Fanfic: Tainted Love [ 16 / 20 ] McCoy / Chekov
When McCoy woke up the next morning, it was to the feeling of soft hands rubbing at his chest and soft lips pressing kisses to his lips. At first, he thought it was Jocelyn. She used to wake him up like this at the beginning of their marriage, especially the mornings after he had come back from work nearly dead on his feet. He smiled to himself as he felt the pressure against his lips change to deepen the kiss and let his hands come up to run his fingers over the soft lines of this person’s back, cupping the firm round ass and squeezing it gently. He got a giggle against his lips in response and the other person leaned down a little closer, the hands on his chest slipping to rest beside him, so a thin, ribbed chest brushed his. His hands slipped higher on the other’s back and he came into contact with the slightly raised scar tissues that criss-crossed each other.
Very gently he pulled out of the kiss that had been so sweet and warm, his mind catching up with the new information and reminding him of the patient, of the child he was protecting, rescuing from his own past. Pavel may love him, his kisses most certainly proved that, but after seven long years of sexual abuse the very thought of having sex with him, of becoming just another client to this boy who was never legally able to say yes, sickened the doctor. He opened his eyes after a long moment, meeting bright grey eyes with his own hazel ones as their noses brushed and a soft smile touched the kid’s lips. “Good morning, Leo,” the young Russian said quietly, “I am glad to see you avake.”
There was no way he could avoid smiling back though his hands did slide to rest on the small of the boy’s back. “Good mornin’ sunshine,” he answered, forcing his eyes to focus as much as they can with someone so close to him. He could tell the curls on top of the kid’s head were a mess and a light pink color to his cheeks showed that the morning kiss hadn’t only affected the doctor. “How are you doing?”
“I am good. I just decided that maybe you vould prefer to vake up to a kiss eenstead of zat alarm.” The arms that rested beside him moved to cross over his chest as the thin teenager lay on them and looked up at him through his lashes. “I was not mistaken, vas I?”
“No not at all,” Leonard said quietly, letting one hand play with the rat’s nest hair for a minute while he woke up a bit more. Already his mind was going through a list of things he had to do today as well as that damn physical and psychological evaluation for the boy which would have to be submitted as soon as possible. He’d wait until after Starfleet did the court martial before he could think of doing anything further than they had already gone. “What time is it?”
“0530 hours. Your sheeft starts een an hour and a half. I zhought zat zis vas early enough for you to get up and still be able to prepare.”
“It’s enough time for the both of us to get ready.” He playfully swatted the boy’s tush. “So get up and let’s get this party started.”
Pavel did as he was asked, standing carefully and letting the older man get up but he did so with a confused look on his handsome face. “Vhat deed you mean, ze two of us? I hawe beta shift.”
It amused McCoy to see the boy advert his eyes as the doctor made to stand. He knew he wasn’t clothed in much but surely the boy knew that when he first decided to pull the whole act together. The fact it was morning certainly wasn’t helping either. Poor thing. “I mean that I have to get to Sickbay to get started with that shit ton of work I know is waiting for me and you are coming with me so I can do those evals that I need to have M’Benga double check before I send them to Kirk to send to Starfleet so we can get this trial done and over with.”
The mention of the trial seemed to make Chekov nervous but he composed himself rather quickly. “But how vill ve hawe ze trial vhile ve are een space?” he asked, turning around as McCoy made his way to the bathroom to presumably handle his morning business and shave, “Eet ees not possible to be at a trial vhen ve are so far out een Space and ze Captain cannot spare us for ze time ze trip home zen back vould take.”
McCoy closed the door long enough to relieve himself and wash his hands then went back into the bedroom to get a change of clothes for the day. “True, but who said we were going to Earth for the trial? It’s safer to keep you up here and while it’s true you don’t have a lawyer we do happen to have someone who’s been in trouble with Starfleet and the law enough to know the loopholes and rights of both sides of the coin.” He put together his uniform, deciding to leave the tunic on the bed for after the shower. “Besides, it prevents a contamination of testimony if you do so here, hooked up to our lie detector machine thing that even you can’t hack into and change without losing your hands, to prove you are telling the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth.”
