Ch 8: Double Dates Are Exciting!

McCoy sat on the leather couch in the living room of his suite, his feet propped up on the glass coffee table in front of him. He wore his favorite blue pajamas and a thick blue robe. In his hand was a stout glass filled halfway with Sirian bourbon; in his lap was an empty plate that used to hold two biscuit halves covered in sausage gravy. He sipped the drink slowly, savoring every small explosion of flavor on his tongue. He had almost laughed when he heard that Sirian bourbon was carbonated, but now that he drank it he wondered how he had ever doubted it. It had a very subtle sweetness to it, a sweetness that in any other liquor would have ruined its flavor.

He closed his eyes and smiled at the peace and quiet of his morning. Scotty had been kind enough to leave him be on their second day after dragging him all over the damned city to explore. McCoy couldn't deny that he enjoyed spending time with the Scotsman, but his enthusiasm and energy surpassed even Kirk's. When they finally came home late last night he could barely stand. How could Scotty be so close in age to him but so damned youthful?

The quiet of his morning was cut short by the door slamming open and Scotty tumbling into the room. Mid-sip, McCoy spluttered the bourbon he was drinking back into his glass and gaped at the flustered Scotsman.

"Are you out of your damned mind? What's the big idea bursting into the room like that?"

Scotty's eyes were so wide they threatened to fall out of their sockets. He wore a red flannel button down shirt and jeans that were now incredibly wrinkled, no doubt from his frantic flight back to his room. He had only been gone an hour before he returned, and no doubt it was an emergency.

"Leonard!" he said, his voice conveying the severity of the matter. "Ah need ya ta go on a date wit' meh!"

McCoy didn't respond right away when he heard this. After staring at Scotty for what seemed like an eternity, he said, "You wanna rephrase that?"

Scotty screwed up his face in confusion, unsure of why he would need to rephrase what he had said when it hit him how it sounded. "Oh God! No, not like that! Ah went down ta have breakfast with Uhura an' her friends, and ah asked if she'd be interested in doing somethin' later on today. She says, 'Are you askin' me on a date?', an' ah said 'Aye!', an' then she said, 'Okay, but bring another couple along so things don' get awkward."

McCoy tried his best not to laugh at Scotty's attempt at imitating Uhura, but snickered in the process. Clearing his throat, he put his plate and his drink on the coffee table to give himself a chance to compose himself. Repositioning himself on the couch so that he faced Scotty, McCoy asked, "Okay, so basically you've landed a date with Uhura, but only because she wants it to be a double date in case it doesn't go well between you two?" Scotty nodded. "Alright, if that's the case, why are you asking me? Why not ask Kirk and Spock? I'm sure they'd love the chance to go on a double date."

"Are ye daft, man?!? Have ye forgotten that Spock is Uhura's ex an' that Kirk stole him away from her?!? Ah'm trying ta avoid an awkward date, not create one!"

McCoy sighed in annoyance. "Okaaay, what about Sulu and Eliza?"

Scotty shook his head. "That wouldn' work either. They're spending time with Chekov today. Besides, Eliza's half Orion; every time she's around ah stare at her, even though ah don' mean ta! That won' look good now will it?"

McCoy grumbled. "What about Valerie and Jennings? Valerie's friends with Uhura, so that wouldn't be awkward at all."

"Ah thought about that," Scotty said, "but when ah asked, they said they already made plans fer tha day." Scotty got on his knees and clutched onto the end of the couch. "C'mon Leonard. Yer tha only guy ah've got left ta ask that ah could go on a double date with an' be comfortable! Ye gotta help me!"

Crossing his arms, McCoy asked, "And who do you suppose I go on this double date with? I don't have a girlfriend."

"Ye could ask Christine," Scotty suggested with a smile. "Ah'm sure she'd be more than happy to accompany ye on a double date, even if it's only as a favor ta me."

McCoy's eyes looked almost as big as the plate he had just eaten his breakfast off of. "You want me to ask Christine on a date?!? Christine Chapel?!?"

"Well yah," Scotty said as if it were the most logical conclusion in the world. "Who else could ya ask? She's tha only lassie interested in yer grumpy ol' self. If she can work with ya in tha sick bay without goin' batty, ah'm sure she could be in yer company fer a few hours."

