McCoy was tired, bone weary, and his head pounded as he rose to his feet once more, shuffling slowly towards the monitors set up around Jim, checking on his vitals once more. He tried his best not to look at the digital readout of the time plastered in the corner of each of the screens, but his eyes were drawn to it.

2:00am

He should have woken up by now.

Sighing loudly, McCoy ran his hand through his hair, frustration and exhaustion mixing together about as well as alcohol and milk do.

God, he could use a drink.

McCoy found himself in a mess of epic proportions: Jim having an allergic reaction to a painkiller of all things and nearly dying because of the anaphylaxis, a medical record that spat in the face of every doctor that had ever filled out a medical record, a Captain who clearly knew every classified detail about the situation and would rather risk Kirk's health than disclose, and then there was Alice.

She avoided coming into contact with people or being a part of large crowds. If anyone attempted to touch her, she would flinch or recoil away as if any sort of touch would physically hurt her. She would tense up at loud sounds, crashes or shouts, and become uneasy for several moments afterward. There were a few other peculiar things about her as well: the slight tapping of her fingers together in a fixed pattern whenever she was put into an uncomfortable or stressful situation, or the way she behaved in the hospital as if being there was a death sentence.

McCoy couldn't stop himself from being a doctor, couldn't stop himself from using what he learned to get his M.D. and his Ph.D. in psychiatry. Even if he tried not to, he could recognize the signs.

A victim of abuse.

There were plenty of different mental or behavioral disorders that could explain her behavior, but they all would have stemmed from the same thing: extreme emotional or physical trauma.

And he had yelled at her. Yelled at her.

It was second on the list of things you absolutely do not do to a victim of abuse, the first being repeating the abuse.

And he had yelled at her.

McCoy doubted she'd be able to look at him the same way afterward, and he wouldn't blame her for it. Even if Alice forgave him, McCoy would never forgive himself.

He could really use a drink.

McCoy breathed deeply, turning his gaze from the monitors to Alice. She had fallen asleep several hours ago, and as he watched her, he couldn't stop himself from chuckling softly.

How Alice had managed to completely fit on that chair was beyond him. She wasn't just slouched on the chair, sleeping; she had curled up on it, reminding him of a cat who always found a way to sleep in the smallest of spaces. She had managed to twist herself sideways on the chair, pulling her legs up to her chest as she leaned the side of her head against the back of it. The hospital's blanket she had stolen from the supply room was pulled around her so that only her head and upper shoulders peaked out. It was the most relaxed he had seen her in the hospital.

It was kind of adorable.

But despite her cute little display, McCoy envied her for being able to fall asleep.

He wasn't required to watch over Jim, the monitors would easily wake him up if something went wrong, or Jim would easily wake him up if he caught McCoy sleeping on the job, no doubt. He just couldn't bring himself to fall asleep. Guilt gnawed at him.

What was it Alice said? he wondered, wearily, "A sucker for blame?" Well, it was easy for McCoy to place the blame on himself seeing as he was the one that had triggered the damn reaction. A goddamn painkiller, McCoy swore. What are the odds? But he knew the odds. Slim to none still meant some.

Satisfied that nothing had changed in Kirk's vitals and that he continued to remain stable, McCoy finally backed away, returning to his chair.

But he must have been more exhausted than he thought. As he reached for the arms of the chair to steady himself before sitting down, his foot caught one of the legs, sending the whole thing screeching across the linoleum floors.

Alice jerked awake with a start, eyes wide as she looked for the source.

"Sorry," McCoy whispered when her eyes met his. Damn those eyes. They were so intense, so full of emotion, and so incredibly void when she closed herself off.

Instead of replying, however, Alice yawned enthusiastically, a soft squeak escaping her as she did so. It took all of his concentration of will to make sure he didn't laugh as she did so. It was damn cute.

"What time is it?" she asked, her voice slightly hoarse.

"Just after two."

Alice unfurled herself, rubbing her eyes slightly to shake off the grogginess. When her gaze settled back on to him, she frowned slightly.

"You look awful."

