Summary: Extensive repairs are keeping couples apart, and everyone's getting a bit antsy! A humorous little one-shot set in season seven. J/C in an established relationship.
As much as I love all things Star Trek, I've never written fan fiction for it before. I usually write Bones stories, which I'll be returning to soon, but I wanted to give this a try first. I was going to set it after Kirsten Beyer's brilliant novel The Eternal Tide, but there were too many spoilers creeping in for those who haven't read it yet, so I set it in season seven instead.
I love getting reviews and I'll always reply to them if possible.
Seated at his office desk, Chakotay sighed as he tossed aside yet another PADD containing one of the many reports he was required to review as first officer of the Starship Voyager. He reached for his mug of herbal tea, only to wrinkle his nose in disgust when he realized it was stone cold. Stifling a yawn, Chakotay stood and turned to his replicator, intent on channeling his lover's habit and ordering some coffee to keep himself awake through the stack of reports still on his desk.
He smiled when he thought of Kathryn, who he hadn't seen for more than a few minutes a day for the last few weeks. They had begun their relationship over a year ago, and moved in together three months later. Everything had been going well until several weeks earlier, when the ship had been attacked by a hostile and territorial race known as the Gatrahr. They had barely managed to escape destruction, and repair teams had been working around the clock to repair the ship's systems. Given the extent of the damage, all available crewmembers had been drafted into the repair crews – including the captain.
Always one who liked to muck in and get her hands dirty, Kathryn had elected to delegate most of the routine command duties to Chakotay while she assisted B'Elanna in engineering; an area of the ship which had been hit particularly hard during the attack. Given the amount of time she was spending there, Chakotay was beginning to worry that she wasn't taking proper care of herself. The few times he had been able to catch her alone she had looked completely exhausted and in dire need of a solid meal and a good night's sleep – neither of which she was likely to allow herself until the ship was back in full working order.
Resolving to go down to deck eleven after his shift and insist that Kathryn take a break and have dinner with him, Chakotay opened his mouth to make his request to the replicator. Before he could complete the order, however, a chime at the door interrupted him.
This better not be another damned report. Chakotay thought.
"Come in," he called out, wearily.
An equally tired-looking Tom Paris stepped into the room. Chakotay sighed as he caught sight of the PADD in Paris's hand. Apparently, he wouldn't be talking to Kathryn as soon as he had hoped.
Paris held out the PADD to him. "Here's the latest conn report. We seem to be in a pretty quiet area of space now that we're out of Gatrahr territory, so we should be fine to stay on this course while we continue repairs."
Chakotay nodded and took the PADD, glancing at it briefly before putting it down on his desk with the others.
"Thanks, Tom. I'll get to it eventually."
Expecting Paris to leave his office, Chakotay moved back to the replicator and ordered a cup of coffee. The loud sigh from behind him caused him to turn around again.
"Was there something else, Lieutenant?"
Paris paused for a moment, looking as if he were debating whether or not to express what was on his mind. Evidently deciding that he would, he moved closer to Chakotay's desk.
"Honestly? Yeah, there is. I've barely seen my wife in three weeks! She's practically moved into engineering, and the only times I do see her she's in a foul mood."
Considering the thoughts he had been having regarding Kathryn before Paris came in, Chakotay could certainly sympathize with the younger man's frustration. He took a sip of his coffee as Paris continued.
"Yesterday I dared to ask her if she had time for a quick lunch before I went on shift. In response I got a five minute lecture on every problem she's been having with the repairs, along with a list of insults and complaints about a certain former Borg and her insistence on trying to make the whole process more efficient."
Chakotay had to chuckle at that. Seven did have a knack for rubbing B'Elanna the wrong way, particularly when it came to the running of engineering.
"To top it all off," Paris went on, his exasperation becoming increasingly evident, "she completely bit my head off when I suggested that the reason she's so on edge right now might have something to do with the fact that we haven't had sex in three weeks!"
Chakotay paused with his cup halfway to his mouth and raised an eyebrow at Paris's candor. "Thanks for the update, Tom."
Paris smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. It's just that I'm used to having more rendezvous with B'Elanna, and this lack of sex is driving me crazy!"
His voice taking on a conspiratorial tone, Paris grinned at Chakotay. "You must know what I mean, right? When was the last time you and the captain …"
Chakotay's intense glare cut him off mid-sentence. "Don't even go there, Lieutenant. It's none of your damned business."
Paris held up his hands in surrender and backed up several paces. "Okay, okay, don't take your sexual frustration out on me! I've got enough of my own to deal with, remember?"
Chakotay sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. While enquiring about his commanding officer's private life was technically out of line, Chakotay couldn't argue with what Paris was saying. He had to admit to being rather frustrated himself.
Funny, he thought, I managed to get by for over six years sleeping alone, and now I can't go three weeks without the aid of cold showers and a heavy workload to distract me.
