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When she beamed up on the USS Enterprise-A, Lorena was surprised to see Professor Spock waiting for her in the transporter room. It had been almost ten years since she had attended her last class with him; she hadn’t expected him to care.
“Greetings, Lieutenant.” Spock nodded, standing in front of her in his red uniform. “You are most welcome on the Enterprise. The Captain is waiting for you on the bridge.”
The Captain, Lorena repeated in her head. As if Professor Spock wasn’t a captain too. Lorena could barely hide her smile. “Thank you, Captain. I’m honored.”
She followed him inside the ship.
A captain, yes, but not The Captain.
For reasons she could not explain, Spock had never accepted command of his own ship. Perhaps it was because everything around those walls already looked intriguing. In her years as a Starfleet officer, Lorena had mostly served on older models. She wondered if Spock was as fascinated as her by the new technology, or if he felt nostalgic for the USS Enterprise that former Admiral Kirk had stolen and blown up a few years ago – according to the rumors, to save Spock himself.
As they kept walking together, Lorena couldn’t read anything on his face. Her old teacher’s emotions had always been a mystery to her.
***
“Captain, may I present Lieutenant Perez?” Spock said once they entered the bridge.
James T. Kirk stood up from the command chair and turned to them. He smiled at Lorena. “A pleasure to finally meet you, Lieutenant. Mister Spock recommended you as one of his best students.”
Did he? “I’m flattered, Captain,” Lorena said, holding her PADD. “I’m aware that I’m taking the place of a great helmsman.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that.” Kirk’s expression still looked cheerful, but his tone was serious. “Captain Sulu put in a good word for you too.” His gaze moved to Spock, his smile widening.
Spock fixed his eyes on him.
Lorena glanced between the two of them for a moment. Even if Kirk was more than twenty years older than the young man she had seen in the holovids at the Academy, he still had the same magnetic grin; there was a special glint in his hazel eyes that made her suddenly aware of the reason why so many people fell for his charm. In a few seconds, he had already inspired her with trust and loyalty.
Spock, apparently, was inspired as well… or something. Lorena was not sure why he kept looking at Kirk as if being The Captain gave him telepathic abilities. Decorated genius or not, Kirk was still a human being.
“Well, Lieutenant Perez.” Kirk gave her attention again, stretching his arm towards her new seat. “The helm is yours.”
***
Sometimes, space was boring.
After adjusting the warp speed, Lorena turned to Spock’s station, seeing him focused on his screens. Perhaps other people would have said that boring was a good sign when you were boldly going where no one had gone before. Other people, but not them. Certainly not Captain Kirk and his crew.
Confirming her thoughts, Kirk rose from his command chair and started checking the bridge. Lorena watched him as he stopped next to Commander Uhura at the communication station. The two of them spoke in a professional tone, but behind the respect for each other’s experience and skills, Lorena could catch the feelings of camaraderie and friendship she had seen many times between older officers.
“All right, Uhura. Keep looking for signals.”
“Aye, Captain.”
Kirk placed his hand affectionately on Uhura’s shoulder as he left her station. He did the same with Commander Chekov, who was sitting next to Lorena, after asking him about the asteroids they were passing by.
Kirk kept more distance when he gave orders to the crew members who had not been part of his old missions. A young yeoman with beautiful legs approached him with a PADD, and Kirk was so focused on signing the report that he didn’t even seem to notice she had legs. So much for the rumors Lorena had heard from the worst gossipers in Starfleet. Lorena thought they were probably jealous of Kirk’s accomplishments.
“Report, Mister Spock.” Kirk walked to the science console, looking at his second-in-command.
Spock turned to him. “We are approaching a class-M planet, Captain. As you can see, its atmosphere is similar to Earth,” he pointed at the screen in front of him.
Kirk placed his arm on top of Spock’s chair, then he leaned closer to the screen.
Lorena blinked. Kirk’s hair was almost touching Spock’s.
“Sensor readings?” Kirk asked.
“This is the problem, Captain. I detect no life forms on the planet.”
