"I believe it would be prudent to dedicate an afternoon to correcting the program itself," Spock said and Nyota nodded.

"That sounds interesting," she replied. "I don't know enough about programming as it is. We could do it now, if you don't mind me getting in the way?"

"I do not," he assured her, sliding the tray back into the tower. When she stood upright, he blinked as her hair brushed against the side of his face and froze for a second. A moment later as he stood also, he realised they were standing a little too close for propriety although he had to admit it was not exactly unpleasant. She licked her lips and his gaze flitted down to her mouth before dropping briefly to give her the once over. Her breath seemed unnaturally loud in the quiet. "I have completed the reset of the computer," he murmured, meeting her eyes once more. Nyota nodded mutely and stood frozen, trapped between him and the tower behind.

"Uh huh," she mumbled, her lashes fluttering as she chewed on her lip for a second before shuffling sideways towards the door, well aware that her bosom pressed intimately against him as she did so but unable to do anything else.

Nyota loitered in the hallway, her eyes falling on to the round swell of his backside as Spock closed the door to the server room. When he turned to her she gave him a small, polite smile before falling into step as they made their way back to the office. When they entered she ambled back towards her station and when she turned around she found Spock hovering inside the door with an oddly perplexed look on his face. She chewed her lip and shifted from foot to foot.

"Shall I pull up my chair?" she queried with the tiniest of coughs. Spock raised his eyes and stared at her for a brief moment.

"That would be acceptable," he said hurriedly, holding her gaze for a second before starting towards his desk. Nyota turned and clasped the back of her chair in her hands, her tongue swiping across her lips and her eyes darting from side to side. Taking a fortifying breath she plastered a confident smile on her face and pushed her chair around his desk so that it was beside his. Spock was already seated and had a tab open on his console. Nyota furrowed her brow a little as she took in the lines of gibberish that constituted the computer programme Spock had written so that his students could write Vulcan ideographs on Academy consoles.

"I am so out of my depth," she commented as she slid down into her seat. Spock tilted his head to one side.

"I have faith in your abilities," he assured her. She gave him a sceptical look and he dipped his chin at her in a sympathetic gesture. "Consider it a language you have yet to learn." Nyota smiled a little and leaned closer.

"If you don't mind me asking but how did you end up in the Linguistics department?" Spock pursed his lips as he considered his reply.

"A position was available, I was in need of a posting," he replied as if that should be sufficient explanation. Nyota shook her head dissatisfied.

"Yeah but Spock, you're a scientist and...you were on a Starship," she countered. "And I don't want to sound like a traitor to my own kind but...isn't Xenolinguistics a bit dull for you?" Spock turned to meet her eyes.

"I do not find that to be the case," he assured her. "And besides, as a scientist, I seek all forms of knowledge even those that deviate from the subjects in which I am formally trained." Nyota nodded and pursed her lips, watching his profile as he turned back to the screen.

"Ah," she chirped, her eyes flicking up and down his face. "That's a very good attitude to have." He really was to handsome for his own good.

"I have been on occasion seconded to other areas," he remarked as his fingers glided across the keyboard.

"What are you doing here?" she queried, pointing with her finger at a highlighted section of code.

"I am isolating particular subroutines," he told her. "This section here is I believe, the cause of the error." Nyota narrowed her eyes and peered at the text, chewing her lip and resolving not to mention that she was totally lost. "One...moment..." Spock murmured, flicking to another window. Nyota gave him a sideways glance and leaned her chin in her hand.

"What other areas do you work in?" she asked mildly and Spock tilted his head towards her ever so slightly and peeked at her out of the corner of his eye.

"Programming, invariably," he admitted with a hint of amusement and she chuffed a little breath out of her nose.

"Oh of course, you do the Kobayashi Maru don't you?" she replied and Spock nodded. "You know there's a lot of people want to get you back for that." Spock's brow twitched a little.

"That is the common response," he agreed and she smiled. "See here," he said, pointing at the screen. "I believe this is the source of the conflict." Nyota glanced back and hummed, nodding her head in interest although she still had no idea what the problem was.

"Oh...kay," she told him, leaning back in her chair and gripping the armrests.

"If I alter the code here..." he murmured, falling silent as his fingers flew across the console.

"You're such a brainiac Spock," Nyota commented playfully and he gave her a sideways glance.

"Shall we test that hypothesis?" he said with a quirk of his brow and she smiled. Spock pressed a few buttons and then opened another window, loading the altered programming. Nyota leaned forward, their shoulders pressing together as they peered intently at the screen and two seconds later she grimaced toothily as the console jammed up. Spock's brow furrowed for just a second and she chuffed a little breath.

"Whoops," she chirped, giving him a sympathetic smile. "Guess we better reset."

"Indeed," Spock said, leaning back in his seat with a slight sigh.

