Somewhat of a sequel to Around the Corner. I think my muse has taken
an energy booster *gulp*
Thanks to Gloria for kicking by butt so I'd sent it out :)

deadestiny@yahoo.com

Setting: about a year before Nemesis
Rating: G
Disclaimer: everything is mine, save for the characters

Just behind the door
There are you standing
Just behind the door
I can feel you wanting
Just behind the door
I know what you're asking of me
Just behind the door
It's not as easy as it seemed to be

Just behind the door
Here am I hiding
Just behind the door
I'm desperately fighting
Just behind the door
I'm facing the decision of my life
Just behind the door
Do I want to become your wife?

Behind the door

With angry gestures, Deanna Troi wiped her tears away and tried not
to be aware of the thoughts and emotions emanating from the man
behind the door. Why did she have to react so dramatically? She had
seen this coming for weeks after all, in fact, she'd been hoping for
weeks that he would finally ask. Since their return from the Briar
Patch their relationship had done nothing but grow; fights and
separations included. They had come to know each other even better
than they already had and their love had grown even deeper. It had
been as perfect as it could've gotten.

Then why did she suddenly feel as if she were trapped? Why, when she
wanted to scream yes so hard that her mother would hear it, had she
ran away, back to the seclusion of her quarters? She wasn't scared,
was she?

True he'd asked her the same question before. Twice, if one counted
Thomas. And Thomas too had left never to return again. For a long
while she'd been mad a Will, because he saw it coming. True that his
warning had saved her from a heartbreak much stronger than she ended
up with, but why had he seen it coming? Was it so unbelievable to
him that they would marry?

Ridiculous thoughts she knew, and yet she couldn't quiet them. There
had been so many instances in her life when she had wanted nothing
but his arms around her, but there also had been many instances
where either one of them had pushed the other away for the sake of
friendship and as she remembered those, the questions she had asked
herself in the first weeks of their rekindled romance popped back
into existence.

"This is no use!"

She loved him, she never wanted to be without him again and yes, she
wanted to complete the Imzadi-bond between then. So, why had she
run? And why was she hiding in her quarters now, when her life stood
just behind the door? It would take a simple command to allow him
entrance and he would undoubtedly apologize and give her the time
she needed, but she couldn't do that. Not yet.

-{And when the waiting is over, new rules have to be made, for one
is captured in destiny, but at the same time set free}- Deanna
sighed heavily and sunk deeper into the soft cushions of the couch,
nearly desperate to quiet her thoughts.

She was all too aware of her Imzadi waiting behind the door, his
initial shock now replaced by trepidation and fear. He was waiting
for her answer, just as she had been waiting for him to ask the
question.

Waiting…could it be, that she had been waiting so long; first for
him to be ready for commitment and then for him to propose, that she
didn't know what to do when her waiting was over? Was she so shocked
by the ending to her waiting that she couldn't feel the joy? Before
she realized what she was doing, she'd grabbed a vase from the table
at her side and flung it against the wall; the fragile item
shattering into a thousands pieces did little to elevate her
frustration, but felt good nonetheless.

"I'm not making any sense!" She yelled into the darkness, angered by
the thoughts floating through her mind and angered by her own
cowardice.

Maybe she should ask him for more time? To allow both of them more
time to get used to the idea? A ridiculous idea in itself; they'd
been together for three years now; there was nothing to get used to
anymore. They'd lived all the good times and the bad times alike and
survived them, together and their love had only grown.

Who was she kidding here? There was only one answer. -{And when one
surrenders to faith and destiny, there will be as reward, a freedom
greater than anything; the freedom of true and devoted love lasting
for eternity}- The only option was to give in, to trust him to keep
her safe forever in his heart and deep in her heart Troi knew that
Will Riker would do just that.

Standing in front of the door now, she touched the panel to release
the mechanism and allow the last wall between them to fall away.

"I do" she said simply and flung herself in his arms, nearly
overwhelmed by the joy and love that poured from his very soul into
hers.

Imzadi.

End