"Captain," Sulu said looking over his shoulder. "We'll be in Kornephoros by mid-afternoon."
"My favorite system." McCoy said with a smile.
"Why, what's in Kornephoros?" Jim asked him with a smirk.
"You poor, ignorant, sweet summer child." McCoy teased. He shook his head in mock disgust. "The best restaurants in any known galaxy are there. You've really never heard of Alcor VII?"
"I'm afraid not, but I'm starting to regret it." Jim replied.
"Then it's settled, we're spending our shore leave on Alcor VII." McCoy said. "I'll pay for dinner if you can look me in the eye and say you haven't ate the best meal of your life there."
"Careful Bones, I might con myself into a free meal." Jim said.
"Not a chance." McCoy laughed. "The steaks in this restaurant I go are so good they'd make even Spock weep with pleasure."
"Your use of hyperbole is not appreciated, Doctor." Spock replied dryly.
"It's not hyperbole if it's true, Spock." McCoy picked on him. "You're invited to come along to prove me wrong...that is if you're not too intimidated."
"You're setting yourself up for failure. I am a vegetarian." Spock reminded them.
"Sure, you are now," McCoy said. "But once you hear the juices sizzling-"
"Captain," Uhura said interrupting their conversation. "I'm getting an urgent call from Starfleet."
"Patch them through." Jim ordered. His com button lit up and he pressed it. "Kirk here." Jim said in greeting.
"Captain Kirk," it was the voice of Commander Radcliffe Truitt, and he sounded rather cheerless. "You're close to the Forty-Eyed Nebula, aren't you?" he asked.
"Yes Commander, we'll be approaching it in just a few hours." Jim replied.
"Good. We're going to need the Enterprise to help in a possible rescue mission." Truitt informed him.
"Possible? Go on, I'm listening." Jim said with a frown.
"A colony ship called the Ulysses hasn't arrived on the planet Neviah. We've been told it's three solar days off schedule. We think something caused it to go off-course." Truitt said.
"When and where was the last time the Ulysses communicated with anyone?" Jim asked.
"They reached out to their contacts on Neviah a week ago. I'll send you the coordinates of its last known position. We know they entered the Forty-Eyed Nebula and issued no distress call or expressed anything out of the ordinary." Truitt said. "Starfleet is sending scouting vessels to confirm their whereabouts but it'll take half a day for them to reach the coordinates. You're our closest ship in the area."
"We'll assist in any way that we can." Jim promised.
"Thank you." Truitt said. "And Jim…"
"Yes?"
"Check in regularly, will you? We can't rule out the possibility of an attack." Truitt said.
"We will. Kirk out." Jim said. He turned regretfully to McCoy. "I guess that steak will have to wait."
Uhura had been sending an emergency broadcast across and beyond the nebula as they scoured for the Ulysses. After going through the entire route, they circled back and began scanning areas off-course. It wasn't until they were nearly out of the nebula that they found something.
"Captain, our sensors are picking up on a ship." Spock announced. "44-mark-320-mark-9."
"Take us there, Mr. Sulu." Jim ordered.
"Yes sir." Sulu replied.
"There." Jim said pointing. "That's got to be the Ulysses."
"If she's on the way to Neviah she's gone way off course." Chekov said checking the coordinates.
It was indeed the ship, and they watched it with trepidation as it came further into view.
"Is she listing?" Jim asked as he swayed in his chair slightly.
"Negative. The Ulysses is stable, engines appear fully functional." Spock said reading his scanner.
"It's bigger than some space stations." McCoy remarked as he crossed his arms. "...There must be hundreds of people in there."
"Five hundred if operating to full capacity." Spock corrected him.
"No response to our hail, Captain." Uhura reported.
"No readings of any hull damage." Spock reported returning to his scanner.
"If they weren't attacked why aren't they answering us? Why are they just sitting there?" Jim thought aloud.
"Maybe they need a tow." McCoy suggested.
"That doesn't explain why they won't communicate with us." Jim said.
"Could they have abandoned the ship?" Chekov asked.
