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Odo had been sitting at the end of the bar staring into space for the last two hours. It had been a long and exciting day on the station, beginning with an armed robbery of a visiting Andorian dignitary and ending with a chase along the Promenade and Odo tackling and cuffing the final suspect right in front of Quark’s bar. After the ruckus calmed down and he had presumably finished writing his reports, Odo returned to Quark’s, sat in a seat at the far end of the bar, and proceeded to stare unfocused into the ether until long after the bar had closed. Since his abrupt transformation into a human a couple of weeks ago, Odo had taken to occasional odd habits and behaviors as he adjusted to his new body, but he had never done this, and Quark found himself vaguely concerned about the ex-changling’s unusual behavior over the last couple of hours.
The bar was empty now, except for the two of them. Quark’s final customer had left some time ago, followed by the dabo girls and waiters once they finished cleaning. Even Morn had stumbled from his stool and out onto the Promenade more than twenty minutes ago. Only Odo remained as Quark finished counting his profits and secured his latinum in the safe for the night.
When he returned from the backroom, Odo was glaring into his half empty glass of water.
“Time to go, Constable.” Quark pulled the glass from Odo’s fingertips and placed it in the replicator. As he rounded the bar, he gripped the back of Odo’s stool and swiveled him around to face the exit. “Even I’m heading out, so there’s nothing left for you to see here.”
Odo harrumphed, but stood from the stool. He paused for a moment, swaying lightly on his feet.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were drunk,” Quark teased. Odo placed a hand on the bar to steady himself. His body stilled, but he made no motion to leave. Quark eyed Odo suspiciously. “Are you alright?”
Odo growled and curled his fingers around the bartop. “I’m perfectly fine, Quark.” His actions belied his words as he took a step forward and his knees instantly buckled. Quark rushed forward and wrapped his arms around Odo to support him before he could collapse to the floor.
“Odo!”
Odo sagged in his grip, his hands weakly grasping at Quark’s arms. Inches from Odo’s face, Quark could see the deep, dark circles under his eyes. His prominent brow had always cast shadows over his eyes, and had thus far prevented Quark from noticing the puffy, purple bags that had formed there.
“Odo, what’s wrong? Are you sick? Should we take you to Dr. Bashir?”
Odo managed to gain his footing and pushed Quark’s hands away. “I said I’m fine!” He leaned heavily on the bar and scrubbed a hand down his face. “I just need to rest.”
“Are you sure? I know you’ve had a long day, but you really don’t look good.”
Odo sighed deeply and squeezed his eyes shut. After a moment, he turned to look at Quark and said quietly, “I don’t need to see the doctor.”
Quark took in Odo’s open expression. He was attempting to be firm and reassuring, but Quark could see the plea underneath, the unspoken request for Quark to not push. Quark pressed his lips together and nodded. “Alright, fine. Let’s get you back to your room then.” He held out an arm towards the exit and tentatively placed a palm on Odo’s back. Odo’s gaze darted between Quark’s face and his extended hand, eyes wide and questioning. Quark raised his brow and tilted his head towards the door. “Come on.” Applying gentle pressure to his back, Quark guided Odo away from the bar. Odo staggered forward with shaky steps, but he seemed to gain some strength as he proceeded. When Quark removed his hand from Odo’s back to engage the lock on the door, Odo stood on his own and appeared far more stable than he had moments before.
When Quark finished with the lock, he tilted his head in the direction of the turbolift to the habitat ring. “Shall we?”
Odo blinked at Quark. “Are you… walking me to my room?”
“Look, I’m not going to make you go to the doctor if you don’t want to, but I am going to make sure you at least get to your room alright. So…” Quark made a show of tilting his head even further towards the exit.
Odo narrowed his eyes. He wanted to object, Quark could tell, but a glimmer of uncertainty shone in his eyes as he stared in the direction of the turbolift. “Fine,” he huffed finally, and set off down the Promenade. Quark smiled to himself, shook his head, and followed after him.
They made the trip in silence. While better balanced than he had been at the bar, Odo was still not himself. He hovered closer to Quark than normal, and Quark did his best to monitor him while not outright staring. Once at his door, Odo input the keycode and the door slid open, but he made no motion to go inside. He stared at his feet and cleared his throat.
“Quark, could you…” His voice trailed off. He sighed and tried again. “Would you mind coming in for a moment? Just for a moment, not for long.”
Quark studied Odo’s face as best as he could with Odo refusing to meet his eye. He was tired himself and anxious to return to his quarters to shower and sleep, but he couldn’t leave Odo like this, not when he was looking this vulnerable and asking Quark to stay. “Sure,” he said nonchalantly, trying to lighten the mood, and strolled into Odo’s quarters.
