Title: First Zip

Author: Luzmaria.

Fandom: Andromeda

Status: Complete

Rating: PG

Archive: Ask first by e-mail at luzmaria8@att.net

Feedback: Would love it, please.

Disclaimer: Nope, not mine. Just playing with them…

Summary: 5 minute fic from doxymom with the words “first zip, then fasten”

Spoilers: None

First zip, then fasten.

Two soft sounds that have been acting as my morning alarm clock since I took this job.

I used to wake up on Earth from no sound at all: just a feeling that something was about to happen which I’d have to run away from, or hide from, or fight for. A scrap of food, a piece of clothing perhaps that was about to be stolen from me.

Other times I’d wake up to the sounds of the others in the refugee camp screaming in pain as they were being attacked by the Magog or by our protectors the Dragans, for sport.

Not here though. Here the zip is the sound of Beka trying not to wake me as she zips up her boots on the bunk next to mine in the morning. Beka’s a morning person, often up before 0600 hours.

At any rate, this soft sound is followed by her fastening her jacket before she goes off to make everyone coffee.

Ah, coffee. I’d never had coffee before Beka hired me. I took a liking to the caffeine rush almost as soon as she put the dark, hot bitter liquid in my hands. I’ve tried it with milk and sugar, but nothing beats black first thing in the morning.

You’d never expect your boss to be the motherly type with a background in larceny, but Beka really is. Unlike her ex-boyfriend Bobby, she cares about her crew and her friends a lot. It’s almost like she is trying to create a new family for herself. I’m still not sure how to take it.

I sat up and ran my fingers through my hair. I never bother with a comb – it’s short and fine and I don’t really need one anyway. Grabbing my T-shirt and pulling it over my head, I followed Beka into the kitchen barefoot.

I could smell the coffee before I even got there. The coffee was percolating and she was scrambling eggs. That was another thing I rarely had back on Earth. Fresh anything was hard to come by and the rations Dragans provided (if you could call them that) weren’t worth giving to a rat. I wondered if we’d just got hired for someone else’s score. She’ll tell me later.

“Hey”, I said as I took my seat at the counter. Beka didn’t turn around.

“Morning.” She scooped some off the eggs onto a plate and passed them in my direction. “Sorry I woke you. I know you were up late.”

“No worries, I’ll sleep while fixing the coolant tank later.”

Beka shot me one of those glares that told me “Don’t you dare.” I smiled.

I wouldn’t trade this job for anything in the world.