"Not just no, but hell no," McCoy said, rising from the couch and walking to the bedroom.

Scotty quickly rose from the couch and followed McCoy. "Ah c'mon Leonard. Ah don' have anyone else ah kin ask!"

"No means no Scotty!" McCoy said, walking into the bathroom and closing the door.

Scotty sighed in frustration as the door slammed in his face. He put his hands on his head, unsure of what to do to get McCoy to go along with him on his date. "Leonard, please, ah need ye ta come with me! Ye'd be doin' me a huuuuuge favor. Ah swear ah'll never ask anything like this from ye again!" Silence. Scotty thought for a moment and then came up with an idea. "Hey Leonard, ya know that Sirian bourbon ye like so much? Tha kind that's hard ta get anywhere other than Kalthoria an' is reeeeeally expensive unless ye order it from room service? If ye come with me on this date, ah know someone who could get it fer me fer really cheap in laaaarge quantities!"

The door opened and revealed a torn looking McCoy. "How large is 'large'?"

Scotty grinned. "Four bottles full. One bottle of Sirian bourbon has a gallon o' liquor in it. And ah'll treat ye ta a night of drinkin' at any bar ye want while we're here. So how about it Leonard?"

McCoy took a moment to think and then said, "Do I have to dress up?"

Chapel was humming along to a song that played in her head as she sat at the dining room table. A plate of bacon and scrambled eggs sat half eaten in front of her as she read a soft-covered copy of "Pride and Prejudice". A soft hand absently groped for a piece of bacon and brought to her mouth. She took a bite and chewed it without drawing her attention away from the book. Pride and Prejudice was her favorite book, as the spine and cover of the book indicated by its tattered and worn appearance. She had been longing to re-read it for the umpteenth time, but things on the Enterprise had been so busy, she hadn't gotten a chance until now. Her roommate Yasmina thought it was stupid of her to read when she was in a beautiful city on shore leave but she didn't care. The point of shore leave was to relax, and for her, sitting down with a good book was very relaxing.

Her peaceful reading was interrupted by a sharp knock at the door. Who could that be? She thought to herself. It couldn't be Yasmina; she took her key card with her when she left earlier. Chapel picked up her bookmark, placed it snugly between the pages, and closed her book. Another sharp knock at the door made her stand quickly and rush to the door. Whoever it was, they were certainly impatient.

She pressed her hand on the panel beside the door and it swooshed open. To her surprise, Leonard McCoy stood before her with a very pink face. She smiled immediately; she had no idea why he was there, but seeing his face so early in the morning bode well. Then she realized that she was in a light pink spaghetti strap and very short shorts. Her face turned a brighter pink than McCoy's as she hid herself behind the wall and peeked out at him.

"Uh, hi! Leona-er, Doctor..."

"Please, call me Leonard," McCoy said, putting his hand up. "We're off duty and on shore leave. You don't have to refer to me as anything formal. Not Doctor, not McCoy, just...Leonard."

Chapel couldn't help but beam when she heard McCoy give her permission to refer to her casually. Seeing her smile made McCoy turn a few shades pinker. He turned and looked at Scotty doubtfully, but got an enthusiastic double thumbs up. Looking at Chapel again, he said, "Listen, Chapel, I mean..." he squeezed his eyes shut as he fell into the old habit of calling her by her last name. He took a deep breath and corrected himself, "Christine..." Her eyes widened at the sound of McCoy calling her by her first name. "Look, Scotty and Uhura are going out on a date tonight, but they want another couple to go with them. He's asked me if I can go and..."

McCoy began to lose his nerve. It had been years since he asked a girl out on a date and he was quickly remembering how difficult it was. Chapel waited with bated breath for him to say what she knew he was about to say. "Uh..." McCoy fumbled nervously. It was cute to see him so flustered over asking her on a date, but she wished he would just spit it out. "If you're not busy...would you be my date tonight?"

"YES," Chapel blurted out before she could catch herself. She slapped her hand over her mouth, wondering how she had let herself answer like that. In her mind, she had always imagined her answer being elegant and delicate, but in reality, she had almost shouted her answer. Out of her line of sight, Scotty was covering his face to keep from laughing out loud. Chapel and McCoy looked at each other in mutual shock, their faces competing to see which could turn a brighter red.

