A/N: I don't believe women will still be taking men's names three hundred years in the future, so Kirk's mother is Winona Lawrence, not Winona Kirk. I mean, let's be realistic.
PS: Writing slut!geek!Kirk is so much fun. I love him.
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Enterprise High
being a high school AU of ST: XI
with many hijinks
and much angst
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Chapter Three: Wink of an Eye
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Kirk and Gaila were made for each other. When the front door to Kirk's house was unlocked at five o'clock in the morning, Galia sprang out of bed, grabbed her clothes, and flew out the window before Kirk had opened his eyes. "It's your mom," Gaila hissed at him through the window, glancing over the bushes she was hiding behind and recognizing the features of the woman opening the front door. "I thought you said she was showing up tomorrow."
"Well, that was yesterday, so. But yeah. Didn't expect her to get in at five AM," Kirk said, trying not to yawn.
"Good luck. See you later. Mwah." Gaila blew a kiss at Kirk and disappeared.
Kirk rolled out of bed, stretching and trying not to run into walls. He managed to pull pajama pants and an undershirt on and stagger into the hallway. He'd only been asleep for two hours and was incredibly sore (Galia was a monster in bed); why did his mother have to show up so damn early?
He was about to walk into the living room, where the lights were on, when he remembered to detour into the bathroom to check for incriminating evidence. Oh shit, there was a used condom stuck to the sleeve of his shirt. He peeled it off and wrapped it in about eighteen layers of toilet paper before hiding it deep in the trashcan. He ran his hand through his hair, wiped the lip gloss off of his collarbone and ear, and went to greet his mother.
"Hey there, sleepy-head," said Winona happily. "It's good to see you!"
"You too, mom," said Kirk, hugging her tightly and hoping he didn't smell too much like sex. "Thought your shuttle didn't get in till a reasonable time."
"Who needs reasonable? Continental bumped me up to first class and offered me an earlier departure, so I took it. Help me with the bags, will you? And why haven't you unpacked any boxes yet?"
"I've unpacked some boxes," said Kirk petulantly.
"Yes, your boxes."
"Well, I've had homework."
"You had two days before you started school!"
"The first day I unpacked my stuff, and then the day before school I met up with Bones," said Kirk, not mentioning that he'd explored San Francisco that morning.
"Oh, he's still around, is he? How's he doing?"
"Pretty good," said Kirk uncomfortably. "Still wants to be a doctor."
"Is he still dating that Jocelyn girl? It must be three years, now."
"Uh, they broke up right before summer."
"What a shame. We knew her when we lived her; she was very nice."
Kirk rolled his eyes. Yeah. Very nice years ago.
"Are you in any of his classes?"
"Six out of seven. One of the teachers got us into the same classes. Actually, the teacher is Christopher Pike, mom."
Winona paused over a piece of luggage. "Really. Christopher is teaching at your school?"
"Yeah, physics. And he's sponsor of the hovercar club. Which I joined. Remind me to tell you more about that."
"Okay. How is he?"
"Good, I guess. You know I'd never met him, mom, I just heard about him from you, and I didn't realize it was him until he said he knew you."
"Yes, we lost contact after—after your father died. Tell him I said hello."
"'Kay. You get the sale of the house finalized?"
"Yes. And I got the lawyer's bill settled. Frank shouldn't be bothering us any more."
Winona watched Kirk for his reaction, but he didn't say anything. He hefted a bag. "God, what did you put in this suitcase, bricks?"
"Just bring it inside." She smiled at him. "I missed you, Jim."
"I missed you too, mom."
x
Spock read the email three times before replying in the affirmative. He would be glad to tutor Uhura in Vulcan. He couldn't help but feel complemented that she would ask him for help. He was well acquainted with everyone in the hovercar club, of course, and had a number of other contacts in the school, but there was nobody at school he would call a friend. He wondered if he could strike up such a friendship with Uhura, who seemed to be cut out of his same cloth. She was intelligent, controlled, and polite. She was also attractive, but he had not been doing so well with people he found attractive lately, so he tried not think about that.
Uhura had her PADD on audio alert for new emails and had already been pinged eight times by spam. So when the bell noise sounded again, she picked it up with less excitement than usual. But a smile soon crossed her face—Spock would evidently be interested in tutoring her. Provided she arrived early to their first period class, he would be willing to discuss arrangements with her.
