Title:  Roommates
Author:  Cheryl Forbes
Fandom:  Star Trek: Voyager
Paring:  Chakotay/Tom Paris
Rating: NC 17
E-mail Address for feedback: forbesc@skyia.com
Series: 1 of ?
Disclaimer:  Voyager and her crew are the property of Paramount and
not me.  Whatever.

Summary:  Unexpected passengers force the crew of Voyager to share
quarters creating some interesting bedfellows.
 

"Any questions?"

The previous day Voyager had come across a seemingly dead ship.
After scanning it, they found while the engine core was dead the rest
of the ship was not.  Sustaining themselves on breathing units, since
life support was out, were 47 passengers.  They called themselves
Mikans and the ship they were aboard was pleasure vessel that had
been savagely attacked by pirates.  After killing the command crew,
the rouges had divested the passengers of their valuables and left
them to die.  They had been adrift a day when Voyager picked up their
distress beacon, and had transferred them shipboard.

"Yeah, Captain I have a question."

"What is it Mr. Paris?"

"It's going take two weeks to return these people to their home
planet, right?  Well, where are we going put them all during that
time?"

The captain picked the PADD that had been sitting in front of her on
the conference table.  She knew some of the people in this room
weren't going to like her answer.

"Good question Lieutenant.  We're going to double up.  Everyone has
just acquired a roommate."

This time Harry Kim's hand came up.  He would probably request Tom
Paris as a roomy.  He was about to be disappointed.

"Captain.  So that means we all have to pair up and choose someone to
share quarters with."

"I'm sorry Ensign but in the absence of time I have already selected
the pairs.  You'll share a cabin with the person next closest in rank
to you.  For instance, Mr. Tuvok and I will be bunking together and
so on.  I will post the list on the comm channel after I make my ship
wide announcement."

She looked around the conference table and saw all eyes straining to
read the PADD in her hand.  She placed back down on the table and
folded her hands.

"It'll will only be two weeks people and during that time I hope to
see you all doing your best to make our temporary passengers feel at
home.  Dismissed."

********

Shit, shit, shit.  Tom shifted the duffel bag on his shoulder.  Of
all times to get his pip back.  If he was still an ensign he would
have probably been rooming with Harry but as he was a lieutenant
again, that meant sharing a cabin with Commander Chakotay.  Shit,
shit, shit.

Over the last six years they have developed a marginally good working
relationship but as a rule avoided each other in social situations.
The past still hung between them preventing a more affable
relationship and still threatening their professional one.  Neither
man was willing to push that particular envelope.

Tom arrived at the commander's door and before he touched the pad to
press the chime, the door opened automatically.  The door had already
been keyed to accept his bio-signature.  Oooh, the ever-vigilant
first officer strikes again.  He squared his shoulders, took a deep
breath and entered.

"Uh, Commander?"

No answer.  He put down his pack, sat on the lounge and scanned the
room.  It was ordered and neat, everything in its place, just like
the man.  Tom chuckled to himself.  He'd have to break the big guy of
that disgusting habit.  He swung his legs up, rested them on the low
table before him and took a second look around.  Brightly coloured
rugs adorned the walls.  Family photos and small wooden sculptures
were displayed on shelves.  Tom found it difficult to connect the
warmth of the décor with the man he knew.

In Tom's opinion, the commander saw everything as either black or
white, good or bad.   No gray areas for the first officer.  You were
either a good little soldier or a screw up and Tom knew which
category he'd been placed in.  His cold demeanor towards him said it
all.

Shrugging his shoulders, Tom got up and proceeded into the bedroom to
unpack.  He'd deal with Chakotay the way he always did, by pushing
his buttons and acting as if he didn't give a fuck what the man
thought of him.  Because he didn't really, did he?  Maybe a little
but that's definitely all.

Still arguing with himself, Tom put away his things.

********

"Computer, location of Lieutenant Paris?"

"Lieutenant Paris is in his quarters."

OK but does that mean Tom is in his old quarters or mine?  He leaned
back in his chair in his office and ran his fingers through his
hair.  Frustrated Chakotay asked again.

"Computer, is anyone in my quarters?"

"Affirmative."

Damn computer!

"Computer, who is in my quarters?"

"Lieutenant Thomas Paris."

