Beyond the Sun

by Jeck and Raxsah Inc

Action, Drama, and Romance. Just a typical day on the Enterprise, and life for Ryan and Claire Conaway. M for language, adult humor, humor all around, violence, and strong sexual themes. Rants and Fluff included. KirkxOC.

14. Rebel Yell

Raxsah: Hello everyone, did you miss us?
Jeck: Greetings earthlings! We have returned from our outer space mission to Uranus. :3
Raxsah: And apparently we left our maturity there.
Jeck: Left or never was born with?
Raxsah: Hmm… good point. Anyway, the point is, we're back and we're posting another long chapter.
Jeck: We're gonna try to post long chapters for the rest of the story since we're over 500 pages and we just finished the main part of the story. Now we're just working on the epilogue.
Raxsah: The long ass epilogue of epicness. Lol.
Jeck: Indeed, indeed. So now it's just a matter of getting the story up online. Which of course, we're horrible people and are only going to post a chapter at a time. We enjoy torturing our readers. :3
Raxsah: That, and we work… A LOT. Well… I do. If it wasn't for my boss taking a sick day I wouldn't be here. XP
Jeck: And I just called into work tonight like an hour ago. So yeah, we're busy people. Money has that effect on moneyless people.
Raxsah: Well… not so moneyless anymore. The shit we do for money. Anyway, we want to thank those who have added this story to their favorite's and alerts lists. We appreciate the gesture.
Jeck: And the reviews. They make us smile and motivate us to update faster. Like now.
Raxsah: Word. And don't forget reviewer number 50 gets a story written for them with any characters from the story. But we can't get to fifty without people reviewing!
Jeck: So keep it up! Besides, we love to hear what you've got to say. Honestly, we're pretty pleased with the number of people who are now Alex/Liam fans. We are too, so it's okay. :3
Raxsah: Yes, but we're sure you guys are looking forward to seeing the reaction. So let us begin!

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Chapter 14; Rebel Yell

---

"I'm glad to see that you all regret last night's drinking escapade," Rupert said with a sneer as Ryan and Colleen practically collapsed on the table. Ryan's hair was askew, black bags hung low under his eyes, and his attire was sloppy. Colleen on the other hand looked as if she'd spent time applying her make-up and picking out her outfit, but she was unusually pale.

"I'm so hung-over…" Ryan mumbled as he moved the waffles on his plate around. Colleen hadn't even bothered getting breakfast and sat with her hands around a large mug of coffee.

"I feel like something died in my stomach…" She mumbled, taking a small slow sip of her drink. Rupert rolled his eyes as he dug into his large plate of pancakes without a second thought. Colleen's face paled even more as she closed her eyes. Ryan leaned over and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"Still feeling sick?" She nodded as Ryan began rubbing soothing circles on her back. Colleen leaned into his touch.

"Horribly. I've never felt so hung-over in my life…" She mumbled, burying her face in his chest. Ryan dropped his fork and wrapped both arms around her as she whimpered slightly.

"We're not drinking that heavily ever, ever again," Ryan told her.

"This is why I don't like bars," she muttered. Before Ryan could say anything, someone sat down next to Rupert, slamming their tray down on the table a little harder than intended. Both Ryan and Colleen flinched.

"Good morning, did you all have fun last night?" Claire asked, a smile on her face. Ryan and Colleen groaned and Claire furrowed her eyebrows and looked to Rupert for an answer.

"They're hung over. They had a bit too much Romulan Ale," he explained. She rolled her eyes and shook her head at her brother.

"You guys are idiots," she said, taking a bit of her bagel.

"You're in a good mood, I take it you had a good night?" Rupert asked. She smiled widely and nodded.

"Best date I've been on in a while. My ass kinda hurts though," she said. Rupert almost choked on his pancakes, and Ryan's head shot up, earning a groan of pain.

"You… what? It was a virgin date!" Rupert said. Claire looked confused before shaking her head.

"No, not like that! I fell off my chair!" Rupert rolled his eyes.

"Whatever…" he said. She went to try and explain herself, but a loud crashing echoed through the cafeteria.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" Claire turned around to see Alex practically falling over a table to get away from Liam, who looked just as troubled as Alex.

"Alex, just calm down. We can talk about this in private-"

"NO! YOU TOOK ADVANTAGE OF ME! I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE WITH YOU!" Claire stood up and practically ran over.

"Guy's… what the hell is going on?" she asked.

"He took advantage of me while I was drunk!" Alex snapped. Liam crossed his arms.

"Jesus Alex, I was drunk… you were drunk, we both wanted it." Claire looked at them confused before she realized what they were talking about. She pushed them out of the dining hall and into the hallway.

"You two had sex?" she hissed. Liam gave her a half smile while Alex put his face in his hands.

"He fucking took advantage of me!" Alex cried out, ripping his hands away from his face and taking a step away from Liam. Both Claire and Liam frowned at his behavior.

"Okay, Alex calm down," Claire tried to reason, but Alex was far too freaked out to listen. Liam stepped forward and tried to calm him down, but it only served to freak Alex out more. Claire ran a hand through her hair as she gave an exasperated sigh.

"Please Alex, let's talk about this," Liam pleaded. Claire placed a hand on his shoulder and pulled him farther away from Alex who had managed to shove himself into a corner and fallen into the fetal position.

"Let me talk to him. Go get breakfast," Claire instructed. Liam gave Alex one last longing look before nodding and heading back into the cafeteria.

"Thank you so much for getting rid of him!" Alex yelled, jumping to his feet and clinging to Claire. She could feel his eyes trailing after Liam's form. Once he'd disappeared into the mass getting breakfast, Alex pulled away and stared into Claire's eyes.

"I had sex with Liam," he stated in a panicked voice.

"Yes, we've been over this already," she snapped, getting tired of his ridiculous behavior. Alex nodded as he fell back into the wall.

"I had sex with Liam… and I think I liked it…" Claire paused and her eyebrows raised.

"You… liked it?" she asked. He nodded and ran a hand over his face.

"What the fuck is wrong with me? I'm not gay!" he said. Claire sighed and walked up to him.

"Alex… maybe, maybe Liam is different. Maybe it's not that your gay, you just like Liam, or something." She said, trying to reason with him.

"What do I do?" he asked.

"Talk to Liam. I know it's weird, but if there was something… is something… then work it out." Alex gave a frustrated sigh and began to smack his head against the wall.

"I hate this! I wanted to get laid, but not by Liam! Or… maybe I did… I just. GOD!" Claire sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"Alex, go to your room, get some sleep. I'll cover your shift. Just think about what happened and how you feel about it. Then talk to Liam when you've got it figured out. Okay?" she asked. He paused.

"This is so frustrating!" he muttered. She nodded and patted his shoulder.

"If it makes you feel better, my ass hurts." He scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"Dude, you're preaching to the choir. My ass has been hurting for like forever and a day," he told her. She paused and ran a hand through her hair.

"A little too much, Alex…" he nodded.

"I know… I'm going to bed," he said. He sighed and walked down the hallway, and she walked back into the cafeteria, sitting back down at her seat.

"Is everything alright?" Rupert asked. Claire shrugged.

"Is he royally pissed at me?" Liam asked.

"I don't know. He just… he needs some time to think," she told him.

"Okay…" he muttered. She went to take a sip of her coffee and almost coughed it back up.

"Ew, I hate cold coffee." Colleen, who was still wrapped in Ryan's arms, pushed her cup towards Claire.

"Mine should still be hot." Claire nodded a thank you in her direction as she began practically chugging down the coffee.

"So why aren't you suffering from any signs of being hung-over?" Liam asked, as he began playing with his food. Rupert shrugged.

"I don't know, I don't really get drunk," Rupert said, though nobody believed his story.

"Dude, you had more to drink than any of us here!" Ryan exclaimed, much to Colleen's dismay. She gave him a soft smack to the chest as she whimpered again. He mumbled a quick apology to her as he turned back to Rupert.

"I don't know what to say, I just… don't really get drunk. It's like a gift or something," He said. Claire finished her bagel and looked at the trio in front of her.

"I'm actually really glad I didn't go out with you guys. I might have ended up sleeping with Rupert," she said.

"I wouldn't have slept with you," Rupert said.

"Damn right," Ryan snapped. Claire rolled her eyes.

"What? Am I not hot enough?" she asked.

"I didn't say that, I just tend not to take advantage of drunk women. Especially ones who are dating my boss," he said. She paused and shrugged.

"Good point," she said.

"Ugh… I'm tired…" Liam muttered. Claire stood up and sighed.

"I have to get to work… do you want me to tell McCoy you're going to be late?" she asked. Liam sighed and stood up.

"No, I'll go with you," he said. Claire nodded and waited for him to get his things together.

"You think you can give me that instant hangover cure thingy you have?" Liam asked.

"You have an instant hangover cure? What the fuck, Claire?" Ryan hissed.

"Ryan, if you don't stop yelling… we're not having sex for a month…" Colleen hissed. Claire rolled her eyes.

"Bring me more coffee, and I'll think about it." Ryan rolled his eyes as he watched his sister head off to work. He looked down at his girlfriend and rubbed her back.

