Uhura’s hesitation at the door made her lip curl with self-recrimination. She need to “piss or get off the pot” as her American roommate during her cadet years had always pepped herself when facing indecision. Besides, she was the one who had requested this, though mostly in jest because everyone knew how very private the first officer was. But he’d stared at her, as if assessing, then told her to report to his quarters at 2200.

“Pissing,” Uhura murmured and pressed the door buzzer.

“Enter.”

Uhura doggedly kept her attention on Spock who stood and approached her. He was still wearing his uniform whereas she had changed into long khaki pants and a yellow pullover top.

“Good evening, Miss Uhura. Very prompt. I am grateful.”

She smiled shakily. “Thank you for agreeing to teach me.”

“I considered your musical ability, Miss Uhura. You have a refined ear for pitch and tone, and considering you have sufficiently mastered one of the hardest instruments of all—the human voice—it seemed logical you would try the Vulcan lute next.”

She nodded and clasped her hands. “I am quite honored by that assessment, Mr. Spock.”

He nodded as well, coming closer, and took her hands. He brought them up until they were almost eye-level with his face. He raised an eyebrow.

“I am assuming you do not want to cut these?”

Uhura was very glad her dark-brown skin masked her blush. “If you think it best—”

“If you do not mind our lessons taking a bit longer, then I have no quarrel. He stroked his thumbs over her middle and ring fingernails. “I remember my mother taking time to tend her nails when I was a youth. I would watch, intrigued, asking her if I could try, but my father said no.”

Uhura wasn’t sure if he’d told her that because he sensed her nerves, but imagining a young Spock wanting to experiment with nail polish caused her unease to uncoil with a laugh.

“Oh, Spock!”

He raised his eyebrows. “Fascinating. My mother said the same thing when I expressed my interest.”

She chuckled, and his small returning grin further set her at ease. He dropped one of her hands, but continued holding the other one, leading her to his seating area. The lute was on the stand beside the bench on which he helped her to sit. Sitting as well, took the instrument from the stand and positioned it in his lap. His fingers moved elegantly over the strings, creating an aural beauty that brought tears to her eyes. Uhura remembered all the times in the rec room when she’d sit entranced listening to him play while he seemed oblivious to the action around him, wanting to join him somehow, but never did. She didn’t think anything she could contribute would do what he did justice.

When she gathered herself and looked at Spock, he regarded her with an expression of…amusement?

“Mr. Spock?”

He bent his head and spread his hand upon the string. “If you are this moved by a simple warm-up scale, I am curious of the emotional outpouring an actual sonata will bring.”

Uhura hid her face in her hands and laughed. “Oh, Mr. Spock, I can’t help it!”

A large, very warm hand removed hers from her face. Spock touched her cheek with his index finger and brushed away a tear. He appeared to be studying her, reconciling her reaction to something that was as routine as running pre-shift diagnostics on one’s console and having someone else discover something remarkable.

“It would seem, Miss Uhura, you will not be the only one learning during these lessons.” He took his hand away from her face so he could place the lute in her lap. He knelt before her to make sure it was positioned correctly, but Uhura started to feel as warm as the Vulcan before her naturally was. His hands gently placed her fingers where they needed to be on the strings, but she was too busy looking at him to know exactly where they were.

“This is first position,” he said, moving his eyes to her face.

She thought herself jealous he could have such beautiful chocolate eyes. “Okay.”

He raised his eyebrows again. “I believe you should look so you may know how to place your fingers yourself in the future.”

Uhura immediately dropped her attention to her hands. It felt awkward, but not uncomfortably so.

“You will get used to the sensation,” he assured her. He was still on his knees before her, their faces now level. Uhura unconsciously licked her lips and bent forward, abruptly looking down at her fingers to hide her momentary loss of her mind.

“I doubt I will sound so lovely in my first attempt.”

“I am quite certain you will not sound lovely. It is illogical to presume otherwise.”

She shot him a mild glare, but the gentle teasing he allowed her to see in his eyes brought a tender smile to her face.

“Forgive my upcoming punishment for your ears.”

“Since I will not consider these lessons as abuse to my sonic senses, there is nothing to forgive.”

Taking a deep breath, she strummed. The sound, while not as glorious as Spock’s, wasn’t entirely unpleasant. The muscles around Spock’s eyes relaxed even more.

“It appears I was right, Miss Uhura,” he said, standing and walking to the left to procure a seat. He settled back before her. “No abuse at all.”