Finally!  He knew he shouldn't be so exasperated with the computer
but the idea of having the blonde blue eyed pilot sharing a cabin
with him was just a little upsetting.  No it was a lot upsetting.
The man had already invaded his private thoughts and now he was
invading his private space.  He wondered what spirits he had offended
to deserve this.

He had lusted after the lieutenant ever since he had seen him in that
seedy bar on that backwater planet but he had not acted on that
lust.  There had been no time, the Federation had captured Tom before
an opportunity to take him to his bed had arisen.   And then there
was the fiasco in the Badlands.

It had been a shock to see him again on Voyager but even through his
anger at the man's betrayal, Chakotay found he still wanted him.
Unfortunately Tom's flippant and often cutting remarks had made it
clear that those feelings were not returned.  So his pride had force
him to hide his emotions and project an air of indifference when
around him.  However in the privacy of his cabin he let loose his
desires through his fantasies.  Many a night he lay in bed bringing
himself to completion thinking of that slender form against his.

Now the object of his desire would be sharing his bed.  Well not
exactly his bed, a cot had been set up beside it, but it was close
enough.  Close enough to see him, smell him and worse close enough to
touch him.  Spirits, he was getting hard just sitting here thinking
about it.  So stop thinking about it, Chakotay!

He sat forward and began reviewing one of the endless reports on his
console.  He figured he could stay late enough in his office until
Tom went to sleep and tomorrow he could be up and gone before he
woke.  On the bridge with others around he could maintain his decorum
but in the intimacy of his quarters, he was afraid of letting
something slip.  He couldn't risk making Tom aware of the hold he had
over him.   His rejection would damage both Voyager's command
structure and maybe more importantly he admitted, his ego.  He would
not, could not let that happen.

The commander winced as he realized he'd be eating Nelix's cooking
for the next while to save the extra credits he'd require for cold
showers and his boxing program on the holodeck.  He would need both
to relieve the sexual tension he was sure he'd be feeling.  Talk
about adding insult to injury.  He lifted his eyes skyward.

He really must have done something really awful to piss the spirits
off this much.

********

Tom finally found himself a table in the messhall and waited for
Harry to join him.   It wasn't an easy task considering how many of
the Mikans filled the room.  They loved Nelix's cooking and seemed to
spend most of their time on Voyager in the messhall.  Tom looked down
at the riot of smells and colours on his own plate and cringed.  Well
I guess there no accounting for taste.  He was poking the pulsating
blue concoction with his fork when Harry joined him.

"Are you going to eat it or play with it?"

"I'm just making sure it's dead and not going to jump off my plate
and go for my jugular."  Tom replaced his wary look with one of his
famous smiles.  "Speaking of going for the jugular, how's the new
roomy?"

"B'Elanna?  Well she let me sleep "in" the cabin last night."  He
leaned forward and looked accusingly at Tom.  "You know you could
have told me she liked to walk her around her quarters nude!"

Tom choked back a laugh and looked at Harry with all the seriousness
he could muster.

"Sorry Har, but I didn't think it was that important.  B'el doesn't
usually care who sees her naked."  He feigned disbelief.  "Gods Harry
tell me you didn't make a move on her."

"Are you kidding?  I like all my parts where they are.  It's just
that I wasn't expecting her to walk out of the bedroom without her
clothes and see her.her.you know..."

"Breasts, Harry.  They're called breasts."

"Yeah whatever.  Anyway I was crossing the room at the time and
didn't see the chair, tripped and grabbed the closest thing I could
to break my fall."

Oh this was just too funny.  Tom could barely keep a straight face.

"Gods Harry.  Please tell me you didn't."

"Yeah I did and I think it cracked."

Cracked?  B'Elanna was pretty solid but she wasn't that rigid.  Tom
didn't have to fake disbelief this time.

"Harry, you lost me there.  What exactly did you crack?"

"Her Bat'leth.  It was hanging on the wall beside me.  I didn't mean
to knock it off the wall.  I even tried catching it but it went
flying and hit the table."  Harry's voice rose an octave.  "I tried
telling her I was sorry and that it was an accident but before I had
a chance to say anything she threw me out.  When I tried getting back
in, I found she'd used her command code to lock me out."

