Disclaimer: None of them are mine, and I make no money off of them.
"They're looking at us again," Chakotay said in a low voice, eyes on his food, indicating the table behind them with the slight wave of a breadstick.
"So they are," Kathryn smiled, not turning around to see. She put down her fork and nibbled the tip of her breadstick as she leaned in conspiratorily. "They must have raised the stakes again."
"Stakes? On what?" he asked her curiously.
"Tom's betting pool. You know."
"Of course I've heard about his pool games and all of that- he'll bet on anything. But why is everyone suddenly so interested in the back of your head? Did you cut your hair in back or what?" he grinned playfully. "How did you find something out before me?"
She smiled. "Well, actually, Tuvok just told me all about it yesterday. I hadn't realized how much our officers gossip."
He pushed his plate away and leaned in closer.
"Well, what is it? It seems to me that it must be something if I haven't heard about it yet."
"You're going to laugh. I did," she told him.
"Cat got your tongue, Kathryn?" he teased her.
She swatted him playfully on the arm. Both broke into grins.
"Tom started one particular bet regarding the status of our relationship- you know, whether we're just friends or whatnot," she waved one hand dismissively, laughing softly. "They really have gotten to be worse than a knitting circle. Apparently, this particular bet became such a hot topic that that it caught Tuvok's attention, and he immediately came by to see me and told me all about it."
He looked a little dumbfounded.
"How did Tuvok find out about this before I did? I guess that's why they seemed to be watching our every move so carefully," he mused.
"Tuvok is my eyes and ears. He fills me in on everything quite faithfully," she explained, eyes twinkling that deep blue that he loved. "He's a bit of a gossip."
"Tuvok a gossip?" he asked in a funny tone.
"Back on Earth, we had brunch every Thursday, and while on the ship we just kept the date. Coffee and talking for hours- he's very good company- and sometimes we would play Kal'toh or chess. Still do, as regularly as clockwork."
As she talked, he watched her closely and went over in his mind everything she had said about that betting pool.
"Hey," she said gently, "Voyager to Chakotay, come in please. Are you alright? You look a million miles away."
He broke out of his reverie with a touch of embarrassment.
"Sorry. I was just thinking." He didn't want to explain to her some of the things that had just been running through his mind. She had apparently already dismissed the betting pool and their relationship, but a wonderful idea had just struck him. How to tell her, though?
"What is it?" she asked. "Oh- I'll be right back. Neelix promised me that special pot of coffee. Looks like it's done- want some?"
"No," he said distractedly, watching her move expertly across the floor towards the counter. She leaned up against it as she fell into cheery conversation with Neelix and received some of his 'Old Fashioned Blend'. As she returned to the table he didn't want to take his eyes off her. Unbeknownst to him, all of the crewmen were watching him watch her. She, on the other hand, was oblivious to all of the staring that was going on in the messhall. She sat and sipped her cup appreciatively.
"So- a penny for your thoughts," she offered. "You still have that faraway look."
"I was just thinking about how amazing it is that we ever became friends," he told her with a short laugh. "We're so different, and circumstances were so extraordinary. In many ways we're complete opposites."
"That's true, I suppose. I've never thought of it that way before," she acceded with a shrug, sipping her coffee. She looked at him quizzically. "In what ways were you thinking?"
"First off, you're Starfleet, I was Maquis. I was raised in a tiny Indian village on a small planet by a small tribe. You were raised on Earth with everything Federation and Starfleet around, and admirals popping in and out of your house before you were born. Worlds apart."
"Worlds apart. In fact, Admiral Hayes is godfather to my sister Phoebe, and Admiral Matheson is mine."
"Of course," he grinned. "You always showed very quick aptitude in the sciences and math, and you were accepted into the Academy straight out of high school, age 18. I, on the other hand, was a bit of a moody and rebellious child, who got into the Academy as a minority. It was more of an act of defiance towards my father, age 20, but once there I found I liked it a lot."
