Chapter Twelve:

Something was off the next day at rehearsal. It was as if the night before had never happened and then some. Kirk and Spock seemed a tad bit closer, though. But Scotty avoided Pavel, and even flirted with Len some, which made both Hikaru and Pavel sulk just a bit.

Pavel didn't have another song ready for the band to practice, so Spock decided that the next day would be a recording day, so the band practiced all the new songs once or twice or until they got it right.

Pavel tried to engage Scotty in a conversation after practice, but Scotty brushed him off and left him in the dust. The other band members were still around, and had seen the whole thing. McCoy, clearly at least warming up to the seventeen-year-old Russian, patted his back before he left the building, and Spock and Hikaru tried to cheer the boy up by talking about the next gig they were having and how much of a hit all the new songs were.

Hikaru left, and Spock went to close up the rooms, though (save for one, for some odd reason), and Pavel was left alone with Kirk, who was strumming his guitar despite the freezing cold winds and the threat of snow.

"You know, Scotty gets freaked out easily. Under pressure, he can be sort of a dick," Kirk said, feeling the lonely energy surrounding his talented song-writer.

Pavel said nothing as he curled his legs into his torso, hugging them close and sighing into his knees.

Kirk strummed another few notes, sounding a bit like "Angels" by Robbie Williams. He stopped, "Give him time to get over himself. He just really likes you and doesn't want to see you hurt…"

"Likes me?" Pavel asked, glancing over at the talented lead singer.

"He likes you. He's just a bit afraid of consequences. I kept telling him you wouldn't give a damn what happened to you two but… He's hot-headed about your safety…" Kirk replied.

Pavel blushed, "Oh. That's what you meant…"

"Give it time, kid," Kirk replied, ruffling the younger boy's hair. "And if he ever does something you don't like, don't be afraid to call me and I won't hesitate to come over there and slap him upside the head."

Pavel smiled at Jim and nodded, but his head turned as there was a loud honking noise and Uhura struggled to stop her car, as she was going a bit too fast in the parking lot. Pavel grabbed his backpack and waved at the other man before running up to the car, jumping in, and speeding off.

Kirk smiled at his work and stood up, stretching out his legs before glancing behind him. Spock was just coming out of the rehearsal hall behind him.

"Good work, Jim. But wasn't it you that freaked Montgomery out in the first place?" the elf-eared man asked.

"Yeah. Think of that little exchange as a kind of redemption," Kirk replied. "I really never meant to freak Scotty out in the first place. I want both of them to be happy."

"I know you do, Jim," Spock replied. "The chess board is all set up, by the way."

"An invitation to dinner was all you needed, Spock," Jim replied, grinning like a schoolboy at his manager.

"I believe a little game of chess would soothe my mind so that my heart wouldn't pound so much when I do," Spock replied, a slight smirk on his face.

"You know, if the others catch us, Hikaru will write about us in his blog," Kirk replied, putting his guitar back in its case and joining Spock as he walked back up to the rehearsal hall doors.

"I'm aware of that. Let him. But he'll have to write about young Mr. Chekov and Montgomery as well," Spock replied, opening the door for the blond man.

"And Len and Hikaru. Did you see Hikaru's face when Scotty flirted with Len? It was almost more heartbreaking than Pavel's face when Scotty flirted with him," Kirk replied, smiling. He shook his head, though. "That just makes me sad and guilty for starting all this…"

"What do you mean?" Spock asked, opening the door to the room he didn't lock.

Indeed, a game of chess was waiting for them. Kirk went for the black pieces. "I mean, I chose Pavel to write our songs. I told Scotty to go for it despite the age difference. I screwed things up for everyone."

Spock sat down and the game began.

"No Jim. Choosing Pavel was the best thing you could have done for the group. Without your leadership in these matters, you would have still be doing gigs at washed up eateries instead of recording music and finding better venues in which to play. Now, we are singing original songs and our fans love us so much more for it all," Spock replied.

Jim thought about this as his bishop took Spock's pawn. "You're absolutely right. But… I freaked Scotty out about the one thing that Scotty seems to care about most. I heard he actually drank coffee at a café instead of doing his regular Scotch whisky at one of the sleazy bars downtown. He felt much better about caffeine in his system for once instead of alcohol…"

Spock nodded, "Indeed Pavel has changed Montgomery for the better… I just hope that all is well in the end…"

"A Comedy of Errors as oppose to a Romeo and Juliet?" Kirk asked.

"If you mean a comedy as oppose to a tragedy, then yes. I see no mistaken identity or two clans separated by war here."

"Smartass."

"Checkmate."

"I let you win," Kirk pointed out.

"I know," Spock replied, "Would you like to have dinner with me tonight?"

"I thought you'd never ask."