Title: It's Mark Is Upon Us Forever Part 8/12?
By: Abby (sugaraygal@hotmail.com)
Rating: PG
Summary: The Doctor moves on in his life, etc. D/f, D/7
Disclaimer: Paramount owns these characters. But I own Imirika. So I'm copyrighting her! Paramount you can't have her! Bwahaha! I mean, this story was purely written for entertainment purposes so Paramount please don't sue. :)
SPOILERS: Rennaissance Man?
***(Previously in Part 7)
With the failsafe device removed, the full extent of those buried feelings now washed through her, her whole body acting on impulse. Suddenly she had a need. A need to see him, to set things straight.
Forget chocolate. She needed to speak with the Doctor. Immediately.
"Computer, cancel order to Messhall. Take me to my quarters on Deck 3." The turbolift shifted for the third time and headed off in a different direction. She tapped on her commbadge.
"Seven of Nine to the Doctor"...
***(And Now Part 8)
"Where are you going?" Imirika asked. She rubbed her eyes as she sleepily made her way out of the bedroom, wearing a plush robe that she had received from the Doctor as a present. She had wakened from her short nap to find that he had stopped reading his book and was putting on his mobile emitter in order to leave.
He turned around at the sound of her voice. He smiled slightly. "Just going to sickbay for a while. I got a call from Seven. She sounds like she is in pain. She has been having problems with the implant in her arm recently, so I wouldn't be surprised if it came out of alignment again. I should only be gone for a half an hour, at most"
Imirika nodded her head and came up to the Doctor and wrapped her tiny arms around his waist. "Don't take too much time. You promised me a trip to Venice today, remember?"
He smirked. "Of course I remember. I'm a hologram"
She laughed. "Just making sure you didn't have any corrupted pathways." She gazed up at him from her short height. " I have been looking forward to this holodeck time for a week."
He bowed his head and kissed the top of her hair. "I know. I have too." He looked down on her for a second or two before he escaped her grip and headed to the door. "But if I don't get to sickbay now I will be late!" He pecked her on the cheek. "I promise I won't be long." The door swished open and he stepped out.
She padded in her bare feet to the open door. She watched as he started down the hallway. "I love you!" she cried down the hall.
He spun around and walked backwards a few steps. "I love you too" he chuckled, then turned back and disappeared around the corner.
***
The Doctor entered sickbay by way of his usual route and headed straight to his office, preparing the tools used in aligning Seven's implants. He didn't acknowledge Seven sniffling quietly on the main biobed until he carried out the tray with the devices on it and set it on the console. "Seven, how are you, today?" He looked up and noticed Seven's red rimmed eyes. "Seven, did you throw you arm completely out of alignment? You seem to be in pain."
She reached up with her augmented hand and massaged her right arm. "My arm is fine."
Knowing Seven, he suspected that she was hiding behind her Borg stature and opened up his tricorder. "You don't need to hesitate to tell me if you've hurt yourself." He ran the blinking light over her arm. His brow furrowed as he looked at the results on the tricorder. Or lack of. "Hmm, I guess you are correct. This is nothing wrong with your arm." He flipped the tricorder closed. "Then what are you here for?" He leaned slightly on the bed next to her, waiting for an explanation as to why his valuable time was being used up in sickbay.
She opened her mouth to say something but quickly shut it, obviously deciding against it. She turned her head slowly to look at him in the eyes. Something about them caught the Doctor's attention.
Switching to his mentor mode, which had been rusty for a very long time, he set the tricorder down and folded his hands in front of him. "This isn't about anything medical, is it?" She continued not to say anything, but nodded in response. "Then why don't you tell me what's going on. Being silent isn't the best way to communicate your problems." He raised his eyebrow.
She measured him with her stare for a few seconds before deciding what to do. "Then I will tell you bluntly." She pushed herself off the bed and stood up straight. "I am sorry that I have hurt your feelings and have damaged our relationship. I wish to make amends."
A mix of relief and suspicion raised up in the Doctor. Relief because their friendship was no longer on his "failures of life" list, and suspicion because of the way she said the word "amends". There was something about that word that made him uncomfortable. "I would be glad if we were friends again, Seven." He smiled but quickly looked down at his holographic boots, averting her unsettlingly burning gaze for a second. He looked back up. "But what do you mean by that word, 'amends'?"
She gulped, forcing back an emotion that she felt would be inconvenient at the moment. She kept her Borg tone. "I wish to be romantically involved with you."
She could have said that his program was just about to decompile and would have gotten the same reaction. His coordination subroutine failing him for the moment, he stumbled backwards a few steps before he caught himself on the side of the console. This couldn't be happening. Not here, not now! He silently cursed Seven's timing. It couldn't have been worse. "I don't..." He stopped, changing his sentence. "I can't."