Slinging his black uniform over his back, though leaving his boots where they were, the doctor turned his attention to the nude boy who was looking in the opposite direction. He sighed. They were so close, so very close, to locking away the bastards who broke such young and innocent boy and trained him into a life of sexual slavery. He knew he would be able to sleep much more easily once they were locked away and that fuckin’ barcode on the boy’s wrist was either rendered useless or removed. Pavel was going to turn eighteen soon. The trial would come after all. It looked like he would have to hold out a bit longer.
“While I’m in the shower, you might want to dig up a uniform so you can hop in right after I get out.” He was used to sharing space with Jim and had perfected the art of finishing his morning routine while sharing a bathroom. “I need you to come with me when I head to medical so that we can get these evaluations done without you being late to shift.”
“Yes doctor.”
Shaking his head and finally looking away, the CMO stepped into the bathroom and took care of his morning needs before hopping into the sonic shower, glad that he had plenty of time to get ready this morning. It would mean he could take the time to have a decent breakfast and have a nice chat with Pavel before it became all business. He wondered, however, if it was a wise idea to do the evaluations himself. At least one of the goddamned commandants on that list was going to bring up the fact that he is, technically, the boy’s owner. Until they could prove he hadn’t touched the child sexually, he was just a guilty as they were.
Perhaps it was wiser to let M’Benga handle it. He didn’t know anything about the boy’s past but Leonard knew that if he asked his fellow doctor to run the tests, as long as there was a promise of an explanation later, he would do it. For the physical evaluations, that was no big deal. The psychological ones… without knowledge of his past, there was a chance the doctor would become far too disturbed to not demand answers right away. After all, it wasn’t every day someone with Chekov’s history was asked the question “how do you feel today?” with an expectation of an honest answer.
Once he was as clean as he was going to get, he turned off the shower and stepped out, quickly dressing his lower half before unlocking the door and shrugging his shirt back on and going to the sink to shave his face and brush his teeth. He hardly noticed when Chekov slipped in behind him and hopped into the shower himself. He was far too used to sharing a bathroom to really care. At least he could shave in peace.
When he was done at the sink, he splashed on a faint bit of after shave and headed out into his room to get something ordered food wise before getting the rest of the uniform on. He wasn’t fond of crumbs on his science blues and since he was a doctor he couldn’t afford to look messy. While he was there he decided to make the breakfast order a double. He was pretty sure Pavel wouldn’t eat unless he put the plate of food in front of him and he certainly wasn’t going to be happy if the kid passed out on the bridge from hunger. Besides, a lack of eating would skewer the tests.
While the order was being worked up, he went back into the bedroom to get some clean socks and his boots on again. He heard the shower turn off and the sound of bare feet padding around, presumably to the sink so the younger man could shave his face and brush his teeth and so forth. It should bother him a bit, he supposed, that he felt calmer with Ensign Chekov mulling about his rooms, though he should be even more bothered with how natural it felt to wake up to the soft kisses they had shared that morning. It had been a long time since he had stopped believing in any form of superior being but now… well… he thought that if there was one, it enjoyed making his life hell.
The replicator beeped when the order was done and just in time too since he had just managed to get his second boot on. He got up and went to go get their meals just as the Ensign stepped out of the bathroom, dressed in his usual crisp uniform with not a curly hair on his head out of place. He looked just as serious as he always did, a lean faced young man ready to earn his paycheck at the helm of the very ship they were riding on, but now, to McCoy, that seriousness made the boy look more adult. He supposed that the hard edge to those eyes that came from the experiences he had had in Leningrad while under the “care” of Alabugin did indeed help though he wished that wasn’t the source of that edge at all.
