Chapter Fifteen:

"Did you hear?" Hikaru asked as Pavel came in the next day (after much pushing from Nyota).

"What?" Pavel asked, avoiding eye-contact with Scotty.

"Khan and the Romulans are opening for us next week. At our big opening concert for the new album?" Hikaru reminded the younger boy.

Pavel bit his bottom lip, trying not to burst out laughing, "How's Kirk handling the news?" he asked.

"He's been in a practice room pounding at the piano for the past half hour," Spock replied, coming up behind him. "I told him to get out of there, because we need to go record today, and I forgot to tell you all about it… the van is out front, idling patiently for us…"

Hikaru groaned, "I'm driving again. Spock, I don't trust you behind the wheel of even a tricycle."

"I don't trust myself either. But you do not always have to drive, Hikaru…"

"Yes," Hikaru replied, getting up to go pack up his drums in the van, "I do."

Scotty found Spock in the controls room before the band began even setting up. "Mr. Spock?"

"What is it, Montgomery?" Spock asked, clasping his hands behind his back.

"I… I have a favor to ask you, sir," Scotty said, fingering the paper with the notes Pavel had written over the Russian (and English translation written in Scotty's hand below) Cryllic. "This is Pasha's Lullaby."

Spock noticed the stress and knew Scotty wasn't just using the song name. "Yes… it is."

"Can… can Pavel and I play it together on the CD? Him on piano and me on acoustic?" Scotty asked, it'll also give me a reason to talk to Pavel again without it being weird. Not the point, but who gives a shit?

Spock thought about this prospect for a while and then looked at Scotty. "You and Pavel were quite close before yesterday."

"That has nothing to do with singing a duet with the lad," Scotty replied, crossing his arms almost like a teenager.

"I think it does… but I think I want to get Pavel's voice out there. He is an angel when he sings…"

"Then…?"

"Tell the lad that he'll be singing with you. We'll need to set up a date for the recording… but I think the fans will eat you two up," Spock replied.

Now Scotty had to find the Russian lad…

Scotty found the younger male out in the lobby, reading a rather large text with many graphs and pictures of stars and suns and large numbers. Scotty looked over his shoulder (Pavel must have been really into the book if he didn't notice a large shadow over his reading) for a minute before he cleared his throat, making the boy jump a little and look up at him.

"Hey. Sorry to scare you like that," Scotty said, putting a firm hand on the boy's shoulder. Pavel flushed. "I… I have a request I'd like to make…"

"Wh-What is it, Mr. Scott?" he asked.

"Scotty. I want you to sing your lullaby with me for the album," Scotty replied.

Pavel closed his book and slowly stood, placing the book where he had once been sitting. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"We've set up a time tomorrow evening for recording. You'll have a piano, and I'll have my guitar, and… it'll be a bonus track for the album…" Scotty said sheepishly. "I thought… the fans might like to hear what a wonderful voice the songwriter of the Brothers Grimm has…"

Pavel's flush deepened into a full-on blush and he looked off to the side, something finally clicking in his brain. He turned back to the older man and said, "Is this your way of apologizing for treating me like Mr. Cellophane, Scotty?" he asked.

Scotty blinked at the Chicago reference, but smiled at the other male. "Aye. It is. Sorry for making you feel invisible for the past few days. I… I freaked."

"About me?" Pavel asked.

Scotty looked like he was about to say something when Kirk came out of the recording studio looking pretty pissed off. "KHAAAAAAAAAAAN!" he shouted, heading down the hall to the bathroom.

Scotty blushed at the interruption and Pavel laughed, looking past the older man into the recording room. "Looks like you should go get ready to record the last few songs… even though your lead singer is still steaming about Khan and the Romulans…"

Scotty gaped at Pavel like a (very cute, very Scottish) fish before he closed him mouth, regained some composure, and turned to go into the recording studio.

And Pavel wiped down his sweating hands and wrote an all caps-lock text to Uhura about what just happened (and what almost happened).