Early days

Disclaimer: I own nothing. It's not my characters. It's all for the love of my favourite alien...

And finally: I only wanted Spock to have a little happiness before the events of the ST-movie and I have been truly thankful for all the kind reviews. I really didn't expect such a nice response. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

SO... Last chapter... Phew!

xxx

Part 10

Spock's point of view:

Spock made his way from the bedroom to the work area and switched on the computer. He didn't turn on the lights as he knew it would wake her. She had been spending every night for the last week in his apartment, and already he had discovered that she was a very light sleeper. She tended to wake at the tiniest noise.

Since he only needed about three hours of sleep he had enjoyed just resting next to her while she slept, but her dreams had been so vivid that he had had to put some physical distance between them. He was not accustomed to such colourful and vibrant emotions as she was emitting while dreaming. Thus he had every night after she had fallen asleep retreated to the next room. He hoped he would get used to sharing her dreams, just as she was getting used to what she called "feeling twice over", but right now he chose to spare himself the turmoil and focus on the computer. He logged in to the test he had programmed as an advanced psych-test for the cadets that wanted that extra recommendation in their papers.

He checked that the program was fully functioning. After all it had to be up and running for tomorrows' test of one of the more promising cadets on campus. Spock had not made his acquaintance, but he had noticed that even though this cadet had taken the test twice before, he still wanted to try again, and this time Spock wanted to be present to monitor this young man.

He was almost done with the test-run when he heard her stirring in the bedroom. Quickly he finished the last run-through and shut down the monitor. He silently went in to the bedroom and lay down next to her, just as she turned, still half asleep and put her arm over his chest. She made a little mmm-sound, snuggled closer to him and went to sleep again.

He relaxed and turned his head to enjoy the warm smell of her. Even though he resented the use of the word he had to admit that he felt lucky to have won Nyotas heart. He still wasn't sure how she could have developed these deep feelings for him, what he could have done to merit this honour, and when he tried to find the answer in her mind he mostly got impressionistic flashes of his ears and his hands.

Her mind made no sense. And still she was one of the most disciplined humans he had ever met. Today alone she had been in the long-range-lab, listening to transmissions, practising, still honing her skill. She had spent the entire day there, gone home for a change of clothes and come to his apartment where they had had dinner and he had shown her how to play the lute of his home planet. She had made up a song about him with humorous and rather off-colour content. The song had ended in a kiss that had inevitably led them to the bedroom.

Spock moved his arm so she wasn't resting quite as firmly on it. She was so human, and yet she could be so logical. It was her that had suggested that they kept their new found relationship quiet. "I don't want any special treatment" she had said to him with that stubborn glint in her dark eyes that he had seen before. And she was quite right. Even though they were no longer cadet and instructor there would be talk of this. Especially since he, the Vulcan, was involved. It was not something he wished discussed all over campus. What Nyota and he shared was personal.

She sighed in her sleep and mumbled something.

She was so human, and somehow she had made both the Vulcan and the human in him love her. It was not very logical, but that was what he was feeling. He breathed in the smell of her and listened to the faint sound of her heart. Maybe he could sleep for a few hours after all…

xxx

Spock's internal clock told him that it was time to start the day, and he opened his eyes. It was getting light outside and the first birds had started chirping. He allowed himself the luxury of staying in bed for a few moments longer, savouring the physical enjoyment of feeling somebody next to him. Nyota had turned on her stomach and were fast asleep still. He quietly left the bed and went to shower and put his clothes on.

He had had his first cup of morning tea, when she appeared in the door looking bleary-eyed and quite wonderful. She crossed the room and took the cup he had prepared for her.

"Still no coffee, huh?" she eyed the tea in her cup suspiciously. He raised an eyebrow, but made no attempt to answer. He had learned by now that this was her way of teasing him; to ask him questions to which there was an obvious answer.

She sighed and sat the cup down. "Well, no Earl Gray for me until I've had a shower…" She took the bag she had placed by the door yesterday and went into the bathroom

When she got back he noticed she had her uniform on. No doubt, she had a commitment on Academy grounds. She noticed his look. "I'm taking part of the Kobayashi Maru-test today. Just to show the flag, y´know." She finally took a sip from the tea cup and shivered in mock-disgust.

"If you would taste the tea before it got cold perhaps it would not drive you to theatrics every time." he commented and put his own cup down. "Nyota. If you are taking part of the test today, maybe you have heard of the cadet who is the subject for the test? This Cadet Kirk is someone which I have never made an acquaintance with."

He raised an eyebrow when she smiled and looked away. "Yeah, I know him from around campus. I met him back when I was a first year-cadet. We were in Iowa to see the shipyard, to see a Star Ship being build, and I met him at this bar…" She still seemed lost in memory and Spock shifted his weight in his chair, not entirely comfortable of how she looked when she spoke of this Kirk.

"He really wanted to know my first name, but I never told him. I meet him from time to time on campus, and he always asks. Serves him right for grabbing my…" She looked up at Spock and realized that he was looking anything but calm.

"Grabbing your… Nyota?" He said with what to everybody else would sound like a calm voice, but Nyota suddenly looked nervous.

