Love hurts

Posted on Mon May 20th, 2024 @ 6:30am by Lieutenant Commander S'hib & Lieutenant Colonel Azhul Naxea

Mission: Season 6: Episode 4: Memory Lane
Location: Naxeas' and S'hibs temporary quarters.
Timeline: MD 9 20h00 - after: Arrival, back to the Barn
1239 words - 2.5 OF Standard Post Measure

After everything that had happened, the time spent apart. why was he lingering in front of this door he thought, staring between the PADD in his hand and the controls off to his right.

Why hadn't he rushed inside to see his wife, his matriarch?

A sigh left S'hib's lips as the PADD fell to his side, for he did not know why he felt this way, why he was now wanting to turn hoof and run back to his office and bury himself in overdue paperwork.

He was so caught up in his own thoughts he hadn't even noticed he had reached out and pressed the controls, the door hissing open seemingly surprising him as he stood there, staring into their quarters.

Silent still he walked inside, with no enthusiasm to his stride.

And for whatever reason he couldn't even bring himself to say hello, his mouth growing dryer than the red sea as he wandered towards the kitchen.

He glanced towards the living room before searching for a drink, the warm smells and scents that usually washed away his fears and doubts doing nothing to dull the conflict in his heart.

Maybe he did know, he thought while pouring a thick pulpy juice from a jug.

After all, he'd stopped her from making a mistake. but it was a mistake she had wanted to make... and he had taken that from her.

Luckily for Naxea, Sle'anna was being watched by Gunny Gami. She would hate to be this angry around her daughter. Her eyes were red from the tears she had been shedding. Several broken vases littered the floor. She looked at S'hib as he stood there in the living room. "You should have let me kill that bastard."

"Really?" S'hib asked after swallowing, looking between her and the glass in his hand. "In front of all those people?"

"Why not?" she snapped. "I don't expect any of those people to understand the monster that man is."

"No, they'd just see you!" S'hib shot back before his tone shifted, tempering his throat into a dull but fierce yell. "Damn it Naxea, there were children there!"

The glass hit the kitchen counter hard, weathering the impact as S'hib glared at her with pain in his eyes.

"And what about Sle'anna?! Hm? So what you just... just fucking murder him and let that bastard tear one more family apart? great idea, great fucking idea Nax."

He paused, pacing on the spot as he shook his head, he didn't know what to say, what to do... his wife, the woman he loved. He just wanted to scream at her, hug her... something, anything... anything but this, what was happening right now.

"The children were in stasis pods! They couldn't see or hear a damn thing!" she screamed. "For years, I was comforted by the fact that Desek was dead and now I come to find out that he is alive and this damn crew is protecting him and coddling him like he is an ambassador! But how could you or anyone aboard save for one person knows how it feels to have your life ripped apart?". That one person was her friend, Gunnery Sergeant Gami who endured the occupation of Betazed by the Dominion.

He was already shouting back before she had finished, first about the children, then the rest of the survivors, the crew.

But when she turned her vitriol on him, the glass he had slammed on the kitchen counter crashed into the wall.

"Because you're ripping it apart right now!" He screamed back, pointing at her out of spite. "You and your fucking vendetta!"

"So what? I should just turn the other cheek and forgive him? And you're one to talk about Vendettas! At least I'm not assaulting innocent crew members or damaging a Federation shuttle! And you wanna know what else?! That whole time I stood by you and supported you! And yet when I need you the most, you're not there for me!" She headed for the door as she fought back tears.

"Not here for you?!" S'hib roared, putting himself in front of the door. "The whole reason you're here and not in the brig is because of me!" He continued, his hooves scratching angrily at the floor.

"Sle'anna still has a mother, because of me! you still get to be her mother, because of me!" He stepped forward now, towering over her with the fury of a broken man.

His voice fell low, anger and despair mixing together as he looked down at her. "Because of me, Nax, she still has what you didn't... and you fucking hate that."

Those words hit Naxea like a knife, causing her anger to rise even more. "Wrong! I've done everything I can to give Sle'anna a good home!" Naxea yelled back, stabbing her finger against his chest, unwilling to be intimidated by S'hib. "I am and will always be Sle'anna's mother! No matter how hard you try to pass that title off to other people! No, what I hate , right now, is you!

"If you really supported me, you wouldn't be acting like this, now! Now stand aside, Lieutenant Commander!" She felt trapped, like the walls themselves were going to close in and suffocate her and at the moment, S'hib's proximity wasn't helping. She needed to get away.

"A good home?" He yelled dismissively, grabbing her by her shoulders. "A good home?!" he roared again while turning her around, shoving her towards the centre of the room, regardless of how much she resisted.

"Look at it Naxea, look at this good home!" S'hib demanded, wanting her to acknowledge the one place Slee was supposed to feel safe, a place currently in ruin.

Naxea struggled to get free., causing the shoulder of her uniform jacket to rip. "Let go of me! Now!". She needed space and S'hib was doing the complete opposite. It reminded her of being back in the occupation. How the Cardassian soldiers would play cruel games by knocking her down, handling her roughly when she was in the wrong place, stealing her doll, or pointing their weapons at her. Those men had been Desek's men, at least the really bad ones.

He let go when her uniform ripped, pushing her firmly away as he backed into the door. "Fine! you want to be alone, be alone!" He growled, thumping the controls with his fist so hard the panel shunted into the wall.

"But I'm going to get Sle'anna off whatever person you've pawned her onto..." He shouted as he backed into the corridor, his voice bellowing down the hallway. "Because unlike you, when I'm like this! I leave it out fucking here! away from her!"

With this he stormed away, getting no more than a dozen feet away from their quarters before he slammed his arm into a LCARs wall panel, splintering cracks across its surface.

Naxea stumbled back from the push, catching herself on the back of a nearby chair. Tears from hurt and anger ran down her cheeks. S'hib had gone too far this time in manhandling her, shoving her, and screaming in her face. That hurt the most of all as she collapsed to the deck, sobbing. She had hoped for his support but he had betrayed her and showed his true nature. She got up after a moment and began to clean up the broken pieces of glass and ceramic.

 

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