Yorktown, 2263
He had seen her, across the crowded room, nursing a glass of something the whole night. Always alone, only Jim had given her his sympathy – a kind smile, a gentle squeeze of her naked shoulder – but it had been over far too quickly, and the Captain had soon returned to his duty as birthday boy.
He had seen her – and Leonard McCoy hadn't been able to keep his eyes away from the beauty sitting at the bar. Long, slender legs, soft and wavy dark blonde hair, she was clad in what had to be a designer dress that, without being vulgar, empathized all her assets – the long legs, the full and round breasts, the long, ivory neck. With the bloody red lips, she was a siren, and she didn't even know.
She had never known.
"On a night like this, a beautiful girl like you should be out having fun…" He whispered in her ear as he joined her at the table, offering the bartender – a Ferengi – his own glass to refill. She shivered, the breath dying in her throat, and Leonard took some pride on still having that effect on women. "Georgia Samantha Chase, didn't expect to see you here. You're a long way from home."
She gave him a little smile, as she played with the condensation of her glass, drawing seemingly random and meaningless patterns with her short-nailed fingertips. It was an odd contrast with the rest of her appearance, and yet, it strangely suited who Leonard remembered Georgia to be: a practical, shy girl. "My mom's almost always off planet nowadays, and Frank… let's say that the more planets there are between me and him, the better it is."
Leonard sipped his drink, and looked at their reflections in the mirror behind the bar counter. "And yet, of all the places in the universe, here you are. In Yorktown. On your brother's birthday."
She didn't correct Leonard's small mistake; instead, amused, Georgia's eyes scanned the room, and landed on James. He was sitting in a small booth in a secluded corner, laughing along with Uhura, trying to get Spock to crack a smile. He was having the time of his life, even if she had known this day to be one he was feeling rather uncomfortable about. Jim's birthday was also the anniversary of his father's death – and today, he became older than his old man ever was. Not that he would have shared any of these concerns with Georgia. He loved her too much to even say a sole word, to remind her that, without his father's death, she would have never been born.
"Just a funny coincidence. I landed a job with a company that got a contract with Starfleet on xeno-botanic research. I just got here a couple of weeks ago, and brother dearest even forgot to mention until today that he'd moored on Yorktown base."
Somehow, Leonard found it hard to believe. Despite his maverick nature, Jim was a good man, who loved to the fullest, and in his heart, there was no one with a bigger place than Georgia. He'd never resented the fact that she was born to Winona and her second husband- actually, he had loved her even more. Georgia was, in all but surname, Jim's little sister, his most cherished possession. Deep down, the good doctor wasn't surprised that Jim had kept his imminent presence on Yorktown base a secret from the xeno-botanist. If – and that was a big if – Jim truly intended to transfer full-time to the Starfleet base, it stood to reason that Georgia's new job position was one of the deciding factors. That, and the fact that Jim had made no secret over the years that Frank was a good for nothing drunk, abusive asshole who didn't deserve nor Winona nor his daughter.
It was no marvel that even his own daughter wanted to be as far away from him as possible.
The air got suddenly too heavy, and her eyes too clouded, and Leonard felt the need to steer the conversation away from those dangerous and hurtful topics. "I don't think I've seen you in, I think eight years or so? I think you were still in College."
"Yeah, when you and Jim were roommates at the Academy. My friends and I would sneak in and party with you and your friends." She nodded her head, turning on her stool to face him; her eyes were a little fogged, sign that she either didn't stand alcohol too much or that the drink she had been nursing hadn't been the first of the evening. That, or maybe, she was just thinking about the past, dreaming of things that could have been but never came to be. "I don't think you know, but my girlfriends were all crazy for you back then. They said they wanted to mend the handsome doctor's poor broken heart."
Georgia came closer to him, and her eyes darted to Leonard's left hand; for many years, after that stormy divorce of his, Leonard had still wore his wedding band – like a part of him would still believe he would have gotten his family back by sheer will, in the blink of an eye. And yet, despite the heavy phantom weight on his hand, Leonard had never kept women at arm's length: in the years Georgia had frequented her brother's dorm room, he had dated plenty of beauties, none of them getting the treasured prize, though- his heart, Leonard McCoy's love.
Something she, too, had silently asked for, for far too long. She had caught Leonard looking at her, back then, his stare a laser burning with liquid fire through her whole being. Back then, everyone had labeled her only a child, Jim's little sister – and it had been okay. It was true, after all. But she had hoped that those eyes would held some kind of unspoken promise, that the handsome doctor with the broken heart was, somehow, saving his heart for her.
What a silly girl she had been!
"Ah, honey trust me-I may have had my admirers, but you weren't any better than me. When you and your girlfriends were around, our room was filled with cadets ready to fall at your feet. They were just too scared of Jim to even contemplate asking his little sister out, though. I remember once, when Chekov dared to talk with you, and Jim scared the hell out of him with just one glance. You should have seen our poor navigator, the moment your brother assumed command of the Enterprise. He was trembling- and I'm not kidding."
As he had suddenly understood he had said too much, Leonard fell silent, allowing a calm and steady quiet to fall between them, as they were old comrades meeting for a beer after a long time apart. Yet, when their eyes in the mirror, the easiness vanished, evaporated. The tension was as heavy as a winter blanket, and electricity run through their whole beings, a molted desire that pressed, overwhelming, into their abandoned loins. The bar was filled with noise and life, and yet, neither Leonard nor Georgia truly felt anything at all. There was only the crazy beats of their hearts, drumming in their chests, begging to be set free. Georgia blushed, lifting her eyes from the empty glass and turning a little to look at Leonard with the corner of her hazel eye. Tentatively, she moved her hand across the bar to delicately lay it on Leonard's one. The doctor gasped, and closed his eyes hut, clenching his teeth.
"Jim may very well demand my head for I had just a drink with you." He said, his voice low – he didn't know who he was trying to talk out of this awful idea, if himself, or the young woman who had started it all. And yet, he didn't add a sole world, as if he knew there was no escaping.
"Do you think…" she whispered between gasps, her lips inches from him. "That we both should… cool down? Maybe we just need… a coffee… to clear our heads."
"I don't know about you, honey, but I'm completely sober." He lustily studied her features, there was so much of Wynona in her that people rarely believed Georgia and Jim to be barely half-siblings – back when Jim had joined the Academy and Georgia had moved to San Francisco to attend the New Californian College, with their physical similarities and the short age gap between them – and the perennial good looks Jim had been blessed with- many believed them to actually be twins. At times, it had even seemed that they were like a mirror, two sides of the same coin, with only the eyes (his azure, just like his father, hers hazel, like their mother) and the height difference (6 feet Jim, 5 feet Georgia) to speak of any remarkable difference.