"We'll have to send a party onboard to know for sure." Jim replied getting out of his seat. "Spock, Bones, let's say hello."
They materialized in the Ulysses transporter room and immediately Jim was slammed with cold. That wasn't all, the air was thin- dangerously thin. He saw McCoy collapse to the ground and followed shortly after he fell to his knees.
"Oxygen-!" Spock gasped hunching over.
"Enterprise!" Jim gasped desperately into his communicator. "Beam us back!" he choked out in a strangled rasp.
The comforting hum of the transporter beam filled Jim's ears, or it may have been the dizziness as he felt his conscious mind slipping away. He was face down on the transporter platform when he 'woke up'. McCoy was laying next to him on his back, his eyes wide with alarm.
"Captain, are you alright!?" Scotty proclaimed as he rushed to his side.
"Fine, just a little...winded." Jim said sitting up.
"Well that was fun!" McCoy snapped sarcastically after a few heavy breaths. "Let's beam into a pile of rusty scissors next!"
"The ship's oxygen and life support systems appear to be underperforming." Spock spoke calmly.
"You think!?" McCoy rasped at him with heavy sarcasm.
Spock whipped around to face McCoy.
"Yes Doctor, I really do believe so." Spock remarked.
McCoy rolled his eyes as Jim steadily got to his feet.
"Scotty, we're going to need oxygen for our next transport." Jim said. "We'll need your expertise as well, and we'll need to move quickly- there might be survivors on board."
"Aye sir." Scotty said.
They were much more prepared the second time they boarded the Ulysses ship. Once they materialized Spock immediately took a sample of the ship's atmosphere.
"Low readings of oxygen suggest fatal levels. No toxicity or harmful foreign substances." Spock read off his tricorder.
"Scan for humanoid lifeforms Mr. Spock." Jim ordered him.
"Scanning…" Spock reported. "Captain," he said looking up from his tricorder. "Humanoid lifeforms are on the ship, but they're in a status of complete inactivity."
"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" Jim asked slowly.
Their fears were confirmed as they marched outside the transporter room. Signs of death was everywhere as they walked further inside the ship. It reminded Jim of a mass tomb, only worse, because the corpses had been living people as early as a few days ago. Because of the cold, the lack of oxygen, and vermin on the ship, the bodies were remarkably preserved.
"Why didn't they try to leave when the life support systems failed?" McCoy asked. "Why not put out a distress signal? Call for help? Anything?"
"It's possible they didn't know they were in trouble until it was too late." Scotty replied. "The back-up system kicks in automatically and can give you a false sense of security. If both life systems went down, Engineering would only have so much time to repair it. Who knows how often they were maintained? It coulda been a difficult repair."
"You really think they'd be so careless?" Jim asked as he stepped over the bodies.
"I'll run a full diagnostic of course, but It's a commercial charter, sir." Scotty replied. "I hate to be labeled a cynic, but the life support systems are the most expensive hardware on these ships. I've seen my fair share of jerry-rigging on them when they should have been retired. Safety regulations are only as good as management pressures them to be."
"Understood." Jim replied. He turned to McCoy. "We'll need a full medical scan on several of the bodies to determine cause of death."
"Of course." McCoy said breaking out of his grim trance. He produced a scanner and bent over a collapsed woman who was clutching her chest with one hand. "Cause of death... suffocation."
"I've located the one of the central servers." Spock said keying through a terminal. "Perhaps there are records that can aid us in figuring out what happened here."
McCoy took a few varied scans as Jim stepped through the bodies, steadying himself emotionally as he absorbed their faces into his memory.
"All of them are showing signs of suffocation." McCoy said. He joined Jim at looking down at the body of a girl that couldn't have been older than ten years-old. "Are you okay, Jim?"
"No." Jim replied.
"Me neither." McCoy admitted. "I don't know why I asked."
"According to the schematics this direction is the fastest route to the engine room." Spock said pointing to a door on Scotty's right.
Scotty stepped through the door, but once it opened he stopped abruptly within the doorway.
"Captain," Scotty said, his voice slightly raw. "We should find a different route."