"Come on, we better get to work," he said. She gave a groan of protest but stood up.

"Today sucks," she muttered, walking out of the dining hall.

"I agree," Ryan said, getting up and giving Rupert a pat on the back. "Later…"

---

"Am I the only one who thought that last night was so totally worth it?" Claire asked as she began sorting through the boxes of new medical equipment. Liam sat on the other side of the room going through the medical logs from the previous day.

"No, but I just wish Alex would stop being a total spaz and just talk to me," he mumbled, obviously disgruntled. Claire sighed.

"Just give him some time. You're obviously pretty secure with your sexuality, but Alex has never even thought about being gay. He needs time to adjust," Claire explained, pulling out a box filled with hypo-spray canisters. Liam looked over.

"Jesus Christ, who ordered all of those!" Liam asked in shock from his spot across the room. Claire shrugged before pulling out another box.

"Wow… this is ridiculous!" She exclaimed as yet another box came into view at the bottom of the pile of boxes.

"Oh… um, that would be my personal box," McCoy said as he exited his office. Claire held out the three boxes of hypo-sprays and McCoy snatched them out of her hands. "Get back to work!" He barked. Claire returned to removing packets of gauze from inside the box.

"Knock knock." Claire turned around as her boyfriend's voice echoed through the empty sickbay. She smiled as he walked over and crouched down next to her. She currently was sitting on her legs on the ground, as to not give a show to everyone in sickbay.

"Hey, you here to see McCoy?" she asked. He shrugged.

"Maybe later, I came to see you first. Here, I brought you coffee," he said. She turned a little red and wrote a few things down on her chart.

"Oh my god, thank you so much!" she said, taking a sip of it then putting it down next to her. He nodded and began to absentmindedly play with her hair, which was in a French braid.

"Why do you always tie it back? I like it when you let it down," he said. She shrugged.

"It's getting pretty long, and it get's in my way if I leave it down," She explained. Liam shot her a look as her boyfriend continued to play with her hair.

"Why don't you cut it then?" he asked. She glanced at him.

"The last time I cut it was because Darren wanted me to," she explained. He looked confused before a look of realization came across him and he nodded. She went back to the equipment in front of her. During their dinner, they came across the subject of ex-boyfriends and girlfriends. It was then she told him the basics of what happened with Darren. She didn't tell him the details, but enough where he got the picture.

"So… I was thinking we should schedule that third date," he said. She nodded and took another sip of her coffee.

"I agree… we should do something for your birthday. I could cook you something if you'd like," she said. He shrugged, as if it was no big deal and just focused on her hair.

"I was thinking you could come to my place, we'll make pizza and watch a movie or something," he said.

"That seems oddly too comfortable for a third date," she muttered.

"Well… we've known each other for a while. Sure, we've only been dating for a bit, but we can't move on in our relationship if we aren't comfortable in it," he said. She turned to him and raised an eyebrow.

"Since when did you become and expert on relationships?" she asked. He chuckled and kissed the side of her head.

"Is it a date?" he asked. She nodded.

"It's a date." He smiled and kissed her lips. It was a quick, but sensual, kiss, and it kept her wanting more.

"I'll see you around," he whispered.

"Thanks for the coffee," she said. He gave a thumbs up and entered McCoy's office.

"Going to Kirk's place for his birthday, I hope you got him a nice gift," Liam said.

"I did, as a matter of fact," she defended.

"When did you have time to pick up sexy underwear?" he asked. She almost choked on her coffee and sent him a glare.

"No, it's not lingerie. You're such a pervert!" She snapped. Liam just chuckled as he walked up to where Claire was working. He flopped down on the ground next to her and swiped her coffee.

"So are you going to tell me what you got him?" He asked, as Claire quickly grabbed the coffee back. Liam pouted, but she ignored him.

"No… no, I think not. And if you try that shit one more time, you'll lose an eye," she warned him. Liam sighed as he let himself fall backwards on the blue carpet that covered sickbay. It was such a pain to get all the blood and vomit out of it sometimes.

"You're such a tease…" he mumbled, reaching his arms out as if he were making snow angels. Claire rolled her eyes.

"Shut up," She snapped. She paused what she was doing and looked at him. "Is that what you get your boyfriend for his birthday?" she asked.

"What? Being a tease? If it is he's been getting his present since he's known you," Liam said. Claire smacked his arm.

"No… the underwear, and I'm not a tease." Liam shrugged.

"You might have to ask Alex on that one. All my boyfriends just simply gave me a good time, if you catch my drift." Claire frowned.

"But… I don't want to have sex with him," she whispered.

"Honey, you can't even fool yourself on that one," Liam told her. She rolled her eyes.

"I want to have sex with him, but not for a while," she said. Liam rolled his eyes.

"I don't know Claire… like I said, ask Alex." As if on cue, the doors opened and Alex walked in. Both Claire and Liam froze as he walked over. He cleared his throat and looked to Claire.

"Can I talk to Liam… alone?" he asked. Claire nodded and stood up, taking her coffee to find something else to do. Liam sat up and Alex shifted his weight from foot to foot.

"I'm not gay," he stated, refusing to meet Liam's gentle brown eyes. Liam slowly rose to his feet, but Alex never even looked up.

"I never said you were," Liam said, softer than he usually spoke. It was a sensitive topic and despite what people around the Enterprise knew, Liam really was a sensitive guy. Alex on the other hand…

"I-I don't like penis and I'm not big on sleeping with men," Alex continued, his eyes still glued to the navy colored rug. Liam sighed.

"That normally goes along with not being gay, sweetie." Alex audibly gulped at Liam's pet name, but he continued on.

"I know, it's just that… I don't really mind sleeping with you… or your penis…" Alex mumbled. Liam smiled.

"You know, I was hoping for something a little more romantic like 'but you're the exception' or 'but I can't help my feelings for you'. However, you liking my penis is a good start, I suppose," Liam said with a smile. Alex let out a sigh and rubbed the back of his head.

"I'm… not big on romance. But… I guess trying this out wouldn't be… as bad as it seemed. Let's just keep it on the down low for now," he said. Liam smiled and resisted the urge to hug him.

"Okay… so…" Alex sighed and gave a small smile.

"I need to get to work," he said.

"I need to actually ask Claire how her date went," Liam said. Alex raised an eyebrow.

"You didn't ask her already?" Alex asked.

"I was a bit preoccupied with you, but I can ask her now," Liam said. Alex turned a little red and gave an awkward cough.

"Right, I'll talk to you later," he said. Liam nodded and kissed his cheek before running off. Alex sighed and rubbed his cheek.

"Bye Alex!" Liam called. Alex sighed an ran a hand through his hair.

"Jesus, what the hell is happening to me?" he muttered.

---

"Come on, babe. You have to eat something," Ryan pleaded, but the only thing he heard from the bathroom was more gagging. He'd been camped out by the door for at least thirty minutes and was going to be late for work if he didn't leave within the next five.

"I'm too sick!" Colleen called back, but her voice was harsh. Ryan rubbed the bridge of his nose as the possible options rushed through his head.

"Okay, I'm going to go get my sister and head to work. There's nothing I can do for you if you don't let me in," Ryan told her. There was silence on the other side. Giving a sigh of defeat, Ryan headed over to the computer screen in the corner of their room.

"Computer, call sickbay and get me Dr. Conaway," Ryan ordered. The computer made a few beeping noises and Claire's face popped up a minute later.

"Hello, this is Dr. Cona- oh, hey Ryan. What's up?" She asked, her tired face lighting up as her brother's face came into view. Ryan was less pleased.

"Claire, I'm really sorry to ask this, but Colleen's sick in the bathroom and I need to get to my post, like now. Think you can come down and check her out?" He asked. Claire nodded.

"Yeah, no problem. We've been a bit slow today, surprisingly. I'll be down there in ten," she replied. Ryan nodded.

"Thanks a bunch, Claire-bear!" He called as he shut the computer off and got ready to rush out of the room.

"Claire will be here soon, babe. I love you!" He called out before rushing out of the room.

---

Claire made her way to her brother and his girlfriends room and opened the door.

"Colleen?" She called. She sat her lying on the bed in a fetal position and she walked over. "Colleen? Jesus… are you alright?" Claire asked. Colleen shook her head.

"I'm so sick, ever since la few nights ago I've just been so damn sick," Colleen muttered. Claire frowned and sat down on the bed.

"It might be a bad reaction to the ale, or a flu… give me a second and I'll figure it out," Claire said. Before she pulled out her scanner, Colleen grabbed a hold o her hand.

"Claire… I want you to scan something else," Colleen said. Claire raised an eyebrow.

"What do you want me to scan for?" She asked. Colleen sighed and ran a hand over her face.

"I heard that… that if you drink Romulan ale and you're… pregnant, you can get really sick," Colleen said. Claire's eyes went wide.

"You're pregnant?" Claire asked. Colleen bit her bottom lip.

"I don't know… but I heard it might be a definite thing that if you get really sick after having some Romulan ale you might be pregnant," she pressed. Claire sighed and took a hold of her hand.

"Colleen, the chances of that are really rare. Usually that only happens in the late first trimester, early second. Even then it's rare that it effects the mother that way. Usually ale that strong usually… terminates the pregnancy," Claire told her. Colleen sighed and rolled over onto her back.