Tom was laughing openly now.  Poor Harry.  When it came to women the
guy just couldn't catch a break.

"Oh sure laugh it up smart guy.  You're not the one that had to
grovel for the last four days just to be able to sleep on a less than
comfortable lounge in what's supposed to be your quarters too."

"Oh Harry, I'm sorry.  It's just that seeing someone else being the
focus of that woman's temper is oddly refreshing.  Before we broke
up, I'd did my share of groveling too before I realized it wasn't
worth the bother.   I sympathize Har, I really do."

At his words, Ensign Kim blushed.

"Well it really isn't too bad.  Last night before we went to sleep we
listened to some Klingon opera.   It was kinda nice.  You know what I
mean, when she starts singing along, letting the song carry her away
and she gets that faraway look on her face.  She made me really feel
the music."

No he didn't know.  Whenever B'el played that awful racket she called
music, he always found an excuse to be some where else.   Harry's
response to it surprised him.  No it absolutely amazed him.

"Well enough about my roomy, how about yours?  What's it like bunking
with Voyager's resident icon of inflexibility?"

"Not too bad really.  I mean I never see the guy unless were on
bridge duty together."

Tom thought about it.  It was like living with a ghost.  Sometimes
you'd find things moved but you weren't sure how they got there.  At
night he feel the man's presence when he came to bed but there was
never any communication between them.  No good nights, no see ya in
the morning, no nothing.

The commander was ignoring him and Tom Paris wasn't used to being
ignored.  For good or for bad people always took notice of Thomas
Eugene Paris.  No one had ever actually pretended as if he didn't
exist and in Tom's mind it didn't matter what you thought of him as
long as you thought of him.  Some how that gave him the substance he
didn't feel he had on his own.  It took him a moment to realize Harry
was still talking.

"So no thirty laps around the hydroponics bay for leaving dirty
underwear lying about.  What about cleaning the head with your
toothbrush if you don't put the toothpaste cap back on?  Come on Tom
give it up, what's it like living with such a hard ass?"

"It's OK Harry, really.  Like I said I never see the guy so I just
about do whatever I please.  I don't think he gives me a second
thought.  It's not much different than being in my own quarters
except it's neater and smells a whole lot nicer."

Harry looked at him as if he didn't believe him.  After his own hard
luck story Tom was sure he was hoping to hear that he wasn't
adjusting to his new accommodations any better.  Tom almost wished he
did have a story to tell.  It was better than saying that the
commander didn't care one way or the other that Tom was living in his
quarters.

"Fine be that way.  Just don't expect me to listen when the commander
really does come down on your ass.   See ya on the bridge."

Tom waved absentmindedly as Harry left the messhall.  Tom was
thinking about ways to get Chakotay's attention.  He had already done
the things Harry had mention with no response, so what was left?  The
only thing other than making a mess of things that Tom figured he was
good at was sex.  But would Chakotay respond to that and would he
welcome the response?  Well it wouldn't hurt to test the waters,
after all Tom had no aversion to men, sex was sex in his opinion.  It
didn't matter what was there and what wasn't.  If it felt good, he
was all for it.

Tom got up, giving his seat to a Mikan with a rather full plate,
planning his seduction of Chakotay as he left the messhall.

********

Chakotay stretched the sleep out of his languid muscles as he readied
himself to begin the day and get out of bed.  As he did each morning
he treated himself to a look at Tom's body reposed in sleep.  Later
in the shower he would use that same image to fuel his fantasies and
to bring himself off.  However this morning the cot was empty.  As
jealousy began to take hold of him wondering where Tom had spent the
night, he heard movement in the head.  Chakotay closed his eyes in
relief, he was here; the lieutenant had merely gotten up earlier than
he usually did.

Through the steam escaping from the bathroom emerged the fodder of
his fantasies.  Chakotay feigned sleep and watched as Tom performed
his morning absolutions.

He was wearing nothing but a white towel slung low on his hips.  Tom
retrieved his clothing from the dresser and the closet and brought
them over to the cot.  Chakotay watched through hooded eyelids the
pilot's fingers as he released the knot holding the towel.

