Author Note: This is my first Star Trek fic. I just have to throw that out there. And it is not about Kirk falling in love with another original character, not exactly. It's more of a cursory investigation, for my own benefit, that I happened to think might be worth posting.

I was inspired by the song When You Were Young by The Killers, so I've included a few lines of it in the story. They're not central to the plot, so you can ignore them if you like; they just helped me focus. Hope you enjoy!

(Fixed some content to make it easier to read.)

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Trek, nor would I know what to do with it if I did.

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"You sit there in your heartache, waiting on some beautiful boy to save you from your old ways…"

The room was crowded, smoky, noisy. The slender cadet at the bar was reveling in the atmosphere and the anonymity of the dark room. Across the room, a tall blonde man was reveling in the way the cadet's hair fell over her shoulder and her uniform hugged her curves.

"Jim. Jim, hello? McCoy to Kirk, what's it like on your planet?" his friend asked, exasperated. The gruff man finally gave in, following Jim's gaze. He sighed, and the rush of air seemed to momentarily put a stop to the staring. Kirk turned to his companion.

"Come on, Bones. Tell me that isn't one of the most beautiful things you've ever seen," he said teasingly, laughter dancing behind vivid blue eyes as he gestured at the girl.

McCoy reluctantly returned his gaze to the oblivious cadet. He didn't like to admit it, but she was pretty. Willowy, dark-haired, just Jim's type. Then again, all girls were Jim's type. Very few girls were McCoy's type. He grimaced and said, "Let me guess. You're going to go put the moves on that unsuspecting girl, and sweep her off her feet." He tactfully did not add, "And right onto her back." He couldn't help but disapprove Jim's irritating habit of leaving his best friend in this whole Academy in favor of sleeping with some girl, and yet he never said the words outright.

Kirk grinned. "Good guess, Bones," he said genially. He clapped his friend on the shoulder on his way past.

--

Perching on her stool at the bar, Nina lifted her glass for another sip, meditating in an unseen bubble of isolation. All the people around her were too absorbed in themselves to pay her any attention, so it was like she was all alone, floating in her own personal galaxy. And housed within that galaxy was a messy relationship that needed some sorting out.

Nina and Patrick had entered Starfleet Academy in the same year and immediately hit it off. They dated all through their first year at school, and just when Nina was getting really attached to the title 'Patrick's girlfriend,' he'd abruptly and rudely told her to hit the road. Well, hell, that hurt a lot, Nina wasn't going to deny it. Now, a day later, she was very quickly learning all about being 'Patrick's ex-girlfriend.' It was not a fun experience. She was outraged, disillusioned, but mostly just pained and lonely.

She was handling the whole situation by sitting in a bar, not quite drowning her sadness in alcohol, but at least holding its metaphorical head under for a little while. It sort of helped to be surrounded by people, a hundred walking, drunken distractions.

The inebriates around her also served as an aid in the decision to not, in fact, grab the next man who showed an interest and snog him half to death, even though she would like nothing better than to forget that her heart was hurting. The heartbreak was still too fresh for Nina to successfully rationalize a rebound relationship.

Just as that thought entered the girl's head, a man sidled up the rail on her right. "Well, hey, sweetheart," he slurred, focusing on a point slightly to the left of Nina's head. She cast the man a sidelong glance before returning to contemplating the ice floating in her glass. He was alright, she supposed. Tall, broad-shouldered, brown hair in spikes. Academy uniform, but she didn't recognize him--not surprising, considering the size of Starfleet Academy. He was also Exhibit A in Nina's crusade against the rebound boyfriend idea.

"Not interested," Nina said curtly. The man leaned closer.

"How do you know unless you give me a little test drive? I'll show you a real good time."

Ah, the sexual innuendo was alive and well in modern society. Nina smiled cynically into her gin and tonic, taking another sip to cover up her irritation at the stranger. When she set the glass down, she informed him, "I'm waiting for someone. And trust me, handsome, you're not him." The girl wasn't even sure if that was a lie or not. She looked up from under her eyelashes at him, trying to imply with her whole being that there would be violence if he didn't back off.

