The BLTS Archive - Untitled
by Orion

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Published: 03-03-06 - Updated: 03-03-06

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She's in love. And he's not even her own race. She knows that anyone
else wouldn't believe her, not Seven of Nine. Not even the Doctor. And
most especially, not him. He does love her, true, but as a friend, if
that much. He loves someone else. She doesn't know how anyone could
like her, but he does. Oh yes. She knows. She's known ever since the
very beginning. She knows why they go to each other's quarters between
duty shifts. Oh yes. She knows. She knows exactly what they do. She
hears it and sees it too in a way. It makes her want to throw up or
cry, or both. But she can't. Sometimes she considers just sleeping,
sleeping and never waking up.

But then, for a while, he leaves her and comes. They talk, sort of,
and she decides that maybe it's worth it, the watching and listening,
for these few precious hours. She fixes things with him or sometimes
goes out for a bit of fun.

But in the end, he always leaves for her. And then she becomes
depressed again, if you could call it that.

Now, she smiles mentally again as the doors open. He's back. Her smile
turns to a frown. Something's wrong. She can tell by the expression on
his face. She knows, besides, that something's been going on.
Voyager's been shaking from weapons fire for a while. But, she knows
that whatever's out there, they can outfight, outrun, or outsmart it.
This is Voyager, after all.

Now, she knows something is terribly wrong. He's not alone. The
Captain, Lieutenant-Commander Tuvok, and her are with him. They're
hurrying aboard. To her relief, he does not come with them, merely
gives her a long worried look.

And to her surprise, the look moves on to her, lingering even longer
than it did on her. She wishes she could return it. But she can't.

The ship shakes again, and he falls. The others don't notice; they're
too preoccupied. Acting on instinct, she projects a forcefield,
cushioning his fall. He has time for one surprised look before she
disappears into space.

Now, she knows what they're fighting. The Borg. They don't scare her
like they do the others; she's only afraid for him and, to a lesser
extent the rest of the ship. The four of them twirl and dive
gracefully through the blackness. But if he were steering, they would
dance much more gracefully.

But all the same, she's hit, and discovered. The other three are
transported off and she hopes with every ounce of her being that
they make it off in time.

She can feel herself heating up. She knows that the three are off. She
also knows that she isn't going to survive.

She's in love with him. She's known for a long time, ever since he
first took her controls.

But she knows that he's in love with B'Elanna.

She knows that he doesn't love her that way. Just as a friend.

But Tom Paris' friendship is enough for her.

She knows she's not going to make it, with only seconds left until she
explodes.

But she's the Delta Flyer, and she knows she's done her duty.

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The End