Some pictures from this morning’s adventures:
This was a reader prompt, sort of, and while I doubt she had quite this in mind, well…here you go.
“So, um, you want to learn to play poker?”
Spock nodded. “That is what I said.”
Jim bit his lip. Turned away from Spock to pour himself a drink. Red wine tonight. A gift from Bones on his last birthday.
“Got it on our last shore leave, Jim, been saving it ever since.”
Spock was in his quarters now. He’d come to play chess, which they’d started to do once a week after the newly built Enterprise had begun its voyage after the whole Krall mess.
They’d kept it pretty casual, at first. They’d started in the rec room playing just one game each week. Though Spock won most of them, Jim had a few good days in there, too.
It moved to their quarters when Jim was running late one week and contacted Spock to say he would be later still. Spock had suggested he would just bring the chess set there. Jim had hid his surprise and agreed.
The next week, Spock had suggested playing chess in his quarters, and ever since they’d alternated between Jim’s and Spock’s. Never returning to the rec room. And they generally played several games now.
“Well, I think it was Bones who said he’d like to teach you,” Jim said, taking a sip.
There had been talk of poker when they’d been confronted by a hostile alien, or so they’d thought at the time. Balok. Jim had bluffed and suddenly Spock became interested in poker.
“You do not wish to teach me?”
There was just the hint of a tone in Spock’s voice that Jim could not quite place, but he knew it made him feel bad. “No, no. Not at all, Spock. You want to learn, that’s fine. Um, generally, it’s more than a couple of players though.”
“I see.”
“Yeah. So, you want me to find out if anyone else is available to play with us?”
Which honestly, Jim was not at all keen on the intrusion into his private time with Spock, and he feared it would quickly become a thing where everyone played every week, and there would go any alone time he had managed to obtain with Spock, which he’d won with a lot of effort, but, if Spock wanted him to get a group going for poker, Jim would do it.
“Is that the norm for strip poker?”
Jim stumbled forward, spilling wine on the floor. “What? Did you say…strip poker?”
“I have been doing some research prior to broaching the subject with you, of course.”
“Of course you have.” Jim went over to the bathroom for a cloth to wipe up the spilled wine. He bent down and cleaned up the mess. “I don’t think that’s a really good idea. Sit down, Spock.”
Spock took his seat dutifully. Jim had already set up the chess set, but as Jim sat across from Spock, it remained untouched.
“There are a series of hands that beat other hands.”
“Indeed, I researched those.”
“Good. That gives us a head start. Basically, poker is a lot of bluffing.”
“As you did with Balok.”
“Right. So, with the hand you’re dealt, unless you get a royal flush dealt to you, which believe me, doesn’t really happen, you’re usually going to want to convince those playing with you that you have a better hand than you do. If I have two queens and you have a full house, that beats me. But I want you to think I have something more than you do so you’ll fold. Or basically, give in.”
“I see.”
“Which is what I did with Balok. I wanted him to think we had a better weapon than he did, so he would fold. But he could just have easily called my bluff. Which is why in poker, you call.”
“So it is a means of lying.”
“Pretty much. Unless you really do have a royal flush, then you aren’t lying.”
Spock inclined his head. “I am certain that I would have no trouble knowing that you were lying.”
Jim laughed. “Yeah? Why do you think that, Mister Spock?”
“I know when you lie, I can tell. So I cannot be fooled by your bluff. We have known each other long enough for me to read you quite well, Captain.”
“That’s it! You’re putting your money where your mouth is.”
Sometime later…
“You won.”
Jim grinned. “Yep. Four queens.”
“But…”
“You only have a full house, Spock.”
“Yes, I know that your hand beats mine. It is simply that your behavior during the match—”
“Game, Spock.”
“As well as your body language indicated that you had a much lower hand than you were pretending to have and yet…”
“Yep. So you don’t know me as well as you thought, Spock. Not my lies anyway.” Jim leaned back. “I think you should remove your pants.”
Spock’s cheeks greened. “Captain.”
He burst out laughing. “I’m totally kidding. I know we weren’t playing strip poker, babe.”
Spock stared at him. “Babe?”
“I didn’t say babe,” Jim said quickly. “I said Spock.”
“No. I heard babe.”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Mister Spock.” Jim stood. “Will you look at the time? I’m going to have to cut this short. I have about three hundred reports to do.”
Spock stood too. “Three hundred, Captain?”
“Three hundred and two. I forgot a couple.” Jim ushered Spock to his door. “As amusing as this was, next week, back to chess?”
“As you wish, Captain.”
Jim smiled, patted Spock’s arm. “Goodnight, Spock.”
“Goodnight…babe.”
The door of his quarters opened and Spock disappeared through it.
Jim stared after him. Shook his head. Too much wine going to his head. He laughed and turned away.
A few things to ramble about…
Back when Paramount offered for me to buy their special edition Star Trek Beyond in digital that came with extended content, I fell for the sales pitch. It also included a digital copy of 2009 and Into Darkness as well as cut scenes, etc. And the deal was that I got the movie before it was released to anyone else, so, naturally, I took this bait. It was through a service called Ultraviolet.
Fast forward to now. Ultraviolet is closing down. And my content? Well, Paramount has informed me I can’t access it through their site. I have to sign up for a whole other account somewhere else and link back to my movies that are on the closing site in order to retain them. Sigh.
