Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek TNG or any of its original characters.

To my readers: Okay, here it is. Hope it was fun to read. It was a blast to write. Would you like to know the worst part of posting a final chapter of a story that you have really enjoyed? The lack of hearing what you all thought of it. It makes me sad :( The final chapter is always the least reviewed. Have a happy holidays. I will be thinking of a really good story for you for the new year. See you soon!

The staff meeting the next morning was routine to say the least. The most interesting development on the ship was the retrofit of the warp power couplings in engineering that day. And it was probably for the best. No on in the room seemed to be at their best as they discussed the different departments, but probably none more than Deanna Troi and Will Riker.

Worf seemed stoically unemotional in his seat, unphased by everything that had gone on the previous night. Will was tired, numb even, from the sheer amount of emotions over the last few days. And after how last night had ended, he hadn't rested any better than he did the night before.

Deanna Troi had come into the meeting last and took a seat slightly away from the group. She also looked tired. More of her emotions were showing than she usually would allow, and her eyes were puffy and bloodshot. From lack of sleep or tears? Will thought as he watched her closely. He didn't quite know what to make of the situation. Something must have gone terribly wrong the night before, but when and what had happened was unclear to him.

"Counselor," the captain asked as the meeting drew to a close. "Do you have anything to address?" he asked.

Deanna looked up from where her eyes had been fixed on the table's surface. "No, Sir," she said simply.

"Well in that case, meeting adjour…" Deanna was up and out the door before anyone could react. "ned," the captain finished.

The rest of the table looked around at one another concerned. But Commander Riker's eyes went straight to the security chief on the opposite side of the table. "What did you do?" Will asked him angrily. He had ceased caring who else was in the room. Not after the night before.

Geordi, who was nearest the door looked briefly at the door over his shoulder, wondering if it would be safer to stay in his seat and try to remain unseen, or to get up and leave. No one else even made a move.

"I do not know what you are referring to," Worf replied emotionless.

"Like hell!" Will said, his voice raised. He looked from Worf to the door where Deanna had vanished. "You told her!"

"Yes. I did. I thought you would have known that much already." For the first time Worf's temper had flared.

A light went off in Will's head. 'Thank you for the painting,' she had told him. How had he missed it? "You broke up with her." Will said astounded. Worf didn't acknowledge his statement. "You' re an idiot!" Will yelled standing from his seat.

"No," Worf said rising from his seat as well. "But I do know what I want. And I am not interested in playing second best," he spat the words across the table at his superior officer.

Will stood stunned silent for a moment.

"My decisions are mine alone, Commander," Worf said trying to end the conversation and turning as if he would leave.

"Not when she walks out of the room crying they're not," Will told him. "I don't get you! You picked a bad gift…so what? So you break up with her? She didn't even know!"

"I knew. And so did you."

The two stood staring at each other for a moment. Will slowly began shaking his head. "Why?" he asked.

"You know why." Worf told him. "The only question is, what are you going to do about it?"

Wills eyes opened wide. "I didn't tell you to break up with her! What do you mean what am I going to do about it?"

"What's done is done." Worf told him. "My choices are mine, yours are yours."

"So, what? I am supposed to run after her?"

Worf raised an eyebrow in response.

"You just broke up with her!"

"She'll get over it," Worf sounded cold.

"How dare you…"

"She seemed to get over it last night," Worf interrupted him.

"What the hell does that mean?"

"I mean she left ten forward and went straight to your quarters!" Worf's temper reared its head again.

Will looked back at him shocked as he pictured the night before. "What? Were you spying on her?"

"Enough."

Will sighed. "Worf, that was nothing. She just..." he thought of how to explain. "She was there for a half a minute."

"That is not the point," Worf told him firmly.

"Then what's the point, Worf? Because I really don't think I know."

Worf paused for a moment. "Go after her," he told him plainly.

"I CAN'T do that!" Will cried in frustration.

"Why not? No one is standing in your way, but YOU!"

Will slumped back into his chair. "She is my best friend," he said desperately.

"I know," Worf said with a hint of his previous frustration.

"Do you think I get unlimited chances at this? I mean, if go after her now…that's it. It's forever. It's marriage and babies, or it's nothing and I blow it and I loose my best friend, for good," he said putting his head in his hands.

"You are a coward." Worf said flatly.

Will look back up at his friend. "Damn Straight."

Worf sat back down in his chair as well and the rest of the room released their collective held breath.

"I don't get you," Will finally told him.

"Yes you do. The difference between the two of us is that I would have let you fall flat on your face without giving it a second thought. I wouldn't have cared about whether she was happy about it or not," Worf admitted.

The room was quiet for a moment. "Really?" Will asked with a skeptical look.

Worf only arched his eyebrow.

"You would have let me just fall on my ass," Will asked again, for the first time that day a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

Worf leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest. "Damn Straight."

…

Will rang the chime on her office door timidly. When the doors slid open, Deanna sat curled on the couch.

"Hi," he told her stepping into her office and letting the doors close behind him. He looked at her thoughtfully. "Want to talk about it?" he asked.

Deanna sighed. "About my wreckage of a love life or the fact that I walked into your quarters at 01:00 and kissed you for no apparent reason?" she asked embarrassed.

"Either," Will shrugged.

Deanna hung her head as she sat up a little straighter. "I'm so sorry, Will. I was so hurt and scared and… and I don't know what I was, but I shouldn't have treated you like that."

"Hey," he said walking toward her and sitting on the couch beside her. "It's okay. We all do things like that sometimes," he said tentatively putting his arm around her.

Deanna shook her head. "Act like an idiot?" she asked.

"More often than not…yes," Will admitted.

