I have no idea where this story came from. I can't even remember if it fits in with the timeline, so there are probably continuity errors in here too. Sorry about that people. This story mainly involves B'Elanna and Vorik and centres on the aftermath of Joe Carey's death on the Engineering team. Vorik supervises the gamma shift in this story. It also comes from finding out Vorik could have been in Carey's place...

Last Meet

B'Elanna laid herself down on the table and exhaled noisily. It would take a bit to get up into an upright position without a struggle, but it helped ease her aching back to do so. Gently she rubbed her hand over her rounded belly where her child grew and waited.

Every Sunday she, Lieutenant Carey and Ensign Vorik got together and discussed the problems that occurred during their shifts and hung out afterwards for a while. Since those two were her best engineers since this journey began, they had, in soon order, become her two go to guys. Joe for the beta shift supervisor position and as her Assistant Chief Engineer, Vorik for the gamma shift supervisor.

On the occasional day when their hours changed (she always made sure they had at least one day a week at a different shift, to stave off boredom and to mingle with the others for good workmanship and morale) and Nicoletti took over for them, she got a written report from Sue.

Closing her eyes, she relaxed and waited. She, as was her usual routine, had come in two minutes early. Usually so would Joe, but considering the events earlier in the week...well, it couldn't be helped. They started it just to confuse Vorik when he arrived spot on the right time and found himself late anyway.

It had been one of their ongoing jokes. Even Vorik understood it as such and allowed it to continue.

Hearing the door open, she grinned and the words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. "Hey Joe, you're later than usual."

There was an awkward pause for a few seconds, before she got her reply. "I am not Lieutenant Carey. He is dead."

Always trust a Vulcan to be blunt. Still, Vorik was right. Joe was dead. She heaved herself up into a sitting position, got as comfortable as she was going to get and looked at her fellow engineer. "I know. I didn't mean to say that. I'm used to him arriving before you. Guess it's just habit now to greet him first."

Another pause, as Vorik walked properly into the room, the door sliding closed behind him. "I understand."

B'Elanna actually believed him. When it came to emotional matters such as these, she usually knew he was just saying that. This time he meant it. It was in the slight hesitation of which he said it that gave him away. She had learnt to read this particular Vulcan years ago. And one thing she knew after getting a good look at him was he was taking this about as well as the rest of the Engineering team. "You look awful."

He looked at her, before lowering his head. His tell for when he was being observed while in his version of an over emotional state. "I have been working both gamma and beta shifts. I have not had much time to rest."

Her jaw dropped. "What? Why?"

He looked back up at her and tipped his head slightly to one side. "You are under medical orders to work no more than your own Alpha shift. Joe's position has yet to be filled. Someone has to do it."

And she knew that he was beyond exhausted when he started using Joe's nickname instead of his rank and surname. Casual was bad, especially since she had been trying to break Vorik of that habit during these Sunday meets for the past 5 years.

She almost asked if he was alright, but knew she would get some form of affirmation, which, regardless of what he said, would be an outright lie. Vorik had been talking to Tom again, she could always tell. Instead she went another route. "We can do this tomorrow. Go get some sleep."

He frowned at that. "I am here now. There is no logic in delaying the meet."

She almost laughed at that. He was so tired right now he couldn't even work out the flaw in his own logic. That was a genuine first. She patted the table next to her. "Well, get up here then." She laid herself back down.

He walked over to the table, before slowly sitting on it. She scowled at him. "Don't make me order you to join me. Lie down, Ensign."

He sighed, but did as he was told. "Do not allow me to fall asleep on the table. It is uncomfortable."

"The point to this is not to have you fall asleep, though I do expect you to go lie down and get some after we're done."

He shifted into a more comfortable position, before turning his head to look at her. "Morale in beta shift has fallen. There is a definite marked drop rate in work speed and effort. Small mistakes are fixed during gamma shift which were not there at the end of your alpha shift."

She read between the lines. Beta shift, the people who were most used to working under Joe were grieving harder than the other shifts, as he was one of theirs. While used to working under her and Vorik as well, to have their main supervisor dead was a big blow.

