Two Officers - One Heart

Chapter 3 - Relaxation...Ruined at the End

Joe yawned and stretched as he strolled down the hallway of the resort. It was morning now and sunlight spilled onto the floor from the windows. He turned a corner, entered the dining area next to the lobby where breakfast was served, and grabbed a plate. Joe scanned the menu for the day: scrambled eggs, pancakes, sausage links, or cereal. It was normal Earth food, but Joe knew the pancake toppings were from different planets. He walked down the food line, scooping some scrambled eggs and sausage links on his plate. Then, he slipped a pancake on the side. Joe walked over to where the toppings were. There were yim-yoms sliced into pieces, marsberries, philantro chocolate chips, and terrine syrup. Joe poured some syrup and sprinkled some of the chocolate chips onto his pancake. He grabbed some silverware and walked over to the dining area. There were tables spread out and booths lined the walls. The decorations were just like the Malain Paradise restaurant's: fancy, colorful, and tropical-themed. A few families were sitting at different tables, which included Joe's family.

Leo walked past Joe and smiled. "Good morning, Joe! There's a table right next to ours." 

"Thank you, Leo!" Joe exclaimed with a smile. He walked over to a table for two, sat down, and then began eating breakfast. The food was warm and delicious, and he could pleasantly taste every single bite. If the activities at the resort weren't enough, the food made up for it. At least, that was Joe's opinion. He always looked forward to meals at the resort. When he was around finished with half of his plate, he saw Luminix enter the food line. Joe watched as the blue-skinned alien made his way through the line, keeping a straight face. He took some time to reflect on his work partner. Luminix had always been a level-headed and calm man; he didn't seem interested in violence or action. His personality contrasted with Joe's, but that didn't stop the two from being best friends.

Luminix walked up to the two tables and dipped his head respectfully. "Good morning, you all."

"Hey, Luminix! Nice to see ya. There's a perfect spot for you, right across from Joe!" Loretta exclaimed in more of a teasing voice. Joe wondered why the girl was teasing Luminix so much, but he decided not to ask about it. But it seemed weird that even Miles smiled and tried to keep in a laugh. Something was going on between them...Joe shrugged it off, though, and smiled at Luminix as he sat across from him.

After some thought, Joe spoke. "So, Luminix...You asked me what my type was last night, but I never got to know what your type is. It's only fair that I know, hm?"

Luminix took a bite of food, chewed it, then swallowed, before speaking softly. "Uhm, well, I don't focus on a type, I suppose. Any woman will do for me, as long as she's willing to love me for who I am, and not just for my looks," He said, then after some hesitation, he added, "But my attention sometimes shifts to men as well."

"Well, what a surprise! I never would have thought of you thinking about men that way. So, you're bisexual, that's what you're saying?" Joe said with a smirk.

With a nervous chuckle, Luminix replied, "I, uh...Yeah, I'm bisexual."

Joe's smirked as he saw the nervousness radiating off of Luminix, so he decided to try and lighten up the mood. "Hm, at least you have double the chance to get a date!" 

"I guess so," Luminix replied with a small chuckle. Joe smiled as well, finding his work partner's nervousness amusing. He took a bite out of his pancake slowly as he began to study Luminix more closely, though he did it politely. His thoughts went back to dinner at the restaurant last night. Luminix seemed so on edge shortly after he got to the resort. And when he was late to dinner, Joe couldn't help but wonder if something was going on.

Joe decided to say something about it. "Say, Luminix...Why were you late to dinner last night?"

Luminix stopped chewing for a second before continuing and then swallowing his food. "Oh, like I said, I just overslept. I was feeling really tired yesterday, that's all." Joe saw something spark in his work partner's eyes and immediately knew something was up.