mkyujji:

Untitled thus far
(unbeta’d so far, too.  Will post on Ao3 once both those problems have been dealt with)

~*~*~

“Bonsey, you really need to loosen up,” Jim Kirk slurred slightly, flopping against his friend’s side.  He was boneless in the way he always got when he’d gone well past drunk and straight into plastered.  His hangover would be spectacular if he didn’t get something besides alcohol in his system before he passed out.  “You’re too tense.  Have a drink!”

Bones sighed and resisted the urge to roll his eyes.  Barhopping and clubbing weren’t activities he’d ever particular enjoyed, not even when alcohol had still effected him the same way it did the rest of the human race.  He’d always been a morose drunk with a tendency to linger on things he couldn’t change.  He’d almost been relieved the day he’d realized there wasn’t enough whiskey in the world to get him to that point anymore.

It didn’t matter how much he resisted, though, somehow he always seemed to end up right next to Jim in whatever bar had been chosen for the evening.

Just like the kid had completely steamrolled over his blatant attempts at staying strangers when they’d first arrived at the Academy.

Just like he’d finally stopped protesting the nickname he’d gotten stuck with and allowed it to continue to the point where he thought of himself as ‘Bones’ more often than not.

Just like he’d quietly checked the exact same posting preferences as Jim when they’d been asked to make their requests known, despite the fact that he’d never really gotten over the Arc or Mars or any of a dozen other things that meant he’d never hate anything quite as much as he hated space.

It was just really fucking hard to say no to Jim Kirk and make it stick.

Probably for the best, Bones mused as he let Jim use him as a leaning post.  Trouble seemed to find it hard to say no to the kid, too.

The night had been quiet so far, but Jim had a spectacular talent for hitting on the girl with the biggest, meanest, most jealous partner in any bar.

“Just because I’m not a drunken loon doesn’t mean I’m tense,” he drawled, catching the bartender’s attention and making a cut-off motion with his hand.  The woman grinned at him and showed off a bottle of non-alcoholic beer.  He nodded his thanks.  This wasn’t the first time they’d done this song and dance and it probably wouldn’t be the last.  

He wasn’t sure if Jim just hadn’t ever realized that Bones almost always cut him off half way through the night or if he just didn’t care enough to make an issue of it.

It was always hard to tell with Jim.

The weight left his shoulder.  “Well, hello, there.”

Bones shifted so that he could see who had caught Jim’s attention and he rolled his eyes as Cadet Uhura stepped into the bar.  “Leave the woman alone, Jim.”

“But I’m wearing her down, Bones!”

They both knew that wasn’t true.  Uhura was never going to look at Jim with sexual interest and everyone on campus knew that – even Jim.  Bones couldn’t decide if Jim was just masochistic enough to like being shot down two or three times a day or if the pair really had managed to start some kind of strange antagonistic friendship from the ritual.

Uhura had probably found herself getting drawn in despite herself, just like Bones had.

“You’re really not.”

Jim just made an exaggerated noise of disagreement.  “Please.  She loves me.”

“Even assuming that was true – and it’s not – but assuming that it was, loving you doesn’t necessarily equate with wanting to sleep with you.”  

His voice was full of fond exasperation, but Jim turned to peer at him like he’d said something particularly revealing.  Bones just arched a brow and stared back.

Grinning, Jim leaned into him.  “It’s okay, old man.  I love you, too.”

Bones rolled his eyes, but hooked an arm around Jim’s shoulders.  “Then walk this old man home, kid.  We’ve both had too much to drink and you promised to help me with the flight simulator in the morning.”

As he settled their tab, Bones couldn’t help but feel fond and indulgent as Jim launched into the ideas he’d come up with to help overcome aviaphobia.  

Maybe he couldn’t say no to Jim Kirk, but he was surprisingly okay with that.

Somehow, he suspected Sam would have approved.

end