Title: Captured
Summary: Chekov and Sulu are being held captive with a very bleak chance of escape or being saved. Can be taken as pre-slash or friendship - it's your choice.
Disclaimer: I do not own and never will.
Warning: The story has been written so you can chose how you want to read into it. It's not a warning as such, it's more of a point.
***
Sulu stood lent up against the bars that his and Chekov's cell was constructed off deep in thought. His mind was completely focused on discovering any means of escape for the two of them, but the more he thought about it the more he knew that an escape constructed by them would be futile. Their captors had covered every possibility that they could have exploited in their favour of escape and Sulu found himself becoming more and more frustrated over it.
He couldn't save them.
Sulu looked over at Chekov who was sat against the back wall with his head lowered and his knees up to his chest. His shoulders were hunched and his arms were under his knees while he sat in silence, his body language telling Sulu all he needed to know.
Within weeks of Chekov getting posted to the Enterprise they had managed to get themselves in to such a bleak situation that one was forced to come to terms with death. Fortunately enough for Sulu he had already come to terms and accepted his own mortality, but looking at Chekov Sulu could tell that he was currently battling to come to terms with his own mortality for the first time.
Sighing; Sulu walked the small distance over to Chekov and sat down next to him. He chose to sit in silence for a short while when Chekov didn't acknowledge his presence next to him. Sulu had to admire how Chekov was handling their predicament. He had seen men twice his age break down and cry in similar situations. Sulu hadn't seen one tear escape the Russian's dark eyes. He hadn't even heard a sound from him and with the complete silence they were in, the smallest of sounds seemed enlarged and loud. Chekov, unlike many others he had known, was holding himself together and forbidding himself to break down and cry. He was exhibiting a lot of inner strength that not only did many men not have; but many on the Enterprise had previously thought that Chekov didn't possess.
If they survived this, Sulu would make sure Kirk knew of it.
Sulu patted Chekov's shoulder lightly in a reassuring gesture. He saw a small smile grace the young Russian's lips before Chekov straightened his back and sat up, his hands now on his knees instead of under them.
"Vhat did you do?" Chekov asked turning his head and looking at Sulu with large brown orbs. "I hawe heard others talk; you hawe been in wery similar situations before. Vhat did you do to handle them?"
"I realised that there are things worse than death". Sulu told him before shrugging his shoulders and adding, "that and I stayed calm".
Chekov smiled with the little bit of humour before his expression somber. "I vas told that some times death is a mercy".
Sulu sighed and ran a hand threw his hair. "Some times it is Pavel. Some times it is". Chekov nodded a couple of times before dropping his head again, studying the stone floor intently. Sulu took his eyes off Chekov and looked directly ahead again. They had naturally lapsed into silence and neither one could think of anyway to continue the conversation or to initiate a new one.
Sulu closed his eyes and took a deep breath to relax himself; his nose twitching with the smells that his nose was assaulted by. He would have normally have stopped smelling the smells by now but there always seemed to be new ones. Both him and Chekov were only two hours into being locked in that cell but there seemed to be an unlimited amount of different smells that wafted their way. Inhaling threw their mouths when in comparison with their noses was not a good alternative.
Sulu suddenly felt Chekov's arms around his neck and shoulders as Chekov leaned against him and buried his face into his uniform. "Pavel?"
"It smells like death". Chekov said into Sulu's shoulder. "It makes me vant to be sick".
In a matter of seconds Sulu's nose was also assaulted by the new smell. Chekov was right - it did smell like death. Sulu did the only thing he could think off; he buried his face in Chekov's hair. It didn't block out the smell completely, but Chekov's scent to him at that time was the most beautiful thing he had ever smelled. Chekov's arms around him tightened as he pressed his face harder against Sulu's shoulder. Sulu mimicked him and wrapped his own arms around Chekov's shoulders and buried his nose deeper into Chekov's hair before breathing in deeply.
They remained in each others embrace for several minutes savouring each others scents before Sulu reluctantly lifted his head and sniffed the air.
"It appears to have passed Pavel". Sulu told Chekov. Chekov removed his head from Sulu's shoulder reluctantly before removing his arms from around Sulu's neck and shoulders. Sulu removed his arms from around Chekov and pulled away from him back to his original seating position. Chekov visibly shuddered and wrapped his arms around himself.
"Wery cold". Chekov said more to himself than to Sulu.
Sulu felt the cold to. He assumed that they both suddenly felt the cold more than they did before because they had shared their body heat. Now they had parted, even though the temperature in the cell had not changed, it seemed much colder than before.
Sulu rubbed his arms with his hands trying to generate some heat. Chekov looked at him threw tired eyes before shifting his body and leaning against Sulu, his arms going around and embracing the older man. Sulu wrapped his own arms around Chekov and held him close to himself tightly. Chekov closed his eyes and allowed his tired aching body to relinquish itself to sleep. He drifted off quickly and slumped against Sulu as his muscles relaxed. When asleep, Sulu kept a hold of him whilst his mind once again tried to figure out a means of escape for them.
No matter how futile it looked, he was never going to stop trying to think of a way to save them both.
End.