"Also true. Anything else?"
"While I traded in Starfleet for the Maquis, you had earned your own starship and a captaincy by your 30th birthday. We even look like opposites- you are of light complexion, smaller stature, and female. I'm of much larger stature and am very dark. I am most interested in people and history, you are drawn to science and stay on top of the future. I play an instrument, and you like to dance. You've got a dog and have had two fiancées, I never had a pet and have never had a really serious relationship like you have. I've never considered marriage."
Their eyes were locked and he could almost feel her thoughts settling around her like a thick veil that he couldn't see past.
"Well, I suppose you're right about all of that," she told him softly, showing her tender quirky half smile. She leaned forward again and played with her glass of ice water absentmindedly. "But fundamentally, we aren't all that different in our morals and such," she said, as if to assure him. "It's nice to have such a good friend with different opinions."
He bowed his head slightly, wondering that she could look so beautiful to him without even being aware of it. "That is also so," he answered her quietly, feeling almost peaceful. "We're very different, and get along so well. I've always admired and respected that in you, Kathryn. Always," He looked up into her eyes and held her gaze.
"I've always respected you too, Chakotay," she answered fondly, wondering at his sudden change in demeanor. "Somehow I don't think we'll ever run out of things to talk about; You'd better plan on sticking around for the next sixty years of our trip, or I'll get bored," she joked, patting his hand.
His hand quickly covered hers, and fit it inside his own much larger palm. She was a little surprised, but didn't say anything.
"Kathryn," he said, waiting for her to answer.
"Yes?" she said after a moment, seemingly lost in her own trailing thoughts.
"Let's give them something to talk about." He looked deeply into her eyes and squeezed her hand warmly.
"What?" She looked a little surprised.
"Something more than rumors."
She didn't respond right away, but found that her voice seemed to be caught in her throat and her breathing had become shallow. His eyes bored right into her own, as if he could see what she was thinking...
"Chakotay-" she breathed at last, only to be cut off.
"I love you, Kathryn. I always have," he told her urgently.
"Oh Chakotay-" she said again, tears welling up in the corners of her eyes. Her other hand came up to his and she held it for a moment, then brought it up to her cheek. "Always?" she asked with a hopefull half smile in a sotto voice.
"Always, Kathryn," he said huskily, feeling that a weight had been lifted off his chest. His arm hooked around her shoulders gently and pulled her into a kiss- a long and tender kiss that left her heart thumping and his pulse racing.
When she finally pulled back a little she placed her hand on his forearm and whispered, "I love you, too."
At the seeming oblivion of the Captain and Commander, the rest of the mess hall had fallen absolutely silent, and all eyes were glued upon the couple.
The applause began suddenly, and several cheers from the crowd carried over to the couple as they pulled away from one another with unmistakably flushing cheeks. Their hands remained interlocked on the table, meal largely untouched.
"What do you say we get out of here?" he asked her wryly, noting the apparent red of her cheeks and lack of anything to say.
She nodded with her quick quirky smile, and let him lead her out of the mess hall.
"It seems we've given them enough to talk about for one day," she commented amusedly. "Let's go."
People are talkin, talking 'bout people
I hear them whisper, you won't believe it
They think we're lovers kept under covers
I just ignore it, but they keep saying
We laugh just a little too loud
We stand just a little too close
We stare just a little too long
Maybe they're seeing, something we don't, Darlin'
Let's give them something to talk about
A little mystery to figure out
Let's give them something to talk about
How about love?
I feel so foolish, I never noticed
You'd act so nervous, could you be falling for me?
It took a rumor to make me wonder
Now I'm convinced I'm going under
Thinking 'bout you every day
Dreaming 'bout you every night
Hoping that you feel the same way
Now that we know it, let's really show it, Darlin'
Let's give them something to talk about
A little mystery to figure out
Let's give them something to talk about
How about love, love, love, love?
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