Not Today (Star Trek ~ Spirk)

[lsbn]

Sneezy!Kirk with worried Spock and McCoy. I was picturing AOS for this one. This is my first fic, so sorry if it's not so good!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters/this world!

 

First Officer Mr. Spock stood directly behind Captain Jim Kirk, hands clasped tightly behind his back in an effort to conceal his overwhelming anger. Jim was speaking to Star Trek Command, and was being forced into tasks Spock saw as impossible to complete in his bondmate’s current condition.

 

“So you’ll be able to beam down to the planet, correct, Captain Kirk? We need a peace agreement from this location as soon as possible.”

 

While Kirk, ordinarily, would have had no trouble with a job such as this, Spock knew he was unfit for such a highly stressful environment today. Plus, according to Spock’s research, this M-class planet consisted of icy tundra, temperatures that hovered at approximately -40°C, and cover that would be, for an ill human, beyond insufficient.

 

Spock had been sure to inform Kirk of this. But Jim, not wanting to let Starfleet down and having, generally, little concern for his own health, had ignored him. “Righd away, sir,” Kirk replied hoarsely, discreetly pressing his knuckles against his pinkish, rubbed-raw nose, seemingly in an effort to repress a sneeze.

 

The Admiral seemed not to notice the hints at Kirk’s failing health. “Excellent,” he replied, and signed off.

 

“Captain—” Spock began, but was cut short by Jim holding up a brief finger before releasing a barrage of sneezes.

 

“H-hold on S-spock-k—AAAHEASHOO! HEA-CHOO! AH-H-AHHEACHOO!” The force of his sneezing caused him to bend over, holding his knees for strength and directing the spray toward the floor.

 

Concern and arousal simultaneously flooded Spock’s otherwise perfectly-logical system. He rushed to his bondmate’s side, briefly taking his shoulder and gently helping him stand upright again. Even that fleeting contact gave him a strong taste of the depth of Jim’s pain. “Captain, you cannot complete the mission in your condition. It is too dangerous. What is currently a bad case of the flu could degenerate into something far more serious.”

 

Kirk smiled weakly, trying to reassure his worried lover. “I’b fide, Spock—HEAAACHOO! AH-HUH...ugh.” The last sneeze gave a false start, and then nothing; simply leaving Kirk with a torturously tickly nose.

 

“Jim, you are not fine,” Spock replied softly, his dark eyebrows knitting closer together in a frown. “I shall com Dr. McCoy—with a physician’s order, the Admiral cannot expect you to complete the mission.”

 

“No!” Kirk exclaimed, panic shining brightly through his eyes. “Bones can’d dnow aboud this.” The congestion in his voice was thick, and Spock could sense the pain Jim was in. Spock didn’t understand Kirk’s reluctance.

 

“Why not, Captain? It is only logical.”

 

Darker spots bloomed across Jim’s already-reddened cheeks and he averted his eyes. “Please, Spock, he jusd can’d.” A strong shiver coursed through Jim’s weakened body, and Spock’s sharp eyes detected a faint sheen of sweat on his bondmate’s forehead.

 

Gently, Spock took Jim in his arms—thinking, for a moment, that Jim would pull away. But he didn’t; instead, he leaned into Spock’s warmth with an exhausted groan. Upon contact, Spock was appalled by the level of Kirk’s misery—he felt absolutely horrible. Body aches, chills, extremely sore throat, pounding head, fully-blocked nasal passages, pained lungs from his dry cough, fever of approximately 39.1°C, aching nose from the constant sneezing... Why was Jim refusing McCoy’s assistance? Clearly, he felt badly enough.

 

“Ashayam,” Spock murmured, planting a kiss on Kirk’s burning forehead. “You are extremely sick. You should be in bed. Allow me to com Dr. McCoy.”

 

“But thed he’ll dnow thad...I’b...you dnow...” Kirk fumbled for words, evidently ashamed. Spock had an inkling it was the fever talking. But suddenly Kirk’s nose twitched and his breath started heaving. “Spock, led go, I’b gonna s-sneeze—” Jim did all he could to hold back, trying desperately to break away from Spock’s hold.