Leonard smiled at her, with mischief – and something she couldn't point her finger at. It was as he knew a secret he didn't want to share with any of them, Georgia included. He simply squeezed her hand in his own, looking for either confirmation of the shared desire or a second-guess.
Georgia looked around one last time, making sure that her brother wasn't onto them; then, once sure that all of Jim's attention had been capitalized by a Brekkian young woman, she steadily held Leonard's gaze.
"Walk me to my apartment, Leonard." She said, unsure if it sounded more like a plea or an order.
"Len," He huskily breathed as he traced her lips with thumb, Georgia's tongue darting out to lick erotically his rough skin. "I may be Bones for Jim, but for you… let me be just Len for tonight."
Her eyelids heavy, she nodded, and he smiled. Leonard followed Georgia outside, never letting it go of her hand, his lips on hers as soon as they were out of the bar, never parting for more than a few seconds until they were in the security of her apartment, behind closed doors.
And even then, it was only long enough to get rid of any barrier of cloth separating their heated bodies and preventing them to join their naked fleshes at the rhythm of the most primordial song of them all.
Few weeks later, after the disaster that had been Krall's attack on Yorktown and the Federation whole, the still grounded crew of the Enterprise found themselves reunited yet again, to celebrate the union between Uhura and Spock.
Being far from home, with Spock's family just a shadow of what had been before his mother's tragic passing, together with his Home Planet, the pair had preferred a small affair – Spock's reticence, and his guilt over non marrying a Vulcan woman to carry the species on spoke volumes of what he was feeling in that special day. Still, the Federation seemed in a desperate need to celebrate anything after their near destruction, and Spock, was in the eyes of many, an hero. And as such he was to be celebrated.
"Wow, this party is amazing. There are dignitaries from all over the Federation." Jim – Spock's version of a best man – was busy looking around, in the company of both Scotty and Leonard. "And there are so many beautiful girls."
"You know, Jim, one of these days you'll get into troubles if you'll not change you lothario ways."
Jim glared in the direction of his best friend. "I'm not a lothario – I just appreciate beautiful things. And anyway, don't think I didn't see whistling in direction of the Na'Pari's delegate. You were appreciating her rack and we both know it!"
Leonard just shook his head, his gaze fixed on the dancing couple on the middle of the dancefloor, empty save for them.. "Still, can you believe that Spock got married? I mean, I thought that Uhura was done with him this time around."
"Eh, in the wise words of Blaise Pascal, The heart has it reasons, whereof reason knows nothing of." Scotty sipped his wife- or whatever the magnificent dark grey liquid was, and sighed. He chuckled, a bit shamelessly, and he stared down at his companions. "I'd never guessed that Spock would have been the first of us to get married. I mean, I would have bet on me, if nothing else, what with the track record of you both and his, eh, peculiar sensibility."
"Are you insulting us, Scotty?" Jim smirked, but Scotty simply shrugged.
"Captain – Jim," He corrected himself, going for his superior's first name, as he often did when they weren't on duty. "It's not an insult it it's not a lie."
"You may be right – still, look how happy they both are. I think I saw our dear commander smile at some point."
"Oh, please. It's Spock we're talking about. He's given Uhura nothing but headaches until now. One of these days she'll wake up, bitter, resenting him for whatever reason. It always happen like that. C'mon, tell me of one marriage that you know of that it's working."
"My parents were happy, Bones."
But Leonard just rolled his eyes. "Your parents were married for less than two years, Jim. You don't know what your mother would have eventually thought, living on a base or a ship her whole life. I mean, look at her marriage with Frank – at the end, it didn't work out."
Jim sighed, knowing not just defeat, but not to get in an argument with Leonard when his friend was so sure of having all the answers. He knew the good doctor was wrong - Jim had seen people honestly happy – but he understood that Leonard had been burned by who he believes was the love of his life, even if Kirk had the impression that, in his youth, the Doctor could have misunderstood lust for love, choosing a non-suitable life partner.
"Speaking of Frank, I should look around for my plus one - Scotty, did I already introduced you to my sister, Georgia? She's overseeing a project for the Federation here in Yorktown…"
"Can't say I've already had the pleasure." Scotty sipped his drink, following Jim's gaze across the room.
"She is your half-sister, Jim." Leonard corrected him. He subconsciously started to look around, trying to identify each and every dark blonde mane he would lay his eyes on.
Georgia.
She was there. He hadn't seen her in weeks, not after the night they had shared together, when, in her arms, he had gotten lost in the lust, discovering her body, knowing pleasure as never before. That night, Leonard had felt, for the first time in a long time, content. But the feeling had been short-lived, only to be replaced by a heart-shattering fear when memories of the last time he had felt safe in a woman's embrace had flooded his mind. He had fled her bed in the wee hours of the morning, well aware that, had he stayed, nothing would have been the same ever again, that he would have been tempted to get lost in Georgia's sensual caresses again and again and again, until it would have been too late, and his heart would have been eventually shattered beyond repair once again.
And yet, now she was there, and his whole body screamed out to her, with a burning need to rejoin their bodies once more.
"Oh, here she is. The one talking with Chekov?" Leaning his elbow on Scotty's shoulder, Jim indicated with his chin the couple talking and laughing together, and Leonard, too, started staring, feeling almost mad that, despite knowing he'd be there, she hadn't called – asked him to be her plus one, nor had she been looking for his company.
Instead, she was talking with a kid; Chekov was obviously a bit shy, but it was as clear as day that he was interested in the mid-western beauty. And he had all the reasons to: she was charming, smart, sweet and easy on the eye. What man wouldn't have wanted her?
"Well, Jim, don't take it the wrong way, but I think your sister may be one of the most beautiful women at this party." The captain elbowed his friend on the side, but they both laughed. "What? I'm being honest here!"
"She is still my little sister, Scotty, and you are my friend and subordinate. Which means she is untouchable." Leonard swallowed, hard, at Jim's casual remark. The fact was, both men were right: Georgia was beautiful, with the long, soft skirt, and the scallop trim of her neckline empathizing her cleavage. The light blue of the lacy fabric complemented her sun-kissed fair skin and her hair, arranged in a simple, semi-messy bun. She was wearing high heels, which made her look much taller than what she actually was, shortening the height difference between her and her brother.
As on cue, Jim lifted his glass in the air, as to draw her attention, and with a beaming smile she joined them, although Leonard couldn't help but notice, with fierce male satisfaction, how hyper-aware she was of his very presence. He laughed up his sleeves as he evaluated her with a clinical eye – flushed skin, accelerated breathing, dilated pupils, and he could actually see her throbbing pulse on her neck.
