((A/N ohai c: this is the third bones/adie series. idk what else to call it. maybe i should figure out a name, no? teehee. so yeah. if you haven't read Alienation and Acceptance and Starlight, i recommend you do so this will all make sense. aside from references to the last two stories it's not a direct sequel, like there was no cliffhanger, but it would help to sort of make it seem like some of this isn't out of left field. i hope yall enjoy it c: i don't own anything to do with star trek, just adie. and the hats. c: enjoy! and please review on what you think!))

There is something to be said about a simple relationship: it's simple. Even when you are running around the galaxy, being kidnapped, or having your body break down from radiation poisoning, at least this one thing was simple. Bones McCoy did not have a lot of simplicity in his life. His best friend was the reckless, young captain of one of the best ships to be found in the Federation, he was expected to treat over eight hundred people if need be by running the one and only sickbay, and the food wasn't even all that good on board the ship. Not to mention the limited supply of whisky.

Still, there was always the calming thought that one person in his life did not cause him to form an ulcer in his stomach. There was one person who didn't drive him to drink and pray he could have one cigarette, just one. She happened to be his second-in-command, and she happened to be one of his closest friends—and even a bit more than that. Dr. Adellia had arrived in his medical bay nearly one year ago, even if it did seem much longer than that. They saw each other through Romulan attacks and Cardassian kidnappings, and even all of that didn't seem to affect him too much in retrospect.

Bones was admittedly still just that much nervous about being with her. Even if he knew this to be untrue, he still couldn't help the nagging feeling that perhaps she deserved better. But as he watched her working one slow day in the U.S.S. Enterprise medical bay, he believed a little bit more that maybe this was something special. Maybe this was something for him to be happy about…being happy wasn't something he was good at, it was such a foreign concept, but she was helping. And for that he was eternally grateful.

The ship had been heading towards a far off, distant planet called Manon. Apparently, their mission was to head down there and give medical checks on the planet's geological observers currently stationed on this planet. Bones absolutely hated beaming down to bother people he hoped he never had to bother, and giving them a quick and unnecessary check-up. Then again, it was orders, and he was a doctor. Sometimes his job was inconvenient. Especially when he had to do it in space

Bones set down a clipboard as he glanced around, seeing Adellia trying to coax somebody to sit still for the tricorder. He smirked a little bit and approached her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Doctor, will you meet me in my office when you are complete with this examination?" he asked, smoothly.

"Certainly, Dr. McCoy," she replied, smirking.

It was no longer any kind of secret. Most everybody had heard about them, and neither of them seemed to mind anymore. Bones found that the more he cared about keeping this under wraps, the more Kirk teased him to no end about it. It was what it was—just like what Spock and Uhura had. Perhaps they had picked this philosophy from them, but it was a very logical philosophy, for lack of a better word. Since that, no one mumbled about them when they walked down the halls together, or enjoyed a snack in the galley. Everything was just fine how it was.

Bones made his way back to his office, and sat against his desk, yawning. His desk was a mess—his entire office was a mess. On his desk sat a computer, a chart, a picture of he and Adellia, and a silver flask. Not even Bones knew what was in his flask…and he didn't really care. He took a small sip from it and winced, glancing around as he rested against the desk. He thought about his happiness with Adellia, and this ship. Getting onto the ship was unbelievably irritating, but he had to admit, he was quite content with his job. He was quite content with his life. This scared the living daylights out of him.

It had been a long time since he was happy about his life. Too long, really. But he was content when his life was shit. When Sam left him, it was a shock, but Bones got used to the feeling of being miserable. When he was accepted into Starfleet, he found a few good friends, but he couldn't make himself be happy thanks to the constant stress and pressure of the school environment. Not to mention the flying. Even their missions hadn't helped with his stress level…it was normally off the charts.

But since his return from Cardassia, he'd been…happy. He didn't know what to do with a happy life, except live it, and wait for something awful to happen to him. He could almost feel it coming. He didn't want to believe it was going to happen, but something was telling him it was near. Those self-defeating thoughts were something he was trying to push down out of the forefront of his mind. Still, intuition was a beautiful thing sometimes, especially in a doctor's life. At least if something horrible happened, he would have the satisfaction of being right about something.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard his door open and close. He looked up and saw Adellia. Her skin was pale, giving her a slight greenish tint, thanks to her Vulcan heritage. She was tall…only a few inches below him. Her hair was sleek, straight, and black. It was almost always up in a ponytail thanks to the uniform, but he didn't mind. It looked nice either way. Her eyes were bright in spite of their dark color. As per usual, she wore a blue dress, signifying her inclusion in the Life Sciences department.

He took her in for a moment and smiled. She walked over to him, and he slipped her arms around her waist, kissing her lips gently as he closed his eyes. He deepened that kiss after ending the first one, no longer afraid of scaring her. His arms wrapped around her and brought her closer. They kissed for a moment longer, until Adellia finally pulled back, and grinned up at him. Her cheeks were tinted with green, which Bones thought was adorable. He pushed some of her bangs out of her eyes as she stood on her tip-toes, pecking him once more.

"Hello, Dr. McCoy," she mumbled, and she smiled a bit, putting her arms loosely around his neck. "You wanted to see me?" she asked, hoping against hopes that he hadn't just called her in there for that…she wouldn't put it past him, though. He'd been known to do worse things around the office, really.

"Yeah, I…I did," he said, coming out of a small fog, and he glanced down at her. "I know you don't usually like to eat dinner, but d'you think you could perhaps join me tonight, in the galley?" he asked with a twinkle in his blue eyes.

