Because luck continued to be on the side of James T. Kirk, the kid beat that damned test. Leonard stared at Jim in disbelief, watching as the kid swaggered around the simulation room. The voice above congratulated Jim on winning the simulation, and the doors were released. Jim was positively beaming as they exited the simulation room, and he tuned to give Leonard a large grin.

"Bones!" he exclaimed. "I told you I'd beat it!"

"What did you do?" Leonard demanded, grabbing his medical bag until his knuckles turned white. Jim only grinned wider, ignoring the death glares his fellow cadets were sending his direction. Both entered the locker room, although Jim all but bounced inside.

"Calm down, Bones," Jim told him, and took a seat on a bench. "I beat the hardest damn test at the academy, that's what I did!"

Leonard scowled. "You know what I meant."
 
The kid had the nerve to wink at him. "I'll tell you on our date. You're still going to hold your end of that bargain, right?"

"I told you I would take you out if you beat the test," Leonard replied, grabbing his cadet uniform from where he hung it. "I keep my promises. We'll go out on a date." Even as he said the words, he felt childish. He stepped out of the simulation uniform, not caring Jim was right beside him.

"Awesome." The rustle of clothing indicated Jim was doing the same. "This is new for me. I'm excited."

Leonard zipped his uniform and turned to Jim, who was finishing. Leonard cocked his head. "What's new?"

"I've never been on a date with a man before," Jim explained. "If we want to be completely honest, I've never been on an actual date."

Leonard sent Jim a surprised look. "You're kidding. I figured you were dating girls left and right as a teenager."

"Not really." Jim shrugged. "I took a few girls to the movies and maybe out to eat once or twice . . . but it wasn't something we planned. It just happened. You can teach me."

Both men exited the room, and Leonard took note that Jim was walking a little closer to him than normal. He wanted to tell Jim that he was just as nervous and excited – Leonard hadn't been on a date with another man either. Hell, he could count the number of people he had dated on one hand. Instead of voicing these worries, he cleared his throat. "I should let you know that I don't put out on the first date."

Jim lifted an eyebrow. Jesus, he'd just given the kid a challenge. "I guess it's a good thing we've already taken care of that."

"It also means you'll be waiting a while if you want more."

Blue eyes twinkled mischievously at him. "I think I can hold out." They stopped just short of the door, staring at one another intently. Jim broke the silence first. "Where are we going?"

"I don't know," Leonard admitted. "I actually didn't plan anything . . ."

Jim didn't look offended. "We don't have to do anything tonight, if you don't want. I'm good with anytime."

"We'll go tonight," Leonard insisted, racking his brain for ideas. He knew he couldn't just take Jim to a bar for a bite to eat and some drinks – that was what they always did. It was short notice, and he wasn't sure either of them had a ton of credits to waste on food.

"Do you want to go out to eat, or would you prefer to eat in?"
 
Jim looked as though he'd never even considered the option. "I don't know . . . Can you even cook?"
 
Leonard rolled his eyes. "What, you think the kitchenette in my room is there just to look pretty? Yes, Jim, I can cook." He left out the fact that he had nothing to cook with. That could be easily remedied.

"I'd like to try your cooking," Jim said, grinning up at Leonard once again. "Should I dress up for this?"

"If you want, but I'm not going to make it mandatory. I'll probably throw on something nice. Just don't make it fancy."

"I'll put away the suit, then," Jim teased, and he shifted from foot to foot. "What time do we want to do this . . .?"

This felt weird. He and Jim had never had a problem when it came to making plans. The majority of the time, Jim came over uninvited and had crashed on Leonard's couch more times than he cared to admit. Leonard ran his hands through his hair, and tilted his head slightly.

"How does 1900 sound? It'll give us an early start. We might make it to bed before three tonight."

Jim laughed. "Sounds great. I'll see you at 1900. Your dorm?"

Leonard nodded. "I'll meet you then." Jim bounded off to God knew where, leaving Leonard to his thoughts. He had a few hours to plan what he wanted to do for Jim; Leonard knew this had to be special. Not because it was owed, but because it was Jim. He began walking as he thought, and suddenly a thought struck him. Leonard grinned to himself.

