Angels - Pavel Chekov
PART ONE
The Fourth Row, Some Yogurt and a Sea of Cyrillic
In the cold month of January, Vienna Hallows learns the hard way that it is indeed possible to do something both good and bad, simultaneously.
Things don't always go to plan. Vienna had applied to Starfleet because her school had told her to. She didn't object to the idea of space adventures, assuming her mark wasn't high enough to get accepted anyway. And on the way back to her dorm, she wonders just how she did it. She hadn't imagined this life for herself. She imagined a future much closer to home.
There are still another four days before classes. Vienna makes the most of her free time by studying before she officially starts studying. She feels far behind already. A few days of working hard won't fix that. She puts her PADD down with a sigh and tells herself she'll come back to it when she's a little more focused.
The cafeteria is warm and has quickly becomes the hangout for most of the first-year students. Vienna takes her PADD from her bag and finds a seat at the edge of one of the long tables. For a little while, she manages to get lost in the chatter and read through another textbook chapter. Time slows a little and she realises that she's dreaming about space rather than getting anything productive done. She rubs her eyes and turns her PADD off, wondering if she's better off going back to her dorm for a while.
"Hey," someone calls. "Join us. We don't bite."
It's a tall guy calling out to her. He has a bright grin and dark hair, she smiles at him. She joins the end of their table and he asks what her name is. He has a look in his eyes she can't exactly interpret, almost like she's an old friend of his.
"I'm Vienna," she introduces.
"It's nice to meet you," he says, shaking her hand. "You ready to start classes yet?"
"Nowhere near," she laughs. "What division are you in?"
"Security. Surprise, surprise. What about yourself? I'd probably guess either science or medical?"
Vienna nods. "Medical. I didn't really think I'd end up in Starfleet but I somehow got in. I feel like I'm already behind and I haven't even started yet. I'm worried I won't last the first semester."
"Hey, if you're willing to try and study before we even start classes, I think you've got a pretty decent chance here. I specifically picked the subject that required the least amount of study."
The rest of the group are getting up and he asks if she wants to join them on a bar crawl. She declines, having little interest in drinking. He tells her he'll see her in class and just before he goes, she asks his name.
"Oh, I guess I didn't tell you. It's Damien. I'll see you around Vienna."
Classes start, and Vienna sits nervously in the fourth row. There are far more people than she expected hoping to be in the medical division. As soon as they start work she manages to focus in a little. Starfleet Academy moves quickly and covers topics as if everyone else in the room knows what's going on already. Vienna feels her confidence fade with every lecture slide that goes on. She gets a two hour break before her next class and spends most of it trying to catch up on everything she just went over. By the time her next class comes around she's already lost in thought.
Damien is in the same class for Starfleet protocol and ethics. It's a mandatory class and one of a few that they have to take as a first year. She waves to him as he passes and she gives him a soft smile. He returns her smile and takes a seat up the back with some of the people from the cafeteria. As the class begins, Vienna takes notes on her PADD. Ethics and protocol is far more relaxed than her medical class and she appreciates the slower pace. They're asked to get into pairs and Vienna looks across her row. Not many people seem to sit so close to the front. The nearest person is about five seats away and isn't sitting with anyone. He looks up, realising that the rest of the room are moving into pairs. He looks to his left and then to his right, noticing Vienna looking at him. He smiles politely, picking his book up. He takes a seat next to her and doesn't say anything while the lecturer finishes explaining their task.
"Hi," Vienna starts. "I'm Vienna," she smiles. His eyes meet hers and he gives her another polite smile.
"I'm Chekov," he introduces, breaking eye contact to pick up his pen. His hair is a mess of dark brown curls and he brushes them from his eyes before copying the title off the board.
"We have to discuss what we'd do if our friend disobeyed an order from a senior officer," she reads, looking at the board. "Um, I'll go first?" She suggests, wondering if he's shy. His voice is quiet and he doesn't seem to talk unless necessary. He nods and listens as she speaks, noting a few points on his PADD.
"Anything to add?" She asks, when she's finished her thought. He thinks for a few seconds, nodding a little.
"In the scenario they gave, they didn't explain why our friend did what they did. There could be some sort of justifiable reason. Hard to say without any background information."
It's then that Vienna notices a distinct accent, European perhaps. He doesn't pronounce 'th' or 'w' properly.
"Where's your accent from?"
"Oh, I'm Russian," he says quietly, still looking down at his notebook. He has a page of writing that seems to be entirely in Cyrillic and she wonders if it's from their lesson today.
"Is Russian your native language?"
