Disclaimer: While I am a trekkie, I sadly own none of these wonderful characters.
On top of not having written much in quote a Loooong while, this is my first foray into Star Trek fanfiction, so I would love to hear what you think! Enjoy!
Until Bones came along, James Tiberius Kirk had never had a friend. A walk-in-at-three-in-the-morning, walk-in-at-a-decent-hour, eat-with, be-himself-with, be-broken-with, live-life-with friend. Sure, Jim had had his share of drinking buddies, partying buddies, girlfriends, and one-night stands, but the list of people he could call friends, people he trusted, was short to the point of non-existence.
Jim was likeable. He was witty, sarcastic, amusing. A good time on a Friday night who was strong enough to carry that party over till Saturday. He was the man you called when you needed to get rip-roaring drunk, when you wanted a buddy to forget with and a night you'd never remember. He was reckless and confident, care free, always up for anything. He was the ultimate ladies man—you know the one…The one who could get every girl for himself, but never forgot his duties as wingman. He was up for anything. He was friendly, but friendless.
And until Bones, his isolation had been his choice.
Jim learned early on, when his mother chose Starfleet over her children, when his stepfather used him as his own personal punching bag, that he was better off relying only on himself. Circumstance made him strong, necessity made him independent. He had no choice but to stand on his own two feet, but he was never one to simply do what was asked. He took his life into his own hands and took flight, never once stopping to think that his flight didn't have to be solo.
It never occurred to him that relationships didn't have to be temporary. But then again, none in his life so far had been permanent, and the kid was a genius. He wasn't going to look for things that his experience had proved to be nonexistent.
So Jim ran his life in the fast lane. Flying solo at mock 10. Being the boy, the man, everyone wanted to be friends with, but never hanging around long enough to be a friend. He made himself irresistible, then did his best to cover his back so he wouldn't get burned.
But then he met Bones.
When the doctor McCoy had sat next to him on the shuttle, griping and grousing about space, Jim had expected nothing more from the relationship than the usual. Hi-how-ya-doin, let's-grab-a-drink-sometime, see-you-never. But Bones had stuck around.
The doctor had taken Jim's sky-high attitude in stride and stayed long enough to get to know the kid behind the personality. He had cut through Jim's crap like it was just that—crap—and had taken to stitching him up when his crap left Jim in pieces, which was more often than not.
Jim didn't know when his acquaintance-ship with Bones began to make the transition from one of his usual relationships to something deeper, something more like genuine friendship, but Bones could tell you that it happened incrementally, and that it started with the nickname, Bones, and continued to grow through nights of drunken conversations and days of memorable adventures.
As for Jim, he simply realized one day that he would give his life for Bones, and he knew that Bones would return the favor without hesitation.
No, until Bones, Jim Tiberius Kirk had never had a friend. But once he did, being the genius that he was, he began to realize that maybe, just maybe, his flight didn't have to be entirely solo.
Please let me know what you think! :)