She hadn't looked for him – and yet, she was hunted. She wanted more. Of him.
"Oh, about time you stopped flirting with Chekov, sis…"
She smirked. "I'd never flirt with that poor kid, Jim. You've scared him enough when you were still at the Academy. We were just chatting about old times." She had a glass of some kind of white liquid in her hand, and yet it seemed untouched. "By the way, aren't you going to introduce me?"
"Oh, of course, I've spent too much time in that damn God-forsaken Starfleet outpost. Where are my manners? Montgomery Scott, Chief Engineer. Scotty for my friends."
Jim smiled, and shook his head, amused, as the duo shook hands. "Scotty, my sister, Georgia Chase, xeno-botanist extraordinaire."
"Ma'am, care for a dance?" Scotty smirked, lifting his eyebrows almost to his hairline in a tragi-comic way, obviously intent to pick the young woman's interest. He went to take her hand in his once again, but Leonard was quicker, and held the delicate skin in his rough hands with possessiveness, holding her gaze. He took her glass without waiting for her to give him permission, and gave it to Scotty.
"Actually, she does," he interfered, his voice cold, almost possessive, needy. "She promised me the first dance, last time we spoke."
"Oh, is that so?" Scotty grunted, rolling his eyes, drinking her glass of wine in one sip.
The breath died in her throat. "Yes," she finally whispered, getting lost in Leonard's deep eyes.
He walked her on the dancefloor, and they started to sway to the sweet music. He was squeezing her right hand with his left, while the other was on the naked skin of her back, and with each and every step they took, Georgia became more aware of his presence, of his burning touch imprinting on her skin, on her whole body, more and more.
"If you keep looking at me like that," he breathed in her ear, "Jim's gonna know we've been together."
She swallowed, her eyes closed shut. "It's just that, I needed to talk with you. When we slept together…."
But Leonard shook his head, and stopped her before she could end the sentence. "We should forget about what happened that night. We were tipsy, and we made a mistake. Besides, it wasn't fair to Jim. He is your brother and my best friend and…"
"I'm pregnant." She blurted out, taking the heavy weight off her shoulders. They stood still in the middle of the dancefloor, then Leonard grabbed her for her tiny wrist, and dragged her on one of the balconies of the Yorktown building. He was biting his lips so that he wouldn't say things he could regret, his fists clenched in an almost painful fashion.
"What… what did you just say?" He asked as he was facing her in the chilly night.
Georgia closed her eyes, and hugged herself, her fingers playing tantalizing and imaginary patterns on her still flat stomach, as to protect her unborn child. My sweet, sweet baby, you are so loved… I'll always protect you, no matter what, she thought between herself, smiling of a little smile, hoping that her unborn creature could detect her feelings. Still, her eyes were low, as she was ashamed of herself, or guilty of some crime.
"Georgia, that night, you said…" Leonard bit his lips before adding anything, facing her with a sinister gleam in his eyes, barely unable to contain his anger. The pulse on his neck was throbbing, thundering, visible through the collar of his uniform.
"I know what I said, and it's the truth. I get an hypo once a month. But I had to get some vaccinations before moving here, and my doctor thinks they may have interfered with birth control."
Leonard started to pace the balcony, his hands running through his unruly hair, messing it. He kept silent, never saying a word, nor daring to look at the woman right before him. "All right. Okay. We don't have to panic." He breathed, finally facing Georgia, but at a distance. "No one knows. And you are only a few weeks in. There's still time to…"
The breath died in her throat when, even if the doctor didn't end his sentence, she just knew what he meant- what he wanted her to do.
Get rid of her baby – their baby. Just to make sure that they all forgot they had been together, spent hours unable to keep any kind of distance, never getting enough of loving each other in the oldest, more animalist way the universe knew.
But, apparently, for Leonard, it had had little to do with love.
"No, Len, I… just, no. I'm keeping this baby. I don't care what you say or you think. This is my body, my choice." She took a step backward, hitting the wall with the naked skin of her back.
"Georgia, you have to think about what's best for you and this baby." He stated, calm, as he closed in on her. "We're not together – it was just a one night stand, and you've got your work to think about. Do you honestly believe that a single mother would be able to sustain the workload requested here?"
She shook her head, her eyes stinging with unshed tears. "I'm keeping this baby."
"It's not just yours – it's mine too." Leonard sighed, defeated, sad and tired. "I should have a saying in this too."
And your saying on the matter is that I should get an abortion, she thought. "Leonard, ever since I found out I was pregnant, I knew I would have kept this baby. If you don't want to be part of this child's life is fine with me – and don't worry, I'm not going to paint you in a bad light in front of your boss. If you want to pretend nothing ever happened, it's fine by me. As far as I'm concerned, this kid is a Chase. Nothing more, nothing less."
Tears free, marrying her delicate skin and unmaking her make-up, Georgia stormed off the balcony, and quickly walked on unsure feet towards the stairs. She leaned over the balustrade, the cold metal keeping her awake, making her feel, more than ever, how true everything was- not just a dream or her imagination, what she had been thinking about for days.
"Ooops! Sorry darling!" She heard a very drunk voice slurring, and then she felt an hand pushing her out of the way, as easily as she was a branch moved by a stormy wind . Before she knew what was happening, Georgia was falling down the stairs, with one thought alone running through her mind.
Keeping her baby safe.
A tricorder was gently humming over her body when Georgia came to be. Slowly, she lifted her heavy eyelids, cold enveloping her whole frame. She ached, her muscles sore. Tears stung her eyes, her throat closed, as she struggled to ask the question she feared the most, terrorized of what the answer would have been.
"You can relax – the baby is fine." She swallowed as she heard Leonard's monotone voice, talking with her in the same compliant tone he usually used when Jim would do something stupid and or life-threatening. "Just some minor bruising that will go in a few days. Still, it's going to hurt for a while. Especially now that pain medications aren't suggested."
Looking older than his actual years, and tired, Leonard closed his tricorder, and fell, heavy, on the chair next to Georgia's hospital bed. He covered her hand with his bigger, warmer one, and took a big breath – as he was struggling to find the right words to say. "Georgia… I'm so sorry. It's all my fault. I shouldn't have reacted the way I did. I just… I don't know what came over me."
She shook her head. "No, it's… it's okay. You were surprised. It was… it was a lot to deal with."
