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As Spock, Captain Kirk, and one of the crew's officers beamed down to a new planet discovered on their radar, they were met with a strange site. A pinkish-blue sky, and wildlife that looked similar to Earth's. Though this place seemed safe, they were yet to know what would happen the longer that they stayed there.
"I assume the look on your face means that you are pleasantly surprised, Captain?" Spock said, referring to the planet.
"You assume correctly, Mr. Spock. Another planet that will be added into the list of planets that are similar to Earth." Captain Kirk replied, stopping for a moment before saying, "It seems very peaceful here. Too peaceful. Strangest yet is that I haven't seen anything else that's alive other than the plants."
As if on cue, a loud sound was heard in the distance. A sound similar to someone shouting. The captain started to head towards the sound, while making sure the others were following. Spock was most certainly following, as he stayed closer than the other man to the captain. He would occasionally brush his arm against him, and Captain Kirk didn't know if this was on accident or on purpose.
As the group headed closer to where the sound was heard, the captain crouched behind a boulder, the men following as he did. Luckily, this rock was big enough to conceal all of them. Spock looked over the rock, until he laid his eyes on where the noise must have come from.
"Captain, are you seeing what I'm seeing?" Spock whispered, placing a hand on the man's shoulder.
Up ahead, there seemed to be some sort of a camp. There were makeshift tents, litter strewn about, and remnants of a fire, Most harrowingly, they saw.... people? Not just any type of people- humans. This seemed impossible, since there were no reportings of any Earth colonies on this planet. To make the situation even stranger, the people looked.... off. Other than what you would expect from a stranded Earth colony, like matted hair and tattered clothing, their skin had a strange blueish tint. When you got a glimpse of their faces, there would be strange red markings and spots.
The men continued to watch these people, not realizing how they had definitely watched for too long. One of the humans starting approaching towards their hiding place, making little time for the men to react. They attempted to back away, but it was already too late. The person saw them and screams, alerting the rest of their kind.
"Follow me!" Captain Kirk shouts, running off in the opposite direction with his phaser in hand. Spock and the officer follow with their phasers out aswell. They would run like this until Spock saw somewhere they could hide temporarily.
"Captain! Up there!" He shouted, pointing to a tall hill that was littered with rocks. The men would all start to climb, Captain Kirk in the lead, then Spock, and then the officer. They all kept climbing until they heard a cry from below.
"Sir! Help! He's got me!" The officer shouted, slipping down the hill as the person who was chasing them pulled him down.
Spock attempted to help, but the individual seemed to have superhuman strength.
"Let me try, Spock!" Captain Kirk exclaimed. He grabbed onto the officers hand, attempting to pull him up. While trying to hoist the man up, the captain slipped a bit, ripping a hole in his shirt. Spock, seeing this, immediately hoisted the captain back up near him.
The human pulled the officer away, and screamed again. Spock and the captain hurriedly continued to climb. As they reached the top, they stood up and looked below, but the officer and the human were gone. Captain Kirk noticed something else, too. Spock was standing a little too close to him. But that wasn't important now, not yet.
"Let me see your wounds, captain." Spock said as he examined the man. Captain Kirk could feel a bit of warmth on his cheeks as the vulcan touched his chest. THe wound was not too severe, but the captain delayed to say anything for a moment.
"It'll be fine, Mr. Spock," The captain insisted, pushing the man's hands off of him.
"So be it. Atleast let me clean up the blood though." Spock said, no hint of emotion in his voice as usual. He got a cloth out of his pocket and gently padded over the blood. With Spock this close to the captain, he could really see all of the vulcan's features. High eyebrows, blue eyeshadow, and a bit of pink on his lips. He really has to stop looking at Spock's lips.
"That should do it. I'm going to contact the Enterprise and tell them what has happened." Spock said, pulling out his communicator. He tried to contact the spacecraft, twice, but something was blocking the frequencies. He looked up at the sky, realizing that a storm was coming in.
"We're marooned then," says the Captain who was looking up at the sky aswell. "..Atleast for now. Let's find some proper shelter to wait out the storm."
