1. Nyota's No-win scenario

Title: Take a Third Option

Summary: The most important thing Nyota has learned from Jim Kirk is there is always a third option, no matter how dire the situation was and the current situation was dire. Right now, she has to figure out how to deal with the ultimate romantic no-win scenario of her boyfriend being in love with Jim Kirk in a non-platonic way. Takes place during the end of STID.

This story contains major spoilers for Star Trek Into Darkness

After watching the new movie, I came to the conclusion that the film only makes sense if Spock is completely in love with Jim. That is the only logical explanation for him being jealous of Carol and his Vulcan equivalent of a nervous breakdown. Nyota is a brilliant strong woman and I know that she would not be oblivious to this. There are normally two options at a time like this, break up or figure out how to work through the emotional infidelity (that scene was just chopped full of emotional infidelity). It's more complicated when the person your boyfriend is kind of sort of in love with is someone that you care about too. However, thanks to Jim Kirk's good (or maybe bad) influence Nyota is willing to find another solution for this romantic no-win scenario.

A/N: I'm going by memory, so I may have a couple of things wrong. I also find it deeply ironic that I did not cry when I was watching that scene (Okay, I may have been yelling at the screen 'really, just friends, really',) but I started choking up so much when writing this story that I couldn't keep dictating.

Thank you to teddy bear for proofreading, all remaining mistakes are mine and I will most likely blame those mistakes on my voice recognition software. (Update 6/21: Also thank you to Khashan for proofreading the revised version.)

Disclaimer: If I own Star Trek, Jim would have been doing Spock (and maybe Nyota too) in that scene, instead of the kitten twins. Also, there would have been enough Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto gratuitous underwear scenes to make you not care about the ridiculousness of Alice Eve in her underwear later on. Obviously, there were no women in the writing room. Therefore, I don't own anything.

**Part One: Nyota's No-win scenario**

* * *

Nyota was a smart and strong woman. She knows dozens of languages, can bluff Klingons, and shoots indestructible adversaries at point-blank range without breaking a sweat. She also knows when she is in a completely double fucked situation and right now when it comes to her relationship with Spock, she was completely screwed, no matter what choice she made.

She and Spock have been together for nearly three years, despite the complications of the last year. He has been keeping her at arm's length since his mother's death and the destruction of Vulcan. Half the time, she thinks he was suicidal. He said that he cared, but she's not always sure. Still, he's trying and that's all she can ask for. He drove her absolutely crazy, but she still loves him, sometimes. He frustrated her beyond belief, but, according to an old earth song,* that was a sign of true love. She still loved him despite the days when he was a complete asshole, and her life really would suck without him.

However, she realized there was a problem when she came to the conclusion that Jim felt **exactly the same way** she did about Spock. There were both days when they both wanted to simultaneously hug and punch the guy. It was almost as if Jim was dating Spock too. They bickered like they were dating sometimes (okay, all the time). She thought that the old earth term 'work husband' kind of applied to the situation, except maybe it was more than that. She knew that the tension between Jim and Spock had this sexual edge. She was pretty sure that she has caught Jim Kirk staring at her boyfriend's ass on more than one occasion (and possibly vice versa). She easily dismissed it because she has also caught Jim staring at her ass on more than one occasion (and possibly vice versa but she will never admit to that ever).

She didn't consider it a serious problem originally because of Jim's crappy reputation. Jim does not do relationships (monogamy) and Spock does not fuck around. When people say Jim Kirk will sleep with anyone, they really do mean anyone, and he left a trail of angry females (and contrary to popular assumption, some males) behind to prove it from various planets throughout the galaxy. She lost a Romulan expert because Jim fucked the guy and didn't call the next day, sometime at the Academy, and he pretty much refused to work on a ship run by Jim Kirk. (Apparently, something similar happened with a prospective nurse, if Enterprise gossip was correct). Jim Kirk wanted to sleep with everybody, but that's just part of who he was. The man did not fall in love. It wasn't even in his vocabulary, supposedly. (Of course, Jim hasn't met a rule yet that he has not tried to break.)

However, Spock has a way of making Jim do things that he wouldn't do under normal circumstances. Jim could not let Spock die, no matter what the consequences. He broke the prime directive for him. She would've done the same thing. Something like that only comes out of one place and that was a place of love.

She told herself it was a friendship type of love. However, she knew she was lying to herself. You don't give up your life for someone who is just a friend. Again, sometimes it felt like Spock was Jim's boyfriend too. The way they looked at each other was sparkly. She has never seen Jim look at somebody with such reverence before. The same can be said of Spock. The only other individual that Spock has given those types of looks to was her and Nyota was not even completely sure that they were the same type of looks. Despite his reputation of not being the type of guy who would fall in love, she just knew Jim Kirk was head over feet for Spock. She could feel it in every ounce of her being. (Again, rules were for other people, not Jim Kirk.)

Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on your perspective, this love was not one sided. Nyota was well aware of Spock's jealous boyfriend behavior on the shuttle regarding Dr. Marcus (or whatever the hell her last name is). That type of gossip gets around Enterprise fast even in a crisis. She knows it was jealous boyfriend behavior because she has seen a jealous Spock on more than one occasion and can recognize the signs a little too easily. Of course, she prefers when he was jealous over guys hitting on her not whatever is going on with Jim and that doctor.

Then there was the Spock version of an angry rant that she had to listen to when he found out that he would be moving to another ship. He was equally parts upset about being away from her and Jim. That right there should have told her everything.

But she and Spock have been together for three years and even though they've had some rough times, she loved him and he loved her. She wasn't just going to throw that away because Jim Kirk was kind of sort of in love with her boyfriend and maybe her boyfriend was kind of sort of in love with him too. Her plan was to ignore it and hope it would go away. Of the three, she was the only one who realized that Jim and Spock were in love with each other. Maybe she could have done that if Kirk didn't die. But he did die and now she can no longer lie to herself. More importantly, she does not think Jim and Spock can lie to themselves anymore either.

She knew her own emotions in regards to what happened in engineering. Her stomach dropped and she could barely keep calm. She watched from behind in those last few seconds. (She also relived the scene 15 times when she had to watch the video footage on repeat to compose the report for what remained of the admiralty and she could not subject Spock to reliving that moment). She watched their hands on the glass. Nyota knows what a Vulcan kiss looks like. From every camera angle in engineering, it still looked like a Vulcan kiss, even if a part of her mind wished she would see otherwise. She knew the significance of the gesture, even if no one else did.

Nyota heard his words and she heard what wasn't being said. 'Friend' has always been a very ambiguous term (especially in Spock's native tongue). Honestly, she was expecting Jim to say that he loves Spock because she just knew that's what he felt. She knew. The way he looked at Spock, she just knew.

The tears told her that Spock felt the same way because Spock does not cry. He did not cry for his mother or his planet. He did not cry for Admiral Pike. He didn't even react to the possibility of his own death. Yet, as Jim lay dying across the glass, the tears fell and once more she can't lie to herself about why he was crying. She just knows because she can't hold it together either.

Every time she watched the scene again she cried too, uncertain of exactly what she was mourning. She was either crying over the loss of a man who has somehow wormed his way into her life or her awareness that her relationship with Spock will never be the same. She doesn't know.

When Spock screamed, she was terrified. He doesn't do that. It was like a switch had been flipped. Her normal pacifist boyfriend was gone and in his place was a being who craves blood and vengeance. He was not even like this with Nero. What could make Spock act like this? A part of her mind told her that anyone would behave the same way if this happened to one of his or her friends. She knew better. That was just a comforting lie she told herself to avoid the inevitable conclusion that the only thing that could justify Spock's behavior was that he was in love with Jim. She already knew it was not a best friend love but rather I would die for you love filled with sensual gazes and lustful thoughts (Nyota already knew this, but she couldn't ignore this like all the other signs).

As everything was happening, she did not realize it. She was in too much shock to realize what was going on. Nyota was trying to function, despite the fact that her friend was dead. Yes, Jim Kirk was her friend. He understood her better than most. Maybe he was more than a friend to her too, because she can't deny that she felt like her whole world fell apart when he took that last breath (or at least what she thought was his last breath at the time). She can't deny that she wanted Khan (or whatever he called himself) dead as much as Spock did. However, she could not process this in the middle of a crisis situation. She did her job. She beamed down to keep Spock from killing their only hope of getting Jim back. Maybe the fact that he didn't even hear her until she mentioned Jim should be the final piece of this puzzle. It was not, even though it should have been.

Nyota doesn't get it until nearly a week and a half later when Spock is spending almost every day at Starfleet medical waiting for Jim to wake up, and even then it takes repeated viewing of various video files for her to accept it. Things clicked into place when she was forced to relive every single moment of what happened for the official report because she was one of the few senior members of Enterprise not medically incapacitated or emotionally compromised (and Jim Kirk has emotionally compromised her boyfriend). Her conclusion is simple: Jim is in love with Spock, Spock is in love with Jim, and she is just confused because despite the fact that Jim is in love with her boyfriend she still kind of likes him.

If her boyfriend fell in love with anyone else, she would be angry. She would be furious and/or shocked that her boyfriend who supposedly loved her fell in love with someone else. It was not that simple. She was neither surprised nor angry; a part of her knew that this has been building for months. Spock didn't fall out of love with her, he just fell in love with someone else at the same time. On the surface, it may seem like the same thing, but it's not. He still loves her, but he loves Jim too, and that made it so complicated.

It's not complicated because he loves two people at the same time, but rather because it's Jim that Spock is in love with. If it was anyone else, a decision would be easy to make. She would let go and be bitter or let go and be gracious. They could work through the issue with the help of a counselor. Usually, when you find out your boyfriend is in love with someone else, there are only two options: break up or work through the emotional infidelity, and this whole situation screamed emotional infidelity. If it was someone other than Jim, she could easily make that decision, but because it's Jim, she can't.

Nyota did not believe either option would be optimal. She did not want to break up because she still loves Spock, despite the fact that he drives her absolutely crazy and there are days when she wants to deck him. If it didn't feel like that, it wouldn't be real love. Real love takes work, and she's willing to work through this because she loves him and because he still loves her.

She knows that they could work through this, but does she want to? Again, she loves Spock and she doesn't want to make him unhappy, and Spock needs Jim like the air he breathes. She has known this for the last year. He makes Spock better. Together they are stronger than they could be apart. She can't keep Spock from Jim. It would be cruel and she loves Spock too much to hurt him like that.

Things were even more complicated because they all work together and she wasn't transferring ships just because she completely ignored the section in the Starfleet handbook about fraternization. She didn't want to serve on a ship without Jim in charge (and she knew that once the investigation was over Jim would still be in charge, not if, but when he woke up). She wouldn't make Spock leave either because Jim may be the only Captain in Starfleet that can make Spock think beyond the thousands of rules and regulations that he has memorized.

Then it all comes back to the fact that Spock is in love with Jim and how she feels about him. She doesn't hate Jim Kirk, even though the man was head over feet in love with her boyfriend. She should but she does not. Watching him die made her ill. Before everything fell apart, they had built a stronger-than-expected friendship. He still thought she was hot, but the flirting was mostly harmless now because, say what you will about Jim Kirk's morality, he doesn't try to screw his friend's girlfriend (or boyfriend for that matter).

So this is the situation at hand: her boyfriend is in love with Jim Kirk, Jim Kirk is in love with her boyfriend, and she still loves Spock but she kind of sort of likes Jim too in a not-just-a-friend way and did not want to hurt either guy. She also did not want anybody to have a broken heart, least of all herself, and it seemed like whichever horrible option she chose her heart was going to be broken in one way or the other. She was fucked either way and after several days of deliberating on this on her own she still doesn't know which horrible option she was going to choose because both options were completely horrible in her mind.

She wished she had somebody to talk to but her boyfriend is too preoccupied with his Jim Kirk vigil. Every single day he goes over to the medical Center hoping today was the day that Jim Kirk will wake up (half the time she was there with him). It has been 13 days, and the good news was Jim's brain function was almost back to normal and Jim was breathing on his own. That's progress.

She cannot talk to her best friend about this because it startled her to realize that said best friend was in a coma and was the whole reason why she was dealing with this major relationship crisis. When exactly did Jim Kirk become her best friend? She would say it was last year when most of her other friends died but that would be unfair to Jim.

It was a couple weeks before Enterprise was to leave and she and Spock were fighting because he was going to leave her to make Vulcan babies on the new colony. Her solution to the problem was to get completely wasted at a club by herself (yes, she realized that was stupid but she was very depressed at the time). This resulted in somebody slipping something in her drink and her passing out at the club. She woke up the next day in Jim Kirk's bed fully dressed with him sleeping on the couch. That's when she knew that despite his crappy reputation she could trust him. (She was also informed that despite being drugged she did deck the guy that was stupid enough to try drugging her, right before she passed out.)

Because she wasn't ready to talk to Spock yet about her suspicions she decided to go with Jim. Just because he was in a coma did not mean that he could not be a good sounding board. Right now, she needed to get her thoughts together before she talked to Spock.

"You know, I'm glad you're not dead," she said, grabbing his hand. "I don't know how it happened but somehow I've grown to like you, which makes the current situation so much more screwed up. So it kind of took you dying for me to finally realize that you're sort of in love with my boyfriend." She wondered if Jim would deny that factor or not if he were conscious. Instead, she just hears the silence of modern medical equipment.

"It's okay. I don't hate you. Like I said earlier, I kind of like you. Okay, maybe more than like but I'm not sure yet. The thing is you dying made me realize that Spock loves you too. We both know that he will deny feeling such an emotion in regard to you until the day he dies, but it's true. So now I'm in this impossible situation where I don't want to break up with my boyfriend but staying together will keep him from you. I also don't want to transfer ships and I don't want things to be awkward," she said, practically laughing because that was better than crying and she felt like she was going to cry.

"If you were up you would have another option. You always do. If you look up 'take a third option' in the dictionary, I think your name would be there. So what's my other option, Jim? I don't like the two I have. So if you could just wake up right now and tell me what to do, that would be good. Just wake up," she said as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"He would probably tell you to have a threesome," she heard Dr. McCoy snort from behind. She was mortified because she assumed that the only one around to hear her was Jim.

"You heard that?" she asked as she wiped her tears.

"Yes, but I kind of already knew. It takes a lot to make a Vulcan go homicidal. I'm just surprised you have realized it," he said sadly. "Also, your boyfriend has been here as much as me. Then again, so have you." That last part was practically whispered, but she still heard it.

"You are very observant. You're right, he probably would have suggested a threesome, which would be completely…"

She cut herself off right there when she realized that maybe it was not such a ridiculous option after all. Spock and Jim love each other, she and Spock love each other, and she knew that she and Jim had mutual admiration for each other, in addition to a strong sense of like. Let's be honest, it already felt like they were both dating Spock sometimes but Jim and Spock were not sleeping with each other. They might as well just make it official and have sex. If Jim was sleeping with her and Spock they would avoid something like the lizard girl incident (don't ask). That can only be a good thing. That was when she realized she had her third option.

"Sometimes, Jim, you're brilliant. Now, I have to see about getting you a new reason to wake up," she said, kissing Jim on the forehead before leaving Jim and a very confused doctor behind. It was time for her and Spock to have a very long conversation.

* * *

This was supposed to be my post Into Darkness dabble. Yet, it ended up well over 3000 words and I think this has the potential to be at least a three shot instead of a one shot. Considering I wrote a 55,000 word + 5+1 I'm not that surprised.

Let me know if you want more.

*Song reference was True Love by Pink


	2. Nothing about Love is Logical

Thank you to everyone who read or reviewed the last chapter. I have not received such positive feedback on a new story since Dear Spock debuted almost 2 ½ years ago. (Keep the reviews coming they make me wake up at 5:00 AM to write more chapters.) So this will definitely be a three shot possibly followed by some other short stories in the same universe. Each chapter will be from the perspective of a different member of our trio. I think I would like to do at least one story that will not be 100,000 words plus. I'm a little exhausted after working on Starfleet Family Values for over three years.

I apologize for taking so long to get the next part up. My computer died and I'm using my backup with subpar voice recognition software until I get it back from the repair shop. Fortunately, for some unknown reason, I emailed my unfinished draft to myself (which is something I normally never do) the day before my computer crashed and I lost everything. It would be a lot worse if I lost the first 3500 words I wrote of this chapter.

Again, remember this story contains massive spoilers for Into Darkness. I'm also trying to patch up a few of the plot holes including explaining how Spock and Nyota can continue dating despite the fraternization policies on the book. In addition, I want to give some background about how Jim and Spock's relationship began to develop.

Talltree-san also asked me to elaborate on the lizard girl incident. That will be in here.

Warning: There's a scene in this chapter that borders on attempted non-con. Nothing graphic but after a very interesting debate on LiveJournal about the importance of warning I thought I should mention that.

(Update 6/24: Also thank you to Khashan for proofreading the revised version.)

* * *

Part two: Nothing about Love is Logical

When Spock was 5.6 years old, he asked his mom why she was with his father. Her response was because she loved him. His five-year-old mind could not completely understand her response. How can that be enough to sustain a relationship with somebody who was distant at most times? How can that be enough to uproot your entire life to become the 'ambassador's wife' and contend with individuals who treat you as merely an extension of your husband? How can love be enough to contend with the constant prejudice of everyone around you? How can any emotion be enough to put up with being referred to by various synonyms for prostitute on a regular basis? Of course, when he pressed his mom to clarify, she responded by saying, "The logical thing would have been for me to stay on Earth. Spock, nothing about love is logical."