"Please… just take a look." Claire nodded and pulled out her scanner and began to check over her brothers girlfriend. A part of her was excited at the thought of Colleen being pregnant with Ryan's baby. She knew Ryan would be ecstatic, and she was a bit excited at the thought of being an aunt. On the other hand, having a baby was a big step, and she wasn't sure that it would be the best thing for either Colleen or Ryan right now. Claire put down her scanner and looked at Colleen, who was looking at her expectantly.

"Well?" Colleen asked. Claire sighed.

"You're sick because of your bodies reaction to the Romulan ale. The baby, surprisingly, seemed to make it through the episode, but I'd like to give you a flusher just to be sure," Claire said, going through her bag.

"Wait… I'm pregnant?" she asked. Claire nodded, not sure if she should've been happy or worried.

"Yes, you are. This flusher will go through your system and take out anything that will harm it. I don't know what damage has been done to the baby already… but it doesn't look like any major damage has happened. It should be fine," she said. Colleen stood up and placed her hand on her stomach.

"I'm… I'm going to have a baby," she whispered. Claire wasted no time before injecting the flusher into her system.

"Are you going to tell Ryan?" Claire asked. She didn't look up and meet her eyes, since she still wasn't sure her exact feelings on the situation.

"Of course, I just… I don't know when exactly I'm going to do it. I'm so excited! But really worried," Colleen said. She paused before throwing up in a trashcan next to her bed. Claire ignored the smell and began to breathe in through her mouth to avoid the smell.

"Great… now I think I'm going to be sick," Claire muttered. Colleen finished and laid back down on the bed.

"You're a doctor and you can't deal with vomit?" Colleen muttered.

"I can deal with blood and guts. I can deal with seeing vomit. It's the smell that gets me," Claire said. Colleen shrugged then smiled.

"I can't believe I'm pregnant," she whispered. Claire sighed and looked down at her brothers girlfriend.

"Are you sure that now is the best time?" Claire asked. Colleen raised an eyebrow.

"What are you saying?" Claire shrugged and looked down at her hands.

"I mean… you guys aren't married, and you both are in the middle of your jobs. It might be… difficult having a baby. Are you going to go back to earth and have the baby? Or stay here?" Colleen looked thoughtful for a moment before sighing.

"I don't know. I'll figure out something. What would you do?" Claire ran a hand through her hair.

"I don't know. The thought of having a baby scares the crap out of me," Claire answered.

"Why? You're twenty-three, and you have a great job, you're boyfriend is cute… why would you be worried?" Claire looked at her like she was crazy.

"Because I'm twenty-three! Oh, and have you met my boyfriend? I mean… he's great, but I would not be surprised if he went running for the hills at the mention of a kid. I'd run for the hills at the mention of a kid." Claire stopped and looked at the ground. She couldn't quite place her finger on it, but the talk of having kids was really bugging her.

"Sorry, I am really happy for you. I am. Ryan is going to be so happy, and so excited. You guy's will make a very cute baby." Colleen nodded.

"I hope he has Ryan's eyes. They're so expressive," Colleen said. Claire raised an eyebrow. Apparently grey was the new expressive color.

"Look… I have to get going. You can schedule an appointment with Doctor McCoy for some prenatal care stuff and-"

"Can't you be my doctor?" She asked. Claire froze and ran a hand through her hair.

"Well… I'm sort of a surgeon, I don't really do pregnancy stuff," Claire said.

"Please… I mean… you are the only female doctor here and… I trust you. Please?" Colleen begged. Claire sighed and pressed her lips together.

"I'll… I'll see what I can do. I'm not doing anything until Ryan knows about the baby though," Claire said. Colleen nodded.

"Thanks Claire." Claire smiled and grabbed her bag and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

"No problem. I really need to be going though," Claire said.

"You have a date tonight or something?" Colleen asked, a smirk on her lips. Claire blushed and began walking backwards out of the apartment.

"Yeah actually, good luck with the whole… thing." Colleen chuckled.

"Good luck with you're date…" Claire paused and smiled widely, causing Colleen to raise an eyebrow. "What?" she asked.

"Told you that you'd get' knocked up before I did," Claire said, leaving the room before Colleen could reply.

---

She continued to mess with her hair as she stood in the lift. She decided to wear a black zip up hoodie and jeans, not letting any of her curves show through. If this was going to be a comfortable date, she was going to dress comfortable. In her pocket held a small box, where his present was being held. At first she debated just forgetting it, since it was a little corny, but brought it.

After her conversation with Colleen, she was having a hard time getting her mind to focus on the task at hand. One part of her, the larger part, was excited that her brother would be starting a family. She wanted to see his eyes when he found out that he was going to be a dad. He had gone through so much in his life, he needed something fantastic like this. On the other hand, the thought of any baby being around scared her. Sure she was great with kids, and she loved kids, but the thought of raising one, or helping to raise one, scared her beyond belief. She owed that all to her dear mother.

The doors opened, breaking her out of her thoughts, and she made her was down the hall and stopped at his door. She pressed the button and waited for him to answer. She briefly wondered if he would like her gift. She ignored that thought as she twirled a piece of her blonde hair in between her fingers and smiled when he opened the door.

"Hey, there you are, I was wondering if you were going to show," he said. He took a hold of her hand and pulled her into the room, pressing his lips on hers immediately. She smiled and pulled away.

"Sorry, I got a bit held up at work." He smiled and led her in further. She took a minute to gaze around his room. It was far larger than her own, and seemed to hold two separate rooms. One was a living room and office, the other she guessed was the bedroom. Hopefully she wouldn't see that for a while.

"I'm just about to have the generator make pizza… is there anything special you want on it?" he asked.

"One pizza, everything on it, extra cheese." Jim paused and chuckled.

"I knew there was a reason I was dating you," he said. She laughed and glanced around. It didn't seem like he held an value for art, or have any photos. There was a good amount of books on his shelf, plus a few magazines. Not to mention his desk was full with paper work and data pads.

"Here, you can sit on the couch, I'll just be a second." She nodded and sat down on the couch, admiring the size of the compartment before he came back and placed a pizza in front of them.

"Thank you," Claire said.

"No problem, I'm glad you came. It probably would've been a very lonely birthday if you didn't," he said. Claire smiled and let her hand rest in her pocket.

"I got you a present," she told him. He paused and raised an eyebrow, a smirk coming to his lips.

"Is it sexy underwear?" he asked. She rolled her eyes.

"No, I'll get that for your twenty-eighth birthday. You get this for your twenty-seventh…" she said, handing him a box. He raised and eyebrow and ripped the wrapping off of it.

"What it is?" he asked.

"It's a little corny… but I saw it while on shore leave and I thought of you." He opened the box and stared at it. It looked like a gold pocket watch, but he didn't think it was. On the front it looked like there was a picture of the Enterprise on it, which made him chuckle. He opened it and found that it wasn't a pocket watch, but a compass.

"A compass?" he asked. She chuckled and shrugged.

"I read that old sea ship captains always had a compass on them. It was sort of symbolic. Read the inscription." He looked on the inside and raised an eyebrow.

"Per Aspera, Ad Astra? What does it mean?"

"Through hardships, to the stars." He chuckled and glanced at the back. It read 'James T. Kirk. Captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise.' He laughed and looked toward her.

"You were right, it is very corny." She blushed and shrugged.

"I thought you might like it. I know sexy lingerie would probably be better but-" She was cut off by his lips meeting hers, causing her to blush and give into the kiss. He smirked and pulled away, his face still only inches away from hers.

"Though sexy lingerie would be nice, this is perfect. Thank you," he said. She smiled and kissed him once more before pulling away.

"So… what movie are we watching?" Claire asked.

"A classic, the Dark Knight. Hope you're a Batman fan…" he said. Claire smiled.

"Duh, Batman rules. Who doesn't love a rich billionaire who risks his life to save people on a daily basis. Not to mention he's totally sexy," Claire said, grabbing a slice of pizza.

"Oh man, now I have competition," he said as he started the movie, grabbing his own slice. He leaned back on the couch and she leaned against him, getting comfortable almost immediately. He smiled at the thought and continued to eat.

"I wouldn't worry about competition. Batman might have billions of dollars, but you have your own starship," she said. He chuckled.

"Hard to beat that one." She nodded and they continued to watch the movie. Eventually the pizza was gone, and they went through a bottle of soda and simply enjoyed each others company. She moved so she had her back resting against his side and most of his chest.

"Why do you think we're so comfortable with each other?" Jim asked, playing with a strand of her long blonde hair. She shrugged and let her fingers trace over his arm and hand.

"I think… because we've known each other for a while. I mean, we weren't the best of friends before hand, but we were friends. We both know we are sexually attracted to each other, but we both want something more. I'm not really complaining," she said. He smiled and watched as her eyes suddenly became distant.

"Claire… are you alright?" he asked. She turned around slightly and forced a smile on her lips.

"Yeah, it's just a little weird. It's the third date and I already feel so close to you," she said. He raised an eyebrow.

"Oh really?" she paused and looked down.

"A little, I'm mostly thinking about Ryan and Colleen," she confessed.

