Disclaimer: I have not used any of the Star Trek characters, but the alien species in my story don't belong to me. For that matter, Jala and Sisma don't belong to me either since they are my friends' screen names.

A/N: As a reminder, this weird version of Star Trek is based on my life, so there's no telling what will happen because life is unpredictable.

Ode to A Starship

by Lina Shay

Chapter Thirty-Five: Family Problems

It seemed as if each person hugged me three times. I promised to contact them all, and then climbed inside of my brother's shuttle. They waved as we disembarked. We went through the shield and flew out toward the stars. I watched the starship Wasatch get smaller and smaller. It weighed on my heart.

"Brother," I said to Alym, "don't be surprised if I randomly start to cry." As I said it, my voice cracked. That crack was the trigger. I started bawling. My brother turned away, pretending that he didn't see. Eventually, my tears dried and I stared sadly out at the stars. My brother was silent. I wished he would say something. I started dozing off and was nearly asleep when Alym landed the shuttle in the front yard.

The hut I had previously stayed in had gotten larger. They must have added on to the point it was almost a house. There was a second hut nearby. Alym helped me get my things inside. My sister, Teffan, didn't greet me as warmly as she had the last time.

"Where should I put my stuff?" I asked her.

"I had planned to put you in mom and dad's room, but since they're coming home next week-" She began.

"No, they're coming tomorrow night," Alym corrected her.

"I thought they were coming later today," I told them.

"Just sleep in the family room on that cot," Teffan said.

I put some of my things next to the cot. Alym put everything else in the smaller hut. When he was done, Alym left to go back to his own house.

"I'll be at work all day tomorrow," my sister told me. "You can eat whatever I have. Make sure to fill out the form I left for you."

"Can I use your computer while you're gone?" I asked.

"Sure," she shrugged. "But we don't have communications off the planet. You'll have to go to the relay station for that."

I slept as well as I could with a fuzzy animal lying on my shoulder. My sister's pet hara cat, Mimi, used to sleep in her room, but since that stray had a litter in her room, Mimi has had to stay in the family room. Poor Mimi. She's like me, forced out of where she belongs.

I woke up when my sister left for work. I went back to sleep for a while, and then finally got up. I went over to the hut where my things were. I spent a lot of time moving things around and making room for myself to live there. I couldn't continue to live on that cot for the remainder of the summer.

A little after noon, I got done with my space in the hut. I returned to the main house to find mom and dad inside. Dad was sitting in a chair in the family room, staring into space. Mom took one second to wave at me and then ran to the bathroom.

"Hi, daddy," I said and hugged him.

"Hi, baby," he murmured. "Do you see the kittens?"

"What kittens?" I asked, looking around.

"The kittens," he muttered, his eyes glazed over.

Mom ran back into the room.

"He said he saw kittens," I told her.

"Yeah, he's been seeing kittens since his new medication," Mom explained. "He sees a lot of weird things. I need to give him his clokobex and he'll be out like a light."

Mom took one of dad's hands and pulled him out of the chair. She held him up as she said, "Hand me those crutches."

I grabbed them and handed them to her. Dad walked better on the crutches than before. He was more used to his bionic leg, I guess. She took him off to the bedroom. After a few moments, mom came back out.

"He has bad days and good days," she said quietly. "Today's a bad day. It's best if he sleeps for a while."

I sat down on the cot. I kept thinking dad would come back to being himself. But it seemed as if as soon as I could recognize him again, the had to do another sergery and give more medication. He becomes a zombie again. I hate seeing him like that.

When Teffan came home from work, we played a few games and then went to bed. I was so tired. More than usual. Teffan had said that she would take me to the relay station the next morning, but she wasn't awake when I got up. I started reading the words of the Kai when I heard my mom cry out. I got up and went to look. I got there just as mom was closing the bathroom door.

"Dad fell," she told me. "It wasn't too bad, but it's not good for him to fall at all. It will aggravate things." She put the back of her hand against her head. "I am so tired, Lina. I can't sleep with him groaning all night."

I didn't know what to say. How could I help? I almost felt more helpless at home than at school.