Title: A Future's Beginning
Summary: Episode addition to "Future's End, Part 1." Slightly AU. Proto-P/T.
Rating: T
A/N: Partly inspired by the song, "A Chance" by Kenny Chesney.
1996. Earth. Los Angeles, California.
Tom Paris took off his outer shirt and deftly tucked it into the back pocket of his jeans, disregarding Tuvok's droning on about dermal dysplasia due to the hazardous levels of thermal and ultraviolet radiation. Spoilsport. Nothing that Doc couldn't fix with a few passes of a dermal regenerator.
Just because they were on an important mission didn't mean he couldn't enjoy himself in the process. He'd always wanted to visit the 20th century, and he was eager to take in as much as possible.
As they made their way along the beach, Tom wished B'Elanna were here with him instead of Tuvok. He would have much preferred her company. But she'd had to stay on board Voyager to repair the power grid.
B'Elanna would have appreciated the warm weather. He'd noticed that she preferred warmer temperatures.
He could picture her upturned face, eyes closed, enjoying the sunlight. The wayward ocean breeze disarranging her dark hair.
Lately he'd found himself thinking about her constantly.
He wished she could see all this. The beach boardwalk with the vintage carousel and the aquarium. The bustling video game arcade, the carnival games and the food stalls selling cotton candy, ice cream and funnel cakes. Street artists and performers attracting attention, colorful characters abounding everywhere. The startling sight of people casually leaning over the railing and fishing off the end of the pier. Bikers and rollerbladers speeding down the trail along the beach. Young couples with their arms around each other, drawing hearts in the sand with their initials inside.
He'd love to take her on a ride of the Ferris wheel at sunset. The view of the sun sinking into the Pacific Ocean, surrounded by pink and orange clouds, with the light shimmering off the reflected water, would be spectacular and incredibly romantic.
Or maybe he'd take her on the roller coaster. Nothing like a surge of adrenaline to enhance the mood.
On the pier, he'd seen a poster announcing free outdoor summer concerts and movies. He could imagine the two of them sitting on the beach on a blanket together, his arm draped around her shoulders, listening to music under the warm, starry summer sky.
They could stroll past the swaying palm trees to the water's edge, hand in hand, dipping their feet in the cool water. From there they could watch the surfers catch the waves, observe the seals sunning themselves on top of the rocks near the pier, and look for dolphins submerging and re-emerging in the deeper waters.
Even better, they could wander under the boardwalk and take advantage of the quiet and privacy there.
She'd look stunning in beachwear. He couldn't help but imagine B'Elanna in a string bikini like several of the women on the beach and even on the boardwalk were wearing.
Tom sighed inwardly. What was the point of fantasizing when she'd turned down all of his invitations so far?
At first, he'd felt confident in his powers of persuasion.
B'Elanna hadn't shown any lasting interest in any man on Voyager. Ensign Murphy in the science division had briefly caught her eye two years ago, but Murphy had seemed oblivious.
He'd thought the field was wide open.
She'd grown comfortable around him over the past two years. As senior officers, they had to work together frequently. And since they were both close friends with Harry, they'd spent a lot of time off-duty together as well. He'd gradually earned her trust as a valued colleague and friend.
But not as a potential romantic partner. Yet.
Still, he'd thought he had plenty of time and was comfortable with moving slowly. He'd been making steady progress, or so he'd thought.
Until Ensign Freddie Bristow had come along, hanging around her like an overgrown puppy dog.
Initially, Tom hadn't viewed the young, earnest ensign as any kind of serious competition – certainly nothing to be alarmed about.
But then B'Elanna had gone and accepted Bristow's invitation to the holodeck to play Parrises Squares. Normally Parrises Squares was played with two teams of four people each, but on Voyager it was difficult to coordinate that many people who were willing and able to play at the same time. They'd played with holographic team members instead of trying to find others to join them.
It had sounded fairly innocuous, but Tom knew how things could get when you were alone on the holodeck with someone of the opposite sex.
He'd been surprised when she'd taken Bristow up on his offer. As far as he knew – and he'd been keeping careful track – B'Elanna had never agreed to a one-on-one outing on the holodeck with any man before, except Chakotay and Harry. And Tom certainly wasn't worried about competition from them.
So why Bristow? Did it mean that she actually liked him, that he actually had a chance with her?
Bristow was just attractive enough for Tom to feel uneasy. He felt insecure. Possessive. He knew he had no right to feel that way but he couldn't help it.
Then he and B'Elanna had been assigned to take a shuttle out to find the source of the energy readings Voyager had detected. He'd been given a golden opportunity to spend hours alone with her on an easy, routine mission. The chance to have meaningful conversation and deepen their relationship. And what had he done instead?
After hours on the shuttle of feeling incredibly awkward and racking his brain for the right thing to say, he'd panicked and lost his head.