Odo’s furnishings had changed since the last time Quark had been in his quarters. The shapeshifting contraptions were gone, replaced by a station issued couch, armchair, and table. The room could easily be mistaken for temporary guest quarters, and a sparsely furnished one at that. The room had lost its character, as if in being turned into a human Odo had lost some sense of self and his living quarters reflected this in a tangible way. The room was very drab and boring, even for Odo, and Quark found himself saddened at the thought of Odo returning to such a dreary and dismal place each night.
“You really need to get someone in here to help you liven up the place. Maybe Dax or Garak would be-”
“I don't want Dax arranging and rearranging my furniture,” Odo groused as he sank into the couch.
Quark smirked at the memory of Jadzia’s prank and Odo’s annoyance. “Right, of course.” He sat down in the armchair across from Odo.
Silence filled the room as Odo slouched on the sofa and picked at an imaginary imperfection in the upholstery. He glowered at the armrest and chewed the inside of his lip. He opened his mouth twice as if about to speak, but both times he clamped his mouth shut again and dug his finger deeper into the fabric. Several minutes passed and Quark’s patience wore thin.
“Odo, what’s going on?” he prodded.
Odo growled and yanked his fingers away from the offending upholstery. “How do you do it?” he demanded, frustration bright in his eyes as they finally met Quark’s. “Go to sleep? Everyone says that it’s natural, slipping into unconsciousness. But it isn’t. Not for me.”
Comprehension dawned as Quark contemplated Odo’s question and his dark, puffy eyes and weakened muscles. “You’ve been having trouble sleeping.”
The dam of silence now broken, Odo’s words gushed from his mouth in an irritable wave. “When I was a changeling, I would make the choice to return to my natural state and regenerate. It was an action I took, to change from one state of being to another. I can’t do that now. I can’t just decide I’m going to go to sleep and it’s done. I have to let myself fall asleep. Another frustrating lack of control inherited with this solid body.” Odo wrinkled his nose and stared at his hands in disgust. “Hours spent tossing and turning, unable to stop the constant stream of thoughts. I couldn’t… stomach it,” Odo spit the words out, bitter at his newfound understanding of the idiom, “the thought of returning here, of being so tired yet unable to sleep. Of being alone with my thoughts.” He whispered the last sentence, and the way he contracted in on himself once it was uttered made Quark wonder if he had meant to say it at all.
Odo’s despondent face reminded Quark of the last time he had been here, standing in the detritus of Odo’s destroyed quarters after he discovered Kira was in love with Shakaar. Quark had done his best to help Odo then, and he would do his best to help him now.
“Go get ready for bed.”
“What?” Odo furrowed his brow.
“Go get ready for bed,” Quark repeated quietly. “I’ll stay until you fall asleep.”
Odo blinked. From the expressions flitting across his face, Quark could almost hear the the war being waged in Odo’s mind over whether he should allow Quark to stay or not. However, despite this, only a moment passed before Odo stuttered a nod, rose from the couch, and walked wearily to the bedroom. A new jolt of concern shot through Quark at Odo’s quick acquiescence. He must be more exhausted, and more desperate, than Quark had thought to allow this without putting up any protest. Odo appeared to realize this himself when he reached the bedroom door, and he turned to stare at Quark with narrowed eyes.
“I don’t relish the thought of leaving you unattended in my quarters.”
Quark sighed theatrically. “There’s nothing to steal and nowhere to hide a bug in this bare and depressing room, so I don’t know what you think I can get up to.”
Odo barked a laugh. “Please. Don’t pretend I don’t know you well enough to know that you could most certainly bug this room if you chose to.”
Quark widened his eyes and dropped his jaw in mock surprise. “Why, Odo! How kind! It’s not like you to compliment my skills!”
Odo rolled his eyes and sagged against the doorframe. He was beginning to look weak in the knees again. Quark held up his right hand and pulled his ring finger and thumb together in the gesture of a Ferengi promise. “Look, I promise I’ll sit here and keep to myself while you’re gone. No bugging.”
“And no stealing?” Odo added pointedly.
“Really, Odo? Seriously?” Quark would have been offended if it wasn’t obvious Odo had only said it to get a rise out of him. “Fine! And no stealing! I promise! Now go, before you fall over again.”
“As if I can trust a promise from a liar such as you,” Odo grunted, but he pulled himself from the doorframe and closed the door behind him.
Quark idly listened to the soft sounds of Odo puttering around the bedroom while he waited. The closet door opened and closed, as well as the bathroom door, and water ran in the sink as Odo brushed his teeth. When he re-opened his bedroom door, Odo stood uncertainly in the doorway wearing a thin gray t-shirt and sweatpants. He looked small without his uniform, and more unguarded and vulnerable than Quark had ever seen him, and his heart squeezed a bit at the sight. Attempting to brush his emotions aside, Quark stood from the chair and approached the bedroom, following as Odo led him inside the room.
