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1 - McCoy
"Bonsey-poo, is it normal to think about your first officer's eyebrows while you're falling asleep every night?"
McCoy could feel her forehead twitching with the effort of not reaching out and strangling her captain. She leaned her head against the cool, welcoming surface of the bar they'd found while Scotty went off to get the parts she needed for the warp core repairs. It was a nice bar. Smooth, dark wood. Cool to the touch but not sticky. The perfect height for her to slump over in despair without putting a crick in her neck. Plus, the drinks served here were the smooth, molten kind that didn't feel as alcoholic as they were, meaning she could get away with getting more fucked up than she could at more familiar bars.
Kirk seemed undeterred by McCoy's brilliant and well-thought-out evasion attempt and prattled on, something about Spock's smile now, and if McCoy didn't cut her off now it was going to be a few hours before she managed it.
"If you would kindly put us all out of our misery and take your flaming bisexual ass out of here and–”
"Wait, what?" McCoy fell silent at Kirk's interruption.
"What?"
"What do you mean, flaming bisexual ass?" Kirk asked. McCoy stared at her, but there was no sign of mischief in her eyes.
"You're fucking kidding me," McCoy said, but Kirk just continued staring at her. "Jim. I've been your friend since you first left for the Academy. Not once in all that time have you indicated you were anything resembling a heterosexual."
"...What."
"Jim?"
Kirk sat down on the bar stool she had been standing beside with a thump not unlike a sack of potatoes being dropped to the floor. A hiss of air escaped her at the collision, knocked out by the force of her drop. She sat limp, staring at the wood grain of the bar with her mouth hanging slightly open.
"...Huh."
"Did you just fucking figure it out?" McCoy asked, absolutely certain she didn't want the answer.
"I'm bisexual." Kirk said it like she was tasting the word, feeling it out and seeing if the color matched her well. "I'm bisexual," she said again, quieter this time.
"You okay?"
"I have a whole new set of potential," Kirk said. Her eyes started lighting up in a way that had McCoy reaching for her drink blindly, her palm sweating. "A whole new frontier," Kirk murmured. McCoy reached out to grip Kirk's jaw, tight enough to hurt, making sure Kirk's eyes were on her.
"If I have to treat you for anything you picked up after whatever spree you're about to go on, I will kill you," she said firmly. "I will vaccinate you beforehand if you don't tell me any details, but if I find out you haven't been safe and you've contracted some new and creative STI I'm going to resign and then throttle you."
"Noted," Kirk said. Her eyes were still glittering. McCoy let her go with a disgusted scoff and waved down the bartender for another drink. Kirk left her after a moment, flouncing off to the dance floor with a new pep in her step and McCoy turned her attention to trying to burn the memory away with more alcohol.
2 - Chekhov
Despite all the chaos each of the two of them could bring, Chekhov truly did enjoy the quiet moments with her captain. Kirk had a habit of seeking out Chekhov's company when she needed to decompress, finding her in a holodeck or reading in one of the ship's more deserted lounges and then settling in nearby. Sometimes Chekhov would talk to her, prattling on about some new debate she had with Sulu or Scotty, but more often than not they were just quiet. Usually by the end of an hour or two Kirk either got all the time she needed to recharge or she would broach the subject that was bothering her and they would talk about it a bit.
Today seemed to be one of the latter times.
"Spock says she has to meet up with the High Council at our next shore leave, to discuss something for New Vulcan," she said. Her voice didn't so much break the silence as it did bend it enough for her to slip around it. She waited for Chekhov to finish her page and mark her place on the pad, setting it aside and looking up to indicate that she was ready for conversation.
"You say that like it bothers you, Captain," Chekhov said.
"It does," Kirk answered. "I'm not sure why." Chekhov hummed, parsing through her thoughts and the best English to get them across.
"Is it Commander Spock going to meet with the Council that bothers you, or is it just that she's going?" she prompted. Kirk's eyebrows furrowed.
"It's not the High Council," Kirk said, "but why would it bug me that she's going to meet with them?"
"The two of you haven't spent a lot of time apart in a while," Chekhov said with a shrug. "Don't worry, though. She will come back and tell you all the details so you can make fun of her about them. You love when she does that, after all, and she knows that."
"Wait, what?"