 

But Spock only pulled him closer. “It is alright, Jim. You know what your sneezes do to me. I do not mind.”

 

Either way, Kirk had little choice: the sneezes burst out of him in rapid succession, muffled by Spock’s shoulder. “HUCHOO! HUH-UH-UHSHOO! HEAAAAACHOO! HEAAAASHOO!” When he finally had a moment to pause for breath, he broke into a deep, wet coughing fit that worried Spock ever more.

 

At last, with tears streaming from his eyes from the pain, Kirk straightened back up. The force of the fits had sapped what little strength he had left; he began to sway dangerously, but Spock held him up.

 

Spock felt as though he was going to go mad with worry and frustration. “Captain, if you will not report to sick bay of your own accord, believe me, I will take you.”

 

“You wouldn’d dare—” Kirk shot him a watery glare, but before he could even finish his sentence, Spock had scooped him up.

 

“Spock! Pud be dowd. Jesus. Ob course you had to habe suberhuman strength,” Jim half-pouted, half-griped. But before he could continue, his nose started running, so he pressed his wrist up against it to staunch the flow. A cough exploded out of his chest, and he winced.

 

Mr. Spock could feel the heat of his lover’s fever radiating from his body, but Jim was shivering almost nonstop. Spock held him as close as possible, leaning over to try to block the wind from his quick pace. “I’m sorry, Jim, but this is necessary.”

 

The closer they got to the sick bay, the faster Kirk’s heart beat. Spock raised an eyebrow, pausing outside the doors to Medical. “Would you like to discuss the anxiety you’re experiencing? We are only going to see Dr. McCoy. Perhaps I should remind you that he is our friend?”

 

Jim glowered at him. “I dnow thad. Jusd...wid all by allergies and stuff, I’b tired ob...seebing so weak, I guess,” he eventually sighed, his nose twitching. “HEAAAACHOO! HUUUCHOO!”

 

Spock experienced a surge of protectiveness that caused him to instinctively tighten his hold on Jim; he also forced himself to ignore the arousal. Even (especially?) this ill, Spock found Jim maddeningly attractive.

 

“You need not worry, Ashayam,” Spock murmured, kissing Kirk’s forehead again. “It is Dr. McCoy’s job to treat the crew. Rest assured that I will not stand for his teasing you in such a state.”

 

Kirk nodded in defeat, sighing again, but that only produced a painful coughing fit. “Ad leasd led be walk into the clinic od by own, alrighd?” he croaked.

 

Spock did not see that as logical, being that Kirk was quite weak, but decided he would respect his bondmate’s feelings. He set him down carefully, but insisted that Kirk leave his arm around his neck. “It would be unwise to walk on your own, Captain.”

 

To Jim’s relief, when they finally stepped through the doors, they found the clinic empty of everyone but Bones, whose eyes widened in shock when he saw Kirk supported by Spock. He ran over, concern etched into every line of his face.

 

“What happened?! Is he hurt?!” Bones demanded, looking to Spock for the reply.

 

“Not injured, Doctor, but very ill.” Gently, Spock helped Jim sit down on the nearest cot.

 

“No, I’b fide,” Kirk tried to protest, both embarrassed and flattered by all the attention, but the congestion clogging his throat forced him to start hacking into his fist again.

 

“Of course, you sound that way,” the doctor replied sarcastically, using his tricorder to scan Kirk’s body. The vitals that came back weren’t good.

 

“Good God, man, what have you done to yourself? Your fever’s through the roof! Thought Pointy took better care of you,” Bones said as he tossed a nearby blanket to Spock and rifled through a drawer for some medication. Spock ignored the jab, and carefully tucked the quilt around Kirk’s shivering shoulders. As he did so, Jim caught hold of Spock’s wrist and pulled him in closer; Spock relented and sat down on the edge of the cot, behind Kirk, and sealed the warmth of the blanket around his lover’s body.

 

“I’m gonna give you a combination of medications, Jim, they should help lower your temperature and provide some relief for the congestion. As your physician, I strongly recommend you rest for several days and drink plenty of fluids. Got it?”

 

Kirk nodded weakly.

 

“Good. Get him to bed, you hobgoblin. And Jim, for God’s sake, take better care of yourself,” McCoy added, exasperation in his tone.