In a small voice, she said, "Yes...I'd like that very much. I don't have any plans and was hoping I could find something to do..."

McCoy allowed himself a small smile. "That's good. I mean, not that you had nothing to do, but that you'll be able to come with me on the date. You know, so Scotty and Uhura will have someone to go with too. Uhura's insisting on a double date and I don't wanna leave him hanging..."

"Right, of course," Chapel said with a radiant smile. McCoy could say the only reason he asked her was because every other woman in the hotel had said no and she'd still be happy to go on a date with him. "You're a good friend to help him out."

McCoy hoped that Chapel couldn't hear his heart beating in his chest as well as he could. He gave her an awkward smile and said, "Well, I don't want to keep you, we're going to be leaving around 13:00, so I should give you time to uh, get ready."

Chapel finally became conscious enough of herself to realize that she was no longer hiding behind the wall and was standing in the doorway, giving McCoy a clear view of her lack of apparel. She gave a gasp and hid back behind the door, sheepishly saying, "Sorry! Right, uh well, I guess I'll go get ready!"

"Yeah, uh, meet us in front of the hotel ten minutes before 13:00, okay?"

"Yeah, sure! Bye!"

McCoy gave a wave and walked away from the door, which quickly shut. Scotty ran over to him and clapped him on the back. "Look at ye! Ye did it! Ye asked her out!"

Laughing, McCoy said, "Yes, I did. Now you'll get your date with Uhura. But this is the only time I'm doing this for you! From now on if she wants a double date, you get someone else to go with you, ya get me?"

"Yes, yes, I know!" Scotty said with a wide grin. "Now come on! Let's get ready!"

Scotty and McCoy waited nervously in the hotel lobby, McCoy pacing back and forth past Scotty. McCoy wore his favorite leather coat, less because he was cold and more for self-confidence. He had owned the jacket for years and felt more comfortable in it than in his own skin. Besides the jacket he wore a white button down shirt, blue jeans, and a comfortable pair of boots. Scotty also wore a white shirt as well as a black vest and charcoal grey slacks.

Sighing, Scotty said, "Fer cryin' out loud McCoy, how long are ya gonna pace like that?"

"Excuse me for being a little nervous!" McCoy snapped, still pacing. "The last person I asked out on a date was my ex-wife and that was years ago! Forgive me for being a little ill at ease!"

"You'll be fine! Just relax and-"

The sight above him halted his words in his throat. His mouth hung open as he saw both Uhura and Chapel descend the stairs like angels flowing clouds. McCoy stopped pacing when he saw what Scotty saw and mirrored his expression.

Uhura was stunning as always wearing hoop earrings, a purple off-the-shoulder dress with a large silver belt and her favorite knee-high boots. The real sight was Chapel. She wore a teal sundress and a white cardigan with matching heels. She styled her hair in such a way that her golden hair gently framed her face, a small teal barrette clipped near the part.

Both of the women smiled at their respective dates once they reached the bottom of the stairs. Uhura was the first to speak. "Look at them Christine. By the way you look at us you'd think they've never seen women before in their entire life!"

"Aye, no," Scotty said as he shook his head. "Not women as fine as you two."

Uhura simply giggled her response and shot Scotty a flirtatious wink while Chapel bowed her head and blushed. Uhura was used to such comments, but it was clear that Chapel, despite her beauty, was not. McCoy stood rooted to the spot, still staring in awe at Chapel. She raised her eyes coyly at him and smiled sweetly. All McCoy could manage of his face was an awkward upward twitching of his mouth. Scotty looked at his lovestruck friend and elbowed him in the ribs.

"Jesus Leonard! Ye're actin' like ye've never seen Chapel before!"

"I…I haven't," McCoy stuttered, shaking his head. "Not like this anyway…"

Chapel's blush deepened. Shyly, she said, "I have to say, you look good as well, Leonard."

Now McCoy's face turned color. In a low voice, he said, "Thanks…"

Scotty and Uhura's eyes glanced between Chapel and Leonard. Clearing his throat, Scotty said, "Alright, now that we've established that everyone looks good, why don't we get ta tha café now, eh?"

