He was in Iowa – running through the fields with his brother, coming back inside to a mom who wouldn't look him in the eye, and a stepfather who hurt him when he couldn't hurt Sam. But Sam read him stories, and taught him things, and that was nice. He loved them all – he didn't know anything else.
The breeze crossed his face as he looked out of his bedroom window at the fields outside their house. The stars twinkled outside, and he thought of his mother. Where was she? Why couldn't she be here with him? She had gone back to space, and taken Sam with her – he was gone too. Why couldn't he come too? He thought it was because his mom didn't love him. And that must have been it, because why else would he have been left with him?
He heard footsteps on the stairs and his lip trembled. He closed the window and the drapes quickly, crawling under his covers and pulling the blanket up over his head.
That didn't stop Frank from bursting in, light spilling into the tiny room as a growl spilled from his lips.
"Get the fuck out of bed, you little shit," Frank yelled, pulling him by the hair onto the floor. Jim cried out, trying to curl into the smallest ball that he could, his heart beating franticly. He felt the tip of a boot slam against his stomach, and fought the urge to retch.
"What the fuck did you do? Did you whine to your teacher about me? Huh?" Jim was pulled up by his collar and slammed against the bed. "I got a call today from your teacher. He said you didn't look so good. That he was worried. So I'm only gonna ask one more time. What did you say?" The smell of booze wafted from Frank's mouth and across his face, and he coughed miserably.
"I didn't say anything! I promise! Please, I promise!" Jim closed his eyes and winced against the inevitable punch. But instead he heard the unzipping of pants and felt hands at his waist. He didn't understand – what was happening? "Stop! Please! I didn't do anything!"
"Just shut up you little shit! You deserve this!"
And then all he knew was pain.
He was on Tarsus – he could smell the bodies, see the flames, hear the gunshots. His feet were bare as he ran through the woods, a small child on his back, a bag with a few cans of food stuffed in it grasped in his hand. He was gasping, his lungs burning, his eyes struggling to see in the dark. He knew someone was chasing him, and he had to get away. He had to stay safe.
Suddenly he felt his ankle give out under him, and released a harsh cry, stumbling to the ground. He dropped the bag and the child, rolling on his side and grasping his ankle. The boy – Kevin – looked at him with big round eyes.
"JT?" He asked shakily, his lip wobbling.
"Kev," Jim gasped. He could hear voices in the distance, pounding feet. "Get out of here. Take the food to the others. Run. Run! Run and don't stop until you get there."
"No…" Kevin sobbed, grasping his shirt with a painfully thin and trembling hand, tears running down his face. "I don't want to go."
"You have to. I can't go anymore, Kev. You need to do this. The kids back in the cave are depending on you now." He looked up at the weeping boy, who had his face buried in his shoulder. "Hey. Hey! Listen to me. Think of everyone else – Kimmy, Sam, Trevor, Hallie, Tom. You have to do this for them, and you have to do this for me. Now move! Get back to the cave, and don't stop running until you do."
Kevin hugged him tightly, his tears staining the already stained t-shirt Jim was wearing. "I love you, JT," he sobbed.
"I love you too, Kev." Jim's voice trembled, thinking of the kids he was leaving behind, and the pain he was sure to face when Kodos found him. "Now go."
Kevin released him and grabbed the bag of food, giving Jim one last tearful glance before running into the trees.
Only moments later, the men found him. Their lights shined brightly on his face, and when he looked up at them all he could see was the glint of their guns and their masks as they hauled him onto his feet and dragged him back to their base. He was strung up in front for a week, then taken down and brought to the basement. And for two months, he didn't see the sun. All he saw was darkness, and all he felt was pain.
When he finally got out, he didn't think it was real. Men came to get him from the basement and he flinched away from their light and their touch, retreating into himself. He was so sick he had to stay in the hospital for another month. The only person who visited him was Pike, one of the men who had gotten him from the basement. Sam came once, but his mom never came at all. He carried what he learned from Tarsus with him: trust no one.
Pike tried to get custody, but Jim didn't want that. Or, he didn't think he did. He felt bad when he left, though. Not for long, but long enough that he contemplated turning back.
Suddenly a bright light crossed his vision. He was looking out from his eyes, but it was like he had no control. He was moving, but he didn't know where he was going. He saw Bones, and Spock, and Sulu, and he tried to call out to them, to get them to help, but he couldn't make a sound. If he could've started breathing faster, he would've. It reminded him of Tarsus, how his body wouldn't respond to him when he tried to get it to cooperate.
He retreated back into his mind, and what he saw there made him lightheaded. Tom! He tried to call out, to make him understand, but still, he couldn't make a sound. Somehow, though, Tom spotted him, looked over and saw him floating there.
What was Tom doing there? Was he trapped too? But in Jim's mind… it didn't make any sense. Jim didn't like that. When he couldn't solve a puzzle, he got stressed. He was stressed.
Tom reached out to him, and his touch made him solid. Suddenly he had arms and legs, and they were walking around a great space. It was large and white, save for the chair that Tom sat in. There was light that came from nowhere, and Jim looked into Tom's eyes and remembered everything from Tarsus. He couldn't help it. He thought of running, of stealing food, and of Kodos looking over him with first interest and then stark disappointment, and then finally anger.
And then Jim remembered.
He remembered why Tom was there. Why his friends were outside, tied up and being marched back by his body to a waiting truck.
His features changed into a snarl, baring his teeth. His fist shot out, catching Tom in the face. Leighton stumbled back, grasping his nose. But somehow there was no sound. It was like watching a movie on mute.
They wrestled, trading punches and jabs. Tom had teeth knocked free, and Jim's nose broke, blood flowing freely. Leighton pushed him down to the ground and smashed his head against the ground. He rolled a little, dazed.
Then it was as if a switch was flipped, and suddenly he could hear again, and feel more deeply. "Jimmy," Tom said, "You told me you wouldn't fight. You told me, and now you know what I'm gonna have to do. Why couldn't you do just this? Do you not care about your friends? They'll all die if you keep fighting."
Jim only groaned, trying to work his way back onto his feet.
"Here: I'll give you one last chance. If you stop now, I won't do anything. I'll let them go free, and you and I can accomplish everything or anything we want. You're so tied up by Starfleet, now, Jim. They don't let you take chances; they keep you tethered with all their paperwork and meaningless missions." Leighton looked at him serenely, spreading his arms. "You can do so much, Jim; you just don't know it yet." Jim thought of his friends, tied up and – not necessarily helpless, but surely – trapped at the hands of Leighton's men, and his heart clenched. Then he thought of all that he had done for Leighton, and his anger swelled. How could this man, who he had given his life for, betray him like this? He may have deserved it from other people, but he had done nothing to Tom save help him when he could. And now he was being punished for that.
Jim pushed himself to his feet, his face a mask of hate. Then, without another word spoken, he rushed forwards and punched Tom straight across the face. The man fell to the ground unceremoniously.
"Fuck you, asshole," he slurred. The buzzing in his head had increased, and he raised a hand in front of his face. It was blurry and out of focus.
A hole opened beneath them, and then they were both falling into the black.
.
What's this!? Another update, so soon? Yeah, I'm surprised too. Surprisingly, this chapter was very easy to write. Enjoy, and please review! xxx