Jim would never see it coming

There was no denying he was nervous about the date. It had been years since Leonard had been on a proper date; after the divorce, he hadn't wanted to get out much. There had been the girl he had taken out a few times during his first year, but they had never gone anywhere. The girl had been too pushy, not understanding that Leonard had only been divorced three months. She wanted a commitment, and Leonard had been unable to give that to her. Besides, she had also been brunette, and that reminded him too much of Jocelyn and Joanna.

Despite the nervous knot in the bottom of his stomach, he had a feeling Jim would enjoy what he had planned for him. It had taken a little convincing on Leonard's part to get permission, but he had approval and that was all that mattered.

A glance at the clock showed it was 1855, and Leonard made sure the finishing touches were in place. He had everything packed in a small container, with the food stored safely. Forks, spoons, sauce, food . . . Leonard ran through a mental list of everything he had. It seemed to be in place.

At 1900 hours exactly, the door alarmed. "Come in!" Leonard called from inside, and the door whooshed to allow Jim entrance. Despite having seen Jim in his civvies before, Leonard had to admit the boy could look great when he wanted to. Jim flashed him a small, nervous smile and shoved his hands in his front pockets.

"You look good," Jim said first, running his blue eyes over Leonard's outfit. Unconsciously, Leonard looked down at himself, suddenly feeling awkward in his clothing.

"You don't look bad yourself," he complimented, not knowing what else to say. Jim rolled his eyes in a playful manner, before walking over to Leonard and pecking him on the cheek. Leonard knew his cheeks were red – he could feel them burning. Jim laughed quietly.

"You smell good too. Like soap and aftershave and other . . . clean things."

"That's because I showered." Leonard arched an eyebrow on him, and backed away from Jim before his hormones got the best of him. If he had his way, they'd never leave the apartment. Maybe this hadn't been such a great idea.

"Whatever you cooked smells great, Bones," Jim said, sniffing the air. "When do we eat?"

Leonard matched his grin. "You'll see when we get there. We're not eating here."

Jim cocked his head in confusion. "I thought we were staying in?"

"Sort of. You'll see." Leonard tossed Jim an old quilt, which Jim caught. Blue eyes blinked at him in confusion. "Make yourself useful and follow me."

"Where are we going?"

"You'll see when we get there." He grabbed the basket off of the table and followed Jim out the door. As they made their way to their destination, Leonard listened to Jim babble about the rest of his day. Jim had been congratulated multiple times, to no surprise of Leonard. What did surprise him was for someone who had just beaten an un-winnable test, Jim was fairly calm about the whole situation.

"Do you feel better?" Leonard asked, waiting for Jim to enter the abandoned building before following behind him. He pointed Jim in the direction of the stairs and began to trudge up them. "I mean, do you feel better about finally beating the test?"

Jim nodded. "I do, actually. I know everyone thought it was ridiculous, but it seriously bothered me, Bones. My first experience was humiliating, and the second just pissed me off. It felt good to finally get it over with." Jim readjusted the quilt before finally asking "Bones, where are we going?"

"You'll see. Trust me; I think you're going to love this." Leonard said, reaching the top of the long flight of stairs. He punched in a code and waited for the doors to allow him admittance. Smiling at Jim, he entered the room and waited for the younger man to follow. Jim did and blinked, his mouth falling open as he gazed around the room.

"Is this the observation tower?"

"It is. I had to pull some strings to allow us to be here after the building closed."

Jim was silent, at the glass ceiling with wide eyes. The sun had set completely, leaving only the moonlight shining in through the windows. Leonard called for the lights to rise to only twenty-five percent, leaving them enough light to move, but not enough to distract from the stars. He returned to the spot where Jim was still standing and took the blanket from Jim. He spread it across the floor and dropped his basket on top of it.

"I cooked a variety of things." Leonard said, placing the containers in the middle of the blanket. "There are some pastas and I grilled some chicken. I also made both Alfredo and tomato sauce. I wasn't sure which one you preferred."

Jim lowered himself onto the blanket carefully, watching with wide eyes as Leonard set up the meal. "Bones, this is too much. I would have been happy with just a night at the bar."

Leonard rolled his eyes. "Kid, you wanted a date and I'm giving you a date. Believe it or not, I can be romantic if I put my mind to things."

"And here I thought you were just a grumpy old man."

