Chapter Three: Dylan
You may be deceived if you trust too much, but you will live in torment if you do not trust enough.
-Frank Crane
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"Just go and talk to him. That's all you have to do. What's the worst thing that can happen? Do you think he'll bite you? He's a nice guy. Too nice. He offered his help; stop being so god damn stubborn and take it."
"Beka? Who are you talking to?"
Beka jumped and tried her best to regain her composure. "Um...Rommie's hologram."
Dylan wasn't convinced. Beka wasn't surprised. In a tone so dry even a Nietzschean would be envious, Dylan spoke one word. "Really."
"Well, actually, I wanted to talk to you," Beka admitted. "I mean, Trance suggested I should talk to you," she said quickly.
"What do you want to talk about?" Dylan asked. She looked so...lost. Remembering what Trance had told him, he waited for Beka to take the first step. Dylan was disappointed when she began talking, and Beka could feel it. "What's up next? What good are we going to do this week?"
"No good except for putting more money into some vendor's pocket. We need to resupply. Harper wants to upgrade Rommie's droids again, and he says the slipstream drive is pretty much shot, so he needs a bunch of parts to bring it up to operability. We also need-" Dylan broke off when he saw Beka's face.
"It's my fault, isn't it." Her voice was hardly more than a whisper, her expression strained, her face pale.
"Beka-" he started, unable to continue because he knew it was true. "I won't lie to you, Beka. The failed trip to Tarn-Vedra, to use Mr. Harper's exact words, 'screwed the drive and left it in the alley to die.' But he said he can fix it," he assured her.
"Of course he can," Beka responded, emotionless.
Dylan decided that he had to bring up the subject or it wouldn't be talked about, no matter what Trance said. "Beka, I meant what I said. When you were...recovering. I'm here."
"Dylan?" Beka asked hesitantly.
"Hmm?" It was now or never. Neither of them would bring up the subject again if she left it here. "Why didn't you dump me off on some planet? Make me leave?" Beka's eyes pleaded with him to answer. If one man in her life was ever going to be honest with, it was this man answering this question. She knew-he would tell her the truth or he would destroy her. She wondered if he knew too. Looking into his eyes, she knew the answer.
"Because I'm not that kind of person. Beka, I would never throw you off this ship because you made a mistake. Yes, it was a bad mistake, and yes, I may have thrown you in the brig for a time and I wouldn't hesitate to do so again, but I would never force you to leave." He took her hands and stared into her eyes. "The only way you will leave is of your own free will if you want to leave, and even then I'll try damn hard to keep you here."
"But why?" Beka could have left it there, but she needed to know. Her father would have dumped her for screwing up that bad. Her brother would have done the same without a second thought. Why wouldn't Dylan?
"Because you're my friend, Beka. And I don't betray my friends."
With that, he drew her into his arms and held her. That was the only reason he heard her whisper, "Thank you."
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