He extended his arm toward Uhura, who happily placed hers upon it. Following Scotty's lead, McCoy offered his arm to Chapel. She took a moment to just stare at it and then smiled at McCoy. She gently hooked her arm around it and clutched onto it. Her closeness allowed McCoy to inhale her flowery perfume. It was lightly applied and wafted up to him every so often. Images of walking hand and hand with Chapel in a beautiful field of flowers in the countryside played before McCoy's eyes before he could stop them. Shaking his head, he banished such thoughts from his mind.

The two couples walked out of the hotel and down the cobblestone road to the right. They didn't walk very far before they saw what looked like a French bistro with white flags blowing gently in the ocean breeze. When they came to the entrance, they saw a sign that read "The Chateau". Groups of people sat outside in bronze chairs around tables covered in smooth white tablecloths. Spotting an available table, they sat down together and waited for someone to come and serve them.

A tall, lean Sirian male in a white button down shirt and black dress pants came to the table just as they settled into their seats. His fur was a familiar golden color that faded to white around his wrists. He smiled at his guests and handed them menus. He then said, "Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen! My name is Jariden and I'll be your server today. What can I get for you?"

Uhura scrunched her face up as she recognized the name. "Jariden…wait a minute…aren't you Astinder's older brother?"

Jariden's formal smile took on a more excited look at the sound of his baby sister's name. "Yes! Yes I am! You know Tindy?"

Uhura smirked at the sound of Astinder's pet name and said, "Yeah, she works on the same ship as me. We're all crew members of the Enterprise."

"Oh splendid!" Jariden said. "Please, pick anything from the menu you want! Friends of Astinder are friends of the Nayvolo family!"

The group smiled at each other and began pouring over the menu. Scotty spoke up first. "Can we get a bottle of yer finest wine? Ooh, and can I try the Nayvolo Club Sandwich?"

Jariden nodded as he took the menu Scotty closed and handed to him. "Of course sir! I'll bring our personally made wine and four glasses! For the ladies?"

Uhura closed her menu and smiled sweetly at Jariden. "I'll have the Licarel salad and a glass of water in addition to the wine."

Chapel closed her menu as well and said, "I'll have the same please."

Jariden gave a respective nod to both Uhura and Chapel as he took their menus. He then looked at McCoy, who seemed to be at a complete lost for what to order. After months of getting exactly what he wanted from the ship's replicator, he could tell what it was he wanted. Sensing McCoy's difficult, Jariden spoke up. "Sir, may I suggest today's special? It's a toasted sandwich filled with savory roasted meat marinated in a brown gravy, served with roasted Dodekan roots."

McCoy's eyebrow arched high on his forehead when he heard the name of the sandwich's side dish. Skepticism thick in his voice, he asked, "What're Dodekan roots?"

A reassuring smile appeared on Jariden's pointed face. "They're similar to Earth potatoes, only much softer and creamier in texture. Many of our Starfleet customers rave about them after they've tried them, so I'm sure you'd enjoy them."

Handing the menu back to Jariden and said, "Yeah alright, I guess I'll have that."

Smiling wider, Jariden took the last of the menus and bowed to his customers before leaving to put their orders in. He returned swiftly with a bottle of wine and four glasses for each of them. Popping the cork carefully so as not to send it flying, he poured a moderate amount for the women and a rather hefty amount for the men before leaving again. They all took a sip of the white wine and found themselves pleasantly surprised. The wine was delightfully sweet and light, tingling on the way down as if it were champagne and leaving a pleasant lingering warmth in their chests.

"Wow," Chapel said, covering her mouth with her hand, her fingernails painted the same color as her outfit. "That's amazing."

"He wasn't fooling around when he picked this wine," Uhura said with a smile. "What does the label say Scotty?"

Scotty picked up the bottle that Jariden had left behind and read the label. "'Sucre Sirian, a wine made from only the freshest Sirian fruits by the Nayvolo family.'" Scotty smirked. "Looks like there's hardly anything 'round these parts that doesn't have the Nayvolo family name on it!"

"Astinder must come from a very well to do family," Chapel said. "You'd never be able to tell by looking at her though. She's as happy and carefree as a child!"

McCoy leaned back in seat and drank deeply from his glass. "I don't think that being rich has anything to do with how she acts, though it certainly doesn't hurt. From what I've seen of Sirians in the last day, I can tell they're just happy to be alive. I don't doubt they don't occasionally feel sad or angry, but their outlook on life is much more positive than us humans."