Sighing again, he relented. "Fine. You have a point, but until these repairs are complete and everything's back to normal there's not a lot we can do about it. For now, I suggest you distract yourself with your duties," he gestured towards his desk and the dozen or so PADDs scattered across it, "that's what I'm going to do."
Paris sighed in agreement and headed for the door. "I guess you're right. I'm going to stop by engineering first and see if I can coax B'Elanna out from under the warp core with some banana pancakes. Maybe if I'm lucky she'll think it's sweet and forgive me for yesterday."
Chakotay chuckled as Paris left the room. He sat himself behind his desk and picked up the nearest PADD. It was going to be a long night.
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After finally fighting his way through the last of the reports, Chakotay wearily made his way back to the quarters he shared with Kathryn. Walking through the sliding doors he headed straight for the bedroom, fully expecting to find it unoccupied. It was therefore with surprise when he entered the room and could make out Kathryn's sleeping form in the dim light cast by the stars outside the window. Moving closer, Chakotay saw that the bed covers had become tangled around Kathryn's waist, where several inches of her creamy skin were visible where her dusky pink camisole had ridden up. Her hair was mussed as though she had been repeatedly running her fingers through it, making Chakotay's own fingers itch to touch it. Her chest rose and fell with her breathing, causing Chakotay's eyes to gravitate towards her breasts. Shifting his pants uncomfortably, he sighed heavily when he realized that Kathryn's chest was not the only thing to be rising at that moment.
Tearing his eyes away from the alluring woman in his bed, Chakotay made his way to the bathroom. Emerging a few minutes later, he tried not to look at Kathryn while he quickly dressed for bed and slipped under the covers carefully in an attempt not to disturb her. As though instinctively realizing he was there, Kathryn rolled towards him and snuggled against his side, draping one of her smooth legs across his thighs while her right arm settled on his chest. Her proximity immediately had the effect of reigniting the fire in his groin which he been trying to suppress since he had first walked into their bedroom. He shifted slightly in an attempt to move away from her, which only caused her to hold onto him more tightly. He groaned as her thigh brushed up against his erection. The sound of his frustration coupled with his movements was enough to wake Kathryn from her slumber.
"Chakotay?" Turning her sleepy eyes up to his face, she looked at him quizzically. "Is something wrong?"
Chakotay rubbed her back reassuringly. "No, everything's fine. I just got in from my shift. I wasn't expecting to find you here."
"I would still have been down in engineering," she replied, rubbing one hand tiredly across her eyes, "but Tom came down and managed to convince B'Elanna to take a break. Something about banana pancakes, so I decided to grab a few hours of sleep while I could."
Chakotay smiled, amused that Paris's ploy to earn his wife's forgiveness had succeeded.
Shifting her position in an attempt to get more comfortable, Kathryn opened her mouth to say something else, but stopped short when her knee brushed against Chakotay's prominent erection.
Raising her eyebrows, she looked at him incredulously. "Are you serious, Chakotay? Have you any idea how tired I am right now?"
Chakotay sighed, irritated at her annoyance over something he couldn't control.
"Look, I'm not expecting anything," he replied, "but I can't exactly help it. It's been weeks since we've been together, and I've been taking cold showers in the mornings for at least the last two."
Kathryn's face softened at his explanation. "I know. I'm sorry. But we agreed that the ship and crew should always come first, and right now I'm really needed in engineering."
Chakotay could hardly argue with that, yet it didn't stop the feelings of arousal still pulsing through his body in response to her nearness.
Seeming to sense his predicament, Kathryn asked. "Would it be easier if I slept on the other side of the bed?"
Imagining how hard, literally and figuratively, it would be for him to sleep with Kathryn's body pressed up against him in his current state, Chakotay reluctantly replied. "I think that might be best."
Smiling slightly and dropping a quick kiss on his cheek, Kathryn turned over and shuffled to the other side of the bed, as far away from Chakotay as she could possibly get in the confined space.
Sighing in resignation, Chakotay rolled over onto his side so he was facing away from Kathryn, and closed his eyes in an attempt to fall asleep.
Five minutes later, they were both still wide awake.
Chakotay was still battling with his erection; while Kathryn, as exhausted as she was, found that her own arousal had surged to life in response to Chakotay's obvious need for her.
Well, it had been awhile.
Suddenly making a decision, Kathryn rolled onto her back and broke the tension filled silence. "Well, now I definitely can't sleep."
"Oh thank God!" Chakotay was on top of her before she could blink and was kissing her passionately.
As Chakotay pulled her camisole over her head Kathryn smiled and thought to herself. I should stay away more often …
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This is probably the shortest story I've posted here and the first for Voyager, so I would really appreciate some reviews to let me know how I did. I thought about extending it but decided to leave it here, at least for now.
Thanks for reading and I hope you liked it!