Butter? Check. Granulated sugar? Check. Brown sugar? Check. Vanilla? Check. Eggs? Check. All-purpose flour? Check. Baking soda? Check. Salt? Check. Chocolate chips? Check. Am I an unskilled cook, but am I going to try anyways? Check and check.
When Felicity Pike was assigned to write her dissertation on twentieth century baking methods, she was nonetheless excited to study a concept she could take a hands on approach to. As a historian in training, her research was reduced to analyzing historical documents and handling archival material. History was a subject that allowed more of a retroactive look of the past. But, to be able to experience twentieth century methods first hand was something that Felicity could not wait to experience herself. To get a more fulfilling experience, she even made arrangements with her fellow archivist, Tyler, to use the twentieth century stylized kitchen located in the Kelvin Archives. It was virtually untouched for many years, but, nonetheless, remained in pristine condition.
For her dissertation, Felicity focused on recipes conceived by the popular cooking icon Betty Crocker. Even though, it was a brand that originated from the early twentieth century, it still remained just as prominent in the cooking industry of the twenty-third century as it was back then. After some thinking, Felicity settled on a recipe for chocolate chip cookies titled Extraordinary Chocolate Chip Cookies. Evidently, the addition of the word Extraordinary was to make the recipe sound more appealing compared to other competing recipes of the time. Felicity only hoped her rendition of the cookies would live up to their name. However, now as she stared at the tools and cooking materials sitting on the marble countertop, Felicity was suddenly very hesitant. Because, in spite of her excitement, she wasn't a very good cook.
In fact, Felicity was a terrible cook. And, it didn't matter what century the kitchen was stylized as. Just last week, Felicity almost burned her father's apartment down. But, to be fair, her five year old son, Thomas, was distracting her in the worst way possible. Ever since her husband passed away four years ago, raising Thomas all by herself failed to be easy. After all these years, she finally understood what it was like to be her father decorated Starfleet Admiral Christopher Pike. He too, was a widow. A widow who was left alone to raise a ten year old girl. Thankfully, her father wasn't going to leave her alone in raising her son. When Felicity's husband passed, Christopher Pike welcomed his daughter and grandson back home with open arms. However, in recent days, Felicity was forced to question her place in her father's household since she almost set it ablaze all thanks to her energetic little boy.
A week ago from today, she had drawn a bath for Thomas. She even placed numerous toy starships in the tub to keep him occupied. She realized how wrong she was as soon as she heard a small boy giggling in the near distance as she stood over a hot stove. When she turned around, she payed witness to her son's naked behind as he ran straight across the living room and then to as many rooms located in the apartment as possible. It wasn't long before her motherly instincts kicked in convincing Felicity to chase after him.
Consequently, the ordeal made Felicity forget completely about what was cooking over a hot flame on the stove. And, since Thomas was small, speedy, and slippery, it had taken her longer than usual to catch him.
Eventually, the smoke detectors installed in the apartment went off due to the mass of smoke that filled the kitchen and living room. Luckily, her father, Christopher Pike, joined by James T. Kirk, were standing just a couple of feet outside the apartment door when they both heard the beeping that emerged from the smoke detectors. They both frantically ran inside the apartment where they were welcomed by a grey cloud of smoke.
"Felicity! Thomas!" Pike shouted searching the apartment for his daughter and grandson. While Pike searched for his family, Kirk endeavored to find the location of the smoke. He discovered that the smoke stemmed from the kitchen and immediately doused out the flames with a nearby fire extinguisher.
Once everything calmed down and the smoke cleared, Pike had found Felicity and Thomas safe and sound in Pike's bedroom. Felicity sat on her father's bed doused in spots of water with a wet Thomas locked horizontally in her arms. Fortunately, she managed to wrap her son in a blanket before anyone else could see his naked frame. Being the little boy that he was, Thomas was undisturbed by the ordeal. The expression on his face showed perfectly well how proud of himself he was for running butt naked in the apartment while Felicity couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed.
But, as soon as Felicity saw that Kirk was there too, she moved from feeling a little embarrassed to feeling entirely red in the face. She was only just getting used to his presence again. They hadn't seen each other in five years. It was already more than a surprise when she accidentally came across him in a hotel bar situated near Starfleet headquarters. Plus, she wouldn't have come across Jim if Thomas hadn't managed to wander off. Thomas always seemed to get her into the most peculiar situations.
It was just her luck that James T. Kirk would be in the correct vicinity when she managed to mess things up. She could only imagine what he thought of her in that moment with Thomas trapped between her arms and smoke filling the apartment. He probably thought she was an unfit mother. And, that she was someone he would never want to have children with.
Wait, what am I thinking? Felicity thought. Kirk has no interest in settling down. And, if he did, why would he have any interest in me? Back at the Academy, I was just someone who did bookwork for him at the Archives.
Felicity shut her eyes and shook her head to rid her mind of James T. Kirk. She needed to focus on the task in front of her. "I need to get started," she said out loud wrapping her red apron around her waist to finally begin.
