Chapter Six
Early the next morning, after constant sighs and pleading looks, Trip had managed to convince Phlox to release him from sickbay on the condition that he rest for the next 24 hours before returning to work. Trip had every intention of following these orders; he'd seen the wrath of Phlox too many times before, and he had no intention of rousing it again. First of all, he wanted to see T'Pol. She had looked really angry with him last night, and he wanted to set things straight. He knew they weren't 'a couple' anymore, so he didn't have to answer for his actions, but she still was a good friend after all. He cared for her. It felt important to him that she knew and believed his version of what had happened.
It was still early enough to catch her before her shift began, Trip thought as he stood outside her quarters, plucking up the courage to knock. It took him a while. "Come on, Trip, ya big wuss, anyone would think ya afraid!" After hesitating another moment he finally rang.
"Come."
"Sorry," exclaimed Trip after having entered her room to see her sitting cross legged on the floor, apparently meditating. "I'm not interrupting ya, am I?"
"No, I was just finishing." T'Pol stood up but she wouldn't look at him. "I thought you were still supposed to be in sickbay?"
"Ya should know by now how adapt I am at getting round Phlox," smirked Trip as he sat down on her bunk, making himself at home.
"Was there something I can do for you, Commander, or did your condition cause you to lose your whereabouts and go to the wrong cabin?"
Trip cocked his head and threw her a 'don't be a smart ass' look. Whoever had said Vulcans don't have a sense of humour obviously had never met T'Pol. "I wanted to talk to you, to explain what happened."
"I think you made yourself quite clear in your explanation last night, Commander," replied T'Pol sitting down in the chair opposite of him.
"Obviously not, considering your annoyed reaction."
"As I have told you numerous times before, Commander, Vulcans do not get annoyed."
"Could have fooled me, 'cos you obviously didn't believe me."
T'Pol just glared.
"Look, I know you can still sense my thoughts through this bond we've still got. It might not be as strong as before, but you can tell when I'm telling the truth or not."
"Is that important?"
"What?" asked Trip, unsure how to interpret her question?
"Is it important that I believe you?"
"Hell yes, it's important to me."
"Why?"
"Because I still care a great deal for you. Even if there had been women on that ship -- and there weren't -- I'm not the sort of guy to just go off with the first person I see, especially after what we had together. I wouldn't do that to you."
T'Pol stared at him long and hard, searching his mind for answers. After a prolonged moment, she relaxed slightly in her chair. "I believe you, Trip."
"So why do I still sense that your annoyed with me?" Trip smiled, giving her his little-boy look.
"You should have sought my help with the repairs on the ship."
"Ya pissed because I didn't want ya there," exclaimed Trip.
"Vulcans do not get pis--"
"I know, I know, Vulcans don't get pissed. Look I value your expertise, but do ya really think you would have been better than Trevella and Allion, who know the ship like the back of their hand? We had everything under control……"
"That much is obvious, Commander."
"Wow, two retorts in less than one minute," replied Trip, being snarky. "Quite the wise cracker, aren't we?"
"I've learned from the best," replied T'Pol, raising her usual eyebrow.
Trip looked at her, genuinely uncertain how to react for a moment. Then he shook his head and got up from the bed.
"Maybe this was a bad idea …"
"Wait, I apologise, Commander … I shouldn't have said that. Please sit down again."
"Sorry, T'Pol, I'm just a little wound up, ya know. It was bad enough going through this four years ago; I never dreamed I would do something stupid enough for it to happen again. I just don't know if I can do this again without the support of… you and ma friends."
T'Pol nodded to indicate that she understood. "If I recall correctly, you can't remember what happened the last day on board the Daladian ship."
"I can't, but ya looking at Mr. Walking Disaster here, who can't keep his fingers to himself," smirked Trip, referring back to her remark four years ago in sick bay with Phlox and Archer.
"I believe you are being too hard on yourself, Commander."
"Yeah, maybe, but no one else would be daft enough to get themselves knocked up twice. Hell, if I ever have to repair another ship, I wouldn't be too surprised if the Capt'n sends me over with a packet of contraceptives, just to make sure it doesn't happen again."
Even though she didn't show it, Trip could tell that T'Pol was amused by this thought.
"Trip, I believe I may be able to help you remember."
"How?" asked Trip, a little curious.
"Through a mind meld."
"Ya mean, that thing Soval did, back when we were trying to figure out the embassy bombing on Vulcan?"
"Yes."
"Have ya done something like that before? Will it hurt? Is it dangerous?"
"I have performed a mind meld before on Ensign Sato, when we were trying to find the abductors of Doctor Phlox," explained T'Pol. "It won't hurt, although you may experience slight side effects afterwards."
"Side effects?"
"Nothing to concern yourself about. You may feel some lingering effects from our minds touching – shared dreams, maybe taking on each others mannerisms, but it won't last long."
"Hmmmmm… sort of like our bond, but a bit more extreme?"
"Yes."
"Do you think it will work?" asked Trip.
"There is a high possibility of success."
"All right, we'll give it a go. When should we start?"
"We should consult Doctor Phlox and Captain Archer. I believe they will insist on being present," said T'Pol. Then as Trip's stomach began to protest loudly, "Maybe we should take a detour first," she said raising her eyebrow at the sound, much to Trip's embarrassment.
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