"Most of the time," Leonard admitted. "I checked the ingredient list of everything I made; there shouldn't be anything in here that will set off your allergies. It's a Jim-Safe meal."

"I'm not allergic to most foods, you know." Jim said, rolling his eyes playfully. He reached over and started dishing the pasta on his plate, pouring both the Alf redo and tomato sauce on top. Jim grabbed a few pieces of chicken and tossed them on there. "I'm really only allergic to certain medications and anything that comes out of the sea."

"I'll keep that in mind." Leonard said. He dished his own plate and took a few bites of the food. It tasted okay. He wished he could have had access to certain spices and ingredients, but it tasted okay for what he had. Leonard watched as Jim tasted the pasta, touching the sauce to his tongue before shoving the whole thing in his mouth. Jim gave a groan of appreciation.

"This is great!"

Leonard smiled. "I do my best."

"Seriously, Bones! Why don't you cook more?"

"I do, but usually when you're not around." Leonard said, racking his brain for the last time he had cooked for someone else. "It was something I taught myself to do after the divorce – after paying for medical school, there was no way I could have afforded to go out to eat every night."

"You're really good at this." Jim said, his face lighting up in a grin. They ate in silence, with Jim mostly shoveling food in his mouth and Leonard watching him. Jim had a curious way of eating; he would almost always touch whatever was on his fork with his tongue, as if making sure it was safe. Four or five chews exactly and Jim swallowed. Leonard chuckled to himself.

"Where does this put us?" Jim asked suddenly, looking up from his food.

"Where does what put us?"

"This whole date," Jim said, crossing his legs under him. He set his plate on the quilt and stared intently at Leonard. "Your cooking for me, the observation tower . . . what happened Wednesday night. Where does this place us?"

Leonard put down his plate as well, meeting Jim's eyes with his own. "I don't know." He admitted. "What do you want out of this?"

Jim shrugged. "Anything I can get, I guess."

"What does that mean, exactly?"

For the first time, Jim looked uncomfortable. He shifted positions and took a deep breath. "It means what I just said. I'll take whatever you want to give me. If you're willing I'd . . . like to see where this goes. I'd like to see what it would be like to be in a stable, committed relationship. However, if you think we've overstepped our bounds and you just want to continue being friends, I'll take that too. Really, Bones, I wasn't lying the other night. The only thing I want is you. You're the only one who has ever fucking cared."

"Jim," Leonard said, softly. "Other people care about you."

"Not like you. No one's ever cared enough to see past the cocky jackass." Jim said, bluntly. "And everyone at the academy just sees me as the son of George Kirk. They don't want to know James – they want a repeat." Jim's face darkened, and he glared up at the stars, as if they were at fault. In a way, Leonard supposed they were.

Leonard shifted positions, scooting on the blanket until he was sitting next to Jim. He turned Jim's face to look at his own, and began to speak very clearly. "Jim," he said, making sure Jim understood every word. "You are not your father. I can't say for sure what you're destined for, but I know with every fiber of my being that it's going to be great. Some day, people are going to hear the name James Tiberius Kirk, and they're going to think of a great man. And no matter what happens between us from here on out, I will be proud to say that I called that great man my best friend."

Jim said nothing, but his mouth dropped open slightly in shock. His blue eyes were wide, never leaving Leonard's own. Jim swallowed. "Wow . . . Bones, I don't even know what to say to that."

"You don't have to say anything."

There was an awkward silence between them. Jim picked up his fork again, and began poking at the pasta. Leonard finally took a deep breath. "I'd like to . . . see where this goes as well."

Jim looked up from his plate. "You would?"

"Yes. I think we might have a chance. Hell, we've stuck together this long." Leonard tried his best to keep the nervous shake out of his voice. Admitting this to Jim should have been the most natural thing in the world.

Jim said nothing, but he leaned over and brushed his lips against Leonard's. He met Jim in the kiss, keeping things light; the last thing they needed was to get caught necking in the observation tower. He pulled away. "We should head back to the room."

Jim nodded. "Yeah . . . but what about all the food?" He frowned deeply at the leftovers. Leonard laughed.

"I brought containers to box them up. Don't worry; none of this is going to waste. You can either take it yourself, or you can use it to feed your starving first years."

