Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek, or the universe for that matter... but one day you'll all see...
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Uhura flinched as Spock suddenly let out a terrible scream of agony, his back arching upwards off the hospital bed. She leapt to her feet, reaching for her com.
"Bones! Bones, come quick, somethings wrong!"
Spock screamed again, and Uhura grabbed him with both hands, all thoughts of Bones vanishing from her mind. Her only thought was Spock. She had to do something, anything.
"Spock! Spock, its okay," she said, almost crying with fear and grief. "Spock, please, it'll be okay..."
He twisted and bucked on the bed, his face a mask of pain. A single, tortured word fluttered past his lips, a word that made her heart lurch.
"N-Nyota... Nyota, h-h-help... aungh!"
"Spock!" she cried, gripping his hand tightly. "I'm right here, shh, I'm right here beside you. I promise I'm not going anywhere."
Spock's whole body suddenly tensed, trembling wildly. She panicked. What was she supposed to do? Nothing had changed. His brow was still glistening with sweat, the terrible bruising was still blotched over his chest... wait. She took another look. The bruising was beginning to fade. No, she must be wrong. She must be just tired... but it was true. The bruising was slowly shrinking away into tiny dots here and there, until he looked almost like normal. She lifted her eyes to his face, hardly daring to believe it. His face was still strained and lined with pain, but the green bruising that had been spreading up the side of his face was shrinking away too. His eyes were still dark hollows in his head, and he was still pale... but the internal bleeding seemed to be stopping. For a moment, Uhura was completely stumped. And then she realized.
The counter radiation, the antidote, had been given to him. And now, he was recovering. It was actually working...
Even as the thought pushed its way through her weary, stunned mind, Spock's eyes flew open. The whites had lost their green tinge, and the unnerving glazed stare was gone. Instead, his eyes focussed on her and flicked over her face, panicked and wild.
"N-Nyota," he rasped, weakly gripping her hand back.
A sob caught in her throat and she swallowed it down as best she could. "Spock," she whispered. "You okay?"
He shut his eyes for a few moments, struggling to control his rushed breathing. "I... I think... so."
Uhura let out a long sigh of relief and shuffled closer. "Just relax," she coaxed him, trying to keep her voice steady. "Everything's fine. You're okay."
Slowly, Spock's body relaxed and he sank back into the pillow. Uhura leant over him, 'shh'ing softly and brushing the sweat-slicked hair back from his forehead. His eyes fluttered shut, his breathing evening out. Uhura felt a huge smile spreading over her face. It was going to be alright. Everything was actually going to be alright... she looked up as the doors slid open and Bones appeared, his face red, breathing hard.
"What happened? I got your call - god, I heard him scream, what happened?"
Uhura smiled. "A miracle happened, Bones. He's going to be alright."
Jim pulled the glove further up his wrist, flexing his fingers experimentally. They still ached and stung a little at the joints, but at least now he could move them. He had woken up that morning to the good news that Spock had been revived in the early hours, and that Uhura had finally retired to her quarters a few hours later. Now, he pulled his uniform straight as he made his way towards the medical bay, hoping to at least catch a glimpse of his friend before having to attend to his duties as captain. He buzzed the door softly before stepping inside. Bones looked up from Spock's side, and then moved over towards Jim. Jim grinned - Spock was looking much better. He was still pale and clearly very weak, but the bruising was gone and he didn't seem to be as thin as he had before. He was propped up on some pillows, lying back in a seated position with his eyes closed, a mask fitted over his nose and mouth.
"How is he?" Jim murmured as Bones reached him.
"He's doing well," Bones replied, smiling. "The recovery was much more dramatic than I was expecting. To be honest, I thought he was not going to pull through... but then again, he is extremely stubborn."
"You can say that again," Jim grinned.
"I'm just giving him a little more of the antidote at the moment, and it will be a few days before he's up and about but at this rate he'll be back to his old self within a week. His Vulcan healing powers should take over once they've been given a kickstart."
"Thanks, Bones," Jim said. "Thanks for everything."
Bones snorted. "Don't thank me, you were the one who dived down a flaming volcano and almost lost your hand."
"Can I talk to him?"
Bones hesitated, and then nodded. "Sure. Just don't keep him up too long, okay?"
Jim agreed and moved past him. He made his way over to Spock's bedside, and then stopped, unsure of what to say. He didn't hesitate for long - Spock's eyes suddenly opened and turned on him. The Vulcan lifted a hand and pulled the mask away from his face, his movements still a little lethargic.
"Captain," he said hoarsely.
"Hey, Spock," Jim replied, grinning at him. "How're you feeling?"
"Better," Spock said. "I understand I owe my life to you."
"Chekov and Sulu helped," Jim added. "But you don't owe any of us anything."
"All the same... thank you."
Jim shrugged. He sat down in the chair Uhura had practically lived in for the last few days. "I heard Uhura finally left you," he said. "I bet she didn't go without a fight."
A small smile quirked the corners of Spock's mouth. "I persuaded her eventually. She was beginning to look more ill than me."
Jim laughed. "She really does love you, huh? Stayed by your side all the time."
Spock's smile faded at the sudden personal turn the conversation had taken, but then gave a short, curt nod. "I believe so," he replied formally.
Jim rolled his eyes. "I save you from death and you still don't know how to show emotion. Ah well, I guess some things never change." He stood up, placing his hands on his hips. "And don't think this changes anything; I expect to see you on the bridge in two weeks."
"One week," Spock corrected. "According to Dr, ah, Bones, I will be fit enough to perform my duties within one week."
"But I said two," Jim replied. "And as I'm the captain, what I say goes. You'll just have to, I don't know, take it easy for another week..."
Spock's eyes narrowed. "You cannot confine me to the hospital bay for three weeks, Jim-"
"I think you'll find I can," Jim said, smirking. "Or at least until you're one hundred percent again. I don't plan on losing you any time soon."
He turned and made his way towards the door. As he reached it, Spock called out in a hoarse, wavering voice.
"Jim?"
He paused. Spock seemed to be having difficulty finding the right words.
"I... there's... I don't think... there's nothing that could repay you for what you've done, but if there is anything-"
"Actually, there is," Jim said solemnly, turning to face him. Spock fell silent, watching him. Jim took a deep breath, looked Spock in the eye. "You can... you can give me your chocolate mix dessert for a month."
Spock scowled. Before he could say anything, Jim turned and strode for the door, tossing back a, "See ya!" over his shoulder. As he made his way down the corridor towards the lift, his heart felt unusually warm. He had done it. He had saved Spock.
And there was no way he was ever going to let the Vulcan forget it.
Okay, thats it! El fin! I've really enjoyed writing this story, and I hope the ending wasn't too abrupt. Please review!
SUPRNTRAL LVR.
