Disclaimer and A/N see chapter 1.
*****
Well done Tommy-boy that probably just earned you another month of counselling sessions, Tom thought, shaking his head to himself as he continued to gaze out of the view-port. He had completely blown his chance of persuading Chakotay that he was fine.
At the beginning of the evening, he had told himself that he was going to be completely calm, give the Commander no reason to believe that the thought of having to be counselled bothered him in any way, and what had happened? He had started shouting at his senior officer. Now he's going to be even more suspicious.
Number one rule, don't let it show that it bothers you - and you just broke it.
But the fact was, it did bother him. It bothered him immensely. There were very few things that he could say bothered him more than counselling. He closed his eyes as he cast his mind back and all he could see was him. Tom sighed and opened his eyes. He started to mutter constant, comforting statements about the situation to himself. But even as he said them, he didn't hold any belief in them. He tried to tell himself that it couldn't be that bad having to talk to the Commander; surely it could be a hell of a lot worse? Chakotay. Sure, they disliked each other, but it would never be a repeat of Doctor Wilkinson. And who knows, he might actually find some comfort in the strong, reassuring commander...
When Tom realised what he was thinking, he literally shook his head clear of the thought, and his irrational feeling of panic at the thought of having to attend counselling, unofficial or not, returned. The feeling became even worse when he again thought of it being the Commander he would be expected to tell all to. There was no way in hell that he was going to share his private life, things he had never told anyone, with that man.
So, having decided on that, he walked over to the replicator,
"Scotch."
*****
Well done Tommy-boy that probably just earned you another month of counselling sessions, Tom thought, shaking his head to himself as he continued to gaze out of the view-port. He had completely blown his chance of persuading Chakotay that he was fine.
At the beginning of the evening, he had told himself that he was going to be completely calm, give the Commander no reason to believe that the thought of having to be counselled bothered him in any way, and what had happened? He had started shouting at his senior officer. Now he's going to be even more suspicious.
Number one rule, don't let it show that it bothers you - and you just broke it.
But the fact was, it did bother him. It bothered him immensely. There were very few things that he could say bothered him more than counselling. He closed his eyes as he cast his mind back and all he could see was him. Tom sighed and opened his eyes. He started to mutter constant, comforting statements about the situation to himself. But even as he said them, he didn't hold any belief in them. He tried to tell himself that it couldn't be that bad having to talk to the Commander; surely it could be a hell of a lot worse? Chakotay. Sure, they disliked each other, but it would never be a repeat of Doctor Wilkinson. And who knows, he might actually find some comfort in the strong, reassuring commander...
When Tom realised what he was thinking, he literally shook his head clear of the thought, and his irrational feeling of panic at the thought of having to attend counselling, unofficial or not, returned. The feeling became even worse when he again thought of it being the Commander he would be expected to tell all to. There was no way in hell that he was going to share his private life, things he had never told anyone, with that man.
So, having decided on that, he walked over to the replicator,
"Scotch."