Seven had been watching him with mild surprise and showed a look of hurt when he finally did say something. "But you love me. You've said so yourself."
The Doctor raised his hands to his temple, trying to rub away a headache that couldn't actually exist.He looked at her. "I do. I do. But Seven, I have moved on with my life. I am with Imirika now, surely you know that." He lifted his hand only to let it fall by his side, turning around and starting to pace slightly.
Seven leaned against the wall, fidgeting with her hands. "I know. But you can't possibly love her..." she lowered her voice slightly. "...As much as you love me." Her tone came out timid and childish, a harsh difference from her assertiveness a few seconds ago.
Despite having one of the most complex matrices ever deisgned, the Doctor was certainly having a hard time trying to think. He stopped his pace and flipped around to face her. "Well, actually I..." He stopped, coming to a decision that now was not the best time. He changed the subject. "Why?"
"Because...I have realized that I..." she wet her lips before continuing, becoming nervous. "..I love you." She paused and waited for his reaction. He had stopped dead, almost looking as if someone had frozen his program. His mouth was grim, and his brow was furrowed, but when she looked in his eyes she could see many things passing through them. First was shock, then pity, then... she caught it...a distant look of longing. Whatever that look meant, she took immediate action and snapped him out of his contemplation. She walked toward him forcefully with her hands behind her back. "You must make a decision." His eyes opened wide, suddenly remembering where he was and backed away slowly to keep her from getting too close. She kept walking. "You said you loved me and now you know I feel the same way." Her voice became forceful, full of an oncoming anger that spawned from frustration. "Are you throwing this chance at us away because of some woman you met on an away mission two months ago?"
He winced at her harsh words and a pained expression played across his face, not quite sure how to react. This was not fair. She could not just invite herself back into his life and demand attention. Sure, he did still love her, but he had pushed that away in order to find happiness with someone else. And it is was going better than he could ever dream. Imirika had come in and had given him her love. She had virtually erased all bitterness that he had carried around inside himself for more than a year. But now Seven had confronted him and feelings he thought and wished were dead now slapped him across the face, a hot sting stirring in his soul. He tried to fight for control of the situation, but it came out as a plea. "Please don't make me choose." he said deeply, sounding as if he was on the verge of tears.
She didn't back down, despite noticing that she was obviously distressing him. "You must. You cannot love two people. I will not let you. It is not fair. Not to me, Not to you, not to...Imirika." She finished the last part of her sentence with disdain.
He looked away from her. "But I don't...." His eyes shifted back and forth, looking for a clear answer that wasn't there yet.There was no point in trying to argue with Seven. And, he admitted to himself that since Seven's confession of her love just moments ago caused him to remember the days when he had first fell for her, a reverie he was relishing in until Seven broke the silence with her demands. No, he could not make a choice now. He had so many things to consider. His voice came out shaky. "Please, let me think about this. I need time to think about this." He turned away from her and covered his face with his hands.
She stopped her assault. She realised that pushing him even farther would be a bad thing to do. So she backed down. She heaved a big sigh and smoothed out the wrinkles in her suit while making her way to the door. The Doctor didn't even notice her movement. He was too deep in thought, rubbing his forehead again with his hands. The door opened when Seven came near and she paused in the middle of the doorframe. She looked at him and came to realization as to what she had just done. "I'll be waiting for you." she said quietly, watching his head raise slightly. "If you want me." She turned and left.
***
He walked down the aisle of the darkened theatre and slipped in silently into his seat beside her. But not silently enough. She sensed him in the darkness and turned her head to see his sillouhette. She smiled. "Darling, I knew you would show up sooner or later." She put her hand on his shoulder and leaned forward to kiss him. Their lips made contact but she felt that he was tense and pulled away. "What took you so long?"
He leaned against his seat. "I was...busy in sickbay."
"Oh." She made a sad little face in sympathy. "Difficult patient?"
He sighed. "You can't even begin to imagine."
She looked at him for a moment, not quite sure how to comfort him. "Well, I know a way to make you feel better." She grabbed his hand with hers and used her free hand to pull out a program. She showed it to him. "I heard you say once that you loved this opera."
"Pygmalion" He said, reading the title, pushing back a tide of emotions that were linked to that name. "It's about an artist... falling in love with his creation. You have a good memory." He swallowed and weakly smiled.
She grinned. "It's about to start. You came just in time." She stroked his hand. "Relax. You're not working anymore." She leaned her head on his shoulder and noticed that he still hadn't calmed down. The curtain rose and a fanfare of music filled the room. "Enjoy the show. Forget about that difficult patient. You're with me now." She nuzzled into his neck.
He shifted uncomfortably at the contact and looked down at her small fingers on top of his. If only I could, he thought, turning his attention to the opera being played out in front of him, the soaring notes not even touching his soul. If only I could...
