Yes... My Husband...

Posted on Sun Mar 9th, 2025 @ 1:17pm by Lieutenant Adrianna Baciami

1,746 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Stars Around the Well
Timeline: PAST

Vance had been walking back to his ship when he spotted her. Adrianna Reggimi, laughing as she stepped out of the dimly lit bar, her hand resting on the arm of another man. Vance felt his stomach twist uncomfortably. The man– tall, dark-haired, clearly comfortable in Adrianna’s space– leaned in, saying something that made her chuckle. Then she hugged him, pressing a brief kiss to his cheek before pulling away. They looked… close. Too close.

Vance wasn’t the jealous type– or at least, he liked to think he wasn’t– but that didn’t stop him from changing direction, closing the distance between them just as Adrianna turned to leave. “Good night, then?” he asked, voice casual but edged with something sharper.

“Madonna, Vance, you scared me,” Adrianna looked up, brows knitting in confusion and taken back by him suddenly appearing, “what?”

Vance tilted his head towards the man, who had already disappeared back into the bar, “your date. Hope he treated you well.”

Adrianna blinked. “My d– wait– what?”

He folded his arms, watching her reaction closely. “Seemed pretty cosy, the two of you. Laughing, hugging… kissing,” he arched a brow, tone light but probing, “was it good?”

Adrianna’s mouth parted slightly before she scoffed, “are you serious?”

Vance shrugged, “just asking.”

Her hands landed on her hips. “That was Connie. He works there and we've known each other long before we met.”

Vance hesitated, the name unfamiliar. “Right,” he said, like it meant nothing, though his shoulders relaxed slightly, “just looked like something else.”

Adrianna narrowed her eyes, “And why do you care? We have no label on whatever this is, but I would still like to think that we have a level of trust, Capitano.”

For once, Vance didn’t have a quick answer. He could flirt with her all day, tease her about going on a date, but actually admitting something real? That was another thing entirely. Instead, he exhaled, shaking his head. “Guess I was just curious.”

Adrianna studied him, something unreadable in her gaze, “curious, hm?”

He met her eyes and smirked, covering his own uncertainty, “what can I say? You’re an intriguing woman.”

Adrianna let out a soft laugh, shaking her head, “you’re ridiculous, Vance.”

But as she walked away, he caught the smallest smile tugging at the corner of her lips. And maybe– just maybe– he hadn’t imagined the hint of satisfaction in her eyes.

Vance fell into step beside her, hands shoved into his pockets. “Well, can you blame me?” he said lightly, “I can’t have the future Mrs Adams out here dating other men. What would people think?”

Adrianna let out a sharp laugh, glancing at him with amused disbelief, “future Mrs Adams?”

He nodded, utterly serious in his teasing, “I’ve got the name picked out already– Adrianna Adams. Rolls off the tongue, don’t you think?”

She snorted, “Merde, it sounds like a stage name.”

Vance smirked, “you’re right. We’d have to hyphenate. Reggimi-Adams. Or Adams-Reggimi. We can debate that later.”

Adrianna shook her head, lips twitching despite herself, “You’re unbelievable.”

They walked a few more steps in silence before Vance’s smirk faded, his pace slowing. “But seriously,” he said, voice quieter now, steadier, “I don’t want you dating anyone else.”

Adrianna stopped, turning to face him. The teasing glint in her eyes dimmed as she took in the way he was watching her– no playfulness, no easy smirk. Just Vance, standing there with his heart half-bared in the open air between them. “Vance…” she began, uncertain.

“I mean it,” he said. “I know we’ve danced around this. The flirting, the maybe-we-should-go-on-a-date talk, but I want more than just maybe. I want you.”

Adrianna’s blinked.

Vance ran a hand through his hair, exhaling sharply. “Seeing you with someone else, even if it was just a friend– it got to me, and I think that’s because I’ve been lying to myself about how much I care.”

She searched his face, still looking a little stunned and like she'd misunderstood what they had between them, “you truly are an idiota, you know that right?”

He huffed out a laugh, “I thought– I Just– wait… why do you think I'm an idiot?”

Adrianna studied him for a long moment, as if trying to decide what to say. Then, finally, she smiled. Small, knowing. “Well,” she murmured, “firstly, it’s about time you took me out on a real date, but secondly, whilst we never put a label on this, I have been treating us as if we did have a label. I thought you knew that– or have I been exclusive whilst you've been off with some puttana?”

Adrianna tilted her head, a playful gleam returning to her eyes. She didn't allow him to answer, only concluding, “since we don’t have another job for a few days, why don’t you put your money where your mouth is?”

Vance raised an eyebrow. He had been oblivious. Stupidly so. He clicked in with her question, a little lost, “Oh?”