Uhura was there when the doors to the school opened. Spock arrived forty minutes later, which gave Uhura plenty of time to stare at herself in a hand mirror, correcting single hairs. He nodded slightly in her direction and sat in the desk beside her. Uhura felt her heart beat faster. He was so attractive, tall and lean and clearly intelligent. She had a thing for scholar-types. All the people she'd dated in high school had been in the top fifty in the class. Most of the people she knew didn't find Spock at all attractive, which shocked her. Sure, he was reserved and cool and different, but he was also first in the class.
"Hey," she said casually.
"Good morning, Nyota." said Spock. He looked serene. "Is your study of Vulcan progressing slowly?"
Was this Spock making conversation? Surely not. "It's not progressing slowly, as such," Uhura admitted. This was all part of her plan. "I'm doing much better than the teacher expected me to."
"Unsurprising. You have demonstrated an incredible talent for languages. How many are you capable of speaking?"
"Seventeen," said Uhura. "Ten Earth languages and seven alien languages. I'm also going to be learning Romulan during the second semester, and I know the differences between the languages are slight. I suppose I don't really need help, but I would enjoy outdoing my own expectations."
"I was wondering—is one the languages you speak Klingon?"
"Yes, I've been proficient since I was twelve."
"That's very impressive. Klingon is one of the more difficult alien languages to learn. Is there a preferable time for me to assist you?"
"After eight, actually, is best for me," said Uhura, cheering inwardly. "I have tennis until six and then dinner, and then I should do some homework before you come over. Uh, you can come to my house, right? Or should we meet somewhere? Or should I come to your house?"
"I can easily locate your residence." Spock gave her his version of a smile. "I was not aware you were involved in extracurricular activities other than hovercar club and karate."
"Well, my dad encourages me to play. He's always claimed he was a descendent of Roger Federer."
"How charmingly illogical."
"Isn't it? Have you met my dad? He's like that."
They talked about their families until the bell rang.
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Mr. Maru seldom asked questions of his class, preferring discussion amongst his students to arise from his comments rather than his queries. Spock was, as a rule, uninterested in the subject; the emotions that ran high in literature were difficult for him to understand and analyze.
In all other classes, however, Spock excelled, answering half of the questions the teacher posed and generously allowing the other half to be answered by the rest of the students. Physics was second period. It was one of Spock's favorite classes. But the occasion was marred slightly when Kirk took a seat to the right of Spock, pausing to grin at him before dumping his backpack all over the table.
Spock touched his ear. He wasn't sure if he could deal with sitting next to Kirk. Not after those highly unusual dreams.
"Good to see you again, Spock," said Kirk lightly. "Feeling better after your near miss?"
"My mental state is unchanged, James," said Spock coldly. "While I appreciate your actions on my behalf, I find them to be tinged with a hint of ego."
"Ego? Me?" said Kirk innocently. "Heaven forbid. Oh look, it's the bell."
Spock opened his notebook, hand wrapped firmly around his left ear.
Pike generally started the class with warm-up problems. He drew a diagram on the board and turned to the class.
"Say two point charges of a and b, both at +20nC, are placed ten meters apart from one another. Tell me the electrical fields at points one, two and three," he said, gesturing to the diagram.
Spock paused to calculate the problems in his head. To his shock, he saw Pike's head nod. Who was he signaling to answer?
"Zero, ten point two N/C, and seven point eight N/C," said Kirk from beside him, leaning back calmly in his chair.
Spock blinked.
"Good," said Pike blandly. A silence had fallen over the class. Spock could sense everyone staring at him.
Pike drew another diagram on the board. Spock began calculating the possible questions and answers. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kirk's fingers move as if they were holding a pen and writing equations.
"How many degrees below the x axis is the force on a proton located at point P?" asked Pike.
Spock opened his mouth. "Forty nine point three," said Kirk smoothly before Spock could speak.
"And if an electron," said Pike, "at q equals one point six times ten to the negative nineteenth C and m equals nine point eleven at ten to the negative thirty first kilograms, accelerates from rest through a potential difference of three hundred and sixty point eight volts, what is the electron's final speed in miles per second?"
There was a pause. Nobody else in the class was working the problem, not even Scotty or Chekov. They were watching Kirk and Spock.
"Eleven million, two hundred and fifty six thousand, six hundred and eighty miles per second, sir," said Kirk.
Spock's nostrils flared once. He attempted to still himself. He had not even been halfway finished with the problem when Kirk answered.
"One last question," said Pike, still seemingly detached. "Say an electron enters a region where the field strength is three times ten to the sixth N/C. First, what is the electron's acceleration? Second, how far does the electron travel to acquire ten percent the speed of light?"