Unfortunately, the man was just drunk enough to be really thick in the head without being quite hammered enough to fall over. He leaned in even closer, far too close, and Nina could really smell the alcohol on his breath now. "Listen, baby…" he started, but Nina, tiny in comparison, turned to face him fully, regardless of the odor.

She flicked her hair out of her face impatiently and said tersely, "No, you listen, pal. I said I'm wait--"

"There you are, sugar," a smooth voice said by Nina's left shoulder. She felt a hand settle very lightly on her other arm, and the young woman whirled again, finding herself glaring furiously into a rather attractive pair of blue eyes. The newcomer winked discreetly at her, and Nina blinked. Her savior had arrived. How very crafty he was.

She quickly rearranged her features into a convincingly pleasant smile, playing along quite willingly.

"Well, hey, honey!" she exclaimed in feigned surprise, then stretched to land a light peck on her rescuer's cheek before swiveling back to face the drunk in front of her. He looked a little disturbed at the new turn of events, unsure where to go from this point. (It was a little sad that he hadn't believed her when she said she was waiting for someone. Honestly, the lack of respect for women was just disgraceful.)

Nina's knight in shining armor answered the unasked question: "Scamper off."

That seemed to be just about enough. Rapid course correction was clearly not the man's forte. He turned and slumped back to a table full of others, probably to lick his wounds and bolster his ego with a beer. Nina hoped her new best friend could get away before any trouble started, because he would probably be outnumbered and overwhelmed very quickly.

Thinking to warn the newcomer, she turned back to him. The man had taken a seat at the vacant stool on Nina's left and was regarding her with clear-eyed interest, a half-smile tugging at his lips.

"He doesn't look a thing like Jesus, but he talks like a gentleman, like you imagined when you were young…"

Nina blinked again and realized that she had no idea what she'd been about to say. Her mouth had turned traitor and completely abandoned her. Luckily, she didn't have to worry about initiating conversation.

"The kiss on the cheek was a nice touch. What would you have done if I hadn't come along and helped you out?" he asked suddenly.

Nina swallowed, found that she could speak again, and replied dryly, "I would have used my charm and wit, and if that failed, erase him from existence. You don't want to know how." She reached for her glass and found it empty, which was disappointing. Frowning, Nina cut her eyes back to her rescuer. "You're Jim Kirk, aren't you?" she asked. He appeared gratified to be recognized so immediately.

"My reputation precedes me, it seems."

"Yep. You're the guy every female cadet in Starfleet has imagined naked," the girl deadpanned, now contemplating the array of bottles on the other side of the bar. She refused, refused to give in to the charming smile--

"Including you?" Jim asked. Maybe once or twice. Even though Nina wasn't looking when he asked, she could hear him leering.

She glanced at him sidelong, and at the sight of his eyes trained on her, rebound be damned, the crazy woman in her took over for a split-second and retorted: "Buy me a drink first, sunshine."

Oh, he was beautiful. No wonder girls gave it up to him so easily. The hair, the eyes, the smile--wait, wait, wait. Remember, you thought Patrick was beautiful too. And look where that got you, all alone and hiding your heart behind a gin and tonic. Don't make promises to a guy who probably knows the layout of the girls' dorms better than you do.

A few moments later, Nina was nursing a beer, watching Kirk through lidded eyes. He didn't seem to mind the scrutiny. In fact, if anything, he thrived under that critical eye.

"So, you seem to know about me. Since all I know about you is that you've got really great legs, it looks like I'm at a bit of a disadvantage," he said, delivering the line with the ease of long practice. Nina raised an eyebrow. You certainly know how to catch a girl's attention. I know what you want though, and the answer is a firm no.

"You used that line on my roommate when she caught your eye," the girl observed. Before Kirk had time to respond, she continued, "Nina Channing, second-year cadet, focusing in navigation. Also recently established as a recovering single girl, so I've sworn off men for a while." So please leave it alone.

