action;
[ even if she isn't kept perfectly safe, as long as he's right there with her, she knows she'll be all right. this isn't the first time this has happened to her, but it is the first time it's been so emotionally charged and at a time where she couldn't process what had happened. it's the first time it felt so real.
the kiss helps anchor her even more and she leans into it, not quite able to open up fully to his embrace (though that is mostly due to the water beating down on them). his offer is met with a slightly larger smile, one that seems to fill her with more light than she'd been allowed earlier. she recognizes the privilege of the request, for both of them. for her, it's a chance to relax, to allow her husband to deal with her long brown hair in her place, and for him, it's an opportunity to help her, to see how much she trusts him. because she does trust him. she trusts will riker more than anyone she had ever met, including his other self, his "brother" thomas.
she loves him, she trusts him, and she wants him to stay close by. ]
I would be honored to have you wash my hair.
[ her answer is twofold: both teasing and serious. while she shifts around to give him easier access to her hair, she closes her eyes and finally takes the first step in adjusting to her situation. with her eyes closed, she can only feel and hear him behind her, not sense him, and it forces her to deal with the here and now. he's here and she's trusting him not to hurt her. not that she ever thinks he would or even could, but the gesture means more now that she's had these recent experiences than it might have before. ]