I hope I'm not posting too much? I want to see if I can finish this story in a month or so. I had a lot of chapters sitting around and some time to edit them, hence the updates. And after this I have some big chapters coming up so they need some rewriting and editing. OOh, some big stuff is coming! Nobody has guessed yet :-)

Sometimes love just ain't enough. Sometimes it takes therapy, many many years of it.

Love Just Ain't Enough

"Jim, we need to do something about Spock and Uhura before any more damage is done." Bones said as he tried to catch up to the captain in the corridor.

"Bones I wish you would have more faith in romance, they'll be fine, you'll see the cuddling, the settling, it will happen. They just need time." Captain Kirk kept walking to his destination.

"Time you say? Well, I just released Spock from sickbay because Uhura cleaned his clock. That kind of time?

"What?"

"Uhura punched Spock in the face."

"Why, how, when? What?" Jim couldn't believe his ears.

"Apparently, they were sparring in the gym and she decked him."

"Uh oh."

"Uh oh, what?"

"Well, Spock asked me what I would do if he had treated me like the Lieutenant," Jim said sheepishly.

"And?" McCoy asked with suspicion.

"And I told him I would probably punch him in the jaw."

"You didn't?"

"Of course I did. It was the truth, I would have decked him. I guess he took it as advice," Jim said rubbing the back of his neck in concern.

"Did you tell him to let Uhura punch him in the face?"

"No bones I did not, he came up with that scheme all on his own. Fool."

"Damn fool if you ask me."

"How is he?"

"He's fine, she didn't do any permanent damage, except maybe to his ego."

"Good, and Uhura?"

"Haven't seen hide nor hair of her. She's keeping a low profile, which is good considering the story is making the gossip rounds."

"Good good. Hopefully, this will all blow over soon and we can get back to normal."

"Normal? Don't count on it. We have another problem."

"What problem Doctor?" Kirk was beginning to become annoyed.

"Christine."

"What about her?"

"Somehow she got a hold of Spock's and Uhura's medical records."

"And?"

"And, I updated the records to show their marital status had changed."

"Bones! Why?"

"Starfleet regs. I had to, but I sealed those records as top secret eyes only. I even assigned the filing to an ensign so Chris would have no reason to touch them, but apparently, the ensign had a date and passed it off to Christine."

"Ok, so she filed the records and they were sealed. Do you think she knows about Spock and Uhura?"

"I know she knows about Spock and Uhura, she unsealed the records and confronted me about it."

"Why would she do that?"

"Jim, I don't understand the workings of the female mind. She did it. I ordered her to keep it to herself but you know women. She ran straight to M'Benga and told him. I ordered him to keep it hush-hush but it's only a matter of time before it's all over the ship."

Kirk sighed. "Ok, so she knows now, what are we going to do about it?

"We Jim? What happened to your not meddling stance?"

I'm not meddling just doing my job. You are the one meddling, you worry too much Bones."

"I worry too much? You don't worry enough. Jim, I told you this wouldn't be all rose petals and lollipops; did you see Uhura giving him the coldest of cold shoulders in the rec the other night?"

"Yes, I did bones," the Captain admitted, "I've never see Uhura act that way before. She's been distant on the bridge as well."

"You're darn right you haven't, even when she's annoyed at you, and she's annoyed at you a lot, she still has the patience of a saint compared to the rest of us."

"Annoyed at me? Why would Uhura ever be annoyed at me?" Kirk asked in surprise.

"You know, like that whole Riley situation."

"Riley? Riley? Kevin Riley? What about him?"

"Yeah, she was not even this upset after he transferred and dropped her."

"What Riley situation?" Kirk seemed to be stuck on that.

"When Uhura and Riley were dating!"

"Uhura and Riley were dating!? what! what?"

"Jim, I thought you said you keep abreast of the crew happenings? How could you have missed that?"

"I do try to stay informed, I must have missed this one somehow, I know they were buddies, but Uhura's friendly with everyone. And yeah she sang to him over the intercom, and he flirted with her but... That loser? Oh my god, I'm so blind."

"Now he realizes" McCoy mumbled.

"How could I have not known...?"

"Well, you were busy with your own drama during the Kodos affair if you recall. She was quite upset with you for putting Riley in harm's way I can tell you. You should have seen her in the sickbay every chance she got nursing him back to health after the poisoning."

"What? She did? I can't believe I missed all that," he said thoughtfully.

"Why does it matter, its all ancient history now."

"Well just that I... you know missed it. And you say they broke up and I had something to do with it?"

"Broke up is a nice way of putting it, when he transferred out he just upped and left without a word, she was heartbroken for a while."

"Damn, I had no idea..."

"You got one thing right, she is tender-hearted and she cared for Riley like a sick pup only to have him do that to her. Maybe she does need somebody to care for, but Spock is rather cold comfort if you ask me."

"I always knew that Riley was a bum," Jim said still stuck on the topic.

"What are you getting mad for now Jim? It was years ago, she's well over it now and has greener fish to fry."

"Still, she didn't deserve that," Jim said quite adamantly.

"No, she didn't," McCoy said starting to get suspicious. Jim seemed to care a little too much.

"Jim, you uh wouldn't happen to have had some feelings for Uhura yourself, would you?"

"Me?!" Jim scoffed, "no of course not Bones how could you even ask?"

"Well, you just seem a little too interested if you ask me."

"Well nobody asked you," Jim said and stormed off towards his quarters.

Bones followed needing to get to the bottom of this. Jim was acting jealous and Bones had never known him to show any romantic feelings towards a crewman. He made it a point to look elsewhere for his romantic entanglements.

