After receiving no answer to his third attempt, Spock considered that Kirk might be incapacitated, and quickly entered the code for an override the lock on the Captain’s door.  It open, revealing darkened living quarters.  Perhaps the Captain had retired early.  The only light emanated from the sleeping alcove, along with a faint, scratching noise Spock couldn’t identify.  He slowly rounded the corner to find Jim Kirk, not incapacitated, but lying propped up on his elbows, watching a performance on his PADD with earbuds in his ears, bobbing his head.  But all of that was only fleeting in Spock’s attention.  His mind was riveted instead on the decidedly non-regulation undergarments which comprised Jim’s sole coverings.

“Spock, sorry I didn’t hear you try to buzz in.  I’m going over the cultural files on the Llohllindrans.  This stuff rivals Earth Heavy Metal and Klingon Opera, you know?  I figured best not to play it through the speakers… it’d probably shake the bulkheads.  Spock?  Spock, are you okay?”

Spock forced his gaze to Kirk’s face, realizing that he needed to reassert controls of certain physiological responses.   Blood flow to the face.  And other areas.

“I have the report you requested on the mineral deposits, and another from Dr. Kanishka on the trade imbalances for you negotiations tomorrow,” he said instead of answering Kirk’s question.  He held out a PADD.

“Oh, great!”  Kirk rolled onto his side, propped on one elbow so he could reach for the PADD with his free hand.  Spock now had a frontal view of the Captain’s stellar briefs and the poorly disguised, very aesthetically pleasing shape below them.  He diverted his eyes again, but not before registering “Aries.”

“What?”  Kirk looked up, confused.

Spock’s controls for facial blood flow were failing again.  And he had not intended to say that out loud.  He straightened, grasping his hands behind his back and not daring to look at his captain at all.  “I could not help but notice that the star pattern on your undergarments represents the Earth constellation Aries,” Spock said in an admirably even tone.

“’Couldn’t help but notice’?”  Kirk mused with an odd tone.  He shook himself from reverie.  “Uh, yeah, they were a gag gift for my birthday, but they’re really comfortable, so I bought a bunch more.  I’ve got Orion and the the Eagle Nebula—”

Spock could picture all too well the vibrant colors and upright shapes of that nebula’s pillars stretched against the shape of— he needed to leave.  He took a step backward and forced his mind away from such images.

“Spock?”  Jim looked up from the PADD.  “Didn’t you want to go over this?” He waved the PADD absently.  “I can put on a robe or something.”

“Vulcans are not affected by nudity, Captain.”  It was a true statement,  Most of the time.  Of course, Spock was half Human… “The reports are self explanatory.  I will see you in the morning, Captain.”

“Spock, we’re not on duty.  Obviously,” he added, nodding down at his nearly bare form.  “Call me Jim, and just let me put something on—”

“No,” Spock insisted as Jim leaned forward to get up.  Kirk froze, and Spock berated himself for raising his voice, however slightly.  “It is not necessary, Ca—Jim.  Continue your cultural investigations.  I believe it would be prudent for me to meditate before tomorrow’s meetings.”  Understatement.  Vulcans excelled at understatement.  “Perhaps… perhaps we could meet for breakfast and discuss the reports.”  Spock allowed himself a brief look at Jim, taking in the softness of his expression and the firmness of his muscles.   He was suddenly sure Jim could read every hope and wish on his face — wishes that he had found increasingly difficult to hide in the year since Khan and the dissolution of his relationship with Nyota.   He purposefully did not school his feature to hide them.

After a moment, Jim answered, “I’d like that.  I’d like that a lot.  Okay, I’ll look these over before going to bed, and we can talk in the morning.  Good night.  Sleep— or, uh, meditate well.”

Spock nodded slightly in acknowledgement. “Have a restful evening, Jim.”

Just as Spock was about to leave the room, Jim asked, “Out of curiosity, do you prefer the Eagle Nebula or the Carina Nebula?”

The meaning could not be mistaken.  As usual, Jim saw more than Spock had intended to show, and accepted it all.  Perhaps their wishes were not as disparate as Spock had feared.  The expression on Jim’s face mirrored his own mind; it was full of curiosity, nervousness, and hope.

“I find them equally intellectually fascinating and aesthetically pleasing, Jim.“

The grin on Jim’s face was also most aesthetically pleasing.