Yale
by Starsinger
Frank is sad again, he's letting Jim go again, this time to Yale. A place where he could easily go to and get him if necessary. Oh, I looked it up, just in case, yes, Yale does have a medicine program. I could have just made it that they added the program in the time since it was founded, but, I don't have to! lol Don't own them.
Yale's idyllic setting had not changed much in the nearly six hundred years since it had been established. Sure a town had grown up around it and the native peoples had pretty much moved out, but it was still beautiful. The small town of New Haven Connecticut still seemed like it belonged in a time several centuries before, well, maybe not the seventeenth century, but the twenty-third century seemed not to exist here.
Frank drove here with Chris, Gloria and Jim in tow. He wanted to spend as much time as possible with the now fourteen year old before he embarked on his latest journey. Chris had volunteered. They packed up the family car and set out for the University. Jim would be living on campus in a dorm run by a middle-aged couple, Ben and Angela Demorka, specifically for the underage students that sporadically attended classes at the famous university.
Their first stop was Yale itself, where they needed to check in and get the tour of the campus. Frank sighed, he hadn't seen lines like this since they were staying at the Academy waiting for Jim to heal and all the first years crowded the lawn to get registered. "Dad, I see a sign that says 'K'," Jim said, pulling on Frank's shirt. A shiver went up Frank's spine, Jim calling him "Dad" would never get old. They followed Jim to that line and waited. Frank wondered if this process had changed in the time Yale had been around, he was beginning to doubt it. The woman at the table, when they finally approached, looked at them confused, two middle-aged men, and two kids were not typically students at the University.
"Name?" she finally asked.
"Kirk, James Tiberius," Jim spoke up, his voice breaking on Tiberius. Frank hid a smile, Jim's voice was still trying to change.
She thumbed through her PADD before pulling him up, and peered at him to make sure he matched the photo on her device. "Alright, Mr. Kirk, please stand right there while I take your picture," she cocked her head with a smile at Frank, "This is for his student ID."
Jim smiled timidly as his picture was taken, and minutes later an ID was in his hand. He clutched it tightly, as if not quite believing it was real. She then handed him a PADD of his own, and took him through it, pointing out his school schedule, location of his dorm, and since he was a minor, his curfew. They were soon directed toward his dorms, and were told to be back at 2 pm for the tour of the campus.
Chris laughed, "This isn't Starfleet, I can't expect them to say 1400 hours." Frank laughed as well as they piled back into the car and headed for the dorm.
They first met Mrs. Demorka, she was an earthy woman who Frank took an instant liking to. She smiled as she showed them down the hall to the individual rooms, "He has a roommate, of course, Alexander Chekov is his name. They're about the same age. Don't worry, Jim won't age out of here until he's eighteen. We have rooms here for when you come to visit as well, so don't worry about where you're going to crash for the next couple of days, although it's one room per family. All our rooms are filled with students families today."
Chris smiled, "That's okay, I have friends living nearby, I'll stay with them." Frank smiled gratefully.
The room was big enough to hold two beds, two desks, and a minifridge. It had two closets, so Jim and Alexander wouldn't have to share. A trunk sat at the foot of each bed for their small clothes. "I'll leave you to get settled. We have a welcome dinner at 7 pm for everyone, and you'll meet Ben there as well. Don't forget the tour later, and if you're hungry, I have sandwiches down in the kitchen."
They spent the next two hours getting Jim moved in and set up, and they met Alexander and his parents, and his little brother, Pavel, who seemed to want to follow in his brother's footsteps. "He's a whiz," Alex said. His major was Law. They all traveled back to the campus to meet their respective groups. Many students were startled, and a little intimidated, by a fourteen year old in their midst. Jim, on the other hand, was very charming. He soon became the little brother to all the older students on campus. His shy grin, and obvious intelligence winning almost everyone over.
Everyone in his group were Medical Students, so they took tours of the Science and Medical buildings. Jim was minoring in Engineering, and one of the guides promised to show him those buildings later. When the day was over, Frank was glad that there was a GPS unit on the PADD so Jim could find his classes, he knew his head was awhirl with all this new stuff in it.
That night, they had dinner at the dorm, and Mrs. Demorka proved to be an excellent cook. She and Ben had never had children, but being the den parents for these young souls proved to be an excellent distraction from that reality. Jim slept like a log that night. The next day they drove around the town, not really sight-seeing, but getting a feel for it. Unfortunately, the next day was Monday, and they had to say good-bye.
"Okay, Jimmy, you know how to reach me or Chris if you need us, right?" Frank asked, very glad that he'd gotten Jim's vaccinations up-to-date recently.
"Yes, Frank," Jim replied humorously. He threw his arms around Frank, "Thank you Dad. I love you."
"I love you too, Jimmy," Frank said. "See you at Thanksgiving." He watched as Jim walked back to his dorm and turned and waved before entering the building. Frank sighed.
"You still have one more at home, Frank," Chris said, pointing at Gloria. "And I think you promised her ice cream." Frank laughed as they all piled back into the car and left.