This week has been emotionally draining on a lot of levels, but I'm kind of figuring that's the new normal at this point. I did manage to update on time and should continue to do so.

In news I do go back to university on the 28th so while updates will remain regular I won't be able to respond to as many comments as often or as fast as I have previously.

Chapter 4 is a tad bit shorter then I'd have liked but it serves it's purpose, which is to introduce Trip slowly into T'Pol's new world. Once again if you have any questions or just want to leave a review that would be great! I love hearing from you guys, it seriously makes my day most of the time.

- Galia

Chapter 4

One by one the knots we've tied will come undone.
Like picking locks, we'll sow our seeds beneath the sun.
Our accomplice is the rain,
With patience, that of saints

It grows and grows,
Our home sweet home.

-From the Ground Up by Sleeping At Last

Trip had been waiting all weekend for this lunch date and when Monday rolls around her finds himself more nervous then he'd anticipated. That morning he spends almost half an hour trying to decide what to wear before realizing he'll have to come in uniform anyway. His unnecessary indecisiveness leaves him having to rush to get out the door upon realizing he's running late.

As he's walking out the door his phone rings, he checks the contact, T'Pol. He answers it as he's skipping down the stairs two at a time in an attempt to make the next bus.

"Hey T'Pol, what's up?" He asks, pushing the door open and stepping out onto the street.

"Trip, I am very sorry to call on such short notice." T'Pol says, she sounds sniffly and sick.

"It's fine." Trip says. "You okay?"

"Unfortunately that is why I am calling." T'Pol says. "Kuvok and I seem to have caught a head cold, he's having to stay home from daycare as he has a fever, I will not be able to attend our planned lunch."

Trip's heart sinks, he'd been looking forward to having lunch with T'Pol this afternoon, but it's not like she can control having a sick kid at home. "Oh, I'm sorry about the sick kid. It's fine about lunch we can reschedule."

"I really am sorry." T'Pol insists, "I would like to reschedule, perhaps I can call later in the week when he's well?" She sounds exhausted and it gives Trip an idea, both to help her out and to be able to see her today.

"That's fine with me." Trip smiles. "You want me to bring you and the kid some soup at lunch time?"

T'Pol hesitates. "Would it be too much trouble?"

"Course not," He grins, "You're sick, you got a kid to take care of. I'll bring somethin' from the Vulcan compound by."

"Thank you Trip, it would be helpful." She admits. "I will send you my address, Kuvok may be napping so don't ring the bell, knock."

"Got it." Trip grins. "I'll see ya around noon." He hangs up the phone and jogs the rest of the way to the bus stop, getting there just in time to catch the bus to work. As he's taking a seat he hears himself receive the message with T'Pol's address.

605 A, Building C, River View Apartments, Bay Street.

Trip is once again stunned, she's less then a mile away from him. She's been here 6 whole weeks, working in the same building as him and living less then a mile away and yet he never saw her before Thursday. He shakes his head it seems too strange to be true, every day he was in the same building as T'Pol, and until Hoshi took him for coffee he never saw her or even heard her name. He'll have to remember to thank Hoshi, if she hadn't taken him for coffee he could've missed her all together.

He wonders if she'll accept his offer for a date, it's been two years now that she's been divorced, in his mind that's enough time. What about hers though? She has two kids, maybe she's not ready for another relationship. He'd understand if she wasn't, her kids had to be her first priority and he didn't want to infringe on it. Still, he hopes she'll accept, because he's spent 6 years wondering what could've been. Had she been wondering too? It didn't sound like she'd been very happy in her marriage to Koss, maybe she'd been thinking about him too.

He's starting to drift off into a daydream of what could've been when his stop comes up, he nearly misses it but gets out the door at the last second and is to work just in the nick of time.

Lunch seems to take twice as long to arrive today as it usually does, he rushes out as soon as his lunch begins and takes the bus to the Compound, it's just a few blocks away but the driver seems confused when he gets off at the compound stop. Trip ignores him and walks onto the compound. The Vulcan gate guard seems confused too, but neither of them are as confused as the worker at the restaurant, he asks four times if Trip is sure he wants 3 orders of Plomeek soup to take home with him.

Once he manages to convince the employee that he was serious he hops in a cab and gives him T'Pol's address.

T'Pol has just put Kuvok in his bed when she hears the knock on the door, he remembered to knock, the last thing she needs Kuvok to be woken. She already has a headache from this head cold and she doesn't really feel up to dealing with a clingy child again. She ties the fluffy robe around her a little tighter and answers the door, Trip is standing there grinning and holding three take out cartons of soup.

"My apologies for the state of the of the house, I haven't had much chance to clean up." She says as Trip steps in and removes his shoes. T'Pol is suddenly very aware of the fact that two days worth of dishes are in the sink and there's a pile of clean laundry she has yet to fold on the couch. She leads Trip over to the dining table where he sets the soup down and looks around.