He did not get that at five years old; he did understand it at 26 when he fell in love for the first time. The first thing that attracted him to Nyota was her intelligence, followed by her confidence and aggressiveness. A fellow classmate tried to proposition Cadet Uhura using vulgar Klingon during the language lab that he oversaw. The cadet's response was to stomp on the man's foot so hard that she broke his toe. Spock should have brought her up on charges for causing extreme bodily harm to a fellow cadet. Instead, he brought the other cadet up on charges of sexual harassment and misconduct. He also argued that Cadet Uhura was merely defending herself and should not be punished for physically assaulting the cadet.

Cadet Uhura decided to show her gratitude by showing up at his office with a collection of pastries from a vegan bakery just outside the campus. How she knew that apricot cookies were his favorite, he will never know. They spoke at length about many things, including her admiration for his vintage collection of pre-reform Vulcan poetry. She was currently specializing in Vulcan base languages and felt the best way to learn was to immerse herself in the cultures of those that she was studying. For some reason, he invited her to come to his office outside of his normal hours. He justified this by telling himself he was just helping one of his students get a better grasp of the language and he was not showing her any favoritism.

He continued to utilize this justification when they started meeting for coffee outside of office hours and when he started accompanying her to things such as poetry readings and operatic performances (in the languages that she was studying, of course). He was not able to use this justification when she kissed him for the first time.

It was improper (even if he enjoyed it). He was five years older than her and her instructor. Despite how wrong he knew it was, it was difficult for him to pull away. The texture of her lips and the taste of her skin were intoxicating. The logical thing would have been to pull away. At the same time, his mother's words echoed in his mind: 'Nothing about love is logical.'

Spock pulled away at that moment, realizing that he had somehow fallen in love with the student. Afterwards, he left his office as quickly as possible. He was disgusted with himself and felt it was necessary to report his breach of Starfleet regulation 1.4 B regarding the conduct between professors and students at the Academy. However, he ran into Captain Pike first.

He was Spock's advisor during his time at the Academy, and Spock had served as his science officer before his current assignment. Captain Pike could tell something was wrong instantly. Spock confessed everything to him from the impromptu coffee dates to the kiss that he shared with her in his office 33.4 minutes earlier. The captain's response was to laugh.

"This is serious, Captain. I violated Starfleet regulation 1.4 B," Spock said sternly.

"That regulation is absolute bullshit." After serving under the man for a year, Spock is not surprised by his language. "It's also not enforced at all. Now, it would be different if you were forcing her to sleep with you in exchange for a higher grade. Considering the fact that you're actually reporting your own possible incident of misconduct, that pretty much tells me you're not doing something like that."

"It's against regulation," Spock argues again.

"So is marrying your first officer, but I did that and it worked out fine," Chris explained.

"You married your first officer?" Spock asked, surprised because he could not detect anything overtly romantic between Captain Pike and the woman he referred to as his 'Number One.' Then again, the fact that the Captain referred to her by such a moniker was telling.

"Yes. It all happened during the type of mission that's normally referred to as 'the aliens made us do it,' but we chose not to have the marriage dissolved because we both discovered that we really did not need that much persuasion. We kept it quiet. Only Admiral Marcus knew about it. Although, when I get the Enterprise, I am going to have to choose a new first officer, and I was hoping it would be you." Spock was uncertain how to respond, although if he were human he would find such words flattering.

The rest of the evening was spent discussing the situation at hand. The captain convinced Spock it was best not to report the incident with Nyota to anyone else. Spock agreed to this course of action when Captain Pike showed him that all Starfleet regulations regarding fraternization and sexual relationships between officers have an exception for species where their life is dependent on bonding or sexual contact. (Spock decided it was in his best interest not to question why Captain Pike knew he qualified for such an exception). The only thing Captain Pike asked was if he did pursue a relationship with the cadet that he 'kept it quiet' and asked his TA to grade all of the cadet's work until she was able to transfer to another class. Spock made a substantial effort to avoid the appearance of impropriety or favoritism.

The Captain also forced Spock to speak with Nyota about the incident before anything else was decided. Not much talking was actually involved, but rather the exchange of saliva and other fluids; however, it was still productive. They decided to pursue a romantic relationship. As illogical as it seemed, he really did love her. She was fascinating and challenging. She would not allow him to go into himself. She made him understand why his mother left her family and life behind on Earth for another person. He knew his mother would find Nyota very fascinating once they actually met.

Of course, he never had a chance to introduce her to his mother because they were waiting until Nyota graduated. After graduation, he was planning to take her to Vulcan to introduce her to his family and to ask her to bond with him. At that point, he was convinced that he would never care about anyone else so much. Of course, as a scientist, he should know that there are no absolutes (especially when Jim Kirk was involved).

Due to circumstances beyond his control, none of that ever happened. His mother died and his planet was destroyed. The only good thing that came out of that horrible experience was the discovery that the reason why it was logical for his father to marry his mother was because he loved her. He never proposed to Nyota. At first, it was because he was being pressured by his father to take a proper Vulcan wife to help with the repopulation efforts. Thankfully, his other self convinced him to do what felt right, and that was going back to the Enterprise. (Of course, Spock is not certain if his motivation for returning was to be with Nyota once more or to pursue this life defining 'friendship' with the man that Spock found simultaneously intriguing and infuriating. That in itself may be another reason why the proposal never happened.)

Then he never proposed because he and Nyota were fighting so much. After his mother's death, he felt like he had to keep everything inside, and even Nyota could no longer reach him. Despite the fact that he still loved her, he was afraid to let her in. He did not want to feel anything again. However, someone else could and he became the real reason why Spock never proposed to Nyota. He did not expect to fall in love with James Kirk, but when has anything involving James Tiberius Kirk been logical?

* * *

The first time he saw Jim Kirk he was annoyed. In standard human vernacular, he found the man to be a 'cocky asshole'. Spock was even annoyed at the smug way he consumed his apple. He was infuriated. He should have known something was wrong, because no one has ever made Spock so angry before. He had the illogical desire to shove said apple down the man's throat. (It would not be until 10 months later, during what Nyota referred to as the lizard girl incident, that he realized his violent reaction may have come from a place other than hatred.) As his mother once said, 'love and hate are two sides of the same coin'.

James apologized for his antagonistic behavior, including using his mother to convince Spock that he was unfit for command. James sent Spock 33 separate requests to become his first officer. Eventually, Spock accepted James' offer when he realized that going to the colony and leaving Nyota behind did not feel right. But he dared not acknowledge, not even to himself, that Spock did not feel right giving up a chance at cultivating this life defining 'friendship' even if he was uncertain how to proceed.

He wondered if he was mentally able to cultivate anything like friendship with anyone, let alone a relationship that was supposed to define his life. As he stated earlier, things with Nyota were contentious. The easy nature of their relationship seemed to be gone. There was so much he was keeping from her. He felt guilty because he could not save Vulcan or his mother. He felt guilty for still being alive when so many of their fellow Starfleet officers had died. When the fights with Nyota became the norm, Spock wondered if it really would have been better if he did die that day. He could not sleep at night because he remembered feeling the emotions of everyone that died.

Maybe he would not be arguing with Nyota as much if he told her this, but he did not. She lost her own friends the day Vulcan died. He cared about her too much to burden her with these emotions that he wished never to feel. He felt it was better to deal with these things on his own.

Eventually, on the sleepless nights, Spock found himself in one of the recreation rooms, assuming no one would be there. The first time he did this Spock saw his Captain, who apparently was also unable to sleep. That first night they discussed the book of Harlem Renaissance poetry that James was reading in the original English. James had an amazing grasp of the old language.

The next time it happened, Jim convinced Spock to teach him how to play chess. James told Spock that he always wanted to learn, but his mother was horrible at it and it would just remind her too much of her late husband to make any real effort. Spock explained that his mother taught him how to play this game, but he believed she would be disappointed if he gave up something he found pleasant because of the memory associated with it. Jim's response was to laugh.

The next month was filled with many accidental meetings in the middle of the night. Eventually, these meetings ceased being accidental, and they began to plan to see each other two days a week. He did not tell Nyota about these meetings; he saw no need to because Nyota also interacted with James socially. Spock chose to ignore that these meetings were very similar to the type of interactions he had with Nyota during the early part of their acquaintance. At the time, Spock did not see it that way because his working relationship with James was still somewhat contentious. Nyota said that they argued like an old married couple. Surprisingly, Spock agreed what this analogy because their behavior reminded Spock distinctly of how his parents behaved around each other. (In hindsight, maybe Spock should have read more into this.)

However, Spock continued justifying his late night meetings with Jim by referring to it as a teambuilding exercise (Now, he realized that this was similar to the logic Spock used to excuse constantly seeking out Nyota during the early part of their acquaintance).

The most memorable meeting involved James reprogramming one of the replicators to do a perfect vegan apricot cookie because Spock told James it was his favorite and James felt like Spock was not eating enough. James also brought out a substance that he confiscated from Mr. Scott's personal stash after their work was successfully completed. Spock would make a comment about James consuming alcohol, but he could not prove his suspicions. Of course, the fact that Jim confessed to missing regular sex confirmed, in Spock's mind, at the very least, that James had consumed some substance that lowered his inhibitions. Even the normally outspoken Jim had more decorum than that.

"I'm 26 and I like sex, but I can't do anything because of that stupid fraternization policy, and I really don't feel like dealing with someone like this crazy blonde med student that was practically stalking me after an encounter that was supposed to be a one night stand. She convinced herself I was going to be her knight in shining armor, when we both know I am a complete fuck up who just got lucky. It was so bad I purposely made myself forget her name. Chris made sure that she wouldn't end up on the ship," Jim said with a shiver as he slurred several of his words. "It's impossible to do casual when you have to see the person every day, and after that little incident I know better. You're like the only person I can have sex with that I actually trust. It wouldn't get weird with you because I like you and I think it would be not casual. But your girlfriend would cut off my dick if I asked, maybe. I kind of trust her too because she actually knows me."

"I believe it is best if you return to your quarters. Obviously, what you have just consumed is affecting your ability to filter your speech. I also believe that you left out some words," Spock said, placing a hand on Jim's shoulder to steady him.

"When do I ever filter what I say?" James asked flippantly.

"Rarely," Spock remarked dryly.

"Seriously, how did you get permission to date the hottest woman in Starfleet? I mean, she speaks like three dozen languages and she's a good shot. What she did to that guy who used bad Klingon pickup lines on her was legendary. I love women who are smart and deadly. It's hot as hell, but then again, so are you. Would you ever consider a threesome? Sandwiches are fun. I'm good at that." The increased incoherency of Jim's speech proved Spock's hypothesis that the Captain had consumed something alcoholic. Of course, his behavior could be related to an allergic reaction (it would not be the first time).

In hindsight, maybe Spock should have been more concerned with the fact that James being highly complimentary to his girlfriend did not bother him. Actually, Spock only realized that this was an issue three months later due to his response regarding James' interactions with a new science officer. He had no trouble whatsoever with James or Nyota saying complimentary things about each other or behaving in a flirtatious manner with one another. Nonetheless, he found it disturbing when others engaged in similar behavior with Nyota or James.

"Vulcans require a partner to sustain adequate health," Spock explained simply, not mentioning anything about a certain biological urge that occurs every seven years. "Therefore, I qualify for an exception to the fraternization policy. You would know this if you actually read my personnel file."

"I read it, but I didn't get it. Do you think that they'll consider sex addiction as a viable excuse?" Jim joked, but Spock wondered if Jim really was that self-aware. If campus legend regarding James' sexual encounters (with males and females from various species) were somewhat accurate, he would find it highly plausible that James suffered from sex addiction.

"I am uncertain they would consider that a plausible reason for exception. They would most likely suggest counseling," Spock said before escorting James to his quarters. He completely ignored the sensation that he felt when Jim's fingers accidentally brushed his.

* * *

A month later, during what Nyota referred to as the 'lizard girl incident', Spock will regret not suggesting that James see a counselor. Due to Mr. Scott doing something in engineering that may or may not have been illegal, they were given a 48 hour unprompted shore leave to facilitate necessary repairs. This resulted in Jim visiting one of the drinking establishments on planet to secure 'company' for the evening. Spock was upset about this solely because such behavior was unbecoming of a Captain, not because he disliked the idea of James engaging in sexual relations with someone else. As stated earlier, Spock did not find it uncomfortable when James flirted with Nyota or stared at her in a lustful way. Though, that was mostly because James acted the same way around him. (A part of his mind may have considered it sexually stimulating, but Spock refuses to meditate on that.)

No, Spock was upset because he felt James' behavior was dangerous, and he was proven right when they had to rescue him from the lizard-like female who kidnapped James and was planning to make him her personal sexual slave. Fortunately, he, Nyota, and Dr. McCoy found a completely naked and unconscious James chained to the woman's bed before anything of a nonconsensual sexual nature occurred. (Nyota was with him because her knowledge of the local language facilitated a more successful search). The three were able to subdue the woman in question, and Spock then proceeded to unchain James. (He did not stare at his undressed Captain any more than absolutely necessary to free him. He also did not make physical contact with James more than absolutely necessary.)

Yes, he did report the kidnapping to Starfleet. He did not include the details regarding the state in which they discovered James. Apparently, James gave Admiral Pike a non-edited account. Which resulted in Spock having a highly uncomfortable conversation with the admiral.

"Are you sexually attracted to your Captain?" the admiral asked after Spock gave the man a complete account of what happened. Spock was not expecting that question.

"I am still engaging in a romantic relationship with Lieutenant Uhura," he responded, unblinking.

"That's not what I asked, Commander. Jim does email me from time to time in a nonofficial capacity. He constantly talks about your chess dates and the fact that you two argue like an old married couple. Actually, everybody tells me about that," the admiral mumbled that part under his breath.

"I knew about what happened on planet before you just told me everything in a way that has me convinced you have a crush on your captain." If he were human, his skin would be slightly flushed, but he can control any signs of outward embarrassment at the mere remembrance of James' body. Instead, Spock responded by concisely explaining why Jim's behavior was detrimental, starting with the fact that if they arrived 5 minutes later, Spock would be filling out form 754-D regarding the sexual assault of a crew member during the course of duty. It is possible that Spock focused unnecessarily on the fact that this entire incident began because James went on his own to find suitable company of a sexual nature for the evening.

"That right there is why I asked you if you were sexually attracted to your Captain," the Admiral said, sighing. "You actually sound jealous."

"Jealousy is an emotion I do not feel," Spock shot back sharply. "I have no right to criticize the Captain's sexual habits except when it endangers his life or that of the crew. This choice led to a situation that could have had serious consequences."

"Next time you're on Earth, I'm making you take the affective feedback class and every other communication class I can get away with," the admiral said, rubbing his forehead. "You are jealous and you just said so in the most passive aggressive way imaginable. If you want to date your captain, that's fine with me. At the very least, it will prevent us from having conversations like this in the future. Just so you know, Jim could do monogamy if he wanted to; he just hasn't found a reason to. I'm sure you could give him one." Spock was uncertain if that was a joke. Spock still did not comprehend most human humor. He felt it was best not to respond.

"If you want to stay in denial about what's going on between you two, that is fine. However, the pigtail pulling needs to stop _now_," the admiral said sharply.

"The Captain has no pigtails for me to pull," Spock replied, nonplussed.

"It's a metaphor," the admiral said as he rubbed his temple on screen again. "Figure out what's going on between you two, but don't let it interfere with the ship." With that, Admiral Pike disappeared from the screen.

* * *

Of course, Spock interpreted that to mean he would need to end his less professional interactions with James. He and James had to stop meeting for late-night chess games and conversations. Also in keeping with Spock's interpretation of the admiral's orders, he reported exactly what happened on Nibiru even if he knew that both Jim and he would face serious consequences because of what they did.

Now, as he sits next to Jim's hospital bed for 13 days in a row, he questions his decision to do exactly that. Admiral Pike was now dead, James nearly (even in his mind he does not speak the truth) died, and Spock was now very well aware that Admiral Pike was right about his feelings for James.

James was _technically_ dead for 18 hours, 22 minutes and 35 seconds. That was how long it took Dr. McCoy's team to synthesize the serum from Khan's blood that allowed James' heart to start beating again without assistance. Of course, Spock did not remember anything that occurred during that time.

He did not remember anything from the moment James took his supposed last breath until he took his first post rebirth. He did not remember his actions on planet in regard to Khan. Spock did not remember Nyota screaming at him to stop. He read her concise report but he still remembered none of it. He has no explanation as for what happened, but he told no one that he does not remember anything he did.

The last thing he remembered was James taking his last breath in front of him. That was the exact moment when Spock completely understood what Admiral Pike was trying to tell him before (as well as his last words to Spock about taking care of Jim). In that moment, Spock figured out what he felt for Jim. The thought of him being with anyone else made him sick. The thought of losing the possibility of the promise 'friendship' that would define both him and James was disconcerting. He did not want to lose James. He watched him die unable to do anything else. Spock was unable or maybe he was unwilling to keep his tears from falling. He could not suppress what he felt because of what he felt was love. It was not a platonic type of love but a complicated one. The irony was not lost on Spock that he figured this out just as James took his last breath.

