Leo made his rounds, checking in on patients and running quick fix ups here and there. He managed to lighten his pile of paperwork from both the attack above Vulcan and for Christopher's return. Making his way down the corridor, he decided to check on the Captain. The Enterprise would dock soon at a nearby starbase, before taking the shuttles back down to the Academy. He couldn't wait to get back onto solid land and to breathe in real air.
When Leo stepped into the room, he wasn't surprised at the sight before him. Andrea was passed out, curled up against her father, while Christopher laid with his eyes closed. Moving further into the room, he nearly jumped out of his skin, when Christopher opened his eyes.
"Scared ya, Doc?" he asked.
Leo rolled his eyes, earning a chuckle from the older man. Andrea stirred for a moment, shifting in her spot. When she laid still, Christopher let out a sigh.
"How long has she been there?" Leo asked, as he checked Christopher's vitals.
"An hour? Maybe two?" he asked.
"How are you feeling? Do you have any discomfort that you can't tolerate?" he asked.
Christopher shook his head, "It's nothing I can't handle, McCoy," he said.
Leo nodded, turning his attention to Andrea. Both men looked at her sleeping form, unsure of what to do.
"Should we wake her?" Leo asked, glancing quickly at Christopher.
He shook his head, "No. She didn't fall asleep right away, and I'm sure she's barely slept at all, " he said, keeping his eyes on her.
"I can move her into a room across the hall? I'm sure you'll want the space to stretch out," Leo offered.
Christopher thought about the offer for a moment, and then nodded. " It would probably do her more good,"
Leo walked around the bed, and carefully shifted Andrea from Christopher's arms into his.
"I'll be right back," he whispered, before turning towards the door.
Making his way out of the room, Leo crossed the hall and into the other. Carefully, he laid Andrea down onto the unused bed, and pulled her boots off.
"Hmmmm?" Andrea moaned, shifting around on the mattress.
"Shhh. Go back to sleep, darlin'" Leo whispered, pulled the sheet up over her.
Quietly, Leo made his way out of the room, shutting the door, and back across the hall. Christopher was sitting up and wide-awake when Leo walked in, tugging at the hospital gown he was in.
"I know it's not your standard uniform, but until we can find you some decent clothes, that's all we got," Leo said, sitting down in the empty chair by the bed.
Christopher nodded, "Is she still asleep?" he asked.
"Yeah. Hopefully she can catch a few winks before we dock," he said, sitting back.
They were both silent for a moment, lost in their own thoughts. Leo shifted in his seat, clearing his throat.
"Permission to speak, Sir?" he asked.
Christopher chuckled, "You don't have to ask for permission, McCoy. I'm not the Captain," he said.
Leo nodded, "Right,"
"What do you want to know?" Christopher asked, looking up at him.
"Why? Or better yet how? How didn't any of us know that Andrea was your daughter?" he asked.
Christopher sighed, "It was her idea. I went with it, because she insisted on using a fake last name. While there are benefits to having a parent with such a high rank, it also has it's faults. Andrea had a lot of friends come and go growing up. They usually befriended her, in hopes that they could get a quick entry into the Academy after college," he said.
Leo nodded, "How did she get into the Academy though? She's only seventeen. She should be in college.." he stated.
"That's a tough one, which is why we never talked about it to anyone but my superior officers. Andrea graduated high school when she was fourteen. She was the youngest out of 230 students when she graduated. She's a smart kid, despite her tendencies to act foolishly. She's too smart, if you ask me. The Academy took note of her "extraordinary" talents in nearly every subject, that they approached us and offered a spot. All Andrea ever wanted, was to become a doctor. Ever since she was two and a half. Part of me wishes that she'd pick something else, but she's too stubborn," he said.
"Did she go to college?" Leo asked.
Christopher nodded, "She went for a semester, before the Academy contacted her. A small community college, just to get her bearings before moving to a bigger university," he said, before chuckling. "Here was this fourteen year old, going into advanced biology and physiology with twenty year olds. It was so surreal,"
Leo laughed, "Must've been crazy. But what about medical school? In order to get into the medical program at the Academy, you need at least five years- maybe more- of medical.."
