therumjournals: (Kirk)
therumjournals ([personal profile] therumjournals) wrote2009-10-20 08:32 pm

Ruins (A Star Trek Reboot Fanfic)

Title: Ruins
Fandom: Star Trek Reboot
Author: [livejournal.com profile] therumjournals
Pairings: Kirk/McCoy, Kirk/Spock
Rating: R
Description: An angsty story told in 10, 100-word drabbles. Sequel to Torn.
Warning: Angst

Building

1.

Jim tries to be lighthearted about the whole thing, tries to keep things in the open by bringing them together. He grins as he shows them the old-fashioned calendar, his handwriting assigning the days – “Spock, Bones, Spock, Bones.” He’ll go to them, of course. Every fifth night he’ll spend alone in his quarters – “gotta take a break sometime,” he jokes. He asks them what they think.

“It is the most logical arrangement, given the circumstances,” is Spock’s response. Bones crosses his arms and nods curtly.

“Great!” He stands up and turns to go. His cheeks hurt from smiling.



He stops calling out their names. He used to love doing that, crying “Fuck, Bones, yes” as he climaxed, panting “oh god, Spock” as he came.

But nothing can turn a moment from burning hot to ice cold faster than gasping out the wrong name. Even just a “Sp-” or “Bo-“ on the wrong night brings everything to a screeching halt, and laying side by side staring at the ceiling has never been Jim’s idea of a good time. So he learns quickly, stops saying their names altogether, and if either one of them notices, neither says a word.

3.

Jim talks to them about each other, he can’t help it. For one thing, there’s no one else – not even Uhura will listen. Spock listens and responds from the distance that his defenses provide him. Bones listens, too, and comforts or nods in understanding, as circumstances demand. There is a limit, however, and Jim is coming close to it, he doesn’t realize, but he’s pushing at it, and when he reaches the limit, Bones will snap. Spock won’t snap, but he’ll withdraw even further, away from the uneasy camaraderie that they had come so close to, in the beginning.

The Ruins

4.

The planet is uninhabited, but it looks like something used to be there. There’s a momentary question of whether the atmosphere is breathable. It is, as long as they don’t stay on the surface for too long. They beam down into a tangle of jungle, but they were right – there is something there, something that was – a city of sorts, in ruins. Its been abandoned, or maybe it simply outlasted its builders – it’s impossible to tell which. With its temples and grand houses, it must have been something special, but all that remains is an empty shell.

5.

The ruins are impressive, massive blocks of stone decorated with intricate carvings and obscured by climbing vines. Jim pulls back a curtain of ivy to reveal a crumbling archway and a grand stairway to nowhere, flanked by fallen stone balustrades. “It must have been so beautiful,” Jim says, wonder in his voice.

“I guess this is what happens when you don’t give something the attention it deserves,” says Bones, running his hand along the wall.

Jim glances at him sharply. Bones holds his gaze.

“Is there something you want to say to me?”

“No.” He hasn’t reached his limit yet.

6.

In the end, Jim starts it, fighting Bones, fighting his silence.
“You hate this.”
Bones says nothing, leans against the crumbling wall.
“Dammit Bones, Spock may not show his emotions, but at least he has them!”
“What do you want from me?”
“Tell me you love me.”
“You know I do.”
“Then why can’t I feel it?”
“Jim, I let this happen. I had every right to leave you, months ago.”
“I know. I know,” he says, clinging to Bones, sobbing into his shoulder. “I’m sorry, Bones.”
Bones puts one arm around him, holds him tightly, staring out at the ruins.

Crumbling

7.

Jim starts feeling ill on his nights alone. He tries to sleep, tossing and turning until his stomach churns and he breaks out in a cold sweat. Soon he begins to forego his alone nights altogether, climbing into bed with one or the other, clinging to a warm body, then sliding his hand up a thigh or slipping it under a waistband. He needs the sex, needs the physical closeness, needs the intensity of release. And they are there for him, as always, and if either one of them notices that he has broken the pattern, neither says a word.

8.
It’s funny, or it would be, if Jim was still laughing. He thinks to himself how similar the two of them are, in some ways. Both mask their emotions, Bones covering his with a gruff exterior, Spock holding his behind a passive expression. Both are obsessed with logic, really. Bones won’t admit it, but it shows through, in his fear of space and his consent to this little arrangement. Both would do anything for him, even if it means putting themselves at risk. Both would do anything for him, and they already have, and that’s where it stops being funny.

9.

They’ve started talking to each other, and this terrifies Jim. He sees the future. In it they will find things more important to them than Jim Kirk. Or maybe they already have, things they’ve left behind for him – a species, a daughter. Are they deciding which one will leave him, or which one will leave him first?

He catches them in sickbay, talking, serious. He’s torn between running away and grabbing onto them and never letting go. He opts for a cordial nod, which they return, and turns to leave. Their eyes follow him, and it almost feels good.

Foundation

10.

