“I don’t know what to do.”  Sam Wildman was sitting on one of the beds in the room shared by Jenny and Megan Delaney.

“Well, what do you want to do?”  Jenny was trying to be reasonable but she was getting impatient after two hours with no progress on any part of the plans Sam was making for her wedding.  Sam had decided absolutely nothing because she couldn’t decide what type of wedding she wanted.

“I always dreamed of a big formal wedding with lots of bridesmaids.”

“Then have a big formal wedding with lots of bridesmaids.”  Jenny, ever practical, was willing to support any idea Sam liked at this point.

“But that’s what Joe had at his first wedding and I don’t want him to get the two mixed up!”  Jenny sighed in exasperation.  They had been around this circle a dozen times.

“So, what does Joe want?”

“He absolutely does not care as long as it’s legal.”

“OK, have a small wedding.”

“Then everyone I don’t invite would have their feelings hurt.”

Jenny was wishing more and more each minute that Megan would get back and pick up the role of wedding consultant for a while.  She wasn’t sure her patience would hold out much longer.

“Then how about a small wedding and a reception for the entire crew?”  Jenny was getting desperate by now.  At this rate Sam would never get married.  She looked up in surprise after a few moments when Sam did not counter with another problem.  Then Jenny’s hopes plummeted when Sam spoke.

“How would I do that with a formal wedding?”  Sam’s question was no surprise, but it was frustrating all the same.  Jenny gave one last try at this planning effort.

“Does it have to be formal?  Why not something unique to this planet.  You’ll probably be the only ones married on such a nice planet for a long time.  Why not make your wedding really special for everyone?”

“You mean a back to basics kind of wedding?”  That was not at all what Jenny had been thinking but Sam’s voice sounded interested so Jenny ran with the idea.

“Sure, why not?  Something like that could be really nice.  I’ve always thought formal weddings were pretty but the couple always looked so uncomfortable in the fancy clothes that I often wondered if they had any fun at their own party.”

“Let me think about that for a minute.”  Sam’s mind was obviously racing over possibilities.  Jenny crossed her fingers just as she heard the swish of the main door as it opened and closed.  Megan must be back.

“We’re in here, Meg.”  Jenny alerted Megan to her presence and the presence of another just in case she had brought Aaron with her.

“What’s going on here?”  Megan breezed into the room shedding her uniform jacket as she walked toward her closet.  The rest of her uniform soon joined her jacket on the floor as she shuffled through her closet for something to wear.  She pulled out a worn sundress and pulled it over her head.  “Got everything all planned yet?”

“Not yet, but I think we’re making progress,” Jenny was almost afraid to say the word ‘progress’ but hoped it would convince Sam that they were finally onto a good idea.  The exchange brought Sam out of her thoughts and back to the conversation.

“I think it could work, Jenny.”  Sam excitedly began outlining ideas and possibilities drawing the other two into the planning with her enthusiasm.  Apparently once she left the idea of a formal wedding behind, there were few problems left.  Jenny joined in the planning with renewed interest now that they actually were planning something.  Four hours later, Sam left with a pad filled with lists and details for her wedding.  It would be casual; it would be outside in the late afternoon; and the reception would be a huge cookout – if they could convince Tom to coordinate it for them.  Jenny silently vowed that she would get B'Elanna to convince Tom if he didn’t agree immediately.  She had no intention of having to go through all this with Sam again because Tom couldn’t be bothered to plan a little cookout.

Tom and B'Elanna were in the mess hall discussing Sam and Joe’s upcoming wedding.  Tom had generously agreed to arrange the cookout with very little coaxing.  B'Elanna knew that he’d have begged to help with the cookout if he hadn’t been asked.  He loved planning parties and surprises.  She kept a close watch on his plans though to make sure they would not include an unwelcome surprise for Sam and Joe.  She was looking forward to the evening with Tom and her friends.  This was the first real celebration they had shared since Voyager reached the Delta Quadrant.

Most of the crew truly appreciated the fact that the reception was casual rather than dressy.  They wore uniforms all day and dressing up was not the break from routine it might otherwise have been.  They knew their time on the planet was nearing an end.  Repairs were completed; hydroponics and airponics had been replenished; a wide variety of vegetables and fruits filled the stasis chambers in the storeroom, and the vegetable garden had been expanded.  A few fruit trees had found a home in airponics where they would serve a double purpose.  Everyone was going to take advantage of the wedding reception because they knew it could easily be quite some time before the opportunity presented itself again.

