A/N: See Chapter 1 for Disclaimer.

Chapter 2: Getting Slapped

One week later, Dr. Luke gave Baby Miral her pediatric checkup, and then he and B'Elanna got into a discussion, and she had some things to say that were tough to hear.

"Why the long face, Dr. Luke?" asked B'Elanna after she clearly noticed him sulking.

"It's nothing, really," he said with a longwinded sigh. "I'm just feeling overlooked and ignored and unappreciated. As usual."

"Why are you feeling that way?"

Dr. Luke let out another annoyed sigh, and then he looked at B'Elanna and told her, "I had my big piano recital in the Mess Hall last night, and I really had my heart set on the Captain and the senior staff being there."

"Tom and Tuvok were there."

"Yes, but I wanted everyone to be there, especially the Captain. In case you haven't noticed, I've really been through a lot these past few weeks. There was that terrible incident aboard the Idora and then all of the sudden, I found myself praying to Jesus and the next thing I knew, I was human. I've been going through so many changes so suddenly and it's been very difficult. As you may have noticed, I've been mostly keeping to myself ever since what happened on the Idora. With the exception of my duty shifts and having coffee with the Captain on the holodeck, I've barely left the new quarters I've been assigned. Which are far too small, I might add. But I digress. The point is, my recital last night was a big step for me. I'm finally beginning to come out into the world again. And I really needed the Captain and the rest of the senior staff to be there. I needed everyone's support."

"Doctor, you know perfectly well that that Kalari alien we met three days ago tried to sabotage Voyager's systems by infecting our gel packs with a virus. We've been working constantly to keep the virus from spreading all the way through the ship. I for one haven't had a wink of sleep over the past forty-eight hours. I was barely able to get away from Engineering long enough to bring Miral here for her checkup."

"I know that the crew has other responsibilities besides me–" Luke began to say.

"No, you don't," B'Elanna interrupted. "Ever since you were first activated seven years ago, you have constantly expected all life on Voyager to revolve around you. Granted, you have a vast amount of knowledge and you are an incredible doctor. But still, you have got to get over yourself and stop expecting constant accolades and applause for everything you ever do. Newsflash, Dr. Luke: you are not the only brilliant, gifted individual aboard this ship, and you need to stop acting as if you are. It is high time that you got over this idea of yours that you are so far above the rest of us. It's as if you literally believe that the rest of us only exist to stroke your ego."

"That is not true and I resent that accusation!" Luke yelled, and then Miral started to cry. B'Elanna then held her baby daughter closer to her chest and soothed her, and she quickly quieted down.

"It is true, Doctor, and deep down, you know it," B'Elanna told him in a quieter voice. "You're simply too proud and stubborn to admit it. And I'll tell you something else. No matter how much you've been through recently, it doesn't hold a candle to the kind of hell Captain Janeway has had to endure."

"What are you saying?"

"I know that what you went through on the Idora was very painful. I'm not denying that. But still, your experience aboard the Idora was only a small taste of the kinds of things Captain Janeway has been going through every day for the past seven years. You cry and whine to me about the lack of emotional support you've been getting. How much emotional support do you really believe Captain Janeway has had during our journey through the Delta Quadrant? She doesn't have the luxury of crying on someone's shoulder every time things get painful and difficult like the rest of us do. She's the captain. She has to carry burdens far heavier than yours will ever be, but unlike you, she never complains. She doesn't expect a great big round of applause from everybody every time she walks on the Bridge. She just gets out of bed every day and does her job without making a big fuss about it. You could learn a lot from her," B'Elanna told him truthfully as her eyes bore into his. Then a few moments later, she left Sick Bay with Miral, and Luke just stood there, feeling as though B'Elanna had just slapped him.

Two days later, after the crew had finally solved the problem with the gel packs, Dr. Luke was sitting alone at a table in a jam-packed Mess Hall, reading something on a PADD. Neelix could clearly see the scowl on Dr. Luke's face, so as Voyager's Chief Morale Officer, he decided to try and help.