Not two feet from him stood his Tom, unclothed bearing his all.  His
back was to him displaying his taut buttocks and the sensuous play of
his shoulders as he reached for his clothing.  As he pulled his
undershirt over his head his spine curved and the commander watched
as the muscles of his calves and butt contracted.  Chakotay had to
bite his bottom lip to prevent himself from shouting out his desire
as he watched Tom continue to dress.  Never before had the sight of a
man dressing instead of disrobing aroused him this much.

With a final smoothing of his uniform with his hands the lieutenant
left the room.

On shaky legs, the commander got out of bed and went into the head.
It was still warm and steamy from Tom's shower earlier.  He stepped
into the stall and activated the sonics.

Chakotay leaned forward with his arms outstretched against the front
of the stall.  The faint vibrations caused by the sonics made his
sensitized skin tingle, heightening his state of arousal.  Planting
his feet squarely apart, he brought one hand to his chest, sliding it
downward to cup his balls.  With a tender squeeze, the lieutenant's
name escaped his lips.  His fingers circled his cock pulling roughly
a few times before they began stroking in earnest.  Tom's performance
this morning had precluded his normal routine of slow rapture.

With his eyes closed and his head back, Chakotay pictured himself
pumping into Tom.  Imagining the heat of his own palm as the heat of
Tom's tight passage.  Feeling his balls tightening he stroked harder,
his fist slamming into his belly as he did so.

"Oh Tom, oh Tom.Tom!"

His release spurted over his hand, slicking his cock and soothing the
chafed skin of his penis momentarily before the sonics whisked it
away.  Chakotay moved his arm back to the front of the stall and
buried his head in his shoulder as a mixed feeling of elation and
guilt over took him.

"Spirits Tom what have you done to me?"

Standing there in the shower, Chakotay asked a question the object of
his query was never meant to hear.  But he did.

********

"Computer, diffuse viewport and dim lights to 40 percent."

Tom heard the shrill whistle of the Delta Flyer's computer as it
complied with his commands.

Looking for a place to be alone with his thoughts, Tom had run the
gambit of all his favorite havens.  Sandrine's, Hydroponics and even
Deck 15 had been crawling with Mikans.  Ensign Harren had been
holding court expounding his theories regarding the creation of the
universe to the surprisingly enthralled group.  Again Tom wondered
about these people's taste in pleasure.   He fled to the Flyer, his
last bastion of privacy.

He sat at the conn, staring at the darkened viewport in front of
him.  This morning he had seen something that had literally rocked
his world.  He had spent the entire day trying to process what he had
now in his mind labeled the "shower scene" and still fly the ship at
the same time.  It had been a very near thing.

All he had wanted to do was provoke some kind of response in the ever-
stoic commander.  He had not been prepared for his own.  Sneaking
back to see if his performance had made the man stand up (no pun
intended) and take notice of him had been successful, had been an
impulse.

Tom had almost tripped over the man's sleep pants as he peered around
the edge of the door of the bathroom.  He could feel the thrum of
sonics as Chakotay began his shower.  He had never seen the commander
nude before and the sight of him now took his breath away.  Every
muscle was beautifully defined, encased by smooth bronze skin and
surrounded by the only body hair Tom could see was Chakotay erect
long, thick cock.  He watched it quiver in arousal until the
commander's hand blocked it from view.

Tom brushed his own now raging erection through his uniform as he
watched the man in the shower service himself.  It was the most
erotic thing he had ever seen.  He was the epitome of lust, of
pleasure and in that moment of watching Chakotay, Tom knew he would
never become aroused again without picturing this image in his mind.
He was hardly aware that his hand had breached his trousers and was
touching flesh.

" Oh Tom, oh Tom.Tom!"

He had to grip the doorframe and bite his lip to prevent falling to
his knees and calling Chakotay's name in reply as he came.

Trying to recover Tom rolled till his back was against the wall
beside the door.  He was trying to put himself back to rights,
thinking he would have to miss breakfast in the messhall with Harry
to stop by the gym to clean up, when he heard Chakotay's voice again.

"Spirits Tom what have you done to me?"

You?!  Tom tilted his head back and squeezed his eyes shut.  Shit
Chak what the hell did you just to do me.  Tom tried not to laugh
hysterically.  Not only did he get a reaction from Chakotay, but
Chakotay had also made him react.  He looked down.  Yeah he had
just "reacted" all over his uniform.  He sobered.  It wasn't supposed
to happen this way.  He was the one that was supposed to be in
control, not lose it.  Gods all he had wanted to do was test the
waters not drown.  He had fled the room trying to make sense of it
all.