After thirty minutes of preparation, Felicity was finally done with the bulk of the baking process. The chocolate chip cookies were in the oven and now all she had to do was wait. To pass the time, she chose to do a bit of cleaning starting with the countertop of the kitchen island. It was covered in flour dust requiring Felicity to retrieve a wet rag to wipe the counter. As she wiped, she heard the sound of the elevator doors open.
"Hello, Tyler," Felicity said expecting to hear a greeting from her fellow archivist.
"Who's Tyler?"
Felicity stilled knowing full well it wasn't her coworker. When she looked up she was greeted with the smile and baby blue eyes of the man she had embarrassed herself in front of only days ago.
"Jim," she looked down at the rag she held in her hands twisting it within her fingers. "What are you doing here?"
"That's how you greet someone you haven't seen in over a week?" he asked with a soft smile, unknowingly, causing Felicity to have butterflies in her stomach. Jim walked further into the room stopping behind the kitchen island.
He was clean-shaven, outfitted in his gray dress uniform, and he had his traditional peaked cap tucked inside of his arm. For a brief moment, she looked down at her own dress of a yellow t-shirt, jeans, and a red apron. She realized just how underdressed she was compared to him.
"Right…" she continued to fiddle with the rag in her hands. "I guess it has been awhile," she said forcing a smile of her own.
For one thing, Felicity knew for a fact that it had been quite some time since she saw Jim. For crying out loud, it was all she could think about. Especially since, she was actively avoiding him. She didn't want to humiliate herself in front of him again which, in her eyes, logically meant she had to avoid him. She even went out of her way to hide behind book shelves, cabinets and her fellow co-workers when Jim just happened to walk her way. Amazingly, he had been in the Archives several times this week, so she was running out of places to hide. She even made arrangements to have her secretary Nancy provide a story stating that Felicity was spending time researching with her fellow archivist, Tyler. But, now, it seemed all her efforts to avoid him failed. It was good while it lasted.
Jim looked at her narrowly, "Is everything okay?" He noticed that she avoided his gaze and her smile wasn't the way it should be. Something was wrong.
"No, nothing is wrong," she said with another forced smile. "Everything is fine." Felicity returned back to the counter rubbing it down harder than before.
Sure, Jim thought. He took a seat situated at the counter and placed his cap down on the table-top. He had enough experience with women to know full well that when a woman said things were "fine" that was far from the truth. Especially, when that woman was Felicity Pike. She was never good at lying. He knew that from an experience he had several years ago, when he begged Felicity to lie for him. It required Felicity to make up a story as to why he didn't call her roommate, Ariel, after a date that ended with Felicity locked out of her own room the entire night.
As she was an unskilled liar, Felicity told Ariel Jim didn't call her because he was spending most of his time in the Archives filing. This lead to Jim having to spend time in the Archives for three weeks in order to make Felicity's story sound convincing. And, luckily, Ariel lost interest in Jim by the end of those three weeks and moved on.
Nowadays, Jim cringed at the actions he participated in during the earlier days of his youth. That was the 'Old Jim'. Nowadays, he was a different man. Being in space for five years allowed him to mature and see that he wasn't invincible or forever young. He realized it every time he looked in the mirror. Especially, as he had the scars, wrinkles and incoming grey hairs to prove it.
Ever since he came back to Earth several weeks ago, he was reminded of all the things he missed by being away from home for so long. Sure, he was able to explore places in the universe that mimicked the characteristics of Earth, but they were no match for the real thing. The blue skies, the sunset, the sunrise, the moon, the people and the women were irreplaceable.
Even more so, when Jim exited the San Francisco shuttle to see his crew members greeted by their families, something stirred inside of him. It must be nice having someone to go home to, thought Jim as he picked up his luggage and caught a taxi. The Feeling he felt in that instant was an emotion he hadn't felt since he laid eyes on the Enterprise for the first time. And, The Feeling managed to go away. At least for a while it did.
The Feeling came back two weeks later, when Jim sat alone drinking in a bar. Well, he was drinking alone, until a small boy planted himself on the barstool one seat over from his.
That particular Sunday night, the bar located across the street from Starfleet headquarters was relatively quiet. Smooth jazz was playing on the speakers and customers were scarce except for Jim, the bartender, and an elderly couple situated in a booth by the door. The restaurant across the hall was way more packed and loud compared to the bar. From what Jim could see, the restaurant was bought out for the night and a party was being held with plenty of cadets in attendance. Don't they have studying to do? Jim thought to himself only realizing seconds later the words he just conjured up. Jim pinched the bridge of his nose, "Oh, man, am I getting old," he said before taking another sip from his scotch. Jim noticed that his glass was almost empty and called for the bartender to refill his drink. Once it was filled again he did not hesitate to take another swallow of the liquid.
As he swallowed his scotch, Jim caught a glimpse of his reflection in the bar mirror. He caught another look of the outfit he laid out for himself that morning. His dirty blonde hair was brushed to the side and he was wearing his timeless classic black leather jacket, a white V-neck t-shirt, and blue jeans. He also had a Starfleet insignia pin attached to the leather, he couldn't leave home without it. He also allowed his facial hair to grow which produced a shadow of what would hopefully become a full grown beard.
