Show Me

Ch 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek, nor do I make any profit from this whatsoever.

-o-o-o-

"Coward..." The voice, normally stoic, trembled with an unidentifiable tone.

Jim Kirk halted his steps, growing rigid as his brain confirmed what his ears had heard. He turned slightly, feet still posed as if to say he was still going to walk away. His voice came out gruffer than he had intended, "What did you say?"

He never thought he'd hear that word from him. From Starfleet officers, sure. Enemies, possibly. Even new recruits stood a better chance of accusing Kirk of this. But the Vulcan...?

Spock took advantage of the Captain's hesitance to close the remaining yards between them, halting so close to the human he could feel his body heat bouncing off the other, "I am aware that your senses have not failed you yet... Captain."

"If I didn't know any better, Commander, I could almost swear you are implying that I'm old. And not in the good way." Jim's mouth spat out in default, his mind unable to work correctly in the limited amount of space his First Commander was giving him. There were only a few times the Vulcan ever got this close. The very air between them would sizzle, as though the friction of their personalities were made tangible in a very physical sense. Out of all those times they were this close, there had only been one time that energy had resulted in anything. And that was when Spock had come a hair too close to squeezing the very life out of Kirk.

"I do not appreciate your attempts to dodge the topic at hand." Spock said stiffly, his hands clenched tightly behind his back. When the Captain looked into those brown eyes, he could read very clearly what the Vulcan was saying: 'You *know* what I said... coward.'

James Tiberius Kirk felt a muscle twitch in his face, right under his left eye. He did NOT like that word. He couldn't stand the implications, nor could he stand being associated with it. It's what his stepfather always called his mom. Even his older brother Sam, who had run away when Jim was very young. If anything, Jim stayed with his stepfather as long as he did just so he wouldn't be called that despicable... word.

"Perhaps there were truths behind the rumors circulating back at the Starfleet Academy." Spock said in a matter-of-fact tone, his head tilted slightly to the side.

"...Spock..." Kirk did not like the way this conversation was headed.

"Those rumors... centered around your father..."

"Don't..." Jim growled in warning, fully facing the Vulcan, though he was not aware of when he had done so.

The Vulcan's brow raised inquisitively, though Jim swears he could almost see a smirk as Spock continues on dangerous ground, "Perhaps... Captain... the reason your father never left the ship was because he truly was a cow-"

The human moved so fast, Spock didn't have enough time to block the blow to jaw. Surprised, the Vulcan actually stepped back a couple steps from the force, his head snapping forward to perceive the next, incoming threat to his person. Sure enough, the Captain was barreling towards him, blind in his rage.

This may have caught the Vulcan off guard if he hadn't been expecting this. Hadn't planned for this to happen. He flashed back to when the Captain had made him compromise himself emotionally a few months ago, before they had defeated Nero. Now, from the other perspective, he had to admit the taste was equally as bitter on the giving end as it was on the receiving.

Sadly enough, however, this was a refreshing response compared to what James had been dishing out the past couple weeks.

The stoic looks, the rigid posture, all of it uncharacteristic for Jim's usual, arrogant display of humanistic natures and tendencies. When Spock had gone out of his way to mention it to the Captain, it conveniently turned out Kirk applied for leave the very next day.