Naval
Manoeuvres
By
Sue James
Author’s note: This story was inspired by something a very good
friend said during a phone call and was written as a Christmas present for the
same friend. However, we felt that others might enjoy the story so here is with
names, location and title changed to protect the innocent!
His
first indication that something was wrong was the sensation of cold and wet
that dominated his return to consciousness; that and the fact that a sickening
pain was drumming through his head and down his spine. Knowing instinctively
that he wasn’t going to like what he found when he opened his eyes
Lieutenant-Commander Chip Morton fought against that part of his mind that
demanded to know what was happening to him for several minutes. The cold, the
wet, the pain and a general feeling of discomfit told him that at least he
wasn’t in sickbay but he was fairly confident that was only because the doctor
hadn’t got a hold of him yet and that meant that he was probably in some sort
of trouble.
Tentatively
Chip tried moving his head and his arms and, although it hurt, he was relieved
to find that everything seemed to work. Next he moved his legs and was glad to
find that they also worked so at least he knew that he wasn’t badly injured despite
the pain he was in. Reluctantly and very cautiously he opened one eye and was
relieved to find that, wherever he was, it was in semi-darkness; there was no
harsh light to hurt his eyes and make his headache worse. Feeling slightly more
confident Chip opened his other eye and peered curiously around him. He was
shocked to find that he was half-sitting, half-laying in a shower and that he
was completely naked; no wonder he was cold! Water droplets gleamed on his
shivering body and the tiled walls…..the
tiles!, Chip blinked twice as he stared at the tiles surrounding him…he
didn’t recognise them, this wasn’t his shower, he’d never seen this shower
before in his life! “Oh, help Morton,
that must’ve been one hell of a bender you went on last night, no wonder my
head hurts!” Chip groaned loudly and
closed his eyes again as he tried to recall how exactly he had ended up in this
situation but his mind was blank and the effort involved in trying to remember
threatened to split his skull in two. He groaned again and then tensed as he
heard the sound of footsteps and a door opening; the space beyond the shower
curtains was suddenly illuminated as a light was switched on and he heard the
sound of somebody…..a woman, he thought…humming a tune he didn’t recognise.
Chip felt a surge of pure panic assail him as he realized that he was about to
be caught naked in a strange shower by some woman he didn’t remember meeting.
Struggling to his feet he grabbed hold of the shower hose as a wave of
dizziness overcame him and then fell heavily back to the floor of the shower as
the hose detached itself from its brackets to crash down on top of him. Hoping
that this was all just a dream and that he would awaken, safely in his own bed
at any moment, Chip closed his eyes at the yell of exclamation he heard on the
other side of the curtain.
“What
the…..!” It was a woman, a woman
with an accent that he had never heard before. Chip struggled to disentangle
himself from the shower hose as the curtains were pulled aside and suddenly she
was there looking down at him with eyes that were wide with shock. For a moment
they just stared at each other in stunned disbelief.
“This can’t be true!” Lizzie Higginbottom
stared down at the naked man in her shower in total shock. So often she had
dreamt of this happening, of her hero appearing dripping wet, blond hair
tousled in her shower. Except he had always worn a towel round his waist
before, not lain there naked with his muscular limbs entangled in the shower
hose! “Too much cheese before bed,” she told herself sternly except that
she hadn’t had any cheese last night and no matter how many times she blinked
at him he remained where he was staring up at her with such an anguished look
of consternation that she found laughter bubbling up inside her and had to
struggle to keep it down; she didn’t think he would appreciate her laughing at
him.
Chip
Morton knew he was staring but he couldn’t help himself. He had absolutely no
idea who this woman was; he had never seen her before in his life and he
couldn’t understand how he had come to be laying naked in her shower. Even
allowing for some memory loss he was positive that he wouldn’t have been out
with her because she was too old for him; she had to be at least the same age
as his much older sister. And yet something in her eyes seemed to indicate that
she recognised him and he felt his panic increase as she said, in her soft
voice with its strange accent: “You’re him, aren’t you?”
“Him?”
Chip blinked in confusion.
“Chip!”
The woman seemed to be gaining confidence as she looked at him.
“Lieutenant-Commander Chip Morton of the Seaview!
You’ve got to be, you look just like
him. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve dreamed of this moment and now it’s
happening I can hardly believe it! You in my
shower! I bet nobody’ll believe me when I tell them!”
