Bookends

Bookends

by Kevin

Rating: PG
Disclaimer: The characters mentioned within this text are the sole property of Paramount Studios, UPN, and Viacom. I intend no infringement.
Genre: Angst, Friendship
Summary: Trip struggles over his evolving relationship with T’Pol. The story is told from Trip’s point of view. It is a sequel to my story, T’Pol’s Choice and takes place after Chapter 4–Bounty.

Thanks to Misplaced for being my beta…

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Well do you think she’s going to even look at you this time?

Nah… She came in and shot straight to the food dispenser and turned to the beverage dispenser. She hasn’t even looked into the dining room. Just like the last three evenings.

And there she goes… straight out the door and back to her quarters.

Ever since she got out of decon three days ago she’s been acting strange. She acts like I’m some kind of leper or something. Barely even acknowledges I exist.

Oh well…

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Dammit. Two weeks. She’s hid out for two weeks. This is worse than after the Suliban. At least then she’d eat with the Captain and me.

I guess it’s time for the mountain to come to Mohammad.

Maybe I can get her to come to the movie? I wish Jon didn’t insist on showing First Contact. I have no idea how she’s going to react to a bunch of people with latex ears and bad wigs acting like a bunch of manipulative robots…

I chuckle to myself. Yeah, like he’d ever let me show Drunken Genius. It’s a thousand times better and doesn’t have Vulcans in it at all.

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I take a small step into her quarters. She’s kneeling by her meditation candles like before. “Hey T’Pol, mind if I come in.”

She turns to greet me. “Not at all Commander.”

I decide to walk over and sit down across from her. “I’d really appreciate if you could come to movie night tomorrow. It’d mean a lot to me…”

I see her arch her eyebrow slightly. Crap. Think… “...and the Captain.” Good save.

The silence is deafening. “It’s the best one of its kind made.” Best of the worst. Big deal! “Captain’s favorite.” However, Jon has no taste in movies.

“Are you certain a movie is the best way to commemorate the 90th anniversary of humanity’s first contact with Vulcans?”

I shrug my shoulders. “It’s the best way we got.”

Of course it’s offensive as hell in portrayal of Vulcans.

“The movie doesn’t show Vulcans in a great light, but I hope you’ll come anyway. I think you’d like it if you don’t let it offend you.”

She looks at me with a blank face. “I would not be offended.”

She hasn’t seen the movie yet. It’s pretty bad.

“Yeah… okay. So will you come then?”

Come on Trip, turn on the charm!

“Are you sure the crew will not be uncomfortable with me there?”

What the hell kind of question is that!?! “T’Pol, you are one of the crew!”

She’s not convinced. Oh well…

“Okay, suit yourself.”

As I walk out of her quarters I realize that was pretty pointless. She’s not coming to movie night. She’ll hide out in her quarters like normal.

Well, no way! She’s not going to hide from us on the 90th anniversary if I have anything to say about it. I’ll drag her kicking and screaming if I have to.

I still can’t believe after two years she still doesn’t feel like one of the crew. Of course she doesn’t when she hides out all of the time!

Stubborn mule of a woman! I smile to myself. She’s a Vulcan remember…

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I put my fork down after finishing my eggs. I almost spit out that last mouthful.

Wow! That was quite the little tirade. I wish I had a camera. The look on Jon’s face is hilarious. I think T’Pol took him completely by surprise. She almost lost her cool telling him she would not attend tonight’s movie.

The way she is glaring at him says maybe trying to force her is the wrong tactic.

Looks like I’ll need a Plan B.

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I take a deep breath. I’m standing just outside her door.

Okay Trip. You’re going to watch the movie with her in her quarters. No taking ‘no’ for an answer! She isn’t going to spend this evening alone. It’s not right… She’s too important to us.

I shake my head at that thought. I hope she likes documentaries.

I look down at the popcorn. I hope she likes it. No butter. No salt. No taste. I smile to myself. The sacrifices I make…

I take one step into her quarters and see her kneeling at her meditation table.

Here goes nothing. “Hey, I thought you’d like to see a movie.” Remember, no taking ‘no’ for an answer! I’ve already queued it up for her station.