Without a doubt, Jim's face differed from what it looked like on the Enterprise. Growing a beard violated Starfleet dress code policies so growing a beard while on leave was something new for Jim to experience. But, it contrasted with the rest of Jim's look for the night. It made him look older. Jim couldn't help but wonder if he was getting too old for his leather jacket and jeans. Jim cringed and smothered his face in the palms of his hands realizing again his pessimistic thoughts.
Regretfully, being off a Starship for a period of weeks gave Jim too much time to think. It gave Jim too much time to think about where he was in his life. He really began to miss the conflicts he had on missions making first contact with various alien species. Jim would rather deal with Klingons and Andorians than contemplate his personal life. Jim was pushing thirty-six and he was still single. No wife. No kid. If he left this world what was he leaving behind? What exactly would his legacy be? Those were the types of questions that entered Jim's psyche when he didn't have a Starship to take care of.
After he was done wallowing in self-contemplation, he reached for his scotch. He poured the bitter liquid down his throat. Without meaning to, he glanced at the bar mirror again. Suddenly, his eyes went wide and he choked on his drink. He coughed several times to recover from the liquid caught in his throat. When he recovered three little words crossed his mind, What the hell?
The reason why Jim had such a dramatic reaction was because one seat over to the left of him, sat a little boy with brown hair dressed in a tuxedo. Jim was almost sure he was imagining things. The image in the mirror couldn't possibly be real.
"Here's your water, Kid," said the bartender, who placed a glass in front of the boy. A light sparkled in the boy's eyes, "Thank you!" he exclaimed. A large smile appeared on the child's face before he sipped his water through the straw provided for him. It was clear the little boy enjoyed his drink as he kicked his small legs back and forth in midair.
No, the kid is definitely real, Jim concluded. Out of all the sights Jim witnessed off Earth, the image of a child sitting at a bar certainly outweighed anything he saw off world. Jim chuckled to himself, If only Bones could see this.
Jim's chuckles caught the attention of the little boy who turned his gaze to the grown man seated one seat over from him. The boy stopped kicking his legs. "Hi," said the boy with a straw filled mouth.
"Hi?" Jim returned more as an inquiry than a greeting.
"My name's Thomas, what's yours?"
"Um…" Jim looked around the bar. He was waiting for a disgruntled parent to enter the room at any moment. No parent entered. "I'm Jim," he finally said.
"It's nice to meet yuh, Jim," Thomas held out his small hand for Jim to take, however, Jim hesitated in acknowledging the child's friendliness. Jim was not used to being around children. He rarely came across them. He didn't have a distaste for them he just didn't know the first thing about them.
"Come on, I don't bite." Thomas smiled again purposely showcasing his toothless grin.
Jim gave a small laugh, "I suppose you're right." He then reached for Thomas' small hand shaking it in return. It didn't feel strange shaking Thomas' hand like Jim thought it would be. Instead it felt welcoming. As he made eye contact with Thomas, Jim noticed that the boy had a distinct pair of honey colored eyes. The color was oddly familiar, but Jim could not recall where he had seen the color before.
"Is that a Starfleet pin?" Thomas asked with eyes glued to Jim's Starfleet insignia.
"Yeah…"Jim was surprised the kid took notice of his attire especially something as small as a pin. "I take it you've seen one before." Jim assumed.
"Yup," Thomas said proudly. "My grandpa has one just like it. Sometimes he lets me wear it. Are you a captain too?"
"Yeah…"
"Cool!" Thomas said with genuine excitement. "What's the name of your ship?"
"The Enterprise."
"'The Enterprise'? That's such a cool name. How fast does she go?"
"She's the fastest ship in the fleet."
"Really? No way!" The boy's eyes were wide and he sat slack jawed in awe as if he could not believe such a ship existed.
"Yes, way." Jim warmly smiled at Thomas. Sometimes Jim felt as if his life was on repeat. He was getting used to his daily routine of being in deep space, getting into diplomatic conflicts and surviving to live another day. It was more than refreshing for Jim to witness someone else be genuinely excited about his lifestyle. It was even more refreshing to see that it was a child getting excited about it. Jim only wished he himself maintained that childlike excitement. Jim wanted to see more of it from Thomas, but knew he needed to do the responsible thing and ask Thomas where his parents were.
"Thomas," Jim began. "If you don't mind me asking, where are your parents?"
Without turning around, Thomas raised his arm and pointed across the hall. Jim followed Thomas' hand which was directed to the noisy restaurant. "My mom and grandpa are over there."
Jim took note that Thomas didn't mention his father, "What about your dad? Where is he?"
"Um," Thomas kept his eyes cast down to the counter. He played with the ice that remained in his glass. There was a sudden change in Thomas' happy demeanor. "I don't have one."
