Looking up at the unfinished starship looming high above him, James Kirk was finally realizing what a monumental decision he was about to make.
It wasn't like he was leaving anything behind that he would miss. His mother was never home, his step-father was an ass, his brother had been dead for years, and Nal, Nal was long gone. His step-father had said she wandered off, but she had always promised him she'd always be there for him.
In the beginning, he had accused the step-monster of doing something unsavory to the twelve year old. After the third time he had tried to tell the police his sister had been taken and had not ran away, Sam had ended up at the bottom of a ravine.
The police ruled it an accidental death. After that, Jim never talked about his sister again.
Now , as he walked into the shuttle and cockily told Pike he'd be captain in three years, the captain's words stopped him cold.
"Natalia would be proud of you."
Jim looked back at Pike for a few seconds before he nodded and went to find his seat. He couldn't help thinking that Nal wouldn't be proud of him.
She would have been upset he didn't join earlier.