Tell who? And
what on earth did she mean by saying she’d dreamt of this moment? Chip closed his eyes again in
the vague hope that this weird situation was really just a dream brought on by
stress and lack of sleep but when he opened them again the woman was still
there her early look of shocked disbelief replaced with a smile that seemed to
get broader by the minute. Chip felt that he was at a huge disadvantage here
and he shivered violently as he struggled to sit up and take control of this
bizarre scene.
“Gosh, I’m sorry,” the woman handed him a large blue towel which
he grabbed hold of thankfully. “I was so shocked to find you here that I forgot
my manners,” she grinned happily at him as he wrapped the towel awkwardly around
his waist. “That’s better, that’s how I’ve always pictured this scene, you know….you
with the towel, not that I didn’t appreciate seeing you…well, whole….but the
towel adds a touch of mystery, not to mention decency,” she added hurriedly as
Chip struggled not to glare at her. “Look lady,” he spoke carefully, “I don’t
know who the hell you are or how I got here but I want to go home now so just
give me my clothes and I’ll be going.”
“Oh, sorry, another lapse of manners!” the woman extended her hand
to him. “I’m Elizabeth Higginbottom but my friends call me Lizzie. I’m very pleased to finally meet you, Mr. Morton. I’ve been
a fan of yours for a very long time!”
A fan? Chip
stared at the woman’s hand in confused astonishment. What did she mean by saying she was a fan of his? He wasn’t a sports
star or an actor or a bloody pop star; he was just a naval officer who wanted
to go home! He didn’t have fans and
he didn’t want any either! Shaking
his blond head in bewilderment Chip groaned as the action reminded him of his
horrendous headache and, remembering his own well-ingrained manners, he took
the woman’s hand and shook it carefully, “Pleased to meet you, Elizabeth,” he
murmured formally, his eyes still downcast, “even
if I don’t have a clue who you are,” he added silently as she grasped his
hand and held it tightly.
“Are you okay?” The concern in the soft voice with the strange
accent made him look up. “Only you groaned then as if you are in pain. I could
get you some aspirin if you want.”
“No, I’m okay,” Chip forced a smile as she released his hand and
eyed him doubtfully in much the same way his elder sister did when he lied
about his health. “I just want my clothes please so that I can go home and
leave you in peace.”
Chip didn’t miss the look of disappointment that flittered across
the woman’s face at his words but he didn’t want to stay here, he wanted to go
home and he couldn’t help it if he hurt a stranger’s feelings in the process.
“I can’t see your clothes,” the woman said as she looked around
the bathroom. “What were you wearing?”
“I…..” Chip hesitated as he realized that he didn’t have a clue
what he had been wearing but this woman must have and she must know where his
clothes were. Suddenly annoyed he glared at her as he said firmly,” Look lady,
I’m not in the mood for jokes; just get me my clothes and I’ll be gone.”
“I can’t get you your clothes because I have no idea where they
are,” the woman eyed him sternly and he had a feeling that she wasn’t one to
back down easily. “You’re the one who took them off to get in my shower so it’s up to you to remember
where you put them!”
Chip closed his eyes again. Surely,
this couldn’t be happening to him, it was unreal. He thought of how his
best friend would laugh at his predicament, trapped in a strange woman’s shower
without his clothes and a new thought struck him. Maybe this was some sort of elaborate practical joke? Payback for some
of the jokes he had played in the past? It was possible although if it was
he vowed there and then that Lee would regret it because this really wasn’t
funny; it wasn’t funny at all.
Forcing himself to his feet and fighting back the wave of nausea
that swept through his aching body Chip eyed the woman who still stood staring
at him with a look of undisguised admiration and, in his best command voice,
asked, “Where am I exactly?”
“You’re in my shower!” Lizzie told him delightedly.
“And where is your shower? Which town is this Lizzie?”
“Oswaldtwistle.”
“Oswald..what?” Chip had never heard of it. “Which state are we
in?”
“State! We don’t have states here,” Lizzie informed him
cheerfully. “We have counties and we’re in Lancashire in the north-west of
“
“Yes,” Lizzie smiled sympathetically at him; he did appear to be extremely
shocked at finding himself here and she felt very sorry for him. “You’re a very
long way from home, Mr Morton.”