A silence encroached upon the two. Jim did not expect to hear such sad words. Particularly, because Thomas' words reminded Jim too much of himself. Jim knew exactly what it was like to not have a father. Ever since he was a small boy, Jim always wondered what the experience would feel like. As an adult, Jim imagined the experience was a lot like when he first met his mentor Christopher Pike. Jim first met his mentor in a bar in Riverside, Iowa. The meeting wasn't at all formal. Instead, it was quite the opposite. Jim had managed to get into a fight with four Starfleet cadets. It was a fight that Jim was practically losing. Luckily, Pike called the cadets off just before they could bash more of Jim's face in. At the time, Jim had no interest in Starfleet whatsoever despite both of his parents Winona and George Kirk having prestigious Starfleet careers. Actually, the history of Jim's parents were the main reason why Jim stayed away from Starfleet for so long. Especially since, Jim's father died in the line of duty while serving on the U.S.S. Kelvin.
On the day of his father's death, George Kirk was abruptly promoted to Captain of the Kelvin after the murder of his superior. During that short time of twelve minutes, George Kirk saved over eight-hundred members of the Kelvin's crew from a rogue Romulan vessel. Those eight-hundred lives included Winona and George Kirk's new born son, James T. Kirk. Because of that particular fact, it wasn't hard for Jim to have no interest in enlistment. But, that night in Iowa, Pike managed to sit Jim down and convince him otherwise. All it took for Pike to convince Jim was with the use of a simple dare. A dare that challenged Jim to do better than his heroic late father. Evidently, Jim knew it was not going to be an easy task. But, Jim accepted the challenge anyway. He could either live up to his father's legacy or surpass it and make his own. As far as Jim knew, he didn't have anything to lose. And, although they were practically strangers, Jim felt Christopher Pike had a lot of faith in him. Jim had difficulty remembering the last time someone had faith in him. It also didn't hurt that Pike had called Jim "son" during their conversation. In doing so, Pike granted Jim a small glimpse of what it must feel like to have a father.
"I'm sorry, Thomas." Jim said sincerely looking at the boy directly.
"Don't be," Thomas presented Jim with another smile, "I'm happy with my mom and grandpa." This time when Thomas smiled his eyes were not as bright as they were before. Jim felt terrible for bringing up the boy's father. Jim wished to focus back on finding Thomas' mother and grandfather. "Do they know you're here?" Jim attempted to change their conversation to a more comfortable topic. To answer Jim's question, Thomas first nodded his head, but paused halfway to change his nod to a shake.
Jim was now curious, "What made you come over here?"
"It was too loud over there and there were too many people," Thomas started to play with his straw. "I said I was thirsty, but no one was listening. So, I came here. I like this place better." He grinned and kicked his tiny legs.
Jim gave Thomas a subtle smile, for some reason, Jim was glad to hear that Thomas enjoyed being around him. Even though it was a short amount of time, Jim had to admit that he was a bit charmed by the kid. However, no matter how much Jim liked Thomas, he knew that he needed to return Thomas back to his mother and grandfather.
"Look, Thomas, I think it's time we look-"
"Thomas, what are you doing?" said a female voice strewn with concern.
"Oh no," said Thomas with bug eyes and stilled movements. "I gotta go." Thomas jumped down from his stool and ran quickly to the entrance of the bar.
Jim followed the direction Thomas took. Even though the lighting was dim, Jim could see the frame of what looked to be an attractive brunette dressed in a silver dress. When Thomas finally met the woman she bent down to her knees to be face to face with him. Due to her body language, Jim could see that she was chastising Thomas as she wagged her finger at him. It wasn't easy for Jim to hear as they were close enough to the restaurant across the hall. Thomas had his hands in his pockets and his eyes were cast to the floor. Guilt started to creep its way into Jim's chest. He couldn't help but feel that he was partially responsible for Thomas getting in trouble. He should have attempted to find Thomas' parents much sooner rather than get caught in conversation with the boy. I need to make things right, Jim got up from his seat and prepped himself in the mirror by adjusting his jacket and hair. He was going to use the diplomatic skills he developed as a captain to get a little boy out of trouble with his mother. Wow, I have come a long way from Klingons. Yet, as Jim walked closer to Thomas and his mother. Something about her seemed strangely familiar.
"Thomas, you can't wander off like that, I was worried sick."
Where have I heard that voice before? Jim stopped behind the woman. The dim lighting didn't lie. Thomas' mother was a brunette dressed in a silver gown. Jim could feel himself begin to recognize her. It was like he was almost done putting together a jigsaw puzzle, but the last piece was somewhere out of reach. Jim needed to see her face.
"But, I was thirsty," Thomas said with a pout. "No one was listening. You ignored me."
Thomas' mother paused as if she realized her mistake, "Honey," she said calmly. "I'm sorry," she caressed her son's cheek. "Mommy was distracted. But, all good things come in good time. Next time be patient. Understand?"
Thomas nodded obediently. He was then pulled into his mother's arms for an embrace. Once they were finished, Thomas' mother placed Thomas' hand in her own, "Now let's get back to Grandpa'."
Jim began to panic as he was about to miss the opportunity to discover who the woman was.
"Excuse me Ma'am," Jim said without thinking, "I'm James T.-"
Once again Jim was unable to finish speaking as he was met with the honey colored eyes of a woman he hadn't seen in years. He finally found the missing piece to his jigsaw puzzle.
