A/N: So I'm back! I haven't written anything in so long! Decided to revisit this, and I actually came up with something. So I'm going to continue this, and it's now the plot line of the movie. Dang, I hope I don't screw this up. Basically, I don't own anyone but Lyndsey and her family. Everything else doesn't belong to me. And I hope Lynds doesn't come of Mary-Sue again. I also don't own "We Own The Night" by Lady Antebellum.
I'm also trying to find a way to work in Lilly Chekov. (Lilly Flower Cycle, check my page)
Chapter 4
Reunions and Realizations
"She was the purest beauty
But not the common kind
She had a way about her
That made you feel alive
And for a moment
We made the world stand still
Yeah we own the night
You had me dim the lights
You danced just like a child
The wine spilled on your dress
And all you did was smile
Yea it was perfect
I hold it in my mind
Yeah we own the night"
-"We Own The Night" by Lady Antebellum
This was it. After so much waiting, she'd finally made it. This was the day she'd be leaving her hometown and entering Starfleet Academy. Every day of mentally preparing herself for the inevitable, all of it would be circling down to now. She was standing in front of the transport shuttle wearing her new cadet reds and grinning like a fool. Running a hand through her thick red hair, she smiled. If only her parents could see her now. They'd be so proud. She heard a voice.
"Standing and gaping won't get us off the ground Cadet."
She looked over apologetically at a man nearby. She nodded respectfully, as it was a captain she was being addressed by. "Sorry sir, just a bit awestruck. I've been waiting for this my entire life."
He nodded, a friendly smile on his face. He understood the feeling. It seemed almost mythical when you finally looked up at the shuttle where the rest of your life would be figured out and even more once you arrived at Starfleet Academy. He took a good look at the girl. She looked so familiar; maybe he'd served with someone in her family.
He walked up to her and held out his hand. "Captain Christopher Pike. What's your name Cadet?" She took his hand and shook it. "Cadet Lyndsey Ambrosi, sir."
So that's why she looked so familiar. "It's good to see another Ambrosi in Starfleet. I served with your father and your oldest brother Liam. Liam, your brother, said he had a younger sister. He spoke very highly of you, and I can see why. You have the makings of a Starfleet Captain."
Lyndsey grinned, letting go of his hand. "Medical command is what I'm going for sir, Or something along that path. It's a bit different than a science, technical, or security officer, but I'm going to give it a try." Captain Pike nodded. "Well I wish you well. Godspeed cadet."
"Godspeed sir."
She nodded respectfully and walked onboard the shuttle, taking a seat near the front. Tying her red hair back in a high ponytail, she smiled across the way to the cadets sitting in front of her.
When she heard something like flesh hitting metal, she looked over in curiosity and froze. Nearly ten feet in front of her was a face she thought she'd never see in a shuttle on the way to Starfleet Academy, let alone again in her life. This was the person she hadn't seen since she was seventeen. Standing ten feet away was her once best friend, James Tiberius Kirk. And he looked like he had just gotten his face bashed a few times. Her maternal instinct just longed to kick in but she held it back. This was Jim Kirk she was seeing, not her brother.
Well, she still considered him her best friend. Right? He hadn't exactly broken the code of friendship. He hadn't told her off or anything. She sighed. Some things could just be so confusing. The twenty-one year old gulped when Jim looked straight at her, grinned, and swaggered over to the seat next to her. On sitting down, he spoke. "Hey babe." He sounded like such a Casanova.
She gave him a hard look to the face. "Jim, don't you recognize me?"
He stared hard at her face, as if to try to recognize her. "No…have I slept with you before?"
What an answer. Lyndsey slapped his arm, starting to get annoyed. "James Tiberius Kirk! It's Lyndsey! Lyndsey Ambrosi? Lynds?" She attempted using the old childhood nickname to jog his memory. He had called her that, hadn't he?
Finally after a few seconds, his eyes widened and he tackled her in a side hug. "Lynds! I can't believe it! How long's it been? Like, five years? I didn't even recognize you! You look good!" She laughed and lightly punched his arm. "Nice to see you too, Jim."
Immediately after, a voice surfaced from a little farther away. The tone of the voice immediately got Lyndsey's attention, as well as Jim's.
"I don't need a doctor, I am a doctor."
"You need to get back to your seat…"
"I had one in the bathroom with no windows!"
"You need to get back to your seat…"
It was a man and a girl who looked like a flight commander. The woman was small, a little shorter than Lyndsey's five foot five. The man however, was at least six one and muscular. He was also very handsome, which caught Lyndsey's eye immediately. She shook her head. No way she could think about dating. She'd have too much work at the Academy for any sort of dating life.
"I suffer from aviaphobia. It means fear of dying in something that flies."
"Sir, for your own safety, sit down or else I'll make you sit down."
This woman was definitely brave. The man then sat next to Jim with a resigned "Fine." She cracked a smile, her usually kind self was beginning to reflect into her face.
"This is Captain Pike, we are cleared for takeoff."
Lyndsey sighed happily. She was glad to finally be getting somewhere. She looked at her shoulder and realized that she had barely even registered that Jim had loped an arm around her shoulder. It was almost like old times again, like nothing had ever happened and he hadn't forgotten about her.
The man then turned to Jim.
"I may throw up on you."
"I think these things are pretty safe."
Jim responded to the man with the statement and a concerned look. The man definitely wasn't in good shape for the shuttle ride. She looked at him; a caring smile making it's way across her face. "It'll be okay." She said comfortingly. The man immediately turned to her, looking at her like she had three heads.