"Come on," she said, nudging his shoulder with her own and rising from her seat. Spock followed her with his eyes as she slipped around the table and headed towards the door. "You coming?" Spock did not reply and silently rose to follow her into the hall.

When he opened the door to the server room, Nyota slipped under his arm and disappeared into the darkness ahead of him. She shuffled along and came to a stop in front of a tower, reaching for circuit when Spock stilled her movements with a gentle hand to the elbow.

"It is the next one," he informed her softly.

"Oh, silly me," she uttered bashfully, shuffling along a little further. She crouched down a little way and pulled out the drawer as Spock did likewise, reaching out his hand to kill the power while she pulled out the crystal and dropped it back in again. Spock pressed the power button and the lights came back on and a second later Nyota closed the tray again. "Well at least that's one thing I can do," she quipped and Spock blinked at her lazily. She grinned at him. "I feel like when I was a child and I'd ask my dad to let me press the button at the traffic lights."

"I do not understand," he remarked and she licked her lips.

"Oh it doesn't really matter," she told him gently. Spock did not press her on the subject, distracted as he was by the sight of her tongue swiping over her lip. Nyota was not oblivious and swallowed, her eyes darting from side to side. "Okay," she chirped, standing up straight. Spock did likewise and they found themselves once again standing a little too close for propriety. Nyota's breath seemed very loud in her own ears and she become suddenly very self conscious. Spock was looking at her with wide eyes and she hitched a shoulder and gave a little cough. "We should ah..." she mumbled and he nodded.

"Indeed," he uttered breathlessly, hesitating for just a moment before sliding along the narrow passageway towards the door.

Seated once again behind his desk, Nyota stared intently at the console while Spock babbled about the programming. She smiled and nodded, rubbing her palms on her skirt nervously. "There are other similar programs used for Terran idiograms," he told her, shifting in his seat a little way. Nyota cleared her throat and leaned forward in an effort to appear focussed. "It might on consideration be possible merely to...'patch'... a similar line of code from another programme," he said, turning his head and giving her the briefest of glances. Nyota turned to meet his eyes in acknowledgement, blushing furiously as their noses almost brushed together. She froze and stared into his eyes that were unnervingly close.

"Like this one?" she blustered, turning her head away suddenly and pointing at the screen. Spock swallowed hard.

"That is the flawed subroutine," Spock pointed out.

"Oh," Nyota uttered, her eyes darting from side to side, her hand frozen over the console. She winced and hunched her shoulders up. "I don't have a clue...what any of this means," she admitted, looking at him with a pained expression.

"I see," Spock told her, his own expression similarly stricken. She pursed her lips.

"I'm sorry, I'm not really much help am I?" she chuffed with phoney amusement, drawing her hand back and fiddling with the hem of her skirt. Spock licked his lips, hesitating for a moment before he spoke.

"You are inexperienced with computer programming," he said with a hint of sympathy. Nyota tilted her head to one side.

"You must think I'm an idiot," she said and Spock shook his head vigorously.

"You have many other assets which are highly commendable, Lieutenant" he told her sincerely. Nyota blushed even harder.

"Nyota," she breathed. "You can call me...Nyota. If you like." She stared at his Adam's apple as it bobbed in his throat.

"That is acceptable," he replied equally breathless.

"Huh," she uttered, glancing up to look at him through her lashes and finding him gazing at her with a dreamy expression.

"Nyota I..." he began with some difficulty. "I wish for you to know that I...value your companionship." She pressed her teeth into her lower lip, her heart fluttering wildly in her chest.

"I...value your companionship also," she told him, nodding enthusiastically. Spock opened his mouth to say more but he couldn't seem to get the words out. Nyota stared at him, holding her breath in anticipation. Spock moved his mouth but said nothing and the resulting silence was so unbearable she couldn't stand it. "Spock...um...I..." she mumbled, cautiously reaching forward with two fingers and timidly pressing them on top of his. Spock's expression relaxed a little and when she experimentally brushed her fingers down the back of his hand, he let out the tiniest sigh. Nyota blinked lazily and smiled at him. Spock blinked back and leaned ever so slightly closer, their noses almost touching when he spoke again.

"Nyota I...admire you...very much," he choked.

"UH huh," she whimpered, leaning even closer.

"But I am your...superior officer," he stammered. Her heart seemed to stop beating for a second and then he continued. "It would not...be appro...priate for us to..." Nyota screwed her eyes up tight and pressed her lips together.

"Oh god," she gasped. "I...I'm..." she shook her head, leaning back a way and pulling her fingers from his hand. "I'm...so...sorry."

Spock gulped hard. "Please do not apologize," he told her, reaching forward and trapping her hand beneath his on the desk. She opened her eyes to find his face still close to her own.

"This is...so embarrassing," she squeaked.

"Please believe me when I say that I am deeply gratified by the attention," he rasped and her expression softened. "If circumstances were otherwise..." She smiled weakly.

