He thought she was weird.
Delenn had been thinking about this statement incessantly for the past two days. She hadn't meant to eavesdrop, but it was more by chance that she had walked past Sheridan and his close command staff on the Zócalo.
She was surprised that she had apparently been the topic of conversation, but she couldn't bring herself to listen any longer. She'd heard enough.
Sheridan's words had hurt her. But she now realized that she hadn't just imagined that he treated her differently than the other ambassadors. There was nothing she could do about it. Sheridan had no desire to get involved with her any further, and she had to accept that.
With these thoughts in mind, after a long round of talks with Londo, she headed toward the Green Sector. It had taken forever to discuss the new trade relations with the Centauri. Currently, the Centauri were showing a disturbing interest in Narn territory anyway. Delenn could only hope that the situation would calm down again.
Exhausted, she entered the elevator, relieved that only one other person was already inside. She wasn't looking for company at the moment. The man, already in the elevator, wearing a dark suit and with his head down, didn't greet her and seemed lost in his own thoughts. Delenn let it go and paid no further attention to the stranger.
Delenn was just about to enter her destination sector when someone jumped into the elevator, looking a bit rushed. It was Captain Sheridan. Irritated, she looked at the person briefly. He seemed to be in a hurry. Only after he had entered his destination station did he notice Delenn. Did she imagine the corners of his mouth curling up in disgust?
"Ambassador," he greeted her neutrally.
"Captain," she nodded at him, but unfortunately her voice didn't sound as confident as she would have liked.
Of all the residents on the station, it had to be John Sheridan who shared an elevator with her after a long day. His opinion of her was seared into Delenn's mind and inevitably weighed on her heart. It was so stupid. She shouldn't care what the Starkiller thought of her, but it wasn't that simple. For some inexplicable reason, Delenn did care, and it all had to do with how Sheridan appeared to her. He was in his uniform and was quite tall, even for a human. His broad shoulders, strong arms, and blue eyes made it very difficult for her to stop staring at him. He was both attractive and intimidating to Delenn, which made no sense at all.
"Is something wrong?" he asked her.
Embarrassed, she immediately lowered her gaze and couldn't stop herself from blushing a little.
"Sorry," she stammered, hoping the elevator would reach its destination soon.
Now she felt Sheridan's gaze on her. She had no idea what to say to him, so she remained silent. The captain seemed to be doing the same.
A sudden jolt made Delenn stagger, and in shock, she clutched the walls. Sheridan felt the same way.
"Why are we stopping?"
Delenn glanced at the elevator display, but couldn't figure out what was wrong. She turned to Sheridan, about to say something, when out of the corner of her eye she noticed the stranger behind them pulling out a breathing mask. The captain turned around abruptly, but before he could reach the man, a gaseous mist poured up from the floor of the elevator, and Delenn's vision went black.