<USS Avalon> Promises in the Darkness

Josh jolted awake, bolting upright to the fading sound of screams and scent of 
burning flesh, shaking with cold and fear, too terrified, as always, to scream. 
He looked down then at Annabelle, sleeping angelically peaceful by his side and 
shook his head, wiping the last vestiges of the nightmare from his eyes. Rising 
carefully so as not to wake her, he dressed quickly and went to the replicator, 
extricating a large steaming mug of cofee with still-shaking hands before 
moving to the center console to check and recheck the progress of the sensor 
sweeps as they scanned for temporal distortions.
 
He shook his head as he gazed at the sleeping beauty there upon his floor. Mac 
was right. He was totally and completely smitten. Whatsmore, he had been for 
quite some time.
 
But he was right, too. She deserved better. She deserved someone with future 
goals more specific than merely trying to survive. Someone certain they truly 
wanted to. Someone charming and charismatic like Mac, or powerful and strong 
like Ketchum. Not a nobody like him. What had he to offer her? He couldn't even 
promise her a future beyond the launch of that shuttle. He couldn't promise 
now, if it came to it, as he'd already established for himself how time had 
changed around them...
 
Would she still love him when he returned? Would she know him at all?
 
Would she even exist?
 
He toyed with the idea of bolting...running to his shuttle and staying there 
until time to go, or returning to work in main engineering until time to ship 
out. He thought perhaps to avoid her until he'd returned and determined how 
much had changed, and what if anything remained the same. 
 
And then she stirred, reaching out to the side of her as if seeking him there. 
Not finding him, she opened her eyes and muttered sleepily," Josh?"
 
"I'm here," He answered quietly, moving to her side in the darkness so she 
could see him.
 
"mmm..." she sighed, smiling and taking his hand. "..thought you'd left me...." 
a shadow seemed to cross her features then. "You wouldn't just do that 
though...would you?" 
 
Josh shook his head kneeling beside her and tucking her back in. "No...I won't 
leave you," he vowed quietly, knowing in that instant he never would. He 
couldn't. There was no longer a choice for him but to stay with her as long as 
he possibly could.
 
He loved her.



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