"Hello, Dr. Luke," said Neelix, and Luke briefly glanced up from his PADD.

"Hello, Mr. Neelix," he sighed.

"Mind if I sit down?"

"Please," said Luke as he set the PADD down on the table. "I'd appreciate the company."

"I can tell you're not having such a great day today. What's wrong?" he asked as he took his seat across the small table from Luke.

"Two days ago, after I had given Miral her latest checkup, B'Elanna and I got into an argument. In a nutshell, she accused me of being arrogant and egotistical. She said that I always expect all life on Voyager to revolve around me; that I constantly expect accolades and applause for everything I ever do. Naturally, I was deeply insulted at B'Elanna's ridiculous and unfounded accusations. And now that I have a relationship with the Creator of the universe, I was hoping…expecting…to look into the pages of Scripture and find comfort. Instead, I found just the opposite."

"What did you find?"

"I was just reading chapter twenty-seven of the book of Proverbs. There was one verse that really stuck out, and it was not a comfort to me at all. Verse six. It says, 'Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but deceitful are the kisses of an enemy.' It's almost as if Jesus is trying to tell me through this verse in Proverbs that B'Elanna is actually right."

Neelix was a jolly, kindhearted soul and he truly hated saying or doing anything that might bring another person down. However, he knew as much as any other Voyager crewman just how right B'Elanna was! Neelix knew Luke needed to hear the truth, but he also knew how sensitive and overemotional he could be. He knew he would have to tread very carefully.

After pausing in thought for several long moments, Neelix finally said, "Dr. Luke, imagine that there's a doctor who's best friends with one of his patients. Now imagine that the patient is an older obese man who frequently overeats and doesn't get any exercise. He has high blood pressure, and the doctor knows that if his friend doesn't change his lifestyle, it's likely that he'll soon have a heart attack or a stroke. Now imagine that the doctor's friend is very, very sensitive about his weight. He gets very hurt, angry, and offended any time anybody tries to bring the subject up. The doctor has two choices. He can either lie to his friend and tell him that he isn't overweight and that he's as healthy and strong as a twenty-year-old. Or, he can tell his friend the truth. If the doctor chooses to lie so the man won't be offended, is he really being a friend to him?"

Luke pondered Neelix's words for a few moments, knowing how right he was. "Obviously, if the doctor lies, he was never truly the man's friend," he admitted.

"We both know that B'Elanna can be hot-tempered at times, especially when she's stressed."

"She did say that she'd gone forty-eight hours without sleep."

"But even though she probably was a little short-tempered the other day, even though she probably didn't say it in the kindest way, she actually is right."

"Thanks a lot, Mr. Neelix," Luke said sarcastically, and again, he had a big scowl on his face.

"Dr. Luke, you are a brilliant, innovative physician. You're also very creative and a fine musician. You have such a passion, such a zest for life within you. I think you're a joy to be around. However, just like that obese man, you…you do have a problem."

"And what would that problem be, precisely?"

"This isn't easy to say, Dr. Luke, so I guess I'll just come out and say it. You have a problem with your ego. Sometimes…you get so wrapped up in yourself that you just can't see anybody else. Sometimes, Dr. Luke, you…sometimes you really do expect everyone else's lives to revolve around you, and sometimes you forget that other people have lives of their own, problems of their own, that they have to deal with. Sometimes, it's almost as if you just cannot be happy unless everyone around you stops living their own lives so that they can constantly shower you with praise."

In the following moments, Neelix could look at Luke's face and plainly tell that his words had really hurt him, and that made him feel awful. Dr. Luke stood up then, picked up his PADD, and said, "Well, if you'll excuse me, Mr. Neelix, I have to get back to Sick Bay. I have a lot of work I have to catch up on."

"Doctor, I really am sorry if I hurt you. I didn't mean to," Neelix told him, but Luke quickly walked out of the Mess Hall without saying a word.