Uhura tilted into his touch carefully, not hesitantly, but carefully in the same manner one savors a moment that will never come again in the same manner. It didn't matter that there would be others, it was this one that was important, and the next and the next after that. She could never fill that void, the one she knew would always be there as raw as if it had just happened, but she was there in her own quiet way. Trying. Trying to somehow ease whatever harshness and pain she could.

She kept her mind open, as open as she could and let him soothe her because as much as she wanted to make some sort of difference to him, she needed whatever quietness, whatever strength he could lend her in this moment. For everything he gave, she gave back to him as much as she possibly could. And she knew he was there, with her, connected and her fingers slid against his hair gently.

Her thoughts slowed, the tautness in the lines of her body eased, and she could breathe. The relief was so sharp it was almost painful in release. Uhura murmured his name just under her breath as her lips grazed his jaw and held onto the moment for as long as it dared to linger.