He had her pressed against the wall in the corner of the dimly lit bar, hand clamped over her mouth. Nyota tried to shove him off, use her academy combat training but he was so much bigger and was using his body to pin her against the wall, listing everything he wanted to do to her in a hoarse whisper. His alcohol-laden breath filled her nose.
Nyota cried out under his hand but the music was blaring and the crowd was screaming. She tried to see her comrades in the strobe lights and fog but she could only see this drunk local's barrel chest. Nyota grit her teeth and attempted to drive her knee between his legs but he was pressing along the length of her body. He was smothering her. She was gasping, fighting for air. A steady pounding was building in her head and Nyota felt faint.
Hot lip, still wet with alcohol pressed themselves to her neck but she could not move to fight back, could not breathe. Just as her vision began to grow black around the edges and she thought she might be sick, Nyota felt the crushing weight disappear. As she sank to floor gulping down huge draughts of air, she could dimly make out the outline of Bones throwing himself on the drunk local, a snarl on his lips as he pummeled the man to the floor. He continued with his savage beating until Kirk managed to put himself between the two and pin Bones' hands to his side. With the drunk bleeding and dazed on the floor, McCoy shook off Kirk and made his way to Uhura. He did not say a word, simply picked her up and held her gently to his chest.
He carried her down the street and set her gently on a bench where they were shielded by the dark. Nyota did not know she was crying until he brushed a tear from her cheek. She hated herself for it, willed herself to be strong but she was quietly crying and there was no stopping it. He sat beside her and cupped her cheek. Before they knew it, she was wrapped in his warm embrace, sobbing on his shoulder and comforted by the smell of Bourbon and hospital sterilizers.
McCoy ran a hand down her back soothingly until she quieted. It did not take long and she is already making apologies that he quickly dismissed. He took her still trembling hands in his calloused ones. Neither of them realizes it but his lips are lightly planting kisses to the side of her head and she holding him so close there is almost no telling where one begins and the other ends.