"Spock, I can't anymore, it's just too much information. I just can't." Jim said as he pleaded with Spock, covering his ears in protest.
"Captain, you have managed to retain a good portion of information that I have given you. Also your pronunciation is quite adequate."
"What did you say, Spock? I can't hear you." Jim asked Spock since he assumed he was speaking because he could see his mouth was moving.
Letting out a heavy sigh, Spock pried Jim's hands away from his commander's head. Feeling Spock's hot hands on his own hands was amazing but it only lasted a few seconds. Jim regarded those few seconds as bliss.
"Now, can you hear me?" Spock asked again.
"Yes. That's much better. You were saying Spock?"
Spock tried to refrain from sighing again. He barely won.
"I believe you have learned enough today. You seem a bit fatigued. I shall let you retire for the evening." Spock replied as he turned to leave.
"No! We can't be done yet. There's a few more names I'd like you to pronounce for me." Jim said as he grabbed Spock's wrist to make him stay.
Spock stopped in his tracks. He was beginning to notice Jim's strange behavior. He wasn't sure what was causing it. Perhaps Jim needed to go to sickbay and get checked out.
Jim was lost in the sensation of holding Spock's wrists. He then realized that he was still hanging on those wrists. He hoped that Spock had not noticed. Jim quickly let go of Spock's wrists and asked again for him to stay.
"Very well, I shall stay a little while longer." Spock replied as he continued to walk through the garden.
"This plant looks like a good one. It must have one complicated name." Jim steered Spock in his direction.
"I am unfamiliar with this specimen." Spock replied calmly.
"Well, it looks like a cactus flower." Jim said, confidently.
"Yes. I do recognize it as being such. But, there is something most peculiar about it."
"It looks harmless enough." Jim said as he picked up the potted plant. He brought the flower close to his nose to breathe in the fragrance it gave off. What he got in return was a sneezing fit. That fit lasted twenty seconds. Next, as he tried to place the flower back to where he had found it, he inadvertently touched the sharp thorns that protruded from its stem.
Jim was delighted beyond reason. This was it. The flower he was waiting for pricked him. It hurt like hell, but it was worth it. Now, all Spock had to do was pull the thorn...
Things started to become strange as he felt his tongue feel like cotton. His finger that had been pricked was on fire. Actually, it felt he was burning from the inside out. His vision began to blur as Jim fell unconscious.
Jim could not know though that Spock had him in his arms, running to sickbay.