"It's not important. It's three years ago now… Say, I think I'm getting used to that tea. Can I have another cup, please?" He recognized a diversion tactic when he heard it, and respecting her need for a subject-change he stood and made tea for her.

xxx

Spock was staring out of the window in his apartment. The sun was shining and it was another beautiful morning. Spock, however, did not see any of this for the time being. He was deep in thought over yesterdays incident. He rarely was stumped over cadets, and this James T. Kirk had somehow managed to install and activate a subroutine in his programming code. Not only that; he had done it in the short hours from Spock himself had made a run-through of the program and to the time of the test. And Spock could not find any indication of how he had done it.

He had checked every single circuit on the computer, but had been unable to find the error. No doubt Cadet Kirk would be persuaded to reveal at today's hearing how he had done it, but Spock would have liked to know in advance.

He took another sip of his morning tea and heard her at the door to the bedroom. She walked over to him and snuggled up to him. He looked down at her and quirked an eyebrow. "You are behaving like that campus-cat, Nyota. She is almost as demanding of my attention as you are." He put his arms around her. "I sometimes find it curious how females can be such theatrical creatures and still get any work done." He caressed her cheek and briefly shared minds with her, as a morning-greeting.

As their minds touched she gave him an image of a hissing cat which turned into a purring kitten. Her eyes spoke of mischief. He gave her one of his rare smiles and felt her love like a warm wave. In return he sent a feeling of love and the sound of their hearts beating together.

She almost melted into him. "I could get used to saying good morning like this" she mumbled and stood on her toes to kiss him. He bowed his head to kiss her back in a short but tender kiss.

"You'll do fine today" she said, adjusting the collar of his black instructors' uniform and smiling up at him.

He took her hands and heard the echo of another woman telling him that. "You and your "fine's." he said very gently. For a moment he was lost in memory.

"I would like to meet her someday." Nyota was clearly very tuned in to his thoughts. "Your mother seems like a lovely person. It must have been difficult to leave her." She pulled her hands away from his and went to the table where her cup stood. She poured the cold tea out in the sink and filled the cup with water instead. "You know, Kirk told me, some time ago, that his mother lives here on earth when she's not off planet, that is. He apparently was quite the child-delinquent in his younger years."

She was staring out of the window, not noticing the intense stare of Spock. He did not enjoy the idea of James T. Kirk telling Nyota tales from his childhood, nor the way she was smiling while she thought of him.

"His father was George Kirk, who died in the attack of the USS Kelvin all those years ago." She looked back over her shoulder at him. "I'm not sure but I even think that Captain Pike was one of the people he saved by flying the Kelvin into that unknown Star Ship. He also saved his wife and newborn son… James… That day. And from what I hear Jim isn't all that bad in a crisis. He aced everything up till the Kobiashi Maru-test, and he enlisted in Starfleet after me… Besides… You gotta admit; it was a pretty clever stunt to pull…"

Spock went to stand in front of her. He caught her eyes and resisted to put his fingers at her temple to find out every detail. Good manners dictated that she would be allowed to have her private thoughts to her self. "You seem to have talked to him a great deal." He said as neutral as he could.

She looked at him and shrugged. "He needed a person to listen one day, and that's kinda what I do best, right?" She put her arms around him, rested her chin on his chest and looked up at him. "Spock, I only told you this to make you understand him a little better. He really is the type to never give up. That's the kind of guy you want in Starfleet, isn't it? Please don't use this against him at the hearing today." She looked searchingly into his eyes and held him tight around the waist.

He relaxed and stroked her cheeks. For a moment he enjoyed the strength of her will and the complexities of her emotions. He brushed a few hairs away from her face and pulled away from her. It was almost time to start putting his mental barriers up against the outside world.

"Spock," she said, as he went to clear up after the morning-tea. "I mean it. Don't use what I said about his family against him today."

He turned as he registered the urgency in her voice. "Nyota" he said; his "teaching"-voice coming through "It would not be logical for me to mention any of this at the hearing. It would be, as you humans say it "unfair". Such a trick, to mention deceased family members, is almost always reserved for when one is in personal affect and wish to hurt the opponent rather than argue the case. It is not the Vulcan way of arguing, and I have no intention of breaking that habit".

"Well, that's fine then." She smiled and shook her head at her own choice of words. "I know, I know…" Spock was just about to comment on it as well, when she walked over to him and reached up for a kiss. He leaned in to the kiss and allowed himself to enjoy it, even though he was letting the Vulcan side of his being dominate him more and more. According to his internal clock it was almost time to go. He let go of her and stepped backwards.

"I'll hurry up and get dressed and then I'll leave first. See you here tonight?" She grabbed her bag and hurried to the bathroom. A few minutes later she appeared in her red cadets-uniform. He regarded her and quirked an eyebrow. His hands were at his back.

She stopped just before she reached the door and turned to look at him. Then she put her fingers to her lips and blew him a kiss. As she hurried out the door he could not help but smile internally. He then started his internal clock to count down from five minutes. By then he would have finished clearing up and leave to attend the hearing of cadet James T. Kirk.

The end.