Lover’s "Q"uarrel
By: Amy Michelle Bitter © 1997Star Trek and it’s characters are property of Paramount. Everything else is property of me! (You knew I was going to say that, didn’t you?)
Ensign Harry Kim walked into Sickbay cradling his left arm.
"Harry, what’s wrong?" Kes asked.
"I think I broke my arm." Harry explained with a look of embarrassment. He felt like an idiot, especially in front of Kes, he had such a crush on her. He wondered if she felt the same about him. He’d never told anyone about his feelings towards her, except Tom, who he had sworn to secrecy.
"How did you do that?" Kes asked with a look of concern. Kes worried about Harry a lot. He was so shy and withdrawn from the rest of the crew. She knew it was hard for him to be one of the youngest on the ship. Just like it was hard for her to be the only Ocampan on the ship. But, he was always so sweet to everyone, and that’s one of the things that attracted her to him.
"I was playing Pharisee Squares on the holodeck with Tom." Harry said.
"Does the Doctor have time to look at my arm before I go on duty?"
"I’m afraid he’s busy in his office right now." Kes said. "But I can look at your arm." This was just the chance Kes had been waiting for. Time alone with Harry. Kes usually felt nervous around men because of her inexperience in relationships, but she always felt comfortable around Harry.
Harry had a seat on the biobed, and Kes picked up her medical tricorder. She scanned his arm and reported, "Yes, it’s broken. But, if you hold still, I can fix it."
"It’s what?" Harry shouted in a sudden outrage.
"Your arm is broken." Kes repeated.
"Like I’m going to take your word for it. Your not a trained physician. I want a second opinion." Harry screamed. *What’s going on?* Harry wondered. He was overwhelmed with a sudden unexplained anger toward Kes.
"Look Harry," Kes shouted, "I’m not the idiot who was playing Pharisee Squares on the holodeck so don’t yell at me!" She was experiencing the same unexplainable anger.
This upset both of them very much. Neither one of them liked yelling at anyone, but here they were, yelling at each other, for no reason.
The arguing continued until they were so loud that the Doctor ventured from his office to see what all the commotion was about.
"What is going on here?" The Doctor asked.
"Doc, I’m glad your here. I need you to take a look at my arm." Harry said.
"Why can’t Kes look at it?" The EMH wondered.
"She doesn’t know what she’s talking about." Harry scoffed.
"What?!" Kes shrieked. "Doctor, I refuse to work with this patient, he’s rude."
The Doctor was very confused. He had never known Harry or Kes to act like this. Especially towards each other, they usually went out of their way to be nice to each other. The Doctor took his tricorder and scanned Harry’s arm.
"Well, Mr. Kim," The Doctor started, "You have a fractured radius. Fortunately, for a doctor with my medical expertise, repairing it will be simple. Kes, will you hand me the bio regenerator?"
Kes stomped over to the table where the medical tools were and picked up the bio regenerator. She handed it to the Doctor and shot a mean look at Harry which he quickly returned.
"There you are." The Doctor said to Harry after he had finished repairing his arm.
"Thanks Doc, " Harry said, "I’m glad someone around here knows what there doing." With that he walked out of Sickbay, the doors closing behind him.------
"Why don’t you watch where your going?!" B’Elanna Torres screamed.
"Look B’Elanna, I said I was sorry." Tom explained irritably. He really hadn’t meant to bump into her.
"Tom, you’re noting but an accident waiting to happen!" B’Elanna shouted.
For some odd reason which she couldn’t quite explain she was experiencing strong anger towards Tom. This alarmed her. Mostly because she had feelings for Tom, which she’d never admitted to. But also because she didn’t like others seeing her horrible Klingon temper.
All this yelling had gotten the attention of Neelix who rushed over to where the two were standing in the mess hall. "Is everything all right." Neelix asked timidly not wanting to upset either one more than they already were.
"B’Elanna just won’t admit that I only ran into her because she was standing directly in my way." Tom scoffed. He also surprised himself. He was never mad at B’Elanna, he spent most of his time daydreaming about her. Why was he so mad at her?
"I’m sure it wasn’t anybody’s fault." Neelix said trying to settle the feud before he had to call security. "Now why don’t we just shake hands and make up." He suggested smiling broadly.
B’Elanna gave Tom a disgusted look and quickly turned her nose up at the offer. Tom looked at Neelix and said, "I have to go or I’ll be late for my shift." He walked out of the mess hall still fuming, but puzzled at his behavior.------
The turbolift door’s opened and Tom stood they staring onto the bridge bewildered. This day was getting stranger and stranger. First, he had this urge to yell at B’Elanna, whom he was secretly madly in love with, and now he finds himself on the bridge where Captain Janeway and Chakotay are fighting.
The two were standing in the middle of the bridge literally screaming at each other much to the amusement of the crew. Tom looked at Harry who was staring at the commander and the captain wearing his "I’m totally confused here" look.
"What are they fighting about?" Tom inquired to Harry.
"The color of that nebula on the view screen believe it or not." Harry said.
"This has been one weird day." Tom muttered.
"Tell me about it." Harry commented. "I got in the stupidest fight with Kes today."
This was all too bizarre, Tom thought. He had gotten in a fight with B’Elanna whom he was practically in love with. Harry and Kes were fighting and they both had crushes on each other, and now the Captain and Chakotay. The whole crew could tell they adored each other. Even though they had never done anything more than some innocent flirting.
"Don’t be ridiculous." Captain Janeway was screaming. "That nebula is obviously blue." She was shouting at Chakotay with a wrath that possessed her whole body.
