Rating: PG13
Kathryn rolled over and pulled the comforter tighter under her chin. Curtains fluttered, and a breeze blew in from the window as it opened the door. Kathryn moaned as she rolled over, grimacing in her sleep as she dreamed.
Chakotay waited for her to settle and then slid in through the window. Standing at the foot of her bed, he watched her sleep. It had been a long, difficult summer, but now he hoped he was home. He watched her pull the covers, up closer to her face, and wondered what she was dreaming.
Time stood still as he studied her face. She looked the same as she had the last time he'd seen her, and yet... He watched her brow furrow, as she rolled over again. Her arm flailed out, as if searching for something.
She moaned again and... and this time it sounded like a name. He drew in a breath, as he heard her. "Chakotay," she murmured again. "Why are you just standing there?"
Her voice jolted him out of his reverie. Backing up, he prepared to disappear as quickly as he had appeared. He had just wanted to peek in to see how she was doing, to see if she was ok. But when he heard his name, he had been drawn in through the door, unable to resist.
"Chakotay?"
He found himself moving forward and standing at the side of the bed. He almost answered her before he realized she was still asleep.
Pulling the covers back, Kathryn patted her hand on the exposed sheet. "Hurry up, get in bed, I'm getting cold," she pleaded.
He could tell from her breathing that she was still asleep, but it looked so inviting. He hesitated. She frowned again, clearly wondering why he wasn't joining her.
'There are a million ways to get killed,' he thought as he pulled his boots off and looked at her again. 'Might as well be for you.' He flipped the comforter back down and lay on top of it. After their last encounter at HQ, he was reluctant to climb in between the sheets with her without a conscious invitation.
As soon as he lay down, he felt her arms slide around him, pulling him tight against her warm body. The creases in her forehead smoothed as her face relaxed. "I've missed you so much," she murmured, before drifting deeper into sleep.
He lay awake until morning, reveling in her embrace, wondering idly if this might be his last morning, and deciding he didn't give a damn.
Slowly, he saw the light begin to creep up the edge of the drapes, and the silence was finally shattered by her alarm clock.
Kathryn flung an arm over, hitting the clock and silencing it. Rolling back, she clutched the comforter around her. "You stayed," she said - almost a question.
"Of course, Kathryn. I would stay with you forever, even if that happens to be this morning," he answered, not at all sure of her response, but unwilling to trade these moments for anything.
"You always leave, and I roll over and you're not there," she whimpered. "Promise me you'll stay this time."
Chakotay smiled at that. Even if Kathryn wasn't fully awake, this was so much more than he had dared to hope for. On some level, she had missed him. Maybe even enough to forgive him.
"I'll stay with you until you tell me to go, Kathryn." He winced as he thought how much he needed her to love him.
"I'm holding you to it, Chakotay," she murmured, pulling him closer still. "If you ever leave me again, I swear I'll hunt you down."
Later that morning, Phoebe came down the hall, ready to go shopping. Opening Kathryn's door, she poked her head in to see why she wasn't up. Phoebe froze as she saw another body stretched out on the bed beside Kathryn.
Before she could back away, Chakotay raised his head and looked at her.
Shock giving way to happiness, Phoebe grinned and gave him a little wave.
Chakotay nodded back at her, and then settled his head back down next to Kathryn's.
A few hours later, Kathryn rolled over and stretched. Her eyes opened slowly, and she looked at the clock. 10:00! Phoebe would have been waiting for her for hours. Kathryn sat bolt upright in bed, yanking the covers off of her, but they were stuck on something. She looked down and was shocked to see Chakotay lying beside her. Her hand flew to her mouth as she gasped.
Chakotay rolled slowly onto his back and looked up at her. He tried not to look fearful or hopeful as he attempted to gauge her reaction.
"Chakotay?" She reached down tentatively to touch his face. "Are you really here?"
"Yes, I'm here." Chakotay waited for her to do something else, say something else, and let him know what was going through her mind, but she just drew her hand back and stared at him.
She looked him over, and then came back to his eyes at last. She fixed him with a curious gaze. "Why are you barefoot?"
Chakotay was taken aback for a moment. He raised an eyebrow. "My boots are on the floor. I didn't want to get your bed dirty."