"Why?" Jim asked.
As they gathered around an unsettling sight stopped everyone from advancing.
They had stumbled upon the ship's nursery. An easy hundred, maybe more, infants and children of all ages were slumped on the floor, in bassinets, and some clutched into the embrace of their parents.
"My God!" McCoy gasped. "How could anyone allow this to happen? It's senseless!"
"Starfleet has to be informed." Scotty spoke softly. "We can't let these people die for nothing."
"Agreed. Until then, we'll go around." Jim said softly. "Find another route. ...Let the dead rest in peace. Mr. Spock?'
"An alternative route is this way, Captain." Spock spoke steadily.
Getting to the engine room proved less a heart-wrenching affair. The bodies thinned out, and only a few crewmembers were littered in the corners. Scotty had been going over the support systems with vigor as they watched on.
"Your analysis Mr. Scott?" Jim asked.
"Just as I suspected." Scotty said darkly. "Here's the culprit, Captain." He held up a burnt cylinder no bigger than the palm of his hand. "This is what did the system in. It's a power regulator but it's much too small for this ship. They over-taxed it and it was only able to work at quarter capacity until it blew out, plain and simple."
"Pack it up." Jim ordered him. "It'll become the new symbol of safety regulations for colony charters if I have anything to do with it."
"Aye, sir." Scotty replied.
"Let's get out of here. I've seen enough." Jim said.
Doctor McCoy was leaning against the table in his quarters, spinning a glass of whiskey in his hands. He kept thinking about the Ulysses and what sort of crew would allow hundreds of people to slowly suffocate to death. Who would risk those children's lives for profit? The questions made him finish his third shot.
He didn't think he was nearly as close to being as drunk as he wanted to be. His doorbell chimed as he poured himself another drink.
"Yeah?" McCoy called. "Jim, is that you?"
The doors opened and Spock stepped in his room clutching two folders under his arm.
"What's that?" McCoy asked motioning to the folders with his glass.
"Mr. Scott and my official analysis and a copy of your autopsy report on the Ulysses mission." He replied stoically.
"Mmm, put them on the table." McCoy slurred.
"Only one is for you, the other is for the Captain." Spock informed him. "After consulting with Mr. Scott on the probability and performance of the life support systems-"
"-Spock, I'm off the clock." McCoy interrupted him. He held up his glass. "I'm afraid my vice renders me incapable of focusing... on the details."
A single eyebrow popped on Spock's brow as he surveyed McCoy.
"Whatever you have to say about the Ulysses will have to wait until tomorrow morning." McCoy mumbled.
"You're inebriated." Spock said.
"That's an astute observation." McCoy said wryly. "Hey," he said tipping his glass towards Spock. "You should be a science officer." He said chuckling at his own joke.
"A very illogical suggestion, as we both know I already am one." Spock said ruining the joke. He crossed the room and placed both the folders on the table.
"Ya never turn off that Vulcan charm, do you?" McCoy said. He threw back his head as he downed his shot. Spock watched him closely as he let out a satisfied grunt.
"Doctor, if I may interject my personal medical opinion; I don't think it prudent for you to indulge in your 'vice', as you are the head medical officer on our mission. We have not yet officially reported to Starfleet, and they may call on you to disclose the details of your autopsy report." Spock said. "We are still technically 'on the clock'."
"The mission is why I'm indulging, you green-blooded, hobgoblin!" McCoy raged. "I'm sad! Surely even you can understand that!"
"I do acknowledge-" Spock started.
"-Acknowledge?" McCoy repeated. "Don't you feel anything? My God, so many people died for nothing!"
"...Doctor," Spock said softly. "I take no pleasure in what we witnessed today."
"Is that the best you can do? Dammit Spock," McCoy cursed, "I know you don't have emotions, but I'm sure even Vulcans have hearts!"
"A correct statement... I'm afraid I don't understand the origin of your complaint." Spock replied.
"There were children!" McCoy burst out angrily. "They were the most -vulnerable and innocent of our species, the most undeserving of-" he stuttered. He paused, gathering his thoughts and took a shaky breath. "You really don't feel anything for them? Not even...secretly?"