“That’s impossible. We received a signal from there.”
“Indeed.” Spock turned his head to him.
Kirk did the same.
Neither of them moved.
“Explanation?”
“Nothing I can confirm, Captain.”
“Theories?”
“I suppose… I may make a guess.”
Kirk smiled. Lorena wondered if there was something funny about what Spock said that she was supposed to understand.
When Spock started explaining his hypothesis, he looked at the main screen again. Kirk, on the contrary, didn’t turn, keeping his eyes on Spock.
Lorena was shocked. She knew that the two of them were old friends, but Spock was a Vulcan. There was no way that Captain Kirk, the same man who had been so professional with everyone on the bridge just a moment ago, didn’t know how to behave around him.
When she looked around, her surprise increased. Nobody else seemed to care about the two of them. It was as if nothing strange was happening on the bridge. Lorena couldn’t believe it. She had served under several captains and first officers in her career, some of them very close, but… not like that.
Even more stunningly, Spock looked undisturbed. At the Academy, Lorena had seen her former professor asking humans to respect his privacy and personal space, no matter their role. Besides, Spock was a captain too; he could have asked Kirk to move away. But he didn’t.
Kirk smiled again. He was looking at Spock the way someone would look at a living miracle; if he hadn’t been in command of the Enterprise, Lorena would have assumed that he wasn’t listening to a single word Spock was saying. However, when Spock stopped, Kirk replied to him with his own thoughts on the class M-planet, proving that he was as interested in Spock’s mind as he was in his face.
“Opinion, Mister Spock?”
“Fascinating.”
Kirk grinned.
Spock started talking again, and Lorena realized that Kirk must really, really like listening to Spock’s scientific theories. His hazel eyes had a special spark when he looked at his second-in-command and, well, if that wasn’t the face of a man in love, Lorena didn’t know what it could be.
Spock finally looked at Kirk, and that’s when Lorena saw it. Even in Spock’s dark brown eyes, there was the same spark.
Lorena turned to her own station. It was probably a good time to find something else to do.
***
“How was your first shift on the Enterprise, Lieutenant?” Chekov asked her as everyone was leaving the bridge.
Captain Kirk and Captain Spock had already gone – together, walking in perfect sync, sharing another incomprehensible joke – “Aw, later, Mister Spock. Not in front of the Klingons.”
Lorena smiled at her new colleague. “Great. I joined a very good team.”
Uhura stood up from her station and moved closer to them.
“Yes.” Chekov grabbed his PADD. “My friends are the best officers Starfleet has ever had!”
Lorena nodded. “I can see why. Working with all of you is amazing. I was just surprised when I saw Captain Kirk and Captain Spock so, um…”
Chekov frowned. “So what?”
Lorena sighed. Did she really have to spell it out?
“Oh!” Uhura smiled, studying her expression. “That’s right. Sometimes we forget the new crew members don’t know.”
Lorena decided that it was better to be direct. “They’re lovers, aren’t they?”
“Ah, that’s what you meant! Yes, they’re married,” Chekov answered. “We’ve been seeing them flirting on the bridge since forever. I remember when I was an ensign; they were still two pining fools at the time! Hikaru once forgot about Vulcan hearing and whispered ‘Get a room’. Mister Spock raised an eyebrow at him. It was priceless!” He chuckled. “Now we’re so used to them I don’t even notice it anymore.”
“I see.” Lorena moved towards the turbolift. “Well, I do. If I may speak freely, for a moment I thought they were going to make out on the science station.”
Uhura coughed behind her.
Chekov smiled.
“What is it, Commander?” Lorena asked.
“Nothing. Nothing, Lieutenant.” Chekov exchanged glances with Uhura. “But I have some friendly advice for you: when you have the same shift as the Keptin and Mister Spock, try not to get to the bridge too early. Trust me. It is for the best.”
Oh. I’m not sure I want to know. “Thank you for the advice, Commander.”
She entered the elevator, Uhura and Chekov following her.
She had a feeling that listening to her superior officers was a good idea.