 

“Dr. McCoy, I shall escort the Captain to his quarters. You will need to contact the Admiral with your orders, as the Captain promised to draw up a peace agreement this afternoon with the foreign planet we’re nearest to,” Spock replied.

 

Bones turned on Kirk with a wide-eyed glare. “Jim! What the hell were you thinking?! You’re in no shape to beam down to that ice box!” He shook his head in disbelief and anger. “Dammit, man, I swear you’ll be the death of me.”

A smile pulled at Kirk’s lips. “Sorry, Bones.”

[queenie]

This was so sweet! Jim utterly lacks knowledge of his own limitations. Uhura would be so mad if he committed biological warfare by brokering a peace treaty while ill in this way. That violates the prime directive, in p sure!!

[ID2006]

I love these three

[stifledsneezelover]

Eeeeep! This story is so cute and makes me feel all warm and fuzzy! Spirk is my fave, but an added concerned and snarky Bones is an added bonus! Any thoughts to continue this? I would love to read more!!!

[pastelglaceon]

This was so good! I love the image of Spock carrying Jim. I'd love to see more if you wanted to continue!

[Spoo]

I really love seeing more Star Trek material around here.  And guh, Spirk gives me a ton of feels. Great start so far! Poor, poor Jim~ 

[lsbn]

Thank you everyone, OMG!!! You're all so sweet <3 <3 <3

[Red]

That's such a sweet Spirk story  I love how you write Jim. I really can imagine how he is sitting in his captain's chair pretending to be perfectly fine 

[spirkestielgirl87]

Aw so sweet. I can never get enough spirk, and you wrote it brilliantly! Stubborn Jim, caring Spock, snarky Bones... :-D More?

[lsbn]

Thank you so much for all of the support, everyone!!! Here's Part 2...I'm hoping I haven't crossed any community guidelines here (yes, I have read them, and I think it's okay, but???), it does get a bit steamy  Sorry it's short—I hope to update again soon! 

~ ~ ~ PART 2 ~ ~ ~

 

Throughout the rest of Bones’s shift, he couldn’t stop thinking about Kirk, and it was pissing him off. He was sure that Spock would be taking excellent care of the stupid git, but...dammit, he was worried. Jim never could take proper care of himself; ever since they met and became (unlikely? he thought grumpily) friends at the Academy, that had been his job—Jim had always been his responsibility.

 

“I should really send the hobgoblin a thank-you note,” he grumbled as he went about cleaning up the clinic, but deep down, he knew he didn’t totally mean it. And that made him angrier than ever, for some reason he couldn’t quite explain.

 

But besides that, he was starting to experience a strange anxiety—that was the only thing he could call the inexplicable desire rising up inside him to go and see how the two were doing. “I am not going to check on him. It’s only been four hours since they came in!” he quietly argued with himself. “It’d be ridiculous. And I have work to do!”

So, with that, he sat down at his desk to complete the mounds of paperwork that had been piling up, ignoring the aching desire to check on Jim.

 

* * *

 

Meanwhile, upstairs, Captain Kirk was something of a wreck and, quite frankly, Spock was, too. Curled up in Spock’s bed, Kirk had been coughing and sneezing so much his throat and voice had become almost completely wrecked, and the lead-like congestion in his sinuses made sleep nearly impossible.

 

Spock was wrapped protectively around his bondmate, radiating heat into his lover’s trembling form via the “spooning” method. Pressing his hand gently to Kirk’s facial psi points to get the most accurate pain/temperature reading, Spock was extremely concerned to find Kirk’s fever had continued to rise throughout the afternoon, albeit incrementally.

 

“Jim, I think I ought to com Dr. McCoy. Your condition appears to be worsening.”

 

Kirk, however, paid little attention to this. “I’b fide. Rebeber whed we traveled way back id tibe thad one day? And your ears were going to gibe us away, so I had to tell thad one guy you were Chidese?” he asked in a gravelly half-whisper, quaking with both laughter and shivers. “And thed we got thad navy blue had for you? God, you were so cute, I—uh-huh-HEEEEASHOOO! *cough cough COUGH COUGH COUGH* ugh.” Kirk leaned up on his elbow, spit some phlegm into the nearby trash can, and wiped at the wetness spilling from his raw nose. Spock stayed right with him; he rubbed his lover’s back until Kirk collapsed back onto the bed, spent.

