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Chapter 2
Malcolm couldn't sleep. After lying awake for hours, he finally sat up. His tense muscles needed release. Rolling out of bed he went to the closet, picking out a pair of gray sweats and a blue Starfleet sweatshirt.
Throwing them on, he headed toward the exercise room. He hoped that he would be alone; he wanted to clear his thoughts. As he walked down the corridor, he heard a scream come out of Hoshi's room.
"Hoshi!" He ran toward the door. Using his security override commands he ran into the room, ready for battle. When his eyes adjusted to the light, he realized she was in bed dreaming. She was thrashing against her pillow. Her pallid face was covered in sweat. Her hair was wrapped around her neck, seeming to add to her discomfort. He could see she was in her skivvies, since most of the bedclothes were at her feet.
He was torn between waking her and leaving her since it was only a dream. He turned his back to the bed but stopped. "Bloody hell," he muttered and walked back to her side.
He reached down shaking her gently. "Hoshi."
She gasped and sat up in bed. She sucked in her breath again and her eyes grew wide. "Malcolm?" she asked. Her voice was still rough from sleep. "What are you doing in my quarters?" She pulled the blankets up close around her chin and backed up against the wall.
"I'm sorry, Ensign, but I heard a scream, obviously in your sleep. I'm only here because I feared for your safety. I apologize for waking you." At this he stood up and started to leave.
"Malcolm wait," she said.
Again he stopped and turned back toward the bed.
Hoshi reached over and turned on the light. Her robe was sitting on a chair near the bed. She reached out, pulling it on and standing up.
"Ensign, I am sorry if I frightened you."
"Yes sir, you did. But I would rather be awake than part of that dream again. Do you want some tea or something? There's no way I'm going back to sleep tonight."
Malcolm nodded and said, "Tea would be fine."
He sat down on the chair watching her walk about making the tea. When she was finished she handed him a steaming mug. She sat down on the bed and stared at her cup.
"How is your arm?" he asked, nodding toward her shoulder.
She smiled and said, "Much better, thank you for asking."
He sipped at his tea and looked around her room.
After a few minutes of silence, during which he grew increasingly uncomfortable, she spoke. "Sir, is there some way to bump up my self-defense training?"
Malcolm looked at her in surprise. She stared into her cup, her brow puckered into a frown. He watched her for a moment and nodded.
"I am sure something can be worked out."
She nodded and he rose. "Thank you for the tea, Ensign. I really should be going."
She followed him to her door. When they reached it, he turned and faced her. He was standing so close he could smell sleep and shampoo on her.
"All of us have demons that chase us in the night hours, Hoshi. But you need to remember that the chase only lasts as long as you let it."
He walked out the door, leaving Hoshi staring after him, wondering what demons had Malcolm Reed roaming the corridors at 1 a.m.
**
The next morning, Hoshi dropped by the mess hall for breakfast before her shift. She had been up for hours already, ever since she woke to find Malcolm leaning over her. Truth was, she had spent the last hours fretting.
She hadn't slept well since they had returned from the disastrous mission to Obeexus. The first night back, Phlox had sedated her, and she slept soundly in Sickbay, warm in Trip's arms. But Trip had been held in Sickbay much longer than she, due to his extensive injuries. And a funny shyness had settled over them even after he was released. They seemed to be in a holding pattern now, both eager to resume their recent closeness, but neither of them sure of the next step.
So Hoshi had faced her nights alone over the past few weeks. Her sleep became restless, filled with confusing images she couldn't remember in the morning. Last night was the first time she was able to recall the dreams upon waking.
After her initial surprise, Malcolm's presence had comforted her. His face, composed as always, drove the dark images from the corners of her mind, at least until he left. Malcolm always had that effect on her, she mused; she felt safe when he was near. With Trip, she felt... 'But why am I comparing them?'
That thought made her frown while she surveyed her breakfast options.
She wasn't really hungry, but she was desperate for energy, so she selected tea and a banana. Grabbing the food, she headed for the bridge, thinking to eat on her way. Before she got halfway across the room, the mess hall doors slid open to reveal Trip. He was speaking to a fellow engineer, laughing, and didn't notice her immediately. Despite her strange experience with Malcolm the night before, her entire body responded to the sight of Trip. His laughter, his smile, made her cheeks darken with heat. He was so light-hearted—the opposite of Malcolm's usual demeanor. 'Again with the comparison?'
She was tempted to avoid Trip while she worked out the meaning of these thoughts. Even as that idea crossed her mind, Trip's glance met hers across the small room. The warmth in his eyes shifted immediately to a smolder, the intense blue gaze changing from friendly to an intimate welcome. His smile grew softer. Before she realized it, they were standing inches apart, her face reflecting his look of genuine delight.
"Mornin'," Trip said quietly.
"Good morning," she replied. She might have been embarrassed by the breathless quality of her voice, if she had noticed it. Instead, she was focusing on his eyes, his mouth. She shook her head, looked down. "Just headed for the bridge." She gestured toward the door with the hand holding the banana.
"Ok." Trip nodded, his gaze holding hers as she moved around him. "Listen, I can't make dinner tonight, but how 'bout t'morrow?"
She nodded in response, still smiling, and left the mess hall. Almost as soon as she cleared the door, it swished again and Trip's voice caught her.
"Hosh."
She turned expectantly. He was so close that she took a startled step backwards, bumping into the corridor wall across from the doors.
Trip glanced quickly up and down the corridor, confirming that they were alone. "I just wanted to tell you I'm lookin' forward to tomorrow night. I'm feelin' like my old self." His eyes glowed, but Hoshi didn't need to hear the note in his voice to get his meaning.
They had postponed the physical side of their relationship over the past weeks while Trip recuperated. Doctor's orders, Trip had told her awkwardly. He didn't detail the conversation, but she knew both men well enough to know how it had gone—practical frankness on Phlox's part and flustered embarrassment on Trip's. Imagining that talk had given her a few private laughs—not to mention a little embarrassment on her own behalf.
Now, her face flushed again, and she licked her lips lightly. Trip's eyes followed the tip of her tongue as it darted in and out. Then his eyes moved back to hers. He wasn't smiling, but his gaze was warm, happy. Not waiting for her to speak, he leaned into her, bringing lips and then tongues together. He kissed her carefully, offering his silent promise for later. He tasted like peppermint—peppermint and Trip. His hands slid up her back, pressing under her shoulder blades.
Her own hands moved almost involuntarily up Trip's arms to his neck, one of them settling in his silky hair. She still held the tea, with its lid, but the banana now lay in the corridor floor. The spicy scent of his aftershave surrounded her. Their breath mingled—for a moment she wasn't sure where she ended and he began. And she didn't care. She could have stayed in that corridor forever, her shift forgotten. Then he pulled back, sighed, and looked around again.
"Tomorrow night, Ensign Sato?"
"Definitely, Commander Tucker," she murmured in agreement, opening her eyes slowly. She ran her tongue over her lips again and smiled.
Trip grinned, gave her a quick kiss, and sauntered back into the mess hall. As the doors closed, she heard him whistling and she chuckled. Last night was all but forgotten as she picked up the banana and headed for her shift.
***
