"Dammit Joanna!" Leonard shouted as the six-year old threw a tantrum. "I don't have time for this!"
"I WANNNA SEE THE KITTIES!" she shrieked, as tears rolled down her face. "I WANNA SEE THEM NOW!"
Scooping up the broken bits of the cereal bowl, Leonard sighed in frustration. Ever since he brought Joanna home from Gaila's after work the night before, he had dealt with a snappy child. At first he figured it was a combination of being shuffled between houses and him being away, but when she threw the cereal bowl to the floor, Leonard knew it was much more than that.
"We are not going to see the damn cats today!" he stood up, tossing the broken shards of glass into the sink.
Joanna began to wail, her cries echoing off the walls of the tiny kitchen. "I wanna see the kitties!"
There was a knock at the door, causing Leonard to curse. It was most likely is nosey neighbor from across the hall, who never failed to put in her two cents when it came to him, raising his daughter. It must've been a shock to the old woman that it was only the two of them living in the shithole of an apartment.
"Don't move," he pointed to Joanna, as he started towards the door.
Pulling the security chain down, Leonard unlocked the two locks and pulled the door open. He was relieved to find Jim standing on the other side, holding a tray of coffee in one hand and a bakery bag in the other.
"Whoa," he frowned, as Joanna's cries filtered to the front of the apartment. "What the hell happened?"
Leonard sighed and moved so Jim could step in, closing the door behind him. "Temper tantrum," he muttered, making his way back to the kitchen.
Jim followed, setting the coffee and bag down on the counter. "Hey Jo-Bean," he grinned. "Why are you crying?"
Joanna sniffled, "D-daddy wont let me see the kitties!" she hiccupped, rubbing her watery eyes with balled up fists. "He's being a meanie!"
"I can't deal with this right now," Leonard shook his head. "She has a doctor's appointment in an hour and I have to get her a new coat at the damn store."
"Relax Bones," Jim placed his hand on the older man's shoulder. "Take her to the doctor and to the mall. After work I'll take her to Ny's and she can play with the cats for a while."
Leonard was about to protest, when Jim stopped him. "Would you rather her scream and cry all over town?" he asked.
"No," Leonard shook his head. "But she needs to understand that she can't always get what she wants."
Jim nodded, "I know, but she's a kid," he shrugged. "Just let her see the damn cats and all will be well."
He then turned to Joanna, "How does that sound?" he asked, kneeling down next to the chair. "You'll be good for your Dad while he takes you to the doctor and the mall? Then I'll take you to see Callie and Claude after work?"
Joanna hiccupped and nodded, making Jim smile. "Good girl," he kissed her cheek. "Now, I brought breakfast and coffee."
Standing up, Jim made his way to the counter and collected the bag and tray, brining it back to the table. "I figured you could use some real coffee," he shrugged. "None of that awful garbage you've been drinking."
Leonard watched as Jim set a blueberry muffin on a napkin in front of Joanna, before pulling out two more from the bag. "Thanks Jim," he nodded. "You've been a great help for the last week and a half."
Jim smiled and sat down across from Joanna, "No problem, Bones," he shrugged, taking a sip from his cup. "I don't mind at all."
….
Nyota cursed as the doorbell rang again, taking two steps at a time. "HOLD ON!" she shouted, as Callie and Claude barreled down the steps after her.
Racing to the door, Nyota unlocked it and pulled it open. "Can I he-Spock?" she gasped. "W-what are you doing here?"
"I was informed by a Gaila that I was to come here at once to see you," he slightly cocked his head to the side. "She was very adamant."
Nyota was dumbfounded, "She did?"
Spock gave her a brief nod, "May I come in?" he asked.
"Oh!" she gasped, moving to the side. "Come in!"
She watched as he moved past her, stepping out of the chilly spring air and into the warmth of her house. Callie and Claude sat on the bottom step of her staircase, staring at them through their green eyes.
"I see you have been acquired to watch your friend's pets again," Spock nodded to the two felines.
Nyota nodded as she closed the door, "They're on vacation in Puerto Rico," she said, taking his jacket. "They'll be home this weekend."
Spock watched as she set the jacket on the coat rack, "Would you like some tea?" she asked.
He nodded, "That would be sufficient."
Five minutes later, Nyota had two cups of herbal tea on the table and a tray of biscuits between them. "So," she started, unsure where to begin. "I'm surprised to see you."
Spock studied her for a moment, "You're also upset with me."
She looked down at her cup, nodding. "I am."
"May I ask why?"