"Still, I shouldn't have asked you to… give up on our baby." He cupped her cheek, his head bent over his chest. "It's my fault. I should have caught you. Should have stopped you before you went and run away and…"
He was about to add something else, Georgia's tiny hand on his own, their gingers interlaced, when the door was thrown open in an heartbeat, so much so that it slammed against the wall, the sound so loud that it was surpassed only by the panic in Jim's voice.
"Georgie!" The Enterprise Captain screamed, frantically, as he run at sister's bedside, right at Leonard's side. "Georgia, are you all right? The doctor said you fell but you are fine… but that they want to keep in you overnight to make sure that… the baby is all right? But… they are wrong, right? I mean… you would have told me if you were pregnant, right?"
Jim didn't even took a single breath between words, he didn't even noticed Leonard's presence, too worried, too surprised by the whole ordeal.
"Jim, Listen, you should sit down. We need to talk." Leonard gently tried to get his friend's attention, squeezing Jim's shoulder. The captain was still wearing his dress officer uniform, such had been the haste to get to his beloved sister and make sure she was truly all right.
"Bones?" For the first time, finally, he acknowledged his best friend's presence. "What…."
"He carried me here!" Georgia quickly interfered, suddenly finding her voice yet again. "And he did first aid."
His lips in a tight line, Leonard groaned, and scowled at the woman he had spent an unforgettable night with. He didn't need her help, nor her protection. Yes, he still thought they had made a mistake, but he was going to live it up, man up and do the right thing. For all parties involved.
"Jim, just, sit down and listen to me, will you?" The doctor demanded.
"What? Why? I don't need to sit or calm down, no matter what you need to tell me. I mean, your colleague said she is all right and the baby's fine too, so I don't see why…" The smile vanished from Jim's face as he slowly turned to face who he thought his best friend for the longest time. He swallowed, his gaze dangerous and dark. "Unless you want to tell me that…."
"Jim, please, calm down…" Georgia tried to calm him down, leaving her spot on the bed, and putting herself between the two men of her life.
"No, no, no, it's a joke, right? You're not actually telling me that…"
"Jim…" Leonard took a step back, hitting the wall with his back, finding himself between the cool metal of the walls and his best friend menacing form. "It's mine. I'm… the father of Georgia's baby."
"No, no, no, I can't believe it. You, you…" Jim stopped where he stood, and too a big breath. As much as he didn't want to see Leonard's face ever again, he knew that they had to get to the bottom of the situation, in that ,moment. It was now or never. "You laid your hands on my sister?"
Jim took a step forward, and lifted his closed fist in the air, as to hit his doctor, still, he didn't do anything, as Georgia's tiny hands on his shoulders dragged him back to reality, and stopped him before he could do anything too harsh.
"Jim, no. Please, you have to understand… it's my fault." She plead. "Leonard didn't seduced me. I invited him over and… it happened!"
" An honorable man, a real southern gentleman like you claim to be, would have refused her invitation!" He threw his accusing finger right at Leonard's face. "For God's sake, Bones, it's Georgia! My sister! You are my best friend!"
"Jim, I didn't think it would have come to this…."
"Right. you didn't think you would have knocked her up. And what did you exactly think, Bones, uh? That you would have had your fun with my sister and be on your merry way, ready to jump into the next bed? Like you always do?"
"Jim, please, listen to me. I'm ready to take responsibility for my own actions. If she'll want me… I'm ready to marry her."
"And you think I'd let my sister marry the man who knocked her up after a one night stand?"
It was the proverbial last drop; Jim saw red, than black, and unable to contain his fury, he just hit his friend, again and again and again, until Leonard wasn't semi-conscious on the floor, his head in Georgia's lap, gently caressed and reassured by her soft and delicate hands.
"That's not your choice, Jim. It's me we're talking about. Me and my baby. And if you'd truly acted like a brother instead of…. Of some kind of guardian caveman, you would understand it!" Without listening to his sister plea for mercy, for some kind of peace, Jim took the few steps that separated him from the traitor. He was ready to grab McCoy for the collar of his shirt and restart the brutal beating anew.
He would have allowed- Leonard would have left his friend beat him senseless, thinking that Jim had been wronged by their doing. And it wasn't Leonard's compliance that stopped the Starfleet Captain from doing more harm – it was Georgia's gaze, full of rage and disappointment and pain – he wasn't her brother any longer, but just a stranger.
But maybe, just maybe, in that moment, she didn't recognize the man she was facing.
It wasn't Jim, her beloved and caring brother, nor his father's son – the son of a war hero.
Jim looked, and sounded, like the man who had gotten to rise him, his step-father, Frank. Memories flooded Georgia's mind of all the times of when, drunk, he would try to beat his kids, pushing Winona away as she tried to protect them.
"For god's sake, Jim, I'm pregnant – have some mercy, and leave now!"
"It's not over, Bones!" Jim menaced, before storming out of the room, without carrying about who or what was in his way. "You hear me? We're not done yet!"
"Len… I'm so, so sorry… I can't believe that Jim punched you…" Georgia swallowed, as she helped Leonard standing. But he smiled, gentle, and shook his head.
"No, it's fine. I deserved it. Jim… he said what he had to. I would have done the same, in his shoes." He caressed her cheek, erased her tears with his thumb. "He is your brother, and he loves you. That's why he protected you. Like a mama bear."
"Still, he is your best friend, and now, because of me…."
She didn't know what she was about to say, but Leonard didn't want to hear any of that. He shook his head, and looked deeply into her eyes.
"Georgia, I'm sorry if Jim's gonna be mad with me for the rest of our lives. But he is not important right now. Now, only you and the baby matters, all right? That's why I want you to consider my offer."
"But you…" She gasped, taking a step back, her hand on her heart. "You weren't really serious when you said that you wanted to marry me, right?"
"No," Leonard shook his head. "I was. I was raised to do the right thing – and I should have remembered that in the south, you don't mess with your best friend's baby sister, unless you don't want to marry her. Besides, I want to be a proper father for this baby. That's why I think we should get married. It doesn't have to be forever, just for a while. At least until the baby won't be older."
Georgia's eyes fell on her hands, and she stared at the floor for the longest time, her mind filled with visions and memories. Leonard wasn't saying a word, and yet, she felt like he was screaming at her to make up her mind, she could feel his eyes zeroing on her, as to try to get a read of the woman he had gotten pregnant after a one night stand.
She lifted her gaze, firm. "Yes," She assured him. "I will. I'll marry you, Leonard."
"You… invited everyone?" As soon as walked into the beautiful botanic garden where most of her work was done, the breath died in Georgia's throat. She swallowed, clenching the bouquet of Tiger lilies in one hand, Leonard's arm with the other. All the closest friends they had him on the Enterprise, her at Yorktown, were there, and Georgia saw even a photographer recording the ceremony, probably for her family's benefit.