Quark hovered near the doorway as Odo slid under the sheets of his bed, laid on his back, and stared pointedly at the ceiling. The bedroom was as sparsely furnished as the sitting room, and Quark discovered there was no chair or place to sit. He considered bringing a chair from the living area to the bedroom, but decided it would be too much of a hassle. He didn’t let himself linger on his decision before he approached the bed and toed out of his boots.
“Scoot over.”
Odo eyed him with alarm. “What?!”
“Where else am I supposed to go? I’ll stay on top of the covers. It’s just until you fall asleep anyway.” Odo still looked uncertain, but he moved over to allow room and dimmed the lights as Quark settled next to him.
His brain now caught up to his body, Quark wondered if he had made a mistake. The bed was narrow, and only a few finger widths separated his and Odo’s shoulders. When Odo shifted, the brush of his elbow against Quark’s sent Quark’s pulse racing. Even with his limited human hearing, Quark feared Odo could hear the thudding of his heart in his chest. Heat rose in Quark’s cheeks, and he tried not to cringe in embarrassment at reacting so strongly to sharing a bed with Odo. In that moment, he found himself commiserating with Odo’s repeated complaints about the downfalls of a solid body.
As they laid side by side in silence, listening to each others’ breaths, Quark could feel the tension radiating off of Odo’s body in the close space, and he turned his head to see Odo staring daggers into the ceiling.
“You know, the first step to falling asleep is closing your eyes,” Quark teased, hoping the levity in his voice masked his nerves.
Odo huffed but did as Quark said. As the minutes ticked by, Odo occasionally shifted and wiggled as if he was having difficulty getting into a comfortable position but was trying to keep from moving too much.
“Are you comfortable? You won’t fall asleep if you’re not comfortable,” Quark asked.
“I’d be more comfortable if you weren’t in the bed,” Odo groused.
“Well, have someone update your quarters and put a chair in here so next time I won’t have to share the bed with you.”
“Next time?” Odo asked, brow furrowed.
Quark inwardly chastised himself for his slip of the tongue, but simply waved a hand at Odo dismissively. “Quit talking. You won’t go to sleep if you’re talking either.”
Odo grunted non-commitally, but he closed his eyes and returned to his resting position. A couple of minutes passed, but soon Odo sighed in frustration and turned his head to look at Quark.
“How do you stand the silence? Once I lie in bed and close my eyes, the silence it…” Odo huffed and returned to glaring at the ceiling. “All I can hear is my thoughts, and the contrast between the eternal noise in my mind and the silence of the room is… maddening.”
“Computer, play Rain Ambiance #3.” The soft, droning sound of rainfall filled the small space, underscored with the soft thuds of raindrops landing on leaves. “The station is never quiet to me. There’s always something beeping or someone knocking things around. Silence is an almost foreign concept for the Ferengi. But this is what I play when the station feels too loud and I need to sleep. There’s a few variations, but this one’s my favorite. It reminds me of home,” Quark whispered. A sudden wave of self-consciousness washed over him. He hadn’t said anything he wouldn’t have said under different circumstances, but the dim lighting and close proximity to Odo made the moment more intimate than he expected, and he found himself feeling shy. “There’s other sounds too: ocean waves, different types of noise, whatever. You can pick a different one if you want. You don’t have to leave it on this one.”
“No, I like this one. It’s nice,” Odo said decisively. Quark’s chest warmed and he smiled softly into the darkness. He closed his eyes and let the sounds of rain and Odo’s soft breaths settle his nerves and lull him into a peaceful repose. It took some time, but Odo’s breaths began to even out, and Quark sensed as the tension released from his muscles and he sank into slumber.
Quark knew he should leave. He had told Odo he would only stay until he fell asleep, but now that the time had come Quark found he did not want to. Despite Quark’s slip about “next time” and Odo’s lack of rebuttal afterward, it seemed likely this would be the only time Quark would be able to do this, and he wanted to savor it for as long as he could.
He stayed longer than he meant to, and as the hours ticked by Quark nearly fell asleep himself. When he caught himself drifting off to sleep, he reluctantly climbed from the bed, careful not to jostle Odo in the process. He picked up his boots, padded quietly across the room, and paused at the doorway to look at Odo one last time. His face was slack, his hair mussed, and soft snores rumbled from his slightly parted lips. Quark bit his lip to keep a smile from breaking across his face.
“Goodnight, Odo,” he whispered into the darkness before taking his leave and exiting Odo’s quarters.
Once washed and in his own bed, Quark strained to see if he could hear Odo’s snoring and the rain ambiance above, but the sounds were too quiet to be heard, likely even without Odo’s recently installed soundproof flooring. Quark sighed, played Rain Ambiance #3, and drifted off to sleep, imagining he was still one floor above sharing Odo’s bed.