AN: I'm working on the last couple of chapters and hope to update soon. Thank you everybody for being so nice and waiting around for me to get a chance to update. Once I'm through, I'm reviewing the whole thing for typos and posting it on my AO3 account KerryLamb. In the meantime, go and read Darkwood Princess's newest story Misery, it's so cute. OH and Valyria has a new S/A story out now as well as her AU one, each is thoroughly enjoyable. PoorQueequeg is busy atm but working on marvelous things I assure you. Shaka~!

After a short, nauseating ride over to his Hotel, Spock led Nyota through the lobby towards his room, observing the curious glances being cast their way, many of them given by the men looking at Nyota draped around Spock's arm.

" Do I have something on my shirt?" Nyota asked wondering at the attention they were gaining.

" Negative. I think it when it comes to being in the presence of the Great Pele, mere mortals lose their manners and gawk openly."

Nyota snorted and swatted at his chest. " You're really getting the hang of humor, Spock! You better watch out or people might mistake you for a Romulan or an augmented human!"

" I can only hope to be so insulted." he teased, looking down at her as she chuckled. The slim bond better them thrummed with her good-humored happiness and Spock plucked at the feeling that was both alien and familiar to him.

Where had he felt this before? Spock reviewed his memory and a vision of his mother, laughing unguarded in the privacy of their library over a book came to mind.

" Ko-mekh are you ill?" he inquired. He was young, just old enough to speak with her and he had never seen her in such a state. Yes, she would smile here and there and make an interesting huffing noise at times when she commed her relatives living on Earth but he could not recall her being in such...hysterics.

At his question, she doubled over and laughed even harder and he slowly made his way to the door, unsure if such a fit was contagious.

Spock looked in horror to find that her eyes were leaking as well. She must have been in extreme pain he thought. He had see such pictures in terran children's literature, humans crying when put under great duress but his mother was smiling as oppose to...what was the word...frowning, yes the action of holding one's mouth and eyebrows at a downwards slant.

" Oh no Safu, I'm just laughing! I read a funny story and it made me giggle." she explained wiping a tear.

" Clarify." he asked skeptically.

" Here, I'll share it with you. Humor isn't something you can really explain." she said hold out her hand in the ta'al position.

" Linking with you will not injure me, will it?" he held his hand back, still concerned about his safety.

" No, Spock. I won't hurt you." she smiled down gently at him.

He swallowed and slowly pressed his small, soft hand against his mother's and felt the first tingle of this emotion that caused her laughter. It fizzed and popped and made his face feel funny. It was a light and bubbly thing, flowing freely through him like a desert wind unobstructed by nothing. It crept up to his throat with tickle.

" He...hehe. Oh!" he giggled before clapping his hands over his mouth. " Ko-mekh, you promised I would not be injured!"

" Causing you to chuckle can hardly be called an injury Safu. Now off with you before I continue to infect you with my emotions!" she said in a wavering voice with arms outstretched like she was going to grab him.

Spock gasped and quickly took his exit of the room.

" What are you thinking about Spock?" Nyota prodded as he opened the door to his suite.

" Your laughter reminded me of a memory of my childhood."

" I hope it was a good one." she said as she entered and looked about his room.

" I am quite fond of it." he replied watching her flit from one piece of furniture to the next. " What would you like to eat?"

" Hmm, anything with tuna would be great, thank you." she said looking out of his window at the beach. " You have an amazing room! I wish I could afford to stay at a place like this."

" Would you care to stay with me?" he asked dialing the number for room service.

Nyota turned to him with her jaw hanging open like a fish. " What? Really!? You'd let me stay here with you? Isn't that like, against Vulcan rules or something?"

Spock started to mention the bond was much more intimate than her staying over could ever be but he bit his tongue and amended his reply. " I would greatly enjoy your company here, and it would not offend my Vulcanness in the least if you did so."

Nyota started to smile but it faltered into a frown. " Uh, I dunno. My friends and I were suppose to be taking a vacation together before we all went off to the academy. I've already dumped them twice now and I know Christine is already sore with me about it."

Spock felt his chest constrict at the mention of Starfleet and squared his shoulders nervously. " Nyota, there is something that I have been meaning to tell you..."

" Oh really? Me too! You wanted to go first then and then I'll share?" she said flopping on his bed. She looked so incredibly gorgeous lying there that Spock actually paused to regard her. Her glittering brown eyes crinkled into slits as she smiled over at him, her affection soothing him like a warm bath after rigorous training in their bond. It was amazing to feel so wanted by someone you would have never thought to look at you twice, and Spock didn't want to ruin it by underhanded means like not telling her everything she should know.