That Vorik didn't catch the mistakes in Joe's shift and had to get them fixed during his own also said something. She hadn't even thought about it before. She frowned at Vorik and stopped herself from reaching out to grab the nearest clothed wrist. He wouldn't accept touch right then and there was no sense asking how he was coping. He'd just manage to weasel his way out of a straight answer. "You missed them during beta yourself. The small mistakes, I mean."

He sighed again and shrugged as best he could while lying down. "Everyone missed them."

"But you usually catch things like that. It's one of the reasons why your main shift is gamma. You fix what Joe and I missed."

He turned his head away from her, and she noticed that he was a bit green around the cheeks and ears. She grinned. "No need to blush, Ensign, it's a fact."

He didn't turn to face her again, but he shook his head. "It is not that. I still do catch the problems, I just do so during my own shift. My attention is not focused on the job during beta shift. That is not right. Especially at this time."

She would have patted herself on the shoulder if it wouldn't have given her away. "It's because of the timing that you aren't. That's normal, Vorik."

He did turn to look back at her then, and she watched him blink slowly as her words sunk into that brilliant brain of his. He shifted slightly, and she knew how uncomfortable he was with the sudden turn of the conversation to his emotional state.

"I have never..." he started but trailed off. The room they used for these meets fell into silence that was so thick the air seemed to be heavier to breath. It took her a full minute before she realised what he was trying to say.

"I have. You know this. The whole ship knows, especially after what happened last time."

Last time. When she got word that her Maquis comrades had been killed. She had known those people so well, lived with them, fought with them, and most had died.

She hadn't dealt with it and it had sent her into a deep clinical depression. If it wasn't for Chakotay she didn't know how she would have survived that time. Tom had also been understanding and so brilliant once he had learnt of her state.

"I do not know what to do."

She grinned at that, and if it wasn't for the baby bump being big now and in the way, she would have turned on her side and hugged him for his inexperience. He was only slightly younger than her in age, but oh so naive about the world in so many other ways, because for his species he was so damn young. "Yeah, no one does. One of those mysteries you just have to muddle through and hope you come out the other side. As harsh as this may sound, the fact that it is only one person is making it a whole lot easier for me to deal with. That I didn't know him before this whole thing started helps too. But he was still here since I got on board, and he's been my second since I got the position of Chief Engineer too. We've been having these meets since that was sorted out, before you joined in. He became a dear friend and I miss the hell out of him."

He shifted even more at that, before he chose to speak again. His voice quiet but ringing through the room. "I was meant to be on that mission. He took my place at the last minute, because of an interest in what was happening planet side."

She sat up at that and frowned down at him. "Guilt, Vorik? It's not your fault. If he had an interest while you didn't, then it was right you let him go. No one could predict what would happen down there. It just...happened."

He nodded up at her. "I know this. As I said, I am unsure what to do..."

B'Elanna stretched before resting her hands on her extended belly and stared at her best engineer. "Well, let's figure something out then. I need you now, you know, you're my best, and I need the best as my second. You may only be an Ensign, but the position Joe held is now yours. We need to figure out who should take over the beta shift. I still want you on gamma."

"Nicoletti has proven to been able to handle individual shifts."

"True, but is she ready to have a full time position in command?"

He didn't answer right away, so she looked down at him. His eyes were closed, and the way lines appeared between his eyes meant he wasn't asleep. Thinking then, perhaps? "Well?"

"Hmm?" he asked, and his face smoothed out and she realised that she had lost him for today. He was too tired to continue on.

She poked his chest with her fingers, nudging him to the point where he reopened his eyes. "Go to bed, you're falling asleep on the table."

He sat up and rubbed at his face, something she had never seen him do before. "Yes. That is...sound advice."

She grinned at that. "Which you're only now taking? What happened to doing this until it was done?"

He shrugged and ducked his head again. "I am overly tired."

Laughing she shook her head. "Admit it, your logic has holes a mile wide today. Go to bed Ensign. I expect you to be awake by gamma shift tomorrow, you're off for today."

He opened his mouth, possibly to argue about his shift as he hated having days off, before closing it with a click of teeth, nodding slightly and walking out of the room. Relaxing, B'Elanna smiled slightly. That was one obstacle gone, now to tackle the next, seeing if Sue was up to the role of supervisor or not.

Things were beginning to get back on track in Engineering.