CHAPTER TWO
Nathan lay in his bed, darkness surrounding him, his eyes half closed. His shift was over, his first day on the Enterprise. The ship had left the dock a while back and he was now content because he was away from that place, the one that had done so much damage to him. But he didn't want to think about that place, instead he thought about the day he had had. He knew it would take him a few to get used to the time difference, there being no real day or night in space - but he was okay with that. Even back on Earth, his body never fallowed the time.
He still hadn't met the CMO, even after he had spent maybe fifteen hours in the Medical Bay; though he figured he would during his shift tomorrow. But he need not worry about tomorrow as his mind was still on the today. During his whole shift, he had been with Nurse Chapel for maybe half of that. She told him all the rules and regulations, most of which he already knew, but having a refresher didn't do any harm. After that, he memorized where everything was, all of the medical supplies and tools. Then he had studied on how to use the medical machines - the ones that analyze everything about your body: your blood pressure, heart rate, temperature. It could check everything, there were ones that were connected to the exam tables; and there were portable ones that were a little bigger than a tube of lipstick.
Nathan sighed in happiness as his eyes slipped closed. This was his new home and this was the place where he was going to live out his dream and die with it.
It occurred once again while Spock was preparing himself for his required rest time. He lay in his bed, his eyes closed as he once again tried to read the mind that was so insinc with his own Vulcan one. Spock knew that it would be simply easier to brush this mind aside and banish it from his own, but instead he did the opposite.
He wasn't sure at the moment whether it was the human curiosity or the Vulcan scientist or maybe even both, but he opened his mind to it - welcoming it in. This time what he felt most was utter happiness, for a moment that was what Spock concentrated on. Without realizing it, he basked in that happiness until he strayed away from that and tried to probe deeper.
He had hardly scratched the surface of the strangers mind when it jerked away from his own. His eyes snapped open and he panted ever so slightly. Spock would not be able to go that deep when the others mind was so far away and he was not yet acquainted with the physical form of its owner. He let out a human-like breath; he would have to find the source soon, before it became a distraction. Spock closed his eyes once again - it was one that was not wanted nor needed.
The second Nathan stepped into the Medical Bay, Nurse Chapel pointed a slender finger at the closed office door that was behind her at the end of the Bay. Nathan looked at her for a moment, she didn't speak and put her finger down, and she raised a threatening eyebrow at him. He looked at her a second longer before he fallowed to where her finger had pointed. He was about to press the comm. button on the key pad, but before he could the door slid open.
He peered inside the room or office to be more exact and found none other than his ideal sitting behind the desk. McCoy didn't look up, reading something from the PADD in his hands, but waved at Nathan to come in. Nathan swallowed nervously before he stepped into the CMO's office, the door slid shot behind him without a moments notice.
"Have a seat," McCoy told him as Nathan took a seat in the chair in front of the desk, McCoy finally looked up.
He looked at Nathan for a second before a smile split across his lips. This confused Nathan greatly, that wasn't the type of smile that a superior officer would give to a subordinate.
"Nathan Scott," McCoy shook his head. "Long time no see."
Nathan furrowed his brow, he had never seen Doctor McCoy before in his life; he'd only heard things about him, and it was those things he heard that had made him want to become a Doctor himself. So Nathan just stared at him, his face blank.
"Come on," McCoy scoffed. "You don't remember me?"
Nathan just shook his head.
"You went to my wedding . . .?" he tried.
Nathan shook his head, he was sure he'd never been to a wedding before.
"You were, what? Just a kid? You were my ring barer, My God man!" McCoy leaned forward.
"I'm sorry," Nathan told him. "I don't know you."
McCoy frowned as he looked at Nathan, thinking. "Okay, if you don't remember the actual wedding, I'm sure you'll recognized the name."
Nathan raised an eyebrow, his stomach in a twist.
"Sarah James,"
He paled. Nathan knew who that was and wished he didn't; Sarah James was Haley's oldest sister. And with that, he did remember. He was probably only fourteen at the time, McCoy's father was a friend of Nathan's Mother. So the Scott family was invited to the wedding and Nathan was the ring bearer. He had totally forgotten about it, not even remembering when he had met and married Haley.
McCoy looked at him with concern. "Hey, you don't look so good." he got up and walked around his desk, kneeling in front of Nathan.
Nathan looked down at him and gave him a forced smile. "I don't see a ring on your finger," he pointed out.
McCoy glanced down at his left hand. He shrugged his shoulders. "Got divorced years ago,"
"Me too," Nathan said without thinking.
"What?" McCoy asked.