“Who’s Harry taking to the reception?”  B'Elanna asked Tom fully expecting Tom to know.

“I don’t think he’s going with anyone.”

“Why not?”

“He’s still not willing to get involved with anyone.  He just stops talking and walks away whenever I mention it.”

“Look, Tom, this is ridiculous.  It’s been months since he heard from Libby and he’s still just moping around when it comes to his social life.  This is the perfect chance for him to get out without making any commitment to a future with someone.  I know Jenny Delaney would jump at an invitation if he extended one.”

“I know, but he won’t ask her.  I tried to get him to talk about it this morning.”

“Well, try again, or you can go with him to the reception and I’ll go with Jenny.  Tell him the four of us can go.  Maybe that will help.”  Tom knew that B'Elanna meant what she said.

“I’ll try, but I’m making no promises.  Come on, let’s get back on duty before the captain or Chakotay come looking for us.”

Harry sat at his monitor reading the letter Libby had sent to him just before they left DS9 for the last time.  He had read the message a hundred times and each time he was still surprised by its contents.  Harry and Libby had been together for three years before the Cardassian War and the relationship had survived the war.  Then out of nowhere came the message that she had met someone new and wanted a future with him instead of Harry.  Libby hadn’t even contacted him in person or sent a video message.  She had sent him a text message that had been included with other routine correspondence.  If Tom had seen it, he would have likened it to 20th century mail addressed to ‘occupant.’  The nature of the message said more than its content about their relationship.  Harry scanned the letter one last time before reaching for the delete button.  He paused with his finger over the button, took a deep breath and pushed delete.  He let out his breath.  The part of his life that had included Libby was over.  He knew it was time to move on but it wouldn’t be easy.

Harry was trying to figure out how he would move on with his personal life when the door chime interrupted his thoughts.

“Come in.”  Harry looked up as Tom entered the room.  “Hi, Tom!  B'Elanna toss you out again?”

“No.  At least not yet.  I need to talk to you.”

“No.”

“What?”  Tom was confused.

“Whatever you want, the answer is no.”

“You don’t even know what I want to talk to you about yet so how can you say no?”

“Every time you want to talk to me, you want me to do something that I usually end up regretting. So the answer is no.”

“That might have happened once or twice, but this is different.”  Harry just stared at Tom.  “All right.  It might have happened more than that, but this is different.  Just hear me out, OK?”   Harry relented.

“All right.”  Tom had prepared a nice long little introduction that led up to what he wanted, but Harry’s initial response had thrown him and the speech went out of his mind at warp speed.  Having no backup speech, Tom went straight to the point.

“Why don’t you and Jenny go with B'Elanna and me to the wedding?  You have to go so you may as well go with friends.”

“I have a lot of friends, Tom.  I don’t scare people off with harebrained schemes like some people.”

“I didn’t mean it like that, Harry, and you know it.  Face it, Harry.  Libby is history — ancient history and you need to get a new life . . . find a new girl friend.  Jenny likes you, Harry.  I mean she really likes you.  She’s cute; she’s fun; she’s available.  Take her to the wedding, Harry.  Give her a chance – heck, give yourself a chance.  If you don’t like spending time with her, you don’t have to ask her out again.”  Tom had reached the end of what would have been his phase 1 speech and was surprised to notice that he remembered his phase 2 speech.

“OK.”  Harry’s answer caught Tom off balance.  Tom opened his mouth to deliver his next set of arguments when he realized Harry had said he would ask Jenny to the wedding.

“You will?”

“Yes.  I just said I would, didn’t I?  But you and B'Elanna are going to be with us or the deal is off.”

“No! The deal stands; we’ll sit with the two of you.  Do you want us to include Aaron and Megan, too?”

“No.  I’ll ask Jenny.  If she agrees, I’ll tell her to make whatever arrangements she wants, OK?

“OK.  You’re going to be glad you did this, Harry.  Trust me!”  Tom’s words echoed back through the closing doors.

As the door closed behind Tom, Harry wondered why two such small words when spoken by his best friend and fellow senior office filled him with such foreboding.  Maybe he could catch Jenny before dinner and they could eat together.

Later that evening, only Chell noticed that Harry and Jenny had arrived together in the mess hall and joined a laughing group of constantly changing young people before being left to talk alone long after their friends had finished and moved on to other activities.