13 days later, despite a miracle that gave him a second chance, he has told no one about this revelation because there was no one he could tell. Spock had very few acquaintances that he could share something so profound with. His mother was gone as was Admiral Pike. Both would be the best source to discuss something like this and yet both avenues were now closed permanently. Spock would not characterize his relationship with Dr. McCoy as particularly close, although they did socialize occasionally. Maybe it could have been if Spock had made any effort to cultivate such a relationship. In the last 13 days, they mostly spoke about James' medical prognosis. The rest of the time, Spock sat silently at James' bedside working on various reports and other necessities in his capacity as acting captain.

The doctor never mentioned the fact that it would be much more efficient for Spock to work in his temporary office than at James' bedside. The doctor never commented on the fact that Spock spent more time with James than anyone else. Actually, no one did, including Nyota.

She never said anything about all the time he has been spending with Jim. Instead, she brought him lunch, including his favorite apricot cookies, and quietly sat beside him. She never questioned his inability to write the report specifically pertaining to James death; instead, she wordlessly composed the report herself without his prompting or suggestion. She also omitted any mention of his show of emotion (along with several other things that they chose not to make public). He knew that she saw Spock intertwined his fingers with Jim's on at least one occasion. She never said anything, she just grabbed Jim's other hand.

Nyota understood him in a way that very few people did, not completely but better than most. Spock was aware, before getting into an inappropriately timed argument whilet flying into a hostile environment, that he has been distant. He could see how his perceived indifference regarding his own life could affect her. (They already had this argument before.) At the same time, she was aware that knowing that his behavior affected James would influence him.

Spock loves her because she does understand him and she did not push him to give her what he is unable to give. She gave him support even when he refused to acknowledge that he needed her support. Falling in love with James did not change that. He still loves her, he just loves James simultaneously. Spock's love for her was grounded in logic and their similar personalities. His love for James was grounded in passion and the man's ability to make Spock feel what he refused to feel.

The logical choice was to stay with Nyota. Their relationship already existed and was a certain thing. He was uncertain of Jim's feelings for him. (He conveniently forgot i.e. ignored a certain late night conversation a few months earlier.) Again, if James' reputation was to be believed, he was not known for long-term monogamous relationships. Despite Admiral Pike's assertions otherwise, Spock was not sure that, even if James cared for him, he would be able to give Spock that type of commitment that he desired.

Then there was the fact that eventually Spock will need to help with the repopulation efforts. It would be easier to create a family with Nyota and not merely because Nyota possessed a uterus. There are many fertility options available to those that cannot procreate in the traditional way. During one of their late-night post chess conversations, James mentioned that his biggest fear was accidentally impregnating one of his sexual encounters due to contraceptive failure. James believed that he would be the worst father figure of all time due to his lack of a role model growing up.

Of course, the most important reason why it would be illogical to end his relationship with Nyota was that James may not wake up (and this was the reason that scared him the most). James has technically been in a coma for 12 days. Yes, his brain function was improving, but they were still uncertain. Logic dictates that he suppress his emotions for James. But nothing involving Jim Kirk was logical, including Spock's feelings for the man. Therefore, once again he found himself alone in James' hospital room, waiting for his love to wake up as he held onto James' hand.

He actually passed Nyota on the way to James. Actually, he turned into another hallway to purposely avoid her. If Admiral Pike was still alive, he would have told Spock to speak with her about the situation at hand. However, due to her human heritage, Spock was uncertain that she could filter her emotions and look at the situation from a purely empirical perspective. If Spock, who was of Vulcan ancestry, was unable to keep his emotions from influencing his decision, how can he expect her to do something he cannot?

Instead, despite the illogical nature of the gesture, Spock found himself confessing everything to an unconscious James. He justified his actions because he has read several research articles stating that the unconscious can hear what others are saying. In addition, Spock believed it would still be easier to say everything with an audience that cannot provide feedback in the form of throwing things. It was always easier for Spock to tell James things that he would be reluctant to speak with others about. He told James everything, from his revelation in engineering to not remembering what he did after James died. He expressed his confusion over the fact that he still cares about Nyota greatly and knows that it's most logical to stay with her, but Spock is not certain if he wants to take the most logical course nor is he certain this is the most logical course.

"The entire situation is absurd. The logical choice is Nyota. I cared greatly for her. She is a strong and intelligent woman who accepts me exactly as I am. Yet, simultaneously, I find you intriguing. I care about you more than I should. As I stated earlier, although I do not remember it, I was informed by Nyota that I behaved in a very illogical way after…" Spock closed his eyes and paused for a second, not wanting to remember that moment. "I came to the conclusion that I am in love with you, and with most things involving you, I find it impossible to act logically." Spock confessed in a whisper just as he heard footsteps.

"That's very true." At the words, Spock turned around to see Nyota standing there with tears rolling down her cheeks. He quickly let go of Jim's hand to go to her.

"Don't, Spock. I'm not crying because my boyfriend just acknowledged that he is in love with somebody else. I already knew, Spock. I've known longer than I care to admit. These are happy tears. I'm just glad that you get it. That's going to make this conversation a lot easier," she said as she placed his hand back on Jim's.

"I do not understand what that means," he stated, confused by her words and actions.

"I know that you're in love with him. It's amazing what you realize when you're forced to relive one of the worst moments of your life 15 times in succession. Maybe you didn't realize it at the time, but you gave him a goodbye kiss." For a moment, he remembered the position of his fingers on the glass and he knew she was correct. "Also, I'm pretty sure when you said 'friend', you were not using the standard definition." Nyota was always his brightest linguistic student. If anybody was familiar with the nuances of the Vulcan language, it would be her.

"Your hypothesis is accurate," Spock told her, unable to say anything else.

"I'm not going to yell at you," Nyota said simply after a very long silence.

"Is it because of the setting where this conversation is taking place?" Spock asked, looking directly at James.

"No. In a weird sort of way it makes sense that Jim is here. This conversation is about him as much as it is about us, all three of us. I wasn't planning on yelling at you even if you were actually at our apartment. Besides, really, how often have you been home in the last 13 days?" Nyota paused but Spock felt it was most prudent not to answer once he realized that 63.3% of his time has been spent at James' bedside.

"Maybe when I first realized it I would have, but I have had enough time to realize a few things. Yelling will not fix this. I don't hate you for falling in love with him," Nyota told him as another tear ran down her cheek. Even if she did not hear his earlier confession, Spock would not deny her words.

"I still care for you," he said, using his unoccupied hand to wipe away her tears. "I do not feel more for James than I do for you."

"You just love him in a different way?" Nyota prompted and he responded by nodding his head.

"It's okay," Nyota said simply as she placed her hand on top of his, eventually wrapping her fingers around his and Jim's. "I still don't hate you and I don't hate Jim because you fell in love with him. I don't want to break up."

"That is the most logical…" Spock started but stopped when Nyota pressed a finger to his lips.

"Let me finish before you say how logical I am being. You're probably going to think I'm crazy for saying this but I don't want you to not be without James either. I think you should date both of us," she said as she finally removed her finger from his lips. However, he was unable to speak. He was familiar with the concept of polyandry. It was more common in Vulcan society than in human society (especially right now due to the need to re-populate the species with as much genetic diversity as possible.) At present, it was only socially acceptable because it was the most logical course. That's when Spock remembered a drunk Jim asking him if he would consider a threesome. Actually, he remembered a lot of things James said in that conversation and he wondered if the old Earth saying about there being 'truth in wine' applied to the situation.

"Can you please say something?" Nyota asked after the silence became too long.

"I was under the impression that humans prefer monogamy or at least serial monogamy." He did not mention James' inebriated suggestion a few months earlier. Nyota's response was to laugh.

"Why are you laughing?" Spock asked with a quirk of his eyebrow.

"You and Jim have already been dating for the last eight months at least. I know about your late-night conversations when neither one of you can sleep. I told myself it was part of your healing process and a good first step in keeping you guys from bickering during the middle of a crisis. But let's be honest, the only reason why your relationship with Jim is still platonic is because you're not sleeping together, yet." The word 'yet' was mumbled under her breath, but Spock still heard her.

"I think the moment I realized the truth was when Jim and I were both complaining about how much you drive us crazy and I realized that we were both complaining about this guy that we were both completely in love with who drove us absolutely nuts. Maybe if these last few horrible days never happened, we could all keep lying to ourselves, but we almost lost Jim and I don't see the point in lying anymore. You are in love with me and Jim, Jim is in love with you and probably would be perfectly fine sleeping with me, and in addition, I love you and watching Jim dying made me physically ill." She closed her eyes. Spock speculated that she was remembering that painful moment in engineering.

"Jim does not love me," Spock said, untangling his hand from the grip of Nyota. (Again, he ignored that drunk conversation months earlier.)

"Sometimes you are so clueless, Spock. He loves you too. He died for you," Nyota told him, running a hand over his cheek.

"He died for the sake of the crew," Spock said without inflection or stumbling over the word 'died.'

"Maybe, maybe not, but here's the thing, if he didn't knock Scotty out and run headfirst into the warp core, you would have done it if you could. He wasn't going to let that happen to you. I think you now know the real answer to why he couldn't let you die in that volcano."

"That is because he is my friend." Nyota gave him an exacerbated look at his words.

"Only by the Vulcan definition of the term," she said with another laugh. "Let's just not worry about it now. I'm sure when Jim wakes up he will find a way to convince you that he loves you even if I have to smack him upside the head a few times beforehand." Spock was uncertain if that was hyperbole.

"What will happen if James does not wake up?" Spock said, asking the one question that he did not want to consider. The thought of James not waking up was distressing.

"He will," she said without any scientific data to back up her statement.

"It has been 13 days." As each day passed and James remained unconscious, Spock became more aware of the possibility that James may not wake up.

"He will, it's Jim. You could try the sleeping beauty technique, if you're worried," Nyota said as she moved to her normal place on Jim's other side and grabbed that hand. Spock's response was to look at her.

"We both know you want to kiss him." Spock doesn't move at her words, despite the truth. An illogical part of his mind wanted Jim to be conscious for their first kiss. "Fine, I will do it," Nyota said, leaning over to place a light kiss on Jim's lips. James may have blinked, but Spock was uncertain.

"I'm sure that would have worked if you were the one that kissed him," she said jokingly.

"I am not going to kiss James while he is unconscious."

"However, you're perfectly OK kissing him when he's conscious?" Nyota asked, smirking.

"Not if Dr. McCoy is around." Spock said under his breath in a voice so low that he doubted Nyota heard him.

"Okay, that right there is why you should wake up, Jim. 13 days is enough time to recover and Spock is ready to make out with you now," she joked. "Spock is a really good kisser. Actually, he is good at most bedroom activities, especially anything involving his mouth. I cried the first time, it was so good." Spock knew that she was not exaggerating, although he did wonder why she was saying these things to Jim unless she really believed that this would result in him waking up. "I'm sure that skill is transferable to either gender. That's going to be fun to watch, and trust me, I will be watching." Her words triggered feelings of arousal that Spock had no choice but to suppress due to the setting. "Also, a fun fact they don't teach in introduction to xeno-biology, Spock barely has a refractory period."

"I did not need to know that," Dr. McCoy said, walking through the door with Jim's usual nurse, Mr. Jacobson, behind him.

"Actually, as a medical professional, you need to be familiar with the biological processes of various species."

"Lord, give me strength," Dr. McCoy murmured.

"That's what you get for listening in on another private conversation," Nyota retorted sharply. "It's been 13 days; we are getting a little desperate. At this point, the promise of a threesome seemed like the best solution. It is Jim." Another tear rolled down Nyota's cheek as she spoke.

"I know. Go home. I'll call if your boyfriend wakes up," Dr. McCoy said in a gentle voice as he pushed both out of the room. Spock decided not to correct Dr. McCoy's choice of words, instead, he accompanied Nyota home wordlessly.

For the first time since the incident on Nibiru, he engaged in activities of a sexual nature with Nyota. Of course, during said activities Nyota described in detail all the things that she wanted to see Spock do to James (and Spock shared with her the details of that drunk conversation with Jim). When Spock received a call 8.3 hours later from Dr. McCoy stating that James was starting to wake up, Spock cannot help but wonder if Nyota's offer was a contributing factor.

* * *

The final part of this will be from James perspective. Please review (especially if you want me to expand this universe passed the initial story).

I know a few people would love for me to do a more explicit story but I don't like writing graphic sex scenes. (There's just something weird about talking dirty to your computer). However, I am willing to do a collaborative story for the trio's very NC 17 first time if I can find somebody that is willing to write the more explicit scenes with me as part of a collaboration.


	3. 101 Dating Rules I don't follow

Thank you to everybody who read or reviewed the last chapter. Your comments and encouragement keeps me in the creative zone which means more chapters faster.

Thank you to Khashana for proofreading.

So this is the last part of this arc. There will be sequels that will dig deeper into the dynamic of this relationship. For readers on ff . net, I'm going to do what I did with You Don't Have to Be My Boyfriend and post all the stories together as one big mega-story. On the other sites, I'm going to post the stories as separate entities as part of the same series. I'm doing it this way because FF .net doesn't allow you to group stories together by series and to provide everyone with an easy option to follow the series.

I'm still looking for someone who would be willing to write some of the more explicit scenes.

Disclaimer: A few lines in this chapter are direct quotes from STID. You will recognize them when you see them.

* * *

Part three: 101 Dating Rules I don't follow

A lot of people think that Jim is an absolute amoral slut; it just looks that way because he's nondiscriminatory. If you turn down a possible partner due to something arbitrary like planet of origin or genitalia you miss out on a lot of interesting experiences. Jim has met a lot of eclectic individuals and has learned cool things. He can speak six different languages due to various bed partners. Also the knowledge that he has picked up in the bedroom regarding various cultural practices have come in handy during several diplomatic situations i.e. this knowledge has already kept them from dying at least twice. In addition, there is just something inherently great about any species where the people have breasts and dicks. Jim loved that species. There's a reason that Jim was able to test out of all of his xeno-biology classes. (Although Vulcans still eluded him and as much as he would like to study that firsthand Jim knew that was never going to happen. He knows about how they kiss but that's about it.)

He was not a slut, he was a connoisseur of diversity and he loves sex in all its many forms. Maybe his choices in partners said more about his inner desire to discover new things more than anything else. In general, most people did not see it that way. There was this one telepathic psych major hook up that suggested Jim was a sex addict and urge Jim to see a therapist but Jim solved that problem by not sleeping with the guy again.

Contrary to popular belief, just because he's open to a lot of things does not mean he doesn't have standards and rules. For example he has learned the hard way not to sleep with med students who are already planning your wedding by the first date and telepathic psychiatry majors. That leads to restraining orders, crying, and dodging therapy sessions. He doesn't want to deal with situations like that again so Jim has developed rules that govern his hookups.

The rule tied for number one is he does not fuck his crew. Jim respects the people that he works with too much to turn anybody into a one night stand. (In addition, he needs them to respect him and fucking with everybody is not conducive to that.) Also, casual doesn't work well when you have to work with somebody on a daily basis for however long the mission is going to last. Really, it's just common sense not to fuck with (literally and figuratively) the people who may rescue you from the local inhabitants after they decide to kidnap you, drug you, and chain you up to a bed for a sex ritual that you did not consent to and that may result in your death. (He's cool with bondage as long as he actually trusts the person but trust goes out the window when they drug him first. There's a reason why Jim doesn't do much bondage.)

So even though he may stare at the asses of his communications officer and first officer a little too often he wasn't going to do a thing about it because he does not fuck his crew. Besides nothing could come of it, so it didn't matter.

His next rule is he doesn't sleep with people who are under the influence or in situations where consent is obviously very dubious. There was something that happened to Jim when he was a teenager that he never talks about that led to this rule. That's why when some idiot drugged his favorite communications officer when she was on a 'break' from her boyfriend (and his Spock) he took her to his apartment (after she kicked the guys ass), called Bones to check on her, and let her sleep it off in his bed as he slept on his absolutely horrible couch. He adored Nyota and has always thought she was the hottest woman in Starfleet but Jim respects her too much to take advantage of her. Despite what everybody thinks about him, he doesn't screw the unwilling or those who are unable to say that they're unwilling.

That's another reason why he doesn't fuck his crew. He's in a position of authority and is a little worried that someone may sleep with him just because he's technically their boss and he doesn't want that. There was an incident like that with his mom where she said no to her commanding officer and she and husband number three ended up assigned to the colony of the damned (Jim was dragged along for the unpleasantness). He could never put somebody under his command in that position.

The other reason why he didn't do anything with Nyota even though she was technically on a break was he doesn't mess with other people's relationships. Jim learned this one the hard way during the lost years. When he was living in this really shady apartment he started sleeping with his next-door neighbor. Unbeknownst to Jim, she was sleeping with him to get back at her husband who was screwing around with the babysitter and like to beat the hell out of her for the fun of it. The husband found out and Jim ended up with two black eyes, three broken ribs, and bruises all over his neck (the other guy was actually worse). The only good thing that came out of that disaster was the wife (along with her two kids) decided to finally get the hell away from the bastard husband.