"What about them?" he asked.

"Well…" she trailed off. "If I tell you, it has to stay between us. Technically I'm not her doctor yet, so there isn't doctor patient confidentiality, but still."

"It's just between us," he said. She pressed her lips together before she spoke.

"Colleen is pregnant, which mean Ryan is obviously going to be a dad. It's just got me thinking," She said. He nodded and went back to playing with her hair. She went back to letting her fingers trail down his arm, and smiled lightly, watching a few hairs stand up on edge. Jim twitched as goose bumps appeared on his arm.

"That tickles a bit," he muttered, grabbing her delicate hand with his own. Claire closed her eyes, relaxing into him as his hands drew lazy patterns in her palm.

"This is all so weird and new…" she mumbled, enjoying the serenity that being with Jim brought. He leaned down and planted a kiss on her forehead.

"So what're you thinking about then?" He asked. Claire sighed.

"Just about family stuff. Ryan and Colleen are going to be starting a family of their own, but I don't know… Ryan and I didn't have that great of a childhood…" Claire said, trailing off at the end. Jim waited to hear more, but she seemed to have gotten herself lost in a world of her own.

"Are you ever going to tell me about it?" he asked softly. She pressed her lips together and opened her eyes.

"I mean… if you want to hear it, it's not a pretty story," she said.

"I've got time," he whispered. She sighed and took a moment to collect her thoughts.

"My parents met when they were kids, both being children of rich business tycoons. At the age of seventeen, their parents set them up to get married. Since both of them were pretty much power hungry, they agreed. My mom said that she eventually learned to love my father, but I don't see how anyone could love someone they were practically forced to marry. About two years after they got married, they had Ryan.

"Of course they were ecstatic that they had a son, and pretty much doted on him all the time. Then I was born, and… things changed. My parents spent more time going out and working, leaving Ryan and I home a lot. So… in a way I never really knew my parents. I just knew that I was supposed do as I was told, and be the picture perfect daughter." Jim was silent as she watched him continue to trace patterns in her palm.

"When Ryan hit his teen years, he took it upon himself to take care of me. When I hit my teen years, I took it upon myself to party my ass off." Jim chuckled.

"You were a party animal?" he asked. She nodded and tangled her fingers in his.

"Pretty much. Of course my parent's hated it, and they hated the fact that Ryan just let me do it. Eventually Ryan began to rebel on his own, dating girls who our parents hated, refusing to go into the family business. They disowned them when he turned 18 and said that he wanted to join Starfleet. So they piled everything into me for two years, how to be a good wife, how to be a good hostess, how to take care of children. They were pretty much primping me to marry some business tycoon, only to be disappointed when I joined Starfleet as well. I think they blamed the whole thing on Ryan and still have some hope that I'll come home and just marry… Dustan? Or… Tristan… I can never remember," Claire said. Jim listened intently as Claire told him her story.

"Such loving parents you had," he replied, unsure of what else to say. Claire nodded as she rubbed her thumb against the side of his hand.

"Pfft, yeah. So all in all, our family kind of sucks. The way I look at it, Ryan is all the family I'll ever need," she said.

"There's nothing wrong with that. So why exactly did you join Starfleet then?" Jim asked. Claire pondered the question for a moment.

"I joined Starfleet to piss off my parents and to join Ryan, but I never really felt like I had a future in it until now." Jim withdrew his hand from hers and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I can't say that I'm complaining," he whispered, leaning down to kiss her neck. Claire leaned back, allowing him better access to her collarbone. His arms tightened around her waist and continued to move his lips against her neck. She sighed as she felt her skin heat up and she shifted slightly. He groaned as he felt her shift against him and moved his lips up to her jaw, nibbling lightly before pressing his soft lips against hers. She sighed and reached one hand up, intertwining it in his hair.

"Jim," she whispered when he pulled away to catch his breath. He smirked and kissed her once again, one hand reaching up to caress her cheek. She pulled away before he could deepen the kiss and gave his lips a light peck. He smiled and let his forehead rest against hers, ignoring the slightly uncomfortable position they were in.

"Happy birthday," she whispered. He smiled and kissed her forehead before letting his lips kiss a trail down to her lips, leaving a couple of light, but meaningful, kisses and leaned back. She allowed herself to lay back on his chest, letting her head rest right near his heart. She smiled when she heard it's steady beat.

"Claire…" he said.

"Yeah?" He paused as he ran a hand through her hair.

"I'm really glad you decided to join Starfleet…" he whispered. She smiled and took his hand in hers.

"I am too…"

---

Ryan walked into his quarters and put one of his many security updates on his desk. He took a glance around the compartment, trying to find his girlfriend, but not having any luck.

"Colleen?" He called.

"I'll be out in a second!" her voice called back. He nodded and took his shirt off, letting his skin breathe after a day trapped under the restricting uniform. Colleen walked out of the bathroom in her pajamas and walked over to him.

"Hey, are you feeling any better?" Ryan asked. Colleen nodded, but said nothing. Instead, she curled up next to Ryan, waiting as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Her eyes seemed distant, but a small smile worked it's way to her lips.

"I love you, Ryan," she whispered to him in a gentle voice, leaning up to capture his lips with her. Ryan smiled into the kiss as he ran his fingers through Colleen's damp blonde hair.

"I love you too, babe. Glad to see that you're feeling better too!" He said, as Colleen idly ran her finger down Ryan's bare chest. Ryan flinched at the touch at first, her finger freezing against his sweaty frame, but said nothing.

"We need to talk." At those words, Ryan froze. The four words that no man or woman ever wants to here from their boyfriend or girlfriend.

"O-Okay, let's talk," Ryan replied, his nerves alert for possible bad news. He was dreading the conversation about to take place. He thought that they were moving at a reasonable speed, but perhaps living together for a few weeks had turned Colleen off to him as potentially more than they were.

"Calm down, I'm not trying to break up with you or anything!" Colleen snapped, sensing Ryan's fear as his body was tense and his eyes filled with fright.

"Colleen… just tell me what's going on," Ryan said, not sure he could take the suspense.

"I'm pregnant." It seemed like time froze as the words sank in.

"You're… what?" he asked. She took his hands in hers and looked him in the eye.

"Ryan… you and I… we're going to have a baby," Colleen said. Ryan still looked frozen in his spot before he stood up and ran a hand through his hair.

"Shit, you mean…" She nodded.

"Ryan… are you alright?" he began walking back and forth in front of her, causing her to become worried.

"I'm… I'm fine. I'm… wow… I'm going to be a dad…" he whispered. He sat back down on the bed and looked at Colleen. "It is mine… right?"

"O-Of course! What are you trying to say?" she snapped, becoming really defensive all of a sudden.

"Nothing! I'm sorry, it's just… wow," he breathed. Colleen took his hand in hers and looked into his grey eyes, which were now sparkling with joy. God, she wished her baby had those eyes.

"Ryan, what are we going to do?" she asked. He sighed and pulled her into a hug.

"I don't know. Let's just enjoy the moment while we have it," he told her. She nodded.

"Okay," she replied. After a moment he smiled and held her closer.

"We're going to be parents," he whispered. Colleen laughed.

"I love you, Ryan… even if you are a dork," she said.

---

The annoying sound of beeping entered her ears, and she shifted slightly, trying to ignore it. Her pillow shifted and she could feel a groan emit from it, signaling that it was not a pillow. Claire sighed and snuggled into the warm chest even further.

"Computer, snooze," she heard Jims voice say, as he stifled a yawn. Jim used his free hand to ran a hand over his face and looked down, letting a small smile make it's way to his lips. Sometime during the night Claire had fallen asleep, and Jim soon followed after her. Now they were still in the position they were the night before, except now having a blanket lain over them. It surprised him how comforting being around her was, and he never would've thought in a million years he could be so close to a woman and not have the urge to jump her.

"Hmm." Jim smiled as she began to wake up, and let his fingers trace over her cheekbone.

"Good morning," he whispered. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked up, her grey eyes meeting his immediately.

"Morning," she replied.

"You sleep well?" he asked. She sat up, being careful not to sit on him, or hit any valuable body parts. She ran a hand through her hair and yawned.

"Yeah… surprisingly. Did you sleep alright?" she asked, her voice was quiet, and she didn't seem to be all that into the conversation. Jim smiled at the fact she wasn't a morning person and let his fingers trace her cheekbone once more.

"I slept fine… do you want some coffee?" he asked. She paused and nodded, moving so she was laying back on the other side of the couch.

"Please," she muttered. He got up and stretched his back, causing a few audible cracks to echo through the apartment. Claire flinched slightly, but didn't say anything, just rubbed her eyes, trying to wake herself up. Jim got some coffee from the generator and handed her a cup.

"Careful, it's hot," he said. She blew on it lightly and took a sip, giving a small sigh of relief upon tasting the caffeine.

"Thank you," she said. He nodded and sat next to her, picking up her legs and draping them over his lap so he could sit closer to her.

"Do you have work this morning?" he asked. She thought about it for a second before shaking her head.

"No, I took the afternoon shift. Well, Liam wanted to take the morning shift, so Alex and I have the afternoon shift." Jim nodded and let his free hand rub her ankle.