You’re telling
me! Chip couldn’t quite take it in; the last thing he remembered
was….was what? To be honest he wasn’t
sure what he remembered; he had a vague feeling that he had been on Seaview but he wasn’t sure.
“Look,” Lizzie spoke suddenly, her soft voice firm and decisive.
“I can see that this has come as something of a shock to you. How about I fetch
you something to wear? I don’t think my husband’s clothes will fit you but you
could borrow his robe and then I’ll fetch you some coffee and we can talk about
how you came to be here and how we can get you home again.”
A husband?
She’s got a husband? Oh, help! What’s he going to think when he finds me here?
You’re in big trouble Morton! Chip closed his eyes again in
consternation. The last thing he felt like dealing with was an angry husband!
“It’s okay,” he heard that soft voice again as the woman correctly
interpreted his look of alarm. “Joe’s at work, kids too; this can just be our
little secret.”
Kids! She had
kids too. How on earth did he end up here? Chip opened
his eyes again and eyed her curiously. “You don’t by any chance happen to know
Lee Crane, do you?”
“Yes,” Lizzie nodded confidently.
“I knew it!” Chip spoke almost triumphantly. “This is all his
doing, isn’t it? Some sort of payback for a joke I’ve played in the past? Well,
I admit he’s got me this time but it’s gone far enough so you can just tell him
that the joke is over and I want my clothes back!”
“Oh, dear,” Lizzie eyed him worriedly. “I think you’ve got the
wrong idea, Mr. Morton. When I said that I knew Lee I didn’t mean that I know
him personally, just that I’ve heard of him, that I know who he is and although
you might think that he’s playing a joke on you I can assure you that isn’t the
case. I was just as shocked as you are when I found you here and it’s only
because I’ve always had this dream of meeting you for real that I haven’t
called the police!”
Chip Morton leant shakily against the tiled wall and studied
Lizzie’s face carefully. He still wasn’t sure that he believed her; she
certainly appeared to be speaking the truth and she had seemed very shocked to
find him there but what if Lee had gotten an actress to play games with him? It
was the only explanation that made sense. After all, he couldn’t possibly be in
“Shall I get you that robe?” Lizzie’s voice was kind, concerned
even and Chip stared at her in bemusement.
“Yes, please,” he nodded. “That would be great.”
“Okay,” Lizzie opened the door. “I won’t be a tick,” she smiled at
him. “You won’t go away, will you?”
“I don’t think so,” Chip managed to grin at her. “Not like this
anyway.” He indicated the towel that encircled his waist.
“No, I guess not,” Lizzie grinned back at him as she headed out
the door. “Still you do look dead sexy, better than I’d even imagined!”
And then she was gone leaving Chip staring after her as a hot
flush of embarrassment crept up his chest and neck to burn his pale face. Sexy! This woman…who was years older than
him and married to boot had imagined
him half-naked and thought he was sexy. Chip wasn’t sure if he was
flattered or not; the whole situation was so bizarre but one thing he did
know…if Lee had anything to do with this he would make sure that his best
friend lived to regret it!
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
“Are you sure that he’s going to be okay?” Captain Lee Crane
looked on worriedly as Seaview’s gentle,
amiable doctor checked the IV line in his patient’s left arm. “Surely, he
shouldn’t be so restless?”
“He’s fine,” Will Jamieson smiled patiently as he adjusted the
blankets covering the unconscious executive officer. “He’s probably dreaming or
something as he nears consciousness. He’ll be awake soon and demanding that I
let him out of here!”
Lee grinned at the doctor’s assessment of his best friend’s likely
reaction to finding himself incarcerated in Sickbay. Like Lee himself Chip
Morton had no patience with the doctor’s insistence that they take time out to
rest and recuperate when they were hurt or sick and, despite the serious head
injury he had received when Seaview had
been hit with some sudden and unexpected turbulence he would undoubtedly insist
that he was perfectly capable of going back to duty as soon as he woke up. Lee
looked down at his friend with compassionate eyes knowing that he was going to
be bored and frustrated when he finally woke up but longing for him to do so
that he could reassure himself that the serious concussion had not had any
long-term effects on his second-in-command. The doctor was confident that the
only effects would be short-term… a terrible headache, an ugly, swollen bruise
that covered the entire left side of Chip’s head, a lot of general bruising
across his body and a broken finger on his right hand. Willing to wait for as
long as it took Lee sat back in his chair and watched the changing expressions
that flittered across Chip’s face with amusement as his friend battled his way
back to full consciousness.
