The characters are owned by Paramount. No copyright infringement is intended.

Thank you once again to my beta, who took time out of her busy schedule to help with this. I'm not always the best person to beta for, and she's amazingly tolerant of my faults, including my lack of subtlety, as one reviewer pointed out in another story. Sometimes being subtle and making a point are mutually exclusive.

Also, thank you to the reviewers, whose interest provides the compulsion necessary to continue this story.

Chakotay once again stood over the sleeping patient and gently placed a hand on her shoulder, hoping she wouldn't startle as she awoke. When her lids fluttered open, her eyes were only slightly unfocused, and he let out a quiet sigh of relief. The medicine is still working.

He really didn't want to question her, but it was necessary. Still, her unshed tears melted his heart, and he opted to defer the topic, knowing that, if she were to experience another panic attack, she'd again have to suffer through it. Once without a sedative had been enough for him, and he wasn't even the one retching.

"You're safe," he offered, and she met his gaze. He hoped he would see relief in her eyes, but instead he saw unimaginable pain.

"Miral is safe," B'Elanna snapped from the doorway. "Away from you."

"What?" she questioned, confused. "What did I…?"

"You know, I've kept this to myself," the half-Klingon continued, "but I never liked you. From the moment I first saw you, I knew you were bad news." Her voice softened for a moment as she added, "At one time, you almost had me convinced that we could be friends. Honestly, I only tolerated you for Chakotay's sake, and I plan to tell him what I know now. Now please, get off my property. If you come again, I will call security and have you hauled away for trespassing."

"But I'm…we're…they wouldn't," she tried.

B'Elanna snorted. "They won't care who you are, especially once they hear about what you did. Really, how could you? Poor Naomi. I feel so bad for Sam, having to patch her up after you had your way with her."

"I…what?" was the baffled reply as her heart began to race and her stomach lurched. Her fingers tingled and her breath came rapidly. No, she thought, not now. Not here.

Just then, Paris stepped forward and grabbed his wife around the waist. "Come on," he told her gently, "it's enough."

Anger flaming in her eyes, B'Elanna turned to him and replied, "It's not enough! It's never enough! Not until she admits what she did and pays for it!"

Just then, their uninvited guest began to retch. "I'm sorry," she offered meekly between heaves. "I'll go," she mumbled through her fingers, as she'd raised her hand to her face instinctively. Humiliated, she quickly walked away.

"Something's wrong. Should I go help her?" came Tom's voice behind her.

He was answered with a definitive growl and a threat, "Not if you want to stay married to me."

As Chakotay saw her slipping away into her nightmarish dreamland, he desperately searched for something to pull her back. It was then he remembered the gift he'd been waiting to give her. Well…now was as good a time as any.

He pulled a small box out of his pocket, then gently opened it beside her. Holding it with one hand, he used the other to turn her chin towards him so that she would see. "Marry me," he said, then held his breath as he awaited her reply.

She seemed stunned, speechless – but at least no longer on the verge of another panic attack. Nervous at her lack of response, he continued to speak. "I know it's not a diamond…or even gold. Oh hell, it's synthetic rubber. But anything else…they wouldn't allow. You understand? It'd be dangerous…I – ."

He was gratified when she interrupted him. "I'm dying," she assessed grimly.

His eyes widened with surprise. That had not been the reaction he'd expected. How to respond to that?

She explained for him. "You wouldn't ask me that unless you're joking or my prognosis is very bad. And I'm guessing, given my surroundings, that it's not a joke."

His jaw dropped. It was more than she'd said to him at once in years, and yet it sunk his heart more than anything that had ever emanated from her lips and reached his ears. After a stunned pause, he decided, once again, to be honest. "They don't know what's wrong with you," he admitted. "We don't even know how long this medication will work."

"Well," she answered, "assuming they're even trying to find a cure – which I doubt, considering how they kicked my doctor out – that's still pretty grim. Leave it, Chakotay. You don't want to take responsibility for me. Don't do it out of some sense of lingering loyalty or debt. Just let me die. Get on with your life."

When he'd recovered from his shock, he sadly closed the box and put it back in his pocket. "You remember the doctor leaving?"

She nodded. "I think I remember everything. Oh God…I hurt you, didn't I?"

He noticed the signs of impending panic returning, and quickly attempted to defuse the situation. "I'm fine; you can see. The doctor fixed me up."

It was the wrong thing to say. Again, she began to retch. He called for the doctor, even as she squirmed to free herself from her restraints. Don't do this to me, he thought bitterly.

By the time the doctor arrived, tears were streaming down her cheeks, and he'd given up his frantic efforts to wipe them away as they fell. Instead, he stroked the grey hair away from her forehead and cooed at her, though it seemed to have no effect. "Undo the restraints!" he ordered. After a disapproving cock of his eyebrow, the medic lazily made his way to the control panel and typed in the code, clearly unhappy with being told what to do, but also no longer wanting to argue about this particular patient. With any luck, soon she'd no longer be his problem.

Chakotay attempted to gather her into his arms, to soothe her as he had last time, but she pushed him away. "Don't," she begged. "Just go. Leave me alone." She heaved, and he resisted her request. She pushed again. "Now! Go away!"

When he continued to refuse, she grew angry and desperate. "No, I won't marry you!" she yelled, "I hate you!"

Hurt and shocked, he dropped her back onto the biobed, then reluctantly slinked away. As he exited the room and the sounds of her attack grew distant, he bit his lip in a valiant effort not to burst into tears before he was safely alone.