First Doctor 'Doctor Who' – To lose is to win, and he who wins shall lose.
- P/T and P/K - post-Drive -
'So, you lost.'
Tom sighed and shook his head. He and B'Elanna had been back on the ship for less than an hour, and already Harry was dogging him.
'Yeah, we lost the race,' he said, rubbing his face with his right hand. 'No big deal.'
'No big deal?' Harry exclaimed. "No big deal! You were going to win! It is a huge deal!'
Tom shrugged again. 'The engine we were given had been sabotaged, so we dropped it in that nebula and survived rather than winning the race just to blow up everyone when we crossed the finish line. So we stopped.'
The realisation dawned on Harry quickly. 'So you stopped.'
'Yeah.'
They continued walking to the Mess Hall in silence, the best friends comfortable in each other's company.
'So, what took you so long to get back?'
'You mean other than having a shuttle with no engine?'
'Yeah, other than that.'
Tom smiled. 'Well, to lose is to win, and he who wins shall lose.'
Harry stopped, completely puzzled by the roundabout saying. 'Huh?'
'Harry, Harry, Harry,' he pat the younger man on the back. 'You really don't pay attention, do you?' Tom walked into the Mess Hall, leaving Harry behind.
'Hang on a minute!' the ensign chased after his best friend. 'What's that on your hand?'
'There's nothing on my hand, Harry,' Tom raised his right hand. 'See?'
'No idiot, your other hand; your left hand.'
'Oh this?' he pointed to his wedding ring.
'Yeah, that.'
Tom shrugged. 'You win some, you lose some. I may have lost the race, but personally, I won something better.'
'What did you win?'
'Me, Starfleet.'
Harry's jaw dropped as B'Elanna approached from behind, wrapping her arms around Tom, their hands joining on his chest.
'You got married? Without telling me?'
'We're telling you now, aren't we?'
'It's not the same!'
Tom couldn't help it, he burst out laughing. 'I knew he'd take it this way! Pay up, Torres.'
'In your dreams, flyboy. You already won me, that's enough for one day.'