Chip Morton was feeling confused. He was dimly aware that he was
no longer cold and wet; in fact he was warm and dry and he could feel a sensation
of softness beneath his throbbing head and aching back which indicated that he
was in a bed somewhere but where? And where had the woman gone…the one with the
strange accent who insisted he was in
“L…..L…Lee?” Chip blinked, he was so confused. Where did Lee come
from? Had his conscience got the better of him and he’d come to rescue him from
the mystery lady? “Th…..th…that was…wasn’t f…f….funny, Lee.” His own voice was
thick and croaky, his tongue felt like sandpaper and when he tried to glare at
his friend the resulting pain made his eyes water but he struggled on,
determined to communicate his displeasure at what he perceived to be a huge
practical joke. “I’ll get my own back….on you….an…d on that w..w…wom..an!”
Lee Crane continued to hold on to his friend’s shoulders while
regarding him with quizzical concern.
What the hell
was he going on about? What did he think Lee had done? And what woman was he
referring to? Unwilling to distress his injured friend further
by engaging in an argument Lee spoke soothingly in a bid to calm him down as he
waited for the doctor to return from a badly timed visit to the head. “Its
okay, Chip; we’ll talk about it later, just lie still until Jamie gets back and
checks you out. You gave us all quite a scare you know getting knocked out like
that.”
Knocked out?
What the hell was Lee talking about? He hadn’t been knocked out, had he? And
where did Jamie fit into all this? It didn’t make
sense to Chip and he closed his eyes again suddenly aware that he didn’t feel
particularly well and that he didn’t have the strength to continue talking or
to fight Lee’s strong hold on his shoulders which kept him pinned to the bed.
“So, you’ve finally decided to come back to us, have you Chip?”
The calm, gentle voice of Seaview’s doctor
prompted the executive officer to open his eyes again. Lee had disappeared from
his line of vision and, instead, he looked up into the lined and kindly face of
Will Jamieson. What did he mean…come
back? Had he been in on the joke too? Chip was beginning to feel that he
couldn’t trust anyone anymore as Will continued, “That was a really nasty bump
you gave yourself, Chip. Had us all worried for a while but I think you’ll be
fine after a few days rest.” Without giving the increasingly confused exec a
chance to respond Will then stuck a thermometer into his mouth and shone a
light into his eyes with a lot of “mmming” and “ahhing” before taking his blood
pressure and removing the thermometer. “Well, you’ll be glad to know that apart
from a terrible headache, a lot of bruises and a broken finger you haven’t
sustained any serious damage,” Will smiled sympathetically at him. “Of course,
you’ll need to stay here for a few days rest and observation but if you do as
you’re told you should soon be feeling a lot better. I’ll just give you something
for the pain, Chip and then you can get some sleep.”
“I…I don’t underst..and,” Chip stuttered the words seemingly
oblivious to the doctor’s pronouncement that he would have to remain in bed for
a few days yet. “Did sh..she do this?”
“She?” Jamieson regarded him quizzically as he prepared a
hypodermic syringe with a strong painkilling drug. “I guess you could say that Seaview was responsible for your
injuries in a way but don’t worry about it, Chip. You just rest and we’ll talk
about it later.”
“No!” Chip protested weakly as the doctor stuck the needle in his
arm and proceeded to inject his bloodstream with some drug. “I can’t rest; I
want to know what happened to me.”
Will Jamieson sighed as he finished the injection and regarded his
patient with concern. “Do you not remember what happened, Chip?”
“No,” Chip resisted the temptation to shake his head as he looked
solemnly at the doctor. “Did I have an accident?”
“Yes,” Jamieson nodded. “Knocked yourself out in the shower.”
Chip blinked unsure he had heard correctly. “The sh…ower? Whose shower?”
“Yours of course,” Will resisted the temptation to smile at his
patient’s obvious bewilderment. “There was some unexpected turbulence and
unfortunately you were taking a shower at the time, must have hit your head on
the wall or the floor. You’re lucky that you were thrown clear of the cubical
or you could have drowned, water was still running when you were found.”
