Chapter 5 - Tom
So, you're going to stay here, right? I'll clear it with Captain, but rest. Eat. I'll come see you later, OK?" She nodded, her head bent and impulsively he went over and kissed the top of it. "I'll see you later", he murmured into her hair and left as she lay down on her bed, staring up at the ceiling, wondering.
Trip strode down the corridors, the weight of the world on his shoulders, towards the Captain's quarters. He waited patiently at the door and then waited patiently inside while the Captain finished with the officer he was dealing with. When they were finally alone, Archer spoke.
"I'm guessing from the look on your face that you found out," Archer said calmly.
"It's not what you're thinking. Whatever it is you're thinking that's not what it is. It's her sister" Trip sighed and slumped against the chair he was sitting on.
"Her sister?"
"Her identical twin, goddamit. Just like in a book" Trip rubbed his had over his eyes suddenly weary, weary of it all. Trip began telling Archer what he had just been told interjecting here and there with what he had felt as she was telling him, the sense, the feeling that he had caught of what she felt was her total and utter abandonment. "I don't know what to do. Is there anything I can do?"
"I think, that you have done all you can do. I still can't believe it." Archer had been steadily reassessing his former opinions on his Vulcan sub- commander, but this! This was something else.
"The thing that gets me is Haynes. I mean, what the hell is he doing here? He must have known that T'Pol was on board. What did he think he was gonna achieve?"
"You look all in. Go and rest. T'Pol's off active duty until the team leave. We should reach there in the next day. I'll sort it. Go on, off you go." Archer dismissed his tired chief engineer, who rose, rubbed his eyes sleepily and left the room.
"My God." Archer said aloud to no-one in particular. How does someone cope with something like that? Archer could barely get his head round the fact that T'Pol had a twin sister she never mentioned, let alone what had happened to her. And Haynes. Trip was right. What was he doing here? He shook his head, and hailed the science office, to inform them of T'Pol's unavailability for the next day.
Trip was beginning to wander over to his cabin when he heard someone call his name from behind him. He turned around to find a panting Commander Haynes behind him.
"Commander Tucker. I've been calling you all this while. Can I speak to you?" Trip was startled and a little unsure of the etiquette surrounding speaking to someone who had been going out with the sister of a friend who had subsequently killed herself due to the doomed love affair in question. "My God, I sound like Malcolm. I gotta sleep!" he thought to himself.
"How can I help you, Commander?" Trip decided to go for the polite approach. His mother had brought him up believing firmly in being polite to visitors. Plus, if he beat the living daylights out of him, he suspected that Captain Archer might have something to say about it.
"Could we go somewhere, well, private?"
"Private?"
"Yes. It's about the Sub-Commander."
"T'Pol?"
"In part, yes. Aah, I see. She's already spoken to you. About what happened." Haynes looked down towards the floor, and murmured "Please, Commander. It is important." Trip looked at him and relented.
"Step this way. We can go into my office." Trip and Haynes wound their way down towards Trip's small office in Engineering in total silence. "What the hell is he going to say to me? How the hell did I get into this?" Trip was silently repeating this to himself as they entered the office. "Ah, sorry. The place is always kind of a mess. Please, take a seat". He cleared away all the pads that were lying around, and motioned over to Haynes. "How can I help, Commander?"
"Please. Tom. I need your help, Mr Tucker"
"Well, Tom, it's Trip. And what can I possibly do to help you?" Trip settled himself behind his desk and tried to look authoritative, like the Chief Engineer of the whole damn ship.
"I need to speak to Polly. She won't see me, not properly unless someone asks her to. She's your friend, I know she is. I know she's told you. You've got that look in your eyes. You have to help me. Please." Tom Haynes couldn't stop the words coming out of his mouth and he covered his rose mouth with his hands as if to stop himself.
"Polly?" Trip was unsettled.
"The sub-commander. Her sister calls her. called her, I'm sorry. She called her Polly. Linny never was much one with Vulcan names. She sure as hell never used hers. Used to drive her sister insane. She used to bound over to people, hand outstretched, 'Hi! My name's Lin'. T'Lin, you see." His shoulders sagged towards the end of his sentence and he slumped down in his chair, waiting.
"Tom, I'm not sure that this is a good idea. She really doesn't want to see you" Trip tried the tactful approach.
"You have to try. Please. I need to talk to her. She blames me, I know she does, but she needs to know what happened. She'll listen to you I know she will. Please, try." Trip stood up.
"OK, Tom, OK. I'll go see her now. We'll go see her now. C'mon." Trip, bemused and bewildered, gently pulled Tom out of his chair and manoeuvred him out of the small office and out through the corridors, until they found themselves outside T'Pol's door.
"Are you sure?" Trip asked, hesitating. Tom nodded vigorously.