She narrowed her own eyes. He was up to something; she could feel it. "If this has anything to do with this…highly illogical pseudo-holiday…" she mumbled, gently, and she looked hesitant to continue. Adellia had been dreading this day for weeks, now, and finally it was here.

"Your birthday is worth celebrating, Adie," he reminded her, for about the fifteenth time. He'd heard of her being selfless and all, but what normal Earthling didn't like to celebrate her birthday? Then again, Adellia wasn't the most normal of Earthlings. "And so it will be celebrated. And there ain't a damn thing you can do about it. I'm even having the cook make you a little cake…everyone likes cake."

"I do enjoy cake…" she said, gently, not coming around just yet. "But it just seems silly that you are so intent on celebrating the Earth moving around the sun once more. A sun we don't even get to see anymore. That day was as insignificant as any other day to the general population, it just seems a little…silly."

"It's the principle of the thing, Adie! Come on. Let me make you feel special just this once," he pleaded, and she rolled her eyes. "Besides…I have a present for you."

"Leonard McCoy, I said no presents!"

"Does it look like I give a damn about what you said?" he asked, and smirked. Finally, the two of them let go of each other, and he bent down into his desk. He fished through countless pieces of papers, old electronics, and notes to himself. Adellia stood with her hands on her hips, looking a little bit gracious about his actions. He finally found what he was looking for. Bones stood back up and walked back with a small, rectangle box. The box was light blue with a white ribbon wrapped around it. On top was a bow, of course.

"Bones…" she mumbled, but now it was very difficult to concede and hide her grin. She looked back up to him, beaming a little bit. Her cheeks were now a much deeper shade of green. "You shouldn't have…" Adellia continued. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me till you open it," he said, proudly. Every good "significant other" (even she'd gotten him to say it like this) wanted to do the best he or she could on their partner's birthday…he'd always felt that way, anyway. It was the one day of the year he insisted on making it all about her, instead of his headaches or his flying troubles. And he thought he'd done right by her this year. He crossed his arms and looked down to her, smirking a little.

Adellia pulled off the ribbon smoothly and opened the box. She gasped; inside the little box was a necklace. The chain was small and silver. The actual necklace part was a small circle with white diamonds all around the outside. Inside was a blue diamond, sparkling like her eyes were at that moment. Her mouth hung open as her fingers touched it, and she couldn't help but smile brilliantly.

"It's beautiful…" she mumbled, and she pulled the necklace from the box. She put it on, and looked down at it, admiring it. "Leonard, thank you so much. I really appreciate it," she said, looking back up at him. This was the most she had ever received for her birthday…this was fantastic. Adellia was literally unsure of how to act, though she'd obviously chosen gratitude over just general shock.

He admired her, and nodded, smiling a little bit to himself. "It looks perfect on you. Welcome." He pecked her forehead. "Happy birthday." She grinned back up at him, and pecked his lips in response before turning her eyes back down to the necklace.

----

That evening, Adellia walked back from her quarters and towards the galley for this quiet birthday dinner. She was looking forward to the cake, she had to admit, but had her apprehensions about the actual dinner portion. Adellia was never sure what to do with any sort of congratulations or attention like this…it made her feel overly nervous. She didn't like the feeling of being vulnerable.

She was expecting this to be a quiet evening, full of light conversation and some doting from Bones. However, when she walked into the galley and turned the corner, she nearly had a heart attack or two. Bones, Kirk, Spock, Uhura, Scotty, Chekov, Scotty, and a few other people were all sitting around a rather large cake, and had just screamed "Surprise!" at the top of their lungs. She stumbled back and looked around, the green rushing to her cheeks again.

"Wow…" she said, catching her breath, and smiling as her eyes went as wide as dinner plates. All at once she felt beyond overwhelmed. They had gathered to celebrate her life. She glanced around, trying to wonder if this was all really fact, and she smiled when she realized it was. This was so beyond foreign to her…had Bones really convinced everybody to do this? She blushed on her cheeks, neck, and ears as she glanced around at everybody. She didn't feel worth it.

After a few moments of awkward silence, she nodded. "Thank you," she mumbled, unsure of what else to say. Bones got up and ushered her to the table, where Scotty placed a very unfortunate birthday hat on her head. Kirk snuck one onto Spock, who looked less than pleased about it, but kept it on at Uhura's urging to do so.

They stayed and ate, as long as most of them could. In the end, Spock was perhaps the last to stay. He had removed Scotty's ridiculous hat the moment Uhura left. Adellia was admiring a very nice makeup kit from Uhura, when he approached her, looking all business. He had his hands behind his back, and he nodded.

"I would like to wish you a very happy day of birth," he said, looking curiously down at her. Birthdays were, of course, foreign to him, and while he understood the practice, he didn't understand the reasoning behind it.

Adellia glanced up, and smiled very gently. "I appreciate that, Mr. Spock," she said, and she looked back down at the makeup kit, looking through it. "I am fascinated by this…I have never really used much makeup before. Please extend my appreciate to Uhura for this foreign concept." She smiled, but looked a little annoyed with the makeup.

"Perhaps she could teach you the ways of makeup? She seems to deal with it nearly every day, I suspect she knows a thing or two about makeup." He seemed to hate talking about makeup.

Adellia snickered a little. "Hopefully, Mr. Spock. I am curious about this substance." She looked back to him, and he walked away after giving her a respectful nod.

((a/n YAY FIRST CHAPTER. hehe. btw, for the record, "Heart-Shaped Box" is a Nirvana song, and it's great and everyone should know it. also, i'm gonna try actually naming chapters which i fail at. so. wish me luck lmao.))