Chip stared at the doctor in utter confusion. He couldn’t quite
take it in and he was annoyed to think that he had been so easily hurt in such
a ridiculous way. He felt the pull of his eyelids drooping as sleep beckoned
and he fought against it to ask just one more question. “Who found me, Doc?”
“Kowalski, I think,” Jamie tucked the covers firmly around his
patient. “Don’t worry about it, Chip; you’re going to be fine and Seaview was undamaged so go to sleep and
give yourself a chance to heal. Lee had to go and see the Admiral but he’ll be
back to see you later and then you can ask him all the questions you want.”
Very reluctantly Chip obeyed the doctor’s orders and succumbed to
the sleep that beckoned him although his mind was a jumble of conflicting
thoughts and emotions. Was it possible he had dreamt everything? And if so
where had that lady come from? She was so real he was convinced he must have
met her somewhere but he didn’t remember.
When Chip awoke again after a long and healing sleep he found that
he did feel marginally better and very hungry so he was pleased to find that
the doctor allowed his head and shoulders to be raised against a pile of
pillows in preparation for a much anticipated meal. He wasn’t so pleased to
find that the so-called meal was only very milky oatmeal and that he wasn’t
allowed to feed himself.
“You keep this down and you can have some chicken later,” Jamie
said firmly. “And you need to keep your head as still as possible which you
can’t do if you’re feeding yourself so you accept my rules or you go without.”
Chip glared and winced as the action hurt his head; he absolutely
detested being treated like a very young child but knew if he voiced his
displeasure Jamie would only claim that he was acting like a very young child
so he kept quiet and ate the oatmeal with reluctant gratitude. His mood
brightened however when, towards the end of his meal, his best friend appeared
at the foot of his bunk.
“Oh, yuk, Jamie, hasn’t he suffered enough without you feeding him
that rubbish,” Lee spoke in disgust as he peered into the near empty bowl.
“Don’t you start,” Jamie said warningly as he handed Chip a
plastic beaker of water. “He doesn’t need you encouraging him to ignore my
orders. This is perfectly nourishing food and it’s all he’s getting no matter
what the pair of you say!”
“Sorry,” Lee assumed an air of contrition and winked at his
bedridden friend. “Is it okay for me to talk to him or will that harm his
recovery?”
“You know perfectly well its okay to talk to him,” Jamie said with
twinkle in his eye that belayed the stern tone of his voice, “but ten minutes
only and don’t go getting him excited.”
“I’ll be careful,” Lee grinned broadly as he sat down in the chair
the doctor had just vacated.
“It’s good to see you awake, buddy,” he grinned at his friend.
“How’d you feel now you’ve had Doc’s special breakfast?”
“Confused,” Chip ignored Lee’s attempt at humour and eyed him
seriously as he said, “Doc said I knocked myself out in the shower. Is that
true?”
“Of course it’s true,” Lee regarded him solemnly. “You should see
the bruise on the side of your head, Chip; you must have hit your head real
hard. I guess you don’t remember, that’s not unusual with head injuries, at
least you still recognise everybody.”
“Mmm,” Chip continued to look seriously at his friend. “And Kowalski
found me, right?”
“Correct,” Lee nodded. “When you didn’t show up in the Control
Room to see what was going on I figured you were probably in trouble so I sent
him to look for you. He found you out cold with your feet in the shower and the
rest of you on the floor.”
“And that’s it? There wasn’t anyone else with Kowalski?”
“Like who?” Lee questioned.
“Like….a woman,” Chip lowered his eyes unwilling to see the
laughter he was sure was on his friend’s face.
“A woman?!” Lee didn’t disappoint him. Even though he couldn’t see
his friend’s face he could hear the laughter in his voice. “Chip, we’re on a
submarine in the middle of the
“We’ve had female guests plenty of times,” Chip said defensively
as he raised his eyes again to see the laughter on his friend’s face.
“True, but we don’t have any visitors this trip,“ Lee regarded his
friend seriously. “You should know that, pal.”
“I don’t remember, “Chip was suddenly afraid. Although he knew who
he was and where he was he didn’t have a clue what their current mission was or
how long they had been at sea; his last clear memory was…was what? He wasn’t
sure and it frightened him. Was it possible that he had met this Lizzie person
sometime in his recent past and didn’t remember?
