Sulu headed to the bridge, heart still thudding in his toes from seeing his bright, happy, bouncy friend lying in sickbay, crushed and empty. Pavel had always seemed so impervious to the world's cruelty, unable to let its discouragement keep him down, happy to ignore its crude humor. Sulu had almost taken it for granted that Pavel would always be this way.

To have this image torn from him in the form of wide, empty, blue-green eyes was almost too much.

On duty, life went on as normal. The maelstrom raging in the Asian's heart, mind, and stomach went unnoticed and he buried himself in the work he was given. The new navigator was female, a dull girl with mousy hair and small eyes. Sulu had never felt so lonely with any girl before.

Try as he might, it was stoutly impossible for him to push thoughts of Pavel from his overwhelmed mind. To his dismay, not every thought was pure—some were selfish, upset because everything he had been working for with the Russian was now being catapulted backwards, and these thoughts sickened him. He pushed them away vehemently, knowing they were not what was important just then.

His shift stretched onward and he struggled to perform at his best, pretending Pavel's doe-eyes were not present just beneath the surface of his skin but hoping they would still be there when his shift ended. At long last, it did just that, and he practically sprinted to the mess hall. Filling two trays, he hurried toward sickbay, and if anyone thought this behavior to be odd, they said nothing.

Woosh.

Bones didn't even look up from his paperwork.

"He's awake," he said, his voice strained slightly. Everyone who knew him loved Pavel. It was hard for even the bitter doctor to see him that way. Sulu walked to his bed, setting one tray down on the table next to him. Pavel didn't look at him when he came in. He stared with a hollow gaze at sterile walls, and the way not even his eyelashes fluttered when Sulu walked in broke his heart.

It would seem that was happening a lot, lately.

"Hey, Pav," he greeted gently, setting his own tray next to the first. Oddly, his appetite had diminished entirely as soon as he set eyes on the teenager's face.

Said teenager blinked slowly and averted his gaze to his lap.

"I brought you lunch…you really need to eat, you know, or you'll never get out of this place," he said, although the joke in his voice barely surfaced. He noticed Pavel's gray-green eyes slide slightly to view some point to Sulu's right, and he felt his heart sag at the realization that the thin man would not meet his gaze.

"How are you feeling today?" he asked, not expecting an answer. He watched Pavel carefully, noticing the way his eyes sparked alive for a split-second with something Sulu could only discern as remorse. It was gone as soon as he caught it, and the darker haired male was at a loss to explain it.

"Pavel, please…," he said, voice barely above a whisper. "Please let me know you're alright. Please."

He reached out without thinking to touch Pavel's shoulder, but as soon as contact was made the Russian flinched violently. Sulu whipped his hand back at the gut-wrenching sight, though all he wanted was to pull Pavel toward him and hold him and never let go.

He continued to make failed attempts at conversation, wanting only to get some kind of reaction out of Pavel. What did you ask someone who was nearly raped? But Sulu did not let his resolve falter.

"Pavel, tell me about Russia." It was the first thing that came to mind and he was surprised he hadn't thought about it before. Usually Pavel spoke about Russia entirely unprompted, and it was Sulu's hope that mention of his homeland would elicit an answer.

The reaction he received was unexpected, and that was a blatant understatement.

Pavel jerked his head in Sulu's direction, still not meeting his eyes. He looked angry, angrier than Sulu had ever seen him. The emotion did not sit well on the Russian's face, all angles and furrowed brows and frown lines, and it made Sulu's stomach churn to have it thrown at him.

"You vant to hear about Russia? In Russia, I may be killed on ze street for attracting zat kind of attention."

His words were poisonous, but his tone was hoarse, strained, and held only a trace of the potency of his statement. His eyes were alive for a split second with the same emotion that had sparked before, and Sulu was at a loss.

"I'm…I'm sorry, Pavel. I'm sorry."

Sulu could bring himself to say no more before leaving, glancing painfully at his broken best friend and exiting sickbay.

In his quarters, Sulu slid down the wall and sat, helpless to fend off his emotions. Pavel's eyes, Pavel's lips, Pavel's words…

Words.

Russia.

He was not sure how it happened, but he was suddenly aware of a plan formulating in the back of his skull, and he did not sleep that night.

AN: This chapter is late, I'm very sorry. School started recently and with school comes clubs and activities, as well as homework, and I've been swallowed.

Someone expressed their opinion that Kirk would possibly be a totally insensitive ass about the situation. It's an interesting possibility, but I believe that Kirk would have developed protective feelings over Chekov especially after he saved his and Sulu's lives in Reboot. He is such an adorable thing in Reboot, I'm sure most of the crew share this feeling of protection. This is only my perception of course. :)

I believe also that Chekov would not simply bounce back from this, as was also conveyed. It's only my perception and I will write accordingly, but I think it would be a huge shock for him especially considering his intentions that night.

Please note that I am NOT trying to paint Russia as a negative image, and not all Russians would kill you for being gay, I promise. Probably, things in the future will be much better with Russia. However, I did want him to be affected by his homeland somewhat, so I am writing it like this for that reason.

[LONG AUTHOR NOTE IS LONG, SORRY]

Also: Short chapter, I KNOW AND I AM SO SORRY! Unfortunately the next chapter might be short too BUT plans will be planned and things will start happening within the next two or three chapters, promise. Hang in there, and get your 10 reviews in. Thank you!