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"I can see you standing under that old forgotten tree
The day the world came to an end
I can hear you talking sitting by the stream
The day the world came to an end
When you took my hand and kissed me the leaves were changing
The day the world came to an end
Your dark brown eyes and raven hair
your brow telling me to cease talking
We were children
It wasn't our fight
Yet we were the ones losing
The day the world died
was the day we met
the day the world died
that tree was flourishing
that stream was brimming
and we were children"
Jim's calm voice sounds through the venue he and his band were having the last of this weeks performances. There fan's were silent during this song, they always were.
Slowly his band stops playing one after another, first Mitchell on the drums, then Hikaru quickly followed by Bones, and finally Nyota let's her voice simmer out leaving only Jim's for the final part. They had soon realized that this caused the best effect.
Sure enough the first few seconds after the song was done it remained silent enough for Jim to pick up sounds one normally doesn't hear with a band performing. Like the click of a communicator.
When he looks out into the crowd he sees his favorite listener has once again taken up position somewhere in the back of the room. Just enough in the shadow that, if you were not actively searching for him like Jim was, his completely dark outfit made him almost invisible.
"Dear gentle folk, I know this is normally the closure of the evening, but you all were so great I feel like singing one more song. It's an oldie but I love hearing it and I hope you all agree. It's called 'Dream a little dream of me'."
He nods to Hikaru who starts playing the score Jim had made him learn. The rest of the band silently leaves the stage, and Cupcake sets the lights both on stage as in the audience exactly as Jim wants them to be. The screen behind them projects a starry night as they used to be.
"Dream a little dream of me"
Jim opens his eyes on that last word just in time to connect with the brown eyes across the room. They are opened wide showing a whirlwind of emotions before they are turned away and Jim knows those emotions are put back under lock and key.
He startles when all the lights in the room go on. Seems it's time up, show's over.
"People that is it. I hope you all enjoyed. We loved this town, hopefully we will be back soon. If you want any of our merch, or recordings, go hassle Pasha at our vending table. And when you go out don't forget to put on your masks and goggles over your protec-wear there's been some nasty weather forecast and we don't want anyone to get sick." He raises his hand and quickly gets off the stage.
Once his feet our back on the ground he finds Bones already suited up in his suit shoving his gear at him.
"I saw that one person you always sing for step out right when the lights went on. If you hurry you might catch him this time."
Jim grins and starts putting on his gear. "You handle the fans. I think I saw Marcus and Lester in the audience, and they are getting clingy again." He pulls his zipper up before Slamming on his breathing mask and goggles.
"Still not up for making babies huh." Bones grins. "Why do you think I switch our gears? It will take a moment for them to notice hey are chasing the wrong band member."
"You are the best Bones."
Jim sneaks out of a backdoor and runs to the farthest point of the building. Till now every time he came that was were he went if Jim was outside in time to spot him. This time he can actually see him stepping around a container.
"Wait please. I need to talk to you." Jim yells fruitlessly as the winds are sweeping harder and harder around him drowning out any sound.
He rounds the corner and finds empty ground as far as the eye can see. swearing there's a faint shimmering just steps away from where he stands he swears loudly. Slamming his hand into the container.
Checking he didn't damage the gear, he turns and walks to where the band has their travel bus. It's a bit crowded with all fifteen of them in it, but it is their home on the road. Plus unlike most vehicles it's completely proofed shut, so once the dust is cleared from you in the small decomp room at the door they can actually take off their gear and just lounge.
His mood plummets even more when he steps out of decomp only to find Gary sitting in the middle of the plushest sofa with his arms around just the two ladies he did not want to see. The smirk on his face makes Jim remember why he is liking Gary less and less. Because like most people who remember both their names and not just one, he has the habit of pretending he is superior to the rest.
"Aren't you lucky Jimmy-boy, I intercepted these two lovely ladies just in time. Can you believe they almost wasted their time chasing Bonesey thinking he was you?" Gary rubs his hands over their arms making both young ladies look a bit uncomfortable.
