"Wake up, Chakotay." The gentle shake of his head stirred him and he opened his eyes to look into Kathryn's face. Her teeth were chattering violently by now ad her lips were starting to turn blue. But her grip on his hand had not weakened and she was still smiling at him. "You can't fall asleep in this cold, okay?"

"Okay," he promised, locking his eyes with hers, "You keep pushing that badge. I want to get out of here."

And she did. She kept repeating the same gesture over and over – pressing the comm badge and calling out "Janeway to Voyager. Do you read? Janeway to Voyager, please respond." The same words over and over, while her eyes were glued to his making sure he didn't close them.

When she felt him slip a little from the small debris, she quickly reached out her free hand to pull him back up and kept it clasped around his arm. With both hands holding him in place, her desperate attempts to reach her ship stopped and she focused on holding Chakotay in place and awake. But his eye lids were drooping and his lips were blue, his skin starting to turn an unhealthy shade of purple under the bronze and she knew she was losing him fast.

"Chakotay, look at me." She shook his shoulder and he tore his eyes open.

"I love you." The words were barely a whisper, but it was all he could manage.

She scrambled closer to him until her lips were next to his ear, her hand holding his head in place, "You only say that because you think you're going to die. But you're not going to die, that's an order."

Chakotay managed a small chuckle at the thought that she could command death, but it caught in his throat and caused him to cough violently, making him slip further from the hull piece. Kathryn tried to hold him in place with all the strength she had left, but her arms and hands were stiff and he was too heavy with his soaked clothes and before she knew it he had slipped from her grasp and fully into the cold water.

"Chakotay," she gasped in shock, her eyes tearing open and the adrenaline pumping into her veins.

With all her strength she pushed her arm under water, grasped his arm and pulled him back to her. He resurfaced but she wasn't strong enough to pull him back onto the hull piece and he was in no condition to pull himself any closer. So Kathryn just held on to his hand with all her might and pulled him as close as she could get him.

Chakotay knew there was no use and he felt his whole body starting to go limp. He had trouble keeping his eyes open and every breath was painful and more difficult. He saw Kathryn's eyes starting to fill with tears as she realized the same, but he could also see the defiance in them and the tenacity in her rigid posture.

He knew that when he lost consciousness and she had to hold him up by herself the debris could tip and she could fall into the water. She had to let go of him, if she wanted to stay save. If she stayed out of the water she had a chance to survive until Voyager reached them. But if she fell back into the water now, she would never make it.

Chakotay tried to open his hand and let her go, but she felt it and clenched her hand closed against his, her eyes searching his for his intent.

"Let go, Kathryn," he whispered, his voice tired and his eye lids dropping, "They'll find you and you will grow old and wrinkled. I want you to grow old and wrinkled, Kathryn. You have to let me go."

He tried to open his hand again, pry it away from hers, but she refused to let go and grasped him harder.

"I'll never let you go," she said in the best command voice she can muster up, "Not until you make me."

Her breath came in small visible puffs as she desperately tried to scramble him closer to her when his eyes fluttered closed. He was too heavy and they were both frozen stiff, but she tried to pull him up with her in a vain attempt to get him to open his eyes.

She saw his arm move under the water and a racking sob escaped her when his wet hand emerged and he pressed his comm badge into her hand.

"Don't you die on me now," she screamed grasping his hair, "I'll hate you if you leave me alone. Do you hear me? I'll hate you."

"Kathryn," his voice was becoming weaker and they both knew he had no time left, "I'll always be with you."

"I love you, Chakotay. You hold on," she whimpered against his temple, cradling his head close to her, "and I promise I'll never let you fly another shuttle. I can't do this without you. I love you and when we make it back to Voyager, I won't hide. You can't leave me alone. You have to hold on so that I can kiss you, Chakotay. I love you. I love you. I love you."

She clenched her hand around the comm badge as she clenched her hand around his. She didn't have the energy to suppress her tears and her sobs, so she cried openly when he closed his eyes and laid his head on the debris. And she looked on helplessly when he slipped again and his body submerged fully into the water. But she couldn't let go, she couldn't do this without him and with everything she had left she tightened the muscles in her hand and held on to his hand as his body started to sink.