McCoy chuckled softly, exhaustion making it easier for him to do so. "I'm starting to think that's your favorite thing to say."

"Well if you and Jim behaved like normal human beings, I wouldn't have to say it so often," she said with a small smirk.

Her behavior changed drastically, though, as if a switch had been flipped and she was just now remembering where she was. McCoy watched as she took in her surroundings subtly, a white-knuckled grip on the arm of her chair.

Alice turned her gaze back to him. "You should get some sleep, Leon."

"I can't."

She eyed him curiously. "Can't or won't?"

McCoy only shook his head, slouching further in his chair, hoping that it would be a good enough answer for her.

Rising to her feet, Alice balled up the blanket and threw it at him, clearly not surprised when he was unable to catch it. It hit him in the face softly and Alice didn't stop herself from giggling. "Get some sleep."

"Alice—"

"I'll wake you if anything changes," Alice assured him.

McCoy scowled slightly, wanting to argue, but the insistent glare Alice gave him made him relent. "If one of those numbers increases or decreases by five points, wake me."

"Of course."

"And if—"

"Leon, go to sleep," she ordered him.

McCoy shook his head. There was no point in trying to argue with her. Even if he could have won, he wouldn't. Her eyes and kindness were disarming.

Balling the blanket tighter, McCoy jammed it between his head and the chair. The last thing he saw before exhaustion overtook him was Alice's amused smile.

The subtle aroma of coffee was the first thing he recognized when McCoy slowly came to his senses. His eyesight came back to him next, and he saw Alice standing beside Jim, coffee cup in one of her hands. Her other hand was resting lightly on Jim's wrist.

McCoy let out an involuntary groan as he straightening himself out, his back and neck cracking loudly in the quiet room.

"You're sounding pretty frail there, old man," Alice teased slightly, pulling her hand away from Jim as she turned to face him.

She was smiling softly at him, her eyes like glimmering ice in a bright sun. There are worse ways to wake up, he thought quietly, before what she had said sunk in.

"First Jim, now you," he groaned. "I'm not old."

Alice's smile grew a fraction, "I know." She walked over to a nearby counter, grabbing a second cup of coffee and handing it to him. "It's 6am to answer your next question."

McCoy accepted it cautiously, pretending to ignore the comment she made, cocking an eyebrow. "This isn't the swill from here is it?"

"Of course not," she replied quickly, looking as if she found the idea offensive. "I never drink the coffee from here. Had one of the coffee shops off campus deliver it here."

He took a sip from the coffee, the warm liquid helping wake up. It was damn good coffee, not the drink he had been craving earlier that morning, but it hit the spot well enough for him not to mind the difference. "Coffee shops deliver now?"

"They do when you promise them 1,000% tip on 10 bucks worth of coffee," Alice said from behind the lid of her disposable cup.

"You gave a hundred-dollar tip for coffee?"

Alice raised her eyebrows, "Do you want to drink the Academy's brew?"

"No."

"Then shut up and drink your $55 cup of coffee," she chuckled softly.

"You mean you didn't get me one?" A groggy voice from behind asked.

McCoy rose to his feet, setting down his drink as he came to stand beside Jim. "It's about damn time you woke up," he growled.

"Bones," Jim sighed. "You're particularly cheerful this morning." He tried to sit up, but McCoy quickly forced him back down with a hand on his shoulder. "It is morning, right?"

"Yeah. You've been out for over 12 hours, so the least you could do is thank us for staying up all night making sure you just didn't up and die on us." McCoy quickly began busying himself giving Jim the once over, starting with the monitors. He didn't notice Alice backing up slightly to let him work.

"You didn't have to do that."

"Really?" McCoy asked, the anger at being left in the dark by Pike resurfacing. "You had an extreme allergic reaction to a common painkiller, Jim. People are more likely to die from being hit by a bolt of lightning than developing anaphylaxis due to medication!"

But like Captain Pike, Jim ignored his little rant. "So when can I get out of here?"

McCoy shook his head in disbelief. "What part of allergic reaction and anaphylactic shock didn't you get?"

"The part where he's supposed to care would be my best guess," Alice offered.