"Jim, what is going on? YOu practically push Spock and Uhura together and now you are showing jealousy towards Riley?"

"I am not jealous of Riley, I told you I thought he was a jerk that's all."

"Yeah, I could see Uhura's close friends saying that and we all did say it at the time, but that happened years ago, you were entangled with that Kodos mess and his daughter."

"Yes, I remember, but that was different."

"How? You get involved and leave women behind all the time," Bones countered.

"No, I don't Bones! Not like that, those are not serious relationships with people I- its not the same thing."

"I don't see why not."

"It's not! Look, people fall in and out of love, yes, even I know that I have a pattern. But it is different with friends like Uhura or it should be. The bridge crew is so tight-knit, you know on a different deeper level than just colleagues, we're like family Bones, you're not supposed to hurt your family..."

McCoy had rarely seen this side of the Captain. He knew that Jim had had a rough childhood, living off world with his mother and brother on Kronos when Kodos the executioner killed thousands of innocents right before his eyes. He knew Jim had lost his only brother a few years ago too. He could see how the crew would become his family, hell even McCoy himself had come to think of Jim and Spock as his closest friends in the world. But he had never thought the captain was likewise attached. He routinely sent bridge crew on missions that could lead to their deaths. McCoy assumed Jim stayed aloof from other members of the crew for that reason.

"Jim, I thought you didn't believe in getting involved with the crew?"

"I don't, Bones. A captain does not have the time nor the luxury for relationships."

"Maybe, but why are you pushing so hard for Spock and Uhura?"

"Bones somebody's got to make it work. I'm married to this ship but the rest of you, you deserve lives, real lives with real families and real love. I don't want to see you all old and alone still trawling around in the fleet with only your careers and memories of what was."

"Do you want that for yourself? Don't you deserve a family and love too?"

"No Bones, that's not for me, I am going to die in space, that much I know, but for the rest of you, you can have it, you can have love, homes, happiness, and die surrounded by family and friends like a human being, not a space captain. You too bones, you deserve that happy ending."

"Jim-"

"Don't say anything more Bones, I've made my decisions long ago, even before I became a captain. I am what I am, and I'm at peace with that. I might flirt and fall in love but never with a crewman and we both know sooner or later this ship will whisper in my ear and call me off to duty and any wife and children would be left behind to fend for themselves."

Like Jim and his brother were left behind, McCoy thought. Space had a way of pulling at a man, ripping him away from everything he held dear. He felt it himself. He'd left behind his own wife and child...

"We've all got Starfleet in our blood Jim, you don't think Spock feels the same pull for all that he denies having feelings. And Uhura, she's an officer through and through. She'd follow you off a cliff and you know it. We all would."

"No. No Spock isn't a captain and does not want to be one. It's not in his blood. He still has choices, a chance at something else. More than likely he'll get bored of Starfleet and become a diplomat like his father or a scientist or a teacher like his mother. And Uhura, she's a wonderful communications officer but that isn't going to last, they're already building ships with more integrated communications that don't require an officer constantly monitoring it. She'll be reassigned to another role or perhaps leave the fleet for the private sector. Settle down into something more steady, have a family and be the nurturer she was born to be," he said wistfully.

"Bones could see Jim had really thought about all of this and was fully committed to it. He'd never suspected that Jim felt that way about any of them, especially Uhura. Boy his friends were something else, two knuckleheads both of them toiling away day in day out on the bridge both pining away for a woman who had no clue and both denying themselves the love and comfort of a gentle soul. Well maybe Spock wasn't so dumb after all, he did get the girl in his own way, even beating out Jim.

"You know what Jim, I am plumb tuckered out, between your matchmaking and those two determined to resist each other I just about give up. I'm a doctor not a therapist, and you all need therapy, many many sessions of it. And I need a drink. They need to put a permanent therapist on these ships. I am going to make a suggestion to Starfleet command first thing in the morning."

"I thought we had one, uh... what's her name, Helen uh...

"Noel, Dr. Helen Noel?"

"Yeah, that's the one."

"She's a good psychiatrist. She'll make an excellent therapist."

"Well, bones set it up, I'll back you one hundred percent."

/*-/*-/

Jim made it to his cabin and settled down on his bunk to think. Of course, he had feelings for Uhura but it wasn't how Bones thought. She was family. She looked up to him like he could do no wrong. He was her hero. And he did annoy her he knew it. He could be brusque when he was frustrated, and he was often thoughtless of her feelings, he even remembered joking about Riley after he was transferred out. He had never known they were an item. Maybe he just didn't want to know. And he was busy with his own affair with Kodos and his daughter at the time, he had been trying to keep Riley safe when he assigned him to the graveyard shift in engineering. He knew they used the comm system to chat up one another but thought it was just usual crew hijinks. And when they were all infected with the heavy water sickness and Riley took over the ship, Jim had been rough on him then too. He was actually glad to see the back of him when Spock recommended him for a promotion. But he never knew he was the cause of Uhura's heartbreak, that his approving Riley for transfer off the ship was splitting up a relationship. He wondered if he had known would he have followed through with it? For her sake?

And then Jim thought of Spock, he bet Spock knew all about it. How did he tolerate seeing Uhura with Riley? Ship romance was not forbidden but he could see why Starfleet didn't encourage it either, it only led to the kind of mess they were in right now. His two officers barely speaking and him spending too much time 'meddling' instead of running his ship.

Tomorrow he was going to order the two of them into therapy or counseling or something like Bones suggested, they could use it. And then perhaps he could finally get some peace on his own ship.