She smirked, “take me on a date. Tomorrow night.”

For the first time in a long time, Vance was the one caught off guard. He had expected more teasing, maybe a sarcastic remark, but not this. Not her throwing the challenge right back at him. He recovered quickly, grinning. “You sure? Because once you’ve been on a date with me, there’s no going back. You’ll be hooked– you'll have no choice but to be Adrianna Adams.”

Adrianna rolled her eyes, “I think I’ll survive.”

Vance stepped closer, lowering his voice, “oh, you think so?”

She held his gaze, refusing to back down, “Guess you’ll have to prove me wrong.”

His grin widened, “Alright then, Reggimi. Tomorrow night, you’re mine.”

Adrianna let out a soft laugh, shaking her head. “We’ll see about that, Adams.”

As she turned and walked away, Vance watched her go, something warm settling in his chest. Tomorrow night. A real date. No more dancing around it. For once, he wasn’t just flirting– he was actually doing something about it. As Vance watched Adrianna disappear down the street, a voice called out behind him.

“Ade! You forgot your– oh.”

Vance turned to see the same man from earlier– Connie– holding a small bag. He slowed as he approached, glancing between Vance and where Adrianna had gone, lost in a crowd, before letting out a small sigh.

“You're Vance Adams, right? Her captain,” Constantine smiled, “She’s always leaving something behind,” Constantine sighed, shaking his head, “not that I mind– gives me an excuse to chase after her. Can you give this to her when you next see her?”

That seemed to land awkwardly– Adrianna had made it out that her ‘date’ was merely meeting of friends, but the way ‘Connie’ spoke– something wasn't right. Vance hummed, watching him closely, but nodded, taking the bag, “seems like you’re used to it.”

“Oh, you have no idea,” Constantine chuckled. “She’s impossible sometimes, but I signed up for it.”

Vance’s jaw tensed slightly. Signed up for it? He kept his tone casual, “that right?”

Constantine smirked, “yes, I knew what I was getting into.”

Vance forced a smirk in return, “and what exactly did you get into?”

Constantine let out a low laugh, shaking his head. “More than I bargained for some days,” he glanced in the direction Adrianna had gone, “she’s trouble, you know.”

“Oh, I know,” Vance muttered.

“She drives me mad,” Constantine went on, almost fondly, “One minute she’s warm, the next she’s running off to chase the next big thrill.” He sighed, “but what can you do? When she looks at you like you’re the centre of the damn universe, and you’re a goner.”

Vance’s stomach twisted. His smirk didn’t falter, but his grip on the bag tightened. Constantine must have noticed, because he let out a small chuckle, “she’s a hard one to keep up with.”

Vance exhaled, “seems that way.”

Constantine lingered for a moment, his teasing smirk fading just slightly. He looked at Vance with something more serious– more protective– than before. “Listen,” he said, tone quieter now. “Ade acts like she’s made of stone, but she isn’t. She loves too easily, too deeply. She’d never admit it, but it’s the truth.”

Vance frowned, processing that.

Constantine sighed. “She’ll walk into the fire for the people she cares about without a second thought. But the problem is, not everyone would do the same for her,” his jaw tensed, “and I’ve seen what that does to her. I know you like her– she's told me everything. She's willing to give up everything for you. More than you are aware of. Don't make her regret it.”

Vance held his gaze, something in his chest tightening.

“There’s only one of her, Adams,” Constantine went on, voice firm, “So if you’re stepping into her orbit, do me a favour– keep her safe.”

Vance exhaled slowly. “Yeah,” he said, voice steady, “I will.”

Constantine studied him for a long moment. The truth was, Adrianna had met with Constantine to discuss her options. She'd fallen for Vance and was considering quitting StarFleet. He heard her out with her reasoning for StarFleet to let him go, and found himself agreeing, but struggling with the idea of her vanishing as he knew her family all too well– it would kill them. Then he nodded once, seemingly satisfied. And just like that, the teasing edge returned as he glanced at his watch, “anyway, I’d love to stick around and swap war stories, but I’m late meeting my husband. I'm sure we'll meet again.”

Vance blinked, “Husband?”

Constantine smirked. “Yes, husband. As in, the man I married,” he clapped Vance on the shoulder, “oh gawd. You thought– Ade and me? Gawd. You kill me, Cap.” Constantine chuckled, having to hold his ribs as he turned and headed back to the bar.

Vance barely registered Constantine walking away, too caught up in the wave of sheer relief crashing over him.

Not her boyfriend. Not her anything. He was married… to a man.

He let out a slow breath, smirking to himself. Gawd, he felt stupid for questioning her.

Still, he had a date. Tomorrow night, Adrianna was his.

 

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