Title: The Space Between

Date: 07/18/2006

Author: carpenyx

Rating: PG-13

Characters: Kara "Starbuck" Thrace and Lee "Apollo" Adama

Spoilers: Up through "Kobol's Last Gleaming"

Disclaimer: I do not own. No copyright infringement intended.

Summary: The space between seemed to be getting smaller and smaller until she pulls away.

The Space Between

Part 2

The bluish-white lit corridors of Galactica were mostly deserted, as Lee Adama made his way to the pilots' sleeping quarters on Deck E. It was late in the evening and everything had considerably quieted down from the long and stressful day.

Lee found himself in the pilots' lounge winding down from the day by playing cards with Sharon, Crashdown, and Dualla. Of course, in Starbuck's absence Sharon beat his sorry ass with a hand of full colors within five hands. He was convinced it was pure luck on the Lieutenant's part, on account of her 'Cylon Mental Powers', he had joked. He grinned to himself at the thought of the look on Sharon's face, the fierce glare in her eyes and the little growl that escaped her before she cracked up laughing along with them.

Starbuck had not joined them that evening; she had claimed to have some 'paperwork' to finish up before crashing for the night. Lee did not buy it. She had been avoiding him for the last couple of days. He did not blame her; it seemed he was not on his best behavior when it came to Kara Thrace lately. When he learned of her one nightstand with the Vice President, he was unable to keep his jealousy in check, especially around her. That was more then apparent when their arguing resulted in bashing in each other's face.

The long stretch of the passageway on Deck E finally ended when he reached the hatch door of the pilots' quarters. Apollo heaved the hatch door open, and stepped inside. He glanced over at Kara who was standing by her locker, smoking one of her cigars, holding a half empty bottle in her hand. Lee turned, pulled the hatch closed behind him and twisted the latch to lock it. He crossed his arms, looking over to the fiery blonde fighter pilot, "Kara," He said, his voice cracking slightly from the dryness in his mouth. He continued, "We need to talk."

Kara closed her eyes slowly, taking another long and hard swig of the harsh burning alcohol, finishing off the bottle. The alcohol was already taking affect. She placed the empty bottle in her locker. She inhaled sharply and slammed the locker door shut, "Come to rip into me a little more, Captain Adama? Didn't do enough frakkin' damage the last couple of times we 'talked'?" Kara spat out bitterly as she turned to face Lee, leaning back against the lockers.

"I was out of line." He admitted with a sigh as he moved over to the metal table in the center of the room, between the sleeping bunks on either side. He stood on the opposite side from Kara. The table acted as a barrier between both of them, keeping them further apart then arms length.

Kara chuckled, her eyes following Lee, "You were out of line?" She repeated, "That's rich… really." She said with a laugh as her fingers lightly touched the bruise on her cheek when she tucked as short strand of hair behind her ear, "What do you want, Apollo? A cookie, perhaps?"

"I'm concerned about you." Lee explained as his expression softened. He pulled one of the chairs from the table, turning it around to straddle it. He crossed his arms over the back of the chair as he looked at Kara, "As I said, I was out of line. It's just… Kara, the other day on Cloud Nine… I thought, I thought we were on the same page…"

"Oh, so this is what this is about." Kara said as she pushed herself from the lockers, moving to the table. She rested her hands on the tabletop, leaning forward as she looked into Lee's eyes, "Why didn't you just say so?" She said softly, lifting her right knee up onto the table, followed by her left. Slowly, she crawled across the short span of the tabletop, closing the space between them. Her green eyes locked onto his with a passionate vengeance.

Spellbound, Lee was unable to break away from her burning gaze. Every fiber of his being was throwing up red flags – this was all wrong. He wanted this, wanted her – but it was not suppose to be like this. He could not seem to escape the power she apparently possessed. He swallowed, hard. His body tensed, anticipating the vixen's next move.

