Sorry for taking forever to update. I have just discovered the wonderful world of Archive Of Our Own and (may have been) reading some other Khan fanfics. Well, there's some fluff (I think it's called 'fluff' anyway) up ahead. Enjoy.

Chapter 15

It turned out, she wasn't joking when she said she was going to shove all his belongings outside the room. He returned from lunch to find his bed in the hallway and his clothes piled neatly on top of it. Frowning he entered their dorm only to find it looking exactly the same as it had before, save for his missing things.

She was quite odd. Even for a human.

Sighing, he easily moved everything back in and then proceeded to hunt Meira down. In truth, he was more amused at her daring than angry, but that didn't mean that he could just let something like that slide. Respect was important and she would be wise not to forget that in the future.

Then he hears it: a ball bouncing. So, she was in the gym, was she? Strange. She did not seem to be one for intense physical exercise. Perhaps, he had judged her wrong.

He stands in the doorway to the gym and watches the scene.

She was alone. Painfully, alone. His heart wrenches in his chest a little at the realization. No matter who she talked to, she always kept herself distant from others, and shied away from attention whenever possible. Alone. Like him. Quickly, he swallows down the flood of empathy threatening to boil over and hardens his gaze.

It doesn't matter.

Bong!

The basketball flies out of her hands and bounces off the headboard. Again and again she throws the ball in an attempt to get it into the hoop, but every throw misses just as badly as the last. Finally, it hits the wall, smacks her in the head (Khan grins at that), and rolls to the Augment's feet. Gracefully, he scoops it up and tosses it into the air.

It hits nothing but the net.

Meira narrows her eyes at him in mock scrutiny: "You're mocking me, aren't you?"

"That," Khan says evenly, "Is highly possible."

The ball rolls back towards him. Quickly, he plucks it off the ground and tosses it lightly at her head. She bats it higher into the air and catches it, nearly falling to the ground in the process.

"You're not very coordinated." Khan muses and she chucks the ball at him—hard. Easily, he catches it and throws it back into the basketball net. "Want to play a game?"

"No." The answer comes fast. Too fast.

"Why?" A corner of his lips quirks upwards into a cynical half smile. "Scared of losing?"

"Are you?" The response is immediate, and though she looks surprised by her answer, she doesn't refute it.

She grabs the ball before he can and he runs after her like a wolf hunting a deer. She fast and agile. What she lacks in accuracy, she more than makes up for in speed. This of course, doesn't stop him from running into her, throwing her to the ground, and snatching the ball away. It swishes expertly into the net just as she rises to her knees.

She glares at him and he shrugs.

"Perhaps you should be more careful so as to not trip." He says, fighting back another smile. Her glare gets colder.

"That's cheating." She accuses as she hops to her feet, favoring her left leg slightly. He steps closer until he towers over her, his nose mere centimeters from hers.

It was petty and childish, he knew, but that didn't stop him from issuing the challenge nevertheless: "Prove it."

For hours they wrestle for the ball before finally calling it a night. To Khan's pleasure, Meira hadn't even scored a single point. How had she ever survive this long with her level (or lack thereof) of coordination, Khan wondered on the way back to their quarters. Before Meira can collapse onto her bed, Khan rips her pillow in half.

"What was that for?" She asks and he shrugs.

"You know what you did." He says before lying down on his back on his bed and closing his eyes, feigning sleep. It wasn't the punishment he had intended for her taking his belongings out of the room, but it would suffice. After all, after a loss such as the one she experienced in their game of basketball earlier (50-0), she deserved a little bit of a break.

"Jerk," She muttered under her breath.

"You do realize that there are at least thirty ways I could kill you without even crossing the room?" He asks without opening his eyes.

Part of him expects her to throw something at him but the pain never comes. Odd. He cracks open an eye. Never moving his head, he glances over at her out of the corner of his eye expecting to see her finally giving in to defeat.

Only…she wasn't there.

That can't be right. Surely he would have heard her move.

Khan sits up instantly. Where could she have gone? The door didn't open, of that much he was certain. Or was he? Had he fallen sleep by accident, allowing her to slip away unnoticed…? Was she back in the gym attempting to get that stupid ball to fall through the hoop or had she gone somewhere else?

Then he sniffs the air experimentally.

It was crisp—clean—with a slight taste of water.

Wait…water?!

Where was the scent of water coming from?

He tilts his head to the side trying to identify the location of the scent. It was…on his head!? The ice cold liquid rushes down his face and plasters his shirt to his skin. It bites his face and runs its claws through his thick, dark hair. Despite himself, he jump in surprise and spins around angrily.

And there was the missing girl caught red handed with an empty bowl that had moment before held about a liter or so of water. Blue eyes glare accusingly at Meira but she looks unfazed.

"I was only trying to help." She shrugs slightly and feigns innocence but Khan can see that she's biting back a smile.

"Were you now?" He growled.

"Your face looked dirty. I figured I'd help out. You're welcome."

With that, she puts the bowl on his head like a battle helmet and crawls into her bed and lies down with her back to him. Khan is stunned into immobility. Never before had anyone been this brave—or stupid—to dare challenge him like this. His temporary paralysis does not last for long.

Moments later, Khan is on his feet and catching trapping Meira in her blanket like a hare in a net. He doesn't even bother with an explanation. Unceremoniously, he tosses her into the sonic shower and turns it on COLD. She gives a shriek and tries to scramble out but the blanket catches around her legs, making her trip. Khan catches her by the arm to prevent injury but doesn't allow her to escape the chilly spray. In his quest to get revenge, Khan finds himself getting soaked to the bone simply trying to contain Meira. Satisfied (and freezing), he deposits her outside in the hall and locks the door behind him.

Her indignant yell and frantic pounding on the door is the lullaby that whisks him off to sleep.

The next day, Kirk lectures him on roommate etiquette, but in all fairness, Khan had thought, tuning the other man out, she had deserved it. Khan nods at the appropriate times until, finally, Kirk slinks away to the bridge. With a satisfied smirk, Khan stalks off to do his duties.

"Sleep well?" He can't help but ask when he spots Meira.

"Jump off a cliff," She shoots back.

"Ladies first, my dear."