Captain Kirk and Spock then descended down the hill together. Once down, the captain led the way until they found a small cave to stay in. It would work, as long as the storm wasn't too bad.
"I think that we should find some sticks for a fire." Captain Kirk suggested. Spock nodded, agreeing. Not long after splitting up, they regroup at the cave and put all the sticks in a pile. Captain Kirk pulled out some matches from his pocket to light it. It wasn't the best fire, but it would have to do. Together, they sat around the fire, absorbing it's warmth.
Spock looked over to the Captain, noticing there was an expression of pain on his face.
"I knew that wound wasn't 'fine', Captain. Are you sure you don't want me to-" Spock started, before being cut off by the captain looking at him in a way that signifies to brush it off.
Rain started to fall from the sky. At first, it was moderate. Then, it started to pour. Spock could noticeably see the captain shivering. Being vulcan, he was a bit more resistant to temperature than humans. But, he was still a bit cold. Suddenly, Spock had an idea.
"Do you want to get closer to stay warm, Captain?" Spock inquired. Captain Kirk nodded a yes, making Spock move closer to him. He put an arm around the captain's shoulders, which made the man lean into him slightly. As daylight waned, and this planet's moon came out, it got even colder.
"Lay down.." The captain said in a hushed voice. Spock did as he was told and laid on the ground. The other man laid down too, staying way too close to Spock. Spock could feel a green blush creep onto his face, but he had to stay professional. Even if this situation was extremely unprofessional.
Before Spock could discuss with the man about how they were basically cuddling, he got a call from his communicator.
"Officer Spock? This is Lieutenant Uhura speaking. Are you and the captain doing alright? Over."
"Spock here, we're doing alright. Is it possible to beam up two people? Over."
"Yes sir. Two to beam up. Over and out."
After Spock heard this, he got up from the ground. Realizing the captain was weak, he helped him stand up too. After a moment, they started to beam aboard the Enterprise. Once aboard, Spock told the crewmates about the captain's situation, leading to some men escorting him to Dr. Bones.
Thankfully, the captain was fine. Once he had his strength again, he commanded that they go out of the orbit of this planet, and mark it as dangerous. With all things accounted for, they could continue on their lives as normal... right? Deep down, Spock and Captain Kirk knew that they had to address what happened in that cave at some point.
~ Two Earth Days Later ~
Captain Kirk was inside of his room, laying down on his bed, thinking. Thinking about that day with him and Spock. Was it more intimate than friendship? He couldn't tell. His mind was a jumbled mess, and he didn't know what to do about it.
A knock came at the door, and he hoped that it wasn't Spock. It most likely was, but he still hoped it wasn't.
"Come in." The captain said, diverting his gaze to the door, then back at the ceiling. He still lay on the bed as Spock approached him.
"Captain, may we discuss some private matters? I'm sure you already know what I am talking about.." Spock said, looming over the captain. Captain Kirk knew he was going to bring this up. The vulcan sat at the end of the bed, looking at the captain.
"I suppose we do. Let me preface this by saying that is was purely-" Captain Kirk started, sitting up next to Spock on the bed. Before he could finish, Spock interrupted him.
"Purely circumstantial? You and I both know that's false," Spock said, then paused for a moment before continuing, "I will not see you differently if you like me more in a way that isn't just friendship."
The captain was at a loss for words. He knew, deep down, that he really liked Spock. More than friends. But, he couldn't find the confidence or words to say it. As he looked away from Spock's face to think, he suddenly had an uncontrollable urge. He leaned into Spock, and made their lips meet. Spock was taken aback at first, but allowed it to happen.
They stayed like this for a while, before a knock at the door made them stop. The captain pulled away, an embarrassed expression on his face. He got up from the bed before replying to the visitor.
"Come in," Captain Kirk said, steadying his voice. Dr. Bones came in. He said something about an injured man that needed the captain's attention, but the captain could barely pay attention. He nodded and dismissed the doctor, then looked back at Spock.
"...continue this later?" The captain said, a slight smile on his face. Spock nodded a yes. With that, Captain Kirk left his room to go to sick bay. The vulcan smiled to himself, then got up to leave the room.