"Please don't mistake my emotionless state as rooted in villainy." Spock said. "I want justice for all who have died, and I especially recognize the waste of potential in the children dying."
"The 'waste of potential'?" McCoy repeated in a fury.
"You've worked yourself into an emotional state." Spock told him. "And I believe you are very inebriated."
"Yes, Spock, I am very inebriated- and very emotional! It's the logical way to be after seeing what we've seen!" McCoy snapped.
"I cannot agree." Spock replied.
"You can't? Well you know what's illogical? Not feeling anything after seeing an entire room full of dead infants." McCoy spat viciously. "To not even feel a twinge of grief for all those people. That is illogical."
"Grief is a reasonable human response to what we witnessed," Spock told him. There was an edge of impatience in his voice. "But not a logical one."
McCoy laughed humorlessly before his smile twisted into a pained grimace.
"I should know better than to seek comfort with you." McCoy said shaking his head. "You're nothing but a pointy-eared, walking computer."
"You seem determined to pick a fight with me, Doctor." Spock informed him. "A very odd and illogical means to 'seek comfort'."
"...You're right." McCoy sighed.
He turned his back to Spock and leaned on the table as he poured himself another shot of whiskey.
"Actually, I envy you right now. I wish I could not feel today's horrors in my mind playing over and over and over..." McCoy admitted. "I keep hoping this will make me feel a little more detached from the mission." He turned to face Spock, who was watching him with slight interest as he knocked back his shot in one quick swallow. It made him feel self-conscious. "Fancy a drink? So I don't feel too bad 'working myself into an emotional state' alone?"
McCoy grabbed another clean glass off the tray and poured a generous shot.
"No thank you." Spock refused as McCoy held it out to him.
"Then just hold the damn drink." McCoy snapped as he shoved it in Spock's hand. "Hell, just give me the illusion you care about what I'm going through!"
"I do care." Spock replied placing the drink back on the table.
"You do?" McCoy huffed skeptically as he swayed.
"I am here, Doctor." Spock stated as if it were obvious. "Despite your insults and your vitriolic attitude toward me, I will remain in your quarters as long as you wish me to, to assist in relieving your sorrow."
That caused McCoy to laugh genuinely. He picked up Spock's untouched whiskey and held it close to his chest.
"Would you be here if you didn't have to deliver your analysis?" McCoy asked him.
"I admit it was an opportunity I took advantage of to check on your mental state." Spock replied.
"You came here under false pretenses?" He asked with an easy smile. "You lied?"
"It was not a lie, Doctor." Spock said stiffly.
"But you were concerned for me?" McCoy pressed him further.
"Naturally. You were in distress, and as chief medical officer it could prove perilous if you are to continue in your highly negative emotional state." Spock replied.
"You would say anything to avoid admitting having a human emotion, wouldn't you?" McCoy said with a grin. Spock opened his mouth to reply but McCoy interrupted, "Thank you all the same."
"You're quite welcome." He replied.
McCoy hadn't realized how close he was standing to Spock until he was looking him in the face. In a slow waiver his glass pressed against Spock's chest as he closed in, and before McCoy's mind could register exactly what he was doing, he shocked himself by pressing his lips against Spock's.
He felt a surge of pleasure at the brief, soft kiss.
Then a surge of terror and deep embarrassment. The glass of whiskey slipped out of his hand and made a thump against the hard carpet before spilling all over the floor and on his shoes. He was staring at Spock in amazement, who in turn was expressing a rare emotion of being shocked as well.
There are some reactions even he can't hide.
If McCoy wasn't so upset by his own actions he'd enjoy watching Spock squirm.
"I'm so sorry, I really had too many." McCoy said with a forced laugh, bending over and picking up the spilled glass.
Spock hadn't moved away from him, but McCoy wished he would. He felt dizzy as he stood back up and awaited some sort of response from the Vulcan. McCoy couldn't see any revulsion on his face, or any other emotion, though his nostrils were flaring slightly and he seemed to have stopped blinking.