He nods again, not adding anything to the comment. His leg is bouncing rapidly under the desk and she wonders if he's nervous. She was too a few hours prior. He keeps writing as the lecturer brings their attention back to the front of the room.
"Are you doing the Life on Starships introductory course?" He asks softly, looking over to her. She nods, asking if he is too. "Yes," he quietly agrees. "I'll probably see you in class."
It's then that she really notices how kind and gentle his dark blue eyes look. He goes back to his book, continuing to write in Russian and occasionally looks to the front of the class. The lecturer eventually wraps up and people start packing up their things. Chekov closes his PADD continuing to write in his book.
Vienna finds Damien later in that cafeteria and takes a seat across from him. He asks how she found her first full day of classes and she isn't entirely sure how to respond. Difficult is the first word that comes to mind, and it's the only word she can offer him. He nods in understanding, a little overwhelmed from his own morning of training. They start talking for a bit and in the middle of the thought, he stops talking, his eyes following something across the room. Vienna turns to see Chekov walking to a few tables away and taking a seat.
"You know him?" Vienna guesses. He shakes his head.
"Do you?"
"We were partners in class today. His name is Chekov."
"You're kidding?" Damien laughs. "The name rings a bell." He keeps his focus on Chekov for a little before turning back to Vienna. "Sorry," he says, distracted. "I should probably get ready for my next class."
"Me too actually," she mutters, bidding him goodbye.
Vienna's roommate is quiet. Vienna barely notices her there most of the time. She's studying engineering and always has her head in a book. They haven't said more than three sentences to each other at any one time but it doesn't feel awkward or hostile. They're both busy trying to catch up on the content for the day and get prepared for tomorrow.
Morning is equally as quiet. Neither of them eat breakfast, just taking fruit on the way to their classes and giving each other a quiet goodbye. Vienna is barely even thinking when she leaves her dorm room. She had dreamt about a boy on top of a building. He walked along the edges, every step had her a little more breathless. She doesn't remember what happened, she only remembers waking up worrying that she'd slept through her alarm.
Vienna is paired with Chekov again for partner work. Most people sit towards the back and there's only a few others in their row. This time they're talking about life onboard a starship and looking at how the safety controls work. They have to make a collective list of the different safety protocols Starfleet has in place and they come up with over a dozen. Chekov writes as Vienna guesses most of them. He can confirm if they're real or not and she trusts his judgement. He seems to know what he's doing in one way or another.
"Can I ask something?" Vienna says, tapping her pen against the side of her PADD. Chekov looks at her and nods, she continues. "Are you copying your notes out in Russian in that book?"
"Not exactly. It's a journal. Writing in my native language helps me clear my head."
"Have you been writing it for a long time or just since coming here?"
"Probably since I was eight," he says quietly.
"Wow," she says quietly. "Impressive. Not many people stick to something like that for so long. You must have a pretty interesting life if you have something to write about every day."
He studies her for a second, the slightest touch of a smile toying at his lips. "Maybe," he jests. "I chose a life of space adventure for a reason."
Vienna smiles a little at his comment, not sure how to interpret it.
The cafeteria is busy again and Vienna sits with Damien and a few of his friends. She's far from involved in the conversation. She's thinking about space when a familiar face passes by.
"Chekov," she calls, just loud enough to attract his attention. He looks over and smiles, taking a seat opposite her. Damien introduces himself, shaking Chekov's hand. Damien seems the slightly less relaxed than he normally is. Vienna wonders if he's met Chekov someplace before. Chekov doesn't seem to recognise him. They talk for a little while, Vienna having a few questions about the content they've gone over in the classes they had together.
For a few days, Vienna doesn't see Chekov or Damien. She decides to get away from studying for a few hours and leaves her dorm room, heading towards the city. She gets to the edge of the campus before seeing Chekov on a bench a little ahead. She sneaks up beside him and grabs his shoulders. He freaks out and shuts his journal, turning around and rolling his eyes upon seeing Vienna.
"You scared me," he says weakly.
"Sorry about that," she laughs, taking a seat beside him on the bench. "Writing again?"
He nods. "What are you doing? Are you heading out into the city?"
"I was planning on going for a walk into the city, maybe getting something to eat. You're welcome to join me, if you're not busy."
He smiles a little. "I... I will, if you don't mind."
She can only smile at how polite he is, standing up as he puts his journal back into his bag. It's almost strange seeing him in something other than cadet red. He wears jeans and a hoodie, seemingly unphased by the frigid January weather. They start walking together, Vienna finding herself glad that she can finally have a non-schoolwork related conversation with him. She asks about Russia and his time there, to which he doesn't seem to give too many details about. She wonders if he had problems over there but decides to leave it as a conversation for another time.