***
By: Abby (sugaraygal@hotmail.com)
Rating: PG
Summary: The Doctor moves on in his life, etc. D/f, D/7
Disclaimer: Paramount owns these characters. But I own Imirika. So I'm copyrighting her! Paramount you can't have her! Bwahaha! I mean, this story was purely written for entertainment purposes so Paramount please don't sue. :)
SPOILERS: Rennaissance Man?
***(Previously in Part 7)
With the failsafe device removed, the full extent of those buried feelings now washed through her, her whole body acting on impulse. Suddenly she had a need. A need to see him, to set things straight.
Forget chocolate. She needed to speak with the Doctor. Immediately.
"Computer, cancel order to Messhall. Take me to my quarters on Deck 3." The turbolift shifted for the third time and headed off in a different direction. She tapped on her commbadge.
"Seven of Nine to the Doctor"...
***(And Now Part 8)
"Where are you going?" Imirika asked. She rubbed her eyes as she sleepily made her way out of the bedroom, wearing a plush robe that she had received from the Doctor as a present. She had wakened from her short nap to find that he had stopped reading his book and was putting on his mobile emitter in order to leave.
He turned around at the sound of her voice. He smiled slightly. "Just going to sickbay for a while. I got a call from Seven. She sounds like she is in pain. She has been having problems with the implant in her arm recently, so I wouldn't be surprised if it came out of alignment again. I should only be gone for a half an hour, at most"
Imirika nodded her head and came up to the Doctor and wrapped her tiny arms around his waist. "Don't take too much time. You promised me a trip to Venice today, remember?"
He smirked. "Of course I remember. I'm a hologram"
She laughed. "Just making sure you didn't have any corrupted pathways." She gazed up at him from her short height. " I have been looking forward to this holodeck time for a week."
He bowed his head and kissed the top of her hair. "I know. I have too." He looked down on her for a second or two before he escaped her grip and headed to the door. "But if I don't get to sickbay now I will be late!" He pecked her on the cheek. "I promise I won't be long." The door swished open and he stepped out.
She padded in her bare feet to the open door. She watched as he started down the hallway. "I love you!" she cried down the hall.
He spun around and walked backwards a few steps. "I love you too" he chuckled, then turned back and disappeared around the corner.
***
The Doctor entered sickbay by way of his usual route and headed straight to his office, preparing the tools used in aligning Seven's implants. He didn't acknowledge Seven sniffling quietly on the main biobed until he carried out the tray with the devices on it and set it on the console. "Seven, how are you, today?" He looked up and noticed Seven's red rimmed eyes. "Seven, did you throw you arm completely out of alignment? You seem to be in pain."
She reached up with her augmented hand and massaged her right arm. "My arm is fine."
Knowing Seven, he suspected that she was hiding behind her Borg stature and opened up his tricorder. "You don't need to hesitate to tell me if you've hurt yourself." He ran the blinking light over her arm. His brow furrowed as he looked at the results on the tricorder. Or lack of. "Hmm, I guess you are correct. This is nothing wrong with your arm." He flipped the tricorder closed. "Then what are you here for?" He leaned slightly on the bed next to her, waiting for an explanation as to why his valuable time was being used up in sickbay.
She opened her mouth to say something but quickly shut it, obviously deciding against it. She turned her head slowly to look at him in the eyes. Something about them caught the Doctor's attention.
Switching to his mentor mode, which had been rusty for a very long time, he set the tricorder down and folded his hands in front of him. "This isn't about anything medical, is it?" She continued not to say anything, but nodded in response. "Then why don't you tell me what's going on. Being silent isn't the best way to communicate your problems." He raised his eyebrow.
She measured him with her stare for a few seconds before deciding what to do. "Then I will tell you bluntly." She pushed herself off the bed and stood up straight. "I am sorry that I have hurt your feelings and have damaged our relationship. I wish to make amends."
A mix of relief and suspicion raised up in the Doctor. Relief because their friendship was no longer on his "failures of life" list, and suspicion because of the way she said the word "amends". There was something about that word that made him uncomfortable. "I would be glad if we were friends again, Seven." He smiled but quickly looked down at his holographic boots, averting her unsettlingly burning gaze for a second. He looked back up. "But what do you mean by that word, 'amends'?"
She gulped, forcing back an emotion that she felt would be inconvenient at the moment. She kept her Borg tone. "I wish to be romantically involved with you."
She could have said that his program was just about to decompile and would have gotten the same reaction. His coordination subroutine failing him for the moment, he stumbled backwards a few steps before he caught himself on the side of the console. This couldn't be happening. Not here, not now! He silently cursed Seven's timing. It couldn't have been worse. "I don't..." He stopped, changing his sentence. "I can't."