"Felicity?" he said, fixated on the image of his old friend dressed in a silver dress with her brown locks flowing. Jim looked back at Felicity and then back at Thomas whose hand lied in her own. Suddenly, a strong warmth enveloped its way into Jim's chest. The Feeling he thought he lost came back. Roaring itself back to life like the engines of The Enterprise.
Today, as Jim sat in front of Felicity the Feeling didn't wane. Rather, it managed to burn even stronger. Felicity managed to stoke the flames with the sweat that glistened her forehead, her red tinted cheeks, the patches of flour dust on her face, and the strands of brown hair that escaped the constraints of her hair tie. She looked better than all the girls Jim had managed to dally with over the years. Felicity looked better than all of them. She wasn't pretending to be something she wasn't. She was just herself. She was just being Felicity. And, that's what Jim adored the most about her.
"Why are you here, Jim?" she managed to say without a glance or smile towards him. Weirdly, she seemed to be more interested in the rag that lied in her hands.
Jim began to shift uncomfortably, fingering the tools that lied on the counter, "Well, I wanted-"
"Jim," a sigh escaped Felicity's lips. "If this about you needing help with research, I'm sorry, but I really don't have the time right now." Felicity now moved on from the rag to focus on the dirty utensils laid out on the counter. Jim's eyes followed Felicity's every movement. He was perplexed by how she was transitioning from one thing in the kitchen to another. From the sink to the counter to the oven again, Felicity was nonstop in her movements. If only she could stand still.
"No," he shook his head, "that isn't what I came here for. Look I-"
He was interrupted again, but, this time it was by the sound of the oven alerting both of them that its contents were done cooking.
"Sorry," Felicity said again tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear as she looked from Jim and back to the oven. "I have to take care of this…"
"No, don't mind me, " Jim said continuing to observe Felicity from where he sat. She was finally slowing down her pace as she reached for nearby oven mitts to slip them on her hands. She opened the oven door and reached for the metal cookie sheet. As she pulled the sheet Felicity took notice of how well the cookies seemed to be. They were golden at their sides establishing that the cookies were fully cooked. Maybe I'm not such a terrible cook after all, she began to think to herself. However, during the short time she admired her cookies, a burning sensation stung the fingertips of her left hand. Felicity bit her bottom lip to seal her mouth from screeching in pain. But, even though, she was able to silence herself from voicing her pain she could not contain the clash that erupted between the cookie sheet and the stove top as she dropped the metal from her hand.
Jim was alerted by the clash. His mind went back to what happened in Christopher Pike's apartment the other day. Instinctually, Jim came to Felicity's side making sure to turn the oven off prior to reaching for her hand. "You burned yourself didn't you?"
Felicity pulled away before Jim could make physical contact. "No," she lied as pain overcame the tips of her fingers. She gritted her teeth, "I had oven mitts on."
"They must have been defective," he attempted to reach for her again only to have her pull away from him once more. Jim sighed in frustration, "Felicity, you're hurt let me help."
"No, I can handle it," she turned her back to him again.
Sure you can, Jim decided he had about enough of her denying his help. Rather than wait for her to attend to her wounds, Jim quickly moved to turn on the sink Felicity was positioned in front of. As the water flowed, Jim made sure the temperature was lukewarm. It was the perfect temperature for cooling burns.
Felicity was taken aback by Jim's actions. As soon as his chest came in contact with her backside, her body froze, her breathing stilled and her heart beat increased. In her eyes, everything appeared as if it were happening in slow motion. He gently wrapped his fingers around the wrist of her hand. The skin of her wrist began to tingle where he touched. Had he ever been this close before?
"Keep your hand under the stream," his breathe felt warm against her neck. "It should stay under the water for several minutes. It looks like you'll be getting some blisters." Her heart was thumping so loud that she couldn't process what he was telling her. All she could focus on was how close he was.
"Doesn't that feel better?" Jim asked as the coolness of the water finally awoke her from her trance. Felicity turned her head to look back at him, but his eyes remained cast down to the faucet. "Yeah," she managed to say. She hoped the flour on her face covered the flush of her cheeks, "Thanks."
"No need to thank me," Jim spoke as he still kept his eyes cast down. "I'm just glad you're finally standing still."
"Right," she said while thinking, It's not like you're giving me much of a choice. Last time she checked, his chest still remained in contact with her backside, his fingers remained on her wrist, and his breathe still warmed the nape of her neck. And, she remained paralyzed like a bunny hiding from a fox in the wild.
She then turned her head again to catch a glimpse of him. As she turned her head, their eyes finally met for the second time that day. Blue eyes met brown eyes provoking a silence to erupt between the two of them. Jim suddenly felt pressure to pull away from her. Without intending to, he took in her apple cinnamon scent. It was practically intoxicating and paralyzing. Jim found himself in a frozen state as he held on to Felicity's wrist. All he wanted was to help her wounded fingers. He never intended to be this close to her letting temptation set in. And, to his disappointment, he managed to pull away, in spite of his heart telling him otherwise. He leaned back on the counter behind him, arms folded and legs crossed. Jim aimed to project the image of well-maintained composure. He needed to say something to fill the silence.
"So, you never did answer my question," Jim said.
