Epilogue
Spock and Jim were playing chess in Jim's cabin. There was little speech, but there rarely was when they played. They were enjoying the silence of their newly mended friendship. The cabin door chimed.
"Come!" Kirk didn't look up from his game, but Spock turned.
"Greetings, Doctor McCoy."
"Sit down wherever you like." Kirk waved vaguely toward his bed. Then he placed his piece down. "Checkmate, Mr. Spock."
Spock folded his hands in his lap.
"That was too easy, Mr. Spock. You aren't focused on the game."
"Don't give him a hard time, Jim," McCoy came unexpectedly to his defense. "You should know how he feels. I know I do."
The men sat in silence for several minutes, each deep in the memories of lost loves.
McCoy was the first to break the silence. "What did she say to you just before she left, Spock?"
"She said my name." He once again shook his head in wonder. And then he allowed himself a rare smile. "She said my full Vulcan name."