She smiled brightly at him, and he grinned. “I will try it again.”

“Please. I think maybe we will advance to second position by the end of our time.”

For the next thirty minutes, Uhura was an attentive student and Spock was a patient teacher. Every instance a hint of frustration crept upon her, Spock would lightly press his hands against hers and remind her this was merely the first lesson, not the last.

“I want to make this worth your while,” Uhura said, unable to quell the irritation she felt when her fingers stumbled over the strings again towards the end of the lesson. She’d so wanted to reach second position.

He took her hands and squeezed them briefly before placing them in her lap and removing the lute to replace it on its stand. He sat back in his chair and crossed his arms at his chest, swiveling to and fro in his seat.

“Do you feel you are wasting your time?” he finally asked.

Her eyes widened. “No! I just…” She sighed. “I want to learn! I want to…” She averted her eyes and frowned. “I want to be good.”

“You are good, and eventually, you will be proficient with the lute as well.”

She snapped her head to his, her heartbeat accelerating slightly at his words. She was bright enough to know he was saying two different things at the same time.

“Truly?” she asked, hating the hopeful plea in her voice.

He nodded and stood, going to his computer and turning it on. “Shall I schedule tri-weekly lessons for this time, Miss Uhura?”

She stood quickly and went to him, placing her hand on his forearm excitedly. “Thank you, sir!”

He nodded again and handed her two data tapes. “Listen to these in the interim. I think they will help you to hear what should sound before you actually attempt to play.”

“I will do so!”

The hour chimed. Uhura stepped away from Spock and gave him a shy smile. “Well, see you in two days, Mr. Spock…”

“Will you not be attending the shift tomorrow?”

She chuckled and rolled her eyes. “I meant for my lessons!”

The corners of his mouth upturned teasingly. “I see. Yes, two days, Miss Uhura.”

They stood there staring at each other for a long moment, Uhura tightening her grasp on the date tapes and Spock tucking his hand behind his back. He didn’t seem to mind she didn’t leave immediately, which, in all honesty, confused her.

“I do not think we will solve the mystery the other possesses before this standard date is done,” he finally said.

“Mystery?” she asked, blinking in surprise at that.

“Oh, yes, Miss Uhura. I fully meant what I said about these lessons being educational for both of us.”

Uhura wisely kept her mouth shut. This was no regular man, and her penchant for harmless flirting could be unwelcome or uncomfortable to him. The last thing she wanted to do was destroy whatever rapport they’d built up tonight.

“Sleep well, Mr. Spock,” she said, going to the door.

He nodded quickly. “Yes, I think I shall sleep tonight. You have a productive rest as well, Miss Uhura.”

With one last quick smile, she left his quarters, humming the warm-up scale she hadn’t quite perfected yet. When she stepped into the turbolift, Dr. McCoy was inside and smiled brightly at her.

“Well, ain’t you a sight and sound for sore eyes and ears,” he said, bouncing on the balls of his feet. “Where are you coming from, my dear?”

“Spock’s quarters—”

McCoy groaned and rolled his eyes, jabbing a hand in the direction of the data tapes she held. “Work! Jesus, that green-blooded, overgrown elf wouldn’t know a good time if it smacked him on the ass!”

Giggling, Uhura stood on the balls of her feet and kissed McCoy’s cheek. “You know you like him.”

The turbolift stopped and McCoy sighed, but he did raise an inquiring eyebrow. “Please tell me you smacked him on the ass anyway!” He stood in the doors so they wouldn’t close.

She gasped and placed her hand dramatically on her chest. “Dr. McCoy! Just what kind of girl you think I am?”

He just stared at her, crossing his arms at his chest and raising an eyebrow.

She affected a disappointed expression. “No, I’m afraid not this time.”

He suddenly smirked and shook his head. “Well, if anyone could make him bend over and take it, it’s you.”

Uhura snorted. “And you. And the captain.”

“Yes, but I have needles to make my case. The captain is…well…the captain. However, you have your beautiful smile.”

She grinned at him and put her hands on her hips. “Nice save, Doctor.”

McCoy winked at her as he walked off and the turbolift door’s closed.

The rest of the trip to her quarters was full of her deep in thought. Entering her space, Uhura immediately sat down and popped in one of the data tapes. The lute’s hauntingly beautiful melody filled the air, and Uhura sighed.

Spock had said more than once they would both learn something during these lessons. Maybe she could teach him to smile more freely.

The glimpses she’d seen of them were lovely.