 

Spock pulled the blankets up around his captain, tucking them in lovingly, after Jim rolled over to face Spock/buried his face into his blue shirt. Spock held him protectively close, kissing his forehead before saying softly, “Yes, Ashayam, I remember.” He then rested his chin on Kirk’s head, relishing the scent of Kirk’s messy golden-brown hair.

 

Jim snuffled nearly continuously into Spock’s neck, his nose twitching and mouth expelling small hot breaths against Spock’s skin, and Spock was nearly overcome by the love surging through him. But suddenly, Jim sneezed weakly: “HEASHOO,” the sneeze soft as a kitten’s, nearly, and quite wet against Spock’s neck. Spock’s pulse skyrocketed, and as he swallowed hard he seriously thought, for at least a moment, that he might spontaneously combust. It took everything he was made of to keep from tearing his clothes off and jumping his lover right then and there.

 

He’s too ill to indulge your every whim! He reminded himself harshly, beginning to force himself through the most rigorous mental exercises he could come up with, attempting to distract himself.

 

However, entwined as they were, Kirk was not oblivious to his lover’s sudden arousal. “Something the matter, Mr. Spock?” he half-whispered, half-giggled, his fever making him deliriously happy that he seemed to be having such an effect on his otherwise-perfectly-reserved Science Officer. They had previously discussed Spock’s certain... “way” and, while Kirk didn’t totally understand it, he was nearly always more than happy to do whatever Spock desired.

 

“Uh, Jim...is there any chance you...um...might be feeling up to...?”

 

Kirk laughed hoarsely at the deep green blush to Spock’s cheeks and the uncommon inarticulation. “I don’t see why not.”

 

* * *

 

After that, Kirk slept for several hours. At dinnertime, Spock woke him and forced him to stomach some soup, orange juice, and medicine, but besides that, the Captain was out; eventually Spock settled in beside him.

Around two in the morning, however, things took a turn for the worse.

[stifledsneezelover]

Oh my goodness this update was lovely!! Absolutely adore these two, and a worried Bones, so adorable! That cliffhanger though!!  Can't wait for your next update 

[Alabaster]

yesssssss! so good. 

[Red]

On 3.10.2016 at 3:51 AM, lsbn said:

Kirk, however, paid little attention to this. “I’b fide. Rebeber whed we traveled way back id tibe thad one day? And your ears were going to gibe us away, so I had to tell thad one guy you were Chidese?” he asked in a gravelly half-whisper, quaking with both laughter and shivers. “And thed we got thad navy blue had for you? God, you were so cute, I—uh-huh-HEEEEASHOOO! *cough cough COUGH COUGH COUGH* ugh.” Kirk leaned up on his elbow, spit some phlegm into the nearby trash can, and wiped at the wetness spilling from his raw nose. Spock stayed right with him; he rubbed his lover’s back until Kirk collapsed back onto the bed, spent.

Yes, yes, yes, I SO love this scene! The city on the edge of forever is one of my favorite episodes (how could it not be?). This is so great! 

On 3.10.2016 at 3:51 AM, lsbn said:

Around two in the morning, however, things took a turn for the worse.

Ohh, I'm something between "No, poor Jim" and "Hell, yes, that's awesome" 

[lsbn]

Hey everyone~ thank you so much for your sweet/encouraging comments!!! It really makes me feel good  

Here's Part 3...but just be warned: it's kinda gross at the very beginning (if you're not into blood) and there isn't any sneezing in this part. Really sorry about that...I promise the next part will be different in that regard!  

~ ~ ~ PART THREE ~ ~ ~

 

Spock was shocked out of sleep by the sound of deep, thick, gasping coughs. Commanding the lights on at 25%, he found Kirk sitting up, leaning over the edge of the bed, hacking his lungs out into the trash.

 

“Jim?” he asked softly, scrambling to reach him. It was only then that he realized it wasn’t just phlegm the Captain was coughing up.