"Pardon?" Felicity was confused. What exactly was he referring to?
It seemed like he needed to refresh her memory, "'Who is Tyler?'" he asked again. Oh, great, Jim just realized he sounded like a jealous boyfriend. He immediately regretted his choice of words, but it was a topic he was more than curious about.
For the past week, Jim had made arrangements to see Felicity at the Kelvin Archives during his off hours from Starfleet HQ. He had hoped to ask Felicity out for coffee, but whenever he asked to see if she was in her office Jim was told by her secretary that she was off researching with someone named Tyler. Day by day, Jim had gotten a little bit more frustrated every time he heard that name whenever he stopped at the front desk. He wanted to see Felicity and Tyler was getting in the way.
Through Christopher Pike, Jim discovered Felicity would be in the basement of the Kelvin Archives today working on her dissertation. He was lucky to have caught her after a week of never being able to see her. However, when the first thing that came out of her mouth was the name Tyler, Jim couldn't help but feel covetous. So, when he asked the question "Who is Tyler?" Jim wanted to know more about the man she spent so much time with. What was he to her? Was he her friend? Was he her boyfriend? Jim recoiled at the idea of Felicity being involved with someone else.
"Tyler?" she repeated furrowing her brow. "Um…" she tried to remember. Who exactly was Tyler? Felicity looked around the kitchen for a visual cue to refresh her memory. Jim managed to make her so flustered that her memory was fuzzy. A moment passed before she recalled the missing information. Tyler! Tyler was the one who helped her reserve the kitchen for her dissertation. Tyler was just a co-worker. Yes, a co-worker. That's all.
"Tyler is a co-worker," she finally said aloud.
"A co-worker?" Jim was aware that it was more than easy for co-workers to become romantically involved with another. Hell, Jim's science officer and communication's officer were romantically involved with one another. Jim practically knew better than anyone else the way in which ship and office romances developed. "Is that all?" he pushed for more information.
"Yes, why do you ask?"
"I've just noticed you've been spending a lot of time with Tyler."
Felicity looked down and shuffled her feet, "Right," Jim just reminded her of the lie Felicity told her secretary to make.
Another moment of silence took place between the two. Felicity was contemplating whether she should tell Jim the truth while Jim contemplated whether he should bite the bullet and ask Felicity upfront about her relationship with Tyler. Jim was the first one to speak.
"Are you sure you're not in a relationship with Tyler?" He chose to bite the bullet.
Felicity blinked, "What?"
"Are you sure Tyler's not your boyfriend?" Now, he chose to be more specific.
Felicity laughed. Did Felicity hear that correctly? Boyfriend? Where did Jim get that idea? She withdrew her laugh as soon as she saw the expression on Jim's face. His expression was not one of amusement. "No," she cleared her throat. "Trust me, Tyler and I are just friends." But, even with her honest answer, Jim did not lose his serious expression. Did she need to give him proof? "You don't believe me?" she questioned.
Jim was silent with his stare fixed on her.
Fine, Felicity walked over to the communicator stationed by the elevator. She pressed the communications button with the index finger of her good hand. "Nancy, can you send Tyler down here with a med kit please?"
"Sure thing, Ms. Pike," replied Nancy.
"Thank you."
Within two minutes, the elevator signaled that Tyler was coming down to present the med kit to Felicity. When the doors opened, an olive skinned woman dressed in the atypical black uniform for Archive staff exited the elevator. "Hello, Ms. Pike," said the woman. "Nancy said you needed a med kit?"
"Yes, that is correct, Tyler," Felicity said greeting her co-worker with a smile. "Can you place it on the counter, please?"
As Jim watched the exchange between the two co-workers, he hadn't realized before that Tyler was a woman. As far as he knew, Felicity was into men. His suspicions were wrong. Jim felt like an idiot.
"Tyler have you met Captain James T. Kirk?"
When he heard his name pass from Felicity's lips, Jim removed himself from his slack-jawed state.
"No, I haven't had the pleasure," Tyler put herself in formation for a salute. "It is an honor to meet you, Captain."
As a formality, Kirk returned a salute back, "Likewise."
"That will be all Tyler," Felicity said. "Thank you again." And, with that the elevator doors closed signaling Tyler's departure.
"Well, go on say it," Jim said in defeat.
"Say what?" she placed one hand on her hip. "You want me to say that Tyler can be both a girl's and a boy's name or the fact that girls aren't my thing?" she said teasingly.
"Felicity," he shook his head, "I don't know why I thought you would be…" he was lost for words.
"In a relationship," she finished his sentence. "It's okay," she said kindly. "I think we've both managed to make ourselves look like fools." Felicity lifted her hand to display her scorched fingertips.
Jim gave a heartfelt laugh, "Speaking of which," he reached for her hand. This time she didn't pull away. When his fingers brushed against hers, a tingling sensation ran along her skin. "We should bandage these up."
Instead of speaking, Felicity watched as Jim reached for the med kit provided by Tyler. With one hand he opened the kit and retrieved three Band-Aids, one for each fingertip. He spaced her fingers out individually. He was intent on not hurting her. He began first with her index finger then her middle and then her ring finger. As he was finishing up, he noticed the skin below the knuckle of her ring finger was much paler than the rest of her hand. She wasn't wearing her wedding ring.
