Author's Note: See I told you there'd be more. And here it is. If you read the changes to Chapter 7 (it's not necessary to understand the chapter but recommended), the title might give something away. It's just a small, thing but I happen to think it's cute.
Summary: While on a planet for shore leave, Trip asks a question that could have an interesting outcome and significant consequences.
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Chapter 10:
Have You Ever Seen The Ocean?
They had been working on repairs for almost a little over a week. They had managed to restore the weapons systems and fix the damage done to the engines. Trip also had two teams working on fixing the haul plating. Since the hauls were not putting the ship in immediate danger, they were the second thing fix. The engines first, while a small engineering team and security fixed the phase cannons.
They were all exhausted but none had ever complained. When they came across a small, uninhabited M-class planet, Captain Archer and a small went down to check it out. When they found nothing but a beautiful planet, he allowed, anyone who wanted it, shore leave.
They set up a campsite and camped out in a clearing in the woods. The planet seemed to have been made up of small and large forests, mountains, and beaches. The entire crew was able to go hiking, climbing, swimming, and even observe animals extinct or completely alien from those of Earth.
**Planet**
"Captain, do you know where Trip is?" T'Pol asked and Archer could see she was concerned for him.
"I thought he was with you," came his pathetic reply.
"He was for a time. But I can no longer find him." Just them, Trip emerged from the woods and ran over to them. He seemed as giddy as a schoolboy and the fact he was panting and looked as though he had run a kilometer didn't seem to bother him a bit. From the ankle down on his pants were drenched and his shoes had what looked like dirt and sand on them.
"T'Pol, I need to show ya something." He told her as he almost dragged her where he apparently came from.
"Do I get to come?" Archer asked, not meaning it, to the couple now about to enter the woods. Trip throw him a look and Archer just shook his head a laughed.
Trip had led her through the woods for a half an hour and over a kilometer without giving her an idea of where they were going. She had given up on trying to understand this kind of behavior from him long ago and merely went alone with it. She found herself becoming excited, too, for she had found that although Trip did become easily emotional, something that got him acting like this and wanting for her to see, had to be interesting.
When they finally emerged from all the trees, she saw a huge clearing. Sand covered the ground for the next eight meters in front of her and beyond that was water. It was a beach. It was a beach that branched off into an ocean. He had remembered that she had never seen a real ocean and had always wanted to.
She looked at him and smiled. It was a bright smile; one that Trip always knew she was capable of. She stepped closer to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. She pressed her forehand to his and Trip slid his hands around her waist. She gave him a short, gentle kiss but it was enough to show her appreciation. 'Thank-you,' she whispered into his mind.
Trip looked at her and she knew he had a question, one that was weighing heavily on his mind. T'Pol was curious as to what it was but knew that he would tell her if and when the battle going on in his mind was finished and the decision to tell her won.
He kissed her again and took a deep breath. This was something he really, really wanted to do but it was hard to say; he just couldn't figure out how to say it. When he thought he had had it all worked out in his head, he looked deep in her eyes and said, in a serious yet hopeful voice, "T'Pol, I've been in love with you for long as I've known you. After I was able t' get over our differences, as not only specie but as people, I was able t' understand and accept how I really do feel about ya. And I know your people and mine are gonna have a tough time with this but," he paused and slowly removed his hands from their spot at her waist. He brought them up to her arms and allowed them to slide down his chest. T'Pol was oblivious to what he was doing especially when he knelt down in front of her. She looked at him with a raised eyebrow, interested in where this was going. He took a deep breath before removing something from his pocket. It was a black velvet box and when he opened it, he reveled a ring with a plain, gold band and two modest diamonds in the center that inter locked. "Will ya marry me?" Came the conclusion of his statement.
T'Pol was stunned. His heart-warming speech was some kind of human marriage proposal, she now realized. In Vulcan society they were already technically 'married' but she knew Trip wanted to be married in his society. She knew the risks and that she would be even more scorned by her family and people and that there was a good chance Trip would too. This union could cost them both their careers but, as she had read in human literature, 'love is a risk in itself'.
He waited, breathlessly, as she thought all of it through. He knew what he was risking by just asking and he would understand if she rejected him. When her lips began to move Trip barely registered what they said, but he did hear, "Yes, Trip, I will marry you."
His grin turned into a huge smile that covered his face and his giddiness returned as he sprung up and took the ring from its container. He took her left hand and gently slid the ring on her ring finger. She looked at it and clearly didn't understand the significance of it. "It's called an engagement ring."
"Engagement?"
"Yea, ya know, the time in between the proposal and marriage. I see Vulcan and Human wedding rituals are very different from each other," Trip commented getting a nodded from his new fiancée.
"Indeed. In Vulcan standards we would already be considered married," T'Pol replayed in her normal monotone voice but the excitement was there nonetheless.
They remained silent for a moment or two before T'Pol asked, "Where did you get this? You never had the time to get it."
Trip smiled at that and said, "It was my mom's. She gave it to me and told me to give it to the woman I love and that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. And that's you."
They spent another moment of silence before Trip's smile turned into a wicked one as a plan developed in his mind. He picked T'Pol up and walked her to the water. When he got deep enough, he dropped her in. They both laughed as the water splashed up and drenched Trip as much as the contact with the water soaked her. They splashed the other with water and had a full blown water war.