Jim could just imagine how much worse it would be if he managed to piss off a Vulcan. At that point, his neck was still hurting from the last time he made Spock angry. He was also equally afraid of Nyota because campus legend had it that she broke a guy's foot for asking her to go down on him in Klingon and he saw her knock out the idiot who tried to drug her. For that reason, both were hands-off.

Even if something happened and Nyota and Spock were no longer together, he still wouldn't try anything because he does not fuck his friends and both were friends. He and Nyota became friends after he was a perfect gentleman during the 'getting drunk and accidentally drugged because your boyfriend is leaving you to make Vulcan babies with some stranger' fiasco. He even knew that the only reason she started learning Klingon was to understand the stupid pickup lines of a certain idiot. She continued taking classes when she realized she was good at it. Despite what other Spock said and his desire to strangle his Spock on a regular basis, something like friendship has actually developed with his Spock (or it did before the lizard girl incident and saving Spock from the volcano of doom before said Vulcan threw him under the metaphorical bus.)

He likes both relationships where they are and he doesn't want to mess that up. Okay, that's a lie. It is more like he doesn't think more is ever going to happen with either person, so he's going to be satisfied with whatever little crumbs he can get. That one time he was brave enough to suggest that he wanted something more Jim played it off as if he was drunk and joking. He was completely sober because again contrary to what everybody assumes, he's not the reckless idiot that they all think that he is (except for recent actions that have resulted in him having 'time' to re-examine things). Spock never said anything and Jim never mentioned it again.

Jim's no fucking friends rule came out of high school and the destruction of his longest lasting platonic relationship until he met Bones. His preteen and teen years in general were pretty horrible but the destruction of that relationship is probably the worst part. After surviving the famine and a governor with a genocidal god complex, he was sentenced to spend out the rest of his teenage years in a group home until his then best friend's family took him in (because Jim's brother was too 'flaky' to consider stepping up and taking care of him himself). The reason why Jim became a ward of the Federation was because his mom kind of lost it after all the shit that went down on the planet they do not speak of. Over a decade later, she was still living in a Starfleet rehabilitation center for 'mental issues' and most of the time when he actually visit her she assumed that he was George.

Natalia was sweet, kind, and wickedly smart. She studied ballet and martial arts. Her two dads were Starfleet engineers who were working on the design of what would one day become his baby. Everything was good for almost a year until Natalia was convinced her boyfriend was going to dump her at any moment because she couldn't give a good blow job. Jim felt she should just dump the loser and she felt that due to his reputation he could help her 'practice'. Because he was a teenage boy who thinks way too often with his dick, he agreed. The casualties were one black eye by the bastard boyfriend, one ruined friendship, and a couple of nights in jail for assault. Things were so awkward that Jim successfully applied to become an emancipated minor and spent the next four years working odd jobs and taking online classes until the bar fight that changed his life.

Jim's most important rule(s) that govern his hookups are he doesn't do relationships and he doesn't fall in love. This relationship rule came about during his early 20s after he dated a guy for about four months until he caught said boyfriend with his pants down literally fucking one of Jim's supposed friends. (That may also play into his why he does not mess with other people's relationships rule. Cheating is horrible when you're the one being cheated on.)

The rule about not falling in love comes from the fact that he believes love doesn't last. Outside of his parents, Jim knows one person whose marriage lasted till death do us part and that's because Pike was mur… Pike was no longer alive. His mother's relationships all ended in absolute disaster. Her first marriage ended in widowhood. Her second marriage ended because Frank liked to beat the shit out of both of them. Her third marriage ended when her bastard husband turned her and Jim over to members of the protection forces during that famine they do not speak of for an extra month of rations. (This was after her loyalty to him landed everyone on that planet in the first place.) Thankfully, the man didn't make it off the planet alive. That was the thing that pretty much broke his mother sanity. The incident with Natalia and the cheating boyfriend pretty much cemented in Jim's mind that love was a delusion and something that Jim would never have.

So, yes, contrary to popular belief Jim does have standards and rules and therefore Spock and his girlfriend were completely off-limits. Of course, if Pike were still alive he would tell anybody that Jim was absolutely horrible at following the rules, even his own.

So somehow Jim sort of broke every single one of his own rules by falling in love with his first officer/sort of friend, who is dating Jim's sort of friend/communications officer, who Jim wouldn't be that averse to sleeping with too (okay maybe he cared about her as well in a more than a friend sort of way). This revelation came when he was forced to choose between observing the Prime Directive and letting Spock die. He was really glad that nobody asked him why he didn't leave Spock in the volcano because the real answer scared the hell out of him.

His solution to this problem was to pretty much ignore everything he felt. The next few days were filled with alcohol, self-loathing, and meaningless sex. It was so meaningless that he actually had to picture Spock to get it up for the Kitty Twins (it's a bad sign when a threesome just doesn't do it for you anymore). In the 11 years that he has been sexually active, that has never happened before (during a consensual encounter, anyway). Of course, it became a little harder to ignore when he realized that despite losing his ship, he didn't regret saving Spock.

Battle situations are great for denial, unless the object of your affection's girlfriend decides to bring you into one of their lover's spats (especially if you like her too). Also, if Jim isn't that freaked out about the two kissing then obviously he can't be that into Spock. (He decided not to examine the fact that he thinks it's kind of hot. Those thoughts will do no one any good.)

Okay, battle situations are not that good for denial because he almost kissed Spock, more than once. Before leaving for Marcus's ship he almost kissed Spock goodbye. He just knew things were going to fall apart and he wasn't going to see Spock again. He was right.

Now that he sort of died, he kind of regretted not doing it. He regretted a lot of things including falling into Marcus's trap, but he didn't regret falling in love with Spock. What's the point of being afraid to fall in love when you are already facing death? In that moment, he knew he was going to die because his body was on fire. He realized there was no point in lying to himself anymore. Maybe he did regret not telling Spock. After everything that went down during the volcano incident, he should have pushed Spock up against the nearest wall and kissed him as if he were the air that Jim breathed. Even if Spock had laughed him out of the room, in a very Vulcan way, Jim would not regret it because at least Spock would have known. (At least he wouldn't regret it until Nyota kicked him in the balls for making out with her boyfriend).

"I'm scared, Spock... Help me not to be... " His words were low and in a whisper. He paused because it was getting hard to breathe let alone talk. "How do you choose not to feel?"

"I do not know," Spock said as his voice broke, and Jim never expected to see Spock like this. "Right now, I am failing." As the tears fell from Spock's eyes, Jim wondered just for a second if his Spock crush wasn't so one-sided. If you have slept with as many species as he has, you can recognize a Vulcan kiss when you participate in one. His pain was getting worse and he knew he only had minutes if not seconds left. If he didn't tell Spock now he never would.

"I wanted you to know why I couldn't let you die... why I went back for you..." Jim started but he did not have enough air in his lungs to continue.

"Because you are my friend," Spock supplied for him.

If his body wasn't burning from the inside he would have laughed at the absurdity of it all. Then he noticed Nyota crying in the background and he lost his will to tell Spock those three little words. He couldn't die stabbing his friend in the back. He kind of loved her too in a different way and he couldn't do that to her. He couldn't leave this world screwing up Spock's relationship. He cared about her too much to leave her behind with her relationship in tatters. Instead, he stayed silent as everything went to black.

* * *

Like most of his generation he believes that death is a state of nonexistence. Most no longer believe in an afterlife in a torment dimension or some perfect utopia. Of course, Jim was not so sure about that since he has had a lot of time to think especially about those rules that he was now questioning the purpose and practicality of.

He's not exactly sure where he is. Things are dark but he can still hear words. He hears Bones calling him an idiot a lot. He remembers all the things that he wished he did differently from the fiasco with the med student to not kissing Spock. He thought of all the relationships that he screwed up. Jim thinks about completely fucking up and realizing that his only solution to keep everybody from dying is to pull a play from his dead daddy's book. Of course what he thinks about the most is Spock and Nyota. He's pretty sure at some point he feels Nyota's lips on his but that must be some death induced hallucination.

He mostly thought that because before that Spock mentioned that he loves him and Nyota talked about all the dirty things that she wanted to watch him and Spock do together. So apparently his version of post life reality involved him having crazy fantasies about things that will never ever happen (especially because he was now dead and because of what he did, they were thankfully not). That makes sense because it's his life.

Except this was not his post life reality, because he was not dead. He realized that when he woke up to Bones being his regular sarcastic self. He's never been so happy to hear his friend's grumblings. He's happy to be alive even if he is worried about the consequences of using the blood of a megalomaniac to bring him back.

Of course, he was very happy that Spock was there when he wakes up. (Honestly, he's happiest about actually waking up.) He wanted to kiss Spock but he did not. He didn't want to give Bones a heart attack.

Okay, that was a lie. Jim was sure that everything that happened between losing consciousness (dying) in the warp core and waking up was just some delusional figment of his imagination. There was no way that Spock was in love with him and Nyota would try making out with him just to get him to wake up. No, it was just all a crazy delusion even if he swore he could taste the strawberry on her lips. Yes, even though he survived death he's too much of a coward to do anything as stupid as stretching out his hand and wrapping it around Spock's fingers. (Jim kind of remembered somebody holding his hands a lot during his not-a-death but there's no way that could be Spock.)

Some would argue that you should not waste a second chance. However, Jim decided that this time around he wasn't going to be so reckless. He was going to think before acting and in this case that meant not making out human or Vulcan style with the guy that he was sort of (definitely) in love with who is not available. (Okay, yes he really was a coward).

After about two hours, Bones somehow managed to kick Spock out to run a bunch of tests that Jim really doesn't want to think about. Also, he was so not looking forward to the mandatory psych evaluation for almost dying in the line of duty (mostly because from their five-minute meeting, he discovered that the guy doing it, Dr. Soren, was Jim's former half Betazoid 'hook up' that pretty much told Jim that he really needed to see professional help and that was before dying).

Spock told him in a very Spock way that as far Starfleet was concerned Jim's over exposure to radiation was triggered by a faulty radiation suit and not by being an idiot and you know, actually dying (excluding their new admiral that Spock trusts implicitly). Jim would really love to know why his very Vulcan first officer lied through his teeth to Starfleet but he's kind of afraid of the answer (okay, maybe he's afraid that the answer would give him some sort of hope that he's trying not to have right now).

At some point he fell asleep, which is pretty funny considering he's been essentially asleep for the last 14 days. During that blissfully wonderful place between dream and sleep he thought that he saw Spock at his bedside holding his hand with Nyota on the other side but obviously he was dreaming or stone. Considering he died 14 days ago, Jim is going to go with stone. Everything he was seeing had to be a drug-induced hallucination.

When he woke up Nyota was there, which would surprise him more if his scary nurse didn't mention that Nyota and Spock were there a lot when he was unconscious. Okay, they were there so much that the scary nurse thought that he was dating one or both (he may have risen from the dead but the ideal of dating both Spock and Nyota was too far-fetched for even him).

He didn't ask where Spock was because he was afraid of the answer and maybe a little terrified of her reaction to him asking that question. Jim was not going to do anything to mess this up (whatever this was). He told himself it was because they're both his friends and he will not do anything that would screw up that type of friendship (like pushing either of them up against the nearest flat surface and fucking him or her senseless.)

He was happy that she was there mostly because she brought him good food. Granted, he can't eat anything more hard-hitting than broth and rice but at least it's real broth and not out of a replicator. She also brought him real old-school books and his PADD loaded with movies. Conveniently, anything involving government conspiracies, cities getting blown up, and the hero dying to save the day are conveniently removed from his collection, even the pre-warp stuff that requires subtitles. He's pretty much left with the romantic comedies that he refuses to admit that he has and the Disney films that he claims he only downloaded for those miraculous times when Bones' ex-wife lets his daughter spend the weekend despite the court order. For some reason his extensive porn collection was still there (if he's going to follow his number one rule of not fucking the crew he needs something) but considering he was informed by his favorite grumpy doctor that he wasn't allowed to do anything more strenuous than physical therapy for the next month he wasn't going to be accessing those files anytime soon.

Just like Spock yesterday, Nyota would not talk about anything related to why Jim will be stuck in this hospital for the next week, why he ended up being acting captain of Enterprise after his massive fuck up or why Mrs. Pike is now their new admiral, the reason why San Francisco is still under a state of emergency 14 days later, and the casualties on Enterprise. Because they were also trying to avoid the Spock shaped elephant in the room there really was not that much he and Nyota could talk about except for their love of pre-warp earth poetry and music. He got her to listen to the Beastie Boys and she has filled up his personal PADD with files from Pink, Bruno Mars, and various boy bands that he doesn't admit listening to and refers to as music to cry or get laid by.

Because they were pretty much avoiding talking about anything of importance they ended up watching a modern remake of an adaptation of the Taming of the Shrew. The difference was this version did not require subtitles and everybody was of different planets of origin except for the sisters. Both he and Nyota thought it would just be easier if Bianca just went with both guys until they realize that the other guy was a complete ass.

"You remind me a lot of Kat," Nyota said, grabbing a handful of the salt free, fake butter free, flavor free popcorn that his evil doctor so graciously let him eat. "Except you simultaneously screw around with everybody, while keeping everybody at arm's length. When you think about it, it's the same thing. "

"I'm not a slut," Jim said defensively. "It's like that old song you gave me 'I'm not a player, I just fuck a lot'." He said translating the lyric into standard. He smirked at her for emphasis.

"I should have never sent you that song as a joke," Nyota said with a sigh. "I'm not saying that you're a slut. I know you're not. I'm saying you never let your bedroom partners really get close to you. Also you are non-discriminating."

"Just because I don't care about stupid things like gender or planet of origin doesn't mean I don't have standards. I have all these rules. I don't fuck my crew. I don't sleep with people who are in relationships. I 'dated' a married woman one time and well it just ended up with broken bones. Although in my defense, I didn't know she was married." He was expecting Nyota to start laughing at him. That didn't happen.

"And what if both parties are interested in dating you?" Nyota asked. This almost caused him to choke on his popcorn. For the sake of his own sanity, he's going to assume this was a purely hypothetical question. There was no way that question meant what he wanted that question to mean.

"I've done threesomes, recently." He actually winked at her when he added the last part, as he deliberately chose to focus on the just sex aspect of something like that. He wasn't going to touch the R word. "But usually it is not with two people who are in love with each other. Maybe if it was two people that I actually trust but considering I don't fuck my friends, that probably is never going to happen."

"I have a feeling there's a story there." She said grabbing his hand. Her touch seemed oddly familiar. At least she didn't mention that he deliberately misinterpreted her question.

"You know I'm good at learning from my own mistakes. From sixth grade until we both did something really stupid at 17, I had this best friend named Natalia. We were pretty much inseparable despite me getting shipped off halfway across the galaxy when my mom pissed off the wrong Admiral and I got thrown into the system after everything went really bad," Jim started before he told her the whole insane story. Nyota knew some of the details regarding what happened on the planet of the damned before this conversation. That stuff came out when Jim explained why she laid untouched after the drunk breakup fiasco incident. The only person who knew more about Tarsus was Spock. (Bones only knew what was in his medical file and most of that was redacted.) However, he never talked about losing his childhood friend before.

"So that explains why you have been in denial about your Spock related feelings for the last year." Nyota told him after he was done speaking.

"Shit," Jim exclaimed under his breath. He didn't think his Spock crush behavior was that obvious. Apparently, he was wrong. It wasn't what Nyota said but the way she said it that was the most surprising of all. There wasn't an ounce of malice in her words. Although, maybe she was taking emotion suppression lessons from her boyfriend and would strangle him at any moment for kind of, sort of, being in love with her boyfriend.

"Are you going to smother me with a pillow now?" He asked as he paused the film. This discussion was too serious to have the movie going on in the background.

"Okay, I'm going to take that as 'yes, I'm completely in love with your boyfriend but to terrified to make an actual move'," she said, smirking. Why was she smirking? She was going to kill him. "Jim, it was a little obvious. I'm pretty sure we've both been dating Spock for the last six months at least."

"You're scaring me. Shouldn't you be yelling or throwing things? Are you only being nice to me because I'm still in the hospital?" he asked after a moment, because that was the only logical explanation for her not screaming at him.

"You know, it surprises me how much you and Spock are alike sometimes. Spock expected me to act the same way. I'm trying to be incredibly mature about this. You are completely in love with my boyfriend. I get that," she said as she still held his hand.

"I'm not in love. I don't do love," Jim wasn't sure he was telling that to her or to himself. It was a lie regardless, the first part anyway.

"So what was the real reason you wouldn't let Spock die in that volcano?" She asked looking him directly in the eye, as if trying to read all the things that Jim kept hidden. She knew.

"Shit," he said in a whisper. "You must hate me."

"If I hated you, I wouldn't be watching questionable Shakespeare adaptations as our boyfriend deals with another round of 20 questions with the admiralty. The original was so much better. Why do they remake everything?" Again, her demeanor was not angry but more playful.

"This isn't necessarily worse than the original, just different. Wait; did you say 'our boyfriend'?" Jim asked tentatively.

"I don't know if you realize this but you have kind of been dating him since you guys began your middle of the night get-togethers the second week we were in space." If it was anyone else, he would deny it but she was right. Looking back on it now he did behave like Spock's boyfriend. "Remember that last treaty we negotiated. The entire time you were leaning over to whisper and Spock's ears every 30 seconds."

"I did not act like that," Jim told her defensively.

