Super happy with the way this came out the second time :)

Either Kirk was too fed up with them or he hadn't noticed the hour of hand-holding. After that, Khan contented himself with plowing through the Reyne's thick copy of Jane Eyre…or perhaps 'content' was too strong a word.

Reyne couldn't help but notice the look of repugnance on his face as if the very pages were slicing open his fingers and causing him pain. He paused every now and then to take a sip of his tea before all but slamming the cup back into its plastic saucer.

"Everything okay over there?" Reyne asked tentatively, taking a sip of her own coffee.

It was in that moment that Khan finished the last page before slowly closing the book and using every ounce of strength not to obliterate it.

"Was it the romance?"

"The supposedly desirable figure of Rochester" Khan practically spat out the name.

"He is questionable I'll admit" Reyne shifted slightly as she rather liked Rochester.

"He shut his wife in the attic!"

"What else could he have done?" she asked. "An asylum wasn't an option back then"

"Then perhaps keep her in a separate housing unit with a trusted medical advisor!" Khan snapped. Reyne shrugged.

"Well I didn't write it" she said.

"Questionable" Khan scoffed. "Detestable is more likely"

"Aren't we all?" Reyne replied calmly. "I mean your actions are hardly excusable"

"You know my motives and I hardly think it's a fitting comparison to a fictional story"

"Rochester explains his motives and they make sense"

"You're hardly a candidate for upstanding morality yourself Lieutenant"

"What?"

"Well we're bringing my actions to the jury, it's only fitting yours are outlined as well"

"No one made you murder innocent men and women" Reyne's blood slowly simmered.

"Innocence is debatable Lieutenant. You just said we're all questionable"

"They had family"

"You killed yours"

"My father was not my family" Reyne spat "The men I killed were violent criminals who would've raped me had I not fought back. It was self-defense. What did the Starfleet officers, excepting Marcus, ever do to you?"

It wasn't until Reyne was staring directly into Khan's cold gaze that she realized the two were standing, faces mere inches from each other, eyes flaring.

Silence ensued as Khan mentally tried to draw points for his next argument. Until the PA system suddenly diverted both their attentions;

"Guys break it up" Kirk ordered.

Reyne felt the flush on her cheeks as she realized how close she was standing. Taking a deep breath before taking the book from Khan's hand;

"Also the writing is beautiful" she said slowly before going back to her bench.

"Antiquated" Khan replied, even if only to have something to say.

"So are you" Reyne yawned before using her book as a sort of pillow and laying down with her back to him for a nap. "Don't even think about it" she muttered. Yet the last thing she remembered was Khan almost mutinously laying his coat over her…or perhaps it was a white flag.

Kirk stared worriedly at the screen. Whatever was unfolding in that cell, it could have some serious repercussions for everyone if Reyne wasn't careful. She wasn't stupid, he knew that. But Khan was a master manipulator and Reyne was a particularly vulnerable target. Yet if he didn't know better, Kirk would say they were…almost friendly with each other.

But the hand holding alone would be damning if the higher-ups got word of it.

He had to distract them from each other.

As Mr. Sulu was a fan of films (Kirk had once walked in on him tearing up over Titanic), perhaps a film would be distraction enough. The few films Reyne had might start another argument (Gone Girl with its ending, Black Swan, and Jupiter Ascending) so Sulu was the logical choice to consult.

"Pick something happy" Kirk suggested.

And so, on a small portion of the corundum-silicate glass, the two sat, watching the Sound of Music. Reyne knew the film quite well. Khan even seemed absorbed, eyes scanning the wide scenery, taking in the numbers, frowning at Baroness Schreider's presence onscreen.

It seemed a suitable distraction…until the number "Something Good" began.

Perhaps I had a wicked childhood

Perhaps I had a miserable youth

Khan begrudgingly admitted to himself that the film did have a certain charm, despite its age. Yet as the duet between Maria and Georg continued, he found he was looking at Reyne instead. Reyne noticed after a bit with a jolt but returned his gaze nonetheless.

Nothing comes from nothing.

Nothing ever could.

So somewhere in my youth or childhood

I must have done something good

Their faces were once again inches from each other. Reyne held her breath, the only communication was their eyes. Khan remained still, not drawing back when Reyne slowly realized what he was doing. He was giving her a choice; letting her know that the decision was hers and hers alone should she wish to proceed. She told herself it was because he remembered what happened the last time he had taken such a liberty, and logical consideration for her PTSD. Nothing more.

Yet as their lips met in almost perfect timing to the kiss onscreen, Reyne wanted to believe the warmth of their contact was genuine, the soft pressure of his lips on hers was surprising in its gentility. The kind of kiss that should've been her first. In a way it was.

"Mr. Sulu how are we doing over there?" Kirk asked, not turning around.

Sulu had been assigned to the security chair for a bit. Yet his lack of a response was troubling alone.

Kirk sighed resignedly;

"Am I going to be unhappy if I turn around Hikaru?" he asked.