Collins heads to the Gym to warm up before her "meeting" with Ens. Graham. Boxing? No. Fencing? Maybe. Basketball! Yeah! she decides while changing in the locker room. Out on the floor, she stretches a bit then goes over to the ball rack to choose her 'weapon'.
Graham emerges from the men's locker room and sees Collins is already in the Gym--but he breathes a sign of relief that, unlike last time, she does not appear to have been waiting long. He trots over to her: "So L-T, what'll it be: fists, weapons, pillowfight? Your call!" He claps his hands together once, shakes his shoulders lose, and flexes his knees a bit.
Still facing the rack, Collins smiles, grabs a basketball, turns and fires it at Graham. "How about a little one-on-one? If you think you can take me!" She sprints over to the court and takes up a defensive position in front of the basket.
Graham makes a note of how quickly she covers the distance, follows her at a trot and returns the smile. He turns the ball over in his hands contemplatively. He gives the ball a couple bounces. "I was expecting more hitting, less bouncing..." he feints to her right to gauge her reaction (at about 85% of effort, so as not to give his full range of movement and speed away). "But then again, I haven't seen you play before." He feints right again (this time at 80% of effort, to encourage her to believe the first move was all-out). "But are we just playing for pride here, L-T? Truth be told, I don't have much left, really. Might not be fully motivated to teach you everything you need to know about this game if that's all that's on the table."
Graham hopes his age and best Academy instructor manner gives his bluff some credibility: he's played basketball, but he's by no means an expert, and he assumes Collins has picked it because it's a favorite sport of hers.
Collins is aware Graham is testing the waters with his opening moves. But she's never fallen prey to head games. "Don't hold back, Ensign [this she says with playful emphasis]. My great grandfather played for the Boston Celtics. It's in my blood."
Graham's a bit taken aback. "Boston, eh?" He smiles authentically. "You might not be so bad after all...for an officer." With that he lowers his right shoulder but drives left, hoping to angle around her close enough but create enough space to put a left-handed layup in the net.
Collins starts to move left but springs to the right, not in time to prevent his shot, but enough to throw off his aim so that he misses. She recovers the ball and takes it to the top of the key.
Crap, Graham thinks, if she has a good outside shot I'm screwed. "Where've you been assigned, before this?" Graham asks, throwing a few jabs toward the ball while he talks.
She starts to drive towards the basket sideways, with her back towards Graham. "I was on Starbase 11 for two years, then a year on the Enterprise before being assigned here." About two yards from the basket she starts to go right but as the ball comes back up to her hand, in one swift move, she grabs it, jumps up and spins to face the basket and shoots - and it's good. She smiles proudly. "I lost some friends while on the Enterprise." She states plainly, remembering how many Security personnel did not return from missions.
Graham collects the ball and takes it back outside, dribbling methodically. He nods. "I know what it is to lose friends." And more than friends, he thinks, before putting that out of his mind. "When I was grounded...I mean, ah...privileged to be teaching at the Academy...every fresh-faced kid wanted to serve on the Enterprise. Far be it from the likes of me to criticize--Kirk got the job done--but some of us old-school Security instructors used to call him James T. 'K-I-A.'"
He starts to back up against Collins, pushing her back--not enough to be called a foul, but exerting some pressure, to see how she'll react. Push back? Yield? Fist in the kidneys? All interesting responses, albeit some more painful than others...
Collins matches Graham move for move, again making it difficult for him to shoot. "I never went on any missions while I was aboard the Enterprise," Collins says, only slightly out of breath. "I spent most of my tour on patrol duty." With her lower peripheral vision, she watches Graham's feet trying to gauge when he was ready to take aim - her intent to jump when he does and block the shot.
Graham makes the shot, tying the score. The game goes on for another twenty minutes with the lead going back and forth, but finally in Collins' favor. After she makes the last basket, she turns to see Graham bent forward, his hands on his knees, panting, but happy. He straightens up, double-times it over to the towel bin near the entrance to the locker rooms, and grabs two. He meets Collins as she walks in that direction, and hands one to her before wiping his own forehead. "Congrats, L-T. I'd say next time would go down differently, but I think the fact is you're pretty damn good at basketball."
After a moment's pause he adds, "Do you know Ens. Kylah well?"
Collins looks at him quizzically. "A little young for you, no?" She smiles and winks. "She's my roommate, but I can't say I know her that well. She's a competent junior officer, but she doesn't seem to trust anyone very much. Except maybe Dr. T'Var. You'd get more from the good doctor than from me." She starts towards the locker room, then turns. "Why?"
"Ah, yeah, she's about my daughter's age..." Graham says, then chides himself: Collins probably doesn't care. And even if you were asking about that, there's no Federation law against chasing younger women...focus, Booker. "Things got a little weird between her and some lieutenant named Ferguson while I was on patrol. Nothing big enough to file a report about, but when weird things happen on my beat, I like to figure out what's going on. She clearly didn't want to talk about it...but the doc seems solid; that's a good lead."
"Just put it your daily log. Never hurts to have a record of it, just in case." Collins throws the used towel in the hamper. "I'll see you in the morning. Thanks for the game." She decides to shower back in her quarters and goes into the locker room to grab her things.