Spock felt the phaser blast as though it hit him full in the chest.
Jim!
He nearly collapsed on the bridge. He forced his eyes open and shoved himself out of the captain's chair.
He handed off the helm and ordered, "Tell Dr. McCoy to prepare sickbay and send a security team to meet me in the transporter room. We will beam down to the surface immediately."
Spock walked back and forth between the cots while Dr. McCoy tended his lone patient.
"Would you stop that pacing!" Dr. McCoy exclaimed at last. He turned to face Spock. "Jim's fine. Those weapons are just meant to stun, not to kill. Just need to give him a jolt and he'll be right as rain, though what he was doing down there in the first place is beyond me," the doctor grumbled. "I thought you were supposed to be keeping an eye on him."
He glared at Spock and Spock glared back because he couldn't trust himself to do anything else. Finally, Dr. McCoy just shook his head and turned back to his patient.
"It was not my idea," Spock said more sharply than he intended.
To his credit, Dr. McCoy neither bit back nor called him out.
He pressed a few more buttons and announced, "This should do it. It's not fun, but it should do the trick."
Spock strode over to Jim's side and began to reach for his hand, but Dr. McCoy shook his head.
"I know for a fact that you're not immune to electric shocks," the doctor said.
He needn't have bothered. Spock felt the full jolt of electricity as Jim shook violently on the cot. He tried to compartmentalize the pain, but he could still feel a burning ache afterward and he knew it was worse for Jim.
Jim's eyes fluttered open and Spock took his hand before the doctor could stop him again. Spock could feel Jim's confusion turn to concern as their eyes met and the emotional weight of the past hour flowed through their bond. Spock could not have hid his relief even if he wanted to.
"That was a damn fool move," Dr. McCoy was saying, though neither of them was listening.
"I'm sorry," Jim cut in. He glanced over at Dr. McCoy. "To both of you. They're a peaceful people, I just did something stupid and I should have known better."
Dr. McCoy glanced between them and resigned himself to saying, "You should be fine now, no excessive activity for a few days just to be safe. I just want to make sure there's no lasting damage." He turned to Spock. "You successfully rescued the princess, so you can stop hovering over my patient and scaring the nurses. He'll be all yours when I'm done with him"
Spock gave a sharp nod to each of them in turn - "Admiral, doctor" - and took his leave.
As soon as Spock's shift was over, he almost ran to the admiral's quarters. The door opened of its own accord as he arrived.
"Spock, there you are," Jim called out from where he was reclining on his bed, an open book in hand. "I'm being good, not exerting myself at all," he said with a smile as he took off his reading glasses.
Spock frowned, barely, but enough to get the message across.
"What is it?" Jim sat up and reached out a hand, two fingers extended for a Vulcan kiss.
Spock ignored it. "You should not have gone on that mission," he said, emotion sneaking into his usually level voice. "Your unusual approach to captaincy was acceptable for a younger man, if at times still dangerous, but your body is deteriorating. As the acting captain of this ship, it is your duty to ensure the safety of this vessel through your continued leadership. Unnecessarily endangering yourself endangers your crew as well."
Jim snapped, "You know we had no reason to think this mission would be dangerous and even if we did, what kind of captain would I be if I sat in the bridge while I ordered my men to put their lives in danger on my behalf?"
"Your survival is necessary for the functioning of this ship," Spock insisted.
A realization seemed to cross over Jim's face and his anger faded. "The other officers have families too."
As Jim spoke, Spock felt a burst of warmth through their bond. He was prepared to protest, but between the words and sincere affection, his defenses fell and he forced himself to breathe slowly. Finally, he said, "I am afraid I cannot reason objectively on this matter."
Jim grinned.
"However," Spock continued, "Though you prefer not to acknowledge it, your age is objective. Please be more careful and take into account the changes in your condition."
It was Jim's turn to regulate his breathing. He let out a long sigh. "You're right, I don't like it."
"At the very least, I request that you abstain from participating in away missions when I am not present to accompany you."
"I would say you're not getting any younger either, but you hardly look like you've aged a day since we met," Jim said, torn between grumbling and flirting.
"That is not true and you are well aware of it," Spock said. Content that his point had been made, he then turned to other matters, "I can feel that you are still experiencing pain as a result of Dr. McCoy's treatment. I may be able to alleviate it somewhat if you would like me to attempt it."
"What? This is my reward for agreeing to behave?" Jim accused with a wry smile.
"You may consider it as such, if you would like," Spock answered with a more subtle smile of his own.
As Spock instructed, Jim lay down on his stomach, and Spock set about slowly kneading the tense muscles in his back. He could feel his own muscles relax in response as Jim's contentment drifted through their bond.
Note: Here's my first submission to the Old Married Spirk Challenge - a warm-up of sorts! And check out my second submission, For a Stranger!