"Yes you did and everybody but you and Spock noticed it. I'm sure there's a video file of it somewhere. Every single member of the other side asked me if you two were married or dating," she told him in all seriousness.

"If it was that obvious, why didn't you say anything?"

"Why didn't you?" she asked in response.

"You know it's a bad sign when you answer a question with a question."

"Probably," she shrugged.

"I don't fuck my friends literally or figuratively. I really do like you. I wasn't going to screw up your relationship with Spock. It was just better for everybody if I keep my mouth shut," he told her honestly.

"Except for that one time when you were drunk." He decided that it was in his best interest for her to never find out that he was actually sober when he jokingly propositioned her boyfriend for a threesome.

"He told you about that?" he asked instead.

"Yes, and I'm not sure which one of the three of us was more in denial but I'm going with myself. I could see what was going on. I have for months. I just didn't want to deal with figuring out what to do about it. Just so you know, it's not one-sided, Spock is kind of in love with you." He was very thankful that he wasn't eating the popcorn anymore because he really would have choked that time.

"What's different now?" Jim asked, avoiding any reference to her last statement. Jim just doesn't believe her.

"You died. I watched you die and then I watched Spock go off the deep end because you died. There's nothing worse than realizing how you feel about somebody as the object of your affection takes his last breath. I can't keep quiet anymore." Nyota said as she shut her eyes.

"You mean him actually crying," Jim said sardonically as Nyota stared at him darkly.

"No, I mean Spock trying to kill he that will not be named with his bare hands and the only reason why he didn't do it was because I somehow managed to convey to him that we needed him alive. Not that Spock remembers actually doing it." That part was mumbled under breath. This does not surprise Jim because he vaguely remembers hearing Spock say something about that during his not-a-death, but he thought he just imagined it.

"What?" Jim asked more for clarification than anything else.

"There's a reason why they're making you meet with a certain psychologist that specializes in telepathic bonds despite your objections and past 'relationship'. Spock doesn't remember a thing between you dying and you coming back to life. Because of that they are suspicious. Apparently, these rooms are miked for sound and Leonard heard the interesting parts of our private conversations." Again, Jim vaguely remembered this.

"While I was out, I kind of remember certain things but I thought I was dreaming. Did you kiss me?" Jim asked still surprised.

"It was 13 days at that point and we were all getting a little desperate and I decided to take the sleeping beauty approach," she said sheepishly.

"I thought I was imagining that," he whispered.

"You remember that?" she asked, smirking.

"I think. Did you actually suggest that Spock date both of us?" Jim asked tentatively, sure that part was some crazy hallucinations/wishful thinking on his part.

"I think I have already stated you and Spock have been dating for months. I just told Spock it's okay if you added a sexual component to the relationship, as long as I get to watch or participate sometimes. I kind of like you. You grow on a person. Also, I think you heard him say that he loved you a few minutes earlier." She wasn't joking even if she tried to make it sound that way.

"See that entire part of the conversation was why I thought the whole thing was some death induced fantasy. I thought that was my version of paradise," he told her, and she just gave him a sad smile.

"I believe your hypothesis is erroneous, Jim." Jim would recognize that voice anywhere even if the speaker was a good century and a half older. When Spock said his name like that, it resulted in most blood going south. Before he had time to think, Spock's lips were on his. He did not think a kiss could be like this, it was all fire and passion. He was gasping for air but didn't want to break apart until he had no choice but to. He looked up to see Nyota with an all too smug expression on her face.

"I told you he was in love with you," Nyota said smirking.

"Apparently," Jim said in a whisper as Spock's hand snaked around his. This gesture felt just as intimate as the kiss before. "You're okay with me making out with your boyfriend?" Nyota's response was to lean in and kiss him as well. She tasted of the popcorn and the diet strawberry soda she was drinking during their movie marathon. It was softer, but still intense.

"If I wasn't okay with it, I wouldn't have done that," she said, pulling away just as Spock placed his fingers to his lips. They were both going to kill him or maybe he was still dead. This type of stuff only happened in his private time fantasies.

"I don't do relationships. I don't fall in love," he said, looking at both with hooded eyes.

"Yeah, well, you don't come back from the dead and you've already done that. Why stop there. You don't follow Starfleet's rules. Why should you follow your own?" Bones stated from the door.

"You know that eavesdropping is a bad thing?" Nyota asked with annoyance.

"Not when I'm his damn doctor. You made his heart rate go skyhigh and I needed to see what was going on. I will kick you both out again, if you don't keep your hands off your boyfriend," Jim did not find the doctor's words as strange as he should have. He would never be one for monogamy but this really wasn't monogamy.

"Fine, we promise to behave," Jim said, smirking.

"I don't trust you," Bones said dubiously.

"Nothing inappropriate will happen with the captain," Spock said, trying to reassure him.

"I don't trust you either. It's always the quiet ones and your judgment is never the best when he is concerned," Bones said staring him down.

"We won't do anything to jeopardize Jim's health," Nyota chimed in.

"I'm sure you will," Bones said still rolling his eyes. "Light i.e. chase kisses are fine, but no sex by any definition of the term for at least 8 to 10 weeks," Bones barked out before he started to run more scans.

"I hate you," Jim spat out sarcastically. The only thing that made Jim feel slightly better was his boyfriend and girlfriend looked equally irritated; more importantly, he really did like the sound of that and the concept wasn't as scary as he thought it would be. Maybe he could do this, maybe.

* * *

The end

(or maybe this is just the beginning.)

To be continued in The Genius Repeat Offender's Guide to dating your first officer and communications officer simultaneously (or something along those lines).

For those of you following the story on FF .net, I will be posting it as a continuation of the story.

Summary: When it comes to dating Jim has no idea what he's doing, but that's never stopped him before.

Look for it sometime in August (maybe September).

I need to work on my other stories. Remember, if you loved Dear Spock and this story please check out Dear James.

In the meantime provide me with your suggestions for relationship problems as well as your positive or redirected feedback.


	4. B 1: Moving in Together

Title: Maybe We Should Have Gone Out for Pizza First.

Sequel to: Take a Third Option  
Series: The Idiots Guide to Multi-species Polyamorous Relationships  
Story summary: When it comes to dating (love, relationships, and/or talking about his feelings) Jim has no idea what he's doing, but that has never stopped him. So it makes perfect sense that he dives right into the deep end of this relationship thing and moves in with Spock and Nyota four days after they decided that they all kind of love each other in that way. Did he mention they can't have sex for the next eight weeks? This may end up body bag bad.

Thank you to everyone who love the First story. This is second story serious.

Setting: This story/series takes place during the year between Jim getting out of the hospital post resurrection and Enterprise starting the five-year mission.  
Canon compliancy: Probably more Canon compliant then anybody at Bad Robot would ever want to admit to. The moving makes more sense if you accept the fact that Spock is dating Jim and Nyota simultaneously. The only thing not canon compliant is that I decided that Chris should have a wife and Number One will have a very big role in the series. I have plans for her. In other words, the first two films did happen in this universe without alterations even if I really wanted to. (Why did they have to kill Chris off? Evil bastards.) Everything happened, which raises a lot of interesting questions.

* * *

Chapter 1: Step 10: Moving in Together (no one said he had to follow the guide in chronological order or at all)

Jim Kirk doesn't date or do relationships. That's not entirely true if you count that guy that Jim exclusively slept with for four months, from his perspective anyway. (Nyota also argues that he has been subconsciously dating Spock for about as long as they've known each other but he doesn't count it if it's subconscious.) It's just that whenever he tries for something more than fucking around, it essentially blows up in his face and ever since he has been keeping things casual, especially after the wedding crazy med student incident. Jim now knows for a fact she was that friend Dr. Marcus was talking about when she thought it was a good idea to get dressed in front of him, most likely to get back at him for breaking her friend's heart (that's the only logical reason he can come up with for her stripping down to her underwear in front of him).

Then Jim fell in love with his first officer, despite his better judgment and common sense. Jim just could not help it, even the scary brilliant girlfriend was not a complete deterrent. Okay, that was like a bonus feature that made Spock even hotter because Nyota is essentially everything he wants in a woman. She is brilliant, beautiful, assertive, and deadly. Considering that Spock is pretty much everything he likes in a guy, it was only natural that Jim started fantasizing about screwing (making love to) both at the same time. Of course, he mostly kept this to himself (except for that one time he suggested a threesome) because he didn't want to completely fuck up their relationship or have to get a new first officer or chief communications officer because his baby comes first. Really, he wasn't sure if there was anyone else in Starfleet that he could work with so well.

Then he died and the beautifully brilliant Nyota came to the wonderful conclusion that they should all just date each other. Before he died he was pretty much terrified of love and trying to do a stable 'monogamous' relationship. Okay, it was more like he was afraid to risk his friendship and working relationship with either individual considering his disastrous track record. Although, after you die in a warp core, really nothing should terrify you anymore. So after some convincing from Nyota and Spock, he decided to give the dating thing a try. (Spock's mouth could already get him to do just about anything and they've only shared a few kisses of the Disney movie variety.)

The problem is he is not entirely sure what dating actually involves. Most of his past relationships pretty much consist of sex and-just sex. Thanks to evil Doctor Cockblocker a.k.a. Bones, that's pretty much off the table until May because of his delicate health. He's pretty sure that food and movies should be involved, but that really didn't seem all that different than the activities that he engaged in with Spock and Nyota in the past. He would ask Chris, who would be laughing hysterically at the situation, but his mentor is gone. Chris' overly logical wife, the brand-new boss Admiral Nhi (that's not her real first name, but nobody knows her actual first name that is still alive) Pike, suggested dinner before she ended up throwing up in his bathroom when she came by to talk to him about memorial plans and everything that led to him being in the hospital in the first place.

Nhi is the only one in Starfleet that knows that he is dating his first officer and chief communications officer and she is actually happy about it. It was like the only thing that made her smile, although he blamed the throwing up. (Jim personally blames her probably developing bulimia right now on the fact that the admiralty decided it was a good idea to make her one of them before she had time to metaphorically bury her husband).

Jim, Spock, and Nyota were already way too busy being questioned two dozen times every single day about everything that went wrong to deal with filling out the proper paperwork to declare their relationship. Also, he doesn't want the committee investigating to think that their personal feelings for each other influenced their actions during the crisis. Anyone with half a brain would know that, thankfully most Starfleet bureaucrats were morons. The only sane and intelligent ones (still alive) were Richard Barnett and Nhi.

At the moment, dinner consists of Nyota sneaking in edible soups and talking about the investigation as Spock holds his hand the entire time. Jim really doesn't count the hospital dinners as actual dating. Because, first, it did not seem that different from how they hung out with each other before they acknowledged that they liked each other except now there is actual kissing involved whenever Bones and 'scary nurse' are nowhere to be seen. Two, a first date should never happen in a hospital after a near (actual) death experience. Three, how can it be a date when half the crew keep showing up at all hours and they have to go back to keeping the appropriate 'really we're just friends' distance? (Considering the cursing and exchange of money that he saw between his chief engineer and navigator, no one was buying that).

After five days and one disastrous visit with the therapist/former hook up where Jim somehow manages to answer every question with a yes or no, Bones finally allows Jim to leave the hospital. There's just one catch, he can't be alone. Now, he could stay with Bones, but that would just be disastrous and way too much like that first semester where they tried to be roommates. It probably would work out better now that he wouldn't be bringing strangers over at all hours for- well sex. However, he does have a boyfriend and girlfriend and he would at least like to have a nice make out session without Bones making some smartass remark. That will not happen if he stays with the grumpy Doctor.

Now Spock, the beautiful logical one, suggests that Jim stay with him. Jim has this feeling that even if he and Spock were still dancing around each other, Spock would still insist that Jim stay with him during his recovery. It was the most logical option considering Spock lived in a four bedroom, 3 ½ bath loft near Embassy Row. The house belonged to Spock's mother and was where the couple stayed when they were on planet because she hated the embassy. After her death, the house went to Spock. However, his father did occupy the house whenever his diplomatic dealings brought him to the planet.

Nyota is already living there because it was illogical for her to find housing elsewhere. Because Spock has the space for an extended houseguest, it just makes sense for Jim to stay with him during his post 'warp core incident' recovery. The difference is there is no pretense that Jim is going to actually leave afterwards, even if Bones said he had to have his own bedroom. So that's how Jim ends up living with his boyfriend and girlfriend before dating and sex.

"This is not an apartment," Jim says as he walks into Spock's home with high ceilings and Vulcan artifacts on every surface. The now rare pieces of memorabilia are probably worth thousands of credits on their own. It is beautiful. Jim wonders exactly how wealthy his husband's family really was considering this was just their 'vacation home'.

"I believe technically it is a loft," Spock answers simply as he shuts the door. Jim's response is a quick squeeze of his hand as Nyota just rolls her eyes.

"That's not what I mean. This is huge. I'm used to a tiny efficiency, with shady furniture, and questionable vermin running around. This place is beautiful," Jim says, resting on one of the couches. He may be out of the hospital, but he just got out of the hospital after dying. The walk inside the building was exhausting.

"Starfleet facilities are usually fumigated," Spock quips.

"You obviously never lived in the dorms," Jim quips back. There was an incident in his second year involving somebody accidentally bringing a species of something cockroach like from another planet that pretty much took over the entire building. Then there was that incident during his third year involving tribbles that he doesn't want to think about. He guesses he should be more tribble friendly considering one saved his life.

"Even though I was no longer on speaking terms with my father at the time, he insisted that I live here during my time at the Academy."

For a moment, Jim wonders what it would be like if he had parents that actually cared. He did have Pike, but the closest thing he ever had to a dad is now gone too. Spock did not always get along with his dad, but it was obvious the guy cared in a very Vulcan way. Jim never really had that even before the men in white coats took his mom away.

"Okay, recently I've lived in nicer places but there was a point where I pretty much drifted from couch to couch and had no home of my own. Not much has changed," Jim adds darkly.

"You will not be sleeping on the couch. You will be in the master bedroom." Spock does not add the desired 'with us' because he will be sleeping alone for the immediate future because Bones only agreed to this arrangement if Jim received his own bedroom. Stupid cockblocker doctor. If Bones ever gets the balls to ask Doctor Marcus on a date, Jim's planning on crashing just to get him back. (Jim's pretty sure the blonde weapons expert was there at the hospital to see the good doctor and not him, especially in light of the med student incident.)

"I didn't mean that literally. I know it's different this time." Except he really does not because Nyota already lives there and a part of Jim feels that by being there he is an interloper in their relationship and not an equal part in whatever this thing is. He is certain he is going to screw everything up just by his presence. This is why he doesn't do relationships or emotions.

"You're talking about ending up in foster care after your mom ended up at the clinic?" Nyota asked referring to his mom's institutionalization as 'the clinic'. He falls just a little bit more in love with her for that. Maybe he falls more in love with her because she looks at him with the same reverence that she normally reserves for Spock. More importantly there was no pity in her gaze.

"Pretty much," Jim says as he feels two different sets of arms wrap around him, instantly easing his earlier fears. "I really haven't had a home since before what happened on that planet that I do not speak of, unless you count Enterprise. I almost did but both of you know how badly that went," he says, remembering that wonderful year where he thought maybe he could have a family again.

"Enterprise counts," Nyota tells him before he frowns again at the thought of the disastrous shape his baby is in. Scotty sent him pictures, even though the guy was explicitly told by Admiral Nhi (because he's never going to be able to call her Admiral Pike without the urge to cry or break something) and Spock not to. He almost cried when he saw the pictures and his heart rate spiked high enough that it sent Bones into the room (that may be because he threw the PADD against the wall afterwards). It's going to take months to rebuild his baby and he is not even completely sure if he's going to get her back.

"We'll be back there soon and you will be her Captain again," Nyota says, practically reading his mind as she gives him a gentle kiss on the lips. This time she tastes of strawberry lip gloss and a hint of salt.

"This is your home as well," Spock tells him before taking him to the master suite hand in hand. Jim doesn't quite believe it. There are little pieces of Nyota scattered throughout the apartment, and Jim expects to see all his meager possessions in a suitcase, thereby making it easy for him to leave when he is no longer wanted there.

Except that's not the case, because pretty much everything from his room on Enterprise is currently mixed in with Spock and Nyota's stuff in the master bedroom. He thinks it's funny that Nyota has half of the very large walk-in closet to herself and he and Spock are sharing the other half. There is something kind of beautiful about their blue and gold uniforms mingling together. Even his dad's collection of old books (the only personal items that Jim has really held onto over the last 26 years) are on a shelf in what appears to be the bedroom study area. It just makes perfect sense that Spock's master bedroom would have a study area.

"I thought I was supposed to have my own room according to Doctor keep-your-hands-to-yourself?" Jim jokes, as he is pretty sure that both are planning on staying with him in this room.

"I have read multiple journal articles that suggest physical contact and attention can increase the speed of the healing process." Spock punctuates this with what Jim knows to be a Vulcan kiss. It makes his fingers all tingly.

"These studies were about newborns right?" he asks with a raised eyebrow mimicking his boyfriend. He loves calling Spock that.

"The findings are still relevant." That was Spock for 'yes, but I don't care and I am looking for any excuse to violate the stupid doctor's orders'.

"Do you want to sleep alone?" Nyota asks, giving him a dark look.

"Not really," he says with a lecherous grin.