"I don't think there is enough in here to feed them all." Jim said, but there was no humor in his voice. "I'll take it back to my room and eat it later. I'll just make sure my roommate keeps his hands off of it."

They packed in a hurry, both anxious to get back to Leonard's room for reasons of their own. Despite his earlier comments about not putting out on a first date, Leonard had mostly been joking. They had already slept together once, and despite the awkward moments, it had been pretty amazing. Why should they work backward from where they started?

When they entered the room, Leonard took the leftovers and stuck them in his fridge. Jim shoved his hands in his pockets again, as he stood there watching Leonard. "Bones, if you want me to go, I can. It's been a great night, but I'm not expecting anything."

Leonard took a deep breath. "Jim?"

"Yeah?"

"You talk too much." He pressed a kiss to Jim's mouth before walking to the bed. Jim stood there, shell shocked, before his brain apparently kicked in.

The minute Leonard had his shoes off and was sitting on the bed, Jim pounced. Leonard indulged him, letting Jim explore his mouth with a tongue, meeting it with his own. Jim made a small noise in his throat, placing his hands on Leonard's waist and running them under his shirt. Leonard pulled them both to the middle of the small bed. Jim laughed.

"I don't want us to fall off." Leonard defended, before pulling Jim close and kissing along his jaw. Jim tilted his head back and made a pleased noise. "Is that good?"

"I love it." Jim said, his breath coming heavier. Jim's hand snaked up before running through Leonard's hair. Leonard kissed down Jim's jaw, sucking slightly on Jim's neck and growling. Jim went still at the noise, and then shuddered.

"You like my growling?"

"God yes." Jim laughed. "I don't even know why."

Leonard said nothing, but felt a grin spread across his face. He worked on the buttons of Jim's shirt, working them open before sliding the fabric off Jim's arms and shoulders. In turn, Jim grabbed the bottom of Leonard's, pulling it up and over his head. Without missing a beat, Jim bent over and kissed across Leonard's chest, grinning as Leonard made a pleased noise. He ran his tongue across a nipple and pressed a kiss against the nub.

Leonard placed his hand under Jim's chin, pushing up and drawing the other man back up to his lips. Jim groaned into his mouth, wrapping his arms around Leonard's waist and clinging to him. Shifting to get into position, Leonard pried Jim from his body and pressed him back onto the bed. He placed his elbows on either side of Jim's head, bending down to kiss him again.

Jim wrapped a leg around Leonard's, pushing his hips up to rock against Leonard's. He bit back a groan, burying his head the crook of Jim's neck. Jim was the more vocal of the two, and Leonard felt the moan vibrate against his chest. He pushed his hips against Jim's. Pulling back, Leonard pressed a kiss against Jim's jaw. "You say I'm gorgeous." He ground out. "You have no idea what you look like."

The response that got was encouraging. Jim pushed him up, and his hands immediately went to Leonard's pants. As soon as the zipper was down, Jim stuck his hand in, cupping Leonard in his palm. As he squeezed, he placed a kiss against Leonard's ear and whispered "What the hell took us so long? We should have done this ages ago."

"The hell if I know." Leonard said, trying to push up into Jim's hand. God, it had been far too long since someone had touched him like this. Jim's fingers tightened around his length, and his ran kisses along Leonard's shoulder.

Tired of not doing anything with his hands, Leonard opened Jim's pants, pushing them off of Jim's hips. Jim wiggled out of his pants and boxers, releasing his grip on Leonard. Leonard's pants went next, joining Jim's in a pile next to the bed.

"Do you have condoms?" Leonard asked.

Jim's face fell. "Fuck." He looked sheepish. "I thought you were serious when you said you didn't put out on a first date."

Leonard rolled his eyes. "You are so lucky I have a medical degree." In truth, he had grabbed some from the medical department earlier in the day; he had used the last one in his bag on Jim, and he needed to stock up. After the events of tonight, he supposed he should start keeping them around. After digging one out of his bag, he handed it to Jim along with the bottle of lube.

Jim took them. "You want me to top again?"

Leonard hesitated. He did, but he worried it was a selfish thought. The look on Jim's face sealed the deal for him, however. Jim, however confident he was about the situation, wasn't ready for that. He nodded. "I would."