Chekhov hummed, looking back up at Kirk only to find a startled look on her face. "What is it, Captain?" she asked.
"Nothing, I just..." Kirk shook her head. "I didn't realize how much I liked listening to her talk about the High Council. And I thought she hated it when I..." She shook her head again.
"Commander Spock maintains an uncaring facade, but we all know she enjoys your company too, Captain," Chekhov assured her. Kirk nodded, but her eyes were distant, puzzled. Chekhov knew there would be no figuring Kirk out when she was like this; either she would tell her what she needed or she would go off and figure it out on her own. No amount of prying would help, so Chekhov picked up her padd and pulled up the book once more, settling back into the companionable silence they shared.
3 - Uhura
Uhura liked to consider himself a reasonable person. Serving as communications officer on a vessel as prestigious as the Enterprise was worth the shenanigans he endured from the rest of the crew. Reaching this point in his career was worth the years trapped in Starfleet Academy while being bullied into attempted friendship by Jim Kirk. Seeing Kirk bloom into the leader she was meant to be and guide the ship and her crew through all the perils they faced was worth relenting to those attempts.
He wasn't sure anything was worth this.
Uhura's relationship with Spock had lasted longer than either of them had expected, and when it had run its course he was glad to still have her as a friend. More glad than he usually was to be friends with Kirk. Spock was a pretty easy person to be around once you got used to how her mind worked, and even the times when she sought him out to mope over Kirk's idiocy were fairly chill and pleasant conversations. Spock could be vicious when she wanted to be, and it was fun to rip apart their various mutual acquaintances, friends, and annoyances together.
Uhura would have given his left arm in that moment to be having this conversation with Spock instead of Kirk.
"I don't understand how the hell you put up with her for so long!" Kirk complained. She was waving her arms around, the beer bottle in one hand long empty but kept around as a prop for emphasis. Uhura was just waiting for her to smack it against something and break it. "She never reacts like you'd expect! I could tell her my grandma died and she'd give me some cold platitude about mortality."
"What was the point of this again?" Uhura droned, then immediately wanted to smack himself for engaging her.
"That fucking Talosian merchant who was hitting on Spock at the bar. Looking at her like she was a piece of meat, saying all those things about her, and she just doesn't fucking react! And then when I try to say something, it's all Captain, logic dictates–”
Uhura tuned her out. Kirk could go for hours when she started ranting about some bone she had to pick with Spock, and the actual words didn't matter so much as the opportunity to vent them. But something she had said had him pausing.
"You know, if you explain to her that you're trying to be protective because you don't want to see her get hurt in a cross-cultural social scenario, she'll keep that in mind when she lectures you," he said. "It won't stop her from lecturing you, but at least then she'll understand that you're not stepping on her toes, you're just looking out for her. And that you're jealous."
"J-jealous?" Kirk stopped in her tracks.
"Yeah. You didn't want him hitting on her because you wanted her to yourself." Uhura shrugged and took a sip of her drink. "It's not hard to see it, but she might not realize that's why you're doing it."
"I'm not jealous," Kirk said, but her voice was small and when Uhura looked up at her her brow was scrunched. "Spock can flirt and be flirted with by whoever she wants, I just don't want her..."
She trailed off, and Uhura could see the exact moment when understanding hit her.
But instead of blustering or backpedalling or shifting blame or any of the other things Uhura might have expected her to do, Kirk just sat quietly for a moment, nodded to herself, then stood up and left. Uhura contemplated going after her for a moment, but he had an early start the next morning and dealing with whatever gay crisis Jim Kirk was going through at the moment wasn't on his chore chart for the week. So he knocked back the last of his own drink and gathered his things to go turn in.
4 - Scotty
"I'm tellin' ye, the legs on this lass didnae end!" Scotty insisted, watching McCoy roll her eyes and Sulu and Kirk burst out laughing. "Almost two meters long, on me life!"
"What is it with you and legs, anyway?" Sulu chortled.
"What, you've never stared too long at a girl's arms, Hikaru?" teased Uhura and Sulu fell properly quiet, her face going lightly pink. "We all have a type," he continued. "You've got a thing for biceps. Scotty's hot for legs. McCoy's an ass woman."
" Yer type is jus' angry," Scotty said, pointing at Uhura, who raised his glass in acknowledgment. "And a'course, we all know what the good captain likes," she continued.