"She meant sleep as a period of rest and not as a euphemism for sexual activity," Spock corrects, but this just leads to Jim kissing him chastely on the lips before falling down on the bed to take a nap, because recovering from almost dying is exhausting and he is still a little stoned.

He wakes up an hour later from what he refers to as the watching Pike dying again dream that's suddenly becomes the himself dying again dream, to find two bodies holding him tightly as they whisper comforting words. Jim starts to think that there are some advantages to this relationship thing (i.e. not being alone with his warp core memories). Maybe he can do this. This can't be any harder than coming back from the dead, right?

To be continued.

* * *

Please review if you want more. Also please provide your suggestions for the perils of the three living together this early in the relationship. I have some idea already but I want to see if anybody has come up with anything I have not. I know I definitely have to do something with fighting over the temperature of the apartment.


	5. B2: Humans are Weird

Thank you to everyone who read or reviewed the last part. Thank you for all of your suggestions. Some were in line with what I was thinking but others brought up points that I did not consider. Some of the things will be incorporated throughout the narrative. Please keep your suggestions and reviews coming. They keep me in the creative zone.

So now that the movie is out digitally via iTunes and the such in the US I have re-watched certain scenes like 10 times and I discovered that my memory was a little faulty. In this story I have Nyota arriving to engineering in the middle the 'warp core incident' instead of at the end. I am going to keep it the way it is in the story for narrative purposes.

I ended up re-watching that scene so many times with the commentary on because I was trying to figure out if it was one of the writers or one of the producers that said something along the lines of that the true heart of both TOS and the new universe is "the love story and friendship between Jim and Spock and this scene was in service of that". I still haven't figured out which guy said it and I am usually really good at telling the difference between voices. I'm sure he did not mean it the way I wanted him to mean it but my mouth dropped open when I heard the words 'love story" but hey you never know.

Also in response to an anonymous review and to those that have similar worries this is a three-way relationship. All parties are equal. Nyota is not just sharing Spock with Jim, she's dating Jim too. The reason why she suggested this arrangement was because she also has feelings for Jim, she is just not entirely sure what they are.

* * *

**Part two: Humans are Weird**

_"The key to a successful relationship is the ability to understand the personal history and culture of your partner(s)."_

_Chapter 4 of The Idiot's Guide to Multi-species Polyamorous Relationships, revised fifth edition_

She looks at Spock, eyes wide with complete shock at the casual way he just suggested that she move in with him permanently. It's not even a suggestion; it's already an assumed fact. After Vulcan was destroyed, she stayed with him and his father at their apartment. However, she stayed in one of the guest rooms, and her main purpose was to box up Amanda's Earth wardrobe and to make sure that the two distraught yet refusing-to-be-emotional Vulcans actually ate something. Maybe she was also there because she couldn't exactly take living in a campus apartment complex where all her neighbors were dead. She only returned after the sort of break up where Spock pretty much told her he was leaving her to make Vulcan babies and that was such a disaster that it led to the drunk incident that began to redefine her relationship with Jim. (Spock was not really breaking up with her but after the disaster that was her parents attempt at a long distance relationship she knew better. Of course, she didn't explain that to Spock until he came back.)

She has slept over in his quarters a lot on Enterprise because his room was obviously bigger (and it was the only way she could make sure that he did basic things like eat or sleep during those first few weeks post-Amanda). But she had her own room where she would go when the urge to strangle Spock became overwhelming (at least once every three days and usually Jim was involved). Besides, it was against the rules because they were not married or a federationally recognized equivalent, and Spock loves his fucking rules to the point that he would die before breaking any of them. Stupid Vulcan upbringing.

For what was supposed to be a short stay on the planet she was just going to stay with Spock before making a quick trip to visit her aunt in Melbourne and her father in Pretoria along with stepmom number two a.k.a. the one who's not a bitch. (Thankfully her captain mother was safely in another part of the galaxy and wasn't around to be one of the people killed during the attack on Starfleet). She was planning on spending extra time with the woman who raised her because she was still furious at Spock for the volcano incident. Okay, she was so pissed off that she almost did stay in Starfleet housing, but Chris's wife talked her out of it. (Thanks to madmen that keep killing off her friends, the Admiral is one of the few female friends she has. She was a friend of Nyota's mom and the actual aunt of her first roommate who left for mysterious reasons.) Then London happened and everything sort of fell apart.

To be honest she and Spock have been practically living by Jim's bedside for the 14 days he was in a coma. Spock only slept in his bed one time during the 14 days and that was the night Leonard kicked both out and they engaged in certain activities until they both passed out. For the last four days that Jim has been conscious they have also spent the majority of their time at the hospital or at Starfleet headquarters dealing with idiots. If she had to recount what happened in the warp core one more time she is going to scream and possibly hit someone. Because of the chaos, she really didn't have time to think about her living situation and Spock never asked her to leave (but he never really asked her to stay either).

Much to everyone's surprise, thanks to the miracle 'drug', Jim is already up and walking around after only four days, if only for a few minutes at a time. Therefore, he was well enough to be released from the hospital (or maybe Doctor McCoy was just tired of walking in on the three making out). The only caveat is Jim cannot be by himself.

Spock suggests that Jim stay with him without even thinking. She's not even surprised. Spock would have offered even if she didn't call him out on his Jim-related feelings nearly 5 days earlier. It was a first officer's job to look after the well-being of his Captain (Jim). However, from the way he said it and the other arrangements that he is making, she just knows that Spock is not just moving Jim in until he got better. Jim will be moving in permanently as Spock's boyfriend. A part of her is a little upset because he never asked her. She may have said something about that she shouldn't. Spock just gives her his customary 'you are a stupid human' look.

"Why would I ask you to move in with me when you already reside there?" Spock asks with the same slightly put upon expression.

"I'm just a temporary guest like when I lived with my dad when he was married to stepmom number one. However, this is going to be permanent for Jim because I know you," she tells him. "You even contacted Scotty to pack up Jim's things and ship them down. I think you only gave me my own entry code because you were spending so much time here."

"I apologize for not clarifying the situation. I thought that when I asked you to stay with me that you realized this was not a temporary situation." At Spock's words she replays that conversation in her head. The word temporary was never used. Actually, Spock said nothing that would lead her to assume that she was just a guest in his home. He even took her to that specialty grocery store that sells all her favorite junk food from where she grew up, and the pantry is filled with the stuff. He even adjusted the climate settings to 'human friendly'.

"Humans are illogical sometimes," she says with half a smile. "Moving in together is a big thing. It makes things more permanent. It's harder to break up when all your stuff is at the other individual's house. Maybe it hurt me a little to think that you were ready to take that step with Jim and not with me. You never really asked me if we should live together. You just told me it would be more logical for me to stay with you instead of procuring housing elsewhere during our time on earth," she says, paraphrasing what he said.

"It is more logical for us to cohabitate instead of occupying separate residences because I calculate we would be spending 74.3% of our free time together if not for the current crisis." Nyota smiles at his words before he continues.

"It is most logical for James to also cohabitate with us since it is not advisable for him to live alone during his recovery. Cohabitation is also logical because of the lack of leisure time due to the current crisis. For us to build a solid relationship it is logical that we spend time together." She is pretty sure that is Spock's speak for 'if we do not live together we may never see each other for the foreseeable future'. She gets that point and in all honesty she's pretty sure Spock would be spending the majority of their leisure time with Jim if he wasn't staying with her and Spock.

He did before they decided to put a label on whatever was going on between the three. Actually, it'sbetter now because she is invited to sit in on their chess matches and Spock is there for the binge watching of obscure 21st-century films that require subtitles. She's pretty sure Jim is solely responsible for convincing Spock that it's a great idea to make out human style during the movie because Spock normally prefers the subtlety of Vulcan kisses.

"I know. Humans are illogical and unlike you, I can't read your mind. You don't have to tell me how you feel because it's a good day when you acknowledge that you feel anything at all," she says sarcastically.

"Although my regard for you and James is different in its nature, it does not differ in intensity."

Her response is to kiss him. He hates public kissing and usually only allows it after near-death experiences or, okay, pretty much only after near-death experiences. They are in the corridor outside of James hospital room, and yet he does not stop her.

"I can't believe we are doing this so out of sequence," she mumbled against his lips. "It's traditional to do pizza or something like that first."

"Are you not the one who said that James and I have been technically dating for the last six months?" Spock asks, giving her the 'humans are crazy' look.

"More like from the moment you to saw each other," she mumbles under her breath. "It doesn't count as dating if the two parties refuse to acknowledge that they are dating." Spock actually raises an eyebrow at her words.

"Also, Doctor McCoy has requested that James has his own bedroom and does not reside with us in the same room." She actually overheard Leonard's exact words which were, "Fine, I'll go along with your crazy little scheme to keep your honey bear close, if Jim gets his own damn room. I don't trust Jim to be alone in a bed with two people he is attracted to and not do something. Hell, I don't even trust you. Your logic goes out the window when he is around."

"That's not going to work. Even if it's doctors' orders, Jim is just going to feel like a guest and interloper in our relationship and not an equal partner. We need to make Jim feel welcome. You know about my family. After the divorce, it always felt like I was a guest in my stepmother's home. I was the other kid from the first marriage that fell apart who kept everything in her suitcase because it would make it that much easier to leave when they didn't want me anymore, and I know stepmom number one never wanted me there. I don't want Jim to feel that way." One unwanted tear slid down her cheek as she spoke.

"I will never fully understand humans." His words are softened by a caress of his fingers against her cheek.

"You're dating two of us; you're going to have to eventually." She smiles back at him. "When you are meeting with the admiralty this afternoon I will go back and get everything ready. Sulu and some others from Enterprise are supposed to be coming by this afternoon anyway to keep him company." She adds that last part to make sure Spock knows that Jim will not be at the hospital alone.

"I defer to your judgment in all things human."

"Good answer," she says with a brush of her fingers against his.

* * *

She's kind of surprised to realize how much of her things are already at Spock's house (she should refer to it as "our house" but she's not quite there yet). There are feminine hygiene products in the bathroom that are obviously hers along with her shoes that are spread out in various rooms throughout the large apartment. It is a very large apartment complete with a meditation room and exercise suite. The building also has a pool and a rooftop rose garden (that the others in the building have dedicated to Amanda).

Her favorite foods and wine are in the fridge and pantry. There's even some left over pepperoni pizza in the refrigerator that she is so not going to be able to eat in front of her boyfriend. Surprisingly, even some of her clothing has already made it into the master closet. Okay, the majority of her clothing has already made it into the master closet. There are even pictures of her family up in the apartment including one of her, Spock, and her mother at the most depressing graduation ceremony ever.

There are a few images in the bedroom of her, Jim, and Spock at the winter seasonal party that occurred right before the lizard girl incident. Actually, if she did the math correctly, the lizard girl incident happened on Jim's birthday, which puts the entire disaster in a new context. Really, she should've realized there was something going on between Jim and Spock from the 'do not wish the Captain a happy birthday' memo that went out.

Actually, what surprises her more than the fact that she already has such a distinct presence in this apartment is how little Jim has that is not Starfleet issued. There were about 15 old novels that were worth thousands of credits each, an old set of car keys, a few old toys, and a couple of sets of civilian clothes. Okay, there was also a massive sex toy collection that was tossed. It wasn't even her that got rid of everything; it was Spock, who gave her an explanation that had her giggling for at least 15 minutes after he promised to replace everything. (Vulcans are never jealous, never.)

She quickly unpacks everything and places Jim's books on the bedroom bookshelf. She also changes the sheets in practically every room in the house because real cotton causes Jim to break out in hives. Actually, she spends the better part of the afternoon allergy proofing the house. Her aunt's allergies were just as bad as Jim's, so she knows what to look for. At least a third of the stuff in the fridge is tossed in the trash because they contain soy, peanuts, or any number of fruits that Jim is allergic to. Apples are one of the few fruits he can eat without going into anaphylaxis. She even emails Dr. McCoy to write her a couple of prescriptions for anti-allergy hypos. They almost lost Jim to the warp core incident; she's not losing him to peanut oil. She can't watch him lifeless again, she just can't.

She knows she's the one who has to make this work, and making Jim feel welcome is a big part of that, even if that probably means no more of her favorite blueberry passion yogurt. Jim and Spock's relationship with each other is all-consuming, and if this triad falls apart, she knows that she is the one who will lose everything. That's not an option. She doesn't want to lose Spock, but she's realizing she really doesn't want to lose Jim either. She doesn't know how he did it, but the prick somehow managed to work his way into her heart, too.

She knows she did the right thing when she sees how happy Jim is when he walks into their master bedroom and sees that his things are not still in a suitcase or pushed to the side. He's happy that he's not sleeping alone when he wakes up from another nightmare. She knows it's a nightmare even though he will not say anything about it. Spock knows that too. Jim falls back asleep when Spock presses his lips to Jim's neck as her hand is pressed against Jim's heart.

Spock has 100 messages that need to be sent out; most are questions for the record regarding that thing that they do not speak of or are about the rehabilitation of Enterprise. It has already been decided that Enterprise will be repaired instead of being scrapped although the decision regarding Jim being her Captain again will not come down until next week, maybe. Scrambling to get things as close to normal again as possible has taken precedence (although the decision about Enterprise made for a great cheer everybody up press release).

Instead of going into Starfleet, Spock stays in bed holding Jim against him and works from there. She stays in the room, but moves to the desk. She finds it funny that Spock has no trouble working on the bed but she needs a desk to function. She's dealing with the same questions for the record Spock is. Unlike Spock, she's also going to be taking over a few of the language classes when the Academy goes back in session next week for one of the professors that died. The woman had the misfortune of being at the wrong restaurant at the wrong time. Nyota's new Admiral talked her into volunteering to do it because Enterprise would be grounded for at least six months and she didn't want to get assigned to another ship in the interim. (Okay, she didn't want a repeat of the reason why her parents divorced.) She was terrified that students who were practically her age (or older) would tear her apart in the classroom.

She remembers firsthand what Spock went through with cocky students who didn't respect him because of his age or heritage. She purposely kept her and Spock's relationship quiet at the Academy because she did not want to undermine his authority by people thinking he was just another professor misusing his position by fucking a student. She is just going to have to get over her fear. Being here is more important than anything else, and teaching is her only option to be able to stay with Jim during his recovery and Spock as he oversees the rebuilding of Enterprise (although she is sure that their new Admiral will convince Jim and Spock to return to the Academy eventually).

During her work she occasionally looks up to see Spock with his hands against Jim's heart. She wonders if Spock has to continually remind himself that Jim did come back to them (she knows she did). They fit together like puzzle pieces. She also must confess to herself that she enjoys watching the make out session that ensues after Jim wakes up. Much to her own personal disappointment, she actually has to remind _Spock _that he needs to keep his hands above Jim's waist for at least 55 more days. (Actually, they are all keeping their hands to their selves until Jim is cleared for 'strenuous physical activity'. She and Spock decided it wouldn't be fair to have sex with each other in front of Jim when he couldn't participate.)

Spock cooks dinner as she and Jim watch movies in the living room. The movie is basically one of the few animated Disney films that does not involve parents dying in the most dramatic way possible. Spock is the designated chef in their relationship because the only thing she knows how to cook is grilled cheese and then it still comes out extra 'crispy'. Thankfully, Spock can cook even if his repertoire is vegetarian. Jim is happy to eat anything that is not soup even if it is just lentils, brown rice, and steamed vegetables.

He is just as happy the next morning with a goat cheese and spinach omelet with honey butter croissants that Spock prepared before his 8 AM meeting with Admiral Pike (it will be years before she can think of that admiral without thinking of her deceased husband first). She is just happy Jim only woke up one time during the night and she's not even entirely sure it was because of the nightmares because Jim kicked off the covers and removed his T-shirt before going back to sleep.

She ended up sleeping in between Jim and Spock last night. It made sense due to the fact Spock is a cover hog because he's always freezing as a result of his lower body temperature* and Jim and she will be kicking everything off by morning anyway. They were still trying to figure out the happy medium between Vulcan comfortable and human comfortable that they can live with because there is no way she's going to go with Amanda's solution of having a separate bedroom or having Spock sleep in something similar to what he wears on the bridge. She likes her Spock with as little on as possible thank you very much.

"Okay, I think I now understand the real reason why you sleep in boy shorts and a tank top that looks more like a bra. The room was stifling and Spock was still cuddled under three blankets." Jim says taking another tentative bite of his omelet.

"It wasn't that bad. You're still not completely well. We still need to figure out that happy medium between Vulcan comfortable and human comfortable. Apparently, Amanda never found that and slept in her own bedroom," Nyota quips.

"Okay that explains why Spock was convinced his dad didn't love his mom," Jim mumbles. "Didn't you guys figure this stuff out before I got here and completely fucked up your happy dynamic?"

"First, although I spent a lot of time in Spock's quarters we never lived together," she says, correcting Jim's erroneous assumption.

"Because that's against some obscure ridiculous regulation that only Spock remembers and I would have overlooked anyway but our favorite Vulcan must follow anyway because he's an asshole like that," Jim says with just a tiny bit of bitterness.

"You know Spock so well. I also wanted to avoid any more rumors. Half of the crew already thinks that I became chief communications officer at 25 only due to my excellent 'oral skills' and I'm not talking about linguistics." The nasty glances and rumors were pretty harsh until their first mission where her ability to speak the language saved several crewmembers from being killed. She is sure that when things go public with Jim, it's going to start all over again.