Kara's left hand slipped around the back of Lee's neck, drawing him closer as she pulled him into an intense and earnest kiss. She maneuvered her body closer, her other hand slipping around his neck, forcing him more deeply into the kiss. Once she was satisfied that he would not fight against her, she lowered her hand down his back, curling her slender fingers around the bottom of his shirt. She gave it a light tug, playful tug. She broke the kiss but only briefly in order to remove his shirt completely.

This is all wrong! Frak. "Kara…" Lee muttered softly.

Kara lifted her finger to his lips, "Shhh…" She whispered.

Lee looked into her eyes, his desire growing more fierce. He rose from the chair, the sound of the crashing chair echoing in the silence as he grasped Kara's waist firmly. He pulled her to him, crushing her tightly to his body as he furiously kissed her.

Kara growled as she forcefully bit Lee's bottom lip, breaking the delicate skin and causing it to bleed, "I make the rules." She hissed angrily after she broke the kiss. She shifted her legs from underneath her, letting herself slide off the tabletop. She pushed Lee away from the table aggressively, kissing him hard. She guided him down onto the bunk. She slipped in on top of him, pressing her body against his. She took his wrists, pinning them above hid head with her one hand. Leaning down, she kissed him again before letting her tongue take control, exploring further down his neck to his chest.

Lee groaned softly, giving into the demands of Starbuck with ease. He could not help but be submissive in his desire for her. He knew this was wrong but he could not help but want this… from her, need this from her. The hunger of this moment was to strong to resist.

Her free hand slid down his sweaty chest, reaching the top of his pants. Her fingers moved to unbutton them as she placed soft kisses along his chest, slowing moving further down. She moaned softly against his skin, unfastening his belt buckle. She lifted her head, her eyes looking up at Lee before returning to the job at hand. She placed another kiss around his navel, letting out another moan – intentionally, "Oh… Gaius."

Lee tensed under Kara, his teeth grinding together as he opened his eyes slowly. Effortlessly he freed his hands from Kara's hold and grabbed onto her shoulders, squeezing a little too hard before pushing her off of him. He rolled onto his side, swinging his legs over the edge of the bunk and jumped to his feet, "What the frak, Kara?"

Maybe that was a little too cruel. Kara shrugged her shoulders a little, as she swung her legs out over the bunk, sitting up.

"Is it your goal in life to be such a frakkin' bitch?"

"Frak you!" Kara barked.

"It's always frak or fight with you!"

"I was just messin' with you, Apollo."

Lee turned to look at Kara, raising his brow, the hurt evident in his eyes. He shook his head, "That's really frakked up."

Kara sighed, "I'm a screw up remember?"

"Enough Kara! Get a grip and stop throwing that in my face. I apologized to you; I play your little mind games, what more do you want from me?" Lee picked up his shirt from the floor, pulling it over his head, he sighed softly, "You have no frakkin' idea, do you?"

"Idea about what?"

"Forget it."

"Idea about what?" Kara pressed.

"That," He paused, "I love you…"

She lowered her head, her forehead in her palm. She rubbed her brow a little, she sighed, "Can't love someone who's dead, Lee." If he only knew…

"Kara?"

Kara lifted her head, tilting it to the side as she looked over to Lee, "I'm sorry, Lee. I really am. But I can't give you what you want." It is only a matter of time… until I will have to say goodbye to you. I can't… I couldn't bear it.

"Kara…"

"Lee, please…" She said softly as she stood up from the bunk. She moved over to Lee, slipping her arms around his waist. She placed her head against his shoulder, closing her eyes. I want to remember this… the way you feel, the way you smell… if I could only tell you the truth… the truth about Earth… your father's lies… the journey that I must take… home… a quest that could very well claim my life… If I could only tell you the truth about how I feel… the truth that I love you, Lee.

Lee looked down at Kara as she embraced him, confusion written across his face. He sighed as he wrapped his arms around her. "Why won't you tell me what's going on?"

Kara lifted her head, looking up at Lee. She smiled slowly before placing a soft and loving kiss on the bruise around his eye – the black eye she had given him earlier that day. "Maybe in the next world…"