After an hour or two of playing water games and Trip teaching T'Pol the basics of swimming, the couple laid down in the sand and watched as the sun set over the ocean. The entire picture seemed so much like the memory Trip had shared with T'Pol that she almost didn't realize they were any different. But this time, this time was unique. She couldn't tell if it was the company or the fact she knew it was real, but this it wasn't just Trip's memory to share with her, it was both their memories to share with each other.
**The Came Site**
When the two returned, most of the crew was asleep. One fire was still burning and, since neither of them was really tired, they walked over there to sit by the warmth. When they arrived, Archer and Hoshi were sitting there talking. They politely stopped and looked up at their new guests.
The two smiled when they saw that they were soaked to the skin. "What happened to you two?" Hoshi asked seeing that the two were not alarmed by their appearance.
They looked down and Trip just shrugged. "We were swimming," he said as they sat down next to each other, their proximity alarmingly close.
Hoshi, suspecting but not knowing any real facts or details of their situation, smile and tried not to make a scene of it. And that's when she saw it. T'Pol had a diamond ring on her left ring finger. She almost couldn't contain herself. She wanted to jump up and congratulate them but decided if they had not told her about their relationship, they should at least be able to tell her they were getting married on their own time.
T'Pol had observed the changes in Hoshi and the way she was starring at her T'Pol's her hand yet trying not to make it that noticeable. T'Pol almost smiled at that behavior; she would not care if Hoshi had brought up the subject. In fact, she really wanted her to for she knew nothing, besides the rings, about human marriage rituals.
Archer had seen the look that Trip was wearing and knew what it meant. He had proposed to T'Pol. When he looked over at his science officer, he could see that she had a moderately sized diamond ring on. It was an engagement ring. He gave Trip a huge smile and Trip couldn't contain himself anymore. He, too, broke out in a smile and soon after that Hoshi had followed to trend.
"Congratulations, you two," Archer said and he gave him a hardy pat on the back.
"Yes, congratulations. Just a question, but how long have you two been together?" Hoshi inquired, not to pry, but she wanted to know.
"A little after the second time we were taken by the Taso," Trip said with a shrug.
"You sure could have fooled me," came Hoshi's muttered reply. Trip gave a small laugh at that as he slid his arm around T'Pol's waist, no longer afraid to touch her in front of Hoshi. They stayed in that silence for a moment or two, just looking into the fire.
"The High Command and Starfleet aren't going to like this, you do know that?" Archer asked, suddenly, his eyes never leaving their spot from the fire.
Both Trip and T'Pol nodded their heads and Trip answered, "We know, Jon. We know."
The fire cracked and a spark flew while owls hooted and other night animals could barely be heard from the woods. The tide washed up on the shore and, if you strained your ears, you could hear it from the campsite. The wind blew through the trees, causing their leaves to rustle. Crickets, or what sounded like them, made the same annoying yet rhythmic sound in the background.
Trip and T'Pol registered all of that but they were too deep in thought to think much about it. They both wanted to be married and knew the risk they were taking were big ones, but they did not want them to control them.
**Bridge**
After their shore leave had ended, Archer sat in his chair in the dead center of the bridge. He seemed almost anxious about something yet excited at the same time. And Hoshi knew why. He was about to announce to the entire crew, Trip, T'Pol, Archer, and hers secret.
She was just as anxious about the crew's reaction to the news as he was. She knew, from being one of the biggest gossip queens on the ship, that most would not be totally surprised at this news. Sure it was unexpected but certainly not unwarranted.
Archer took a deep breath before he stood up and walked to the center of the bridge. Most of the bridge was now starring at him for they knew he only walked there if he was about to address them or talk on the view screen. He nodded to Hoshi and she turned on the comm. so the whole ship could hear.
"This is your Captain speaking. I have some very… important news for you all. In a few months our very own Science Officer, Sub-Commander T'Pol, and Chief Engineer, Commander Tucker… are getting married." The reaction from the crew, or at least the bridge crew since they were the only part of it he could see, was… different than he expected. At first they were in complete shock, but once the majority realized what he had said they were ecstatic and seemed very happy for them. The minority, however, took a little longer to process this and once they did they seemed, what's the word… flabbergasted. Both Archer and Hoshi assumed that this was the reaction all over the ship.
**Engineering**
At the same time down in engineering, when Trip heard the announcement begin, he knew the Captain was going to tell the crew of his engagement. He was a bit of a nervous wreck through it.
When his name was mentioned he got a few interested looks, but the real ones came when the marriage was mentioned. First, everyone was stunned. Of course they had all noticed how much the two had liked each other in the beginning with all their bickering, but all of them assumed it would be unrequited love.
When they got over the shock, everyone went up to him to congratulate by either shaking his hand, patting him on the back, or just saying so. This was not the behavior he was expecting. There was no prejudice against the fact she was Vulcan and he was Human. No body seemed to care that they were both officers on the same ship. And no one seemed upset that they had never even heard of them dating. 'Maybe this ain't goin' t' be so bad,' Trip thought to himself as he smiled with everyone else.
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Did you like the Proposal? I mean, it's not like I've ever been and/or proposed to anyone before. Please R/R.
One other thing, was the crew's reaction ok? Like was it real or did it seem to… perfect?