"Like...if you weren't...my boss," she ventured. Spock glanced over her shoulder and his brow slinked upwards.

"Nyota, Vulcans do not...we are..." he began, stumbling over the words. He leaned back a little way and dropped his gaze to her lap. "Our partners are selected for us by our families," he explained and her heart sank.

"Oh," she uttered almost inaudibly. Spock remained silent and looked her right in the eye with a wistful look.

"I am not at liberty to...with you..." he told her. Nyota stared with unfocussed eyes at the stubble on his chin for a long minute before leaning back in her chair.

"I've behaved inappropriately," she murmured, not looking at him.

"You have not," he assured her, squeezing her hand. She turned and looked at where their hands were pressed together on the table.

"I apologize," she said, delicately sliding her hand out from under his attempting to project an aura of nonchalance.

"There is no need," he replied, staring at the floor. Nyota straightened her shoulders and stared at the console. The cursor flickered at her tauntingly and her lip twitched a little. They sat in an awkward silence for a moment before she cleared her throat and spoke.

"So...you were going to patch the...the...code."

Spock blinked and turned his face back towards the screen. "Yes," he stated. "I was." Nyota kept her eyes fixed on the screen as he punched some keys on the console and a minute later he hesitated again, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. "I have amended the programme," he informed her. Nyota nodded, not looking at him.

"Why don't we see if it works?" she implored politely. Spock regarded her profile for a second.

"Yes." He reached forward and loaded the programme and Nyota held her breath. "It seems the patch was ineffective," he informed her in a neutral tone. She nodded mutely.

"I suppose we better go and reset the system," she murmured. Spock's eyes darted from side to side.

"I suppose," he replied. She hesitated for a moment before pushing abruptly up out of her seat and walking around the desk. Spock stood up and watched her disappear out of the door, taking short, shallow breaths and clenching his fists by his sides.

A minute later he appeared by her side as she struggled to get the door in the wall open, reaching his hand around the edge and tugging it open with ease. Nyota glanced up at him for the briefest of seconds before slipping silently in amid the towers that lined the server room. Spock blinked and slowly followed her inside. They stood in silence, Nyota pulling open the tray and Spock turning off the power.

"We have completed the...reset...," he breathed as she stood close, trapped between his body and the tower behind. She didn't say anything and as he stared into her eyes he found himself once again unable to move. Nyota took a fortifying breath and closed her eyes, reaching forward brazenly and pressing her lips against his. Spock froze for just a second before letting out the breath he didn't realise he was holding, wrapping his arms tightly around her and kissing her back for all he was worth. Nyota hummed against his lips and pressed her body flush against his, squirming in his embrace. Spock found the effect to be...highly pleasing and crushed her against the tower behind, his hips seeming to do things of their own volition. Nyota mumbled something into his mouth and shifted, lifting her leg to hook it over his hip. Spock grunted and hoisted her up, gratified by the way her legs wrapped around his waist.

Nyota buried her fingers in his hair and ground against him, delirious at the wonderful sensations that were coursing through her body. Spock was so sexy and she was kissing him in the server room and it was so inappropriate, he was her commanding officer and he really wasn't hers to be kissing but oh god, it was so hot that she just couldn't bring herself to stop. She wouldn't have, if it were not for the sound of loud voices in the corridor outside. Spock froze and she pulled her lips away from his with a muffled gasp, a panicked expression taking up residence on his face. She gulped and when she wriggled in his arms, Spock released her.

"You should..." she ventured, reaching up and smoothing her hand across his hair. Spock leaned forward and began to do likewise. Nyota adjusted her clothing and wiped her hand across her chin, slinking away down the narrow gap towards the door without looking at him. She stepped out into the corridor and glanced up and down to see a dozen or so cadets wandering down the hall out of a lecture room. She squared her shoulders and strode purposefully towards the office, flicking her hair over her shoulder and strutting as though she didn't have a care in the world.

"Hey!" Nyota turned to see a familiar green face smiling at her from down the hall.

"Hi," she chirped, plastering a smile on her face.

"Alright?" Gaila said as she approached.

"Hmm mmm," Nyota said with an enthusiastic nod of her head. A moment later Spock emerged from the server room appearing for all the world like an automaton, his face the perfect mask of Vulcan serenity. Without acknowledging anybody, he turned and closed the door to the server room and made his way towards his office.

"Good afternoon Commander," Gaila said in a sickly sweet voice.

"Good afternoon," he replied with a short nod before disappearing into his office. Gaila's eyes narrowed a little and she gave Nyota a suspicious glance. Nyota coughed.

"So," she began. "You all ready for our trip to Mars tomorrow?"

A/N That's it! I'm done! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. It's 6am and my eyes are on stalks so I apologize for any errors. I'm starting another Spock/Uhura fic soon so watch this space. Go boldly my brethren! Xxxxx PQ