Fission
It's a day for breakups. A dozen Dear John letters. She's heard, too, that B'Elanna left Tom, bad news hastening the inevitable.
Maybe that's why when she says safety net relief shocks her body like reigniting a star. She tries another: someone else. The words thrum through her, heady. Because she means free. She means Tom.
Too late, she realizes her mistake. Chakotay is careful, but she hears his hope. She backpedals, his face clouds over, and maybe he's known all along. His censure lands like an atom bomb:
Plenty of time.
She's never known him to be so cruel.