Spock calculated frantically in his mind. He saw Kirk's hand stop moving. He'd figured it out. But he didn't answer.
"Five million three hundred and sixty seven thousand nine hundred and two light years per second and four point eight five million parsecs," said Spock quickly, almost hurriedly.
"Very well done, boys," said Pike, a small smile on his face. "Now, having reviewed electrical fields and their influences, let's talk a bit more about electromagnetism."
Spock stared straight ahead, ignoring the looks his classmates were shooting him. Kirk sprawled across his desk, utterly relaxed. Everybody could tell that he'd known the answer to the last problem. He'd given it to Spock.
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It was the same throughout the entire day. In history, Kirk would swoop in with a date or a name just before Spock got it off the tip of his tongue. In economics, Kirk's graphs were more detailed than Spock's. In calculus, Kirk once more was faster with his math.
Spock was no longer uncomfortable around Kirk. Now, he was angry. His blood was simmering under his thin skin. All he wanted to do was pin Kirk against a wall and strangle him. The dream had disappeared (almost) entirely, to be replaced by a rage on slow boil.
To add insult to injury, as they were packing up at the end of calculus, their last class, Kirk turned to Spock.
"It was nice jousting with you today, Spock. I'm sorry I've danced in so unexpectedly. My old school was pretty boring. There wasn't much competition."
"Fascinating," said Spock tightly, pulling the ties on his bookbag with violent force.
"Still, I did manage to keep my GPA pretty high. Ended up with a solid 6.0, actually. I heard that because of Mr. Maru, nobody's been able to get past a 5.9999. What a shame. Looks like I'm first in the class, for now."
And with a charming smile, Kirk swept out of the classroom.
When Spock got home, he punched a hole in his wall.
x
Kirk and Bones sat in the Shore Leave, sipping cappuccinos.
"Did you really have to goad him like that, Jim?" said Bones, sounding frustrated. "I really think he might try to kill you. His expression was pure venom."
"He's fun to mess with," said Kirk, looking bored. "It's nothing personal."
"Nothin' personal my ass. You're mad him for not thankin' you for savin' his life."
"That's not true! I just… feel he should be taken down a notch. He's much too serious. No sense of humor."
"I may not be as smart as you, Jim, but I know that you can't make an enemy like Spock. That man doesn't forgive, doesn't forget. He'll haunt you. He'll up the stakes."
"It's just a game, Bones! You should know better than to take me seriously."
"You know, Jim, I really should," growled Bones, standing suddenly. "I've had enough of you already. You were always predatory, even when we were just kids. You were always after me, even then, even when I was eleven and you were nine and two years was a big difference. And now you are here, after eight years, after I was sure you weren't comin' back, and you haven't grown up a damn bit after all. You're just the same as you always were, spoilt and self-centered and cruel. People aren't playthings. You should know better than that, at your age."
Kirk was taken aback. He hadn't thought Bones capable of that kind of reprimand. Evidently he didn't know Bones as well as he thought. But maybe Bones didn't know him as well as he thought.
"At least I'm better than you. At least I didn't run around with the same bitch for three years, hopelessly in love with a lie. You don't even know how damaged you are, Bones. We'd kept up contact so well. We'd talk and talk and talk and then she slips into your life. Do you know how much that hurt, when you disappeared? I needed you, Bones, and you weren't there for me. You just left. You don't even know… Never mind. I don't even want to tell you."
"And I don't want to hear any more bullshit from you, Jim. Go, live your pathetic damn life. See if I care what you do."
Bones threw his chair back and stormed out.
Kirk stayed, immobile in his seat, clutching the armrests. God, he was actually trying not to cry. He bit his lip, trembling. Bones. Dammit, Bones. I nearly told you. I nearly told you.
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Christine Chapel looked up. Uhura was online. She slid her keyboard over to her study space and typed, hey nyota. when's spock coming over?
nuhura: fifteen minutes. i'm freaking out.
cchapel: i bet you are. i'd sure be. you'll be fine though, i promise.
cchapel: room clean?
nuhura: as a whistle. what does that expression even mean
cchapel: no clue. you on problem 9 yet?
nuhura: yes and i'm stuck, you too? i hate calculus.
cchapel: get spock to help you with it. ;)
nuhura: shuttup
nuhura: so, i'm not stepping in on your territory anymore, right?
nuhura: you know. with him.