"Maybe we could learn something from them," Uhura said, taking another sip of her drink. "Whatever they're doing, they're doing it right."

"I'll drink to that," McCoy said, raising his glass up and clinking it against the other three that rose to meet it. They brought their glasses back to their lips and drank deeply from them as Jariden returned to their table with a tray of food. He carefully placed the correct dish in front of each person and gave Chapel and Uhura their waters. Tucking the now empty tray under his arm he smiled and said, "Enjoy!"

The salads that Chapel and Uhura ate were drizzled with vinaigrette piled neatly with lettuce, a red vegetable that looked like beets, what they hoped was chicken, and croutons. The sandwich Scotty order was so thick he was barely able to wrap his hands around it. Inside of it were three different cheeses, two different meats, and several large lettuce leaves. Scotty waited until after his sandwich was devoured before sampling the lightly salted red Dodekan chips on his plate.

McCoy had hesitated to try his dish. While it smelled and looked delicious, he was always careful about any food he tried on a foreign planet. What was harmless to one person could easily cause a violent internal reaction for someone else, and as Chief Medical Officer aboard the Enterprise, he wasn't about to blindly ingest something that could lay him out for the rest of the trip. He slowly picked his sandwich up, inspected it closely, and then took a bite out of it. The skeptical look vanished instantly as the flavor of the sandwich exploded in his mouth. Curious as to whether the roasted Dodekan roots would be just as surprising in taste, he took a stab at one of the red chunks and sampled it. Just as Jariden explained, it was lighter and creamier than any potato on Earth. He didn't know what it was about this planet, but it seemed everything he tried food wise seemed to bowl him over.

The food and drink was so delicious that they ate in complete silence, giving their meals their full attention. They occasionally exchanged glances with each other and drank from the glasses, but other than that, little more was done until their plates were clean. Jariden came back and cleared the plates from the table. McCoy turned to Jariden and said with a smile, "Thank you for suggesting the special, I enjoyed it very much."

Beaming, Jariden replied, "You're very welcome sir! Did you all enjoy the wine?"

"Oh yes!" Chapel exclaimed. "It was the best wine I've ever had!" The others nodded in agreement.

Jariden was now beside himself in happiness. There was nothing more pleasing for a Sirian than bringing happiness to another. He carefully but enthusiastically wagged his tail back and forth, his face splitting in two from his wide grin. "I'm so happy you enjoyed your meals and the wine! Here, let me bring you each a bottle of the wine to take with you!"

"Oh no!" Uhura said, raising her hands. "We couldn't possible take four bottles of your best wine, especially without paying for it!"

"No, I insist!" Jariden said. "You are friends of Tindy and pleasant people! Wait just a moment, I'll go grab the bottles!"

In his excitement, Jariden almost knocked over another waitress carrying a tray of food. The two couples stared at each other, shrugging and shaking their heads in defeated. From what little they knew of Sirians, they knew that once a Sirian was set on achieving another's happiness, they didn't stop until they felt they had done enough.

He skidded back to the table with four bottles in his arms. He handed each of them a bottle and continued to smile. "There you go my friends!" he said. "Please enjoy your wine! Don't worry about taking so much, we have far more where that came from!" He bowed deeply. "Please enjoy the rest of your day!"

They rose from their seats and walked out of the restaurant, wine bottles in hand. Scotty and Uhura looked at each other and smiled. Scotty smiled and said, "Well, ah thank ye both for comin' along with us on our date, but we're goin' ta continue on without ya. Ye can go back to yer rooms and do whatever else ye'd like."

Chapel and McCoy looked at each other and then back at Scotty and Uhura. Scotty raised a hand and said, "Ah know we made it sound like ye'd have ta be with us the entire date, but we really just wanted ye ta be with us fer tha first bit o' it."

"It was a lovely lunch, really," Uhura added. "I'm glad you two came along, but I'd hate to drag you two along with us for the rest of our date just for my sake. I promised him if lunch went well we'd continue on our own, and I plan to keep that promise. Surely you two don't mind?"

Blinking out of his shocked stupor, McCoy said, "Oh no, no, of course not! G'won, enjoy the rest of your date, we'll just head back to our rooms."

Chapel smiled and added, "Thank you for inviting us to lunch with you, we'll have to do it again sometime!"

