A/N: This was a one-shot I did for a friend that requested it on Fanfiction Friday, as I call it, where I usually either update a current story or just ask for a one-shot request from someone and then write said one-shot. This was sort of a wierd one seeing as how I was really inept in writing back then, but this was at least a month previous, so here it is-Sulu and Chekov's Trek to the Cafe.

Sulu hears the door ring, and quickly throws on his federation Jacket and Scarf. He
thought the ensemble was excellent, and it definitely impressed the cause of the ring,
his friend Chekov. It had been a year since they began their vacation from the Enterprise,
and today was the last day before they were going back on. Their replacements did a subpar job
while on the space vessel, and it would take a while to fix, but that was for tomorrow,
Sulu reminded himself. The apartment complex he lived in for the past year was rather classy,
with marble floors and a beautiful elevator that moved 2 floors a second, along with other
services such as a concierge and room service (which was rare for apartments even in that day
and age). Chekov was definitely impressed when he found his friend was living in a highrise in the
east side of New York, but nonetheless he was estatic to see him, and likewise. His room in the
Apartment was decked out with leather furniture, a fully featured bar, a huge flatscreen Holo-vision, a bed
fit for a king, and Sulu's particular favorite of all the impressive places, the kitchen, with the
best appliances and a set of knives that would cut through meat and bread like melted butter. He fawned
over the various recipes he could find from the internet, and made many of them to great acclaim
to his guests. Sulu opens the door, and this is where our little story begins.

"Sulu!" Chekov exclaimed. "Chekov! How's it been?" Sulu says with a smile on his face.
"Well it's been ok, but now you're here!" Chekov said, hugging Sulu. Sulu had always been wary of how their
little interactions on the ship hinted at something, SOMETHING about Chekov's personality, but
he didn't exactly know how to put on it. Breaking free of the hug, the 2 fellow officers walked
down to the elevator, where they took it to the parking garage connected to the apartment. Heading out
of the garage, they started to converse "So, coffee?" Sulu said questioningly, remembering his friend's
original invitation that he recieved about 2 days ago. "Yep, coffee!" Chekov said happily, "I know
this excellent coffee house in the city that's only a few blocks away from here. And remember, I'm
buying!". As they walked down the street and talked about getting back to work, Sulu noticed
that Chekov at times was just staring at him without saying anything, his mouth in a soft, warm
smile. Sulu periodically snapped him out of it, but he knew something was up. Finally, they turned the
corner and studied the aforementioned coffee house, which was named Brew42. Their slogan was
"Life, The Universe, and Everything Coffee!" and as they walked in, the familiar scent of perkolating
Cappuchino wafted into their direction.

They had a shelf full of various coffeetime treats such as scones as well,
and Sulu decided to start there, so as to not have to go to the desk an extra time
after getting his coffee for a delicious treat to go with. He browsed the selection, and finally
he saw the best looking scone he had ever laid eyes on. It was significantly higher up than he could reach,
and as he stood on his tippy toes to attempt to get the treasure, he suddenly felt Chekov behind him, his
hand almost touching Sulu's as he grabbed the scone for his friend. "There you go!" he giggled, "You've got
quite an eye for delicacies, Sulu" he smiled again with that same radiant energy as before, and
Sulu felt a couple of butterflies in his stomach. What was this he was feeling? he hadn't
felt anything like it in his life, and he always was pretty certain that he didn't like Chekov
in THAT way, but now he wasn't so sure. Every girl on the ship fawned over not only his accent
but everything else too, and yet none of them would date him and instead looked for a direct pipeline to
the Captain's pants. He was certain he saw a couple of girls ask him for a date, even Ahora at one
time, and he had refused them all with no explanation as to why. Sulu's eyes suddenly widened with
the realization that Chekov was hiding something deep. Federation policy stated that people
with orientations other than the norm were on grounds for immediate suspension, despite most other
anti-gay laws and sentiments being buried long before even Chekov's time, so he's just been stuck
in literal love limbo, as doing otherwise would be nuclearly destructive to his job on the Enterprise,
or any othe federation ship for that manner. He tried to shrug it off for another time, and said nervously,
"So about that coffee?"

With cappuchino in hand, they both walked over to a booth in the corner of the little up-and-coming
coffee shop. Chekov sat next to Sulu, to the point where most other guys would have just felt
awkward and left, and Sulu suddenly freezes. "What do I do?!" Sulu thinks as Chekov slips a hand onto his
shoulder, pulling them together warmly. Sulu decides to just go with it and sips his coffee, a mere 6 to 8 inches
from Chekov's face. His face was flawless, with a cute little nose to match his eyes and mouth. His hair
had grown out since the last time he had been on the Enterprise, and was managebly long and wavy. Sulu got lost
into the eyes of him, and Chekov quickly realizes that his little crush was mutual. Slowly, their lips
got closer together and pursed before finally pressing together. Sparks flew as the two broke from the forbidden
kiss. "Well, that was interesting..." Sulu said, "I liked it though. You're a great kisser". Chekov
was shocked at his friend's new absolution, but was forgiving nonetheless. "Well, better get on that coffee
then!" we sipped on our Cappuchinos and conversed about what just happened between them. By the
end of their little adventure in Brew42, they were leaving while holding eachother's mittened hands.

The next day, both of them were back on the ship, where Chekov would occasionally glance at
Sulu, and Sulu back to Chekov, and they knew what was between them. And despite the fact that it was a
secret they could never tell, they were both happy.

FIN
(For Abby, because she requested it.)