Nobis ✴︎ Pavel Chekov

Chapter Fourteen - Other Half

Pavel finds himself alone with Emory but he doesn't really want to ask about Karsen. He doesn't want to seem clingy and he feels like he could easily make a fool out of himself if Karsen's just a friend or something. He stays quiet but Emory knows he has something on his mind. She asks him about it and he tries to pass it off as lack of sleep but she can see right through him.

"How long have you known Karsen?" Pavel asks, trying to change the subject.

Emory laughs. "You think he's my ex or something, don't you?"

Pavel feels his cheeks flush a little. "I thought he was a friend or cousin or something maybe. Is he related or?"

"You could say that," she laughs. "He's my twin."

"Oh."

Emory laughs and shows him a few photos on her phone. The more Pavel thinks about it, the more obvious it is. They have the same eyes, same hair colour, same personality. He wonders why he didn't notice it sooner. Jealous, perhaps?

"That's why I called him my other half. We've been pretty inseparable since birth but then he decided to travel the world and I wanted to go to Starfleet. It's been pretty hard without him, to be honest. I went from always having a friend to being alone very suddenly and I guess I never took it well. But hey, it's how I met you, so I can't complain."

"And since you've met me you don't have to be alone anymore." He smiles softly and she gives him a weak smile in return.

"Unless you get deployed."

Pavel stops for a second. "Unless we get deployed?" He speaks slowly and with uncertainty, filling with doubt and studying her, waiting for some kind of response.

"Unless we get deployed," she confirms. "I guess I just forget I'm going to be up there too."

Pavel nods but he has a very strong feeling that something's not right. He's quiet for a while and Emory knows he's uncomfortable. He's dying to ask if she's actually going to space, if it's not all some kind of lie to get them to stay together. He wants to ask, but the part of him that is scared to know stops him. He doesn't want to hear the truth if it means that Emory would be staying on Earth. He tries not to think about it and Emory tries to give him a reassuring smile. He tries to return it but doesn't feel remotely reassured.

"So your brother's full name is Karsen Corrsin?"

Emory laughs, "Yeah, he gets KC for short."

Pavel nods. At least Karsen isn't an ex-boyfriend.

In the middle of the night, Pavel gets a call and for a few seconds he's scared he's getting deployed but he looks at the area code on the caller ID and it's Russian. He picks up the phone and his mother is on the other end. She's annoyed he hasn't called in so long and he decides against telling her it's because he's been too busy getting completely wasted and having problems with girls. He tells his mother he's been studying too hard, something he knows she'll actually believe.

Pavel's mother asks about Irina, his ex and he finds himself wincing at her name again. He puts the line on mute for a few seconds while he tries to figure out what on earth he's going to tell her. He rules out telling her the truth because he doesn't think he can. He doesn't want to tell her that they're fine either. He knows his mother, she'll ask to talk to her. Pavel's mother starts asking where he is and he freaks out, hanging up the phone. He realises he's taken the worst possible option and sighs to himself.

He messages her and says that he woke up his roommate and he'll call her another time. If she's suspicious she doesn't say anything but Pavel knows more questions about Irina are inevitable. He lies back in his bed, biting his lip and realising he has no idea what he going to do. He just sighs and pulls the covers over his head, hoping he'll think of something.

No ideas come to Pavel and he realises Emory would probably know what to do. He doesn't want to talk with her about Irina either, which he figures would happen if he asked for her help. He wants to hang out with her alone but he knows that probably won't happen until her brother leaves. He doesn't mind Karsen. Unsurprisingly, he literally is like a male copy of Emory. They can tell what each other will say and have an identical sense of humour. Karsen seems to like Pavel and it's something he's quite grateful for. They all drink a little together and Emory doesn't tell Karsen about how she met Pavel through excessive drinking but in a weird way, it seems like he already knows.