"Well, not everyone, but I got here whoever was available." He smiled at her, kind, sweet, sincere, melting her heart and all their insecurities. Getting lost in his eyes, Georgia could almost foresee their future – and could imagine, dream that their relationship could work, that they could it make it real.
It was a dangerous thought- because the more she knew him, the longer she stood at Leonard's side, the more she fell for him. And how could she not love that wonderful man, when he cared so much about her dreams and her hops for the future?
"It was what you wanted, wasn't it?" She nodded, a bit shy, blushing in her bouquet, the bright orange and red of the flowers a stark contrast with the virginal white and silver of her dress, as to hide her embarrassment, and her mind went back to that very morning, when Leonard had surprised her in an unexpected way.
A couple of weeks later, on her wedding day, Georgia felt alone, and at loss. It wasn't the fact that she would be wearing plain clothes, nor the fact that they would be married in an office in front of a judge – those were the last of her problems. It was the lack of everything else. Her family, her friends, and on top of that, a man who was in love with her.
Still dressed in her pajama, she was going through her dresses, trying to find something that would be suitable. If she wasn't going to get the big, fat white wedding of her childhood dreams, she could still at least do nice. She would have put on a show, wearing make-up to conceal her puffy eyes and dark circles, and she would have smiled, even if Jim didn't want to hear her out.
"Georgia? I've got something for you!" She closed her wardrobe as soon as she heard Leonard's voice coming from her small hall, and went to greet him, feeling a bit guilty, knowing that he would have expected her to be ready, and apprehensive. She expected him to be dressed casually, maybe even one of his leather jackets and t-shirt, but instead, he welcomed her with a ready smile in his dress uniform; he was carrying, delicately, a big, white garment bag.
"Here. I got it for you. Spock and Uhura helped." He cleared his throat, and blushed, looking at everything but her, which, oddly, Georgia found amusing. "The other day, when we talked about just signing our license, I… I saw that you were a little disappointed. I thought that maybe you would have wanted something more… celebrative. We'll only be able to have a small ceremony because I had to pull some strings to get it done now, but I thought you deserved this."
"Leonard, I…" She felt crying, as she carried the bag as it was a body, or some precious relic, delicate. She was, not for the first time since meeting the handsome doctor, at loss for words.
"I have to say, Doctor, you keep surprising me. My knowledge of the human male code seemed to suggest that entering a relationship with a close relative of an associate or a close friend is highly unadvised." Spock smiled – or maybe he was grinning, mocking Leonard, none of them was sure – then, he bowed a little in the bride-to-be's direction. "Miss Chase, I think it's customary complimenting you on your wedding day. Also, Doctor McCoy, I'm honored that you choose me as your best man."
"Ah, thank you, Mister Spock."
"Damn it, Spock, would you drop it? You are embarrassing my wife on our wedding day!" Leonard hissed between gritted teeth.
"Technically, Doctor, as you haven't been wed yet, you can't call her your wife as of now."
"Shout up, Spock." Uhura elbowed her husband on the side, lightly, smiling – a bright smile that half Vulcan kindly reciprocated. "Don't listen to any of them, just think about this: this is your wedding day, and you, my dear, are beautiful. This dress really compliment you."
"Thank you very much, but… I just wish my brother was here…" She gently said.
"Lass, I know you brother – Jim will come around. Besides, when we first met, I did feel that there was something going on between you and our Doctor on Spock and Uhura's wedding."
Leonard lifted an eyebrow, quizzically. "You did, Scotty?"
"Of course I did! It looked like you were ready to bite my head off just because I dared to look at our dearest Georgia!"
"I wasn't…."
"Actually, Bones, I saw you, and I have to agree with Scotty here. You seemed quite possessive of my sister – in retrospect, I should have seen this coming." As soon as they heard the voice, the whole small group, the surrogate family, turned. Clad in his dress uniform, with a sad little smile, hands in his pockets, stood James Tiberius Kirk. "You are my only sister, Georgie. I couldn't let you walk down the aisle alone."
"Jim…"
"Bones was harassing so much that I had to come just to shut him up." He smiled at his sister. He was pained – it was as clear as day – but the way he looked at her, anyone would have seen how happy he was, how proud. Yes, he didn't support her choice to the fullest, but he loved, and he would have spent his life showing her just how much she mattered to him, blood or not. "Doctor, I think that Commodore Paris is waiting for you and your best man at the aisle. If you could hurry up so that I could walk my sister down the aisle…"
Kirk practically shoved his best friend forward, and then, offered his arm to Georgia, smiling kindly as he looked at Leonard's back. "Listen, Shortie, if you are really sure you want to do this, I think I'll learn to live with that. But if you want to call it quits…" He whispered conspiratorially, but still with a small smile on his lips, almost as he wasn't fully serious. "Just say the words and I'll have you out of here in an heartbeat, and McCoy shipped to the final frontier in no time."
Georgia squeezed her brother's arm, and looked forward, where Leonard stood waiting for her. "Of course I want to do this, Jim." She stated, with certainty, looking for the first time truly forward to her life with the Starfleet Lieutenant Commander.
As on cue, she felt a flapping feeling deep, lower in her belly, and so much warmth that encompassed her whole being, and all she wanted to do was cry out of joy, for it was like they had just been blessed – not by an higher power, an authority or even Jim.
It was their baby – their tiny miracle was ready to fight, so that the impromptu parents could build something together: a better life, and an happy tomorrow, all the three of them together, for as long as possible, maybe even their whole lives.
Before she knew it, Jim was lifting her tiny veil, kissing her tenderly on the check with so much love that it was melting her heart, just like he sued to when they were children, and he would protect her from Frank's fury, comforting her after one of the man's outbursts.
Jim still loved her, and he was forgiving Georgia. And if the way he was looking at Leonard as he gave his little sister away was of any indication, they would have been all right too, just in due time.
He did love them. All of them. And how could he not? They were his family, after all.
Commodore Paris shook hands with Jim and Leonard, then, squeezed Georgia's shoulders. Only then she started to talk, with a smile and pride in her eyes – Yorktown hadn't had many weddings yet, and only few of them were of Starfleet Officials, which meant that, in the year she had been there since the Base inauguration, she had had the honor of officiating only a bunch of ceremonies.