He hadn't been able to stop the stupidity emanating from his mouth, yammering on about how tall and good-looking Bristow was, and his rumored prowess at Parrises Squares.
He could almost hear her thinking, "If you think he's so appealing, why don't you go out with him?"
He'd felt immensely relieved when she'd spoken of Bristow so dismissively.
He should have quit while he was ahead. He'd wanted to know how she felt about Bristow, and that should have been enough. But then she'd asked him, "Why are you so interested?" And that had put him on the defensive.
In one fell swoop he'd proceeded to interrogate her about her love life, insult her Klingon heritage and her sexual proclivities in the same sentence, then magnanimously offer himself up as the obvious remedy to her prolonged celibacy, as though that were a condition that needed to be rectified immediately.
Real smooth, Paris, he'd berated himself after the words had tripped out of his mouth. He couldn't possibly have been more offensive. You might as well just have asked her to knock boots with you in the back of the shuttle, while you were at it.
He knew how much she hated being reminded that she was part-Klingon, and how she hated it even more when anyone judged her according to Klingon stereotypes.
That had been a particularly low blow.
Why did he feel the need to provoke her? What had possessed him to insinuate that there was something wrong with her?
His only defense was that being near her made his brain function at less than optimal capacity.
He'd intended to tease her and banter flirtatiously. He hadn't been trying to undermine her confidence, or intrude on her privacy or manipulate her. But he had to admit it had kind of come across that way.
He didn't actually think that was the way to get her to notice him. More like drive her away.
She'd shown remarkable restraint, considering the circumstances. It was a wonder she hadn't decked him and broken his nose.
Maybe that was actually an indication of how highly she regarded him. If it had been anyone else, she probably would have lost her temper.
All she'd said was that it was none of his business. Which was perfectly true.
Thankfully the alien swarm had returned and zapped them unconscious with neuroelectric weapons before he could do any worse damage, like confess he'd turned into a jealous, lovesick fool and beg and plead desperately until she agreed to go out with him.
They hadn't had much opportunity to talk since then. They'd been too preoccupied with Ferengi, the Enarans and then the Nechani.
And she'd been avoiding him.
At this point he doubted if he could even get her to agree to a game of hoverball on the holodeck with him.
All he'd been able to get her to agree to was lunch in the Mess Hall. Usually with Harry. And though he generally enjoyed spending time with Harry, it was difficult to get romantic with B'Elanna with Harry in the way.
He had to regroup and re-strategize. He just had to figure out a way to recover from the debacle on the shuttle.
His next plan was to invite her to dinner in the Mess Hall at a private table in a secluded corner.
Then maybe he could suggest the holodeck again if that went well. He could even create a holoprogram of this very beach boardwalk.
That would have to wait until they figured out this mess, though.
"There they are," Tuvok said, interrupting his thoughts. He caught sight of Captain Janeway and Chakotay, who were motioning to them to join them.
They had finally tracked down Captain Braxton.
Tom perused the menu displayed high on the wall above the counter in the dining establishment where they were ordering food for lunch. He and Tuvok had been arguing for a while about the best way to procure a vehicle so they could get up to Griffith's Observatory. Tom wanted to just "borrow" a car from a dealership and return it later, but that didn't sit well with Tuvok.
They were at an impasse. They had passed several car dealerships, but Tom was familiar enough with 20th century automobiles to recognize that expensive brands meant a high level of security. And in this area, they were expensive indeed. BMW. Lexus. Mercedes. Fiat.
At least he had managed to convince Tuvok to take a short break for lunch. They still had to eat. Then they could figure out the next step.
Good thing they'd replicated some local currency before beaming down. Enough to get some food, anyway. Tom couldn't wait to try some authentic 20th century food.
He ordered, then stepped outside to wait. Tuvok was still trying to decide what he wanted, but Tom didn't feel like waiting around inside. Not when the weather was so excellent outdoors. He'd observed that most people were waiting outside and went back in to pick up their food when their order numbers were called out through the speakers mounted on the eave of the roof.
Tom figured Tuvok would have to give in to his plan eventually. There was no way they'd be able to walk to the observatory, and they were running out of time. Tuvok was starting to realize that. They just needed to find a dealership with cheaper cars, where the security would be more lax.
In the meantime, he was going to enjoy the sunny afternoon and warm temperatures. This was his one chance to really experience this era, and he was going to savor every moment of it for as long as he could. There were many eateries nearby, and they were all crowded with hungry diners. It made for excellent people-watching.
At the restaurant next door, a lively young woman caught his eye. She was slender and petite, with dark curly hair. Her friends clamored around her. They were all dressed smartly in crisp white uniforms.
She looked radiantly happy, which was probably why he'd noticed her.