They walk past a bookshop and Chekov asks if they can have a look inside. Vienna has absolutely no objections. Chekov heads straight for the science books, Vienna stays in the fiction section. She questions if she'd even have time to read with everything else going in terms of study.
"I found it," Chekov mutters, a thick physics book in his hand. Vienna asks to have a look and flips through a few of the pages, realising that the Russian in Chekov's journal would make an equal amount of sense as all the mathematics on the page.
"You understand this?"
He nods, not giving much other information. She thinks he's too humble to say anything else. She gives him back the book and he puts it in his bag as they leave the store. They keep walking and Vienna gets a little lost in all the shops and bright colours. He watches her as she stares in wonderment at the world around her and smiles a little to himself.
Vienna walks past a dress shop and one of the garments in the window catches her eyes. Chekov slows down and sees the dress she's looking at.
"I'm happy to wait for you if you want to try it on."
She looks to him and nods. The dress is a deep red and the colour alone attracts her eyes. She enters the store with Chekov following silently behind her. He finds a seat and has a look at the book he just bought. She shuffles through the clothing rack for one her size and pulls it, having a closer look at it. She left most of her nice clothes back at her home in Delaware.
She takes it into the change rooms and tries it on, admiring it in the mirror. It's not expensive, she's considering buying it. She steps out of the change rooms and looks over to Chekov, who has his head stuck in the physics book.
"Hey," she calls, attracting more than just his attention. "Does it look aright?"
"You look stunning," he blurts out, quickly covering his mouth. She can see his face heating up and he switches to Russian, muttering to himself. She gives him a smile and disappears back into the dressing room and he rubs his hand across his face, telling himself not to be an idiot.
They leave the shop and Chekov is even more quieter than usual. Vienna nudges his side and he looks over to her, curious. She gives him a grin and despite his blazing cheeks, he can't help returning her smile.
For a while, the keep walking around the city. Vienna asks what Chekov's studying and he tells her a little about navigation. He isn't finding it too hard so far but she wonders if that's just because he's a lot smarter than he cares to admit. He likes mapping out the stars and tells her that Stellar Cartography is quite possibly the most interesting subject he's ever taken.
Chekov ends up walking Vienna back to her room. He thanks her for their day and she isn't entirely sure why. They just walked around and talked together for a few hours. She enjoyed it nonetheless.
"I'll see in you in class?" She asks.
"Definitely."
Vienna takes a seat next to Chekov in their ethics class and he closes his journal. He's more chatty than usual, even just the slightest bit. He tells her that he's finished the book he bought, she isn't sure whether he's kidding or not.
"It was a really good book," he says, brushing the curls from his eyes. "They had some really interesting concepts and ideas in there."
"I still can't believe that you finished it, and that English isn't your first language. When did you move over here? Have you been living in America long, is that why it's so good?"
"I've only been here a month or so. I studied English back in Russia. I did an intensive course after high school."
"You didn't graduate at the end of last year?"
"Not exactly…" He mutters, an awkwardness seeping into his voice. "I, uh, I graduated a while ago."
"Are you going to tell me when? You don't have to if you don't want to."
He opens his mouth to say something but the lecturer calls their attention to the front of the room and he just breathes a sigh of relief. He goes back to his journal as she starts talking and keeps writing. Vienna watches from the corner of her eye and wonders what it is he writes about. He wonders if he's written about her and their day together a few days ago. She doesn't know what her name looks like in Russian and she tells herself she'll look it up when she gets back to her dorm room.
The class finishes and Chekov packs his journal away silently. Vienna asks if he has another class. He shakes his head and she asks if he'll come have lunch in the cafeteria. He seems to take a few seconds to consider the offer.
"Yes, I'll join. Thank you."
They walk together back to the cafeteria. It's warm and there seem to be a few more students than usual. They grab a few things to eat and Vienna goes ahead to find them a seat. She puts her tray down and looks around for Chekov, seeing him holding his own tray and walking over. Someone pushes their chair out quickly and knocks Chekov over, sending the contents of the tray onto him and onto someone else on the opposite side of the seat. Chekov looks up at the person he spilt some of his food onto. They rise to their full height and tower over Chekov.
"Damien?" Vienna whispers, standing to get a better look.
He pulls Chekov up by his collar and Vienna notices what looks like yogurt through his hair and onto his uniform.