"You haven't returned my messages," she shrugged. "And you've been bailing out on our vid-chats every week."
Spock gave her a brief nod, which annoyed her. "Ever since you left after New Years, you've been acting strange. You seem…" she shook her head. "Distant. Bored."
"Nyota, I apologize for making you think such illogical thoughts," he placed his hands on the table. "I did not mean for you to think that I did not want to talk to you anymore."
She snorted, "You could've fooled me," she muttered. "Why are you here, Spock? Why did Gaila tell you to come here?"
"Your friend used violent promises if I, and I quote, "Did drag my sorry ass from my icebox of a home to see you," and so I did."
Nyota snorted, "Oh god," she rolled her eyes. "I'm going to kill her."
Spock's eyebrows rose, "I do not wish for you to kill her, Nyota," he shook his head.
"Yeah well, she shouldn't be putting her nose into my business like this," she snapped.
Spock picked up the cup and took a sip, "I did not solely come here based on your friends promises to use violence upon me."
"You didn't?" she frowned. "Because it sounds like you did."
Nyota could've sworn that his mouth twitched, showing signs of a possible smile or laughter. "What?" she asked, as he stared at her.
"I came here to tell you, Nyota Uhura, that I love you."
….
The sun filtered through the glass door, beaming down on the sleeping couple in the bed. Melanie groaned, pressing her face deeper into the pillow, her headache radiating down the back of her neck. She could hear Chris snoring deeply next to her, his leg like dead weight on hers.
"Hmmmm," she groaned, feeling as if she were dying.
Slowly, she lifted her head up and looked at the clock on the table. Her eyes burned as the sunlight reflected off the shiny alarm clock, barely able to read the time. Blinking a few times, Melanie could make out that it was a little after seven in the morning. With another groan, she slowly pushed herself up, yanking her leg out from under Chris's. Once she was free, Melanie stumbled out of bed, catching herself on the side of the mattress.
She could taste the alcohol and smell it, as she stumbled into the bathroom, completely nude. After she peed, Melanie managed to wash her face and brush her teeth, while staring at her reflection in the mirror. Her hair was a tangled mess, a frizzy halo around her head. She could see light bruises on her collarbones and neck, feeling the dull ache from the waist down. Clearly, she and Chris had way too much fun the night before.
Turning the light off, Melanie slowly went back into the bedroom and grabbed her bathrobe. Pulling it on, she tied it around her body tightly, before moving to shut the curtains. With the sun blocked out, she made her way out of the bedroom and into the sitting room. Clothes were scattered about on the floor, and the table had several bottles on one end.
"Jesus," she muttered, shaking her head.
They needed coffee, strong coffee. And some food to fill their stomachs, after a night of god knows what. The last thing she remembered, as she searched for the room service menu, was the quiet dinner she and Chris had out in one of the tourist-filled towns. After that, things got hazy. She remembered that at one point, they bought a bottle of tequila and cracked it open on the beach. After that, nothing.
"Where the fuck?" she hissed, searching through the mess on the table. "Ah, here we go!"
Picking up the folded paper, Melanie quickly pulled it open to find their options for breakfast. But instead, she didn't see anything about coffee. Or breakfast. Given the fact that Melanie didn't know anything past Hola and Muy Caliente, there was no way in hell that she would understand what she was reading.
"What?" she frowned, squinting at the text.
Their names were on it, along with the date and time; and given the fancy stamp that looked pretty governmental, Melanie had a weird feeling come over her.
"CHRIS!" she screamed, clutching the paper in her hand. "CHRIS GET OUT HERE NOW!"
She could hear him cursing from the bedroom, and a loud thump as he fell out of bed. A few seconds later, he was making his way out of the bedroom, pulling a pair of pants on.
"What?" he snapped. "Why are you screaming!"
She turned to look at him, "You speak Spanish," she said. "What is this?"
Chris looked at her for a moment, before snatching the paper out of her hands. While he looked like utter shit from their night of debauchery, Melanie couldn't find it in her heart to care at that moment. She watched as Chris read the paper slowly, his eyes going wide.
"What?!" she asked, growing nervous. "Oh god, did we get arrested last night?"
He looked up at her and she started to cry, "Oh god, we did get arrested!" she frantically cried "Holy shit! What did we do last night?"
He took hold of her hand and shook his head, "We didn't get arrested," he said, his voice low, laced with shock.
"We didn't?" she asked.
Chris shook his head, "No."
"Then," she shook her head, confused. "What is that?" she asked, nodding to the paper in his hands.
He looked down at it and blinked, "We got married."