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Drum roll please!

Karu rushed out of the door intent on finding his Pasha, only to run into the very man he was looking for. He was moving so fast, completely focused on his goal, that he plowed the younger man into the far wall, pinning him against his body. The hallway that had been so busy not fifteen minutes previous was now empty. He now had his Pasha right where he wanted him as he glanced down grinning from ear to ear. His eyes raked over the body infront of him, but he stopped breathing when he met Pav's eyes, his smile faded. Whatever murderous thoughts he had earlier in the day came back tenfold when he saw the haunted look in Pav's eyes. Hesitancy and worry filled those beautiful blue eyes. Something had happened in the few minutes Spock had kept him away and Karu would go thru hell to make it right again. Spock was now added to the growing list of those who would end up in the air lock, but first he was going to comfort his love.

Not thinking of how Pav might react, he gently framed Pav's face with his hands, his thumbs wiping away the two small tears that had trickled from his sapphire eyes. "Pasha, what happened?" Karu's voice was as soft as his hands. The small flame of hope was burning bright, either that or was truly insane and was having the greatest hallucination, ever.

Pav's lip trembled as he took a deep breath, but he made no motion to pull away from the comforting embrace, in fact he leaned further in to it. "Karu, I need to talk vith you, but I don't vant to out here in ze hall." As if he'd been slapped, Karu remembered they were out in the hall. Thankfully the corridor was still deserted.

Karu nodded and led Pav into his room by the hand. Once more Pav did not flinch away from his hold, but grasped the hand tight in both of his own. He stopped long enough to lock the door (just about the sanest thing he had done all day) before sitting down on the bed pulling Pav next to him. "You know you can tell me anything, Pasha." Bringing his arm around the teen's shoulders, he squeezed to offer comfort. Tactic be damned when his Pasha was upset.

Pav nodded and took a deep breath. "Karu, vhat I hawe to tell you might make you mad, so I vant you to promise that you vill hear me out before you react, ok?" Pav looked deep into his honey brown orbs, searching for a truthful answer. His stomach was knotted into a tight ball. This could go two ways – he could be forgiven or he could be chewed out. Spock had given him some encouragement in that Vulcan way of his, but this was the real thing, this was Hikaru. He had to be strong. Wiping away the tears from the tenderness his Hikaru, his shining star, had shone him and awaited his answer.

"Of course." Karu's voice was raw. His stomach had just dropped back down to the floor. This sounded like something that was going to rip his heart out, he let the arm that had been around Pav dropped to the bed behind him. Lowering his head, bowed in defeat, he awaited the words to rip his beating heart from his chest. He might just jump out the airlock; it would be easer than taking the four commanding officers with him. He sighed in agony, he would be stuck as a raving lunatic for the rest of his days without his Pasha.

Pav's heart broke at the sight of Karu retreating back into himself. "Karu, look at me." He lifted the older man's face up and held lovingly it in both his hands, fingers dipping into the luscious black locks; so that he could watch his emotions play out in his dark eyes. "I am afraid zat I am ze one you should be mad at today. All ze interruptions vere my fault. I had asked Keptin, Doktor McCoy, Scotty and Spock to help me." He watched the confusion play across his beautiful features. "Zey helped me to make sure zat you vanted me as much as I vanted you." Slowly understanding replaced the confusion. "Zo, it vas not originally my idea, but zat is not important, I thought it vould work. Zey vere not trying to take me avay from you, zey vere trying to point out how vell ve fit togetzer, zo make you jealous. This vas operation 'Catch a Falling Star'." A small smile was tugging at the corner of his beautiful mouth. "You are my star, Hakeeru. You are my ewerything." Pav leaned in to close the gab between their hungry lips.

The kiss was chaste, but powerful. Every doubt Karu had about Pav's feelings for him simply vanished into the delicate lips moving against his own. Finally when breathing became a priority, they pulled back. "Are you done explaining?" Pav nodded. "I have a confession; I had my own plan 'Operation Swoon Pasha'. I should have enlisted help so that we might be able to call it even now, but oh well." They both laughed. "Pav, I have loved you since the moment I saw you. I want to be with you, and I don't just mean physically no matter what Jim has told you." Part of his body was adamantly denying that statement, but his heart agreed that it was the truth. He was not going to rush him into something too fast. He would be content just to hold him and kiss him.

Pav nodded. "I lowe you too, and I know zat my knight in shining armor vould not rush me into anyzing." He batted his lashes up at Karu. "Zis vas not supposed to go zo vell on ze first day. It vas supposed to take a few days, but you Karu, catch on too fast. Not zat I am complaining, though." He wrapped his arms around Karu's waist and held on tight.

Karu let his hand run thru Pav's curls as he wrapped his arm around Pav's back. "We have got all the time in the world, Pasha." He leaned back against the head board as Pav snuggled closer to him. It was heaven just to hold and be held. Suddenly the day's events clicked in his head. "You mean to tell me that wrestling in the gym, Scotty's questions, Jim's blowing on your neck, Bones' calling you Pasha and Spock interrupting at the worst possible moment was all your idea?!" The whole account of the day's events had come out in one breath. He stared wide-eyed down at Pav, who didn't bother to speak just nodded in agreement. "You have driven me to the point of lunacy all day with all that mess and your little short shorts! You have got a lot of making up to do Pavel Andreievich Chekov!" Quick as lighting Karu had Pav pinned under him tickling him any where his hands could reach.

Pav bucked underneath him and squirmed crying out for mercy between his laughs. Karu beamed in excitement as his nimble fingers worked their way up Pav's belly. He remembered each spot that made Pav giggle harder. "Please, Karu, Please!" Pav could only pant out his request.

Karu leaned close to his ear not bothering to slow his fingers. "Please, what Pasha?" He blew a raspberry on his exposed neck. Pav smiled and laughed again, so carefree and so happy. Taking pity on the birthday boy he let his fingers rest against the smooth skin of his love's belly as he snuggled closer to him. Pav wrapped his arms around him tight and kissed the top of Karu's head as it rested on Pav's chest listening to his heartbeat. The young man slowly drifted off to sleep with a smile on his face with one word leaving his tired tongue.

Finally, after all the hell he had endured, Karu got what he wanted – Pav covered in sweat, completely satisfied with one word on his lips – Hikaru, and completely in love with him.

A/N: Thanks for reading.

Ah ha! Betcha didn't see that coming! I just couldn't take it any further than that... for now.

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