Distant Shores - Marco Palmieri [49]
“That was me,” she said alighting.
“Nice job,” he said and meant it. He had assumed Neelix was on the platform for most of the night and so had been surprised when the Talaxian and Kes had taken the stage for their impromptu duet. “I figured you’d be down in the engine room with the warp core.”
“We got the problem more or less sorted out a couple hours ago. Now it’s just a question of bringing everything back online. We’ll have to do it slowly because of the possible cascade effect if we…” She tapered off. “You don’t really care about this, do you?”
Tom shook his head in the negative. “But I’m still surprised to see you. Pleased,” he added, “but surprised.”
“I felt a little guilty about messing up some of the acts.”
“Wasn’t your fault.”
“I’m the chief engineer,” she replied. “If something breaks down, ultimately it’s my fault.”
Tom rolled his eyes. “Now you sound like the captain. Is everyone on this ship hyperresponsible?”
“Everyone but you, apparently.”
“Hey!” Tom said, though he knew she was teasing (mostly). “I got this show together, didn’t I?”
B’Elanna looked at the now empty stage and nodded. “Yes, you did. And it was pretty good, too. Everything came together. I have to admit I especially liked Lauren’s number. The song was really appropriate.”
Tom found himself smiling, since the song had been his suggestion. Knowing that B’Elanna approved of it made its success even more satisfying.
“I saw Lauren leaving with… what’s his name? Michael?”
“Right.”
“They seem like a nice couple.”
He shrugged. “If you say so. They argue a lot.”
B’Elanna seemed to consider this, then said, “I’ve heard that. I guess I’m a little surprised that you two didn’t… hit it off.”
A little surprised by the change of topic, Tom found the only response he had ready was the truth. “I considered suggesting the idea,” he admitted. “But when the moment came, I decided it would be a little like… Well, if I had a sister, it would be like dating my little sister. You know what I mean?”
B’Elanna wore a startled expression for a moment, but then she laughed loudly. “Yes,” she said. “I understand exactly what you mean.” Then, she looked around the holodeck, which was littered with props and production debris. If anyone was going to use the deck anytime in the near future, someone would need to shift around the physical artifacts that lay strewn about. “You need some help cleaning up?”
Tom seemed mildly astonished by the offer. “Don’t you have to get back to the engine room?”
“Eventually,” B’Elanna said. “But Joe is on the job. I doubt if I’d be able to do much more than get in the way.” This sounded to Tom like a lie, but he didn’t feel inclined to make her tell the truth.
“To be honest,” Tom said, “I was going to pull up Sandrine’s before I got started and play a game of pool.”
“I would consent to stay here and kick your butt in pool before we got to work.”
“Oh, really?” Tom asked dubiously.
“Really.”
“Pretty sure about this, aren’t you?”
B’Elanna grinned and Tom saw in her eyes that, yes, she was. Oddly, so was he.
Letting Go
Keith R.A. DeCandido
This tale is set across the second, third, and fourth seasons of Star Trek: Voyager.
Keith R.A. DeCandido
This is Keith R.A. DeCandido’s second piece of Voyager fiction, the other being the first half of The Brave and the Bold Book 2; amusingly enough, neither story takes place in the Delta Quadrant. He has written many Star Trek novels (from 2001’s Diplomatic Implausibility to 2004’s A Time for War, a Time for Peace), novellas (from 2001’s Horn and Ivory in Gateways: What Lay Beyond to 2004’s Ferenginar: Satisfaction Is Not Guaranteed in Worlds of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Volume Three), eBooks