He couldn't settle in the comm chair.  His body was taking its cue
from his mind.  Tom got up and walked the length of the Flyer and
back again before sitting on sloped floor leading to the cockpit
wrapping his arms around his knees.  Tom considered what to do next.

Distance, he needed distance.  Tom considered yeah and maybe a good
fuck.  Chakotay's firm body immediately came to mind.  No, no Tommy
Boy somebody other than god's gift to blonde blue eyed pilots.
Somebody that would engage his desires not his emotions.

Maybe he'd try Sandrine's again.  The Mikans while being fairly short
in stature were not all that unattractive. The males of the species
were light green and the females were a faintly metallic shade of
orange.   He wasn't exactly sure if they preferred one gender to
another but since gender didn't matter to Tom it wouldn't matter
which colour he ended up with.

Feeling like he had a better handle on the situation, Tom exited the
Delta Flyer and made his way to Holodeck Two.

********

"Deck Two"

Chakotay moved to the back of the turbolift and watched the blinking
panels on the walls as it moved to its destination, his office.

He'd been spending most of his nights there going over reports and
schedules in his effort to avoid his roommate.  Unfortunately now he
was so caught up with his paperwork, a first for him, that he spent
most of his time in his office playing chess with the computer.  He
smiled to himself in remembrance.  It had been one of his father's
favorite games, one he had regularly beaten his son at.  Maybe in his
next dreamwalk he'd show the old man the results of all his recent
practice.

The lift stopped part way to its destination on Deck 8 to admit
another passenger.

The commander broke his revelry as the lift's doors opened.  Tom
Paris stood framed in the doorway.  Their eyes locked momentarily
before Tom strode in and stood adjacent to the commander.

"Deck Six."

Chakotay suddenly felt every hair in his head, (and elsewhere but he
tried to ignore that part of his anatomy) stand on end as the
beautiful pilot stood beside him.  Trying to banish the sight of
Tom's splendid body from his mind and break what was becoming a
tangible silence, he spoke.

"Going to the Holodeck, Lieutenant?"

Tom.  You called me Tom this morning the "lieutenant" thought before
he answered.

"Yeah, I thought I'd might introduce the Mikans to the time honoured
game of billiards.  You know just doing my duty.  The captain did say
she wanted us to make them feel at home."

"Yes she did, however I hope you will refrain from also introducing
the Mikans to your equally time honoured concept of wagering."

"Oh yeah sure commander, just a few friendly games.  So what are you
up to tonight?"

"Reports.  A first officer's work is never done.  It'll be another
late night for me."

The lift stopped, opening its doors on Deck Six.  Tom made the two
steps to the opened doors and then swiveled to face Chakotay.  For
the second time since entering the lift Tom looked at him.

"Well don't work too hard, OK."

He stepped back and the doors closed.  Chakotay still struck by the
force of the blue eyes looking at him answered automatically even
though the lieutenant was gone.

"OK."

********

"Checkmate"

For the third time in a row Chakotay had beaten the computer on level
18 of the chess program.  He been in his office an hour and was
becoming increasingly frustrated with himself.  There was really no
point to his being here.  He had nothing to do here and he would be a
whole lot comfortable doing nothing in his cabin.  Tom was in
Sandrine's probably fleecing a few Mikans; he would have the whole
cabin to himself for a couple of hours.  Maybe he could meditate and
help relieve the tension he could feel in his neck all the way down
to the base of his spine.

Chakotay signed off his computer and headed to his quarters.

********

The noise hit him like a tidal wave.  As he walked into Sandrine's a
cacophony of voices and music washed over him.  Mikans with a
spattering of Voyager's crew filled the holodeck taking up almost all
available space.

Tom squeezed through the press of bodies to find himself a space at
the bar.  He ordered a beer and turned around to face the action.  A
stage had been added to the program and Tom was amazed to see Harry
up there with his clarinet with a bunch of Mikans who were playing
what Tom supposed were instruments, wailing out a melody that could
only be described as loud.  There was no discernible rhythm or down
beat but the Mikans were dancing and applauding with crazed
enthusiasm anyway.  Tom looked again.  Gods, was that B'Elanna on
drums?