"Give me their names and I will take care of it," he tells her with fire in his eyes. He is beyond pissed.

"If I didn't give the names to Spock, I'm not going to tell you. It's over." What was left unspoken was 'some people in command are already questioning some of your Spock-based decisions and I do not want to give the 'idiots that be' or the crew another reason to question your leadership abilities'. Also, she's pretty sure that at least two of those individuals died during the incident that they do not speak of.

"Okay. But seriously, you guys never lived together even before the start of the mission? You guys have been together for a while," Jim asks, kind of in shock. She guesses that nearly 3 years seems like a long time to a guy that hasn't had a relationship that has lasted longer than four months.

"Not really. The closest were those first few weeks after Vulcan was destroyed. It was mostly…" She started but was unable to finish.

"To keep Spock from self-destructing and to not be in the dorms," Jim supplies for her.

"Pretty much,"

"I guess that means we're on equal footing," Jim says, not making eye contact.

"Spock is in love with both of us. I'm not just 'sharing' Spock with you, I'm dating you too because I like you, maybe even more than that but I'm still trying to figure that out. You haven't cracked our relationship. You're more like the glue holding everything together. I want you to feel like you belong here. That's why I let you and Sulu hang out alone two days ago as I set everything up," she says as she grabs his hand.

"You're the one who unpacked everything." He says kind of surprise.

Mostly, although Spock was the one who got rid of your 'toy' collection, citing that it was unhygienic to use previously used items and that you were medically not allowed to engage in activities that required those devices for the foreseeable future." Jim's response is to laugh at her words.

"Does he always try to justify his jealousy with logic?" Jim asks, rubbing his temple.

"Pretty much. He also says he was going to replace everything."

"Oh yes, he will be replacing everything. As soon as I can walk more than 20 meters without getting winded, I'm taking Spock to the nearest sex shop, so he can replace everything in person." She responds to Jim's comment with a smile before he continues. "Thank you for trying to make me feel like I actually belong here."

"You're welcome. I know what it's like to not feel like you really have a home even if I never ended up in foster care," she explains to Jim. Of course if it wasn't for Aunt Sarah, she is sure it could have been a possibility.

"My dad left Starfleet after the organization started to drift away from exploration and started becoming more militarized post-Kelvin-incident to take a job with the Nelson Mandela Foundation for Interplanetary Peace. It stopped being the Starfleet he loved, so he left and decided to find a job that better reflected his values, but my mom stayed. She felt like she had to stay in Starfleet because her best friend was one of the people that did not survive the Kelvin incident," she starts to explain.

"Sorry."

"It wasn't your fault. They tried the long distance thing for a few years, but it got harder as my mom kept rising through the ranks. My mom became a captain and my dad became a cheater." She spat the last part out with bitterness.

"I think I would've remembered a Captain Uhura," Jim says, trying to add levity.

"It's Captain Oddoye. She went back to her maiden name post-divorce. My dad got remarried to the mistress, and I felt like an unwanted guest in her house. She hated me. I was relegated to the guest room that I was never allowed to redecorate and mostly forgotten about. But it was different at my Aunt Sarah's house. I had my own bedroom that she redecorated just for me. I felt like somebody wanted me again and I wanted you to have that, which is why I spent the better part of a day allergy proofing."

"It was really nice not breaking out in hives from the sheets," Jim quips before getting serious. "I'm sorry you had to go through that. You have an Aunt Sarah?"

"She is not my biological aunt. She is my mom's friend and the widow of the friend that died during the Kelvin incident. We always lived with her when my mom was planet side post-divorce, and when she realized how evil stepmom number one was, she opened her door to me permanently. It was a better alternative than the boarding school stepmom number one wanted to send me to," she tells Jim, trying to not get lost in her memories of that time.

"I wish I had someone like that," Jim mumbles under his breath, most likely referring to his first stepdad.

"I wish you did too," she says, squeezing his hand.

"Why do parents not realize that they're bringing complete ass holes into the lives of their children?"

"I don't know about your mom, but my dad was too blinded by love to see it until she did to him what he did to my mom. Fortunately, stepmom number two is a decent individual, and my half-sister does not feel like a refugee in her own home. I hate talking about this," she says, trying to repress her feelings about it.

"But I'm glad you did." Jim says as he places a gentle kiss on her mouth. He tastes like honey from the croissants, and his mouth is warm against hers. It is different than what she is used to, but she is enjoying it.

To be continued.

* * *

*It is canon for Vulcans to have a lower body temperature than humans. For pure comedy potential, I'm going with that.


	6. B3: Vulcans Do Not Date

Thank you to everybody who read or reviewed the last chapter. Remember reviews make me wake up at 5 AM before work to work on these stories that you love so much. Reviews make me happy and a happy writer is a productive writer.

I'm sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. I had some trouble getting it betaed and you don't want to see what an un-proofread chapter looks like. It's not pretty. Fortunately, GraysonSteele volunteered to look over this chapter. Thank you.

There will be a bit of a time jump in this chapter, because I would like to avoid repeating the mistake of needing 100,000 words to cover about two months.

Part three: Vulcans do not date (and there is probably a logical reason for that.)

The key to a successful long-term relationship is to spend quality time with your partner(s) getting to know him or her as an individual.

Chapter 2 of The Idiot's Guide to Multi-species Polyamorous Relationships, revised fifth edition

* * *

There is not an equivalent to the word "dating" in the Vulcan language. It is not a concept in Vulcan culture as arranged marriages were the norm (at least it was pre-destruction of Vulcan). Children as young as seven would be bonded supposedly to the person he or she is most mentally compatible with. Spock has since learned that the matches were more about political grandstanding than actual mental compatibility. At least post destruction of Vulcan, they have given up this pretense and have conceded that most bondings are now about repopulation and the survival of the species, which is why polyamorous relationships are becoming more common in Vulcan society.

Of course, Spock had always doubted that mental compatibility was the true reason for most matches. He doubted that anyone would have tried to match him with such a bigoted Vulcan who referred to his mother as a whore and saw Spock as lesser simply because of his human heritage, if actual mental compatibility were a factor. The only thing he had in common with the particular individual he was supposed to bond with was that they were both Vulcan and even that was debatable because he is half human. The irony that he actually follows Vulcan philosophy in practice and not merely in word, unlike her, was not lost on him.

Despite her wealthy upbringing, T'Pring had various xenophobic tendencies and had called him several derogatory slurs in Vulcan upon their meeting at age 14. Basically, the only individuals whom he had met that were even more unpleasant were entirely responsible for destroying the planet of his birth and causing his mother's death or responsible for destroying a large portion of San Francisco killing hundreds including Admiral Pike and his James.

Thankfully, he never actually joined his mind to T'Pring's. Increased distrust of the Vulcan population occurred after inaccurate initial reports blamed the destruction of the USS Kelvin on the Vulcan people. Because his father's diplomatic skills were in great demand, Spock's family spent the majority of his early childhood off planet. This was why his family acquired a residence on Earth. Therefore, he was not able to bond with T'Pring at age 7, as was traditional. He doubted she would have been so bold, at 7 to openly display her disdain at the possibility of being bonded to somebody who was 'contaminated with inferior human blood'. However, at 14, she had no trouble expressing said sentiments.

Apparently, she assumed that because he spent a great deal of his childhood on other planets his ability to speak Vulcan was inferior and therefore it would be the perfect language to insult him and his mother in. However, both he and his mother were perfectly proficient in the language. His mother was not pleased.

Amanda's response was to walk up to his father and tell him in perfectly accented Vulcan, "If you force my son to join his mind to this daughter of illogic and hatred, you will be the one who will have no one for your time. My child will be free to love who he wants." It was only as an adult that he understood exactly with what she had threatened his father. Because of her, Spock was free to choose his own bond mate.

However, thanks to his mother's intervention, he had no choice but to explore the human concept of dating especially as he needed to find a bond mate in the event that certain biological issues press the matter. Dating on Vulcan was an experience he wished to never repeat. Most interested in pursuing a relationship or rather establishing a bond with him were 3 to 4 times his age and only interested in him due to his family's political connections or due to their own biological needs. He is thankful for his relationship with Nyota (and now James as well) that it keeps him from being subjected to his father's repeated attempts to find him a suitable bond mate. Spock is certain that the Vulcan candidates would be even less appealing now.

His experiences with dating on Earth were largely unproductive and consisted primarily of blind dates set up by his mother, her friends, or his former commanding officer and his wife, also known as Admiral N. Pike. The most inconvenient part of this process was most of these individuals knew very little about Vulcan eating habits and they usually ended up at an Italian restaurant. During his time as a cadet, there had been a series of marginally successful dates with a colleague's niece. The situation became untenable when she became slightly obsessed with him after they engaged in certain intimate activities. At that point, Spock decided that dating was overrated. He had even contemplated agreeing to another prearranged bonding in case he was subjected to a certain biological condition. Thankfully, he met Nyota before such a thing was absolutely necessary. Not surprisingly, Spock never wanted to dine at another Italian restaurant as long as he lived.

Although technically he and Nyota have been together for three years, he was uncertain if one could refer to it as dating by the standard definition. Due to the clandestine nature of the relationship at the Academy, they never engaged in activities such as going to movies or concerts after they formally became a couple. Before the relationship became non-platonic, they participated in a few group activities where their interactions were merely friendly, but even this seldom happened. And now that they were able to interact publicly, circumstances rarely allowed for such things.

"So you've never taken Nyota for a nice dinner or any type of dinner, just the two of you? Really?" Jim asks as they stopped for lunch on the way back from what was supposed to be his biweekly therapy session. James forced Spock to stop for pizza post session because he said it was something that they needed to do for the sake of having a healthy relationship. When Spock pointed out his disdain for Italian food in general, Jim pointed out that this was California style pizza and the place had eggplant veggie burgers on the menu as well. Spock did not understand the human obsession with a "pizza date", but he conceded anyway. Nyota mentioned something similar when they were discussing her and James moving into his house.

Thankfully, the press that wanted to know more details about the incident involving the Vengeance and Enterprise's role in the entire episode were nowhere near the restaurant. The fact that they had purposefully dressed in civilian attire was probably a contributing factor in not being followed or accosted. The press had mostly been stationed outside of Starfleet Headquarters. Spock has only had to deal with their questions when there or at least that was the case until yesterday. They were starting to show up in other places, such as Starfleet Medical and the Academy. Spock felt certain that as soon as the press discovered where the trio lived they would begin lingering outside there as well.

The reporters were obviously getting dissatisfied with his response of some variation of "no comment" or simply raising an eyebrow at the reporters. He has no desire to answer any of the questions, especially those related to Jim. Spock had hoped that they would be satisfied with the official statement, but it was obvious they were not. Rumors about Jim's death and subsequent resurrection were starting to circulate despite everyone's attempts to keep a close hold on that information. It wasn't even in the official report. He did not think James was ready for their questions either. This is the only reason he consented to wearing jeans and some sort of hat to cover his ears.

Spock chose to take the morning off to make sure James actually attended the session this time because he avoided the previous one claiming to be too fatigued to attend. (Spock was also there to make sure James was not accosted by the press when he arrived at Starfleet Medical.) His decision had nothing to do with the fact that Spock disliked the idea of James spending time with a former significant other, mostly because Jim despised spending time with the man. Spock doubted that the session was productive considering that it ended 39.4 minutes earlier than scheduled with James stomping out of the doctor's office mumbling various expletives under breath.

Spock was attempting to discuss why James was so hostile towards this particular physician when James changed the subject to this.

"No. Although we were given permission to date by Starfleet, we felt it best to keep our relationship a secret to avoid all appearances of impropriety." Spock explains.

Prior to the newly formed relationship, James had been aware that bond mates were necessary for Vulcan survival. Spock had yet to tell him all the details, but he was certain that James has probably done some research of his own.

"And you didn't think about using a very big hat and glasses to cover up your Vulcan-ness? The casual dress and baseball cap are doing a really good job at keeping the press away from us today." Jim joked, which resulted in Spock raising a single eyebrow at him.

"Okay, I get that. God knows you're obsessed with the rules, but I mean what about after graduation?" James asked with a hint of annoyance. They have not talked about the incident on Nibiru during the 11 days since James had regained consciousness. Actually, they have not discussed anything related to the reason why James was technically in a 'coma' for 14 days or why part of San Francisco will have to undergo massive reconstruction.

"Circumstances did not make things such as going to dinner to simply to exchange pleasantries a priority when we were on Earth post-graduation and there are not many opportunities to "date" once we were in space. Also, due to the fact that most perceive me as my girlfriend's commanding officer, I felt it necessary for us to…"

"Avoid all appearances of nepotism and impropriety," James finishes for him.

"Indeed,"

"Okay, I get that," James says sympathetically. "How exactly do you get to know somebody if you don't do the traditional dinner and movie thing? We are both aware of that when it comes to that part of things, I suck."

"Just because Nyota and I did not interact in public does not mean that I did not get to know her. Her favorite color is green. Her parents divorced when she was 10. She is their only biological child together. However, she has two stepbrothers from her second stepmother and a half-sister from stepmother number one that she is relatively close to. Her first stepmother forced her to take ballet, even though she wanted to join the track team instead. She studied for five years, even after she moved in with her aunt Sarah in Melbourne. I tried to teach her how to cook once and she started a small fire." James responded to Spock's words by breaking into laughter.

"She actually started a fire?" James asks as he tries to control his laughter.

"Unfortunately, yes," the incident triggered the apartment's anti-fire system, but he would never tell Jim this. "She has refused to try cooking anything non-replicated beyond grilled cheese after that incident."

"I had her grilled cheese the first lunch after getting out of the hospital. It was a little- okay, you're right. I can totally believe that she started a fire. I've been doing all the cooking when you have not been around ever since." Spock almost said something about James not over exerting himself, but he felt it was in his best interest to keep quiet on the matter.

"She despises the standard female uniform, but wears it on the bridge any way to unnerve me." He tells this to James as the man was currently producing the same effect in Spock by licking tomato sauce off his fingers.

"Does that actually work?" James asked as he takes another slice of pizza. Spock wants to say it works as well as a shirtless sparring match with him, but this is neither the time nor place to discuss such things.

"I choose not to answer that question in public." Jim just laughs a little before smiling at him.

"Of course you don't. Okay, Mr. Show off what do you know about me? You can't use anything from my Starfleet dossier or that's sort of public knowledge like my dad being really dead or the reason why my mom is in the clinic either because that's cheating." He says with a smirk, although Spock knew that James is really hiding his discomfort. James dislikes discussing anything related to his father sacrifice, his unfortunate stepfathers, or anything related to the circumstances of his mother's long-term hospitalization.

"I would never cheat but you would." Spock says picking up a spear of fried zucchini with a fork. At least he can eat this without Jim laughing at him for using a utensil. It was also one of the few things that he liked at this particular restaurant along with their minestrone soup that Jim was not allergic to.

"That wasn't cheating, it was changing the parameters." Jim said defensively swiping some of Spock's zucchini.

"You changed the parameters because you despise situations where there are no other options," Spock says giving in and decides to try a slice of pizza, even if he will be criticized later for using a knife and fork.

"At least you say that as if it's not a bad thing anymore,"

"If you gave up easily you would not be with me right now and I find that thought less than pleasant." Watching Jim die was the most excruciating experience of his life and he wishes never to repeat it.

"You really do like me." James said, giving Spock a quick kiss on the lips. Normally, he disapproved of public displays of affection, but Jim needs to know that he is important to Spock and allows the gesture. Also, Jim's mere presence makes Spock forget that such a gesture is inadvisable when they are being sought out by the press for additional answers about the 'Vengeance incident'.

"Okay, so what else do you know about me?" Jim asked now practically bouncing in the booth.

"You have a brother who is four years older than you but you have not spoken to him since your enlistment in Starfleet. He did not come to see you when you were incapacitated despite Nyota threatening him with extreme bodily harm if he did not visit you." James just gives him a sad smile at that.

"I'm not surprised. He never visits mom. He's too busy with the girlfriend and their son. He didn't even call me to tell me that I was going to be an uncle, Arlene did. Okay, can we please switch to non-angst inducing things that you know about me? "What's my favorite color" and that sort of thing." Jim prompts in an effort to avoid anything of an extremely sensitive nature.

"Blue. You're obsessed with music from what is referred to as the post-Eugenic Wars Renaissance, especially a group referred to as the Beastie Boys*. You have their entire catalog on vinyl and this was the one actual personal thing you retrieved from the apartment you were staying in previously." They collected the remainder of Jim's things two days ago, once Jim was physically up to packing.

Spock glanced around the room displeased at the obvious signs that James engaged in sexual intercourse with someone else in that bed, recently. Or at least he was until James told him, "Don't be so snippy about this. First, we were not together at the time because you have a girlfriend who I'm sure you would have been having sex with if she had been speaking to you at the time. Second, eventhough I was in the middle of a threesome, I still had to think about you to get it up. Finally and most importantly of all, I stopped to pick up a call from you which pissed off my two "guests" enough that they left without a word. See, I was already in love with you to the point where I'd rather talk on the communicator with you then have a threesome with two random girls whose names I honestly don't remember right now."