" Spock, what did you want to tell me." she asked rolling over onto her belly and resting her chin on her propped up arms.

" I did..." he started before having the kitchen picked up the comm line and inquiring about their dinner.

"One moment please." he nodded to her and listed off the various dishes he wished for them to dine from.

The chef wished and clicked her tongue as he finished listing off the order. " Phew, I better get to work then. Should be ready in about 20 minutes. Arlo! Damon! Get up and get cracking we got a doozy here!"

Spock looked at the comm as if it would define doozy for him when Nyota came up and hugged him. He immediately hugged her back and nuzzled his face into her hair. How he longed to do this right after her performance. The other ladies received their male counterparts' affection openly and gleefully and he wanted Nyota to know how much he appreciated her, be the one to hug her and shoo away the other males wishing to garner her attention but it was still all too foreign for him to fathom.

Nyota initiating holding his hand or wrapping her arms about his was something he was just getting use to but he knew it was something she needed as a human. How human could her actually be for her? It was decided long ago for him to live his life as a Vulcan despite his mixed heritage. Was she okay with him being Vulcan, not only physically but culturally and emotionally as well? His anxiety must have been irritating her because she nuzzled closer and looked up at him.

" I really like you, Spock." she whispered, nibbling anxiously on her lip. " I've never felt so comfortable with anyone else before, never been so happy with someone else before. I wish we lived in the same place and see where this could go."

If she only knew how much of a reality that would be...

" Nyota, I..." he started only to be cut short when she leaned up and kissed him. Her adore soared through him, making him light headed. Her lips made him shiver and he purred against her mouth. He could feel the hair on the back of his hair stand up on end as he kissed her back.

So special, she was so very unique and she desired him, just the way he was.

She tugged at his shirt and pulled him towards the end of the bed. He sat and lifted her up onto his lap, continuing the gentle brush of his lips against hers. Their hands slowly followed the lead of their mouths and came to embrace the other, deepening their kiss with yet another kind.

Nyota hummed as she was blanketed in his sensible admiration, their joined fingers stroking and sliding ever so often bringing on another wave of mind-numbing lust.

Just as Spock was about to suggest they stop, the door chimed. They parted their mouth and stared at each other panting, hands still entwined.

" We kissed for 20 minutes?" she huffed.

" Actually 27.4 minutes. They were late." he answered looking back at her with half lidded eyes.

He felt drunk, as if he had eaten a whole bar of chocolate. It seemed Nyota's combined kissing had put him in a daze, that he did not readily want to leave. Perhaps it was always this way with one's bonded but he had never experienced anything quite like it with T'Pring. Did his mother's love affect his father the same way? Maybe it was an effect that humans could inflict upon Vulcans. That prospect was both terrifying and arousing.

As if reading his mind, Nyota crushed her lips against his once more and he found that he could not deny kissing her back until the door chimed once more.

" I must...answer that." he panted in between kisses.

" MmmHmm..." she commented absent mindedly.

" Nyota...we must stop..."

" Why?"

" If we...were to...continue... we would starve." he answered logically, only to have Nyota roll over laughing on the bed.

He shook his head and went to answer the door. The waiter glided the hovercart into his room and gave a quick dip at the waist before making his exit.

Spock uncovered each dish and recovered the one he saw containing tuna. Nyota skipped over and made a pleased hungry growl as she observed the food and happily accepted a dish of taro ramen.

" I don't think we're going to be able to finish all this."

" We will. Use your human faith Nyota. I know with very well that I could eat all of this without your help."

She tugged at her noodles with her chopsticks and silently pulled them into her mouth, making faces he had seen many times on his shipmates' faces as the ate something especially delicious. While he did enjoy food when it was cooked under a practised hand he could not see wanting to always see out food that was pleasurable. Food was something to be eaten for energy not for one enjoyment. Belatedly he thought of shave ice and tamped down a wave of guilty. Well,...most food.

" You're going to explode eating all of this." she warned pointing at the various dishes with her chopsticks.

" I am a Vulcan, Nyota. I can do things most humans could not." he nodded at her as he spooned a tangy potato salad over a bowl of steamy coconut rice. He spied the spicy fried taro root and stuck a few pieces of that in the bowl as well with his fork.

Nyota looked at him with a mild expression of disgust as he ingested the dish, saying that there were ' too many things going on' for it to probably taste good. He gave a quick flick of his brow indifferently, he rather liked the spicy, sweet tanginess of the combined food and the medley of textures they produced when chewed.

" So..." Nyota prodded aloud as she moved onto a plate of sashimi. " I never asked what you do for a living?"