"Nothing's ever okay doll. And no pander to me kid. One tiny crack in the hull and our blood boils in thirteen seconds. Solar flare might crop up and cook us in our seats. Wait till you're sitting pretty with andorian shingles, see if you're so relaxed when you're eyeballs are bleeding. Space is disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence."
Despite the crazy speech she had just heard, Lyndsey could see the hidden genius that was this man. Jim on the other hand, seemed to think he was crazy.
"Well I hate to break it to you, but Starfleet operates in space." Jim said point blank.
Lyndsey chuckled at the bluntness as the man grabbed a flask and took a good sip. "Well I have no where else to go. The ex-wife took the whole planet in the divorce. All I got left is my bones." He looked at the flask then passed it to Jim and Lyndsey. Jim took it first, taking a sip.
"Jim. Jim Kirk." He swallowed and passed it to Lyndsey, who took a good swig, the familiar warm burn of bourbon sliding down her throat. "Lyndsey Ambrosi. Call me Lynds."
The man took the flask. "McCoy. Leonard McCoy."
Lyndsey had been trying to piece it together what he could be, so she took a try. "You a doctor or something?" She asked. He nodded. "Yep, that'd be me." He looked between the two of them. "What're ya'll studying?"
"Command." Jim said confidently. Lyndsey nodded understandingly. He'd be taking something like his father. "I'm going to get my own ship in three years. Well, I know I can do it, just got to put in some effort."
She nodded. "I'll be going into medical, but taking some command classes. I want to be a CMO eventually. " McCoy nodded. "I'll be seeing you a lot then."
She nodded. "Probably will."
Jim watched the exchange with interest. Lyndsey was different now, and anyone with eyes could see that. Last time he'd seen her was at seventeen. Then, she'd been skinny with thick-rimmed purple glasses and waist length long hair. She'd worn colored eye shadow then, in purples and blues. Looking at Lyndsey now, there was a huge visible difference. She'd cut off almost eight inches of her hair, leaving it on her shoulder blades. Her makeup was extremely natural, letting her blue eyes naturally stand out. Her freckles seemed more pronounced and she no longer had braces. Her teeth were straight, white, and beautiful. He realized the truth he'd now come to see. She was gorgeous, inside and out. She was still the same kind-hearted girl he'd known five years ago, but so much had changed. He felt almost unworthy of her, with her pure heart and unrelenting kindness. He watched as she pulled a hand through her thick red hair, and wanted to immediately play with her hair like he used to when they were fifteen. Remembering his arm around her shoulder, he lightly stroked her hair and looked at her, searching her face. "So, what happened to you after I left school? You made a visual one eighty."
Lyndsey leaned her head on his shoulder, and on realizing he had been holding his breath, Jim exhaled. He continued stroking her hair in the same old familiar way.
"Senior year was boring. I was alone, and no one wanted to be around me except for a few people. I was writing a lot, thinking of what I could say if I ever saw you again. I went to prom by myself, and at the after party I got pretty drunk. Next time I was aware, I had woken up in a room with a bunch of people, and I was half dressed. Liam picked me up and never told mom and dad. According to the pictures though, which were embarrassing by the way, I'm a really flirty drunk. I was teased so much till graduation. After graduation, I helped my aunt and uncle in their business in Greece before I came here for a month to get recruited."
She closed her eyes, breathing in a scent that was so naturally Jim. The smell of prairie grass, alcohol, and cologne drifted off him and into her nostrils. She spoke softly, so only Jim would be able to hear her.
"I missed you Jim."
Jim pressed his cheek to her red hair. Lyndsey always had a unique smell, and he could still remember the sweet scent that had been on her skin, and it was still there. Flowers, cut grass, and a hint of garlic clove wafted off her skin. He'd often tried to remember exactly how it smelled to just bring up memories of her, of his best friend. He sighed defeated. He wasn't going to let himself forget her now, and not again. He knew that would tear their friendship apart even more.
"I missed you too Lynds. You have no idea how much I missed you."
He'd truthfully missed her and no way he'd lie to her. He had missed her smile, the way she could rationally think herself out of any problem, how she would stitch him up after he got in a fight and how her hands would gently move across his skin in sweet ministrations of a caring girl who was worried for her friend.
He'd been bruised up. Some douchebag had decided to pick a fight with him after a little too much to drink. He'd been outsmarted this time, and the other guy had beaten him bloody. He knew if his mom saw him, or his stepfather, it would be a horrible weekend. He knew exactly where to go. The sixteen year old found himself at Lyndsey's window, rapping on the pane. The other looked through and immediately opened said window. "Jim, what happened?" She asked worriedly. He shrugged and sat on a chair in her room. "Picked a fight with somebody who was a bit bigger than me. Don't worry Lynds. I'm here now. Can you stitch me up again?"
She sighed and grabbed her first aid kit. "Sure Jim. You know I'd do anything for you." She gently took his arm and began her work, the whole time the boy was relishing in the feel of her gentle fingers against his skin. It was like heaven.
After a long conversation between the three of them, the shuttle landed. They got up and walked out, towards the rest of their lives. Glancing out, Jim and Lynds looked at each other, grinned, and walked forward into their destiny.
A/N: That is the LONGEST I've ever written for this story. I hope you enjoy! I hope Lyndsey wasn't Mary Sue-ish. I really tried to make Jim/Lynds relationship sort of complicated between friend and long time love. Kind of making them both know what they feel but kind of oblivious to what each other is feeling. And then there's Bones, who has Lyndsey's eye. Who do you want? Team Kirk or Team Bones?
Feedback is appreciated, no flames though. PM for constructive. Flames will be fed to the creatures on Delta Vega, given to Nero, or given to Loki the Trickster god.
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-Rachel