He should feel bad about thinking it is just what they deserve. "How chivalrous of you." Jim takes a bottle of water from their mini.
"You know that's who I am." Gary laughs. "He, while you're at it could you get me a..."
Jim closes the mini with his foot and sits down in a tight chair across from them. "Janet, Clara, the bus is only for members of the band, and crowded as is. So I will have to ask you to leave soon."
Hester leans forward, trying to place her hand on his knees but rights herself when Gary takes the opportunity to have his hand slide from her shoulder to her ass. She calmly removes it without even moving her eyes from Jim.
"It's Janice and Carol," Jim mumbles an insincere apology to that "plus Gary here said you all allow lovers to stay on for a night. So.." Her suggestion is clear.
Jim gives Gary a nasty look which he just shrugs off.
"As true as that is we do have rules about it, as Gary knows but seems to have forgotten. First off the lovers we talk about are our partners, not fans. Second the whole band has to unanimously be okay with it as once again small space lots of people. And third, it can only happen when we are stationed for the night." Jim smiles charmingly. "Seeing as we are leaving for the next town once everyone is in, and we don't take stragglers along, you'll have to be without Gary tonight."
"Now." Jim abruptly stands up and makes a move to the door. "It is time for you girls to leave, as it is late and we don't want you getting lost on your way home. Good night."
He walks out of the sitting area towards the small room he shares with Bones. Stupid Gary got them on the bus he can see them off. If only a new drummer was as easy to find as this asshole had been. In a world where survival meant everything not a lot of people wasted time on leaning instruments well enough to perform.
He hears Janice shrieking loudly that Gary lied to them and that he will suffer for that. He just laughs it off. Soon enough he can hear Gary come to the door, but Jim places his foot so that he can't open it.
"Dammit Jim. That was rude, you made me look like a liar. We all know you took that Rand girl last time so what's so damn different this time. Putz." And he stomps off to the room he shares with two of their roadies. The same two guys who are likely cleaning up and packing in his drum-kit.
Jim sighs. Of course they never did tell Gary why the rest all had agreed on taking Rand along, he would have abused the situation.
"We really need a new drummer." Jim rubs his face. Maybe in the next town.
Once Bones stumbles in an hour later, waking up Jim, he mumbles about bumping into the nicest guy called Scotty that had treated him to beer, and lots of it. Although the guy hadn't seen their performance he had asked about Jim a lot.
He prods Jim. "Hey, I lost them fairly soon. Think they are giving up on their we-want-a-Jim-Baby idea?"
Jim opens one eye. "Nope Gary was 'ever so kind' as to take them unto the bus to wait for me here while everyone was still clearing gear. Even told them they could stay the night as my lovers. Told them to get lost." He's quiet for a moment. "I tried being polite, but only minimally."
"Good." Bones crashes into the bed next to him. "This bed is crowded enough with just the two of us, and as comfy as that sofa is to sit on it was not made for sleeping."
"True." Jim slips of back to sleep. "We need a new drummer. Luckily the band owns the kit, so we just need to replace Gary.
---
It's another three weeks before Jim sees that man at one of their shows again, this time he has an older looking man next to him. A man with gray hair that were once dark brown, and eyes that are clouded with bad memories while they were once filled with mirth and determination.
He closes his eyes for a moment, he knew sooner or later he would be attracting attention. And after almost everyone in the band had met new people showing an odd interest in him he knew it was quickly becoming sooner. Which was good as he was running out of time.
There is a moment when Gary 'accidentally' sets in the wrong rhythm, but a well aimed toss from Nyota solves that. The rest of the set plays like a charm, with 'when the world came to an end' as the final song.
Before anyone can stop him he tosses the mic to Bones and rushes off stage. He suits up and gets out, knowing there is even less time than before as they had left halfway through the song.