Seven had been watching him with mild surprise and showed a look of hurt when he finally did say something. "But you love me. You've said so yourself."
The Doctor raised his hands to his temple, trying to rub away a headache that couldn't actually exist.He looked at her. "I do. I do. But Seven, I have moved on with my life. I am with Imirika now, surely you know that." He lifted his hand only to let it fall by his side, turning around and starting to pace slightly.
Seven leaned against the wall, fidgeting with her hands. "I know. But you can't possibly love her..." she lowered her voice slightly. "...As much as you love me." Her tone came out timid and childish, a harsh difference from her assertiveness a few seconds ago.
Despite having one of the most complex matrices ever deisgned, the Doctor was certainly having a hard time trying to think. He stopped his pace and flipped around to face her. "Well, actually I..." He stopped, coming to a decision that now was not the best time. He changed the subject. "Why?"
"Because...I have realized that I..." she wet her lips before continuing, becoming nervous. "..I love you." She paused and waited for his reaction. He had stopped dead, almost looking as if someone had frozen his program. His mouth was grim, and his brow was furrowed, but when she looked in his eyes she could see many things passing through them. First was shock, then pity, then... she caught it...a distant look of longing. Whatever that look meant, she took immediate action and snapped him out of his contemplation. She walked toward him forcefully with her hands behind her back. "You must make a decision." His eyes opened wide, suddenly remembering where he was and backed away slowly to keep her from getting too close. She kept walking. "You said you loved me and now you know I feel the same way." Her voice became forceful, full of an oncoming anger that spawned from frustration. "Are you throwing this chance at us away because of some woman you met on an away mission two months ago?"
He winced at her harsh words and a pained expression played across his face, not quite sure how to react. This was not fair. She could not just invite herself back into his life and demand attention. Sure, he did still love her, but he had pushed that away in order to find happiness with someone else. And it is was going better than he could ever dream. Imirika had come in and had given him her love. She had virtually erased all bitterness that he had carried around inside himself for more than a year. But now Seven had confronted him and feelings he thought and wished were dead now slapped him across the face, a hot sting stirring in his soul. He tried to fight for control of the situation, but it came out as a plea. "Please don't make me choose." he said deeply, sounding as if he was on the verge of tears.
She didn't back down, despite noticing that she was obviously distressing him. "You must. You cannot love two people. I will not let you. It is not fair. Not to me, Not to you, not to...Imirika." She finished the last part of her sentence with disdain.
He looked away from her. "But I don't...." His eyes shifted back and forth, looking for a clear answer that wasn't there yet.There was no point in trying to argue with Seven. And, he admitted to himself that since Seven's confession of her love just moments ago caused him to remember the days when he had first fell for her, a reverie he was relishing in until Seven broke the silence with her demands. No, he could not make a choice now. He had so many things to consider. His voice came out shaky. "Please, let me think about this. I need time to think about this." He turned away from her and covered his face with his hands.
She stopped her assault. She realised that pushing him even farther would be a bad thing to do. So she backed down. She heaved a big sigh and smoothed out the wrinkles in her suit while making her way to the door. The Doctor didn't even notice her movement. He was too deep in thought, rubbing his forehead again with his hands. The door opened when Seven came near and she paused in the middle of the doorframe. She looked at him and came to realization as to what she had just done. "I'll be waiting for you." she said quietly, watching his head raise slightly. "If you want me." She turned and left.
***
He walked down the aisle of the darkened theatre and slipped in silently into his seat beside her. But not silently enough. She sensed him in the darkness and turned her head to see his sillouhette. She smiled. "Darling, I knew you would show up sooner or later." She put her hand on his shoulder and leaned forward to kiss him. Their lips made contact but she felt that he was tense and pulled away. "What took you so long?"
He leaned against his seat. "I was...busy in sickbay."
"Oh." She made a sad little face in sympathy. "Difficult patient?"
He sighed. "You can't even begin to imagine."
She looked at him for a moment, not quite sure how to comfort him. "Well, I know a way to make you feel better." She grabbed his hand with hers and used her free hand to pull out a program. She showed it to him. "I heard you say once that you loved this opera."
"Pygmalion" He said, reading the title, pushing back a tide of emotions that were linked to that name. "It's about an artist... falling in love with his creation. You have a good memory." He swallowed and weakly smiled.
She grinned. "It's about to start. You came just in time." She stroked his hand. "Relax. You're not working anymore." She leaned her head on his shoulder and noticed that he still hadn't calmed down. The curtain rose and a fanfare of music filled the room. "Enjoy the show. Forget about that difficult patient. You're with me now." She nuzzled into his neck.
He shifted uncomfortably at the contact and looked down at her small fingers on top of his. If only I could, he thought, turning his attention to the opera being played out in front of him, the soaring notes not even touching his soul. If only I could...
***