Bones grumbled at his ratted desk, caressing a stress ball in his palm, which was worn tired from how much the doctor had squeezed it. He had to tightly scrunch the ball until his fingers turned a pale white in order to rid himself of the feeling of boredom. The emptiness of his office troubled him, as he always had to deal with a reckless Kirk in ruins, begging the tired doctor for a second chance in life, when all he needed was a band-aid. The harsh noises of the kinetic sand in the stress ball was grinding into his ear drums, making McCoy twitch to each grain of sand being twisted and toyed with. Eventually, he had to set the stress ball down, which was already a loud enough of a noise. He rested his weary head on his hands, as he firmly situated his gnarly elbows on his desk. For once in a couple years, he let out a sigh of dismay. He didn't know what to do. The whole Enterprise had seemed to stop with no real cause. He tried his hardest to circle around the med bay, looking for jobs, or any kind of work, but his men only seemed just as puzzled. He tried to reorganize his hypos and medicines, but they were already in place and collecting cobwebs while they were at it. It was so barren and sad. McCoy hated that.

The man stared at the wall in front of him, which laid the entrance to his solitude. He had chuckled, thinking of the plastic skeleton decoration he placed in front of the door, which he had labeled "The Last Man who Talked Back to McCoy". He was proud of that. Kirk had gotten a replicator code for an ancient toy skeleton, and decided to make the best of it and make one for his birthday. He and almost all of the bridge crew decorated and made the skeleton beautiful, adding tattoos, clothes, signatures, and even piercings. At the end of the day, he got a skeleton that was so packed with graffiti, he could barely see the skeleton underneath. Eventually, after years of seeing his face, Bones named him Graffiti Kirk, after the two things he love-hated most in life.

Beep! McCoy was startled by the sound of the intercom clicking on, probably not touched in weeks. This is Captain James Tiberius Kirk speaking to give you an announcement. I understand that the explosion on Yorktown was a pretty big ordeal for all of us, and some of us had lost some things within the flames. It was a devastating event for all of us, even some people on the bridge. But, I'm here to announce that everything has been going very smoothly and we will take off to continue our five-year mission in a week or so. Keep your hope and smile down the halls this week. Kirk out.

Bones sat in silence for a couple minutes, processing what the captain had said. His words were true; the explosion on Yorktown was devastating and had taken the lives of several people. He couldn't remember the last time he walked onto the bridge and saw smiling faces. It hit Sulu the worst. On Yorktown, the helmsman's husband rested there with their daughter, and he can remember seeing the Asian's overjoyed face to his husband's smile. Just thinking about his loss tore his heart, and brought tears curling in the edges of his eyes. He sighed, knowing all the love the poor man was recieving; Chekov was all over him after his loss, asking for coffee, offering assistance and just helping him. He's never seen Chekov more active with his actions, as he was so preserved and silent to himself, only speaking when spoken to.

Irritated with his unstable position, he pushed himself from the desk and stood up, pushing his weight against his legs, which tingled with the sensation of falling asleep. Bones cursed and kicked his foot against the edge of his desk to snap his feet out of a daze. Grumbling, he strode out of his office, picking up a PADD on the way out. He aimed right for the hall, striding down, aiming for the lift at the end. Every step he took outside his office, the more depressed the Enterprise looked. The halls were desolate, the walls rid of all it's usual flashing lights and cheerful appearance. It was strange.

The world had fallen into a gray scale ever since the explosion on Yorktown.

He rushed to the lift and swerved around, positioning himself in the lift. Clearing his throat, the McCoy clearly projected. "Computer, set course for the bridge." The request was followed swiftly by a confirmation beep and the swooshing melodies of the lift barreling through the ship and upwards to the bridge. The soft noises of the lift shifting through the ship was like white noise to Bones; very relaxing and gentle to his ears, like mini symphonies playing inside his head that would gently row him to sleep. He took a deep breath, feeling the air filter through his lungs and have the beautiful sensation of oxygen sprinkling throughout his system, giving his body a healthy supply of energy.