Spock's response was to kiss James in a way that almost led to the couple breaking Doctor McCoy's prohibition on sexual intercourse. James was actually unzipping Spock's pants when Mister Scott decided that moment was the most appropriate time to call James to inquire how he was doing.

"That's only because you threw away my other stash of se...um toys." Jim mumbles disrupting Spock's train of thought and causing the woman and small child sitting in the next booth to look at him strangely. "I am so expecting replacements."

"Your favorite Shakespeare play is Much Ado about Nothing," Spock began not addressing the sex toys comment. "Your favorite poem is _Mother to Son_. I have seen you reread it after many difficult missions. You wanted to order a meat lover supreme pizza, but did not want to offend me and therefore ordered spinach and feta."

"That was mostly because I knew you would sneak a piece," Jim said, pointing to Spock's plate where he has cut the slice in to bite size pieces that he was now eating. "Also I'm not sure I can handle something like that after…" Jim trails off at that point, not wanting to discuss that thing they do not talk about.

"Okay, so maybe you know me and our mutual girlfriend better than a lot of people, but a lot of that stuff you know from being really really observant. How do you learn the big stuff? I'm still completely lost here. Just sex relationships are so much easier and we can't even do that right now," Jim tells Spock with what Doctor McCoy refers to as the man's 'sad puppy dog eyes'.

"Indeed. In Vulcan society, your future bond mate is prearranged by your family supposedly based on "mental compatibility" and your minds are linked at a young age. However, my mother was against me undergoing this practice. Therefore, I was left to do things the human way. I am uncertain which method is superior." He said, remembering Nyota's unpleasant reaction when he tried to explain that he was not breaking up with her when he chose to leave Starfleet to help on the New Vulcan colony. Being in her mind would have been helpful at that point. That argument could've been avoided if he was aware of the circumstances behind her parents' divorce. Despite things like this, James and Nyota were still much better companions than anyone on Vulcan he had introduced to for that purpose.

"That's so cheating. Wait, did you and Nyota already do this mind linking thing?" James asked slightly alarmed. James was still under the wrong impression that his presence was disruptive to Spock and Nyota's life. When in reality, it seems that James was the missing piece in their relationship. To ease his worry, Spock grabbed his hand (eliciting more strange looks from the woman at the neighboring table).

"No," Spock says forcefully looking James directly in his eyes. As soon as the words are out of his mouth, a smile returns to James lips for just a second before he becomes pensive again.

"Is bonding even possible with humans? Is that why you guys are not linked are or whatever? I know mind melds are possible, but I'm guessing that's different." James asks.

"Yes, it is possible, although not always." Spock neglects to tells James about the conversation he had with James' psychologist after Jim left his session prematurely. The therapist believes that there is a good possibility that a spontaneous bond has formed between the two and it was the cause for Spock blacking out during the time that James was technically dead. However, Spock refuses to allow the physician to examine his mind. He is wary of any non-Vulcan attempting such an examination. Also, he doubts that James trusts the individual enough to look into his mind, considering what happened at the earlier session.

"Nyota and I have yet to discuss the possibility." Actually, Spock has yet to check to see if such a mental bond would be possible. He wanted to at least introduce her to his parents before speaking to her about the possibility and consulting a mind healer. The destruction of Vulcan and meeting Jim completely changed his original plan and he has not had an opportunity to address the situation during the interim. Also, prior to meeting Spock Prime, he was not completely certain he would need a bond mate for medical reasons. Surprisingly, that was the one piece of information his other self was willing to divulge without preamble.

"But it's something that you want to do with her, eventually?" Spock is instantly aware of the real question that James is asking, "At some point are you going to leave me to marry her?"

"Polyamorous marriage and bonds are recognized by the Federation. Polyamorous bonding in Vulcan society have become more common and is a possibility." That statement seemed to alleviate some of Jim's fears.

"Because for reasons that we don't really want to discuss in 23rd century society more male Vulcans survived the destruction of Vulcan, than females," Jim said flippantly as he finished the last of his pizza and Spock nodded in agreement as he prepared to leave.

"Okay, I think I'm starting to see why you see nothing wrong with us living together before the first date. In Vulcan terms, you are like an old spinster - still unbonded at the ripe old age of 29. You are so going to explain why Amanda did not want you to become a child bride when we get to the car." Jim says as he gets up from the table now that both were done eating and Spock wordlessly follows him out of the restaurant. And yes, in the car James did get him to tell him the entire story of T'Pring. James was quite incensed by the Vulcan's actions. He also referred to Amanda as a "bad ass."

"As first dates go, I think this went pretty well." James said, once they arrived back at the apartment and Spock nodded in agreement. "The lunch was quite pleasant."

"Unfortunately for you, I can't put out on the first date even if I want to."

"That is disappointing." Spock says with actual disappointment as he steps inside the empty apartment. Nyota is still at the Academy.

"However, I can do this." Jim said as he pushes Spock against the nearest wall and proceeds to kiss him in a way that results in damage to a nearby lamp.

* * *

"It is like everything they learned during the first two months of class was forgotten during their unplanned hiatus. Seriously, how did you handle teaching first-year cadets without actually strangling anybody?" Nyota asks after he walks into her office. Since his meetings at Starfleet headquarters were done for the day, he decided to check up on Nyota. It was her third day teaching at the Academy and she was visibly frustrated.

"If you say 'Frustration is not an emotion that I actually feel' you are going to be sleeping on the couch for the foreseeable future." She threatens. He decides his best course of action is to cut off any further communication by pressing his lips against hers. Thanks to James influence, Spock was starting to become more comfortable with public displays of affection, especially because in this case, public only consist of Nyota's office mates. (It would only be later that he realized this was the same woman who gave him and James strange looks at the restaurant the day before.)

"I will say no such thing. Being able to spend my evenings with you helped settle my mind enough to allow me to deal with the students on a regular basis. Also, I actually did try to strangle James." Her response is to laugh.

"I don't think you ever had him as a student, so it doesn't count. I think he kind of liked it, anyway. It would make perfect sense if Jim is into erotic asphyxiation. You saw some of the toys he had before you threw them away in a fit of jealousy." She remarked.

"Why would someone find these types of activities stimulating?" He asked ignoring her remark about the toys, even if he already knows why someone would like something like that. He will never ever tell her about his physical reaction to having Jim beneath him in such a position.

"Jim is an adrenaline junkie. The thought of almost dying gets him off probably as much as the actual sex," she tells him with an unreadable expression.

"It is my hope that actually dying will prevent that behavior from resurfacing." She looks away from him at that moment. He broke the unspoken taboo of speaking about the 'warp core incident'.

"Not that I don't enjoy your being here, but why are you here?" She asked after a moment.

"During lunch with James yesterday, I was made aware of the fact that I have never taken you out for a date. I thought we could so that we may partake of a meal together while in a public setting." Spock tells her, but she just shakes her head.

"I appreciate the gesture, but you do not have to do a tit-for-tat thing. You and I have been together for three years. I think you should use this time for you and Jim to get to know each other beyond Captain and First Officer. I was kind of doing the same before I began teaching at the Academy. Did you know that, Jim can speak four languages fluently, not counting standard and pre-warp English? It turns out there really was a reason for him being in the xenolinguistics club, other than trying to get a date." Spock did not know that. But what struck him at that moment is he was not entirely sure how many languages Nyota could currently speak fluently.

"I would still like to dine with you in a casual public setting. I am starting to become more aware that I do not know as much about you as I have previously assumed. For example, I am uncertain of the number of languages that you are proficient in currently." She responded to his statement by laughing at him.

"Okay, maybe a lunch that's not from the cafeteria will give me the strength to survive my 3 PM class without hurting someone. My office mate Shanti told me about this new Indian place a couple of blocks away that has a decent vegetarian menu," she suggested.

"That is acceptable." Spock told her.

Nyota quickly grabbed her jacket and purse before they left the office together. They chose to walk because the restaurant was only 4.2 blocks away. They went out a back exit and were not accosted by the press.

"Just because we've been together for a long time, doesn't mean we're going to know everything about each other. Although, knowing you, you probably think that you should. I still don't completely understand why you act like things don't upset you when I know that they do. I'm not sure that I ever will. We have time." He is tempted to interject, but felt it was in his best interest not to speak.

"You really shouldn't feel bad about the language thing because that number changes monthly. You know I'm always studying more languages."

"That is true; however, I would still like to know the number." She just smiles at him as they walk side-by-side. They do not hold hands. Although the relationship is now public knowledge and the gesture means something completely different on Earth. Spock is uncertain if he will ever be comfortable engaging in that type of physical contact in public.

"I'm probably proficient in about 10 languages, not counting standard and old English, in the sense I could carry on a conversation in those languages and not make a fool of myself or cause an interplanetary incident. There are several other languages that I can say the basics like 'Please don't shoot' and 'Really, he did not mean to sleep with your daughter'." She had used that particular line 5.6 months ago.

"Hopefully, you will no longer need that particular phrase," he said in the closest approximation of mumbling that he would ever allow himself.

"Honey, it wasn't Jim who slept with the ambassador's daughter; it was Sulu. The ambassador only attacked Jim because he was in charge and did not prevent the incident from happening. Funny, you had no trouble submitting a highly edited report for that incident to cover for Jim." The last part was mumbled so low that he would not have been able to understand her without Vulcan hearing.

"You're so cute when you're jealous." Spock felt it was in his best interest not to correct her erroneous assumption regarding his ability to show jealousy or the reason why he did not send in an altered report when such a thing would have been advantageous. Yes he highly regrets his misinterpretation of Admiral Pike's words due to the long-term consequences, but there is nothing he can do about it now.

"There's a few more languages that I can read but not speak. There are also a few languages that I used to know, but as they say, 'If you don't use it, you lose it'. I don't even think I can carry on a conversation in Swahili with my paternal grandmother anymore, even though that was the language spoken most around me until the age of 10," Nyota explain with a sad expression.

"How did that occur?" Spock asks because he realizes that it is more important that he knows the reason why she knows certain languages than knowing which languages she can actually speak.

"I'm going to blame that on living in Australia from 12 until 20. It's easy to get rusty if you don't practice." She explained. He already knew that her teenage years were spent in Australia, but he never really examined what type of impact it had on her.

"In light of recent events, I suggest practicing your Klingon whenever possible," he remarked, as they kept walking.

"I'm auditing a few of the Klingon classes for that reason. Maybe we should speak Vulcan at home sometimes; it will help me keep it straight from my other Vulcan-based languages. Jim speaks it too." The suggestion is appealing to Spock. It reminds him of home, even if that particular home no longer exists. Not that he will ever confess to such a thing, but he misses speaking the language of his birth.

The Indian restaurant was one of the few near the Starfleet campus to have reopened. Because he wasn't ready to talk about anything related to why many restaurants in the city are closed or destroyed, Spock decided to ask her more about growing up in Australia. This is not the first time he has broached this particular subject with her, it is just that she dislikes talking about her childhood, and it is usually very difficult for her to say anything about it. They were together for 14 months before he learned that she studied ballet for five years. This time he learned about her being a high school track star and she was happy that her mother actually made it back to Earth to see her compete nationally.

Their lunch date was proving quite productive for the couple until Admiral N. Pike arrived to the restaurant with her niece who was visiting. The Admiral approached Spock to let him know that several members of the Enterprise crew were planning a surprise 'we are glad that you are back among the living' party for Jim and they needed his cooperation to secure Jim's participation. Nyota was surprised when Spock grabbed her arm the moment that the Ensign came into view. After the Admiral and her niece left their table, he had no choice but to tell Nyota the reason for his behavior. To say she was unhappy to learn about his history with the young woman was an understatement. He was not relegated to sleep on the couch only because James slept more peacefully when they were in the bed with him. Unfortunately Jim's nightmares were becoming a regular occurrence. However, as long as Spock was physically touching him, Jim's sleep was undisturbed.

* * *

In the year that they have been acquainted, Spock has learned not to tell James something is impossible because he will try to do it anyway. This explains why, after several uncomfortable meetings at Starfleet, he returns home to find James trying to teach Nyota how to cook. Thankfully, Nyota has forgiven him for the incident involving the Admiral's niece and therefore actually smiles at him.

"Okay, that zucchini is not a Klingon that you're trying to stab to death. Actually, I think you would be better at that than this." Nyota responds by glaring at him. "Okay, I probably shouldn't say that when you're holding a knife because I know you know how to use it for dismemberment, if not chopping vegetables. Here, hold the knife like this," James says, placing her fingers on the knife. To Spock's surprise, she actually does manage to successfully slice the zucchini without blood loss.

"See, I told you that you could do this." James rewarded her with an anything but chaste kiss on the mouth. The baking dish that was to contain the prepared zucchini was pushed aside, falling off the counter and shattering against the ceramic tile floor.

"I really don't belong in the kitchen. This was how the fire started last time." She explains as she begins to clean up the broken glass. Spock may have left that particular detail out of his recounting to James.

"Wait, seriously?" Jim asked arching an eyebrow.

"Oh, don't let the calm Vulcan exterior fool you. He is just as up for kitchen sex as you are." Nyota tells him punctuating her words with another kiss.

"Or would be if I wasn't forced to be a good boy by Doctor cock blocker." Jim says as he reluctantly pulls away from her. "Are you sure? I haven't seen you guys do anything. I was starting to think, Spock was waiting until bonding or whatever." Nyota response to Jim's words with laughter.

"He wasn't even a virgin when we got together. That honor went to my ex-roommate before she was actually my roommate." Spock was thankful that her words were said with a smile and not irritation.

"Oh my god, you actually had sex with Gaila? I always knew Vulcans were not immune to her pheromones." Jim said with a smirk.

"It was my first roommate, Christine, and it happened before she was even in Starfleet. She was just normal premed at the time. You know her too because she is- was Pike's niece. She transferred to London after the first year due to personal problems. I didn't even know it was her until like two days ago." Nyota says glaring at Spock.

She was not upset with him for engaging in sex with someone else before they were together. She was aware of that he was not a virgin and has engaged in sex previously with both males and females. She was upset that he did not feel comfortable recounting the details with her of an experience that was so bad that he considered another prearranged bonding.

"Blonde, psycho, and good at giving—" James was cut off by Nyota's glare.

"Finish that sentence and you will never find out how good I am at that. Spock, don't even think about answering that question, or it will be much longer than May before you get reacquainted with my mouth," Nyota says still glaring at both with arms crossed.

"That was not what I was going to say. I was going to bring up how she looks exactly like her aunt, except for the hair color. They do not act alike at all, but they look like they're clones of each other. Maybe that's because they grew up on totally different planets." Jim said out loud. Looking directly at Spock, Jim mouthed the words 'we are so talking about this later'.

"I can read lips. Do you two want to share the couch tonight?" She asks with a glare.

"Of course you can." James mumbled under breath. "Hey, why are you cock blocking him when I'm the only one that has a medical restriction on fun time?" James asks.

"It would be inappropriate to engaged in sexual activities together when you cannot participate." Spock answers.

"You don't have to. I can still watch. Also, once I'm healthy enough for sex, do you really think I'm going to wait until all three of us have time to be in a room together?"

"No," both she and Spock answered simultaneously knowing James too well. "However, I doubt right now that you can just watch and well I'm not going to risk you breaking doctor's orders until you can get through cooking dinner without having to sit down." Nyota adds.

"But that's what handcuffs are for," James retorted, which earns him glares from both.

"So you're not doing anything because you don't want me to be tempted to do something against doctor's orders?" James asks for clarification

"Essentially, yes." Spock response.

"That is just so you." James says as he pulled Spock around to kiss him on the mouth. However, James pulls out of the kiss abruptly.

"I can't feel my lips." James says or at least attempted to say right as he fell into Spock's arms. At that point, half of Jim's face was swollen and he was have difficulties breathing.

"What did you eat?" She asks Spock while stabbing Jim with a hypo that she had in one of the kitchen cabinets for such an emergency.

Spock replied, "A veggie burger, a latte, and pretzels, but none of those contained anything that James is allergic to, I checked." He did so precisely to avoid this situation. He was worried but thankfully the allergy hypo was keeping Jim's airway open and his breathing was starting to be less labored.

"He's probably develop new allergies because of what happened. Who knows what the radiation could have done to his immune system. Take Jim to the car and I will call Leonard to tell him to meet us at Starfleet Medical. I'm really getting tired of spending the night in the hospital." So was Spock.

To be continued.

* * *

The end scene was inspired by something that actually happened to my cousin. She is seriously allergic to seafood, which is horrible because she lives on an island and it's like a major food group there. It's so bad that if you touch a piece of fish than touch her she goes into anaphylaxis. One time her husband had sushi for lunch (without telling her) and he kissed her afterwards before remembering to use mouthwash. The result was a visit to the emergency room.

If you have your own horror stories feel free to share, I look for inspiration in the strangest places. I'm literally working on the next chapter right now, so your suggestions will help keep me productive.

Footnote: I'm going to be blending actual history and Star Trek history together into my own interpretation. However, to make everything work, some events or pieces of pop culture were created later in the Trek universe. This is fanfiction, so I reserve the right to play around and have fun.

Jim's Beastie Boys collection cannot be complete because the song Intergalactic cannot exist in this dimension, even though I absolutely love it because of the blatant Star Trek reference below:

Your knees start shakin' and your fingers pop

Like a pinch on the neck from Mr. Spock


End file.