With a nod, the two couples went their separate ways. Before they had gone very far, Scotty ran back and grabbed McCoy by the shoulder. "Oh, ah fergot! Could ye take this back ta tha room fer me? Uhura an' ah will be sharin' hers while we're out."

Chuckling, McCoy took the bottle and said, "Sure, just don't do anything that'll get you arrested!"

"Aye," Scotty said with a salute, turning back toward Uhura. "Ye bet ah won't! Ah got better things in mind!"

Scotty jogged back to over to Uhura and put his arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer to her. Smiling, she said, "We did good."

"Aye we did," Scotty said, returning her smile. "If we let them take things at their own pace, we'd be old an' crusty before McCoy made a move. Ah can't exactly say we've paired them up per se, but we've definitely given them a shove in tha right direction!"

Uhura leaned over and kissed Scotty on the cheek. Putting her head on his shoulder as they walked, she said, "I just hope McCoy doesn't do anything to screw this up."

McCoy and Chapel exited out of the elevator after it arrived on her floor. They had walked back from the café in complete silence, neither sure of what to say to the other. When they arrived at her door, they both feared their hearts would go flying from their chests onto the floor. They faced each other and stared, both still too afraid to speak.

Finally, Chapel gave a nervous smile and said, "Thank you for asking me to go with you for lunch Leonard. I probably would have just spent the whole day in my pajamas reading if you hadn't asked me to go with you."

Smirking, McCoy chuckled and said, "Oh, I can't imagine that would've been all that bad Christine. Just because we're on a pleasure planet doesn't mean you have to go out and do things the entire time. I can imagine spending a day relaxing alone in your room would be quite nice actually."

"Yes," she said, smiling. "But then I wouldn't have gotten the chance to spend time with you."

McCoy blushed at Chapel's words. Stuttering, he replied, "I-I can't imagine that I'm really that pleasant of company."

"You give yourself too little credit." She placed a hand on his chest and looked deep into his eyes. "I find your company very pleasant."

She stood on tip toes and kissed McCoy on the lips, softly yet firmly. The earlier images of walking in a field of flowers returned as the scent of her perfume reached his nose again. The mix of the vision in his head and the feeling of Chapel's lips on his intoxicated him more than the wine did. He let the wine bottles slip slowly from his hands and land on the carpet beneath him and wrapped his arms around her. She let her wine bottle slide to the floor as well and pulled him closer to her.

There they stood, kissing each other tenderly as if the world around them didn't exist. All they felt was each other's bodies, their heartbeats beating together as though they were one. Only after all the air had left their lungs did they part. They gazed at each other with half opened eyes, reeling from the kiss they just shared.

McCoy was first to come back to his senses. He pulled Chapel away from him and picked the wine bottles back up from the floor. Chapel then reached down as well to pick her wine bottle back up. Their eyes met once more when they stood back up, but quickly dared away when their former shyness returned.

Bright red, McCoy said, "I'll, uh, I'll see you later."

He walked toward the elevator but stopped when he heard Chapel's voice. "Please let me know if you want to do something again later on!" He turned back around and saw the heavy blush on her cheeks. "I…I don't really have any plans for the shore leave, so…if you wanted some company, I'd be glad to join you…"

McCoy gave a half smile and said, "I think I'd like that. Perhaps we could sample some more of that Sirian wine together later on."

Chapel's smile was like a ray of sunshine that warmed McCoy even from afar. Lifting one of the bottles as a way of waving goodbye, he went to the elevator panel and pressed the button. He turned around once more and caught a glimpse of Chapel entering her room. As her door closed, the elevator door opened. He staggered inside and slumped against the back wall. The door closed and rose to his floor. In the last few hours he had regressed from a grown man to a young teenage boy. His heart still raced and the feeling of her lips lingered on his.

The elevator stopped on his floor quicker than he expected. He walked weakly out of it and staggered to his room. When he entered it, he placed the wine bottles on the kitchen table and went into his bathroom. He raised his head and looked in the mirror. Staring back at him was a sight he hadn't expected to see: he was smiling. Not his usual smirk, but a real smile that added years to the angry aging face that he was so used to seeing.

A youthful laugh escaped his lips at the sight before him. He had never imagined that a woman could make him smile like that again. For once, he was glad he was wrong.