"I'm tired...drunk... not feeling like myself." McCoy said in horror.
"Yes." Spock replied.
"You should go." McCoy said desperately. "I'm going to go to bed...sleep it off. Go check-up on Jim."
"Yes." Spock said again. He hesitated before turning to leave.
"Ah- Spock," McCoy said, causing Spock to stop. "I have two folders, one's for Jim, right?"
Spock hesitated before quickly grabbing one of the folders from the table.
"Oh, and uh," McCoy said clearing his throat. "Don't tell him about- you know."
"Yes." Spock said simply before departing.
When his door closed McCoy let out a humiliated cry of panic.
What the hell was that, Leonard? Are you out of your damn mind? Spock of all people! You're not even attracted to men!
He ran a shaky hand over his face and placed the empty glass on his table.
"No more drinking." He said to himself. "Not until this mission's over."
"Hi Spock." Jim said. He was sitting in a chair in his quarters. "Come on in, I'm just winding down"
Spock wordlessly entered and handed Jim a folder.
"...You seem quiet." Jim said. "Something wrong?"
"It has been a remarkably unusual day." Spock admitted.
"Unusual and disturbing." Jim mumbled.
"Quite." Spock agreed.
"Would you like to have a drink with me and take some of the edge off?" Jim asked him.
"No, I would not." Spock said quickly. Jim raised his eyebrows at the response. "I've just come from Doctor McCoy's quarters and he made the same offer, which I refused."
"You're right, I should be asking him to join me." Jim said standing up and heading towards his liquor cabinet.
"I don't think so." Spock said. "He was intoxicated and he's gone to bed."
"...He's taking it that poorly, huh?" Jim asked as he pulled out a bottle of brandy.
"Very much so." Spock said. "His behavior was...quite erratic."
"What do you mean?" Jim asked him frowning. Spock didn't reply. "Spock?"
"He's asked me not to elaborate on the incident." Spock replied.
"Incident?" Jim repeated. "What happened?"
"Captain, I wish to respect his request." Spock said apologetically. "Rest assured what happened bares no relevance in the success or failure of our mission."
"Well is he okay?" Jim asked him.
"He displayed some embarrassment but hasn't suffered any injury." Spock replied.
"Alright." Jim said. Curiosity was eating away at him but he resisted the urge to question Spock further.
"Captain?" Spock said.
"Hm?" Jim replied.
"While intoxicated, do you find that your judgement is so impaired that you'd express emotions you didn't truly have?" Spock asked. Jim got the impression the question was phrased very carefully.
"Oh Spock, I wouldn't take anything Doctor McCoy said to you to heart." Jim said. "To answer your question, being drunk can magnify an emotion, and the good doctor does get frustrated with you, but he also holds you in the highest respect."
Spock seemed to be mulling Jim's response over quietly. After a pause he raised a single eyebrow.
"You're really not going to tell me what happened, huh?" Jim asked.
"I wish to spare him further humiliation." Spock replied.
"You know you're killing me with curiosity." Jim told him.
"It is quite impossible to die of curiosity." Spock replied simply.
"I know, it's an expression." Jim said airily. "What I meant was your responses are making me more and more curious about this incident."
"Please understand my intentions are not to cause any hardship towards you or the Doctor." Spock replied.
"I understand." Jim said. He crossed the room and picked up the folder with a sigh. "I should probably go to bed myself, we're going to need rest and tomorrow doesn't look any easier."
"Then I'll leave you to rest." Spock stated.
"Thanks for stopping by." Jim said.
McCoy found himself interrupted from a daydream as Jim placed his breakfast tray on the table. He hadn't slept well and he couldn't shake the grogginess that gripped him. Even after taking a hydration shot he found himself still suffering from a wicked hangover.
"I heard you hit the sauce pretty hard last night." Jim said sitting across McCoy.
McCoy sniffed as he scratched his cheek. He'd skipped shaving that morning, and no doubt he looked like hell.
"Don't be upset, I'm not judging you, so did I." Jim mistook his silence for guilt.
