Disclaimer: Star Trek
Enterprise and all of its characters are the property of Paramount. No
copyright infringement is intended.
Summary: coda/missing scene for
Season 4 "Home"
Author's note: Many thanks to Seema
for the beta. It's her fault I wrote this in the first place, but it's
still nice of her to help me out.
Letting Go
By Rocky
"Seems like I missed quite a bit of excitement around here," Trip said,
taking another swig from his beer. He'd been surprised when Reed
suggested meeting at the "602"--wasn't the point of leave to get away
from all Starfleet associations?-- but after hearing about Phlox's
unpleasant encounter in a civilian bar, he'd been happy to accede.
"You could say that," Reed said, catching the eye of the comely new
waitress and smiling.
Ruby, who'd tended bar at the popular Starfleet hangout for over a
decade and had been the object of more than one cadet crush, was
gone. She'd sold her stake and gone back east to live with her
folks, who were getting on in years. Trip could understand that; in the
wake of the destruction wreaked by the Xindi, family was more important
than ever. Still, Ruby's absence was yet another jarring note, an
additional reminder, as if he needed one, of just how much things had
changed.
Trip's thoughts turned back to the Enterprise.
After their current stretch of R & R was over--not to mention the
ship's refit--they'd be off in space once more, on a brand-new mission.
Or rather, Trip corrected himself, an old mission resumed, one the
wars--the Xindi/Sphere Builders as well as the Temporal one--had
interrupted. Trip was surprised at how much he was looking forward to
getting back in space again. Exploring, seeking out new life and
civilizations, was suddenly a much more attractive option than spending
any more time on a distressingly changed Earth, a planet still licking
its wounds. Funny how everyone always talked about how much things had
changed in just the short period of time since Zefram Cochrane's
historic flight--no more war, no more poverty. Yet it didn't take much
for humanity to revert back to the xenophobic mindset of the bad old
days, not if Phlox's recent experience was anything to go by.
He sighed, more loudly than he intended to, and looked away from Reed's
suddenly concerned gaze.
"Penny for your thoughts," Reed said.
"They're not even worth that much," Trip said, glancing down at the
smooth surface of the table. He was pretty sure this was the same one
he'd once knocked over in a fight, coming to the defense of a young
Commander Archer right before the first flight of the warp two
prototype. The placement in the room was right, but there were no scars
or other identifying marks, no sign that what had been one of the more
significant events of his life had ever taken place.
A burst of laughter nearby made him look up. As usual for this time of
night, the bar was pretty crowded. Every branch of service, every rank
from non-com to captain, was represented. None of the faces, however,
looked familiar.
"You haven't said much about your trip to Vulcan," Reed said now,
clearly hoping to steer his thoughts to more cheerful subjects. Trip
almost smiled. Nice try, buddy.
It wasn't Reed's fault he'd touched on something even more painful, the
one subject Trip was less willing to talk about.
"Not much to tell," Trip said, gently swirling the last remnants of
amber liquid in his glass.
"You met T'Pol's parents?" Reed asked, leaning forward, his curiosity
evident.
"Her mother," Trip said. "Nice lady. Very appreciative when I fixed one
of her appliances that was on the fritz."
"That's all you did? Home repairs? I'd have thought T'Pol would have
taken you around, showed you the sights."
"Vulcan's not going to replace Risa as the great vacation getaway of
the galaxy anytime soon," Trip retorted. "Not much to see. Just sand
and wind and rocks, for the most part. Red sky. And predators out in
the desert that make anything we've got back home look mighty tame in
comparison."
"So no sightseeing. What did you do the whole time you were there?
Surely something interesting happened."
Trip bit back another sigh. Reed's insistent questioning was starting
to get on his nerves. "Well, I did attend T'Pol's wedding."
He instantly regretted his words. "Her wedding?" Reed said, his
astonishment plain to see. "She got married? To whom?"
"Her fiance, Koss." Trip focused his attention on the bright sign
advertising Rigellian ale on the other side of the room. "Remember him?
Medium height, dark hair, pointy ears, no sense of humor?"
Reed shook his head in confusion. "But I thought all that had been
settled, when she refused to marry him a couple of years ago..."
"Apparently not," Trip said. He was proud he could say the words
without any bitterness.
Reed looked at him for a long moment. "And you just stood there and
watched her marry another man."
"Yes."
"Are you crazy?" Reed demanded.
"What are you talking about? This had nothing to do with me. It was her
decision, she obviously wanted it, end of story."
"I can't believe you just let her do it!" Reed rolled his eyes. "Come
on, Trip, I'm not blind! I know what's been going on between the two of
you this past year."
"Nothing." Trip took another swallow of his now flat beer. "Nothing was
going on."
"Fine, if you want to call sleeping together 'nothing'--"
Trip impulsively grabbed the front of Reed's shirt. "Listen to me," he
said tightly. "It was only once, and we immediately agreed it had been
a mistake."
"But all those 'neuropressure' sessions--"
"Therapy," Trip said, forcing himself to let go of Reed and calm down.
"At Phlox's suggestion. There was never anything deeper behind it,
nothing personal at all." He took a deep breath. "She'd have done the
same for anyone."
Reed let out a low whistle. "You could have fooled me. I saw the way
she looked at you. And all this time you've been mooning after her--"
"Listen," Trip said. "I'm a Human, she's a Vulcan. We're fundamentally
different. You can't apply Human values and interpretations to her or
her behavior." He closed his eyes a moment, remembering T'Pol's
emotional breakdown and how he'd tried to reach out to her. "She's been
through a lot, this past year. We all have. The two of us are friends.
Nothing more."
Reed still looked skeptical. "I think you made a big mistake, letting
her get away."
Trip felt his last vestiges of patience slip away. "What the hell do
you know about it? To you, she's just an object, a good-looking piece
of ass, strutting around the bridge. Just like you treat all women, as
if they're there only for your appreciation."
"That's not true! I have a lot of respect for T'Pol."
"I've heard you make comments about her 'bum'," Trip said angrily.
Suddenly aware of the curious gazes from the group at the next table,
he lowered his voice. "Seen you wink when she comes into the Mess Hall.
You're telling me you've never sat there and wondered, just for a
moment, what it would be like?"
"Like I said before, I'm not blind." Reed set down his empty glass with
perhaps a bit more force than necessary and signaled for another round.
"Yes, she's a very attractive woman. But she's also the science officer
and second in command of the ship. And more to the point, she's the
person my best friend is in love with."
"I'm not in love," Trip said automatically. "Not in the way you think."
Reed raised his eyebrows. "Really? Tell me, Trip, did you try to stop
her? Did you tell her how you really
feel about her and beg her to give you a chance?"
"No." Trip shifted uneasily in his seat.
"Well, why didn't you?"
Trip said slowly, "It was clearly what she wanted, what the families
wanted." He swallowed. "No, I couldn't do that to her."
Reed smiled sadly and clapped him on the shoulder. "It appears you do
love her, after all."
FINIS
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