Now I have Blu Ray copies of all three movies (in fact several copies of some because a certain M keeps buying them for me), but not all the extra stuff Paramount put in the digital copies. But you know what this all says to me? Streaming and digital sucks. Because you can still get screwed on your content. So when the next damn service goes out of business, there go my digital copies I bought from PARAMOUNT once again.
It took me a while to get my Flash done for this Friday but I finally finished it today and got it scheduled. Last week didn’t launch and I had to do it manually, so let’s cross our fingers it launches this time.
Because of that, I have no new chapters done. I’ll work on it.
M and I have Friday off and we are going in to Ventura for lunch with my mom and sister. Should be a nice day.
And speaking of, at the end of June is my sister’s 60th birthday and she has requested to go to Harrah’s Casino and Resort in San Diego for the occasion. We have agreed. She gets three free nights and so we are all rooming together to save money, obviously. If you say no, she cries, so naturally we said yes. Anyhow, I will be mostly out of commission June 30 until July 5th. We return the 3rd, but then M’s cousin does a thing at her place for Independence Day (their town even does their fireworks then), so we go to that, and then there is the 4th where we do a BBQ etc. So that week is pretty much shot. You have been warned, so mark your calendars!
I think Jamie’s birthday is the 1st so if she wants a fic, she better tell me well in advance and that goes for anyone else, again. Please do let me know. I don’t have a memory so you must help me.
Saturday of this weekend, M and I are going to this thing at one of the local farms called Tomatomania. I guess they are supposed to have every variety of tomato available for sale to plant for yourself. Since M is a gardener and I love tomatoes, it’s a social event for both of us. No making fun of us now. We know we are nerds.
If I am not as super friendly as usual (ha like I ever am) it is because I am quite overwhelm–er, fulfilled, right now. Please forgive me. It is not because you are not loved.
Anyway, I think I’ve rambled enough.
“Ouch. Damn.”
Spock pulled back from touching Jim, unable to prevent a frown from appearing.
Jim winced. “Sorry. Sorry. It’s just I kind of ache everywhere.”
“Doctor McCoy released you from the medbay too early.”
“No, honey. I’m all right.”
“Yet I am unable to touch you in any way.” He tucked the sheets and blanket around Jim’s prone form upon the bed. Carefully.
“Bones has me off for another 72 hours. Twenty four of those on bedrest. It’ll be fine. I will. I promise.”
Spock remained unmoved by his declarations. It had been a near thing. Jim had spent two weeks in the medbay, the first in a coma. Spock had nearly lost him more than once in those two weeks. After Jim had fixed the warp core was surely bad enough, but now that they were bonded, married, the loss of Jim was without comprehension. Spock would not entertain the idea.
“I love you,” Jim intoned softly.
“And I you. But you take too many chances and—”
“Spock. I’m the captain.”
“All the more reason you are not expendable on away missions.”
“Spock—”
“There has been discussion of late indicating that Starfleet will restrict commanding officers from landing parties,” Spock told him.
Jim frowned. “What? That is hardly fair.”
“What is not fair is how many times I have had to face your probable death,” Spock said, speaking more sharply than he meant to. But it had the intended effect, for Jim quieted down then, biting his lip and sinking against the pillows. His blue eyes were shiny but there were no outward signs of tears.
“I’m sorry,” Jim said softly, faintly.
It reminded Spock too much of the time Admiral Marcus had advised he was about to murder the entire Enterprise crew and Jim had turned to face Spock and all the rest of them to say he was sorry. Spock had never seen Jim look so hopeless.
Spock lowered himself to sit on the bed beside Jim and held out his hand toward Jim so that Jim could rest his hand in Spock’s rather than having Spock seize his hand. Jim put his warm hand on Spock’s, palm side down.
“Ashaya, I would never seek to turn you into something or someone you are not. I only ask that, now that we are two, perhaps three or more some day—”
Jim’s eyes widened.
“That you recall there is someone who waits for you, always, to return safely to them.”
“I never want to hurt you ever,” Jim replied.
“I know. So I ask, only, for your consideration,” Spock said. “And I will give the same back to you.”
A small smile appeared and though it was not Jim’s full wattage smile, Spock would take it. “You got it.”
“You should rest now, T’hy’la.”
“Are you going to the bridge?”
“Negative. Mr. Scott is there at present. I will work here in our quarters to watch over you.”
“You don’t have to.”
“I do, in fact.”
The smile widened. “Sorry about the birthday sex. Or lack thereof. When I’m better—”
“I am unconcerned for whether I get, as you said, ‘tail’ for my birthday,” Spock said, severely. “I just want you to be better. ‘Tail’ can wait.”
Jim laughed softly. “I love you. So so much. You have no idea.”
Spock tapped his fingers on his head, which made Jim laugh again.
“All right. Maybe you do.”
“Sleep. When you wake you can have something to eat.”
Jim lowered his lashes. Looked at Spock innocently. “Ice cream?”
“We shall see. Rest.” Spock rose, leaned over and cautiously kissed Jim’s forehead. As birthday’s went, it was not Spock’s finest, but Jim was alive and beautiful and in their bed, and that was acceptable.
Sunday Morning Walk
Well. This week I really plan on doing the next chapter of My Heart’s a Virgin. That is absolutely next. Then another chapter, maybe two to conclude Best Friends. But at least one.
After that, we shall see what I want to work on. I’ll need a flash for Friday. There’s one coming for Kris on Tuesday too. That one is written.
Today I have laundry and eating and um, well, whatever, I guess. HA HA
I really really want to post new stuff. I am SO resisting. But it’s hard. Not going to lie.
Spirk (with a small dose of Pinto) 