"I've sworn it off." McCoy drawled, stabbing an egg with his fork. Jim met his gaze questionably. "Don't shit a brick, I'm only abstaining until this Ulysses thing blows over. Drowning it out is literally not worth the headache."
"Yeah, Spock mentioned the two of you had some sort of incident?" Jim said. A visible change settled over McCoy as he stopped moving his fork and stared intensely at his plate. "Relax, he wouldn't tell me what happened."
"It was nothing," McCoy said gruffly. "Just a misunderstanding."
"I'm intrigued." Jim teased him. "I think you might have hurt our science officer's feelings."
"He doesn't have feelings to hurt." McCoy snapped eating again.
"You know that's not true." Jim whispered. "He doesn't have the luxury of showing us the toll yesterday's mission took on him… so take it easy on the insults for a while."
"Take it easy-? I didn't insult him!" McCoy said defensively. Jim raised his eyebrows. "Well, I did- but that's not what caused..." he trailed off. "Why am I talking about this? I don't want to talk about this." he snapped moodily at Jim. "Stop talking about it."
"Okay, I'm sorry." Jim said holding up a passive hand.
"...Did you read the report?" McCoy asked, changing the subject.
"I skimmed through it." Jim replied.
"Me too. I think Spock's looking to publish. He wrote an entire volume on life support systems and escape pod schematics." McCoy scoffed. "I was too wasted to absorb any of it, although the annoyed feeling I got looking at it is still lingering."
"From what I read there were no viruses in the computers. Life support and backup systems stalled into a shutdown from mechanical failure." Jim said. "just as Scotty predicted."
Jim's gaze flickered behind McCoy, causing him to twist in his seat.
"Gentlemen." Spock greeted them.
McCoy noticed he had travelled to Jim's side of the table to sit down instead of taking the path of least resistance and sitting next to him.
"I overheard you speaking about the Ulysses." Spock said. "Are are you conducting a private meeting?"
"No, it's just called breakfast." McCoy informed him bitingly.
"Thank you Doctor, I am familiar with the concept." Spock replied stiffly, not meeting his eyes.
"We were just making conversation about the accident." Jim replied.
"Captain, at the risk of sounding impertinent, did you read my report?" Spock asked him carefully.
"We skimmed it." McCoy replied. "We had to. If we read every word we wouldn't even be here for breakfast because we'd still be reading it."
"Not so." Spock said with a subtle note of annoyance at the criticism. "The entire report if read at an average pace of two hundred words per minute would only take you four hours and twelve minutes and thirty-six seconds."
"Four hours?" McCoy repeated incredulously. "Gee, is that all?" he added sarcastically.
"Four hours, twelve minutes and thirty-six seconds." Spock repeated. "Of course it's entirely plausible it would have taken you much longer to process the information, Doctor. You were severely impaired last night."
"Alright you two, calm down, let's not have another incident." Jim said in warning.
McCoy cleared his throat and began stabbing at his eggs again as Spock kept his face carefully neutral.
"I'm sorry I didn't read your entire report." Jim said to Spock in between bites of his own breakfast. "I'll be sure to pass it along to Starfleet. In the meantime you're going to have to forgive me and give me the short version."
"Very well. The short version is, I don't believe what happened aboard the Ulysses was an accident." Spock claimed.
Jim stopped chewing his pancake and dropped his fork. "Explain." Jim said.
"The failure of the life support systems was very logical, even inevitable." Spock informed them. "However, when I turned my attention to the escape pods I discovered a very curious inconsistency; four pods were deployed and yet everyone aboard the vessel is accounted for."
"Is it possible the crew bungled the evacuation?" McCoy asked. "After all, these weren't soldiers, they were civilians."
"I pulled records off the central computer." Spock said. "The data appeared to be corrupt, but I was able to read one string. None of the escape pods were empty. Oxygen was regulated and a heart rate recorded in all pods. As tempted as I am to label the Ulysses a victim of a string of human and mechanical errors, I find it more likely saboteurs were involved." Spock said. "Saboteurs that were not listed on the colonist's ledger...who escaped the fate of those aboard."