"Something tells me you've done this before," Felicity said.
Her voice caused Jim to look up from her hand and back up at her face. "Let's just say," he said with a curve of his lips. "I've tried to avoid going to Med-Bay so Bones couldn't stick his needles in me and hold his stupid tricorder in my face."
"Let me guess, Leonard still finds you every time?"
There was more than one occasion in which Jim avoided his chief medical officer, Leonard McCoy, after a visit to a new planet. However, McCoy always seemed to stick to Jim with his tricorder like a moth to a flame. He just didn't go away. Jim sighed and slumped his shoulders, "Every-single-time."
Felicity laughed, "Thomas is the same way. He hates going to the doctor."
"Smart kid," Jim smiled at the thought of her five year old son. "By the way, how is Thomas?" The last time Jim saw Thomas, the little boy was wrapped in a blanket within his mother's arms after a more than chaotic event. Thomas' behavior was reminiscent of the way Jim behaved in his younger days although Jim was a lot more rebellious in his actions.
"Well, he doesn't like baths very much, he runs around a lot, he does the opposite of what I say and he hates eating his vegetables…"
"So, your average five year old boy?"
Felicity paused and pondered what Jim said before speaking again, "Yup."
This time they both managed to share a laugh. The awkward atmosphere that occurred between them before vanished into thin air. Now, they seemed to be quite comfortable with one another.
"That's good to hear," Jim said finishing up the bandaging of her ring finger.
"Jim?"
Yes?"
"Since you asked me a question, I think it's only fair I ask you one in return,"
"Shoot."
"Okay, 'Why are you here?''"
He looked at her with a side glance as if he didn't expect to hear that question.
"You didn't answer my question either," she said shyly. Felicity wasn't sure what she wanted to hear from Jim's lips. She merely wanted to continue their conversation. That was all they were doing right? Having a conversation?
"I…wanted to see you," he said apprehensively eyes still focused on her hand.
Of all the answers Jim could have given her, that answer was not what she expected to hear. Even more so, Jim's manner of speaking was unfamiliar to her. If she didn't know any better, Felicity could almost say that Jim was nervous. Felicity could have sworn that James Tiberius Kirk didn't get nervous. He was the one who made people nervous. People like Felicity, for example.
He continued to speak, "Like I said, I haven't seen you in over a week. I wanted to go out for coffee. And, talk about things…"
She tilted her head to the side, "What things?" Felicity's curiosity suddenly replaced her shyness. It had been sometime since she last had a real moment to speak to Jim. Partially, that was her fault. She didn't know spending time with her meant that much to him.
"Anything you want to talk about. Starfleet, your research, Thomas, your dad, anything you want…"
"Jim," the corners of her lips rose, "that sounds wonderful."
Jim smiled broadly, "I'm glad you like the idea."
"But, I have to be honest with you," she said, using her hand to wipe away some of the flour dust that remained on her cheek. Plenty of dust still remained.
"Okay…" Jim spoke hesitantly. He took a step back from her, granting her enough space to tell him the words he disdained to hear. He took in a deep breath, she was about to reject him; he could sense it.
"There isn't an easy way to say this-" she began. It definitely sounded like she was going to reject him. It wasn't as if Jim had never experienced being turned down before. This was just the one girl he wanted to say yes.
"I was never researching with Tyler," she said.
"What?" It was now Jim's turn to be confused.
"That was just an excuse I told Nancy to use to make it seem as if I was busy. I'm sorry for making you think anything else. I didn't think you cared to spend time with me," Felicity began to pace back and forth in the small space of the kitchen. "After I stupidly started that fire the other day, I felt so embarrassed. Usually, when it comes to me making mistakes, I don't think much of them. But, when I saw that you were there, I couldn't help but feel that way…I was so dumb…So stupid for leaving a stove on fire. What Mother does that? What was I thinking? For Pete's sake, I burned myself making cookies just moments ago. Cookies of all things." Felicity looked down at the cookies that slipped within the burners of the stove. Several of them had evolved from whole pieces of cookie to bits of pieces. Felicity sighed in frustration, "And, now they are crumbs. They wouldn't have tasted good anyway."
She attempted to salvage the remains of what cookies were left. However, her movements were paused when another hand laid itself on her own. She turned to see Jim standing beside her. A small smile appeared on his face as he looked at her. Jim then took the pastry from her hand and slipped the pastry into his mouth. She widened her eyes at him as he chewed on the cookie. A soft moan escaped from his lips, "Felicity, this is delicious."
She ignored his compliment and shook her head trying to make sense of what he was doing, "I don't understand. You're not angry with me?"
He took another bite, "No."
"Why not?" Any other person would have been satisfied with Jim's answer. But, Felicity was not like anyone else.
He swallowed the last bit of the chocolate chip cookie before speaking. "Felicity May Pike," his use of her full name made her heart skip a beat. "You are not dumb. You are not stupid. All you've done is make a couple of mistakes. What mother-or better yet what person in the history of the world hasn't done the same?" Jim then tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, "You are a wonderful mother. Thomas is more than lucky to have you.