“I hope you’re hungry,” the doctor said as he set the trays of breakfast on the table, “because you’re not leaving until you’ve eaten at least half of it.” Eggs and bacon and toast with jam was not exactly the most healthy breakfast but it was more than enough to get through the tests they needed to do and the morning shift. When he did not get an answer, he looked up at the ensign; he stood, glaring at the food. “What is it?”
“I cannot eat today doktor.”
Hazel eyes narrowed. “Why not, Pavel?”
“I hawe a meeting vit my -how do you say- supervisor today after my sheeft. He vill be suspicious and report me to Meester Alabugin eef I look vell taken care of.”
McCoy fought back the anger he felt building up at whoever this so called supervisor was. “Either way, you are going to sit down and eat this meal. Your shift ends mid afternoon anyhow so you should be hungry by the time you sit down and have your chat with whoever it is.” He took his seat and motioned to the other, keeping his sharp gaze locked on his partner. “Sit and eat. Doctor’s orders.”
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Half an hour later Pavel was in Sickbay, standing in the nude behind a privacy screen while Doctor M’Benga ran his tests and checked every part of his anatomy, making note of every scar on his skin, ever remainder of badly healed bones. There was blood drawn and tests run on that blood while he was tested for his strength and lung capacity just like any other physical. This doctor seemed bothered by the tattoo on his arm when he saw it and, just as McCoy had told him to do, he explained its purpose but did not go any further than that. At least this doctor kept any pity he felt at the story to himself.
But the physical evaluations were not nearly as bad as the psychological ones. He answered every question asked honestly, gave details he normally wouldn’t have given to anyone but his client because McCoy, his boyfriend, asked him to. He tried not to be nervous as his words were written down. Words that were written down could never be taken back. Whatever was submitted to Starfleet, he couldn’t refute if it did come down to the court martial Leonard seemed to think it would. But he couldn’t take back his word. He didn’t want to make the only person on this ship that could destroy his already shattered heart beyond any hope of repair turn on him. He’d just have to do what he could to make his boyfriend happy and in return he’d be protected and loved. That wasn’t so bad a deal.
Both evaluations added up to about an hour and at the end of that, Pavel was more than happy to change back into his uniform and get to his post on the bridge, though he was told that it was recommended that he seek out professional help. He told the doctor he was with all seriousness as he finished getting in uniform shirts on and without waiting for an answer left the small examination area. He wanted to assure Leonard that he had gone through with his promise before he went to work. Well, there was that and he wanted to see the man at least one more time. With Liev being his “supervisor” aboard the ship there was a good chance he would come back to Sickbay broken and unconscious by the end of gamma shift; if he was found by then.
But when he got to the office, the thoughts he had had of just assuring that his promise was kept jumped out of his head. He could not say he wasn’t surprised at the sight of the doctor sitting at his desk, reading over files on his touch screen desk top and signing off on them as he finished the charts one by one. Some of them he made notations in as he read along but all the while his eyes were focused on the papers in front of him, on the work he had taken on when he had first become the chief medical officer. He didn’t look up, indeed Pavel doubted he noticed, when the Ensign walked into the office and around the desk to stand behind him. It would explain why he jumped a bit when his young boyfriend wrapped his arms around him in a warm hug.
“Jesus, Pasha, don’t startle me like that!” Leonard all but gasped, leaning back into the arms for a second and holding them gently in place by resting his own hands on them, “You done with your evals?”
Pavel nodded and buried his nose in Leonard’s hair. It felt soft against his lips as he pressed a quiet kiss to the dark locks. He needed to remember this for later. He needed to remember what it was he had risked everything for. If Liev got wind of what he had just done by the time the shift ended… no. No thinking about that when he had what he had wished for all this time in his arms.
However, his thoughts must not have been tightly sealed because he heard a soft sob escape himself and felt a tear fall from his eyes. There was a shift of the body in his arms and before he knew it he was pulled onto the doctor’s lap with strong arms holding him close and a soft voice whispering soothing things into his ears. He clung to the other’s blue shirt and buried his nose in the man’s neck, letting his tears fall for real. “I’m sorry,” he muttered in Russian, curling holding onto the man tighter, “I love you and I’m so very sorry I have to do this to you.” This was his good bye.