"This was an organized massacre made to look like an accident." Jim whispered.
"The theory would support the facts." Spock replied.
"I have to report this to Starfleet right away." Jim said leaving his tray half-eaten pancakes on the table.
Jim's leaving caused McCoy to feel the full weight of being alone with Spock. There was an awkward stillness that couldn't be ignored, and McCoy was sure Spock felt it as well despite his practiced mask of no emotion.
"I've got to...get to sick bay." McCoy said. He didn't have the fortitude to come up with a reasonable excuse.
He left his tray of food on the table as he quickly rushed out of the cafeteria.
His retreat was short lived, however. McCoy lingered outside the cafeteria fighting the butterflies in his stomach as he waited for Spock to immerge. Any time a crewmember wearing the blue science uniform appeared he felt his heart jump into his throat. Several times he had been tempted to pretend nothing had changed between him and Spock, but he knew the awkward tension would mount unless he did something to diffuse.
"Oh come on! How many science officers could there be eating there?" he thought as another blue-uniformed man walked out. His nerves were fatiguing him, though he felt even weaker when Spock finally stepped out.
Spock was looking through his thick report as he strolled down the hallway towards the elevator to the bridge. He didn't seem to pay any mind to anyone as the doctor trailed behind him nervously. Once Spock stepped inside the elevator McCoy recognized it as his chance to get him alone.
Gathering up his courage McCoy quickened his pace and covered the distance to the lift in a fast walk.
"Hold the door!" McCoy demanded. He slipped into the lift with Spock.
"This elevator is going to the bridge, not sick bay." Spock announced.
"I know where it goes, Spock, I wasn't asleep every single time I've used it." McCoy snapped. His expression softened. "I, uh, was hoping to avoid doing this, but I see that we need to talk."
Yeoman Rand was making her way to the lift and McCoy loudly announced "close door". The elevator system obeyed, causing the doors to close right in her face.
"Hey-!" They heard her shout as it cut off.
"Stop lift." Doctor McCoy ordered so the elevator wouldn't go to the bridge.
Spock raised his eyebrows at McCoy's actions.
"You have my attention, Doctor." Spock said.
"This isn't easy for me to say, so here it goes." McCoy said looking down at his feet. "I want to apologize for last night." He cleared his throat. "I don't really know where the…" he paused, discomfort overtaking him. "...kiss came from. I can assure you it won't happen again."
"Your apology is unnecessary." Spock replied.
"What do you mean, 'unnecessary'?" McCoy asked frowning at him slightly.
"You were drunk, traumatized, and in a state of intense agitation." Spock clarified. "You were not in your right mind, so to speak."
"Yeah...I suppose so." McCoy said slowly. "I just want you to know that I'm just as confused as you why I did that."
"On the contrary, I understand your behavior completely." Spock told him.
"You do?" McCoy said.
"Yes. I recognize now you were merely acting on your base human instincts. A common, primitive coping mechanism of your species is to seek comfort in a crisis wherever it can be found." Spock explained.
"Oh, uh-" McCoy started.
"-Combined with your impaired judgement and the professed 'horrors of the day', you were overwhelmed and you lacked the self-discipline to suppress the urge to kiss me." Spock said. "It's all very logical."
"Now wait just a damn minute," McCoy snarled. "you make it sound like I was some mindless beast pouncing on you!"
"Not mindless," Spock replied matter-of-factly. "merely over-stressed and intoxicated."
"Why you-" McCoy snarled. "You know I was wrestling all night with the thought I might have feelings for you! I can't believe I tormented myself wondering how to handle this mess between us. I can see now I shouldn't have bothered! Open door!"
Once the doors opened McCoy shoved past the confused yeoman waiting for the lift.
"Very rude!" Yeoman Rand cried indignantly.
"Excuse me," McCoy yelled sarcastically behind his shoulder. "I can't control myself!"
A/N: I've been a lifelong fan of Star Trek, and I really wanted to write this like it was an actual episode (with my spin on it of course). If you liked it please let me know!