"It's fine," Trip assures. "You should see my place, it's worse and I ain't got kids."

She figures it's probably true but she still doesn't like the mess of the place. "Kuvok is asleep, I'll put his in the refrigerator for him." She moves to take one of the containers but Trip stops her.

"I'll do it," He offers. "You eat, you're sick too."

"I'm an adult, the only reason I'm home today at all is because daycare won't take him if he's running a fever." T'Pol points out, raising her eyebrows.

"Yeah but you have help for another," He checks his watch. "42 minutes, so sit down and eat, I'll get a handle on some of the dishes okay?"

T'Pol nods and takes one of the few clean bowls from the cupboard and sits at the table with her soup. Trip moves over to the sink and begins washing the dishes, she hadn't really expected him to stay, muchless to help her with cleaning up.

"You are aware you don't have to do that?" She asks, sipping the soup carefully as it's still quite hot.

"I know," Trip shrugs. "But you got two kids, one of them is sick, you're sick and I'm not and I'm here. I'll help while I can at least."

T'Pol considers this for a moment. "Thank you," She says. "It really does mean something that you would help, you hardly know my family."

"I'd like to." He says.

T'Pol goes quiet, considering what he means by that. Does he really want to get to know her children? Could it mean that his desire for a relationship went deeper then knowing her? She eats quietly for a moment until she hears a small voice.

"Mother," Kuvok mutters, he's standing near the wall separating the living room from the kitchen. "Who's that man."

T'Pol glances over at Trip, he's looking at Kuvok curiously as well. "Kuvok this is Trip, my… colleague."

"Oh," Kuvok mutters, crossing over to T'Pol and climbing on her lap. "Is there soup for me?"

"Yes there is," T'Pol says taking another carton of soup from the table. Trip brings another bowl and spoon over and pours it into the bowl while Kuvok cuddles closer to T'Pol. "Thank you." She says to Trip, giving the spoon to Kuvok.

"Thank you." Kuvok says to Trip, he allows himself to be turned around on T'Pol's lap so he can eat his soup over the table and T'Pol can continue hers. T'Pol senses her son's uncertainty at Trip's presence and does her best to calm him by keeping one arm around his waist to hold him steady on her knee. "Mother when will Rakky be home?"

"Your brother will be home at 3:30." T'Pol says, it's the first time her oldest has ever ridden the bus home and she admits to worrying about him some. He was an awkward child and sitting next to a strange child on the bus likely wouldn't make him particularly comfortable.

Trip doesn't say anything but she can sense some unease from him as well, perhaps this wasn't such a good idea after all. He continues to work on the dishes in silence, evidently doing his best to ignore the stairs of her son's eyes.

"Trip?" She says.

"Yeah?" He asks turning to her.

"You really do not have to stay." She says,

"T'Pol," Trip says, smiling at her. "It's fine, really, however I don't want to make -" He looks at Kuvok, evidently having forgotten his name.

"Kuvok."

"Kuvok, I don't want to make him upset, so if you need me to leave I will." Trip says.

"Mother…" Kuvok mutters, having heard his name in their conversation. T'Pol gives him a scolding look for interrupting and resting her hand on his back again.

"You're not upsetting him, he gets clingy when he's ill." T'Pol explains, that much is true, if Kuvok had been perfectly healthy he'd hardly have paid any attention to Trip. Kuvok turns back around and wraps his arms around her, but continues watching Trip carefully. "He's usually quite independent, his brother tends to be the clingy one."

"You mentioned that, the older one is Avarak right?" Trip says, drying the last of the dishes and putting him in the cupboard, he turns around and leans against the counter watching her.

"Yes, Avarak." T'Pol confirms, finishing the last of her soup and rubbing Kuvok's back gently to comfort him. "He's taking the bus for the first time today so no doubt he'll be clingy when he gets home as well." She tries her best not to sound defeated, while she's always struggled to meet her children's emotional and physical needs while ill she's also been doing it alone most of their lives.

"I should get going." Trip smiles. "You gonna be okay?"

"I've been their mother for five years." T'Pol says, raising her eyebrows at him briefly, still part of her wishes he didn't have to leave. "Thank you Trip, it was very helpful.

If possible his grin gets even bigger. "No problem."

She stands, lifting Kuvok with her and following him to the door. "I will call to reschedule our lunch when he's better."

"OKay, I look forward to it." Trip grins, pushing the door open and leaving the apartment.

T'Pol paces back across the living room towards the bedrooms, rubbing Kuvoks back all the way. She's suddenly quite tired as well, and looks down at her son and says. "Would you like to lay with me in bed?"

"Yes mother." Kuvok mutters, hooking his arms around her neck more tightly and closing his eyes.

T'Pol enters her bedroom and pulls back the blankets. She lays down, resting Kuvok over her chest like she used to when he was a baby and falls into a deep sleep.