Reason Reestablished
A/N This story is a sequel to my first, Reason Interrupted (find it in my stories!). I very much recommend you read RI first; I'm not stopping for explanations. I will do my best to post about once a week; no promises.
Please note that this story has a higher rating than RI, for sexual scenes. I apologize to anyone who is being turned away; I think M is for now, and I'll reevaluate, but it won't be anything crazy graphic.
To all my old readers—welcome back! I've missed hearing from you. Hope you enjoy! Be a dear and leave a review =]
As always—none of this belongs to me. I take Paramount's property and play around with it. I just thank them for letting us do it!
Chapter One
"Oh, my god," Gaila said, looking up from where she worked at her computer. Her eyes were wide, red hair wild. "Please tell me you just came back from Spock's."
Nyota froze in the doorway. She'd been hoping her roommate would still be sleeping, so she could sneak into the room and sleep a bit before having to explain her early arrival back at Starfleet from winter break. Closing the door and dropping her backpack next to the bed, she asked evasively, "What makes you say that?"
In a mock whisper that wasn't a whisper at all, Gaila replied, "You're totally turned on. I can tell."
"Gaila!"
Her roommate shrugged. "Don't look so surprised. Just tell me what happened!"
Nyota collapsed onto her bed. "Gaila, I've been awake for…" She gave up on the math quickly. "…way too long. I need sleep!"
She had, in fact, been awake since the morning before, plus a flight from Nairobi to extend the day. True, there had been a bit of sleep last night, at Spock's apartment…
"Did you sleep at his apartment last night?" Gaila asked, half scandalized, half inordinately excited.
"Not like that," Nyota insisted. "I didn't…sleep over. I was there, and I think I slept for a couple hours, on his couch." Gaila was watching her expectantly.
Nyota sighed. If she was evasive, Gaila would invent things worse than the truth.
"Okay, fine," she said, motioning Gaila over to her bed. The Orion woman hopped over enthusiastically, abandoning the computer.
"I knew you had news!"
"I came home early—"
"Clearly."
"—and you were busy in here." Nyota paused, but Gaila didn't even blush. "And I went to Spock's. That's a little bit why I came," she admitted. "And we talked about the emotion thing, and we both admitted we're interested in each other."
"And?" Gaila prompted.
"And…we're…together," Nyota finished, trying to contain a grin. "But, Gai—you can't tell anyone. You can't hint or anything at all."
"I know, I know," Gaila waved her off.
"No," Nyota said, "Gaila, you can't. This is both our careers here. I will sell you into the slave trade, and then Spock will hunt you down and kill you. You know that, right?"
Gaila studied her friend's flashing brown eyes and nodded. "Okay, Ny, I promise. Not one innuendo."
Nyota held her hand out and they twined their fingers in an Orion handshake, and then she nodded.
"So…" Gaila said, "together. What does that mean?"
"No clue," Nyota replied, falling back onto her pillows. Though exhausted, she didn't really feel like she could sleep. She felt oddly lonely, as though a few hours with Spock's body and mind pressed to her had rendered her incapable of functioning any other way.
"Well, if you didn't do the deed, I bet he's committed," Gaila pointed out. "How you spent the whole night there without jumping his delicious, Vulcan—"
"Gaila!" Nyota groaned.
"Sorry," Gaila said unapologetically. "But you did find yourself one fine catch. I don't know how you did it."
"Me neither," Nyota said. "I didn't expect him to give in so easily." She let her eyes slip closed to better remember his cool, greenish skin under her fingers and the way his black eyes blazed at her. "He didn't even kiss me," she whispered.
"What? I thought you were together."
"We are. Believe me, I know how he feels about me," Nyota said, flashing vividly to his mind intertwined with hers, so close she couldn't distinguish where she ended and he began. "I don't think kissing is part of their deal."
"Huh," Gaila said with a tilted head. "Never considered it. I've never done a Vulcan, you know," she said conversationally.
"No, I didn't know."
"You'll have to tell me all—"
Gaila's words were cut off by a pillow in her face.
XXX
Spock's mind still contained a curious buzzing sensation. He had easily forgone sleep while Nyota was at his home. She had slept—still snuggled against his side on the couch, in fact—but he hadn't wanted to miss the opportunity to watch her. He'd felt slightly guilty watching her dreams, but her skin against his was too much to resist. She'd floated through her home in Africa, he'd seen her brother fleetingly; and then she had dreamt quiet dreams about him, which he found foreign and embarrassing, but simultaneously immensely gratifying. It had felt meditative, resting with her.
Once she'd gone, he'd slept 2.7 hours; now he found himself in a similar predicament to many vacation days. He'd eaten breakfast, but now had nothing on his agenda. His mind, instead of feeling satiated by her prolonged presence, now felt doubly isolated. He found this illogical, but could not use this simple argument to dispel the buzzing of his mind. He replayed their words to each other repeatedly.
Even though many of the cadets were off campus, the Physical Arts Complex had stayed open; Spock shouldered his duffel bag and wondered if he could clear his mind with some exercise.
Once he'd reached campus, he heard his name called out across the abandoned grounds. Dr. Ferrous waved to him and broke into a jog. When he stopped, his breath pooled in thin white fog around his grin. "Commander," he nodded, "how has your break been so far?"
"Satisfactory," Spock replied, unable and unwilling to encompass all that had happened in the past week.