"Since the days of the first wooden vessels, all ship's masters have had one happy privilege, that of uniting two people in the bonds of matrimony. And so we are gathered here today with you, Lieutenant Commander Leonard Horatio McCoy, and you, Georgia Samantha Chase, in the sight of your fellows, in accordance with our laws and our many beliefs so that you may pledge your love and dedication to each other…"
With the reconstruction of the Enterprise almost over, and a new planet welcomed into Starfleet, Yorktown's high command had decided to throw a huge party – food and dances and music and the likes – to celebrate the crew of heroes who had saved the outpost and its inhabitants from certain death after Krall's attack.
The whole ship was in attendance- which meant that Leonard was there, too, despite his dislike for parties- and, given the importance of the celebration, his wife of few weeks had been gently, and yet firmly, urged to take part into the celebrations as well.
"Do you really have to be so grumpy?" Leonard asked her as they walked into the hall, richly decorated with intricate gold and silver patterns, in honor of the Alien guests.
Georgia bite back a crude retort, and did her best to avoid saying something in the line of kettle, meet pot; she just sighed, massaging her forehead, feeling the imminent approach of an headache, a common occurrence since she had started living with Leonard, hitting wall after all with the Doctor when it came to feelings and emotions.
"With all due respect, I think I have all the right reasons to be grumpy, honey." She hissed the term of endearment. "I got mood swings, and I can't keep anything on the stomach. I can't work in my lab or the greenhouse any longer because God knows what effect all the aliens flora we got there may have on a baby, and I can't wear my usual clothes of my heels, and for someone as short as me it's kind of a big deal, especially given the fact that you and Jim are so much taller than me!"
Leonard rolled his eyes. "You're pregnant, Georgia. Some things just can't be helped." He said, condescending, sounding more like a tired and disappointed parent rather than her husband.
"Easy for you to say. You are a man. You've got it easy since the Stone Age."
"Georgia…" He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. Leonard was starting to get frustrated: living together wasn't as easy as he had hoped it to be, and Georgia, despite being a rational woman – she was a scientist, for God's sake – was very… needy- so much so that she was starting to sound like his ex-wife from Hell, resenting the fact that he spent so much time away from home and that they didn't get to share a bed.
He was about to say something more – lecture her, ask her to act like an adult, remembering where they were- when he heard someone calling his name; Leonard turned, and saw one of the Yorktown medical officers, with one of the staff nurses in tow – a cute brunette, in her early twenties, with Bambi eyes, tall and slender and with a considerable rack – even her dress was unforgettable, flashy and sexy, definitely not what Georgia, feeling already swollen, was wearing.
"Doctor McCoy, it's a pleasure to see you here! Tell me, have you met already nurse Dickinson? It's my understanding that Anne is interested in joining the Enterprise for the next part of your five years mission…"
"Yes, I already had the pleasure," Leonard smiled, bright, bowing his head lightly to the lady. "I've served some shifts with Nurse Dickinson since we've been stranded here in Yorktown. She mentioned her interest in joining us – I hope Starfleet will grant her request. We really don't have enough medical personnel on that damn ship of ours."
"Well, that's my hope, too." She nurse answered, giggling, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, her long slender neck accentuated by her long hearings, and Georgia groaned inside – she even had a southern accent, just to top it all.
Heat rose in Georgia's chest, and she felt like scream, shout and let it all out. She was right there, at Leonard's side, and everyone was behaving like she didn't even exist, like she was some kind of… ghost. They were chatting and laughing, and Anne kept accidentally (on purpose) touching Leonard. And not only he was letting her to: he seemed quite pleased, he was enjoying himself.
Bile rose in her throat, and, without saying a word, without bothering to excuse herself, covering her mouth, she run to the closest bathroom, and barely made it on time before she threw up.
"Mrs. McCoy? Are you all right?" Nurse Dickinson gently knocked at the door of the stall, and, recomposing herself as best as she could, Georgia opened the door. Nodding with a plastered smile, she went to clean herself up a little. "I'm sorry, but I saw you turning white all of a sudden, and I got worried – you are pregnant, aren't you? Doctor McCoy didn't tell us, but I've seen enough pregnant women to recognize one."
The woman was smiling, and Georgia felt like crying and hitting herself. Anne was actually nice and kind, not the venomous viper that she had believed her to be at first glance – good, attentive, carrying and beautiful and sexy as hell: Leonard would have definitely preferred having this young woman in his bed, rather than the wife he had been forced to take.
"I'm fine, thank you. Uh… it's just, my morning sickness, it's kind of lasting all day long and, well, I'm just a little bit tired, I guess."
"It must be wonderful," Anne suddenly said, as she was talking between herself, her eyes low, her voice barely a whisper. "Being married to such a wonderful man."
"Yeah, it sure is. Uh – I'm sorry, but, I really have to leave now. It's been a pleasure meeting you, Miss Dickinson." Holding back tears, on shaky legs, Georgia left in a hurry the bathroom, walking towards the entrance of the ballroom, hoping that no one would see her – especially Leonard. She wasn't strong enough to face him as of now.
That wasn't her place; space, Yorktown – his side. She should have never gone there. She should have never told him about the baby. Marrying him… was probably the biggest mistake of her life, because none of them was happy, how could she expect to see her child growing up in a warm and loving household?
"Georgia?" She was looking for a taxy when she felt an hand grabbing her for the shoulder, and when she turned, she was faced by Leonard's worried expression. He was pale, scared, clearly distressed. "Are you all right?"
"I'm leaving." She simply stated.
"Oh – is everything all right? Do you want me to get you to the hospital? If you want I could…"
"You don't understand. I'm not leaving here." She shook her head, her fists clenched. For the first time since starting this façade, she saw as things really were: she was just an accessory, it truly didn't make a difference if she was there or not. It was no way to start a relationship – and she couldn't have her child growing up like that, with a father who would be there only every few years, and short on paternal love. She was as good as a single mother: she might as well rise her child on her own. "I'm leaving you. It was a mistake, and it's time we admit it."
"Georgia, you are being irrational. Stop acting like an infant!" He sighed.
"Yes, sure, very grown up of you, calling me childish and blaming the hormones for everything that's going down in our relationship. Let's forget the fact that you are barely home, or that we haven't even been sleeping together ever since we got married!"
"You are in a delicate state, Georgia!" He practically hissed at low voice, his eyes glaring with liquid fire, closing the distance between them. Georgia could feel his hot breath on her skin as Leonard spoke, and she shivered, her eyes closed.
"I'm just pregnant, Leonard- not some delicate porcelain doll. If you wanted to, you would have slept with me, but that's not the point, right?"
Sighing, defeated, Leonard brushed her closed fist with his fingers. "Georgia, I would always be glad to spend the night with you, but we both know you are looking for something different from sex. You want for us to fall madly in love and live happily ever after, but it's not how it works. And although I'll always take good care of you and our baby, I promised myself a long time ago that I would have never loved anyone ever again. I've been left with just my bones once already, I'm not letting anyone break me ever again."