"It’s green!" Chakotay shouted back with the same intensity of anger.
"I’m the captain, and I say that nebula is blue! I’m going to my ready room." Janeway stomped off the bridge like a child who was going to her room to pout.
She entered her ready room and no sooner had she sat at her desk, then she heard a voice.
"Hello, Madame Captain."
Janeway spun around and came face to face with Q.
"I can tell your happy to see me." Q said smugly. "Your speechless."
"Q, get the hell of my ship!" Janeway yelled, this time with an anger that was justifiable unlike the one she felt towards Chakotay.
"Have I ever told you that your angry when your beautiful?" Q asked. "Oh, yes, I believe I have."
"Stop the small talk Q. What do you want?" Janeway asked. "Kathryn, you hurt me." Q said. "Can’t I ever just stop by to say ‘hello’ to my favorite captain in the Delta Quadrant?"
Q never wanted just to stop by. Captain Janeway knew that, the last time he was there he wanted her to have his child. Lord knows what he’s up to this time.
"You always have an ulterior motive." Janeway scoffed. "And don’t call me Kathryn or Madame Captain."
"Honestly Captain, I just wanted to say ‘Hi’. And to check up on you mortals. What is going on with your crew, Captain?"
"What do you mean?" Janeway wondered.
"They’re all at each other’s throats." Q explained.
Come to think of it, she had noticed that. Her whole crew seemed to be unexplainably angry with the very person that they usually doted over. So, that’s what he was up to.
"Q, what have you done to my crew?!"
"Nothing, Captain. They did it to themselves." Q said.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you see, Captain, I’ve always thought this whole love thing was so overrated." Q began. "Why do you mortals insist on hiding it from each other?"
That was it! Janeway thought. "So, " she thought aloud, "since we wouldn’t admit our feelings of love to each other, you made us hate each other."
"Very good, Captain." Q praised her. "Hate is a much better emotion than love. No one is ever afraid to admit that they hate someone. But you mortals are always trying to hide those feelings of love you have towards each other."
It made perfect sense that Q would pull some childish stunt like this.
"Q, you fix my crew right now!" Janeway ordered.
"Oh, but you see, Madame Captain, " Q slipped. "I can’t. Your crew has to fix itself." With a flash of light Q had disappeared.------
At 1300 hours, the senior staff had assemble in the briefing room. No one knew exactly why the captain had called this meeting.
"I had a rather unpleasant visitor today." Captain Janeway said grimly.
"Who?" Harry Kim asked once again displaying his totally confused look.
"Q." Captain Janeway said bluntly.
"Q?" Chakotay interrupted. The crew could just feel another fight coming on.
But before the fight could start, Tuvok asked, "What did he want?"
"I’m sure you’ve all noticed that there has been some friction between certain crew members lately." Captain Janeway said.
"I haven’t noticed anything." B’Elanna said.
"What are you, blind?" Tom shouted over to her. "The whole crew has been at each other’s throats."
"Captain, I don’t think you know what your talking about." Chakotay screamed at Janeway over Tom and B’Elanna’s arguing.
Soon the whole room was consumed with yelling. Until Tuvok said forcefully, "This fighting is illogical."
Everyone stopped their bickering and looked at the security officer.
"It seems to me," Tuvok continued, "That everyone is fighting with the exact person whom they have romantic feelings for."
The entire crew seemed to blush simultaneously. Tuvok had figured it out perfectly.
"That’s exactly it, Mr. Tuvok." Captain Janeway said. "Now what do we do about it?"
"Why don’t we just ask Q to fix things?" Harry wondered.
"I already asked him." The Captain said. "He refused. He said that we did it to ourselves, we have to fix it."
"The solution is logical." Tuvok said. " Just admit your feelings to the other person and the problem will be resolved."------
Captain Janeway sat on the sofa in her ready room. She had spent most of the afternoon since the staff meeting there. She was trying to avoid Chakotay. She sat there considering the best way to tell him of her love for him. The door bell sounded bringing her from her thoughts.
"Come in." She ordered.
The doors opened, and there stood Chakotay.
"We need to talk." He said with his soft voice. Chakotay walked into the room and had a seat next to her on the sofa.
"I guess me can’t deny it anymore." Chakotay said.
"Deny what?"
"That there is something between us." Chakotay said with a look of embarrassment. He wasn’t embarrassed to admit his feeling to her. He didn’t like the entire crew and Q knowing his business.
"I guess the only question is," Chakotay said, "What happens now?"-------
B’Elanna Torres stood in front of the turbolift waiting for the doors to open. When they opened, there stood Tom. She entered the turbolift and stated, "Deck 5." The turbolift began to move.
"Computer, halt turbolift." Tom commanded. This was becoming a habit it seemed. The two of them getting stuck together in the turbolift, and Tom halting it. The last time it was so that he could tell her that he wished he could see more of her Klingon side. And in the past day he sure had seen plenty of her Klingon temper.
"Look B’Elanna, " Tom said. "I have feelings for you, you have feelings for me. What are we going to do about it?"------
A very nervous Harry Kim stood in front of the doors to Sick Bay. He knew what he had to do. It was simple, really. The door opened and he walked in. He saw Kes standing there running test on some samples.
She turned around and saw him there. "Harry," she said. "Just the person I wanted to talk to."
He walked over to where she was standing and said, "I guess you know why I’m here."
"Harry," she started, "I have had the biggest crush on you for a long time now."
"I feel that way about you too." He said.
"So," she asked, "Now what?"=/\= The End =/\=
I like to end stories in a way that will leave something to the imagination. What do you think happened next??? Use your imagination! Comments welcomed.