 

There was blood. Quite a lot of blood.

 

Heartbeat thundering through his body, Spock leapt up and sprinted out of the room, deciding in a split second that it’d be quicker to rouse McCoy himself than wait for him to respond to a summons.

 

When he reached the physician’s quarters, he pounded at the door, half-fearing he’d bash it down, and half-wanting to.

 

A groggy McCoy greeted him with a ferocious scowl, but when he realized it was Spock, looking wild-eyed, the irritation flew off his expression in an instant; shock and concern took its place.

 

“Jim is coughing up blood,” Spock forced out of his worry-constricted throat, and then he turned and sprinted back to his own cabin. McCoy paused just long enough to grab the small supply of medicine/tools/first aid things he kept in his room before racing after him.

 

They returned to a still-choking Kirk, but his fit seemed to be subsiding; unfortunately, so was his strength. Spock rushed to his side and Kirk leaned heavily on him, breathing raggedly and clutching at his chest, clearly in pain. His lips were stained with red.

 

Bones used his tricorder to assess the Captain’s health, and was shocked to find his friend’s fever had climbed to 40.5°C. As if on cue, violent shudders began to rip through Kirk’s body, even causing his teeth to chatter.

 

“Lay him down on his side,” McCoy ordered Spock, his voice tight with an intense worry Spock’s eyes mirrored back. “He has a very high fever. You lay with him, we’ll have to alter between warming and cooling.”

 

Spock did as the doctor told him, but he stayed up on one elbow so he would be able to assist McCoy if he should need it. Knitting his dark slashes of eyebrows together in a panic-like worry, he stroked Jim’s hair back from his face and pulled the quilt up around his sick lover’s shoulders. Kirk didn’t respond; he had slipped into a semi-conscious, fever-induced delirium.

 

Bones rushed to the sink, filled a large, nearby bowl with cold water, and grabbed both a washcloth off a stack of clean laundry and a sheet of paper towel from the roll, cursing himself the whole time. I should’ve checked on him when I had the chance, he thought bitterly. He could die from this.

 

Guilt, anguish, self-hatred, and a thousand other emotions crashed through McCoy’s heart as he hurried back to and crouched beside Kirk and Spock’s bedside. Wetting the paper towel, he handed it to Spock, who wiped the blood from Jim’s lips. The tenderness in the gesture sent a dart through Bones’s insides that just about killed him.

 

Attempting to focus, McCoy dipped the washcloth into the bowl, squeezed some of it out, and then rung the rest, drop by drop, into Kirk’s mouth. He continued this action until Kirk would take no more, and then he put the cold, damp cloth across Jim’s forehead.

 

“Doctor,” Spock said quietly, speaking his first words in a long while and nearly causing Bones to jump out of his skin, “what has he contracted?”

 

“I believe his flu transformed into pneumonia. A relatively simple, but potentially very dangerous, human pathogen,” McCoy murmured, nearly choking on his self-loathing. Then, after a moment: “I can’t believe I missed it. I should never have let you two leave this morning. I should’ve given him a full examination.”

 

“Then it was more my fault than yours, doctor,” Spock replied, fighting to keep his voice steady. “He was under my care and supervision, and...we engaged in activities...that were likely far too strenuous for his condition.”

 

Bones shot Spock a confused frown, at which Spock’s cheeks turned startlingly green. That’s when it clicked for the doctor.

 

“Spock,” he said, his voice incredulous, “Are you saying that you two had some sort of—”

 

“He assured me he was feeling up to it,” Spock attempted to defend himself weakly, blushing deeper. “I see now I should have known better.”

 

Bones wasn’t sure if he wanted to laugh or cry at this new piece of news. He settled for an agitated sigh. “I should’ve known the big dummy would get himself way sicker than he already was. He’s got no regard for his health at all,” he growled. Then, slightly more gently, he added, “Don’t feel guilty, Spock—it’s not your fault Jim’s an idiot.”

 

Spock didn’t respond; his expression was emotionless, but his body language far from it: he curled in closer to the Captain’s shivering form, draping his arm protectively over his lover’s waist. Everything about his movement said he still felt as though he were to blame, and Bones half-wanted to scream that it wasn’t, it was actually all his fault, he was the one who had failed...