"Right." She took a big breath, took a step back from her husband, putting some distance between their bodies. "You know what, Leonard?" She hissed his full name, almost as it was a profanity, an insult. "I'm gonna solve this problem for you. Go sleep with whoever you want, I'm living this bloody place one and for all and I'll rise my kid on my own – it's what you've always wanted after all, isn't it? To get rid of me and this baby."
"Georgia, I married you. I told you that I'd been faithful to you until you were my wife!"
"You say it as if you had a saying in this… you didn't marry me, Leonard. You married the mother of your baby. You married Jim's sister. You didn't choose me. Had it been… I don't know, Spock's sister, it would have been the same. And you want to know why? Because Jim was right. You don't love anyone. You just… do your thing and move on pretending nothing happened at all. But I don't work like that, Leonard. I'm sorry."
Crying, she gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek, and then, entered her taxi, and left into the night.
It was morning, and Georgia wasn't back yet, nor she had called to reassure him, either. Leonard wasn't surprised. Frankly, he deserved it. He had said things he wasn't sure he could take back, made her believe he had been forced into marrying her out of some kind of old-fashioned chauvinistic interpretation of life and roles in society, just to get back into Jim's good graces.
If she was a smart woman – which Georgia was – she'd stay as far away from him as possible, just like his ex-wife had, found a worthy father for her child, and not someone as closed-off as him.
Leonard let himself fall on the couch, and took a big breath, running his hands through his dark hair – just few days before they had been jet black, and now, a few hours spent worrying about his runaway bride, had him turning grey.
He looked around, taking it all in, suddenly glad that, in a few weeks, he would have left the apartment behind, leaving with the Enterprise the Starfleet outpost once again, this time once and for all, if luck had it; staying there, surrounded by her things, by memories, what ifs and regrets, would have killed any man.
Georgia hadn't taken anything with her, all of his wife's things were still there – he guessed that the only thing missing was the purse, the one she had been carrying when they had been arguing, and although his, the apartment was all hers. It screamed Georgia's name in bold letters at every nook and cranny, from the old botanic books to prints of wild flora from across the universe to a pair of heeled shoes haphazardly left on the carpet. Maybe he hadn't been sharing his bed with her but, without noticing, he had allowed her to take every day a bigger place in his existence, and now that she was gone, he feared that that empty spot would have remained a stormy, dark deep hole for the rest of his life.
Leonard's eyes fell on the framed picture by the fireplace, their wedding day – Georgia in a white wedding dress, with Jim between the two of them. They were happy, all of them, and his own eyes… Leonard had never truly looked at the photo, but now that he did, he just couldn't stop staring, marveled at the uncanny revelation unrevealing right before his eyes.
He was looking at Georgia like a man in love. And her smile, her gentle touches… everything screamed that she felt the same way.
He loved her. He had probably been in love with her for years – since the first time he had met her eyes across the crowded room at one of Jim's parties, back when they were at the Academy.
The revelation took him by surprise, and hit him like thousands punches in the stomach; he almost doubled over for the effort, and he fell on the cold floor on his knees, right before the comfortable and cute couch she had chosen.
He should have known it… how could he have missed it, when everyone around them was so sure of their feelings for each other?
He jumped on his feet and grabbed the frame, never letting it go, and he ran, as fast as he could, his heart thundering in his chest. He sweated, cold, fearing that it was too late, that she wouldn't listen to him, believe all he had to tell her. But no matter what, he would have found a way to make her listen, and believe that she truly she was loved, wanted. And, quite frankly, that the sole idea of spending the rest of his life without seeing her, without the chance of ever meeting his child, was killing him; he didn't lose time, and run into the street, right into the first available Transporter he found.
Ponce there, though, he was at loss. He was so scared, so desperate, he didn't know where to start from: he run from place to place, from her lab to her greenhouse to the apartment of the coworkers she was the closest to. He was about to ask for Uhura and Spock's help, hoping against all hope she was there, but then, it hit him: Georgia wanted a family.
She needed a family.
That's where he would have found her. with the person she trusted and loved the most, the one who had always cared about her, no matter what. She had to be with her family – with Jim.
He quickly selected Jim's address at the base, and left the transporter into an hurry- just a few steps, and he was knocking on his friend's door, waiting for an answer, screaming Jim's name at the top of his lungs, begging him to open up – people from the same floor were looking, some curious, others irritated, to see what the commotion was about.
After the longest time, Jim, finally, opened the door; he was leaning against the doorframe, his arms crossed, his lips in a firm, tight line as he faced his best friend: he wasn't mad with Leonard, though – more than anything, he was disappointed. With both the doctor and his sister.
"Bones, if you think I'm going to tell you where Georgia is, you're clearly mistaken." He hissed. He was clenching his fists, tempted to hurt one of the people he loved the most in the whole universe.
"Jim, please, she is my wife. And she is pregnant with my baby. I have every right of knowing where she is – and with all due respect, but either you tell me, or mutiny or not, I'll hurt you if you don't tell me what you know."
Jim just shook his head, lazily scratching the back of his neck. He sighed, exhausted, confused. "Listen, Bones, I don't know what happened between you two since you've been stranded here on Yorktown, but Georgia says it's over. That… she wants to get a divorce and come back to Earth to mum. And as much as I love you, she is my flesh and blood. She is the only good thing that came from my father's death, and she'll always come first."
"Jim, I know what she says, but she is wrong. I don't want to divorce her. I… I know I gave her…. Mixed signals, but now… now I'm ready. I know what I want. And I want Georgia. And the kid. The whole package."
"I don't think I've ever seen you acting like that, Bones. I thought you said that you were done with love."
"No, Jim. I wasn't done with love. If nothing else… I don't think I've ever fell as much in love as I did with Georgia." He looked at the ground and breathed in. "That party you gave in our room at the academy… I still remember it. When I saw Georgia for the first time. I saw her and I thought… I thought that maybe I could do it. Love again. Be with a woman without fearing she'd break me. But then you said she was your sister, and for the longest time I buried the memory of how I felt when she finally spoke with me."
For the longest time, Jim remained in silence. He faced his long-time best-friend, studying him, deeply- as he was seeing the man for the first time, and had to somehow recognize his character, what kind of human being he truly was.
Then, finally, he smiled – beaming with joy. "Right. Okay. I guess I'll have to take it for granted. So, if you are finished, I think you should know that Georgia is inside. Now go and get your girl before I change my mind, all right?"