"When did you take your shoes off?" he asked, remembering her wearing a pair of flats last night. She paused before she reached into the couch cushions and pulled out her black shoes.

"Kicked them off during my sleep," she answered. He chuckled and glanced at her toenails.

"You… you know your toenails are blue… right?" he asked. She laughed lightly and nodded.

"Liam did it, he wanted to paint little flowers on them, but he didn't have time," she said. He rolled his eyes and looked back up at her. Her hair was a mess, and her make-up was smudged a bit.

"Not much of a morning person, are you?" he asked. She raised an eyebrow.

"Did you ever think I was?" she asked. He just shrugged.

"I guess not, considering your dependency on coffee," he mumbled. Claire giggled and pinched his arm.

"Speaking of coffee, I hope you're prepared to get me at least another four cups," she said with a smile. Jim shrugged.

"It's the small price to pay for getting to cuddle with the sexiest girl on this side of the universe." Claire blushed as she leaned closer to him.

---

"I hate work. Morning shift, afternoon shirt, night shift, graveyard shift… I hate it all!" Claire grumbled as she lined up vials of test tubes to run through a machine. Alex peered over from the paperwork he was filling out.

"Testing blood really isn't the most exciting piece of work, I know, but it's not that bad," Alex said, pulling off the thin pair of glasses that were resting against his nose. Claire rolled her eyes at his comment, but did a double take as she caught sight of Alex.

"Since when did you get glasses?" Claire asked, gesturing to them as Alex rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"I've always had them, but I normally just wear contacts to work," he explained, turning back to his paperwork. Claire entered a few digits in the machine that the test tubes were in before making her way over to Alex's work station.

"So why are you wearing them today?"

"Well… Liam made an off-hand comment last night that I looked cute in my glasses…" Alex muttered, not even looking up. Claire couldn't hold back her laughter as the image of Liam gushing over Alex wearing his glasses.

"There are my two favorite people!" Liam cried out as he entered sickbay. Before Claire or Alex could reply, the lights throughout sickbay shut off. The machine processing the blood samples in the corner shut off with a beep. Claire's first instinct was that of fear and she lunged forward, grabbing onto Alex. Alex groaned at her weight as the emergency backup lights turned on. Every other light turned on and sickbay illuminated in an orange glow. After a moment Claire felt someone pull her off of Alex.

"Honey, you had your chance, he's mine now," Liam said. His tone was joking, but Alex rolled his eyes anyway.

"Sorry, I just… I'm not a fan of the dark," she explained. Alex raised an eyebrow.

"You're afraid of the dark?" Before either of them could say anything, McCoy marching into sickbay.

"What the hell did you three do?" he snapped. The three of them exchanged looks.

"We didn't do anything," Liam said. McCoy walked over and tried to access a computer, but it didn't seem to respond.

"I can't get anything on this thing… McCoy to Bridge…" the whole sickbay was quiet as they waited for a response.

"Nothing?" Nurse Chapel asked.

"Maybe you should get Claire to call. Kirk tends to come when she calls his name," Liam said. Claire turned around and smacked him in the shoulder.

"Jerk," she hissed.

"There must be something wrong with communications, Conaway, you're with me. We're going to see what's going on," he said.

"Why do I have to go?" she asked.

"Because if the lifts aren't working, I need someone small to climb through the ducts," McCoy said. Claire sighed and went to follow him out of sickbay, when the doors opened and a group of people walked in.

"Stop what you're doing and put your hands where I can see them!" A voice sounded through the sickbay. Claire froze and lifted her hands, following McCoy's example.

"What the hell is going on?" McCoy snapped.

"We're taking over the ship, my dear doctor," the man in the middle said. It took Claire a minute, but she recognized it as Captain Shay immediately, and froze.

"Oh shit," Liam whispered, causing Alex to look at him.

"Paul, you stay here and make sure we don't have any interruptions. Harry, grab a few people as hostages. If I know Kirk, he's already off of the bridge and looking for us." Paul nodded, and Harry moved forward.

"Well, well, well… if it isn't the fag…" Paul muttered with an evil smirk. Harry mimicked his smirk as he reached forward, a phaser ready in his right hand.

"Well it looks like we found the perfect hostage," Harry said, tugging Liam towards him. Liam squealed as the man's iron grip cut into the circulation of his arm. Alex twitched, seeing the look of pain cross Liam's face.

"Let him go!" He demanded, rage evident in his voice as Harry's phaser was thrust again the young doctor's head.

"Chambers…" McCoy warned, but Alex stepped forward anyway.

"Oh, you want me to let go of your boyfriend?" Harry asked in a playful tone, his finger tense against the trigger. Liam closed his eyes, refusing to watch his old friend's case all the drama.

"I think it's time for you to get the hostage out of here. I'll keep an eye on these four," Paul said, gesturing to Claire, McCoy, Nurse Chapel, and Alex. Alex clinched his teeth as Harry forced Liam out of the room, his phaser cold against Liam's trembling frame.

"I warned you…" Alex hissed, taking a wrestling stance. Paul laughed as he pointed his own phaser at Alex.

"And what are you going to do?" He asked with a sneer.

"He doesn't need to do anything!" A voice called from the door. Everyone turned their attention to Ryan who stood in the doorway to sickbay. Before Paul could turned around and fire at Ryan, a blue ray shot from the end of his phaser towards Paul. The blast hit Paul who fell to the ground, unconscious. He walked in and Claire ran up to him and hugged him.

"Thank God!" She cried.

"Where did they go?" he asked.

"They are heading to the bridge, they took Doctor Peterson with them," McCoy said.

"Alright, I can leave a security officer here with you, incase Paul wakes-" they heard the man begin to groan and Claire turned around and kicked him in the groin.

"Go get them and bring back Liam. If my gay boyfriend is hurt I'll kick your ass," Claire snapped.

"Okay, Ensign Lopez, stay with the doctors," Ryan said, turning around and running off. A Hispanic woman stepped forward and pointed her phaser at Paul, who was still groaning in pain.

"I can't believe he was able to wake up from a stun that quick, maybe you can sedate him or something," Ensign Lopez said. Claire smiled wickedly and crossed her arms.

"I have an idea," she said. McCoy walked over and placed a hypo spray in her hand.

"Bolian stomach flu… knock yourself out." Claire smirked and injected him with it.

---

Ryan continued to sprint down the hallway, his phaser in hand. He needed to get to the bridge immediately. If it really was captain Shay, and the rest of the crew, he could only imagine what trouble everyone was in.

"Going somewhere, Ryan?" Ryan froze upon hearing the familiar voice, and turned around.

"Griffin…" he said. Griffin pointed his phaser at him and smirked.

"Chief of Security… I didn't think you'd sink so low," he mumbled, taking a few steps forward. Ryan cleared his throat twice, a signal for Ensign Sheppard to fire when given the opportunity. Griffin noticed the cough and grabbed Ryan by the collar. "What did you tell him?" He snapped. Ryan said nothing as Griffin raised the phaser to his head. The tip of the gun was pointed against his temple, but Ryan didn't even flinch.

"You still think you're some hot piece of shit, don't you?" Ryan asked slowly, as calm as possible. Inside, he was mentally freaking out. Just hearing the name Griffin or seeing someone like him pass by in the hallways on the ship was enough to drive Ryan crazy on a normal day, but here he was, in the flesh.

"And you're still a rebellious little punk who needs to learn his place," Griffin snapped, taking the blunt side of his phaser and bringing down on his head. In one quick motion, Griffin whirled around and blasted Ensign Sheppard's phaser out of his hand. Ryan seized this opportunity to kick Griffin's knees. The older man howled in pain as his legs gave out. His body fell to the floor with a thud as Ensign Sheppard scurried to get to his phaser. Ryan jumped to his feet, a slight trail of blood flowing down the side of his harden face, and used the heel of his boot to stomp down on Griffin's wrist.

"Fuck!" Griffin cried out. Ryan fell to the ground and began punching him in face repeatedly, until Ensign Sheppard pulled him off.

"Sir, the rest of the crew has to be at the bridge," he said. Ryan stood up and nodded.

"He is not to get out of your sight, understood?" Sheppard nodded and watched as Ryan took off. He knew he would be back to beat the shit out of the man when he was done, or at least… he thought he would. David glanced down at the older man and lowered his Phaser.

"I wouldn't do that kid, my nose might be bleeding, but I can still take you," Griffin muttered.

"I have no doubt you could. I plan on you doing so," David said. Griffin raised an eyebrow.

"What?" he asked.

"You and I have a common enemy, or at least… our leaders do. I need you to escape, and in the process of doing this, I need you to make sure I'm badly beaten," David said.

"What? Are you on crack?" he asked.

"If I'm going to let you escape, I need you to draw blood, you damn imbecile," David snapped. Griffin paused, this was a very different man than he was used to.

"You can't just pass out?" He asked, standing up.

"No… I need something that will keep me in sickbay for a while." Griffin raised an eyebrow.

"And why is that?" Griffin inquired.

"Ryan isn't the only Conaway of interest on this ship…"

---

"You know… if you just put some highlights in your hair, you would look so much younger," Liam said. Captain Shay turned toward him and glared at him.