"Oh, Will. What is wrong with me?" she asked turning into his embrace.

Will sat back and let her rest her head on his chest. He tucked his arms around her and took in the feel of her in his arms. "There is nothing wrong with you," he whispered to her.

He heard a sarcastic muffled laugh against him. "Am I just fundamentally unlovable?" she asked.

Will kissed her hair that was tucked under his chin resting on her head. "You are the most lovable person I know," he told her.

"Then what is it? Do I just pick the wrong men?" she asked sitting up slightly.

Will made a face of mild agreement.

"Oh, shut up," she told him, putting her head back down on his chest. "It doesn't matter. I'm done with men anyway."

"Ouch," Will told her. "Do you want me to go?"

"No," she said snuggling into his arms. He had missed this more than he could possibly explain. "Not you. You are the exception to the rule."

"So, what? I get to be your wingman and we get to go pick up on beautiful women?"

She smacked him lightly on his chest, but he felt her chuckle against him. "No."

"You said you were swearing off men…" Will told her in his defense.

"Except you," she repeated curling against him as he rubbed her back.

"Well, that does significantly decrease my competition."

"Can't you ever be serious?" she asked him.

No, not when I'm this nervous.

"Okay," he told her. "I'm being serious."

"I don't know what happened," she admitted to him.

Will felt guilt creep over him. He knew what happened. She was crying in his arms and it was all his fault.

"I mean, I know what happened. I just don't know why."

"Deanna," Will began.

I love you. I've just been too scared to do anything about it.

"I know. We were so different. Part of why I didn't tell you what happened last night is that I didn't think I could take you telling me 'I told you so'. But you were right. You all were. What is wrong with me?"

"Maybe this isn't about what's wrong with you," he tried again.

"It wasn't just that I wanted to try it out. I really felt like I needed to, like something was missing in me. I should know better. I can't find what's missing in me by trying to find it in someone else." Deanna took a deep breath as she rested in his arms. "Maybe this is for the best. I need some time to think about me for a while."

Will's heart sank at her words. What was she saying? "Why?" he asked quietly.

"Why? Because I fall in love with men who don't want me, or can't stay with me. Because I can't keep doing this. Do you know why I kissed you last night?" she asked sitting up to look at him. "Because I was afraid that no one would ever really love me, because I was afraid that I wouldn't have children," she said tears forming in her eyes. "Oh, god. I sound like my mother." She buried her head in his chest again and started to laugh at the absurdity of it, but soon the sound changed to soft sobs.

Her shoulders shook as she cried against him. "Shhh," he began to whisper softly into her hair. "That's not true. You are so amazing. Can't you see how amazing you are?"

Deanna only sighed into his chest.

After a few minutes Deanna sat up and began wiping furiously at her eyes. Will smoothed her hair out of her face and wiped away a stray tear to two with the pad of his thumb.

"You okay?" he asked quietly.

She only shrugged her shoulders.

He smiled back at her. He had to tell her how he felt. "I love you, Deanna," he told her.

"Oh, don't you start with me," she said swatting at his arm.

"I mean it," he tried to tell her.

"Right," she said smiling. "I love you too." She was not taking him seriously.

"Did you love him?" he asked, though he wasn't sure he wanted to know.

Deanna only sighed, sitting against the couch next to him. "I loved that he loved me. At least I thought he did."

"He did," he told her honestly.

Enough to let you go, which is more than I can say for me.

"Maybe I just didn't love him enough, or the way he needed to be loved. I know he wanted more, but I just wasn't ready." She paused. "To mate for life!" she tried to explain. "I mean, not that we didn't do anything. We did other things…"

"Okay," Will said starting to get up. "That's more than I need to know."

Deanna chuckled. "Coward," she told him.

Will looked back at her wide-eyed. Damn, twice in one day? She HAD been around Worf too much.

He took a deep breath and sat back down next to her. He needed to try this again. He tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear and ran his hand along the side of her face and then continued down the back of her neck. "I do love you," he told her.

She smiled back at him weakly. He still didn't know that she truly understood what he was trying to tell her.

She is so beautiful, he thought as he sat and studied her face, breathed in her scent. Flowers, he thought, definitely flowers. Slowly he leaned towards her. He watched her closely to see if she would back away, but she only continued to smile at him. He moved closer until his lips were mere centimeters from hers and there was no mistaking his intention. Still she did not move. In one motion he pulled her to him and their lips met, softly at first. The feel of her against him sent every other thought far from his mind. He kissed her with as much need as she had the night before, but unlike him, she responded to his touch, parting her lips slightly as his tongue slipped into her mouth and his hands tangled in her hair as they melted together.

"Will," she finally said, pulling away from him.

"I know. It's too soon. I'm sorry," he said not able to look at her.

She stifled a small chuckle. "Maybe that too," she admitted.

"What?" he asked. Just then the chime rang at her office door.

Deanna closed her eyes and sighed. "I'm expecting a patient," she told him lamely, reaching up to wipe a smudge of lipstick from his mouth.

"Oh," Will replied awkwardly. "I should go," he told her. She nodded as he eased himself off the couch.

Half way to the door he turned back to her. "Have dinner with me, tonight… ten forward?"

Deanna flashed him that smile. That one he had seen only in his dreams for the last few months. "I've missed that," she told him.

"Me too." You have no idea how much.

"I'll meet you there at 19:00?"

Will smiled in return. "It's a date," he told her, hoping she was starting to catch his meaning, as he stepped out of her office. He nodded quickly to the ensign who waited at her door and headed off down the empty corridor.

"Baby steps, Commander," he said out loud to himself. "You can't afford to screw this one up."

The End