"Are you on your way to the gym?" Ferrous asked. When Spock nodded, he said, "I'll go with you." The two men walked side by side down the path; they hadn't seen each other since term ended. "All set for Advanced Phonology?"
"Indeed," Spock said simply.
"Nyota popped in to tell me you'd accepted her as TA; she seemed quite excited."
Keeping his tone neutral, Spock said, "I believe she is eager to begin work towards gaining lieutenant this spring."
Ferrous nodded. "Hey, listen," he said, in Spock's opinion unnecessarily, "this is probably rude of me…but I have a favor to ask."
Spock met his eyes; when this was not, apparently, enough to prompt the man on, he said, "Yes?"
"This semester, when Alice invites us out to dinner…" The professor looked sheepish. "Could you maybe be busy sometimes?"
Bemused, Spock replied, "I will invariably have engagements on some nights when Alice wishes to—"
"No, I mean more often than you really are." Spock responded with only a blank look. Ferrous sighed. "I'd like to have some time just the two of us. See if I can…you know…" he shrugged.
Spock tilted his head. "Are you referring to your romantic interest in the professor?" Ferrous glared at him for his bluntness, but nodded. "So you wish for me to lie?"
"Just a couple white ones. You could actually be busy those nights."
As he opened the door to the gym complex, Spock asked, "Are you aware of the difficulty Vulcans have lying?"
"I believe in you," Ferrous said drily, stopping in the foyer.
Spock bowed his head. "I will attempt it, doctor."
Ferrous bowed out, leaving Spock in the relatively empty gym. He found an unoccupied holo room and requested combat practice. Perhaps that would keep him busy until he could see Nyota again.
XXX
Nyota rolled out of her bed around noontime; literally rolled, sending her feet down just in time to catch herself. She found Gaila grinning at her cheerfully and groaned. "What's that look for?"
"I was hoping you'd wake up in time for lunch," Gaila said as she stood. "Let's go, the dining hall is serving breakfast all day."
Knowing she would be dragged forcibly if she didn't go willingly, Nyota pulled on some clothes, glad she didn't have to wear her cadet uniform. She and Gaila stepped out into a cold, cloudy day and walked arm in arm to the dining hall.
Once they'd piled plates high with food, they sat together at an otherwise empty table. With a glance around the quiet hall, Nyota frowned. "You must have been lonely," she said.
Gaila shrugged. "I'm used to it, Ny. Don't you remember the last three years when I did the same thing?" Biting into her sandwich, she added, "Besides, I had company last night, didn't I?"
"Is that actually…satisfying, Gaila?" Nyota wondered as she started her salad.
Now Gaila furrowed her brow. "Aren't you a xenolinguistics major? You're supposed to be accepting of alien cultures, my dear."
"That's xenoculture studies," Nyota smirked. Then her expression softened. "But okay, sorry. It seems strange to me, but I guess there are plenty of humans who do it too."
"And aren't I lucky?" Gaila said, her easy smile returning. "You may be a monogamy girl, but there are plenty of men not like you." Nyota visibly straightened in her seat and Gaila turned to see Commander Spock enter the dining hall. "Though he, I suspect, is more on your side of the argument. Something about his vibe…"
Nyota snorted, though her eyes didn't leave the professor. "And you thought I was crazy for being able to feel his emotions? Now you're getting 'monogamy vibes' from him?"
"Look, Ny, I didn't mention this earlier…I may not have ever done a Vulcan, but I've heard stories." Finally Nyota's eye met hers again, and she looked curious. "And what I've heard may be monogamous...but it's kind of kinky."
Nyota wrinkled her nose. "I do not like the twinkle in your eye, Gaila. And I'm pretty sure I don't believe you." Mostly sure, she thought, studying Spock's back through his snug t-shirt. She tilted her head to the side. Sort of sure. Sometimes she wondered what he hid under that seemingly blank exterior…
When he'd taken his food, apparently soup, to a table by himself and had been eating for a few minutes, Nyota stood with her tray. "I'm just gonna go say hi…"
Gaila just smirked, but waved her off.
Striding across the dining hall, Nyota became suddenly nervous as she approached him. She shouldn't feel this off balance, not when they'd spent such…intimate time together. She knew exactly how he felt about her; why should she be uncomfortable talking to him in the dining hall?
When she neared, he looked up, and she knew, somehow, that he'd been watching her the whole time. For a moment, they just matched gazes; then Nyota felt his happiness seep into her, and a grin broke across her face. "Hi," she said, pulling out the chair across from him to sit.
He just tipped his head in his usual greeting, but his eyes didn't leave her. Those eyes said a million words, she thought. "How was your morning, Commander?" Another professor sat at the adjacent table, and she kept her tone light.
"Satisfactory, thank you, cadet," he replied simply, but his eyes remained unwavering.
She wanted to see him again; she wanted to be able to touch his skin again. But she hadn't wanted to send a message, worried it could be checked at some point…With sudden inspiration, she pulled out a PADD and started a word processor. "I have something I want to show you; to ask you about," she said with a sharp look. When she'd tapped out a few words, she passed the PADD to Spock.
He took it in his hands, wondering what she wanted to tell him that could not be said aloud. May I cook for you tonight? He met her eyes again as anticipation spiked. "That would be satisfactory," he said, and with a few words added to the PADD, he passed it back, and stood. "Have a good afternoon, cadet," he said blandly before taking his tray to clear it.
Nyota repressed a smile as she erased the communication, his addition still clear before her eyes. 1900 hours.
XXXXX