"Beautiful and smart," Jim smirked.

Unbelievable, McCoy rolled his eyes, backing away from Jim. Everything checked out. He might still be a pain in the ass, but medically he was fine.

"Listen, I know this was kind of a lousy first date, me having an allergic reaction and all that," Jim continued, "but is there any chance you'd be willing to go on a second date with me? Preferably one where we both stay up all night."

McCoy wouldn't lie and say he wasn't pleased to see Alice roll her eyes at him. "In your dreams, Jim."

"They're very good dreams," he continued.

McCoy didn't even try to hide his smirk at the disgusted noise Alice made. Jim was obnoxiously relentless, but thankfully Alice was faithfully determined when it came to turning down his advances.

"Classes start in two hours," Alice said, not even bothering to respond to Jim. "I can get you two out them for the day, but if it's all the same to you, I'm going to attend mine."

"You can get us out classes?" Jim asked in disbelief.

"Captain Pike can," she corrected, pulling out her comm. unit. "I'll see you boys at dinner," Alice smiled in a dismissive goodbye before disappearing through the door, her voice growing distant as she was connected to Pike.

Jim turned to McCoy, an incredulous look on his face. "Am I invisible?"

"What's the matter?" McCoy asked. "Is a pretty boy like yourself not used to getting turned down?"

"I don't understand…" he continued, shaking his head.

"You're unbelievable," McCoy groaned.

"What's unbelievable is that she's immune to my charm." The obnoxious grin on his face finally made it known that he was just screwing around with McCoy, seeing how he would react. "So when can I get out of here, Bones? I'm eager to waste my entire day of no classes."

"Everything checks out," McCoy answered coldly. "You're free to go."

Jim all but jumped out of the hospital bed, tearing the blankets off of himself as if he were a kid who had just woken up on Christmas morning. He grabbed the jacket of his uniform off of the chair it had been resting on and donned it recklessly before heading towards the door.

But McCoy caught Jim's arm, a vice-like grip stopping him in his tracks. Jim tensed up at the contact but didn't tear away.

"You want to explain what happened?" McCoy growled quietly.

"No."

"Fine," he replied bitterly. He didn't like it, but he understood Jim's personal life was his own and he couldn't force it out of him. "Next time you come to me with an injury, if I even think you are lying to me, I will run every test I can think of to figure out what kind of lab you were cooked up in," he threatened passively. "Don't lie to me and warn me of your allergies." His hazel eyes were boring into the side of Jim's head since he refused to look at him. "When I am your doctor, I am not your friend. And I am your doctor now. The last thing I need is some cadet killing you because they have no idea what they're doing." McCoy then forced Jim to step back so that he had no choice but to look at him. "Am I speaking too quickly for you or do you understand?"

Jim continued to refuse to look at him for a few seconds longer, stern expression held on his face before he smiled it off. "Aww…Bones, you do care," he teased, crystal blue eyes hiding everything he was feeling at that moment.

"You're insufferable," McCoy said, rolling his eyes.

"Maybe," Jim chuckled, "but at least I'm agreeing to your ridiculous terms."

McCoy raised an eyebrow in amusement, releasing his grip on Jim's arm, "Well, it's nice to find out you're not a complete idiot. Means I didn't patch you up for no reason."

Jim laughed, brushing off the serious undertones of the conversation. "See you around," he said with a grin, heading for the door once more.

"Jim!" McCoy called out, turning around to face him. "If you ever need to—to drink or talk about it, I'm qualified for both."

"I know, Bones," Jim said, "M.D. and Ph.D. all before you turned 18. Georgia's rising star, right?"

McCoy crossed his arms, chuckling bitterly. "Not anymore."

"Well," he shrugged, "I guess we all have some things in our pasts that aren't so good, huh?"

With a wave of his hand, Jim disappeared through the door, leaving McCoy alone in the hospital room. For some reason, Jim's statement brought Alice to mind before his own miserable life. Yeah, I guess so, he thought before taking his leave of the hospital as well.

~~.O.~~

Hooray! Finished with another one.

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