The lift elegantly paused it's ascent as it landed softly at the top of the bridge, the door sweeping open. Bones stepped forward to greet himself to a huge, spacious bridge, which was coated in a pearly white, with the occasional blue spattered across the controls. As he turned a left to see the side of the bridge, he looked at the captain's chair, occupied by captain Kirk. He was slouching in his chair, his legs stretched out in front of him, with his arms resting on his armrests. His face was a sharp, chiseled, perfect face for any woman to cling onto instantly. His hair complimented his face quite nicely, as his neatly brushed back blonde hair shone in the bland room. Kirk's shirt was a bright mustard yellow, gleaming like a comet from the rest of the blue or yellow shirts. He looked like a star in human's skin. One narcissistic star.

Kirk's attention was dragged away from the haze he was in and looked up at the doctor. His face was sprinkled with a hint of pleasant surprise, as the doctor hadn't checked up on the bridge in a couple days, but was quickly followed by a charming grin. Though Kirk was quite handsome and his smile could brighten up a whole room, McCoy could always look past his crystal blue eyes and see the oasis of trouble resting behind his vision.

Kirk gave a half laugh, lighting up the bridge with his cheerful nature. "Bones! When was the last time you stepped foot outside your office?" His voice was like any comic book superhero; bold, slick, loyal, and was just low enough to lasso any one into his bellow. Each word was almost perfectly articulated, but it was expected from a rambunctious man like him.

"Just checking in." Bones grumbled as he took out the PADD he grabbed from earlier, quickly scrambling his fingers to glide against the sleek surface. He hadn't planned to do anything at the bridge, as he just wanted to leave the solitude and depression from his office at Med Bay. After a moment's pause, he realised that he could give a quick medical scan, so he glided his scrawny fingers over the PADD to set up medical applications.

While doing so, he could hear Kirk give a scoff slyly and started the fiddle at his control panel on the rests of his chair. "So, Bones, what have you been doing recently?"

"Sitting at my desk and finding something to do in this ship." He grumbled back, having an obvious tone of annoyance.

"You do know you can go out and do something in Yorktown, right?"

"Hah, like I want to go see the destruction of that place again."

Kirk gave a nod of understanding, pausing a moment to find something to reply with. "Well, you can try the new bar they installed on Deck 4."

The doctor looked up and gave Kirk a stink eye. Kirk returned the look with a laugh and leaned in, staring at him with a teasing look. "What, you don't like that? It looks amazing; Scotty's been insane over the beer fountain."

"I'm a doctor, I don't need to get that toxic alcohol swimming in my system." He was easing up, releasing his annoyed tone.

The captain laughed. "Says the man who drank with me a week ago!"

"I only accepted that because it was your birthday."

"You went out of your way to find that vodka in someone else's locker!"

"Like I said, it was your birthday, so it was mandatory."

"Oh, for christ's sake- just go check out that deck and have a drink, whether or not it's my birthday." The captain finally retorted.

"I'm pretty sure you're trying to find an excuse to get rid of me." He scoffed, finally finishing with is PADD work, so he slid the PADD underneath his armpit, and looked Kirk straight in the eye. Obviously, his words were not harsh, as he gave Kirk a look of subtle sarcasm, which was quite rare for the grumpy doctor he was.

Kirk cleanly caught his joke, and returned with a solid response, chuckling a little. "Be glad I didn't suggest the compost."

Bones cocked his eyebrows, staring at Kirk, trying to process his come back. Jesus, that was really weak. Even though that was the weakest shot he's ever seen, he felt a small hole in his chest; a little walnut of pity. He shook this off and snorted, looking Kirk straight in the eye. "Alrighty then, I'll go to the bar then. I'll come back with a medical checkup." He had to pinch his fingers to not let his voice hitch mid-sentence.

Kirk eyed him, but he leaned back into his chair, and crossed his legs. "Hah, alright go have fun, buddy. Make sure to get me a shot." His voice was sarcastic, but the joke has already ended for the doctor.

After looking at Kirk for a second, he nodded and strode out of the bridge, ushering to the lift at a quick pace. He couldn't clearly remember anything definite from that point on, as everything was a hazy blur, lights and walls turning into one, with the floor rising from the ground and dancing around him. The world was inverting and reverting, not knowing what to do with itself, as the walls disappeared around him, preventing him from falling onto the wall. He tripped backwards, falling onto the lift floor hard, and banging his head against the wall of the enclosed space. He felt the warmth lifting from his fingers as his consciousness gave way, making the world tunnel view itself into a void.

Inhale. Exhale. The void in his chest as astronomically expanded, walloping his chest and investing his lungs. His lungs. He forgot how to breathe. Breathe. Please. Breathe.

Breathe.