It took him ten minutes to calm down enough to disentangle himself from Leonard’s arms and get to his feet and another few minutes before he was able to compose himself to kiss the man one last time. He wished he could explain to this loving man what exactly it was he was breaking down about but he couldn’t. Not here. Not now. If he survived this then maybe he would tell. If Liev got through this unscathed, he probably would not.
When they separated, Pavel smiled shakily, looking over Leonard’s face. There was confusion there and fear and concern. He brushed his thumb against the other’s cheeks. “Do not vorry,” he said softly, “Zere ees nozing ‘rong vit me.” Yet. “I just vanted to tell you I hawe done as you asked of me and vill be reporting to the bridge now.”
McCoy shook his head and caught the teenager’s wrists in his hands. “Not until you tell me what all this is about.” His voice was sharp, angry, but not at him. Chekov knew this. “What’s wrong, Pasha?”
The ensign shook his head and pulled his wrists out of his lover’s hold. “I cannot. Not yet.” He took a few steps back then turned on his heel. “Eef eweryzing goes vell, I vill tell you. I just cannot now.” Before he could get a reply, he all but ran from the doctor’s office, heedless of the man calling for him. He had one last shift to perform before he met with Liev and everything was decided.
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Kirk had just gotten onto the bridge when he first noticed something was off with his bridge crew. First there was Sulu, sitting rather stiffly in his seat, his jaw set and his expression downright stormy, as if he wanted to kill something. He never looked away from his console while he silently fumed and his work didn’t suffer but still. Jim decided it was probably a better idea to not talk to him beyond orders today. He really didn’t want to have to demerit the man for snapping back at a superior officer.
Then there was Chekov, normally serious and excitable Chekov, who looked scared and depressed. There were tear tracks still on his face but like Sulu, his work didn’t suffer from his mood. His shoulders were hunched just a little more and he didn’t smile or laugh like he often did when someone said something stupid on the bridge. He was locked away in his own little dark world. It didn’t take the captain long to figure out it must have something to do with Bones but what it was he couldn’t place for a while.
That was until he got the report from Sickbay, a special attachment that said it was for his eyes only and should be prepared to be sent to Starfleet. He knew immediately what it was. So Bones had managed it then. He moved that particular file to a separate screen and sent it to himself for further review, making note of what he did, before he signed off on the PADD and gave it back to the medical yeoman to take it back with her to McCoy. It didn’t really explain the tears but small steps. He’d ask about it later.
Or so he would have asked about it later if someone hadn’t stepped on the bridge and, without warning pulled the ensign out of his chair and punched him so hard in the face there was the sound of bones breaking echoing in the air as the teenager fell to the ground. Before anyone could react the man was kicking in his ribs and he was cussing up a storm in what had to be Russian before pulling out a phaser and aiming it at the boy. Sulu, who had gotten out of his seat and was about two seconds away from knocking the fucker flat, froze where he was, as did everyone else. “Liev, you fucker, what’s wrong with you?!” the pilot all but hissed.
The lieutenant didn’t answer, Sulu, just kicked Pavel onto his back and pressed his boot against the young man’s chest, the phaser, now obviously set to kill, aimed right at Chekov’s head. “Eet does not concern you,” Liev answered casually, applying a little more pressure to the ribs he stood on until his victim was gasping desperately for air, “Eet ees simply a business matter I must take care of.”
“Don’t you think I’ve got a say in the matter there, bud?” a familiar but far too cold voice said sharply from the lift behind the chair and Jim turned just enough to see McCoy with his arms crossed over his chest and enough anger in his eyes to make even Spock think twice before crossing him, “since, after all, it’s my property you’re fuckin’ with?” He stayed where he was by the banister though when he had gotten there the captain couldn’t tell.
