Jim's Personal Quarters

Jim sighed, hand trailing down her face. He was 90 percent sure that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with this woman. He smiled at her before leading her back over to the couch, where he settled down on it, silently inviting her to join him. He didn't want her to go quite yet, but if she wanted to, he'd understand.

Pock watched him step away. Immediately she missed his touch, a reaction she fought hard to stifle. That was illogical. She should not be this attached to the physical affections of a partner she had just engaged in romantic relations with.

He moved over to the sofa, and she hesitated. Did he want her to accompany him? Would he mind if she did? Or did he want her to leave him in peace?

Eventually, she moved closer, taking a hesitant seat at the opposite end of the couch. If he wanted her to leave, he would make himself known, she reasoned.

He gave her a small smile, putting his arm up on the back of the couch. "You can sit closer," he said, a small smirk playing his lips. "I don't bite." He pretended to think about it. "Well, only when asked."

Pock's lip twitched in amusement as her eyebrow lifted. "I will endeavor to keep that in mind," she quipped dryly. Nonetheless, she slid a bit closer to him, allowing their thighs to brush as she re-situated.

Jim smirked at her. He draped his arm over her shoulders, letting her know it was okay to lean on him. He pressed a light kiss into her hair. "Good plan, kitten."

She did as he subtly bid, leaning against him. Such brazen contact was unheard of in Vulcan culture. It was stimulating, she found. She enjoyed the feeling of his cool warmth and his weight and the sheer solidness of his body, pressed against hers.

Jim's thumb rubbed over Pock's arm. He enjoyed the feel of her pressed up against his side. He wanted nothing more than to just stay there forever, and not let her go. But, eventually, they'd have to leave and face the world again. He absentmindedly pressed another kiss to the side of her head.

God, he wanted her to stay, though. He wanted to fall asleep, wrapped around her and wake up the exact same way.

Pock wondered silently what it would be like to wake up beside him. To spend the night with his arms draped around her, and hers around him, interwoven like fate itself had sewn them together in the nighttime. She wondered if he talked in his sleep. Did he dream well? Did he toss and turn?

She wondered all these things as she leaned against him.

He found himself thinking more and more what it would be like to have Pock's face the first thing he saw in the morning. He looked down at her. "You know," he murmured, breaking the easy silence that had, "I'd love it if you wanted to stay."

Internally, he winced. Oh, great phrasing there, moron, Jim's brain muttered. Way to really impress her. Idiot.

Pock turned to face him. Her eyes bore into his, and her brow furrowed curiously.

"I am unsure of the nature of this request," she said. "What exactly do you require, Jim?"

Jim wanted nothing more than to bang his head against a brick wall. He did know how to talk to girls, but apparently, around Pock, all his skills went flying out the window at Warp 10. "I meant, if you wanted to stay the night here, you could."

"Oh." Her eyes widened, and she felt like banging her head against a wall. Idiot, she scolded herself. You should have understood that. You are a moron. "I see. In that case, I believe it would be my pleasure."

That was honest. Nothing would please her more than to wake up tangled in the warmth that was James T. Kirk.

Jim gave her a small, sincere smile. "Do you want to use the bathroom first?" he asked.

While he normally only slept in boxers, he would actually wear sleep pants and a shirt. He went through his mental inventory of where his clothes were and tried to locate those objects.

Pock nodded. "That is agreeable."

She moved into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. She had already showered before dinner, so she merely brushed her teeth and washed her face, twisting her hair into a braid so she could sleep on it. She stepped into her bedroom through the adjoining door.

From there, she slipped into a pair of black lounge pants, perfect for sleeping, and slipped out of her blue uniform top so that only her skintight black undershirt remained. She left her shoes and socks in her room.

It was strange how she wasn't all that anxious as she moved back through the bathroom into the bedroom, where Jim was waiting. Pock thought that maybe she'd be afraid, nervous of how this would go, but she wasn't. There was something about it that felt right, like she was doing something perfectly natural. Like she'd been doing it all her life.

Jim changed into sleep shorts and a loose shirt that he could sleep in. When the light flipped on for the bathroom, letting him know it was free, he moved into the bathroom. He brushed his teeth. He glanced up at his reflection in the mirror. He didn't know how this had happened. He was a bit baffled. He shook his head slightly, as if clearing it.

He was still slightly amazed that Pock - his brilliant First Officer - wanted a relationship with him.

He went back into his room to wait.

When Jim returned, Pock's eyes brightened. She had been standing awkwardly in the room's center, awaiting him. She was not sure what exactly she was supposed to do.

"Jim," she said, bowing slightly. Her voice was warm and congenial.

Jim smiled at her, walking over to her. He brought a hand up to her face. "Hey, kitten," he murmured, dropping a soft, sweet kiss on her lips. "C'mon. We should get some sleep." He turned towards his bedroom, letting Pock go in front of him.

She kissed him back softly, but with plenty of want bubbling just under the surface of her skin. "I agree," she said. She moved towards the bedroom, standing at the side of the bed. Pock met his eyes and waited to see what he did. This was his room, after all. She wanted to make sure that she operated within his standards.

Jim went to the other side of the bed and laid down. He propped himself up on one elbow and smiled up at her. The shirt she was wearing certainly left nothing to the imagination. His eyes trailed down her body and his smile turned into a small smirk. "Coming to bed?" he asked, voice low.

Without another word, Pock climbed slowly across the bed, keeping her eye's glued firmly to Jim's. The mischievous glint was back, playful and lighthearted. She laid down at his side and made herself comfortable. "Better?" she asked.

"Better," he agreed, a grin playing his lips. He threw an arm over her waist. "Lights, off," he called. The lights dimmed slowly until eventually, they winked out. In the dark of the room, he pulled her closer into him.

Pock curled into him. She let her body relax into the mattress, comforted by the arm he'd draped around her. Her head laid against his chest, and she could hear his heart beating under her ear. In the dark, she smiled, just a bit. No one could see it. No one could know. But she smiled, because in that moment, she was happy.

Jim smiled in the dark, reveling in the feel of Pock tucked into him. There was an old saying, "You know you're in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams" by the children's author Dr. Seuss. He blinked himself awake. He wondered why that quote was popping back into his brain now.

He pressed a kiss to the top of his partner's head and pressed his nose into her hair. He closed his eyes and started to drift off.

Pock slept easily that night.

When she woke up, she did it gently, slowly noticing the tight grip around her body, or the smell of Jim as he slept soundly beside her. She could have stood then, gone to the bathroom, and showered, but instead she laid there beside him with her eyes clothes. There were a million things to do and all she wanted was to take in what it was like to wake up beside him.

So she did.

She just listened to his heartbeat and laid beside him, relishing the moment.

Jim woke slowly as well. The first thing he noticed was the smell from the shampoo Pock used. He breathed it in slowly, attempting to memorize it. The next thing he noticed was head resting over his heart. He smiled softly, arms tightening just a bit around Pock's body. He never wanted to let her go.

He laid there wondering if she had woken up.

To be completely honest with himself, he didn't think he'd ever had such a good night sleep.