"Harry, shut him up. Honestly, the last thing I need is beauty tips from the damn hostage." Liam scoffed.

"And you wonder why you never got laid…" Harry leaned down and punched Liam as hard as he could in the stomach. Liam coughed violently as the blow was felt throughout his body. Tears began to form, but Liam blinked them away. Instead, he choose to keep his mouth shut. Harry resumed his stance next to the group of hostages with Dom and a few other members from the Berlin. Shay moved away from the hostages to the Captain's chair in the middle of the room where Captain Kirk was strapped down. His nose appeared broken and bent on an odd angle while a trail of blood leaked from his ear down his neck. A gag rag was pulled tight around his face and his eyes were heavy from exhaustion.

"I'm going to kill you right here in front of your crew," Shay whispered to him, using his phaser to force the captain to make eye contact with him.

---

"RYAN! WAIT!" Ryan paused and whirled around to find Alex trailing behind him.

"What? I thought you were back with Ensign Lopez and my sister?" Ryan asked, trying to regain his breath. Alex shook his head.

"I'm not going to let them have my boyfriend!" Alex declared, a phaser posed in his hand. Ryan raised an eyebrow.

"Your boyfriend?" Alex felt his face heat up, but there were more important matters to attend to.

"No time for the now, we need to get to the bridge, right?" Alex asked, sprinting past Ryan. He nodded and took off after Alex.

"Alright, here's the plan…"

---

"I have a score to settle with you, Captain," Shay whispered, placing a hand on Kirk's shoulder. His fingers dug deep without Kirk's flesh, causing him to flinch. Shay merely smiled. "This ends now…"

---

"How's your upper body strength?" Ryan asked as they gave up trying to force open the lift leading to the bridge. Alex turned to Ryan who was looking up.

"The air ducts?" He asked, puzzled by the head of security's question. Ryan just smiled.

"Bingo."

"Alright, let's do this!" Alex exclaimed as Ryan held out his hands for Alex to step up on. Alex pulled himself up and then held his arm down for Ryan to take. Ryan grabbed his hand and hoisted himself up.

"Move forward," Ryan said. Alex nodded and they inched forward.

"How do I know when I'm- SHIT!" A second later Alex fell through the ducts and onto a group of Berlin crew members. Ryan wasted no time sliding out and knocking a few phasers out of peoples hands. Alex was up in a second and was landing a punch across Harry's face.

"Touch my boyfriend again you-"

"ALEX!" Liam shouted. Alex rushed forward and wrapped his arms around Liam.

"Take a phaser and help me out before we get all mushy, okay?" Liam smiled and pecked Alex on the cheek before joining him in taking down the Berlin crew. Ryan heard the two of them reunite, but was too busy rushing over to untie Captain Kirk.

"Ryan, Shay is getting away!" Without another word, Kirk grabbed Ryan's phaser from his belt and shot the other captain point blank before he could escape.

"Son of a bitch, taking over my ship," Kirk hissed, standing up. His staggered slightly, falling into Ryan. Ryan grabbed the captain before he fell to the ground.

"Sir, my phaser wasn't to stun," Ryan said slowly. Kirk sighed and ran his free hand through his hair, trying to ignore the pain throughout his body.

"I know… Chekov, make sure that our ships functions are online soon…" Kirk ignored all the looks from his crew as Sulu approached him.

"Sir, most of the crew has escaped." Jim gave a frustrated groan and sat back down in his chair, the restraints that were formerly holding him down now lying limp on the ground.

"Damn… contact Starfleet, and sickbay, they're going to have a lot of work pretty soon," Jim said.

"Captain, I suggest you go yourself. Your injuries must be looked at," Spock said. Jim nodded.

"I'll go, let's just get everything settled up here first." Ryan picked up his phaser and began to leave. "Commander Conaway," Jim said.

"Yes Captain?" Ryan asked. Jim walked over to him and held out his hand.

"Good work, I'm glad you were here to help," Jim said. Ryan shook his hand and gave him an appreciative smile.

"Thank you sir," he replied. They remained locked in their handshake for a moment before Ryan pulled away. Kirk slipped his hands into his pockets as he starred at Ryan.

"Do you think your sister is okay?"

---

"Now this is entertainment!" Claire giggled as she watched Paul writhe on the floor in pain. Ensign Lopez merely smiled down at the man in pain. Nurse Chapel had left the room, concerned with the treatment of their "hostage" while McCoy just watched with an indifferent look.

---

"Yeah, I'm sure she's fine. I left one of my top ensigns with her and McCoy. Now I have some business to attend to," Ryan informed him. Jim nodded and glanced and went back to his crew. Ryan made his way down the hall to where he left Griffin and Ensign Sheppard, only to see his Ensign in a bloody mess on the ground.

"Damn," he hissed, kneeling down and checking to make sure he had a pulse.

"Holy shit… what happened?" Liam asked. Ryan looked over and saw Alex lean down next to him, checking over his vitals.

"He needs to get to sickbay, now. Claire might need to perform surgery on him," Alex said. Ryan didn't respond as he suddenly took off down the hallway, as if he could find Griffin by doing that. He must have gone across the ship before he finally gave up. Griffin was gone, and only Ensign Sheppard knew what happened.

"God damnit!" he hissed, punching the wall. He hated how just when everything seemed to be working out for him, shit like this happened. He straightened himself up and went searching for the one person who he knew would be able to calm him down.

---

"Did you fix him?" Alex asked when Claire got out of surgery. Claire nodded and threw her gloves away.

"Yup, poor guy. I guess Griffin really must've kicked his ass," Claire said.

"Who is Griffin?" Annalisa asked. During the couple of hours where Claire and Ensign Lopez were stuck together, they had seemed to hit it off. She was still assigned to protect the sickbay, so she was stuck with the doctors a little longer.

"Some creeper who is obsessed with my brother."

"I hope Ryan is alright, he sort of just… took off," Liam said.

"He probably just went off to find Colleen," Claire told them. Before Alex could say anything, the doors to sickbay opened and Jim walked in, practically leaning on Spock for support.

"Hey Claire, you look nice today," he said with a smile, though his shirt was drenched in blood as his nose and ear leaked with the crimson liquid.

"Right from one surgery to another," McCoy said with a smirk, watching as his 'apprentice' worked. Claire sighed.

"Hey Jim, let's get you over to the medical table," Claire said, gesturing to a table next to where Ensign Sheppard was fast asleep.

"Want some help?" Liam asked, but Alex tightened his gripped around the smaller man's waist. Claire took that as a sign that she should fly solo.

"I'm fine, but thanks. Why don't you go tend to the cut on your boyfriend's arm?" Liam looked down to see an small blood stain on Alex's uniform.

"OH MY GOD! WHY DIDN'T YOU SAY SOMETHING, BABY! Let's go fix this up quick!" Liam exclaimed, practically dragging Alex into a back room. Claire didn't expect to see them for at least another hour.

"Now back to you…" Claire trailed off, taking a good look at her boyfriend. She winced as she saw the damage done to his nose.

"It's always about me," Jim said with a smile. Despite the blood covering his body, he still managed to make Claire's heart race.

"No babe, it's always about me. I'm just nice enough to let you get some attention every once in awhile," Claire told him, taking her scanner out to make sure he didn't have any internal damage. Jim reached a hand up to cup Claire's cheek as he leaned over and captured her lips.

"Jim, cut it out. Let my doctor work," McCoy scolded. Jim sighed and let his forehead rest against hers.

"Bones…" Claire pulled away and stuck him with some morphine.

"He's right, you need to be checked," she said. Jim sighed as the morphine began to kick in. She checked his head and sighed in relief as there was no internal damage. She quickly cleaned the cut near his ear, and glanced at his shoulder. She frowned at the amount of damage this man seemed to take on a daily basis.

"I'm fine… my face isn't damaged… is it?" he asked. Claire rolled her eyes and focused on his nose.

"This is going to hurt, grab a hold of the bed frame," she said. He lazily did as he was told, and grabbed onto the frame just as she snapped his nose into place and stuck him with something to fix his nose up.

"HOLY SHIT! Fuck," Jim muttered. He went to grab a hold of his nose but Claire grabbed his wrists, stopping him from touching it.

"I know it hurts, I'm going to give you more morphine in a second… but you need to breathe babe," She told him. He began to breathe through his mouth and let out a small groan when she injected him with morphine.

"Damn, that hurt," Jim said.

"The morphine will kick in a second. I'm going to look at your ear," Claire said. She took a step forward and began to scan his brain. The morphine must have kicked in quicker than she thought because he leaned forward and rested his head on her shoulder. She gave a heavy sigh and tried to scan his head while he was like this.

"You smell… Hmm, so good," Jim muttered. She turned red and tried to ignore his hand resting on her waist.

"Jim, I'm trying to examine you," she said. She could practically feel the smirk in her shoulder.

"You can examine me all you want," he said into her neck. She pulled away and gave him another shot, causing him to flinch.

"Jesus, Jim… how is it that you seem to find a way to get the shit kicked out of you every time something like this happens?" she asked, inspecting his shoulder.

"I live on the edge, HA!" Claire rolled her eyes and cleaned out his wound.