“What do you remember?” Lee asked with obvious concern.
“Have I been to
“No,” Lee shook his dark head, “but you’re planning to go there
for Christmas.”
“I am?” The look of astonishment on Chip’s face was so amusing
that Lee had to look away temporarily to get his own emotions under control.
“Yes, you are, Chip. Helen and Chris moved there for a year last month,
remember? You’re going to visit them for Christmas.”
Chip frowned heavily and closed his eyes as a memory fought to
surface through the painful fog that seemed to surround his brain. Of course,
his sister’s family had moved to
“I don’t think so,” Lee frowned thoughtfully. “Why?”
“Just wondered,” Chip shrugged and winced as the action caused to
shoot down his bruised back.
“You just wondered?” Lee’s tone of voice said he didn’t believe
Chip’s explanation. “Come on, Chip. You must have a reason for asking. You
couldn’t make a name like that up.”
Maybe not, Chip
thought ruefully but it appeared that his subconscious had. “It’s not
important, Lee and don’t nag me or Doc’ll throw you out; I’m not allowed to
have any stress.”
“Right,” Lee smiled and let the questions in his mind go although
he wondered if this Lizzie person was the woman Chip had referred to when he
first woke up. He had been very agitated and had almost accused Lee of being in
cahoots with some woman. Was that Lizzie? Lee had asked Jamie about it who had
said not to worry, it was just the head injury talking but still Lee wondered
what his friend had been dreaming about. However, he knew Chip’s stubborn mind
well and if he didn’t want to talk he wouldn’t; maybe when he had had a few
drinks he would let slip whatever he was hiding but for now Lee’s ten minutes
were up and he was anxious that his friend got the rest he needed. “Tell me
another time, Chip; I’ve got to go now before Jamie throws me out. You take
care and do as you’re told and I’ll come by and see you later and don’t worry
about the memory loss, it’ll come back and it’s not like you’ve forgotten
anything important, until your accident this was a very boring, routine trip!”
“I’m glad I managed to liven things up,” Chip muttered
sarcastically as Lee stood up to go. “Thanks for coming by, Lee. I do
appreciate it.”
As he watched his friend walk away Chip closed his eyes and saw
again the woman from his dreams. It was so strange that he could remember her
so clearly…her face, her voice, her smile…while being unable to recall anything
immediately prior to his accident. Still at least it was an accident and not
some elaborate joke that would have embarrassed him terribly if it had been
true. He wasn’t pleased to have been injured in such a freak accident but he
was relieved to know that his encounter with the mystery lady had all been in
his subconscious; maybe this Lizzie person was a friend of Helen’s, she was the
right age. He’d have to look through his sister’s letters and see if she
mentioned anyone called Lizzie, maybe someone she had met up with in
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Lizzie Higginbottom awoke slowly to find that, for some reason,
she was hugging her husband’s robe as if it was a giant soft toy. She wondered
how she had come to have hold of it when, suddenly, she remembered…the shower!
She had been fetching the robe for Chip Morton who was dripping wet in her
shower right now. How could she have fallen asleep? Quickly she leapt from the
bed and rushed to the bathroom but it was empty; there was no sign of Lieutenant-Commander
Morton. Lizzie sighed heavily and clutched the robe tightly as she surveyed the
neat and tidy bathroom; of course it had all been a dream…how foolish of her to
think it could have been otherwise but it had been so REAL, so life-like.
Desperately disappointed she turned to leave and, as she did, she noticed to
two things that made her stop and stare in astonishment…first the shower hose
had come away from its fixture and lay in a coiled heap on the floor of the
shower, secondly a blue towel, the exact same towel that she had given her hero
in the dream lay next to it wet and rumpled as if just moments before someone
had used and discarded it. Lizzie couldn’t quite take it in as she dropped the
robe on the floor and picked up the towel holding it close as she wondered
about her own sanity. Was it really
just a dream or had he really been here? How she wished she had taken a photo
and stolen a kiss before she had gone
to fetch the robe! What a memory and a keep sake that would have been! The
ringing of the telephone interrupted her thoughts and, reluctantly, she went to
answer it still clutching the towel. Whether it had been real or just a dream
she knew that she would treasure the memory and this towel for ever!