Lt. Jerome Baxter returned to the Enterprise for a brief assignment. He was the same Lieutenant that got transferred just as our relationship was starting to get serious. Although I still felt a bit sorely about the way things turned out, it was very good to see him again. I was off-duty in Ten Forward when I saw him.
"Lt. Baxter. What brings you around here?" I asked jokingly.
"Kadalynn." he said with a bright smile before hugging me, "It's been so long. How have you been?"
"I've been fine. How's life treating you?"
"Pretty good. I can't complain."
"Wouldn't help if you did." I joked. Then I noticed the ring on his finger, "So, you're married now?"
He gave me a puzzled look before remembering the ring on his finger.
"Yeah. It just happened a week ago. I'm still getting used to the ring. We're supposed to be on our honeymoon now, but I got the call to come here. Have you… uh, have you met anyone?"
"Not really. Then again, I'm not really looking anyway." I lied. It hurt to see that Jerome had moved on, but I thought he was a good guy and I was happy for him.
"Well, congratulations." I said with a smile as I hugged him, "I hope the misses treats you right."
At that moment, Data walked in and there was a look on his face I hadn't seen before. I was so taken aback that I couldn't identify the expression. As I ended the hug, I greeted him.
"Hello Commander."
"Oh! Commander Data! It's so good to see you again, sir!" Jerome exclaimed happily as he shook Data's hand.
"Lt. Baxter. Welcome back aboard the Enterprise." Data replied rather plainly, "I apologize for the interruption, but I require the assistance of Ms. Graham."
'Ms. Graham?' I thought. Alright, something was clearly wrong. He was obviously upset, but why?
"Kadalynn, please come with me." Data said before starting to walk away, but was interrupted by Jerome.
"Commander, before you go; there's something I always wanted to tell you, but never got the chance."
"Can it wait until later, Lieutenant?" Data asked almost impatiently.
"I'd really like to say it now. I've been waiting for months and I've almost burst." Jerome laughed.
"Very well. Kadalynn, please go to Engineering. I'll meet you there shortly." Data replied almost hurriedly.
'What? Now I'm being dismissed? What the hell did I do?!' I thought; part in fear, part in anger.
"Yes, sir." I answered with cold professionalism as a turned to walk away, but Jerome's next statement made me freeze in my tracks.
"No need to worry, Commander, it's not about anything personal. I just wanted to thank you for recommending me for the transfer to the USS Stratus. It was the best thing that's ever happened to me! Sure it's not as grand as the Enterprise, but it's been good to me." Jerome replied with joyous gratitude.
At that moment, I whipped around to face them and my stomach grew nauseous. Tears burned my eyes when I realized that Data had set it all up! I was speechless and my mouth was agape.
"Lieutenant, perhaps we can discuss this later." Data told Jerome before turning to face me, the irritation in his voice was clear.
"Kadalynn, did I not ask you to meet me in Engineering?" Data asked.
I said nothing and I swiftly exited Ten Forward. However, instead of going to Engineering, I headed straight for my quarters. My heart pounded as I quickly walked through the empty corridor towards the turbolift. My vision became blurry as I fought back tears. Then I heard footsteps traveling a short distance behind me.
"Kadalynn," Data called, "where are you going?"
I ignored him and started to run. I heard his footsteps quicken behind me and I panicked. My adrenaline had kicked into overdrive. My heart was racing frantically and by the time I made it to the turbolift, my body was trembling. I frantically called for the lift and it seemed to take forever. Just when I began to think of alternate routes of escape, the lift finally came. As I entered, I saw Data rapidly approaching and I prayed the doors would close before he got close enough to intercept.
"Kadalynn!" he called just before the doors finally closed. I heard his hand thump against the door when he failed to catch it in time.
I immediately burst into tears. I didn't know what to do and I wasn't exactly sure why I was running. I guess I was really hurt that one of my best friends had betrayed me and I didn't want to face him at the moment. When the lift stopped on my floor, I ran to my quarters and initiated a privacy lockout. I then began to hastily pack my things, which were very few. When I turned to exit, I bumped into Data and screamed as I dropped my travel case, its contents spilled out across the floor. I scrambled to pick everything up.
"Data, get out! Don't you know what a 'privacy lockout' is?"
"It is irrelevant if I suspect you will cause yourself harm."
"I won't. So please, just leave! I don't want to see you! I don't want anything to do with you!"
"If this is about what Lt. Baxter has just stated…"
"If? If?! Of course it's about what he said! Data, how could you do that?! How could you transfer him like that and pretend you had nothing to do with it?! How could you lie to me like that?!"
"Kadalynn, I did not lie to you."
"No. Not directly, but you didn't tell me everything, Data. That's a lie by omission! Why did you do it? Why did you have him transferred?!"
"His service record indicated that he was an ideal candidate for the assignment."
"I know that there were at least a few other officers that would've been right for the job. Why him specifically? Why Jerome?"
Data frowned for a moment before staring into my eyes. His gaze was like the sun blaring into my brain and I was compelled to look away, but he put his hand under my chin and lifted my glance to rejoin his.
"Kadalynn," he whispered, "are you suggesting that I intentionally had Jerome transferred in order to… separate the two of you?"
I was afraid to answer, but that's exactly what I was getting at. I stumbled on a few fragmented words in an attempt to answer, but he shocked me with what he said next.
"If so, your intuition is correct." he glumly admitted.
"Why?! What did I do to deserve that?!" I cried angrily, "Didn't you think I went through enough as it was?!"
"Yes. That is exactly why I did it. Lt. Baxter has had a consistent history of having short, failed relationships. In each case, he has broken the heart of his consort. I did not want that to happen to you. I knew that if I were to tell you about his history, you would have doubted me since you were 'falling for him'. If your heart were to become broken, I feared you would leave the Enterprise and return to Earth. My motivation was simple, to find a way to end your relationship in a way that would benefit all parties involved."
"Benefit? How the hell did I benefit from it and just what did you stand to gain?!" I hissed through clenched teeth.
"Lt. Baxter obtained a more lucrative career path aboard the Stratus than he would have achieved on the Enterprise. You avoided having your heart broken and I have… your friendship as well as you continued presence on this ship."
"Don't be so sure about those last two things!" I chortled angrily.
From that point on, things were pretty tense between us. For days I continued to seethe over what he had done. Whenever we'd encounter one another, our interactions were starkly professional. On a few occasions, he'd try to contact me after hours to make amends, but I was hearing none of it. I was much too angry and stubborn for that.