“Commander, I already said that I have no intention of joining the others.”

“We’ll watch the movie here. I brought popcorn.”

I can tell by her scowl she doesn’t like me here, but I’m not taking ‘no’. I’ll just adjust her screen so it’s facing us.

“The screen’s kind of small, but that’s okay.”

T’Pol looks over at me. “Would you like some tea Commander?”

Could that mean she’s actually going to go along with this?

“No thanks. I’m good.”

I push the play button and the opening credits appear on the screen.

“I did not think that was the title of the movie the Captain mentioned.”

I give her a goofy grin. If I’m going to all this trouble, I’m doing it for a movie I want to watch. And that’s not First Contact. “It isn’t. The Captain would never let me show this one.”

“Why not?”

Because he hates any movie that shows Cochrane as anything but a god. “This one was made six years after first contact. It’s a biography of Zephram Cochrane, not a feature film. It doesn’t show him as this ideal hero to humanity. It shows him as a greedy drunk who stumbles into greatness.”

“And how are the Vulcans portrayed in this one?”

“They aren’t.”

She looks confused.

“This is a movie about Zephram Cochrane, not first contact. Vulcans aren’t important to the story…”

I’m still surprised she hasn’t tried to kick me out yet. I figured she’d put up some kind of fight to get me to go away. Instead she acts almost like she wants me to be here. Maybe she doesn’t want to be alone this evening either? Maybe this day means something to her too? She’d never admit it though.

“Now pay attention... If something doesn’t make sense, let me know. We’ll pause it and I’ll try to explain.”

I guess I’m kind of amazed she just reached for some popcorn. I remember her first attempt to eat breadsticks with a knife and fork. I thought she was wasting her time. But she was successful at it. She’s come along way.

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Two AM. I’ve been staring at my ceiling for three hours. Why can’t I sleep?

Because you’re so pumped up on adrenaline from tonight.

I thought for sure she’d argue with me at least a little bit. I couldn’t believe she just let me force my way in like that without at least a protest. She did seem tired though. I wonder why?

What the hell’s happened to me? I just took in a movie with a Vulcan. A shudder goes down my spine as I realize I may have just had a date with a Vulcan.

I start laughing.

Well it could have been worse. It could have been with Soval!

She did look really nice in those robes though. That’s pretty funny. Her cat suit makes it completely clear she’s all woman, and I think she looks better in her robes. Robes that completely hide everything but her face. And her ears.

The robes made her look… elegant… sophisticated… beautiful.

It’s probably a good thing it wasn’t a date. I’d have no idea in hell how to get to second base with those robes in the way. Assuming our definitions of second base are even close to the same.

I start laughing even harder.

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I scratch my head as I look at the two ruined flow regulators. They’ll fit the bill perfectly if I can figure out how to cut them. I can’t use the saw–it’ll never work. I’ll have to use the torch. The problem is the cut won’t be clean and I’ll have to grind them flat.

It’s too bad I can’t get Frank to cut them. He’s better with the torch than I am.

I guess I’ll just grind them flat. Since the alloy’s so hard, I know I’ll go through at least one wheel–probably two. We’re scheduled back home in a bit so I’ll just pick up a couple more wheels to replace them.

I pick up the two regulators and take them to the furnace. At least the cut will be cleaner if they’re already hot.

Two nights later I look at my creations. They’re bookends but kind of rough looking. Some parts are scuffed and some parts are highly polished. There’s no way I can polish all surfaces. The stuff’s just too hard and I don’t have the equipment.

Crap... What am I going to do? I run my hands through my hair a couple of times.

What about a brushed finish? A happy medium. Yeah, that’s probably the only chance I have. Good thing I’ve got a fully equipped metal shop.

I start laughing.

I’ve got a fully equipped metal shop to maintain the ship–not to make trinkets for my… friend. It’s just a nice side benefit.

I take a deep breath and sigh. Yeah, right, my… friend. Of course it’d never occur to me to make anything for Jon or Malcolm.

Three nights later I’ve finally put a brushed finish on the bookends. That was much harder than I thought. Anna looks at me like I’m some kind of deranged junior high shop teacher and then leaves. I wonder if she’s figured out what I’m making?