 

Through the next several hours, the two men spoke very little, both haunted by their own guilt. Bones took Jim’s temperature every half hour and continuously re-wet the washcloth to keep it as cool as possible; Spock alternated between hugging Jim close to keep him warm and leaning far, far away when he got too hot.

 

Just before dawn, though, Kirk’s fever broke, and he flowed from the hazy, fever-induced delirium to a light sleep. Upon realization, Bones breathed a weary sigh of relief, his stomach unclenching for the first time all night.

 

“Let him rest,” he whispered to Spock, dragging his stiff form up off the floor and massaging his knees. “He should be okay from here on out. I’ll be back in to check on him in a few hours.”

 

Spock nodded, and responded softly, “Thank you, Leonard.”

 

Bones started at Spock’s use of his first name, but didn’t comment; something about the vulnerability in the Vulcan’s face kept him silent. Instead, he gave him a brief nod in return, gathered up his things, and returned to his room; the moment he got there, he collapsed into his bed, exhausted.

Spock, however, did not immediately go to sleep. Instead, he gently stroked the side of his t’hy’la’s face, projecting his love and care through their bond; Kirk smiled in his sleep and Spock, nearly overcome with emotion and relief, planted a gentle, lingering kiss against the other man’s temple. With that, he nestled closer to his lover’s body, and eventually he, too, dozed off.

[Red]

Oh noooo, poor Jim. I like how you write it, even if I'm not so into stories where one is so seriously ill or in acute danger. It's kind of hard for me to read, if you know what I mean  Maybe because I'm working at a hospital and have to see such things in real so my mind is playing with me if I read such things.

But the worst seems to be over and I'm looking forward to the next part of your fic  Especially the last lines were so cute and I'm happy to read more!

[ichixshiro14]

You write them perfectly!! I cannot wait for the next installment!!! <3

[lsbn]

Wow...I'm sorry, I totally abandoned this fic. Here's another small piece (that I actually wrote awhile ago and forgot to post), if you guys are still interested/reading! 

 

PART FOUR

The next morning, Captain Jim Kirk woke up to find Spock grasping him strangely tightly and—wait, was he snoring? Spock? He must have given the poor guy whatever horrible thing it was that he had. A pang of guilt surged through Kirk—whatever this was, it was not fun. Except when he could use it to indulge his super-hot lover...

He had to admit, he felt somewhat better today. He had been sick for a long time before he finally got a day off; while he still had considerable congestion in his chest, the pounding headache and fever seemed to be mostly absent. So far, anyway.

Jim carefully extricated himself from Spock’s hold, stepped out of bed, and promptly tripped over the trash can beside his bed. He swore softly and quickly began to shove the spilled garbage back in, his ears ringing from the loud clang. Somehow, his science officer stayed asleep.

That’s when he realized what he was cleaning up: tissues filled with dark red.

For a second, he thought, “Spock...?” and his heart nearly beat out of his chest. But then, dimly, last night came back to him: waking up choking on his own blood and mucous. Spock panicking. Bones coming in...Spock’s hand in his hair, maybe, or was that Bones’s? Flashes of their faces...a lot of pain...so much heat/cold... And then this morning.

 He glanced back at the bed, looking at his boyfriend with eyes full of love. Spock must’ve been up all night. Bones too.

Kirk slipped into the bathroom, coughing as quietly as he could and attempting to clean himself up a bit. To put it simply, he looked like hell, and he felt like it, too, even if today was better than yesterday. His nose was already starting to fill up again. Blowing seemed to have little effect.

Back in the bedroom, he tugged yesterday’s uniform on, ran his fingers through his hair to straighten it up a little, and was just leaving the room when he nearly crashed into McCoy.

“Jim! What the hell?!” the man exclaimed. 

“What, no ‘good morning’?” Kirk teased, pleased that the congestion seemed to be staying out of his voice so far.

The briefly-incredulous expression on Bones’s face quickly gave way to one of anger. “You’re supposed to be resting, you idiot. Spock and I didn’t spend all night nursing you back to health so you could end up sicker!”