Leonard smiled, and hugged him, kissing him soundly on the forehead, laughing, not carrying that his friend was pushing him away, nor that he wasn't appreciating the display of affection. Then, he run into the apartment, and screamed her name, calling her name as he was the last thing he would do, like the word was honey for his lips.
"Georgia" He called for her. " I've come to bring you back home!"
He found her in the living room, looking at the landscape, leaning against the window. She looked tired and old, her eyes were closed, and it seemed that the only thing that could bring her peace was caressing her baby bump.
"Georgia, let's go home." He repeated, his voice low and uncertain and scared, as he tentatively took the few steps separating them.
"I told Jim, Leonard, I'm not coming back with you." She shook her head, without bothering to look at him. " I'm moving back to Earth, no matter what you say."
Leonard hugged her from behind; he inhaled the rich scent of her hair, interlacing their fingers over her belly, it was still practically flat, no one could say she was pregnant by just looking at his wife, and he knew, as a doctor, that it was too soon to feel the baby; and yet, he felt a warmth, and so much love, that he believed it could transcend the mortal plane, connecting all three of them together, in a way that science couldn't explain.
"I looked at our wedding picture, Georgia. Really looked at it. for the first time. And, I wanted to tell you… that I know." he whispered, nuzzling her neck, leaving a trail of small kisses on her skin.
"What? That ever since I've been in College I'm in love with you - a broken-hearted womanizer who I thought I could bring happiness and love to?"
"Georgia, Jocelynn left me in pieces. And when she divorced me, I promised myself that I would have never given anyone else that kind of power. I would have only lived for myself. But… It seems I can't learn by my mistakes. Because I want to… protect, and look after you… as long as I'll live."
He turned her in his arms, and cupped her cheeks. She looked at him as she was seeing her husband for the first time, in a whole new light. But, mostly, he saw uncertainty, and fear – that it was too good, that he didn't know what he was doing. That, one day, he would have regretted this very decision.
"Leonard, I…"
"What I mean, Georgia Samantha Chase-McCoy, is that I love you. Let me take you home. Let me take care of you and our baby. Let me show you that I can be the man you deserve. We'll go wherever you want – your mother was ready to have Jim on a ship, I can't see why we can't do the same. If that's what you want. Or we could stay here. Or go back to Earth. Just, take me back, honey. Let me prove my love to you."
His words, his voice, his whole demeanor, everything was screaming at top of his lungs that he was being honest. She covered Leonard's hands with her own ones, and kissed him, once, quickly on the lips.
"We don't need to go anywhere, Leonard. It doesn't matter where we are – if here, on the Enterprise or back on Earth. Where you are, that's my home."
He hugged her, his nose in her hair, their hands, joined, on her belly, feeling the baby who was growing there; he was enchanted – by the miracle of life, and the knowledge that this amazing woman was carrying his child. He couldn't stopping looking at her abdomen with a goofy smile, imagining the future, all the chances and possible scenarios, and he promised himself to be a good man, a better one of who he had been until that point – the only thing that this kid really needed.
"Georgia, honey, but you are crying…." He asked her, when he finally felt her tears on his skin.
But she laughed, shaking her head, cradling his face in her hands, her skin pinched by his five o'clock shadow. "They are tears of happiness, Len – because I'm getting something that I've never thought possible – you."
"You had me from the moment you said I was brooding in a charming kind of way, darling." He smiled, kissed her gently, just one peck, then, he allowed Georgia to rest her head in the crock of his neck, feeling her tears of happiness wetting his skin. "I've always been yours, Georgia. Always."
Many years before…
Leonard stood in a corner of his shared quarter with his classmate and self-acclaimed best friend, Jim Kirk, feeling as out of place as never before. All the people at Jim's semi-illegal party were definitely younger than him, and many of them were behaving, quite frankly, like the idiots teenager they probably were.
Letting a sip of bourbon burning his throat, he sighed, looking around for an exit: he didn't want to be there, he was uncomfortable, he didn't want to risk meeting some superior (like a certain Vulcan Kirk kept pissing off) and having them on his case.
He was about to leave when, by sheer chance, his eyes landed on her, and he was done. She was – she looked – like everything he had ever wanted, without even knowing it. He stood still, half-empty glass in hand, and just looked at her, talking with some kids, smiling- radiant, and yet shy. He couldn't stop staring, with an idiotic smile on his lips – the kind of smile Jim used to get at least twice a week and that Leonard used to make fun of. But now, he finally got it. Even if Jim fell in love as often as he changed his boxers, if not more.
She was wearing a black top, very simple, and a golden brocade skirt, knee-length, with black heels – simpler than many of the girls at the party, and yet, it was her, with her blonde, soft hair and the glasses, that he saw.
Only her. No one but her. He was pretty sure he had just met the next (and hopefully last) Mrs. Leonard H. McCoy.
He took the few steps that separated them, ready to introduce himself, hoping against all hope that he wouldn't resort to some kind of idiotic pick-up line (like Jim's) that would scare her off, make him sound like a loser. But then, he saw Jim beating him to it. He was offering her a drink, smiling at her, laughing at something she had said. He had an hand on the small of her back, and for the first time since meeting the fellow cadet, Leonard saw stars, and felt like punching Jim, if not worse.
"Ehy, Bones, niece of you to join us!" Jim dared to laugh, calling him at loud. Clenching his fists, Leonard joined his "friend", and smiled weakly and falsely. "C'mon, Bones, try to unwind a little, live a little, have some fun. And for god's sake, stop being so grumpy all the time!"
"No, he's not grumpy." Jim's girlfriend studied him, a glass between her tiny hands. Now that he was facing her, Leonard felt… something. Electricity, but also some kind of twisted Deja-vu. Like he had met her already. "It's more like… brooding. But in a charming kind of way. I bet that you and Jim and the Academy's heartthrobs."
She smiled, and gave his her hand to shake – tiny, pale, and yet not perfect, with no manicure of any kind. He shook her hand, finding the skin not as soft as he thought – almost as she was a working bee, and not one of Jim's usual prima donna.
"Georgie, this is my best friend, Dr. Leonard McCoy, MD. Bones, this is my little sister, Georgia."
"It's a pleasure, Leonard- I've heard so much about you that I feel like I know you already."
"Me too, Georgia, me too." He said, under the amused look of his friend, already at loss for words. He had fallen at first sight – for Jim's little sister, which was a huge no-no. After all, back home, there was a saying: if you mess with your best friend's sister, you gotta marry her.
And Leonard McCoy wasn't the marrying kind any longer.
But maybe, just maybe, he could have made an exception, with time. If the right woman came along.
Who knew.
Maybe.
One day.