And now…we learn some of why Chase is so darn bitter!
And a flashback, because, they're just, like, so cool.
*********
A fourteen-year-old Chase stood just inside the doorway of his mother's room, watching her quietly. She was scrambling around, writing things on the walls, mumbling to herself about the past. The boy glanced up at the man standing next to him, a pained look glimmering in his eyes, "Dad, I'm not sure this is a good idea. She's really not doing well."
"I have to talk to her, Chase. Maybe she'll understand." Trip stared towards the Vulcan, running a nervous hand through his hair.
Chase slowly walked into the room, kneeling down beside his mother. Her head jerked up with a snap, cocking her head as she glanced at the young man in front of her. A smile appeared on her lips as she placed a hand of Chase's face, "Is it time for dinner already? You are early… We do not normally eat dinner until later. Is Maggie with you? Where is she?"
"It's not time for dinner, Mom. Dad's here." He bit his lip as confused look crossed his mother's face. "Trip. Trip's here, Mom."
Her eyes seemed to light up as her hands moved to grip her son's hands. Happiness spread across her face like wildfire. "Trip? Finally, finally he has come back!"
"I'm here, T'Pol." The voice that was silent for much of the conversation finally intruded. "So is Isabelle." The woman that had been almost unnoticeable reluctantly stepped inside the room also. T'Pol took one glance at the woman and began scrambling wildly backwards.
"No! You are not here with her! You are here to come back! Back to your children! You are not here with her!" The Vulcan began screaming at the top of her lungs, thrashing wildly even though Chase and Trip tried to calm her down. Fifteen long minutes later, the small group finally was able to leave T'Pol sedated in the room.
Chase's blue eyes glared daggers at his father. For two years since his father left, T'Pol's mental condition had steadily been going downhill. Now Trip brought his girlfriend to see her? "How dare you come back here. How dare you come back with her!"
"Chase, Isabelle didn't do anything…"
"But you did!" Chase snapped, cutting his father's words off. "You left Mom to be like this! You left Maggie without a father! She barely even knows who you are and I have to raise her! All so you could run off with some woman five year younger than you!"
Pain as etched across Trip's face as he stared at his son. His eyes slowly drifted towards the ground as he replied, "You have to understand, Chase. Your mother and I were havin' problems. I didn't love her anymore."
"You didn't love me, either! Or Maggie! Just get out and never come back!" Chase has been pushed to the edge of hysterics, wildly screaming at his father and the woman with him, "I hate you! Just go!"
*
Chase had been standing at the door to Hoshi's quarters for fifteen minutes. He was trying to figure out what he was going to say in a way that wouldn't tell that he was going to have the ship attacked. The right words just wouldn't come to mind, and he had waited long enough. He gritted his teeth, reluctantly pushing the small console next to the door.
And there she was, in her pajamas and with her tied back in a sloppy bun. She looked like she was almost ready to go to bed, and that's when Chase realized how late it was. He started backing up. "Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up…"
"It's okay. I was just translating some things." He was relieved to find that Hoshi wasn't upset with him. She smiled, stepping back from the door, "Come on in."
Gratefully, Chase stepped into her quarters, running a distracted hand through his hair. He needed to get some of these things off his chest and make sure he was doing the right thing. "Can we talk?"
She nodded, pulling up a chair and sitting down. She motioned to a nearby seat, cocking her head in curiosity. "Okay. What about?"
"The other day…when you wanted to know why I wasn't talking to Trip, I lied." She didn't seem surprised by the revelation, only nodding as he spoke. Chase paused for a few long seconds, trying to sort out the words in his head as he sat down. "He…he left my mother when I was ten. I never realized that their marriage was breaking up until it was too late. About a month after the divorce too late. Mom started going insane, because the mindmeld with Trip had left her so close to him, and she couldn't stand to see him gone. I barely saw Trip over the next four years, because he'd met up with Captain Isabelle Walker and fell in love with her, so he went on a lot of deep space missions.
"But one day when I was fourteen, he dropped by with her. It was a bad idea from the beginning. Maggie, my sister, ran into her room the moment she saw Isabelle and didn't come out. Then Trip introduced her to Mom…and it just all fell apart. Mom went even further to her mental regression, and the visit ended with me screaming at him. I didn't even talk to him again." Chase didn't know why he was telling Hoshi all this. But, she was listening patiently, eyes showing pity and concern for the young man in front of her. "Four years later, Mom died...And Trip was on a deep space mission with Isabelle. He didn't even come to the funeral…"
The linguist reached to gently grab onto Chase's hand, "I'm sure he wanted to be there. The Trip I know isn't cruel and cold-hearted. I know he would have been there." She paused, smiling lightly in reassurance. "Maybe you should talk to Trip about all this. Get to know him again."
"It's just hard to see him again…" Chase bit his lip, standing up from the seat and walking to the door. He wasn't sure if he had made the right choice telling Hoshi all of this. Now she'd no doubt tell his father...but it didn't matter. The next morning, his plan would be in action. "Thanks for listening to me ramble. Maybe I will talk to him."
And he left, wishing that he had Maggie to talk to. Wishing that she could tell him what he should do. After all, she knew the whole story. She knew how it ended. He couldn't tell Hoshi what would happen just weeks after T'Pol's funeral on the day that Trip was to arrive to see his son and daughter after four long years. He didn't want that kind of pity.
Entering his quarters, Chase once again turned on his computer. Setting a specific recording to play, he lay down in bed in an attempt to get some measure of sleep before he worked with his father the following morning.
A picture of Jonathan Archer appeared on the screen, "Chase, Maggie… It's Jon. The ship your father was on was attacked again while coming to Earth from Tau Ceti. I hate to tell you this…" And that's where Chase Tucker stopped listening. He just shut his eyes as tightly as he could, blocking out the news his father's long-time friend told him nine long years ago.