"Ever wonder why she never hung out on the weekends? Or why she would always be in the library during breaks?" Christopher asked.
Leo thought about it. It was true, her absence for the weekend and a majority of her breaks in between classes.
"Yeah, but we always figured she was off doing homework or doing work in the lab," Leo said with a shrug.
"She's taking extra classes towards medical school. The Academy made a deal with an outside university. They have a professor from the University of California, San Francisco. Gives her lessons and labs to work on. She does twice the amount of work for two schools, while trying to have some sort of stable social life,"
"My god," Leo croaked.
Sure medical school was tough, and he was in his twenties when he attended. But at seventeen? It was mindboggling.
"I let the Academy take her early adulthood away. Hell, I let them take whatever was left of her childhood. Did you know that her mother left us both?" he asked.
Leo shook his head. He knew nothing about Andrea Pike. He only knew Andrea Romano- daughter of an engineer who lost her mother in a car accident.
"Yeah. Andrea had just turned two, and her mother couldn't do it anymore. We both didn't plan on kids. We weren't married and we'd only been together a year, when she got pregnant with couldn't be a mother and deal with the pressures of Starfleet. She- Annabeth- made an ultimatum. It was either them or Starfleet. I couldn't pick between the two. Starfleet was there to give provide us with a house and a steady paycheck. I wasn't leaving as much as I did when I was younger. I didn't know anything else but Starfleet. Being on ships and working within that community. One morning I woke up, and she was gone. Left a note on the table and her key- she said she couldn't do it. Blamed me for already "tainting" our daughter with space and filling her head with stories about planets and galaxies,"
"Jesus.. I didn't know," Leo said, shaking his head.
Christopher sighed, "It was a tough blow, but I think she turned out alright. It wasn't easy, being a single dad- much older than the other dads at the park- and working on land and in space. I was lucky to have my sister there to help out, before she moved to New York for a job. But we've managed fifteen years," he said, with a shrug.
"Did she ever come back?"
Christopher shook his head, "No. I never saw her again," he said.
Leo sat there, trying to digest the information he was hit with. It was a lot to take in. The woman he thought he knew was a lie. Or a cover-up. He couldn't distinguish between the two at that moment.
"I know you have feelings towards her, McCoy. I was a young man a long time ago," Christopher informed.
Leo could feel his face flush, "Sir- I.. And.."
Christopher held up his hand, "It's alright, Son. You don't have to explain it to me. I get it,"
Leo sighed, "I do have feelings for her. She's a wonderful woman. But…" he trailed off.
"But what? Is it the age? Or the fact that you hardly know her now?" Christopher asked.
Leo shrugged, "It's everything. And now that I know her father isn't some engineer.. it's like meetin' the goddamn president's kid. Or a princess of some filthy rich country.." he muttered.
"If you want my permission to… date my daughter… I don't see why not," he said with a frown. "I never thought I'd say that." He was stunned at his own words.
"You sure I'm good enough for her? What about the Russian? Or Jim?" he asked.
Christopher snorted, "I like the Russian whiz kid.. but I hardly understand a damn thing he says. And Jim? Over my dead body,"
They both laughed, "No. You're good enough- perfect enough for her. She needs that. She needs someone that will take care of her and treat her right. I wont be here forever, McCoy. As much as I'd like to stay here and be her daddy forever, eventually I'll be gone. Someone needs to be here for her physically when I wont be able to anymore," he said.
Leo was stunned, "You ain't plannin' on leavin' us anytime soon?" he asked.
Christopher laughed, "And miss out on all the fun? No, I'm staying here as long as I can," he said.
"Good. You were the hardest patient I've ever had the chance to work on. Can't let you die on me after all that work," he said, smirking.
"Don't think of me as bribing you to take care of my daughter, McCoy.." Christopher started, but Leo stopped him.
"I know, Sir. I'd do it even if she wasn't related to you," he said.
Christopher nodded, "Good. And I guess you can call me Chris. No need to call me Sir. That's what I called my father, and I'm sure as hell not that old.." he said.