Tom and B'Elanna thoroughly enjoyed Sam and Joe’s wedding.  They laughed and talked for hours.  Harry and Jenny had hit it off and then wandered off to the rocks down the beach.  The two sat and talked for hours.  Jenny did more listening as Harry told her about Libby.  Jenny knew he needed to tell her these things if they were to have a future and she wanted to hear them.  By the end of the evening she knew Harry was ready to move on but wasn’t ready for an intense relationship yet.  Once when Harry paused and gazed over the ocean Jenny studied him closely then held his gaze for a few moments when he turned his attention back to their conversation.  Jenny liked what she saw – not just his features, but what she could see of his soul reflected in his eyes.  Harry was worth waiting for so she would wait.

Eventually the chill of the night air drove the pair back to Voyager.  Harry and Jenny slowly made their way to her quarters.  Harry was trying to decide whether he had the nerve to kiss Jenny when she spoke.

“Oh, no!”  Jenny’s voice was full of irritation.

“What?  What did I do?”  Harry was confused.  He had no idea what he might have done to irritate Jenny.

“Oh, Harry.  Not you.  It’s Megan.  She’s dragged Aaron home with her.”

“How do you know that?”  They weren’t close enough for the doors to respond to Jenny’s presence.  Jenny pointed to the lock mechanism where Harry noticed a small sticker with a smiley face on it.

“They usually stay at Aaron’s but his roommate and his girlfriend had a fight yesterday and I guess they haven’t made up.  I wish she had told me so I could make other arrangements.”  Jenny turned to head back the way they had come when Harry reached out and stopped her.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m going to check the various departments to see who’s on duty and ask if I can stay at their place.”

“You don’t need to do that, Jenny.  You can stay with me.”  At Jenny’s startled look, Harry continued quickly.  “You can sleep in the bed.  I’ll take the couch.”

“That’s not necessary.  I can find somewhere else to stay.”

“I know it’s not necessary, but it’s easier.  Now come with me.”  Jenny searched Harry’s face and saw a concerned friend with a hint of something yet to come.  Finally she yielded, albeit with less than her usual graciousness.  Jenny took Harry’s outstretched hand.

“OK, if you’re sure.”  Jenny still wasn’t comfortable doing this so early in their relationship.  She didn’t want to put a possible future for herself and Harry at risk just because Megan and Aaron were inconsiderate.

“I’m sure.”

Together they headed for his quarters on Deck 2.  When they entered, Jenny looked around.  She seemed slightly surprised.  Harry watched her for a minute before asking.

“Well, what do you think?  They’re not as nice as B'Elanna’s but she has a cabin intended for a couple.  So, what do you think?”

“I studied the schematics for the ship and the layouts for cabins one night when I was bored.  I tried to imagine the senior staff’s cabins.  You want the truth?  They’re smaller than I expected.  They looked bigger on the schematics.”

“Probably because the entire deck is smaller.  At least that’s what I decided was my reason for reaching similar conclusions in reverse.  I thought the main crew decks had much smaller cabins, but I was wrong.  Unless you actually overlay the plans, it’s hard to make a good comparison.  So, other than being too small, what do you think?”

“Oh, Harry, I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean it like that.  They’re wonderful.  I like your decorations, too.  Is that my couch?”  Jenny pointed to the couch under the viewscreen.

“No, that’s my couch.  You’re sleeping in the other room.”  He silenced her protests.  “This is my home so let me play host properly, OK?”  Jenny relented.

“OK.”

“Wait right here.”  Harry disappeared into the other room.  In about five minutes, he returned carrying sheets, a blanket and a pillow and a few other items concealed in the bundle that he tossed on one end of the couch before turning back to Jenny.

“OK, I took the sheets off the bed and put clean ones on.  I checked the duty roster and I know you’re not on duty until Beta Shift so don’t try to set a wakeup call before 10:00 hours; the computer won’t let you.”  Harry paused before walking closer to Jenny and touching her cheek gently with his fingertips.

“Good night, Harry.”  Jenny started to turn, but Harry caught her hand in his and pulled her to face him.

“Good night, Jenny.”  Harry and Jenny stared at each other for a moment before he bent his head so his lips could brush hers gently.  He pulled back just far enough to look at her face before kissing her again with a little more force.  Harry’s hands waved slightly by his sides trying to decide where to go before settling on Jenny’s waist.  When he would have pulled back, Jenny placed her hand on the back of his neck and pulled him back for a longer and more intense kiss.  Jenny stepped back and entered the sleeping area leaving Harry standing and staring at the door.  After several long minutes, Harry turned to the task of making his bed on the couch with a contented smile on his face.