"Plus," his hand then caressed her cheek brushing off remaining flour dust, "you could never do anything to embarrass yourself in front of me."
Felicity found his words and touch to be comforting. With her bounded fingers, she reached for the masculine hand that caressed her cheek. "Thank you, Jim," she said as she closed her eyes to take in the full sense of his touch. His words were kind. "That means a lot to me."
As she had her eyes closed, Felicity had no way of knowing that Jim's eyes had fallen to her lips. He noticed how they were a beautiful shade of pink. He noticed the distinctive curve of her cupid's bow. He noticed how her lips weren't too thin or too thick. Felicity's lips were the perfect size to be kissed. All he had to do was lean in and press his lips to hers. That's all it would take. Just one little movement to give in to his feelings. Just. One. Little. Movement.
"You're not off the hook just yet," Jim urged himself to say as he pulled his hand down from her cheek. His hand returned safely to his side.
Jim wanted to take things slow. He wanted to do things the right way for once as this woman was different than all the rest. Felicity opened her eyes in response to the loss of Jim's touch. She could not deny that she missed the warmth of his hand.
"I believe you owe me a cup of coffee," he said with his signature smile.
Now, it seemed she was the one that would be stuck with the coffee bill. Felicity bit the inside of her cheek seeing Jim's smug expression from his small victory. Well, if he could be smug, Felicity could be smug too. "As long as you listen to me babble on and on about my dissertation," she folded her arms. "James Tiberius Kirk."
He held onto his cheeky grin, he liked the way his name slipped from her lips. He folded his own arms right back, "It would be my pleasure," he said not taking his eyes off of her, "Felicity May Pike."
Just like before, her heart managed to flutter at his utterance of her name making her smile. But, this time it was slow and languid while she glanced at him through lowered eyelashes. Jim was suddenly dead silent. He had never seen her make that kind of smile before. He had never seen her make that look before. It wasn't shy or apprehensive. It was the type of smile women made when they knew what they wanted. More specifically, it was the look women made when they knew for sure that they wanted him.
Abruptly, a soft ringing rang throughout the room interrupting the eye contact maintained between the two. Felicity was the first one to break their line of sight.
"Umm," Felicity said pointing to Jim's pants, "are you going to get that? "
"Sorry?" Jim questioned feeling his cheeks burn red.
"You're communicator. I believe it's ringing."
"Oh!" Jim exclaimed finally understanding what Felicity was talking about. He forgot he had his communicator in his pocket. He immediately went to retrieve it.
"Kirk here," Jim spoke into the device.
"Jim, where are you?" Jim instantly recognized that the voice belonged to his Senior Medical Officer. "I need you back at my office for your annual physical!"
Jim rolled his eyes, "I'm right across the street, Bones. I'll be right over."
"You better be," said the southern doctor jeeringly. "I hope you remembered to fast this morning because we have to do bloodwork. You remembered, right?"
Jim licked his lips remembering his consumption of Felicity's chocolate chip cookie, "Well…"
"Jim!"
Felicity had a feeling that Jim was going to receive an earful from McCoy. Rather than have Jim suffer Leonard's nagging, she went over to Jim to speak in the communicator herself.
"Hello, Leonard," she said sweetly.
"Felicity, darlin'? Is that you?"
'Darlin'? Did Jim hear that correctly? McCoy's tone of voice was no longer irritable rather it became much friendlier. It seemed Leonard's southern charm was kicking in.
"I'm sorry, Leonard," Felicity spoke into the speaker. "It was my fault. I was making cookies and Jim was helping me see if they tasted any good. I'm sorry for making him break his fast."
Leonard's southern accent became a lot more noticeable through the speaker, "Don't worry about it sweetheart, as long as he was helping you. I guess everything should be fine."
'Sweetheart'? Okay, that's it. "I'll see you in a few, Bones," Jim said impatiently closing his communicator despite McCoy's protest that could be heard through the line.
"You know Leonard's not going to like you hanging up on him either," Felicity said picking up Jim's grey cap.
"He doesn't like anything I do, but he puts up with me anyway," said Jim without adding what he was truly thinking, He was asking for it anyway.
"I can only imagine why," she said sarcastically before standing on the edge of her toes to place Jim's cap on his head. "Now," she fell back on her heels to begin playfully pushing him back towards the elevator. "You better get going before Leonard chews you out more in person than he did via communicator."
"Okay," Jim accepted without protest. He willingly walked himself into the elevator, but before he left he needed to make sure of one thing. "But," he said, using his hands to prevent the elevator doors from closing in on him. "Coffee? Tomorrow? After work? At Randall's?" he asked in fragments.
Felicity's cheeks dimpled and she nodded in approval, "Yes, definitely."
Jim returned a smile of his own and removed his hands from the doors. "Bring more of your delicious cookies," he called out a moment before the elevator doors closed.
Felicity giggled to herself and looked back at the chocolate chip cookies that fell from her cookie sheet. Maybe, she wasn't such a terrible cook after all.