"Get lost, Jerk-off," Damien growls, pushing him backwards. Chekov doesn't hesitate. He leaves the cafeteria and keeps walking. Vienna stands there a little speechless. She sinks back into her seat and tells herself to go check up on Chekov soon. She needs to wait a little while first, give him a chance to calm down a little.
That afternoon, Vienna finds his room, remembering asking him where it was when they went walking together. He had told her building number and about a weird pale blue stripe along the bottom of the door. After walking around for a bit, Vienna found what she assumed was the right one. She knocks on his door nervously, not hearing anything on the other side.
She knocks again, a little louder this time.
"Ah, one second!" He calls out, Vienna steps back and looks at the stripe on the door. "Vienna?" He says, confused as soon as he opens the door. "Ah, hi. Come in."
She steps inside, noticing a towel around his shoulder and his wet hair falling into his eyes. He seems flustered, she wonders of she should have messaged him first.
"I'm sorry for just appearing like this," she starts. He looks over to her. "I didn't think Damien was like that… I mean, it wasn't even your fault, someone else knocked you over. And name calling as well… That's just… Juvenile."
He's grips the sleeves of his hoodie and shrugs. "I didn't expect it either."
"Are you alright?"
He looks up at her. "I'm fine. It's just a name."
Vienna stays for a while. They talk, Chekov a lot less talkative than earlier that morning. His dark blue eyes follow her lips as she speaks, and he tries not to look like he's staring. He asks about her family and she tells him about her younger sister and her dog that she misses. He listens, comforted by how effortless their conversations feel.
Just before Vienna leaves she asks him again if he's alright, to which he just nods.
"As I said… It's just a name. I know I shouldn't dwell on it."
She tries not to smile at how 'dwell' sounds like 'dvell' when he says it. She tells him to take it easy and he nods again, biting the inside of his lip. She turns to go and he squeezes the door handle, trying to will himself to call out to her.
"Vienna?"
"Yes?"
"Thank you. For coming over. I… It means a lot to me."
She grins. "Anytime. I'll see you in class."
The next time she sees him is two day later in another safety protocol class and they're told they'll start simulations within the next few weeks. Vienna is too busy trying to find her name in Chekov's journal to pay real attention. She memorised what her name looked like and now she wants to see if she can find it. She scans over the first paragraph and doesn't find it. She keeps reading and spots it, right in the middle of his page.
Виенна
It appears a few more times after that. She wishes she knew what it was saying about her. She goes back trying to pay attention, though her mind is busy elsewhere. She wonders if she should ask him how to write her name in Russian and see if he uses his journal as an example as opposed to writing it. If he did that, he'd probably tell her what the rest of the sentence said. She frowns, knowing that she really shouldn't be snooping anyway, even though she desperately wants to.
After class, the two of them find a spot in the library together and Vienna tells Chekov about a dentistry position that has just opened up. Starships need at least one practising dentist and though it's an uncommon subject choice, Vienna is seriously considering it. She likes the idea of something a little different than just nursing and Chekov tells her she should try it if she's interested.
"I know this is a little off track but we never really finished the conversation about when you graduated high school... I was going to ask about it, but you seemed a little uneasy about it last time."
"Ah," he says, thinking of how to word his thoughts. "I am studying navigation as a post graduate course."
"Wait, so you've been to college already?"
"Moscow University," he says, not making eye contact. "I actually have a Masters in astrophysics. I graduated high school when I was ten. I did an intensive English course for a year before I came here."
"How old are you now? Are you eighteen?"
He looks up at her, as though he's been dreading this question. "I'm… I'm still sixteen. My birthday is in a month but no, I'm a long way off eighteen."
"I'm only just older than you," she says, his eyes focus in on her, curious. "I'm not eighteen yet either."
Chekov feels comforted in knowing this, though he doesn't voice the though aloud. He moves his hair out of his eyes, going back to writing in his journal. They keep working quietly together for a while, Vienna trying to get a grasp on alien anatomy. She complains about it periodically, Chekov smiling as he listens to her rants. He always stops writing when he's listening to her, something she's yet to notice.
Chekov leaves his journal open on the table when he goes to the bathroom. Vienna looks to where he was walking and reads over his journal, trying to spot the one word she recognises. She finds it, in among a sea of Cyrillic that she can't make sense of. A thought crosses her mind and tells herself it would be easy just to take a photo of the page. She could auto-translate it when she got back to her dorm. It would be so easy. It would take one second and she could cure her curiosity, get a little insight into Chekov's mind.
Vienna waits half an hour after Chekov gets back to ask about what he's writing. He raises an eyebrow, asking for a little more detail.
