.

"Tasha?"

She could imagine Data's head cocked to the side, peering at her with that childlike inquisitiveness. He could see her, of course, even if her own eyes were blind in the black.

"I think you should go for it," her muffled voice echoed up from her hunched position. "I mean, experience far outweighs reading textbooks… or downloading them," she added with a small smile. She reached out to take hold of the PADD, contact waking the screen. The Starfleet emblem flashed up as the default screensaver. Data was silent.

"Look," Tasha continued, "You can't hope to passively learn every intricate part about how people work. You have to observe and learn while interacting. Sure you'll make a few mistakes but who doesn't?" Impulsively she reached out and laid a hand over his. His skin was faintly cool and soft. A part of her had expected him to feel artificial; it was a pleasant surprise.

He tilted his head up, "I appreciate your vote of confidence." Tasha nodded, retracting her hand.

"Well, if you decide to take this amazing opportunity, when do you leave?"

"Oh-five hundred"

Picking up the PADD Tasha realized she had to forcibly relax her clenched fingers.

"Tasha? Is something troubling you? Scans indicate a sharp rise in heart rate."

Maybe it was nothing, she thought, but then he'd be gone and the only other person she'd even attempted to make 'friends' with was Lilana, her bunkmate, and that hadn't gone over very well. It was foolish to feel anger… but he was leaving her-them-all of them. She'd be alone, just like when she left Turkana IV.

"Tasha?"

"I- well. I guess this is goodbye then?" She forced her best smile. "I really hope you go for it, Data. You deserve it."

He cocked his head, "I do not believe I, over any other Cadet, deserve special treatment. However," he continued when she was about to interrupt, "I understand why this would be more beneficial to my continued development. Thank you for your insight Tasha and… good luck on your exam."

Tasha's smile turned into a true grin, "I guess I should get some rest then. I don't want to oversleep." She stood up, extracting herself from the bench. Data did the same, coming around the table and extending a hand. Tasha clenched the PADD to her chest; light from the screen threw pale white onto Data's Academy uniform.

Looking at his offered handshake she felt this odd sensation, like her stomach had contacted into a tight, cold knot. "I hope to see you soon." Data nodded. Tasha reached out, pausing in a terribly extended moment of immobility, and then thrust herself towards the android, wrapping her arms around his neck.

It took him a moment to react, and then she felt his arms around her waist, pressing her to him.

"Oh I'm going to miss you," she mumbled into her shoulder. God she could feel his ever-constant heartbeat through her own suit. It would be such a regular rhythm compared to her wild pulse. "You'd be an excellent crewmate to serve with."

"It is possible," his arms were still tight around her middle, "that we might be stationed on the same ship."

She stifled a sharp, pitiful laugh. The odds were very much against that ever happening.

She released him and took a step back, "Take care of yourself."

"You as well, Tasha."

And he just stood there.

She ran a hand through the fringe of her hair, unsure if he wanted her to leave or if he was just being his normal courteous self. After a moment she finally turned away. Her footsteps echoed sharp tap tap taps across the floor as she fled the room. She needed to be alone… There was something about the way he could just turn it all off… be immune to it all. Saying goodbye to friends would never faze him, would it? And what was she doing? Getting all emotional over some half-cocked friendship? Compared to his vast knowledge talking to her must have felt like speaking to a child.

She turned the next corner to her dorm, barely aware of coming to a stop outside her door.

Thankfully Lilana was absent from their quarters. Tasha had half a mind to start smashing things. Her brain was fried; she felt on overload.

But he was just an android, a person she had met during her first Academy days, nothing more. She must have known any close acquaintances could eventually be stationed very, very far away.

She had to focus. If she could make it to graduation with her sanity intact then she'd be fine. She had to let it go, that was it. Everything changes, nothing is constant, nothing else matters. Survive. That was the answer. She would always survive.

This mantra did nothing to lessen the weight that had settled over her chest.

A/n- This is assuming Data and Tasha both entered the academy at the same time. This might not be completely accurate but thanks to fanfiction anything is possible! Also assumes they knew each other before the Enterprise and had some kind of friendship. Just a drabble.

I've been toying around with a longer Data/Tasha piece, so I'd like feedback on keeping them in-character. R&R!