---

"Colleen!" Ryan cried out, trying to regain his breath. Throughout all the hustle and bustle of being attack, Ryan hadn't even checked to see if his girlfriend was alright.

"I'm in the shower, babe," Colleen called back from the bathroom. Ryan sighed as he leaned against the wall and waited. She was fine, thank god. If something had happened to her… or the baby… Ryan felt his blood boil at the thought of Griffin trying something to hurt his family. Just imaging the smug look on the brunette's face caused Ryan to clench his fists until his knuckles turned white and his fingernails sliced through the skin of his palms. He felt someone put their hands on his shoulder and jumped slightly.

"Ryan… what's wrong?" she asked. Her hair was soaking wet, and she wore nothing but a towel. He unclenched his fists and placed his palms on her cheeks, keeping her face in place.

"You're okay, god I was so worried that…" He trailed off.

"Ryan, you're bleeding… what happened?" she asked softly. He ignored the sudden pain in his head, reminding him that he was indeed hurt.

"Griffin… Shay… all of them were here," he said.

"Are you alright?" she asked. He shook his head and pulled her close to him. She said nothing as her body practically molded into his.

"I thought… god if he would've found you…" Colleen pulled away and placed a hand on his cheek.

"It's okay, I'm fine. I'm here, I'm fine and the baby is fine too…" she whispered. He nodded and pulled her closer to him.

"I hate him, I hate him so fucking much," he whispered. She nodded and let him hold her for a minute longer.

"Ryan… we need to get you to sickbay, Claire has to look at that head wound," Colleen said, trying to pry Ryan's arms away. Ryan let go reluctantly. Colleen disappeared into the bathroom and emerged a minute later in her knock around clothes. Ryan hadn't moved from his spot, his eyes tired and appeared glazed over.

"If he had hurt you…" Ryan mumbled as Colleen intertwined their hands. She felt a small layer of blood coating his hand, but ignored it. Ryan was in no good mental state.

"Let's just get down to sickbay and let your sister take a look at you, okay? Then you can tell me everything that happened and I promise that I won't go anywhere," Colleen whispered soothingly into his ear. Again, Ryan was silent as Colleen gently lead him out of their room. Mindlessly, he allowed himself to be dragged through the many corridors of the ship until finally the familiar door to sickbay came into view.

"Well, well if it isn't Mr. Hero himself!" Alex said happily as Colleen tugged Ryan into sickbay. Ryan glanced over to see Liam sitting on Alex's lap and Alex's arms tightly wrapped around his lover's waist. They looked happy without a care in the world. For a moment, Ryan envied them.

"Not now, guys. Come on, babe," Colleen said, slowly guiding Ryan over to where Claire was working on Jim as McCoy and Ensign Lopez left to discuss possible upgrades to security in sickbay. Claire looked up as Colleen cleared her throat.

"Hey Colleen, hey Ry. Ow, looks like you got roughed up a bit yourself," Claire said, gesturing to Kirk's wounds. As soon as her brother didn't answer, Claire realized that something was up. She shot a look over at Colleen who motioned to his head. Claire nodded.

"He needs someone to look at his wounds," Colleen said. Claire nodded and stuck Jim with one last thing before turning toward him.

"Here, I'll take him to the back room… being around so many people can't be helping him," Claire said. Colleen nodded and stayed put.

"I'm… I'm going to sit here," she said. Claire nodded, knowing that Colleen was a little scared to see her boyfriend like this, and she just needed a minute to collect herself. Claire led him to a bed and sat her brother down, making sure he was comfortable before pulling out her scanner. It was a little nerve wrecking to see her brother like this again, and could only hope that he would be able to break out of his funk soon. She pulled out some gauze and began to clean his head wound, causing him to flinch and hiss.

"Damn…" he snapped.

"Sorry… I forgot to tell you it was going to sting," she said. He looked up, and his grey eyes met hers. She almost froze when she saw the amount of pain that seemed to fill them. "Ryan…"

"Griffin was here… he was so close to everyone, and I didn't stop him. I had him, he was as good as back in jail… maybe dead. Then he just escaped. He's still out there Claire, he can come back and…" he trailed off. Claire put her supplies down and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Things like this happen Ryan, there is nothing you can do. This isn't your fault, you had a duty to your ship, to your officers. You did what you had to do," she said.

"He'll come back, and it won't be just me he'll be after. He'll go after Rupert, for being my friend. He'll hurt Colleen and the baby. He'll even try and hurt you. I can't let him do that, it'll kill me," He whispered. Claire frowned and took his hands in hers.

"He isn't here, none of us are hurt… too badly. Things in life happen Ryan, we can't control them, we can only roll with the punches. Nothing is going to happen to any of us, Griffin isn't going to hurt anyone. Griffin is going to be caught one day, and he will be punished. You will be with Colleen, raising your baby, being a daddy… and you won't worry about him or anyone else. You just have to push through, okay?"

"Claire…" he paused before he pulled her into a hug, tears falling out of his eyes. Claire just rubbed his back and let him cry on her shoulder, something she used to do on his shoulder all the time. After a minute he pulled away and took a deep breath.

"Better?" Claire asked. He nodded and ran a hand through his hair.

"Sorry… it's just… all this scares the shit out of me," he said. Claire nodded and grabbed her gauze and finished cleaning the cut on his head.

"Life is scary," she muttered. He nodded and looked down.

"I wish I could find the right words to tell you why this bugs me so much. If feels like I have so much on my chest, but nothing to say. Griffin just… he makes me crazy and I hate it!" Ryan declared, clenching his fists again. Claire noticed it and grabbed his wrist.

"Stop. Stop doing this to yourself!" She snapped as his whole hand relaxed. He sighed and leaned back against the pillow on the medical bed.

"I'm sorry…" he mumbled, closing his eyes. Claire sighed and took a seat next to his bed.

"Look Ry, I know that this is killing you, but you need to get over this. You can't let it hold you back for the rest of your life. If you ever need to talk, you always have Colleen, Rupert, and me," Claire told him. He nodded and sighed again.

"It's funny, because I'm supposed to be the older brother holding his little sister while she cries. Not the other way around," he said. She chuckled and patted his shoulder.

"Don't worry about it. You've been there for me plenty of times, it's the least I could do," she told him. He nodded and they sat in a silence for a moment.

"So… am I going to die or something?" he asked. She chuckled and shook her head.

"No, but your ensign almost did," she said. He raised an eyebrow.

"Lopez?" he asked.

"No… Sheppard," she answered. He frowned and his eyebrows furrowed. Claire noticed his sudden face and raised and eyebrow. "What?"

"I just… I don't like him. I mean, I know he helped with Griffin but…" he trailed off. Claire waited for an answer but got none.

"Ryan?" she asked. He sighed and shrugged.

"It's probably nothing," he muttered. Claire stood up and pulled a bandage out an stuck it on his forehead.

"There, you're all better. You should probably go get some rest," She said, helping him to his feet.

"Yeah, you should too," she sighed and shrugged.

"I have a post op, and I have to make sure Jim isn't tripping too bad on the morphine. Oh, and thanks to your girlfriend I'm now in charge of her prenatal care. There is no sleep for me anytime soon," she snapped. Ryan raised his eyebrows.

"Why would you agree to be her doctor if you're going to be like that?" He snapped back. Claire rolled her eyes.

"Because she's your baby's momma and she's really sweet. How can you say no to that?" Claire told him.

"I never can," he replied quickly.

"You're pussy-whipped," she mumbled. He shrugged.

"How can I say no to her when she's all ready and eager and hot and…" Claire's hand shot out and covered her brother's mouth.

"Please don't finish that sentence…" She said as she scrunched up her face at the mere thought of her brother's sex life. He rolled his eyes and walked with her back to sickbay.

"I guess I should get going, I have a report and all to write," he said. She nodded.

"Yup, and I have… work," she answered. He gave her a quick hug before ruffling her hair and walking over to Colleen. Claire tried to fix her hair and walked up to ensign Sheppard, who was still out cold.

"It's just you me and Jim tonight buddy," she said softly. There was no answer except the sound of his heart monitor beeping.

---

Ryan gave a heavy sigh as he laid down next to his girlfriend. She was fast sleep and her hand was resting on her stomach, her stomach where their small child was now growing. He smiled at the thought and put his hand on her stomach as well. He was going to be a father soon, with the woman he loved. Something seemed to be missing, however, as he laid next to Colleen.

His eyes landed on her ring finger, which laid barren and naked. He knew immediately what was missing. He didn't just want to have a baby with Colleen, he wanted to be with her, forever. He was close to being twenty-five, and most of his friends back on earth were already married, or in a committed relationship. He wanted that. He smiled and leaned down to kiss her stomach lightly, then her finger.

"Ryan?" Colleen asked. Ryan smiled and moved up so he could kiss her lips.

"I love you, Colleen… I love you so much," he whispered. She smiled and kissed him back.

"I love you too… you alright?" he nodded and laid down next to her, pulling her close.

"I'm fine… I'm going to be fine," he said.

---

"Doctor Conaway?" A voice asked. Claire turned around and forced a smile on her face as she saw ensign Sheppard sit up in his bed.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" she asked, picking up his chart.

"A little groggy… what happened?" he asked.