"What do you write about? Do you go over class content or what you had for breakfast or what? I just want to know what's in there."
He smiles at her comment. "I do write about what I eat sometimes," he says softly. "It's just embarrassing for me to go into detail about. I write about my feelings and what I'm thinking about or worried about… I don't know how else to describe it."
"Am I in there?"
He anticipated the question, but he feels no more prepared for it. "Well, yes… I don't want to sound weird or anything but thoughts I've had stemming from our conversations are in here. When we spent the day together that was in there too…"
"And if your feelings are all in there, does that include your feelings about me?" She asks the question with a smile and he can feel his face heat up.
"Ah, well… I…"
"I'm sorry," she says quickly, noticing how flustered he's getting. "You don't have to answer that. I shouldn't be asking such personal questions. I think it's cool that you write a journal though. It's probably a good idea to have your thoughts in a way that you're able to visualise them."
"Exactly," he mutters. "Not many people understand that."
The weekend comes around again and Vienna spends most of it studying. All the work they're given is far more time consuming than she anticipated and it takes her a few hours to get it all done. She starts drawing a little in the afternoon, trying to take her mind off the homework she still has left to do. For a while she gets lost in her work and jolts back into reality, realising she's been drawing the boy from her dreams. He balances along the wall of a building the stars in view and his arms outstretched to keep him steady. She puts her pen down and runs a hand through her hair.
There's a knock at the door and Vienna's roommate answers it, calling out to Vienna as soon as the door is open.
"Chekov?" Vienna asks, smiling and pulling up a chair for him.
"Hey," he greets, "sorry for just showing up."
"Don't be," she laughs, "What brought you here?"
"I came to see if you were busy."
"And assuming I'm not busy?"
"I was going to ask if you wanted to come see a space exhibition with me. It's at this small museum a few blocks walk from the city. If it doesn't really interest you, that's fine but I thought I'd ask…"
Vienna has to stop herself from pointing out how polite he is but agrees, liking the idea of spending the afternoon with him instead of staying in her room trying to study. She asks if he's happy to wait a few minutes while she gets herself sorted, which he is. He scribbles in the back of his journal as he waits, daydreaming a little.
Vienna and Chekov only make it a little past the dorms before running into unwanted company. Vienna hasn't talked to Damien since he pushed Chekov in the cafeteria but he notices them walking together and he makes the point of calling out to them.
"Vienna! You know, I didn't pick you as the type to be into boys like him. You know, it's not too late to change your mind. I think you'll find that there's certain qualities that make for a good partner. Being pathetic isn't one of them."
Vienna's eyes narrow in on him, Chekov wants to keep walking, not continue this conversation. "You have an awfully weird way of trying to show interest in someone. Bringing other people down and being an ass-hole isn't an attractive quality either. You don't know him. Leave him alone."
"Oh, but that's the thing," he says, his voice dropping. "I do, I know him more than you think and a lot more than what he thinks. Don't think that you're getting the full picture Vienna. The Chekov's aren't known for how they treat their girlfriends."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Vienna bites, clenching her fists tightly.
"Ask him," Damien says flatly, gesturing to Chekov. "I'm sure he'll find a way to explain." He looks to the rest of his group and they walk away. Vienna and Chekov stand there, watching and unsure what to say to each other.
"I've no idea what he means," Chekov says quietly, looking over to Vienna.
"Let's just go sit somewhere," she suggests, her mind racing more than she cares to admit.
They find a space that's reasonably empty. Vienna sits down and looks up at Chekov, who's still standing.
"Can we start with the fact that Chekov is your last name?"
"Chekov is my last name, yes," he confirms. "My name is Pavel Andreivich Chekov."
"Pavel?" She asks. "I like that name. Can I call you that instead?"
"Of course."
Chekov sits down then, a little worried about the rest of the questions that are coming. He doesn't know how he's supposed to answer some of them when he doesn't even know the answers himself. He has a hunch but Vienna doesn't start asking questions.
"I think Damien's just trying to cause trouble. I think he wants to make me paranoid or something. Does anything he said make sense to you?"
"I have a hunch he might be talking about my brother is he means the Chekov name but I don't know how he'd know my brother…"
Vienna nods, deciding to leave the conversation there. They make a mutual decision to leave the museum for another day, heading back to their dorms. She wonders why Damien's trying to get involved with her friendship with Chekov. She wonders if he's jealous or something. It doesn't seem plausible. They haven't even talked all that much. They've talked briefly once or twice, she didn't think it would mean that much.