"I don't have a type," Kirk laughed. Everyone gathered around the table stopped to stare at her, but she shrugged. "I like people. All species, all looks, whatever."
"Yeah, but there's what you like and what you like ," Uhura argued. "And we all know there's only one type that's gotten you to stop in your tracks every single time you see her."
Kirk sputtered but didn't say anything. Scotty watched her, trying to figure out what exactly could have her boisterous captain so embarrassed.
"Be nice," McCoy chided, but she was grinning. "She only figured out she liked ladies last week."
"...I don't get it," Sulu said.
"Jim here only figured out she was bi last week," McCoy repeated. Kirk was sinking down in her seat, but it didn't stop any of them from staring at her. "I honestly expected an upswing in interplanetary incidents when she realized her libido could lead her to a whole new set of problems now, but..." McCoy shrugged and took a meaningful sip of her drink.
"Really, that just supports Uhura's statement," Chekhov chortled.
"Hang on, now," Kirk crowed. She smacked her hand on the table and glared at each of them in turn. "What do all of you know that I don't? Let me in on the joke right now or I'll court martial every last one of you."
"Sure you will," Uhura snorted. "Until she walks into the room and you lose track of what you were doing to just smile at her."
"Who are you talking about?" Kirk insisted.
"Captain," Scotty said. Kirk stopped to look at her. "Yer a good woman, and a good leader. An' ya got all the sense an' self awareness of a three-legged kittin spittin' up at a gorn."
"Did anyone understand that?" Sulu droned while McCoy and Uhura cackled. Scotty opened her mouth to start in on Kirk again, but it was no use. The doors had opened and Spock herself had walked in, which meant it was only a matter of time before Kirk was out of her seat and bouncing around Spock like an excited puppy.
"There she goes," Chekhov commented when Kirk did just that. Scotty shook her head and waved for McCoy to bring out the bottle again.
5 - Sulu
Jim Kirk was probably the single worst workout partner on the USS Enterprise, but at least she was consistent about it. Sulu had mostly figured out that if she listened to Kirk babble for a few minutes she could get it out of her system, leaving Sulu to put on some music and focus on her weights reps while Kirk built her cardio for the endless energy contained in her body constantly.
Today, however, there was clearly something on Kirk's mind. Her movements were sharp and aggravated, her face pinched with thought. Sulu sighed and set down her music player, shaking out her arms instead.
"C'mon, Captain," she droned. "Spar with me."
Kirk didn't need to be told twice. She settled into position on the opposite side of the mat, waiting for Sulu to make the first move. Sulu attacked and Kirk fell into the corresponding defense with ease.
"Do you think I'm pretty?" Kirk blurted a few rounds in. Sulu let out a groan and fell flat onto her back.
"Yes, Captain, you're very pretty. You're super not my type, and you're spoken for anyway, but you're pretty in general."
"I'm not spoken for," Kirk said. She flopped onto the ground beside Sulu and leaned back on her palms.
"You super are," Sulu muttered. "Why the question?"
"I guess..." Kirk hummed. "Am I pretty to girls? Like, girls who like girls?"
"Some," Sulu said with a shrug. "You don't have anything to worry about, trust me. She can't take her eyes off of you."
"Who?" Kirk demanded, sitting upright. She stared at Sulu like the next words out of Sulu's mouth would save or destroy her. Sulu rolled her eyes.
"Nice try. Woman up and ask her yourself," Sulu said. Kirk's eyes didn't leave Sulu's face, but she could tell the captain was somewhere far away. Hopefully, wherever that was, she would find the confidence she needed to put the whole crew out of their misery.
+1
Jim Kirk was many things, but a coward was not one of them.
An idiot, sure. Clueless, oblivious to her own feelings and often those of the people around her, yes. Hell, she would even go so far as to say that she was enough of a chaotic dumbass to negate the not-insignificant academic intelligence she brought to the captain's chair.
But she wasn't a coward.
It took her a while to reach this point, but now that she was here, she was not about to back down. She took a deep breath and tapped on the panel beside Spock's door to let her know she had arrived. Spock called out a greeting, the door opened, and Kirk slapped a smile on her face and stepped inside.
"Hey, Spock," she said, letting the fond glint in Spock's eyes bolster her. "You free this evening?"