The hard part is complete. I just need to blue them and give them to T’Pol. I still wish I could duralloy them. A black duralloy finish would be perfect but I don’t have what I need.

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I take a deep breath. This isn’t a big deal. I just made some bookends for her. She didn’t have any. This isn’t like that garden cart I made for Julie Hövden. I’m not some fifteen year-old with a crush on someone twice my age.

Yeah. I’m thirty-one now and these took longer to make. I never thought I’d be able to put a brushed finish on the hardened titanium alloy.

The alarm on my chronometer goes off. Its 2045 hours, just like I promised. I reach up to press her door chime.

She invites me in and I offer them to her. “I brought these for you.”

“What are they?”

These things are heavy. I’m putting them on her shelf before I drop one on my foot. “They’re bookends. I made them for you.”

I watch as she studies them closely. “What are they made from?”

“They started off as the tips of flow regulators. We blew a couple a few weeks back. I cut them off, mounted and blued them.”

“Why did you make them? They appear to have taken considerable effort.”

Crap. I have to be blushing. I can feel the heat rise to my face.

“You know when we watched that movie a couple weeks back? I saw that you didn’t have bookends for this shelf. You used other books to keep them up…”

Okay, she’s not buying it. Think of something. Anything to justify making them for her. “So I thought I’d make you some. Kind of a present for our own first contact anniversary. Two years ago tonight.”

Dammit! I wasn’t going to mention that. Crap. You idiot!

“You are mistaken, Commander, that was last week. I am certain you were at the Captain’s table when he mentioned it.”

“No… aahh… well…”

Stall, dammit, stall.

“I meant our time in the decon chamber. You know… first contact…”

Take your hands out of your hair. She’ll know you’re nervous as hell. I’ll wriggle my fingers at her. That’ll show her I’m teasing…

Nope. She’s not buying it. In fact, she looks a bit pissed.

“Okay, okay bad joke… I’m sorry… I just wanted to do something nice to show my… our appreciation for you sticking with us. You’ve helped us out of a lot of jams and I want you to know I… we appreciate it.”

Hopefully she can’t tell my palms are sweating like crazy.

“Thank you for your gift Commander. I appreciate the sentiment.”

“I’m heading over to the mess hall for a snack.”

Turn on the charm Trip. Give her the grin...

“Want to come with me? I’m buying.”

“The mess hall does not require remuneration.”

I can’t believe she’s so literal. “It’s just an expression… So do you want to come with me or not?”

“I will join you. I would like some more tea. I am nearly out.”

Thirty minutes later I’m staring at my PADD without any idea what’s on it. I’m not sure I’ve even turned it on. Play it cool, Trip. Act casual.

It’s pointless. This is Julie Hövden all over again. At least she had the courtesy to patronize me until I lost interest. Of course she didn’t have T’Pol’s eyes. I wonder if she knows she makes my palms sweat when she looks right at me. Or her ears. I have no idea why I want to caress them. Since when are ears sexy?

Since April 20, 2151, dumb ass!

I’m mostly able to contain my chuckle. This is pointless. T’Pol’s probably got no idea what a crush even is. Ugh, I have a crush on a Vulcan! I need to have Phlox examine my head for brain damage.

It’s a good thing he was in decon a few weeks back. I probably would’ve let her out. There’s no way I could’ve said no to her without him. At least she promised to not hurt me–whatever the hell that was about? That made absolutely no sense.

It’s a good thing Lizzie’s not here right now. She’d never let me hear the end of it! I think I’ll leave this out of my next letter… That’s too bad. She’d think it’s really funny.

The End

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A handful of people have made comments

Good one. Excellent follow-up to "T'Pol's Choice". Any plans for more?

Very nice, Kevin. I liked your look into Trip's head, especially his realization that he may have tumbled into a date with a Vulcan. Good job.

Keep 'em coming...

Oh I totally want to see a sequel to go further through S3 and 4! I really like your format, the way you take canonical episodes and add on and around them, it's really cool!

I look forward to seeing the next one that moves into doing that for S3 and through 4!

As I've said to you before... this one is my favorite. I love how you've captured Trip in this one. Excellent!

Excellent! More, please, this is great stuff! :)