“Yeah, thanks for that. Really,” Kirk replied, his blue eyes full of sincerity. “But I think I got Spock sick, so I’m going to go get him some breakfast.”

“Oh, for heaven’s sake,” Bones growled. “Of—”

But he was interrupted by a sudden sneeze from the direction of the bedroom: “HIIIIISHOO!”

“Told you,” Kirk winced.

[lsbn]

I just finished another part! Sorry for the double post, I hadn't realized Part 4 had so little sneezing. XP

 

~~~ PART FIVE ~~~~

Spock slowly awoke to the brush of Jim’s gentle hand against his face. 

“I brought you some breakfast when you’re ready for it, love,” Kirk told him softly, planting a kiss on the Vulcan’s forehead when he saw his eyes open fully.

Abruptly, Spock sat straight up, terror in his features as the events of last night flooded back into his consciousness. “Jim,” he said, clutching the hand that had brushed his cheek. 

Kirk smiled at him gently, understanding. “I’m alright, Spock,” he said, pulling him in close for a hug.

For once, the Vulcan felt at a loss for words, overwhelmed as he was with the emotion roiling within him. “Jim, last night...you were dangerously unwell. I was...afraid,” he murmured.

The Captain clutched him even tighter to his chest. “I’m alright now,” he repeated, before suddenly pulling away. “But are you? I heard you sneeze in your sleep...did I give this awful thing to you?” 

Spock had already placed his fingertips against Kirk’s face, ignoring the question. “Captain, you are certainly not well. Your fever is still approximately 38.3℃, well above the ideal body temperature for a human. Have you reported to Dr. McCoy for examination?”

“Yes, yes, I'm fi-” Kirk was cut short, however, by a sudden sneeze, which he stifled roughly against the back of his hand. “HNG’XXT! I'm fi-fi---HNNG’XXT!” He sniffled thickly. “I'm fine, except for this damn sneezing,” he grumbled.

Spock swallowed hard, forcing his excitement for Kirk’s reaction out of his mind. “Captain, I firmly believe that you should report to sick bay immediately, or permit me to com Dr. McCoy.” 

“And I think you're avoiding the topic. Are you sick?” Jim looked deeply into Spock’s intelligent brown eyes.

The Science Officer paused, assessing himself silently. “My health is adequate, Captain, save a slight irritation in my nasal passages. I am rarely susceptible to human pathogens, so you need not worry.”

“Well,” Kirk said a bit sheepishly, “I may have told Bones that I infected you, so you should probably-”

But before he could even finish his sentence, there was a knock and then the door to the room slid open as the doctor barged in.

“Speak of the devil,” Kirk snorted.

“Alright, listen up,” McCoy announced with an intimidating scowl. “I made a special trip here just to examine you two, so I'll expect y’all to sit still and behave.”

“Doctor, as I just explained to the Captain, I can assure you that I am not ill,” Spock stated. Unfortunately, however, the tickle in his nose got the better of him, and he let loose with a “HIIIII-CHOO!”

“I'll be the judge of that, you hobgoblin,” Bones growled. “And Jim, for God’s sake, quit moving, I'm trying to get your vitals!”

“But Bones, I’m fine,” Kirk whined. “I don't even - HACHOO! HEASHOO!” He sneezed wetly into his hands, which caused him to break into a deep, chesty coughing fit. When it finally finished, he leaned against Spock, exhausted.

McCoy scowled at him, but he couldn't fully hide the concern he was feeling. “Dammit, Jim, you were coughing up blood last night! And you don't sound a whole lot better now, so just pipe down,” he snapped.

Kirk didn't respond, his strength sapped from the fit, so the rest of the examination went smoothly. Spock, recognizing Dr. McCoy’s frustration with his bondmate, allowed the doctor to assess him without further protest.

“Well, old pointy here seems to be in good health,” Bones muttered after completing his perusal. “But you, Jim, certainly aren’t out of the woods yet. I'll sign you off duty for the day.” Looking at Spock, he added, “Try to keep him in bed today, would you?”

“Yes, Doctor,” Spock replied. Kirk stifled another sneeze into his arm.

[spirkestielgirl87]

I've been away for a while, and came back to these wonderful updates! *does happy dance