He caught a glittering flash of light as she waved her left hand animatedly. The object on her finger sparkled as it caught the sunlight.
"He finally proposed!" he overheard her announce joyfully to the restaurant staff.
The women all milled around her, excitedly chattering and squealing. She proudly displayed her hand for them to "ooh" and "ahh" over.
Proposed what? he wondered.
Then Tom vaguely recalled that in the 20th century in America, men proposed marriage to their women with a diamond engagement ring.
She was beaming, and he found that he couldn't take his eyes off her. She looked familiar somehow.
But that was impossible.
She turned in his direction, and he suddenly realized why she seemed familiar. She reminded him a little of B'Elanna in human form, as he'd seen her when she'd been separated into two by the Vidiians. This woman was younger, with much curlier hair, but there was a slight resemblance there.
He'd never seen that expression of unguarded joy on B'Elanna's face, though.
He wished he could. She looked even more beautiful whenever she smiled. It took his breath away every time.
The young lady turned back to her friends, obscuring her face from his view again.
Tom shook his head and smiled. He was being fanciful.
He couldn't even get through lunch without thinking about B'Elanna. Even here on Earth in 1996, seeing a young dark-haired woman only reminded him of her.
It must have just been my imagination, he decided. He'd only seen her for a brief moment, after all.
His stomach rumbled, and he frowned impatiently. He idly wondered what was taking so long for his food to be ready. He then realized he'd been spoiled by replicators providing meals instantaneously, and even by Neelix's cooking constantly available in the Mess Hall.
He also wondered why Tuvok hadn't come out yet, before realizing that the Vulcan was probably waiting inside to reduce exposure to radiation. He suspected Tuvok was just determined to be contrary. After all, Vulcan had far harsher climates, hotter temperatures and a thinner atmosphere than Earth did. Maybe Tuvok had become too accustomed to living in comfort after serving on Federation starships for so long.
"Colin!"
Tom's attention returned to the young woman when he heard her delighted cry. He turned around again in time to see her greet her fiancé, who'd just arrived with several of his friends. The man embraced her warmly and kissed her tenderly.
The balding older man behind the counter in the restaurant came out and grabbed his hand, then shook it vigorously.
"Congratulations, Dr. Mitford!" he said in a booming voice that carried. "Yolanda just told us the good news about your engagement! We're so happy for you both! Lunch is on the house today!"
The young man had his back towards Tom. All he could tell was that the man was much taller than his fiancée and had far lighter coloring.
The couple finally sat down at a table with their friends, and the restaurant staff began bringing out plates of food for them all.
Tom did a double-take as he finally caught a glimpse of the young man's face. He looked just like a younger version of himself. He was wearing a white lab coat that was reminiscent of the blue lab coats that Starfleet medical doctors sometimes wore.
Of course, Tom realized. On their way here, he and Tuvok had passed by a building labeled "Hospital." The young couple must be a doctor and nurse who worked at the hospital nearby, taking their lunch break at their favorite restaurant.
He wasn't aware of any ancestors of his named Mitford, but he'd have to search his family tree in the database more carefully sometime.
It was a good thing he hadn't gotten too close to the young woman earlier. If she'd seen him, she would have probably confused him with her fiancé at first then fainted on the spot once she'd realized he had a doppelganger.
Tom surreptitiously eased behind a nearby planter so they wouldn't look up and see him accidentally. Not that it mattered. They were so caught up in each other that they didn't notice anything else. Their hands were clasped, and they were staring into each other's eyes and talking softly.
As he watched the happy young couple together, his heart ached.
This young man, who looked exactly like him, had his whole life in front of him. He had a successful career as a doctor, good friends, and a beautiful woman who loved him and had agreed to marry him.
Meanwhile, after countless attempts, Tom couldn't even get B'Elanna to agree to one single date on the holodeck.
Tom couldn't help but envy Colin.
When he got back to Voyager and the 24th century, he would re-double his efforts, he vowed. Some way, somehow he would win B'Elanna over.
He just had to.
He wanted to make her as happy as Colin made Yolanda.
One day, someday, in the future, he would.
If only she'd let him.
The End!
Author's endnote: This story was inspired by photos of Roxann in "Nightingales" and Robbie in "Going to Extremes," their previous TV roles before Voyager. In her series, she was a nursing student in Los Angeles. In his series, he was a medical student on an island in the Caribbean. I thought, what if he went to Los Angeles to complete his medical residency? And what if he met a certain beautiful young nurse who also happened to be working at that hospital? This story wrote itself after that. I haven't seen either series, so photo inspiration only.
For the purposes of this story, I'm assuming the hospital is UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica (formerly Santa Monica Hospital), and the dealership that Tom and Tuvok "borrowed" the Dodge Ram from is the Santa Monica Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Dealership since they were at Santa Monica Pier in the beginning of the episode.