something to do (Pavel Chekov)

39

Eadie wakes up and Pavel's sleeping beside her. He's been scared to go back to sleep since his last nightmare but with a little help from a patch from McCoy, he's out cold. Eadie rubs her face and McCoy comes over, asking how she feels.

"I'm fine," she mutters. "Is Pavel alright? How long have I been out? Has he had his surgery?"

"He hasn't had his surgery. He had a very realistic dream about being back in the cell and it spooked him a lot. He's been having trouble sleeping since."

Eadie looks at McCoy. "I had a dream about the cell too. He was in there with me. It was so real. He was asleep and I went over to touch the bars and they stung me... My hand was red and everything."

McCoy blinks. He notes it down on his PADD. He tells her he wants a few more details about the dream. Eadie goes over it and as she talks, McCoy reads over Pavel's description. He shakes his head. He's trying to keep a straight face and not alarm Eadie. He thanks her, telling her he'll be back in a few minutes.

Pavel stays asleep while Eadie eats. McCoy, Doctor Kotir and Doctor Vessa are in a meeting and Eadie doesn't think much of it. She looks over to Pavel and hopes he wakes up soon. She misses his company and she wants to go back to their room and hide for a while.

It doesn't take long for Pavel to wake up and groan. He wakes up not noticing Eadie just across from him and he tries to sit up. She coos his name and he looks over, smiling as he sees her.

"I'll come over in a moment. I just need to go to the toilet before I explode."

She nods and he disappears down the corridor, coming back and sitting on the end of her bed. She asks him when he's having his surgery and he tells her he has no idea. He thinks his infection is clearing. His pain is gone now and he wonders if that means they'll operate soon. He takes Eadie's hand and gives it a soft squeeze. She tells him it'll be fine. She tells him they'll be fine. He wishes he could believe her.

Time in medbay starts to blur. Pavel's surgery goes smoothly. He doesn't start regrowing any kidneys after they've been removed and he's incredibly pleased about it. McCoy tells him they were exactly like his original kidneys, a full 11cm long and functioning normally. Eadie stays on bedrest and doesn't get told much else about what's going on in her body. She's a little too scared to ask.

Pavel wakes up thrashing once again and Eadie is beside him trying to calm him down. Her voice won't get through to him and he screams in anguish, the whole of medbay going silent in shock. Eadie collapses and starts screaming too, McCoy's eyes widening, wondering what the fuck is going on.

Eadie and Pavel wake up feeling like concrete. Their bodies are next to each other and Pavel reaches out and finds Eadie's arm. He starts whispering her name and she grunts trying to roll herself over.

"Pavel? Pavel... I'm so heavy. What is happening?"

"I can't see," he mutters, trying to bring his hands to his eyes. He feels Eadie squeeze his arm and he groans, trying to get his hand back to her. "Where are we? Is this medbay?"

"This isn't medbay," Eadie says, pushing herself up a little. "This is..."

She doesn't need to say anything else. Pavel has a black feeling in the pit of his stomach and he gets his eyes to focus a little. There's a faint ominous glow in front of him and he wants to scream. He grunts and sits up. The bars are there and he moves towards them. He touches them and gasps, a pain shooting through his fingers. He feels a little more awake now. He brings himself to look around. It's the same cell. It's the same four walls and Pavel can feel his mind starting to spiral.

"Eadie. Eadie this is... This is the cell..."

"I have a sick feeling that we're not dreaming this time." Eadie sits up and comes over to the bench, grunting with effort as she sits down beside him. He holds her, tears pooling in his eyes. He feels ill. He feels heavy and he tries to tell himself that what he's experiencing is some sort of dream.

They get back into their routine to try and keep sane. They stretch, still feeling heavy and sore. They talk about the dream they both had and they find out that they match up perfectly. Pavel recaps the dream in Romanian and gives up half way through, going back to English so he can make sure he's telling her the right details.

They stay in the cell and phase out for a long while. Eadie bursts into sobs at one point and Pavel starts doing the same. Surely they can't be back. Neither or them can believe it. He wipes his eyes, trying to find something, anything supportive he can say to make Eadie stop crying.

"We'll be okay," he finally whispers. "We made it through once. I love you. We'll be okay."

"I'm so scared, Pavel. I'm so frightened."

They stay close and fall asleep together. Eadie is on top of Pavel and they pass out for a long long while. She wakes up on his chest and his blue-grey orbs are focusing in on her. She sighs. He puts a hand on her back and asks her what they're going to fill their time with this time.

"Your Romanian could use some work."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yes, we can do that. Fill in some time."

"You know," Pavel mutters, brushing her hair from her eyes. "When we get out of here, I'm going to marry you, Eadie Carmen."

"You promise?"

"I love you. I promise."

She smiles a little at the thought.