"Oh." She nodded and kept staring at him. "Thanks."
After a minute passed, and she hadn't said anything more, he broke the silence. "I heard your mom downstairs earlier. She and Phoebe decided to let you rest and went to run errands." He still hadn't moved, not wanting to upset whatever this was that was going on.
"Oh." She said again.
He smiled at her confusion. At least she didn't appear angry, at least not yet.
"Why did mom go with her? We had planned to go together?"
"She needed to get some things, I suppose." He paused, and then decided it was better to just tell her. "Phoebe poked her head in a couple hours ago. I guess she didn't want to wake you."
"Phoebe?" Kathryn squeaked. She pulled the covers back up over her pajamas.
Chakotay saw the nervousness and embarrassment creeping back into her expression. For someone who had lived on a starship for the past seven years, he knew way too much about the affects of the cold light of morning. He stretched an arm over his head and tilted his head back to look at the ceiling. "I suppose I should offer to leave, but there's no transporter..."
Kathryn looked from Chakotay to the door. Her expression went from surprise to concern and then eased something more neutral with a hint of a smile. "I suppose now you're going to tell me you're stuck here for the whole day?"
Chakotay sighed. "Just let me use your comm-panel and I'll call for a transport." He began to sit up.
"Nothing doing, Mister. I can't afford to spend all those credits, just because you slept in." She ran a hand through her hair, and yawned as she combed her fingers through it. "Besides, you're on leave indefinitely. Are you telling me you suddenly have somewhere else to be?"
He leaned back, resting on his elbow, mind racing trying to figure out what to do next. Looking up slowly he waited for her to look at him. When she did, he said quietly, "I saw the sunrise. I would have gone before you woke, but you threatened to hunt me down if I left." He smiled weakly, a hint of his familiar grin came through. "Didn't want to tick off the newest admiral, and darling of the delta quadrant on my first day of freedom."
Her eyebrows shot up and she took in a sharp breath. "When did I say that?" It was certainly what she was thinking, but she hadn't intended to tell him.
"You were asleep."
She thought for a moment. Cautiously she asked, "What else did I say?"
Chakotay rolled onto his back again, not wanting to meet her eyes. "I dropped by to see how you were. You pulled the covers back and told me to get in - said you missed me." His voice softened. "I wanted to believe you meant it, even though I figured you'd throw me out when you woke up."
"Oh," was all Kathryn said. Her cheeks felt warm as she blushed.
He rolled on his side and looked at her as if he was expecting an answer.
Kathryn shifted nervously on the bed, debating with herself. After a long silence she looked back at him. Her voice was tentative. "I did miss you."
Chakotay blinked, but kept his mouth closed.
"I didn't miss the fighting and the arguments about Seven or Starfleet, but I missed having someone to talk to and just be with." She reached out slowly and touched his head lightly.
Chakotay nodded.
He watched her as she gently ran her fingers through his hair; coaxing it to curl and then smoothing it flat again. She seemed mesmerized by it. A low moan started in his throat and he pressed his head into her hand. After a few minutes he reached out and took her hand. She looked surprised for a moment as their eyes met. Then slowly he brought her hand down to his lips. When she didn't pull away, he gently kissed her fingers and then turned her hand over and kissed her palm.
She closed her eyes and smiled. "Can we just forget about the bad parts and start over?"
He reached up and stroked her cheek. She opened her eyes and looked at him. "Sounds good to me, Kathryn."
Kathryn yawned and slid back down into the covers, snuggling into his chest.
He wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. "Aren't you getting up?"
"Nope, I've been in back-to-back meetings and hearings all week. Today is my day off and I'm not getting out of bed."
Chakotay smiled. "Good idea. I could use some sleep. Transported here, but I still seem to have jetlag," he chuckled.
The sound was comforting as it rumbled through her. "Hmmm," she nodded against his chest. "You still haven't told me what happened to Seven?"
"Harry."
"Harry? How did that happen?"
"I informed him it was all a pretense to shield you and the crew from 'difficult questions.' I'll tell you about it later."
There was plenty of time later for all those discussions. For now he pulled her closer and they drifted of to sleep. The first decent sleep either had had in months.
THE END
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