It takes him a moment to get his bearings as the winds are particularly nasty this day. The radiated particles stick to everything and Jim knows his goggles will be completely clouded over if he doesn't get out of the weather soon.
Taking a deep breath he stills his heart just long enough to hear something, hoping it is them he turns and rushes off into the direction he thought the sound came from.
Only then does he notices the sickly green lamps all lit up, signalling that it is too dangerous to be out and shelter must be found. Seems if he doesn't catch them now he'll be in for it.
Then as by some miracle he sees a person through the haze before him, and by the tred he knows it is the one he wishes to see, to talk to. The one he has been looking for, for six years. Ever since the Vulcan's came to Earth after that massive Romulan ship had come and damage the atmosphere enough to cause toxic solar winds wreak havoc on both nature and the human minds.
"Spock!" Jim yells as loud as he can. "I know you can hear me. Please stop and talk to me."
The figure falters for a moment than steers away from where he was headed and ducks into a small storage building Jim hadn't even seen standing there. He dives in after. Closing the door on the winds.
There before him, finally for the first time since he was sixteen, Jim lays his eyes on Spock. He grew up nicely for a race that stays younger much longer than humans do.
"Long time no see. You never wrote." Jim quips.
Spock calmly exhales. "You were supposed to no longer remember I even existed, any interaction would have been detriment to that belief."
"And yet you come to our shows, you come to see me." Jim steps forward. "That must mean something."
"It means you are attracting attention. And some unwanted at that."
He smiles. "Your attention is never unwanted. I wouldn't mind to have it on me always."
There, through the haze of both his goggles and Spock's visor he sees the eyebrow edge up.
"I wrote a song about us. I know you've heard it."
"At first I thought it was about..." Spock goes silent.
"Tarsus?" Jim shrugs. "I wrote 'Hush my little ones' about that. It's a downer, so we usually only perform that when explicitly asked."
"What else do you remember?" Spock looks up worried, Jim sighs. Guess his time is up.
"I remember you loving the green apple trees behind our house, you teaching me about Vulcan kisses."
Spock nods slowly as if he had expected for Jim to remember that, probably because it's was in the song he had written. So he goes in for the kicker. "I remember being brought to the center where my memories would be wiped."
"Not wiped they are simply stored where the conscious psyche can not reach them."
"Semantics. I remember being told to wait, I remember hacking into the system and making it believe I was already 'processed', after which I simply left." Jim looks at Spock defiantly. "My sanity was not failing me, I was traumatized by Tarsus. But I was handling it."
"You never forgot anything." Spock blinks. "All of it?"
"James Tiberius Kirk. Born March 22 at our family farm in Riverside Iowa. second son of George Samuel Kirk the first and Winona Kirk. Younger brother of George Samuel Kirk the second, also known as Sammy, who died of anaphylactic complications two years before I was born. I was named after both my paternal and maternal grandfathers." Jim stares at Spock. "I could go on for a while, so just assume it is indeed everything."
He wants to say anything more but just then his longs seize up and he starts coughing violently. What a time for an attack. He pads his hands over his hip, only to realize he left the small bag with his meds back in the dressing room.
There is a whizzing noise coming from right before him. Opening his eyes he sees Spock scanning him. "Your longs are compromised severely. I had thought you might have taken up smoking to get that raspy tone but you are ill." Spock checks the data. "No, you are dying."
He flips out a communicator. "Commander Scott, this is Lieutenant Spock. Two to beam up, straight to medbay decomp. It is an emergency." There is some shouting from the other end.
"I am aware of protocol. It was designed as to not shock the minds of those that have forgotten. Beam us up. I will deal with father."
Spock's arm settles around Jim's waist before the tingling feeling of being transported takes hold of his whole body. Sure enough they find themselves in a decomp chamber in a very fancy starship medbay.
Through the strain of getting in enough air Jim manages to smile. He raises his hand just the way his father had thought him as a small boy. "Peace and long Life Sarek, it has been a while."
He then proceeds to pass out completely.