"I married Haley James, we got divorced too." he glanced away.
"How long?" McCoy asked.
"Long enough," Nathan lied.
In truth, it hadn't been long enough and he knew it would never be long enough. It had been a solid month since Haley had left him for another man. Yet it seemed longer and shorter than that at the exact same time, so Nathan was in a limbo with the fact. McCoy was still looking at him will concern and Nathan didn't think that he could stand it any longer.
"I'm fine," Nathan reassured.
"You sure as hell don't look fine to me," McCoy exclaimed.
"I just don't want to hear those names again," Nathan confessed.
McCoy stood and gave his shoulder a squeeze. "Done," he told him.
Nathan could breath again and this time he gave McCoy a real smile. "So why did you call me in here?"
McCoy acknowledged the subject change as he leaned against the edge of his desk. "I have a meeting with the Captain, so I want you to take care of all of my patients until then." he told Nathan.
Nathan himself furrowed his brows in confusion. "But there aren't any patients," he pointed out.
"On the contrary," McCoy pointed out back. "Commander Spock is coming for his check-up,"
"But I just got here!" Nathan protested.
McCoy gave him a smile. "I know you've studied Vulcan physiology, you're going to be fine."
Nathan smiled nervously back. "I hope you're right, otherwise you won't be seeing me much."
Spock was walking down the corridor that led him to the Medical Bay where he had his check-up when it hit him again, but this time it was somewhat more powerful than the other times it had struck. The emotions from the other mind fallowed in quick succession, a barrage of such soreness. It caused him to falter slightly in his step.
Anger, betrayal, sadness, brokenness, loneliness, abandonment, fear, more anger and blame that was all directed to the owner of the mind.
Spock would not admit it to anyone, but he had known this soreness before, he still had ruminants of it inside him. When his mother had died, when she was killed because of Niro, he had felt this. He had blamed himself, but he could also blame it on Niro - direct every emotion he had felt towards Niro. But this mind, the mind that was connected to his, intentionally or unintentionally was directing all of these feelings towards themselves.
No one but themselves.
Spock forced the hand at his side relax itself as all of those feelings disappeared to nervousness and then vanished from his mind. He was sure that the reason why they had been so strong this time was because the other's mind felt them deeply and because he was getting closer to the mind. They could quite possibly be in the place that Spock was going, he didn't know at the moment. What the Vulcan Commander did know was that while he was at his appointment with Leonard McCoy he would tell him about that inconvenience that this was causing him - possibly.
Nathan was waiting for Commander Spock at the Bay doors nervous as ever, he couldn't believe that he had actually forgotten that the USS Enterprise was the only ship that had a Vulcan on it. That was actually one of the reasons why he wanted to join the Enterprise. Haley had always said he had an obsession with the Vulcan's, but they fascinated to him. In medical school he had studied them, the knowledge he gained was minimal. Earth had very little knowledge on the Vulcan race, as they kept everything about their people close to themselves.
But what Nathan had gathered from his studies was the basics of Vulcan physiology, which was all he needed at the moment for this check up. When the bay doors slid open, Nathan stood at attention as Spock stepped in. The Vulcan stopped when he saw Nathan and Leonard.
"Commander Spock," Nathan greeted.
"Where is Doctor McCoy?" Spock spoke curtly.
"Doctor McCoy is in a meeting with Captain Kirk at the moment; I will be taking care of you check up today." Nathan informed him.
"I have never been acquainted with before," Spock informed him. "What is your rank and name?" he commanded.
"Lieutenant Nathan Scott, sir." Nathan answered. "I was on the shuttle with the other new crew member that boarded while the Enterprise was docked at the space station in Earth's atmosphere."
Spock looked at him, his brown eyes piercing through Nathan's. He put down the shield around his mind completely, and reached out, ghosting across the edge the Officers mind. Spock knew instantly that this was the mind that kept entering his own, getting through his shields. At this moment all he could feel was anxiety that bordered on excitement.
"I can reschedule, have you in for a time when Doctor McCoy is present; if me doing your check-up is unacceptable." Nathan reassured; though on the inside he was greatly disappointed.
There was a tick of silence as Spock continued to stare at Nathan, and with that silence grew his disappointment. Spock could feel that disappointment among other things. Now that he was only a few feet away and now knew the owner of the mind, the thoughts that came with the feelings. Like that fact that Lieutenant Scott's confidence in his Doctoring was slowly growing lower.
"That would be unacceptable," Spock told him, putting up his mind shields once again, blocking Nathan's out. "You are quite capable of doing my check-up, Doctor McCoy would not assign to do so if thought other wise."