Liev looked up but didn’t seem impressed. In fact, he wrinkled his nose in disgust at the CMO. Jim was very careful to keep his temper under control and his eyes just watching the guy. “Doktor, vhen you cease to treat zem like ze animals zat zey are, zey start to become human and zink for zemselves and zat ees wery bad for business.” Spock was moving very slowly behind him. Stupid fucker didn’t take into account just how quiet Vulcans really were.
He turned back to Pavel and said something in Russian, something that sounded mocking and downright cruel, his finger tightening on the trigger but Spock’s quick hand nerve-pinched the star cartographer before the weapon could go off and Sulu snagged it from the man’s hand, turning down the setting but holding it at the ready just in case. Neither man moved to catch the officer. He fell rather hard on the ground. Kirk could care less about that. He was too busy calling up security to take the man away while the doctor rushed to the side of the still gasping young navigator who was fighting to recover his ever breath.
As soon as the security personnel acknowledged his order, Jim was quick to get out of his chair and snag the phaser from the clearly even more pissed off pilot’s hand. He looked about ready to use it on someone and the captain wasn’t about to lose his best friend and CMO to a trigger happy pilot. “Cool it, Hikaru,” he all but snapped coldly, pulled the man away, “this ain’t Bones’ doin’ and you know it. Either help him get Pavel to Sickbay or go chill for the rest of the shift. I can’t have you at the controls when you’re this ready to snap.”
Sulu was about to answer but then thought more wisely of it, handing over the weapon and walking away just as the security personnel and presumably the replacement helmsmen came onto the bridge. McCoy, he saw, was helping the teenage navigator to stand though he was clearly still winded and hurting a bit. For a minute or two, Kirk wondered if maybe, just maybe, he had been wrong about the boy who was, whether he knew or not, stealing the old doctor’s heart. He had never seen Bones look so worried and move so carefully to escort someone to sickbay as he did right now, even if the difference was subtle.
That was it. He was going to submit that paperwork as soon as he got off shift to Starfleet and now he had one more name to add to the list of the people he was going to bring up on charges. What was it with these Russians? It wasn’t as if he had enough crap to deal with on a daily basis. He sighed and rolled his eyes as he took his seat at his chair again. “Spock, come with me after shift to visit McCoy and Chekov in Sickbay. I have something I need to discuss with them and need a witness to say it.”
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PART 15 | PART 17
Very gently he pulled out of the kiss that had been so sweet and warm, his mind catching up with the new information and reminding him of the patient, of the child he was protecting, rescuing from his own past. Pavel may love him, his kisses most certainly proved that, but after seven long years of sexual abuse the very thought of having sex with him, of becoming just another client to this boy who was never legally able to say yes, sickened the doctor. He opened his eyes after a long moment, meeting bright grey eyes with his own hazel ones as their noses brushed and a soft smile touched the kid’s lips. “Good morning, Leo,” the young Russian said quietly, “I am glad to see you avake.”
There was no way he could avoid smiling back though his hands did slide to rest on the small of the boy’s back. “Good mornin’ sunshine,” he answered, forcing his eyes to focus as much as they can with someone so close to him. He could tell the curls on top of the kid’s head were a mess and a light pink color to his cheeks showed that the morning kiss hadn’t only affected the doctor. “How are you doing?”
“I am good. I just decided that maybe you vould prefer to vake up to a kiss eenstead of zat alarm.” The arms that rested beside him moved to cross over his chest as the thin teenager lay on them and looked up at him through his lashes. “I was not mistaken, vas I?”
“No not at all,” Leonard said quietly, letting one hand play with the rat’s nest hair for a minute while he woke up a bit more. Already his mind was going through a list of things he had to do today as well as that damn physical and psychological evaluation for the boy which would have to be submitted as soon as possible. He’d wait until after Starfleet did the court martial before he could think of doing anything further than they had already gone. “What time is it?”
“0530 hours. Your sheeft starts een an hour and a half. I zhought zat zis vas early enough for you to get up and still be able to prepare.”