cchapel: honey, i'm over spock. i was over him as soon as jocelyn broke up with leo. i'd never realized how attractive that man wa
cchapel: *was
nuhura: leo? come on. he's too grumpy.
cchapel: he's incredible! you're not in our med class. he's brilliant. he's nearly as smart as i am.
nuhura: this is my surprised face.
cchapel: you bitch. seriously
cchapel: i dunno. theres just something about him, that i can't really put my finger on
nuhura: bet you'd like to put your finger on it.
cchapel: you are such a perv. if you make a that's what she said around spock i'll, i don't even know, bear your children.
nuhura: oh i could never. you know spock wouldn't get a double entendre if it danced naked in front of him wearing a tea cosy.
cchapel: you nerd.
cchapel: yeah he probably wouldn't. tragic…
nuhura: you think he likes you back? leo?
cchapel: yeah, no.
cchapel: OKAY WHOSE HICKEY WAS THAT
cchapel: ive been meaning to ask you. i mean what the fuck
nuhura: right?? its so uncharacteristic of him
nuhura: (i spell uncharacteristic right but don't punctuate it's properly…)
cchapel: (haha)
cchapel: i sorta think it might be the new kid.
nuhura: god he is horny enough. he's already slept with gaila.
cchapel: that doesn't say much. we've already slept with gaila. it's like a badge of… being alive.
nuhura: well that's true. still. less than 24 hours. pretty impressive.
cchapel: how that girl stays third in the class and sleeps with that many people i will never know
nuhura: for real. fourth now, i guess.
nuhura: oh my god he's here
nuhura: i'm going to go panic now
cchapel: aah! you'll do fine. breathe. don't forget to be sexy. but not too sexy. just the right amount of sexy.
cchapel: and smart! be smart!
nuhura: SHUT UP. BYE
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Kirk didn't feel like going home, but he couldn't just sit there, fuming about Bones. He went to the bar to get another drink. If he could find his fake ID, everything would be much better, but the chip for it was somewhere in one of the unpacked boxes and he wasn't quite motivated enough to search for it. So, more coffee.
Chekov was at the bar too, ordering a frappe and an iced tea. Kirk sidled up to him as they were waiting for their drinks.
"Hey, Pavel," he said. "How's it going?"
"Wery well, Jim. I am here with a few people, Hikaru and Scotty and Janice and Gaila. Would you like to join us?"
"That'd be wonderful, thanks. I could use some friendly company."
Sulu couldn't help but bristle a little when Kirk followed Chekov back. He'd just heard that Kirk had already slept with Gaila, and while that was Gaila's way of saying hello, the speed with which the greetings had been exchanged was quite suspicious, especially considering the way Chekov was watching Kirk.
Kirk smiled familiarly at Gaila, who looked friendly rather than rapacious now. She patted the seat beside her and he settled down next to her. They started talking about calculus immediately. Chekov listened intently. Rand chimed in, being a bit of a math whiz herself. Sulu saw how Kirk looked at her, almost as if she were another piece of meat. When Chekov made a comment, Kirk turned to him and winked. Winked.
Scotty put a hand on Sulu's leg. "Calm down, laddie," he said quietly. "You dunnae have claim on Pavel yet."
"I know," said Sulu. "I just…" He shook his head helplessly.
But Kirk backed off for the rest of the evening. He was perfectly decent to Rand and Chekov. When they left, Sulu thought that Kirk might not be as bad as he thought.
Of course, he didn't see Chekov watching Kirk drive away on his motorcycle. He couldn't know how appreciative Chekov was of Kirk's physique.
Chekov let himself know later that night, so enthusiastically that it took a sheet-washing to dispose of the evidence.
x
Spock and Uhura were making progress. Uhura showed a remarkable understanding of Vulcan even though she had only begun learning it last week. Spock helped her for an hour on some of the more difficult grammar points. As the clock approached nine, they started speaking more, discussing vocabulary words and forming sentences to each other.
The light in the room grew dimmer, as atmospheric lights were programmed to do. The shadows on Uhura's face lengthened, emphasizing her sharp cheekbones and deep eyes. As she looked down at her textbook, Spock allowed himself to gaze down the length of her jaw and neck. Her skin glowed in the soft light, rich and warm. He could see her pulse.
At nine, she thanked him with a sweet smile and showed him out. They lingered on the front porch for as long as they could.
Uhura watched his headlights all the way to the road. Spock watched his rear view mirror even further.
They were both quiet as they prepared for bed in their separate homes. Thinking. And in Uhura's case, planning.
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