On the sidewalk corner outside, a young, short-haired woman was handing out flyers that showed a picture of a handsome man dressed in a gold Starfleet uniform and the words 'Have You Seen This Man?' above his picture and the name 'Benton' below.(...CONTINUED FROM "The Support Group Arrives")
"I don't know what to do!" cried Kim. She was seated in a corner booth surrounded by her friends in the Banshees' old favorite hangout on the station, the El Taco restaurant. Busy shoppers could be seen outside the large windows, some bustling hurriedly, some strolling leisurely, all going about their business in the starbase's Promenade, all ignorant of the drama unfolding just the other side of the glass.
On the sidewalk corner outside, a young, short-haired woman was handing out flyers that showed a picture of a handsome man dressed in a gold Starfleet uniform and the words 'Have You Seen This Man?' above his picture and the name 'Benton' below.
Inside the restaurant, things were a little noisier than usual, which suited the Banshees just fine, since it afforded them more privacy. The large Lurian named Pep was squatting on his usual stool at the end of the taco bar animatedly expounding to anyone who would listen about his harrowing ordeal earlier that day in Docking Bay 94 at the hands of a small yet ferocious human woman. Apparently he hadn't seen the woman outside passing out flyers, or he would have run for his life.
"I'm so confused!" continued Kim, looking around the table for advice.
"I still can't believe your story!" said Jo incredulously. "Your boyfriend is a Q, and he wants to take you to the Q Continuum with him when he leaves?!? Unbelievable!"
"I'll say," commented Alex jealously. "I wish I had problems like that!"
"That's not very helpful, Alex," said Kim, dejected. Alex had been Kim's replacement when Kim left Banshee Squadron to work on the station with Garek, so the two had never flown together, but even though they had only just met, they had bonded quickly.
Kim's imploring gaze encompassed the rest of the table. She looked to Sam for aid, but Sam was lost in her own thoughts and remained characteristically silent. Max likewise was quiet, taking in everything that was said, forming her own opinions. Finally, Kim looked to her old boss to rescue her.
From behind a Mucho Macho Hasperat Burrito with extra hot sauce, Carter noticed Kim's look. Quickly swallowing a mouthful, she said, "We're here for you, Kimmie, no matter what you decide to do. You know that, of course."
Kim nodded.
"If you decide to go with Garek to live in the Q Continuum, you'll have the entire universe at your fingertips. That's an incredible opportunity, and one not to be turned down lightly."
Kim shook her head.
"On the other hand, I doubt you'll have a lot of spare time to come back to this dimension and just hang out with your old friends." Carter paused for a moment, then said, more softly, "We're all going to miss you."
Around the table, four heads emphatically nodded their complete agreement with that statement.
"That's just it," complained Kim. "It's what I've been agonizing about for almost two days now. On the one hand, I get to be a Q! But on the other hand, I have to leave everything and everyone I know behind--"
"Except for Garek," broke in Max. Reaching across the table, she picked up the red rose that Kim had brought with her. It was the one Garek had given her when he had dropped his bombshell about being a Q. She looked at the rose for a moment, then pointedly at Kim, and said, "It all boils down to this: Do you love him?"
"Yes! Of course I do!" answered Kim with as much assertiveness as she could muster.
"Well then, it seems that your choice is pretty simple," concluded Max in her typical no-nonsense way, handing the rose to Kim.
Kim leaned back in her seat and just sat blinking for a few seconds, stunned by the simplicity of the facts. She shook her head to clear out all the clutter of the last two days, looked at the rose in her hands, and said, "I knew you guys would help me. I think I can make my decision now."
"Good," said Carter, smiling. "Then our trip across half the Federation wasn't a total waste."
"Well, if that concludes out business," said Jo, standing, an evil twinkle in her eye, "I think I owe our newest team member a schplict! Be right back." With that announcement, she headed off to stand in line at the front counter.
"I guess I better tell Q," said Kim. "Say.... How do you summon a Q anyway?"
"Beat's me," said Carter.
"Well, I guess he'll show on his own. They're supposed to be omniscient, after all." She stood to leave. "I'll wait for him in my quarters."
"Aren't you going to wait for Jo to come back with the schplict?" asked Alex.
"Uh.... No."
Several hours later....
Garek was arguing with a Ferengi cargo ship captain about departure schedules. The little troll's misshapen head filled the entire viewscreen, and he was going on and on about losing profit because of delays and the perishability of his haul, but Garek wasn't listening. Time was almost up, and there still was no word from Kim.
Had she run away?
No, she wouldn't do that to him....
Would she?
Suddenly, he felt a tapping on his shoulder. He nearly jumped out of his boots he was so startled. Spinning around, he saw it was Kim. "Kim!" he exclaimed. "I didn't see you come in." He dreaded asking the next question. "Have you, uh.... That is, did you.... Uh.... What I mean is.... Oh jeez...."
Kim smiled and kissed him lightly, to demonstrate her feelings for him, but more importantly to make him stop babbling. "Yes, I've decided," she said.
Garek waited in expectant torment for her to reveal which way she'd decided, but when the answer wasn't quick enough coming, he said anxiously, "Well? What did you decide?"
Kim didn't answer with words, but her smile grew wider and wider. She raised her hand, and with a dramatic flourish, snapped her fingers. A brilliant, momentary flash of white light engulfed the two of them, and when it faded, they were gone.
(TO BE CONTINUED...)