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Spock sits next to a pink skinned woman on an overly gaudy, neon couch, all while locked in a conversation too quiet for Jim to make out from his seat on the other side of the room.
There's a woman talking to him as well, discussing their planet's architecture, and waving animatedly at different china plates, or at least the more alien equivalent of china plates, stacked in a large, sky blue, glass cabinet. James had been quick to note that none of the furniture matched, everything becoming more of an eye strain the longer he sat in the meeting room, and he has to stop himself from once again glancing in Spock's direction.
They normally sat together, or at least closer than this, and Spock's conversation didn't seem to be scientific-
The woman's hand on his thigh certainly wasn't, and yet-
Why wasn't Spock refusing her advances? He had always refused the flirting before-
Well, before his pon farr, and Kirk suddenly realizes that Spock was officially single, (he had always thought he was before their trip to Vulcan, and now Spock actually was), and possibly, ready to do the vulcan equivalent of ‘mingle.’
There's a sudden bad taste in Jim's mouth, and he wants nothing more than to get up and walk across the room-
But this is a meeting, and Kirk was a professional, a captain-
Spock's captain no less, and Spock would almost never approve of a purposefully ruined meeting. Certainly wouldn’t approve of a meeting ruined for something as simple as-
As what, Jim wasn't completely sure. He had an idea, a growing fascination, and maybe an excess amount of dutifully ignored affection boiling under his skin. A Spock sized hole in his heart that he had been content to ignore when the Vulcan had been too serious to allow the previous romantic advances.
Jim wanted to get a good look at the other woman's face, to see what color her eyes were, to see if they were similar to his own-
Spock seemed content to keep meeting them, whatever the color may be, and Jim has to force himself to straighten when the official in front of him stops talking. She resumes again, content when she thinks she has once again caught his interest, and Jim begins to count down the minutes until their scheduled beam up.
—------------
Spock and Uhura stand barely a foot apart on the bridge, all while Uhura laughs at something Spock had said.
Kirk had always saw himself as a good captain, and Uhura had always been someone he considered a close friend, but right now-
He wanted nothing more than for her to sit down, and never look at the science station again.
It would be a bonus if the fleet would allow him the right to build another chair next to his own, one that he could give to Spock, and Spock alone.
But that wasn't plausible, and Uhura was Jim's friend, and he pushes down the gnawing feeling in his chest, and focuses on giving his next set of orders.
When Spock eventually does go back to his station, Jim has to force himself not to stare-
There would have to be a talk about using the station chairs, and Spock specifically would need to be asked to stop bending over his console like that-
Uhura raises an eyebrow at her captain, and Jim has to convince himself that she wasn't suddenly looking though him.
That she wasn't Spock's type.
—----------
What was Spock's type?
It was a question on Kirk's mind that popped up now more often than he would like to admit. Was it pretty alien women with neon pink skin, or a reliable officer like Uhura?
Or could it be a stubborn captain too worried about ruining their friendship to blatantly pursue anything beyond it?
Kirk shuts off the sonics, and buries his face in his towel.
He hated the way that others sometimes looked at his friend, friend because that's all Spock was, and hating because their eyes would be so obviously filled with want.
It was almost maddening, the discomfort, the need to move Spock away and wrap an arm around his shoulders-
But Spock wasn't his, and they had jobs to do, and Kirk wasn't allowed the luxury of jealous wanting-
But that didn't stop him from his own thoughts in private, or his wanting, or his jealousy, or his ever growing fondness for his first officer-
Jim forces himself to lay down, and go to sleep.
It evades him for hours.
—------------
Spock let's Jim pull him away from the award ceremony, something they had been roped into after saving a nearby federation planet from an ongoing Klingon invasion-
The people here were too touchy, and god didn't they know Spock was a Vulcan?
Didn't they know that Spock couldn't possibly be interested?
Jim is angry, upset, and when it's finally hits him, he's embarrassed-
“Captain.” Spock interrupts, halting Jim's momentary internal spiral, “Why have you brought me outside?”
“I thought you might be uncomfortable.” Kirk says, smooth, ready for it, “I thought you might find the evening spent better out here.”
“Perhaps,” Spock raises a brow, hands clasped neatly behind his back, “you assume, Jim.”
And there's a sudden heat clawing it's way up the captain's neck, a redness that drags itself across his cheeks, and has him forcing his lips shut. “Then I apologize Mister Spock, if you enjoyed the party then by all means-”
“I was not enjoying,” Spock interrupts, “and I am a Vulcan, so I could not be ‘enjoying’ in any emotional sense of the word captain. As you know.”
“As I know.”
“Logically.” Spock hesitates, looking James over once before saying, “Is there something you would like to confess, Jim?”
And suddenly it's so obvious that Spock would know, that Spock would dislike, and-
It all comes out at once, James's confession, that he doesn't even know when the affection had began-
And Spock listens, waits, and doesn't allow even the slightest change in his expression. “So you have been jealous?”
“And in love with you, yes.” Jim sighs, running a hand through his hair, “We can forget this, if that would make you more comfortable-”
“Excuse me,” a woman interrupts, appearing down the same trail the two of them had taken to leave the party hall, “I was wondering-”
“My captain has fallen ill,” Spock interrupts, something he seemed to be doing often tonight, “we will be leaving the party early.” And then, as though his words weren't clear enough, the vulcan flips open his communicator and orders-
“Two for beam up.”
—------------
“Sulu had made a bet with Uhura,” Spock tells him, only minutes after their beam up. “That you would confess first.”
“I'm not sure I understand-”
“It is only logical then captain,” Spock waves a hand, “that she win her money.”
“You set me up,” It clicks, and Jim laughs, incredulous, “you went out of your way to make me jealous.”
“A promising experiment, yes.”
“And you like me? You've liked me this entire time?”
“Logically, captain. You are not the only jealous man.”