So, you're going to stay here, right? I'll clear it with Captain, but rest. Eat. I'll come see you later, OK?" She nodded, her head bent and impulsively he went over and kissed the top of it. "I'll see you later", he murmured into her hair and left as she lay down on her bed, staring up at the ceiling, wondering.
Trip strode down the corridors, the weight of the world on his shoulders, towards the Captain's quarters. He waited patiently at the door and then waited patiently inside while the Captain finished with the officer he was dealing with. When they were finally alone, Archer spoke.
"I'm guessing from the look on your face that you found out," Archer said calmly.
"It's not what you're thinking. Whatever it is you're thinking that's not what it is. It's her sister" Trip sighed and slumped against the chair he was sitting on.
"Her sister?"
"Her identical twin, goddamit. Just like in a book" Trip rubbed his had over his eyes suddenly weary, weary of it all. Trip began telling Archer what he had just been told interjecting here and there with what he had felt as she was telling him, the sense, the feeling that he had caught of what she felt was her total and utter abandonment. "I don't know what to do. Is there anything I can do?"
"I think, that you have done all you can do. I still can't believe it." Archer had been steadily reassessing his former opinions on his Vulcan sub- commander, but this! This was something else.
"The thing that gets me is Haynes. I mean, what the hell is he doing here? He must have known that T'Pol was on board. What did he think he was gonna achieve?"
"You look all in. Go and rest. T'Pol's off active duty until the team leave. We should reach there in the next day. I'll sort it. Go on, off you go." Archer dismissed his tired chief engineer, who rose, rubbed his eyes sleepily and left the room.
"My God." Archer said aloud to no-one in particular. How does someone cope with something like that? Archer could barely get his head round the fact that T'Pol had a twin sister she never mentioned, let alone what had happened to her. And Haynes. Trip was right. What was he doing here? He shook his head, and hailed the science office, to inform them of T'Pol's unavailability for the next day.
Trip was beginning to wander over to his cabin when he heard someone call his name from behind him. He turned around to find a panting Commander Haynes behind him.
"Commander Tucker. I've been calling you all this while. Can I speak to you?" Trip was startled and a little unsure of the etiquette surrounding speaking to someone who had been going out with the sister of a friend who had subsequently killed herself due to the doomed love affair in question. "My God, I sound like Malcolm. I gotta sleep!" he thought to himself.
"How can I help you, Commander?" Trip decided to go for the polite approach. His mother had brought him up believing firmly in being polite to visitors. Plus, if he beat the living daylights out of him, he suspected that Captain Archer might have something to say about it.
"Could we go somewhere, well, private?"
"Private?"
"Yes. It's about the Sub-Commander."
"T'Pol?"
"In part, yes. Aah, I see. She's already spoken to you. About what happened." Haynes looked down towards the floor, and murmured "Please, Commander. It is important." Trip looked at him and relented.
"Step this way. We can go into my office." Trip and Haynes wound their way down towards Trip's small office in Engineering in total silence. "What the hell is he going to say to me? How the hell did I get into this?" Trip was silently repeating this to himself as they entered the office. "Ah, sorry. The place is always kind of a mess. Please, take a seat". He cleared away all the pads that were lying around, and motioned over to Haynes. "How can I help, Commander?"
"Please. Tom. I need your help, Mr Tucker"
"Well, Tom, it's Trip. And what can I possibly do to help you?" Trip settled himself behind his desk and tried to look authoritative, like the Chief Engineer of the whole damn ship.
"I need to speak to Polly. She won't see me, not properly unless someone asks her to. She's your friend, I know she is. I know she's told you. You've got that look in your eyes. You have to help me. Please." Tom Haynes couldn't stop the words coming out of his mouth and he covered his rose mouth with his hands as if to stop himself.
"Polly?" Trip was unsettled.
"The sub-commander. Her sister calls her. called her, I'm sorry. She called her Polly. Linny never was much one with Vulcan names. She sure as hell never used hers. Used to drive her sister insane. She used to bound over to people, hand outstretched, 'Hi! My name's Lin'. T'Lin, you see." His shoulders sagged towards the end of his sentence and he slumped down in his chair, waiting.
"Tom, I'm not sure that this is a good idea. She really doesn't want to see you" Trip tried the tactful approach.
"You have to try. Please. I need to talk to her. She blames me, I know she does, but she needs to know what happened. She'll listen to you I know she will. Please, try." Trip stood up.
"OK, Tom, OK. I'll go see her now. We'll go see her now. C'mon." Trip, bemused and bewildered, gently pulled Tom out of his chair and manoeuvred him out of the small office and out through the corridors, until they found themselves outside T'Pol's door.
"Are you sure?" Trip asked, hesitating. Tom nodded vigorously.