Thank you to all those who have been reviewing this story. Please continue to do so and I welcome new reviews. Let me know what you think and if you think I should keep going. Sorry for the lateness in getting this chapter up, although it is a bit short. Thanks again to everyone!
It was mid-morning before both Chakotay and Kathryn awoke. Chakotay was the first to wake and stared down at Kathryn. She looks so beautiful..so at peace. Kathryn began to stir and looked up at Chakotay, giving him a smile. "Good Morning!"
"Good Morning to you too! Sleep well?"
"Yes...I think it was the best night's sleep I've had in awhile. Thank you for being here Chakotay." Kathryn moved up and gave Chakotay a kiss, which he happily returned. "I'm going to go freshen up a bit and then I guess we should get things packed up for our return to Voyager."
While Kathryn was in the bathroom, Chakotay worked on getting the rest of her things packed. There was one thing that was in the back of his mind and he wasn't sure when it would be a good time to discuss it with Kathryn. A short time later she returned to the bedroom as Chakotay was gathering the last of her things.
"Kathryn there is something I need to ask you?"
"This sounds serious." She took a seat on the edge of the bed as Chakotay sat next to her.
"I don't know if you would consider this serious, but it is something we are eventually going to have to face. When are we going to tell the crew?"
Kathryn wasn't sure what to say. She hadn't even thought about telling the crew yet. "I don't know. I haven't even thought about that." She took Chakotay's hand into hers. "If it's okay with you, I would like to wait, at least for a little bit. I want to get to enjoy this before letting the crew know. I guess, what I mean is, I want the both of us to get to enjoy this."
"Your not worried about what their reaction to this will be are you? From what I've heard in the rumor mill, the crew has been pulling for us to get together for quite some time." Kathryn looked at him in shock. "Surprised huh?" This caused her to let out a small laugh.
"You need to start doing that more often." And with that he leaned in and gave her a kiss.
"So, you don't mind that we put off telling the crew for a little while at least." Chakotay kissed her again. "I'll take that as no then." Kathryn then wrapped her arms around Chakotay and pulled him closer.
An hour later, both were ready to beam back on Voyager. Once on board, Kathryn contacted the Prime Minister and thanked him for his hospitality. He apologized for those crewmembers that became ill and hoped it wouldn't hinder anything in the future. Kathryn assured that it wouldn't and before closing communication, the Prime Minister pointed out that she looked different...happy. She smiled at the compliment. Now, her next stop was sickbay.
All was quiet when she entered sickbay and found the EMH busily working in his office. "Hello Doctor."
"Captain, it's so good to see you. Please, come in. To what do I owe this visit?"
"I just stopped by to tell you that I have made a decision. I'm not going to terminate this pregnancy. And you know the more I think about it, I believe you had a hand in getting Chakotay down there on that planet. Someone from the ship could have just as easily contacted me to be sure that I was fine." The EMH attempted to show ignorance, but it didn't seem to work. "Don't worry, I'm not upset. In actuality, I think it was for the best. Chakotay knows that I am pregnant. We have a lot of things to work out, but I think we'll get through this. I just ask one thing of you. We both agreed not to tell the crew just yet. We want to get used to the idea for a little while before letting anyone know. Maybe in a few weeks we'll tell everyone, but for right now can you just keep this to yourself."
"Of course Captain. I'm just glad to hear that everything worked out in the end. I would like to schedule some time with you early next week to make sure that everything is progressing alright with the pregnancy." Kathryn nodded and left sickbay.