Nathan let out a breath that he didn't know he had been holding. "Right this way then, Commander." Nathan turned led him over to one of the exam tables, patting to the foot of it. "Have a seat,"
Spock did as he was told and light jumped onto the foot of the bed as Nathan grabbed the scanner form the head of the bed and the PADD for it. Nathan had went over the results of Commander Spock's last check-up, preparing for this moment. This was his very first real patient, who was also a member of a species that he was fascinated with. After he turned on the scanner, Nathan brought the scanner down Spock's body. From head to toe and back again.
Spock waited patiently as Nathan transferred the results from the scanner to the PADD. Nathan looked over the results, comparing them with the results from the last check-up. Heart rate was good, blood pressure in the safe zone, temperature were it should be, there was no detection of any virus or injury. Nathan looked up from the PADD.
"Okay, Commander Spock. Any injuries, irritations, discomforts, pains, head aches?" Nathan asked.
"Negative," Spock told him without a pause, thinking over the fact that Nathan's mind kept penetrating his shield.
Nathan nodded and pressed a few buttons on the touch screen. "Are you eating properly?"
"Yes," Spock said.
"Getting the exercise that you require?" Nathan questioned next, flicking through a few things on the PADD.
"I am fit, yes." Spock informed the Lieutenant.
Nathan looked up from the PADD. "That's good, Commander, you're healthy." he glanced at the PADD again. "Your due for a shot, so I'll give that to you now and you can get back to you shift."
"That would be acceptable," Spock agreed, still staring at Nathan with those deep brown eyes.
Nathan was silent as he stared back at Spock. "If you could please roll up your left sleeve, Commander?" he asked.
Spock complied, rolling up the left sleeve of his blue Enterprise uniform sleeve. While he did that, Nathan turned to the tray that was beside the exam table and prepped the injector. He snapped on a pair of latex gloves, taking the damp cotton ball he turned back to Spock. Lightly holding Spock's upper arm still with his left hand, careful to hold the area where the material still there, Nathan rubbed the alcohol swab in small circle on the exposed skin. With his hand still on Spock's arm, Nathan twisted around to grab the injector.
He didn't notice that his pinky and ring finger slipped off of the sleeve and onto Spock's skin. The reason why Nathan was careful not to touch the Vulcan's skin and to wear gloves, was because he knew that with skin to skin contact, Vulcan's can read everything that you're feeling at that moment - and some times even deeper. Nathan didn't think that he could deal with the fact that a superior officer new how he felt deep down, beyond the surface.
But Spock did notice the contact, he could feel it and he could feel Nathan's touch through his gloves and the material of his shirt. Instantly an image filled Spock's head; a young woman approximately in her early twenties, she had long light brown almost reddish hair, her eyes were hazel a cross between brown and green.
She was smiling and a hand reached out, caressing her face, a golden ring gleaming on the second to last finger. Instantly, the smile fell from the woman face and she shoved the hand away from her. Her face crossed with anger and she raised her hand, it snapped forward slapping whoever the hand belonged to in the face. Spock couldn't tell as he was seeing all of this from their prospective. The sight jerked from the woman to total and utter darkness, suddenly a golden shape entered the picture, hitting the ground and spinning around until suddenly stopping. The hand reached out and picked up the small golden ring. It lay in the open hand a second before the hand clenched and small droplet of water started to fall onto the clenched hand.
"_Commander!" Nathan practically yelled in Spock's face.
He hand given Spock the shot and his eyes seemed to got out of focus. Nathan could believe he had just screwed this up, probably killed the Commander of the USS Enterprise. He had shaken Spock, not rough but lightly and still nothing. Nathan stared at him, starting to panic, that was when he saw where his hand was. Even with it gloved, Spock reacted to his touch; Nathan knew that that wasn't a good thing. He jerked his hand away and instantly Spock's eyes focused. Nathan sighed in relief, pulling his gloves off with a snap.
Spock blinked once and looked at Nathan as he rolled his sleeve back down and stood from the exam table.
"I trust we are done, Lieutenant?" Spock inquired.
Nathan stared at him blankly for a moment before he shook his head. "Yes, you're free to go Commander."
Spock inclined his head ever so slightly, his eyes shifting quickly to Nathan's left hand which clutched the latex gloves tightly. With that quick glance he got all of the information he needed - the ring impression on his left ring finger, which was empty. As the Medical Bay door closed behind him, Spock could feel the sharpness of Nathan's mind - it was filled with sharp fear.
ST09-OTH - NOFM-ce