"The ship was under attack. I'm assuming you were attacked by someone. You had a minor bone fracture and some head injuries. I took care of your fracture and injury and you should bee good to go soon," she told him. He gave her a weak forced smile. Claire didn't notice as his uncasted hand reached out and grabbed own. Her body was jerked down at his strong grip and her grey eyes starred into his cold brown eyes.

"I think I owe you one…" his whispered in what she guessed was an attempt at a seductive tone, but instead, she flinched. His whisper was harsh and slightly frightening.

"No really, that's fine. Just doing my job," she replied, trying to pull her hand away and back as far back as possible. He held on for a moment longer before he let her go and she practically slammed her charts next to him and gave an awkward cough as she began to give him some medicine.

"You're really pretty, you know that?" Claire rolled her eyes, suddenly getting really annoyed with him.

"Thank you, but I'm seeing someone," she snapped. He raised an eyebrow.

"Who?" he asked. She shot him a look.

"That's a little personal, Ensign," she hissed. He paused before looking down.

"I apologize, it must be the morphine," he said. She watched him for a second before writing a few things on his chart.

"Must be. You should be fine by tomorrow," she said.

"Out so soon?" he asked.

"I'm good at what I do," she answered. He smirked.

"I have no doubt," he said. There was something about his tone that made her pause and suppress the uneasy feeling in her stomach. She placed his chart down and walked up to the medical station, ignoring Alex, who was having a mini argument with Liam about his arm.

"You alright, Claire?" Claire looked over and offered Liam a smile.

"Yeah, just tired. I sent Jim to her quarters earlier tonight and now I'm stuck with ensign creeper," she said.

"Ensign Creeper?" Alex asked.

"Yeah, the dude started hitting on me out of the blue. Forget the fact that I have a boyfriend, he's just plain creepy," Claire said.

"You want me to rough him up for you?" Liam asked.

"And have him spend more time in sickbay? No thank you," she snapped. Alex gave her a pat on the shoulder.

"If he bugs you anymore, just let me know," Alex told her. Claire paused for a moment before chuckling.

"Ever since you two started going out, you guys are so different. Liam has a new interest in violence and Alex actually has feelings," Claire said with a giggle. The two men exchanged looks before turning back to her.

"I don't have feelings. I'm muscular and sexy and violent… and not like him!" Alex said, pointing to Liam. Liam rolled his eyes.

"I happen to be very sexy, thank you very much. I just have the very special skills of making him a bottom," Liam explained with a smirk. Alex's face turned a bright red color as Claire burst out laughing.

"Jesus Liam, she didn't need to know that," he snapped. Claire laughed once more before placing her charts on the other side of the counter.

"You guys are so cute together," Claire said.

"So are you and Kirk, you two will make gorgeous babies," Liam said. Claire flinched at the thought and sat on the counter.

"Yeah, well you two will drive your children crazy, just for the record," Claire told them.

"We're not having kids," Alex said. Liam raised an eyebrow.

"Say what?" he asked. Claire paled when she realized this was going to start an argument.

"Guys, it's not big deal, you've only been dating for like a week… you can worry about kids later," she said. Both men nodded, but were silent.

"So… did you and Kirk have a good time last night?" Liam asked.

"We had pizza and watched a movie, nothing big," she said.

"Sounds boring," Alex muttered. Claire paused before she looked over at McCoy's office to see him passed out.

"You think you guys could cover me? I want to go and get some sleep," she said.

"Sure, go get some rest. We'll take care of Ensign creeper," Liam said. Claire chuckled and jumped off the counter.

"Thanks, I'll see you guys tomorrow," she said, leaving sickbay and going to get some sleep.

---

"THIS IS HORRIBLE!" Claire awoke with a start, flinching as the bright lights burned her tired eyes.

"What now…" Claire mumbled, rubbing away the last bits of sleep from her eyes. She looked up just to see Liam practically tripping over himself to get into her room.

"What do you know about allergies?" He asked as he tried to regain his breath. His breath was erratic and his eyes were full of distress.

"What happened?" She asked, getting to her feet. Liam grabbed her arm and yanked her out of the room. Claire felt her blonde hair whip past her head as they sprinted down the halls to sickbay.

"It's Alex…" Claire and Liam stopped just short of plowing into what looked like a balloon version of Alex.

"Holy… what the… what…?" Claire couldn't find the words to describe what she was thinking. Liam grabbed the balloon-like hand of Alex and frowned.

"We were just sitting here, enjoying a quick snack when Alex's face began swelling up like this. What do we do?" Claire ran a hand through her hair and sat him down on a bed. She paused as she looked over him and crossed her arms.

"Okay, what did you eat?" she asked.

"He just had some pudding, and some milk. You think he's allergic to milk?" Liam asked. Claire paused and shook her head.

"No, I'm pretty sure it was the pudding," she said, going to the medical cabinet and grabbing a hypo spray.

"Udding?" Alex asked. Claire walked over and stuck him with the spray and watched as the swelling began to go down.

"Yeah, you are having a allergic reaction to the pudding," Claire said, writing a few things on his chart.

"How can he have a reaction to pudding? He eats it all the time," Liam said. Claire turned to him and raised an eyebrow.

"And you're a doctor?" she asked.

"How did it happen?" Liam asked. Claire sighed and put his chart down.

"Repeated exposure to something can cause the body to develop an allergy to it. He's eaten too much pudding. You're going to have to avoid it now," Alex frowned.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Claire ran a hand through her tangled hair and shook her head.

"No, I'm not. So don't eat pudding and find a new dessert," she muttered. She walked up to the medical station, Liam right behind her.

"So, he's going to be okay?" Liam asked.

"Yes, he's going to be-"

"Doctor Conaway." She turned to whoever cut her off, an tried to hide the look of disgust.

"Ensign Sheppard, can I help you?" she asked.

"No, just wanted to compliment you on your lovely outfit," he said. She furrowed her eyebrows and looked down, suddenly turning a deep scarlet. In Liam's hurry to get her out of bed, she hadn't had any time to change out of her pajamas. So now she was standing in sickbay in nothing but her boy shorts and a tank-top.

"LIAM!" she cried. Liam rolled his eyes.

"Go get changed. Sheppard, get back to your bed right now or I'll have McCoy on your ass," Liam warned. Claire stormed off as Ensign Sheppard trudged back to his medical bed. Liam sighed and turned back to his boyfriend.

"You know, you still look pretty sexy even if you are a bit chubby," Liam said with a wink. Alex groaned.

"Liam, please just shut up…"

---

And we have some reviews.

SWfangirl21
Raxsah: We're not very good with the subtle foreshadowing. We're going to have to work on that. I'm glad you liked it though. The Alex/Liam pairing is one of my favorite. Well… next to Jim/Claire. Yeah, Jim might be OOC, but at this point, it's too late to go back and fix him. We're glad you like Rupert, just wait a few more chapters, we'll give you a nice British surprise.
Jeck: Hear that Raxsah? We've officially got ourselves another fan girl! That makes me happy… Liam and Alex are definitely my favorite couple (right now… :3). Jim and Claire is Raxsah's thing. Trust me, there's more stuff around the corner to shock, surprise, and please. ;)

Lilly Romanov
Jeck: We're either day makers or ball breakers. The virgin date was mainly Raxsah, so she deserves all the credit for that one. And yes, Liam and Alex are freaking amazing. Expect more in the future!
Raxsah: Much more! Yes, I don't know if there is such thing as a virgin date, but it sounded like a good idea at the time.

Sophia Gray
Raxsah: Don't you love those morning reactions. When you get drunk, wake up the next morning and realize that prince charming don't look so charming anymore. Sucks dude.
Jeck: Or if you're too hungover to actually care. Or wait… maybe that's just me…

LuciansLycanNightShade
Jeck: I stopped questioning my sanity a long time ago. I just roll with the punches now. But I'm glad you're enjoying the story. We aim to please (actually, no we just write to write…). Everyone seems to love Alex and Liam so far though. It pleases me. :3
Raxsah: I still think I'm somewhat sane… somewhat. I'm glad you like the story. I also am glad that we have a lot of Liam/Alex supporters. Especially since I was at first hesitant about them. I love them now though, they are my fave gay couple.

amberhathaway
Raxsah: I am aware of the lack of good Kirk/OC. I'm glad you think ours is good. Means we're not horrible writers. We shall try to update as soon as we can.
Jeck: SUCCESS!

Jeck: And that concludes another round of us responding to the reviews. What more replies? Well, we need more reviews first. Keep up the love!
Raxsah: LOVE US! Because we don't sound desperate enough. Hahahahaaa. In reality, reviews just help us know how our readers see the story. That way if we are doing something wrong we know it and can fix it.
Jeck: Maybe. If it's like really bad. For example, if you don't like Liam and Alex together or Jim and Claire together and you'd prefer Alex and Claire to get together, then suck my non-existent balls.
Raxsah: Ouch… and Alex and Claire were together… for a short non existent-ish time. Blah, anyway, if you want something like that then be the fiftieth reviewer.
Jeck: We haven't even hit 40 yet, so keep those reviews a-coming and we'll keep the updates a-coming.
Raxsah: Till next time!