He was matched with a full Jim Kirk grin, and felt himself pushed into the mattress. Jim made it his mission to kiss down Leonard's chest again, marking and sucking on every point that made Leonard squirm. As he reached his navel, Leonard raised a hand. "I'm not going to last if you head that direction."

Jim laughed and kissed the tip of Leonard's cock anyway. Spreading the lube on his fingers, he prepped Leonard, taking his time and watching his reactions. "Next time," he announced. "I want you to do this to me."

The thought sent a shiver running through Leonard's body, one that was only amplified as Jim removed his fingers and slowly pushed into him. Both men groaned at the contact, and Jim dropped his head to rest against Leonard's shoulder. Jim started with short, shallow thrusts, letting Leonard once again adjust to the feeling of being inside him. Leonard tossed his head back. "God, you feel good."

Jim bent his head to kiss Leonard. "So gorgeous like this, baby." Jim moved his head to nip at Leonard's ear, at the same time moving one of his hands to stroke Leonard's erection. He arched his back, trying to move with Jim and knowing he wasn't going to last long from here on out.

He wrapped one arm around Jim's waist, pressing against the base of his spine in an attempt to urge Jim to move faster. Jim took the hint, shifting and picking up the pace ever so slightly. The change in angle had his thrusts hitting Leonard's prostate, and he groaned in appreciation.

As close as Leonard was, Jim was already there. "Bones," He ground out, his breath hitching and a low whine escaped his throat. "So fucking good." Jim muttered, and he was gone. He shuddered against Leonard's body, his breath coming in gasps.

He didn't leave Leonard hanging. Jim tightened his hand around Leonard, and only giving a few strokes before Leonard came apart, groaning Jim's name.

It took them a few minutes to catch their breath. Jim had all but collapsed on top of Leonard, and had moved both of his arms on either side of Leonard's head. "Holy fuck," Jim breathed out.

Leonard didn't want to move from his position. "You're good at this."

"Only because you're so hot." Jim teased, bending down to kiss him.

He raised an eyebrow at that, kissing Jim before replying, "So, if I were hideous, you wouldn't be any good any this?"

"Jackass," Jim said, chuckling. "You know that's not what I meant." He pressed another kiss to Leonard's lips before sitting up. Leonard followed him, attempting to make his muscles cooperate.

"I need a washcloth," He said, looking down at his stomach. "And a toothbrush."

Jim blinked at him. "A toothbrush?" he asked, before getting up and disappearing into the bathroom. Leonard took this as an opportunity to grab pajama pants. He pulled them on and set out a spare set for Jim. Jim returned after a minute, handing both Leonard both items. Leonard cleaned himself up and tossed the washcloth into the laundry basket.

"Did you bring toothpaste?" He asked. Jim shook his head. "Never mind." There was a spare tube in his nightstand drawer. As he pulled it out, he caught a glimpse of Jim's amused expression. "What?"

"Do I want to know why you keep toothpaste in your nightstand drawer?" Jim asked, grinning.

Leonard shrugged, and focused on brushing his teeth. After he finished and rinsed, he answered. "It's . . something I have to do. I guess it's a germaphobe thing. It's the first thing I do in the morning, after I get sick, and almost immediately after sex." He felt stupid even saying it aloud.

The quirk obviously didn't seem to bother Jim. "Can I kiss you, or are you going to have to sanitize your mouth again?"

"You can kiss me."

Jim's lips were on his before he could blink, and they spent a few lazy moments just kissing. Eventually, Leonard pulled away and fought back a yawn. A glance at the clock showed it to be it to be a little after ten. The very thought made him feel old. "Do you want to stay over tonight?"

"I don't think I can say no." Jim answered, smiling.

Leonard looked back at his twin bed, wondering how they were both going to fit. Jim saw the look, and sat beside him. "We managed it the other night, Bones."

They both crawled into the bed, and Jim half collapsed on top of him. It was a tight fit, with Leonard pushed close to the wall, but not uncomfortable. Jim snuggled into him, burying his face in the Leonard's neck, and pressing a kiss against it. "Night, Bones." he mumbled, his voice laced with sleep.

"Night, Jim." Leonard replied, and for the first time since Wednesday, he felt like things might actually be going right in his world.