Jim comes out of the study hall closet first, looking carefully first to make sure no one else is around. He sees no one so slips out and away out of the classroom entirely.

Eventually he sees a group of cadets he knows walking the campus and he saddles up beside them and joins the conversation as though he’s been there the whole time.

No one calls him on it.

It isn’t until later when he’s meeting Sulu and Bones for hamburgers at Moe’s Deli that Sulu gestures to his neck.

“Someone’s marked you.”

“What?” Jim laughs. “No way.”

“Yep.” Bones hands him a mirror and Jim almost stops to ask him why he’s got a mirror, but instead he shrugs and holds it up to his neck. After a few awkward attempts to see, he finally notices the suck marks there.

“Er, okay.”

“Who are you seeing now?” Bones asks.

“No one.”

Sulu snorts. “No one gave you a hickey.”

“Those are big teeth, I might add,” Bones does, in fact, add. “As long as it’s not—”

“It isn’t.”

Sulu frowns. “Who? As long as it isn’t who?”

“Jim has a long history of picking really awful people to be his lovers.”

“Ruth wasn’t awful,” Jim protests.

“About the only one who was definitely too good for you. I’d give you a list of his bad choices, but I do have a life of my own to live.”

“Instead of nosing into other people’s, yeah.’

Bones smirks. “I do that as a side hobby.   

“Keep it far to the side if you don’t mind.”

“Hmm,” Bones says, contemplatively. “Last I knew you were seeing that little Caitian named Sofie, but those don’t look like her tiny teeth.”

Jim rolls his eyes. “She’s history and I never slept with her. I was just getting her study notes.”

“Study notes.”

“I like to do well in class, you know that.”

Sulu shakes his head. “If that’s the case, you might as well move right to the instructor.’’

Jim looks away, quickly, suddenly sure he is blushing. God he has a big mouth and he usually uses it for better things that sticking his foot in it.

“Yeah.” Bones gazes him suspiciously.

“Anyway, I definitely have two or three classes to get to right now.”

“It’s seven o’clock. You aren’t signed up for night classes,” Bones points out.

Jim rises anyway. “Extra credit. Uh, logic.”

Bones’ stare is harder now. “Logic?”

“Logical philosophy.”

“Oh for Pete’s sake, you don’t mean—”

“I don’t, no,” Jim says quickly. “Mind your own business, Bones.”

“Idiot,” Bones mutters as Jim runs from their table.

He can hear Sulu.

“Who? Who is he seeing?” Jim exits and head up the street. To his, uh, logic course.