Tom shook his head and turned back to the bar to find another beer
placed in front of him.  Before he had a chance to ask where it came
from he felt a small warm hand on his ass.

"Very pretty.  Is pretty one thirsty?"

Tom looked down to his left to see a pale green face smiling up at
him.  He assumed correctly that this was the owner of the hand on his
butt.  The hand began to slip between his cheeks, exploring his inner
thighs and brushing his balls.  Tom brought his thighs together and
twisted, interrupting the inquisitive fingers.  He put his empty
glass down and picked up the full one in front of him.

"Thanks, I'm Tom and you would be?"

The bright green eyes glowed as the creature's hands transferred
themselves from his ass to his chest, playing with the opening of his
jacket.

"Sh'ek, my name is Sh'ek.  So pretty.  Does pretty one want to play?"

Before Tom could answer, someone in an effort to get a drink at the
bar shoved him forward into Sh'ek.  The Mikan took this an
affirmative answer to his question and transferred his fondling from
Tom's chest to his nether regions.   In the crowd no one saw as the
Mikan's hands delved beyond the waist of his trousers and into his
pants.

He felt the small deft fingers tracing the length of his cock as he
continued to let his gaze rove the crowd seemingly unaffected.
Thankfully the Mikan wasn't tall enough to meet his eyes or it would
have shattered the illusion of a broad bronze hand touching him.

"Yes, very pretty.  Sh'ek wants the pretty one."

The sound of the Mikan's voice broke the spell and Tom jerk away
feeling almost violated by the man's touch.  He pulled the hands away
and straighten his uniform.

"I'm sorry.  I have to go.  Uh, thanks for the drink."  He pulled
away from the confused Mikan who had turned a darker shade of green.

"No.  Pretty Tom belongs to Sh'ek.   Pretty Tom stays."

As tactfully as he could the lieutenant extricated himself from the
clutches of the now distraught Mikan.

"Look I'm sorry Sh'ek but I gotta go.  Maybe we can hook up later but
duty calls and I have go do some, some.piloting.  OK?  I'll see ya
later."

Tom didn't wait for an answer from the diminutive alien as he fought
the crowd and left the holodeck for his quarters.

********

With the lights dimmed to 30 percent Chakotay had sat wearing his
sleep pants with his medicine bundle in his hands and willed for the
umpteenth time for his spirit guide to meet him.  He would just skirt
the dream plane before it would dissolve before him into the realm of
his quarters.

He adjusted the woven rug beneath him and tried again to still his
mind.  Thoughts of blue eyes and golden hair disrupted his thoughts
preventing him from reaching the tranquillity he required to
meditate.  It was ironic since the very things that were stopping him
from reaching his spirit guide where the very things he desperately
needed to reach his guide for.

He needed an answer to his passion.  A reason for his need.  He had
hoped that his spirit guide's wisdom would give him these answers but
it seemed he was to be denied that avenue of discovery.  He would
have to do this on his own.

Dispassionately as a counselor of human emotions he would like to
diagnose his problem as an attraction that had developed into
obsession.   Unfortunately as a man he knew that wasn't the case.  He
wasn't becoming obsessed with Tom Paris; he was falling in love and
that was something that no amount of counseling could cure.

Unrequited love.  It was something that he read about before but had
never experienced.  He was in love with a man he didn't have a chance
of ever being with.  A man that while gave him a respect due his rank
would never return his feelings.

In his misery he barely registered the sound of the doors of his
cabin swishing open.

********

Tom raced down the corridor on the way to his quarters ignoring the
acknowledgments of his fellow shipmates in his desire to be alone.
Tonight's venture had been a total fiasco.  In his effort to banish
Chakotay from his thoughts he had only managed to bring those
thoughts to the forefront.  He had fervently wanted the release the
little alien had offered only to find the only one he wanted to
relieve him of his anxiety was the one he was running from.

He cursed his emotions.  He never wanted to be that "out there"
emotionally.   He never wanted to take that risk.   He was setting
himself up for a fall letting someone have that power over him and
his happiness.  Being in love makes you act like a fool, just stupid
and totally out of control.  He reached the door of his temporary
quarters, pressed the pad and entered.

END OF PART ONE