Disclaimer: I own nothing. REALLY wish I owned the original idea for Janeway though (sigh...)

WARNING: M rated for later J/C content. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

Please Review :)

They talked far into the night, each becoming more and more convinced that they were made for each other. Hours passed before they became tired, and decided to go to bed. Chakotay walked into his room, and placed his head in his hands in relief of what had happened- she finally knew about his feelings for her. He changed and, after turning onto his side, fell into a peaceful sleep.

Kathryn, however, was finding sleep harder to find. She tossed and turned, trying to get comfortable, but was unable to relax. After almost an hour of trying, she got up again, and walked across the shelter to Chakotay's room, where he was sleeping peacefully. She watched him, the way his chest rose and fell slowly, and evenly; the untroubled look on his face as he dreamed. It occurred to her that she could have watched him sleep for hours, and she sighed, finally content.

Chakotay jerked awake, the sound she made cutting through his slumber and bringing him back into reality. Kathryn saw him stir, and silently chided herself for waking him.

She turned to leave, hoping that he hadn't seen her.

"Kathryn, wait." She looked back at him; he had sat up, and was looking straight at her with those smoldering dark brown eyes.

Her breath caught as she realized just why she had always been so attracted to those two bark brown eyes.

They're the exact color of black coffee.

Kathryn hesitated slightly before she walked back, and sat down on the bed by his knees. Chakotay registered the concern on her face, and placed his left hand on her cheek.

"What's wrong?"

"I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking about what you said."

"Kathryn, I don't expect anything from you. I can appreciate it if you wait for Mark. I just thought you had a right to know."

"I understand. But Mark won't have waited this long for me. He knows that, if anything were to happen to me I would want him to be happy, and I hope that he would do the same for me."

"What do you mean?"

"I hope that Mark would be able to be happy for me if I found somebody else that I could love." Kathryn looked up at Chakotay, and he saw the sadness in her navy blue eyes.

"Do you still love Mark?"

"No. Not anymore. I think I'm starting to fall for you instead." Kathryn had no idea where the words had come from, but as soon as she had said them, she knew that they were true.

Chakotay looked at her, trying to comprehend what she had just admitted to.

Kathryn blinked, tears welling up as she realized that this was true, she did care for Chakotay, and in a way that was completely different from her feelings about Mark. She began to turn away from him, but Chakotay grabbed her arm, and she looked back at him, the concern for her painfully clear in his dark eyes. A tear rolled down her cheek, and she tried to stifle a sob, but Chakotay still heard it.

"If you ever need anything, Kathryn. And I mean anything…" his voice trailed off as he saw the tears fall, and a deep silence filled the space between them. She sobbed again, and Chakotay pulled her against him, wrapping his strong arms around her as her shoulders shook and the emotional burden of the past eighteen months was released.

He kissed the top of her head as she cried against him, holding her tight against his warm chest. Soon her sobs began to quieten, and she relaxed into his embrace, soothed by the slow, deep sound of his breathing.

Kathryn raised her head, her blue-grey eyes, now slightly puffy and swollen from crying, found his dark gaze and she realized something that had been fighting its way to the front of her brain ever since the two of them had been stranded on New Earth.

I feel safer with him than I have with anyone else I have ever met, she thought to herself. With anyone I shall ever meet.

I'm not falling for him... I've already fallen for him.

Before she had time to think, she had pressed her lips to his...

To be continued...