Spock, who had been reaching for a bowl another of rice, knocked over the jar of soy sauce onto his lap.

" Oh no! " she sighed grabbing a napkin and patted Spock's crotch. He looked at her with a face of mild discomfort before gently removing her hand.

" It is alright. I will clean them in the bathroom. Thank you for your help." he said cautiously moving over to the dress and pulled out a fresh pair of pajama pants and underwear. " If you will excuse me I will be back momentarily."

She nodded and went back to eating their dinner, her eyes lingering after him as he walked to the bathroom.

When he started the shower Nyota sulked a bit in her chair. Ugh, long wait ahead she guessed nibbling on the last piece of fatty tuna. She should comm Christine to let her know that she wouldn't be back until the morning. Though she knew she should probably take it slow, having a whirlwind romance with a Vulcan was rare if not totally unheard for a human and she wouldn't miss the chance to live it out to the fullest.

She looked down at her comm to find the battery dead so she shifted over towards Spock's over on the nearby desk. When she flipped it open the speaker featured announced he had two waiting messages.

First message from Captain Christopher Pike

"WHAT!?" she shrieked.

" Hi, Spock, Pike here. Hope you're having a decent time there on Kauai. Just calling to check in and let you know that you'll have your hands full from what I see on your fall class roster. You're Phonology I class is already full but we're received 6 overrides for it! Aren't you the popular one? We'll I'll quit yakking and see you back at the Academy soon enough."

Nyota stared at the comm in disbelief as the next message played in her absence of commands.

Second message from S'chn T'gai Sarek

" Wait! The Ambassador?!"

" Spock, you're grandmother has told me that you still have yet to remove the bond that you have recently formed. It is very illogical for you to carry on with this behavior. Is the bonded even aware of it's presence? You might return home at once to have it removed. If you wish to look for another betrothal we shall be the ones to do so, not you. Live long and prosper son."

" Son?" she whispered, her stomach knotting tightly around her meal. What was this, some sort of joke? He was in Starfleet as a senior officer and instructor? He was the S'chn T'gai teaching her Phonology I class? And what the hell was this bond thing that his dad who was apparently the Vulcan Ambassador for Earth talking about? Betrothal?

She cupped her head as her mind reeled with the reality of it all. She had made out with her future professor and she might be bonded or whatever the heck his dad was talking about to him!

" Oh my God!" she sobbed looking around the room for a form of relief.

She looked up to see Spock exiting the bathroom, steam trailing behind him as he quickly walked over to her. " Are you well?" he asked sitting down beside her and was surprised to see her flinch away.

" How long did you know?"

" Know what, Nyota?"

" That you were my professor!?"

Spock opened his mouth to answer but she continued on.

" And this bond thing, are we bonded?"

" Where did you get this information." he asked curiously.

" It doesn't matter, answer my questions!" she yelled tearfully.

" I...I just found out about your enrollment into my class this evening."

" But you knew I said I was going to the academy, why didn't you bring it up then?" she countered.

" I did not see a convenient time in which to do so."

" Oh really? We've seen each other for the past three days and you couldn't even say once to me that you a officer in Starfleet? And this bond! Does it makes a engaged or something?"

" No, it is,...it is a link from my mind to yours."

Nyota looked at him and for the first time since she knew him felt like he was totally alien to her. Why didn't he tell her? We did he link himself to her?

Spock felt her fearful anger towards him like a burning stab in his chest. He knew that she could get hurt if he didn't say anything to her and he was planning to, he just found himself out of time to do so. He never he could hurt her so much.

" I am sorry I did not tell you these things earlier."

She shook her head and made her way past him, grabbed her helmet and opened the door. " So am I."

He followed her out, everything else forgotten." Nyota, I was going to tell you tonight."

" I have no reason to believe that." she spat fishing out her gloves and pulled them onto her hands. She wasn't sticking around him, he could just forget her staying over. In fact, he could just forget her. How was it going to work out anyways? He was her commanding officer and under his direct instruction at school. She felt so shocked she didn't even know where to start dissecting 'them'.

" You can believe it on the fact that Vulcans do not lie."

" Really? Because I feel like I found the only one who can."

He stood there stunned at her accusation feeling his own ire rise up. " I was going to tell you until you interrupted me tonight."

" Save it for somebody else."

" Nyota, stop being illogical and stay to discuss this."

Mounting her bike and fitting her helmet she turned to him before flipping the visor closed. " Aloha Oe. Until we meet again."

Spock watched as she revved the engine before tearing off into the night. Through the bond he could still feel her pain.

" I am sorry."