She wasn't sure what she'd expected Jim to do, but she was entirely unprepared for the slight softening in his eyes. "Want to talk about it?" he asked. Nina grimaced. Damn you, I don't want your sympathy. "Not especially," she responded candidly.

"Was the relationship that bad?" The almost-smile was back.

"No, the relationship was great, while it lasted. My problem starts at the part where he dumped me out of nowhere. Can we please talk about something else?"

"What do you enjoy doing?" He didn't seem to mind changing the subject.

"Jogging, people-watching, traveling," she tossed out. "Do your conversations with girls usually sound like this?"

"Nope. Usually they sound like a lot of flirting, and then they don't sound like much at all. Where have you traveled?" He was fascinated by her glib manner, and the fact that she didn't seem to be at all interested in sex.

"And sometimes, you close your eyes and see the place where you used to live, when you were young…"

"I was born here in San Francisco. My parents both work for the Federation, and they traveled a lot when I was a kid, so they took me with them. I've been to Spain, France, Poland, Russia, Australia. Even went off-planet once, when I was really young. Why are you asking me all these questions? From your reputation, I never took you for the type to take an interest in a girl's life."

"I don't know. Because I've never been one to talk sex with a girl who wasn't interested." Nina smirked at that. "Liar." Kirk shrugged, not uncomfortable at being called out.

"It's not that you're not gorgeous," he explained. "It's just that you've got this vibe. I can't explain it." Nina shook her head.

"Try me," she challenged. Jim looked thoughtful, clearly choosing his words carefully.

"Some girls," he began, "are clearly interested in only one thing. Even the ones who don't look like they are, or the ones that just came out of relationships. I can read them--I'm not as dumb as I look." He grinned at the jokingly doubtful look Nina sent his way, then continued, "But some girls are not like that. Some girls have more in their heads than fluff, and those ones are kind of interesting." He shrugged once again. "Believe me or don't."

It was a rare display of guileless sincerity on Kirk's part. He wasn't sure why he did it. They talked for a long time, and he always had more questions.

But eventually, Nina could no longer stifle a yawn. She glanced at her watch and said, "I'm not used to being up so late. But talking with you was, dare I say it, fun." She chuckled quietly, for the first time since she and Patrick had split. For some reason, during her conversation with her fellow cadet, some of the hurt had just disappeared.

"I said he doesn't look a thing like Jesus…"

"That little nose-wrinkle is cute," he informed her.

Another man approached the pair, older and more world-weary, nodded his acknowledgment to Nina, and turned to Jim. "It's about time to be getting back, Jim," he said in a voice that suggested he was used to giving advice like this, even though his best friend often ignored it.

But to McCoy's surprise, Jim nodded. "Bones, I think you're right. It's been a very interesting night." He stood from his stool and turned to Nina. Faint uncertainty crossed his face for the first time, and he asked, "Could Bones and I walk you back to your dorm? I'm not sure quite how it'll be since sleeping together wasn't in the agenda for tonight, but I'm sure three intelligent students like us can figure out how it should go."

Nina slid from her own stool and regarded the two men curiously. After a moment, she said, "I don't see why not. I'm Nina, by the way." The last part was directed at Kirk's friend.

McCoy nodded stiffly, unsure how to respond to the dynamic that had sprouted between Jim and this girl. He wasn't used to being listened to, or to Jim's girls introducing themselves or doing anything to suggest that they were interested in anything other than sleeping with one James T. Kirk. "Leonard McCoy," he managed after a second.

The walk back to Nina's dorm was quiet, with Nina frequently trying to squash the yawns that bubbled up. She bid them a very polite and pleasant goodnight at her door and expressed the hope that they might see each other on campus. And then she was gone.

"Jim, what the hell was that?" McCoy asked after a moment, deciding that the best way to broach the subject was to be completely open. Jim grinned at his bewildered friend.

"That was an education, Bones," he said. "And it was fun, just talking. Maybe I'll give it another try some time."

"He doesn't look a thing like Jesus, but more than you'll ever know."

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