They return to the ruins one last time. Jim finds himself in an overgrown courtyard, flanked by Spock and Bones. “It appears that construction was abandoned before it could be completed,” observes Spock. Jim sits on a step, tired. Spock and Bones look at each other, and Jim braces himself as they approach. Spock sits, puts an arm around him. Jim lets himself slump and Spock holds him close. Bones sits too, leans his forehead to Jim’s shoulder, runs a hand through Jim’s hair. Jim takes a deep breath. He doesn’t know what this is, but it’s not the end.

  Continue to Danger

[identity profile] indigocat.livejournal.com 2009-10-21 01:45 am (UTC)(link)
Glad it is not the end for them.

[identity profile] therumjournals.livejournal.com 2009-10-23 01:34 am (UTC)(link)
me too!

[identity profile] pixelmayhem.livejournal.com 2009-10-21 02:05 am (UTC)(link)
Oh holy! More from you in this verse!! I loved your original one so much and this so wrenching and sad, tired and quiet. I just love this. I hope there might be more some day. Oh, when he stops calling their names. When they start resenting but not backing away fully. Ouch

[identity profile] therumjournals.livejournal.com 2009-10-23 01:35 am (UTC)(link)
thanks, wow, i didn't know i had fans! ;-) ah, yeah, i know, it can be a little painful...it's somewhat emotionally draining to write, actually, but that doesn't necessarily mean there won't be more...

[identity profile] callieach.livejournal.com 2009-10-21 02:08 am (UTC)(link)
The emotion is this set of drabbles is breathtaking. #8 in particular, is just... wow:

Both would do anything for him, and they already have, and that’s where it stops being funny.

♥ The ending is great too, with the perfect balance of confusion and comfort.

[identity profile] therumjournals.livejournal.com 2009-10-23 01:36 am (UTC)(link)
thanks, i'm glad you liked it, glad the emotions came through

[identity profile] my-kurama.livejournal.com 2009-10-21 02:51 am (UTC)(link)
I requested something just fucking like this THREE TIMES on the kink meme, I swear to god. Your stories, which I hate that I've never cause before now - are the exact thing I needed. Verbatim. This was so beautiful and I can't wait to re-read it.

So beautiful and exactly how xi canon is in my head.

[identity profile] therumjournals.livejournal.com 2009-10-23 01:37 am (UTC)(link)
awesome! i'm so glad i read your mind! this whole thing started because of this idea that i had (basically the first drabble in Torn) and I was surprised i hadn't seen anything similar out there. i didn't think i could/would write it myself, but i'm glad i did. thanks!!

[identity profile] callmerayray.livejournal.com 2009-10-21 07:58 am (UTC)(link)
Aaaa! You're going to make it better right? Right?! Because I just read both of these and they're wonderful and heartbreaking and...and...wonderful! But heartbreaking! Now you have to fix it with some hot sweaty threesome action. Go! I have more exclamation points and I'm not afraid to use them! *brandishes her exclamation points* Go!

[identity profile] therumjournals.livejournal.com 2009-10-23 01:41 am (UTC)(link)
ha ha, thanks, yeah, it can be a little emotionally stressful to write, but you guys are totally inspiring me to write some more.

is it even possible to do hot sweaty threesome action in 100-word drabbles? maybe i should consider it a challenge... ;-)

[identity profile] mizzykitty.livejournal.com 2009-10-21 01:54 pm (UTC)(link)
That was beautiful, a lovely mix of angst and hope. And such an inventive way to tell the story, too! Loved it, and hope there will be more in this verse, because I'm hooked!

[identity profile] therumjournals.livejournal.com 2009-10-23 01:42 am (UTC)(link)
thanks, i'm so glad you liked it! i really thought i was done but you guys are totally inspiring me to write some more...

[identity profile] kianspo.livejournal.com 2009-10-24 06:18 pm (UTC)(link)
This? Perfect. Laconic, precise, raw.

Thanks so much for sharing.

[identity profile] therumjournals.livejournal.com 2009-10-25 12:55 am (UTC)(link)
thanks so much for reading and for the comment, i'm glad you liked it

[identity profile] ot-mornmeril.livejournal.com 2009-10-24 10:13 pm (UTC)(link)
omg, this was perfect. it makes me not want to publish my own Spock/Jim/Bones one-shot that is lying around on my desktop cause it makes it seem so shallow and weak in comparison to this masterpiece!

i love both of them, they made my heart ache, but they were great and i really really hope you'll write some more of it.

also: i SO understand you being torn between the two pairings, lol, that's the reason why i wrote a one-shot with all three of them too!

would you mind if i friend you?

[identity profile] therumjournals.livejournal.com 2009-10-25 12:57 am (UTC)(link)
aww, thanks, i'm so glad you liked it and that there are other people out there who feel my pain (love? pain? confusion?) re: kirk's dilemma ;-)

you should definitely post your fic though! and yes, friend away!!!

[identity profile] lizzie-marie-23.livejournal.com 2009-11-17 02:37 am (UTC)(link)
Oh, Kirk/Spock! But oh, Kirk/McCoy! How can you make me choose between them? I read the original and it was so good. And then you surpassed yourself with this one. I like the paragraph form; you can pack such a punch in a hundred words. Friends?