“It’s enough time for the both of us to get ready.” He playfully swatted the boy’s tush. “So get up and let’s get this party started.”
Pavel did as he was asked, standing carefully and letting the older man get up but he did so with a confused look on his handsome face. “Vhat deed you mean, ze two of us? I hawe beta shift.”
It amused McCoy to see the boy advert his eyes as the doctor made to stand. He knew he wasn’t clothed in much but surely the boy knew that when he first decided to pull the whole act together. The fact it was morning certainly wasn’t helping either. Poor thing. “I mean that I have to get to Sickbay to get started with that shit ton of work I know is waiting for me and you are coming with me so I can do those evals that I need to have M’Benga double check before I send them to Kirk to send to Starfleet so we can get this trial done and over with.”
The mention of the trial seemed to make Chekov nervous but he composed himself rather quickly. “But how vill ve hawe ze trial vhile ve are een space?” he asked, turning around as McCoy made his way to the bathroom to presumably handle his morning business and shave, “Eet ees not possible to be at a trial vhen ve are so far out een Space and ze Captain cannot spare us for ze time ze trip home zen back vould take.”
McCoy closed the door long enough to relieve himself and wash his hands then went back into the bedroom to get a change of clothes for the day. “True, but who said we were going to Earth for the trial? It’s safer to keep you up here and while it’s true you don’t have a lawyer we do happen to have someone who’s been in trouble with Starfleet and the law enough to know the loopholes and rights of both sides of the coin.” He put together his uniform, deciding to leave the tunic on the bed for after the shower. “Besides, it prevents a contamination of testimony if you do so here, hooked up to our lie detector machine thing that even you can’t hack into and change without losing your hands, to prove you are telling the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth.”
Slinging his black uniform over his back, though leaving his boots where they were, the doctor turned his attention to the nude boy who was looking in the opposite direction. He sighed. They were so close, so very close, to locking away the bastards who broke such young and innocent boy and trained him into a life of sexual slavery. He knew he would be able to sleep much more easily once they were locked away and that fuckin’ barcode on the boy’s wrist was either rendered useless or removed. Pavel was going to turn eighteen soon. The trial would come after all. It looked like he would have to hold out a bit longer.
“While I’m in the shower, you might want to dig up a uniform so you can hop in right after I get out.” He was used to sharing space with Jim and had perfected the art of finishing his morning routine while sharing a bathroom. “I need you to come with me when I head to medical so that we can get these evaluations done without you being late to shift.”
“Yes doctor.”
Shaking his head and finally looking away, the CMO stepped into the bathroom and took care of his morning needs before hopping into the sonic shower, glad that he had plenty of time to get ready this morning. It would mean he could take the time to have a decent breakfast and have a nice chat with Pavel before it became all business. He wondered, however, if it was a wise idea to do the evaluations himself. At least one of the goddamned commandants on that list was going to bring up the fact that he is, technically, the boy’s owner. Until they could prove he hadn’t touched the child sexually, he was just a guilty as they were.
Perhaps it was wiser to let M’Benga handle it. He didn’t know anything about the boy’s past but Leonard knew that if he asked his fellow doctor to run the tests, as long as there was a promise of an explanation later, he would do it. For the physical evaluations, that was no big deal. The psychological ones… without knowledge of his past, there was a chance the doctor would become far too disturbed to not demand answers right away. After all, it wasn’t every day someone with Chekov’s history was asked the question “how do you feel today?” with an expectation of an honest answer.
Once he was as clean as he was going to get, he turned off the shower and stepped out, quickly dressing his lower half before unlocking the door and shrugging his shirt back on and going to the sink to shave his face and brush his teeth. He hardly noticed when Chekov slipped in behind him and hopped into the shower himself. He was far too used to sharing a bathroom to really care. At least he could shave in peace.
When he was done at the sink, he splashed on a faint bit of after shave and headed out into his room to get something ordered food wise before getting the rest of the uniform on. He wasn’t fond of crumbs on his science blues and since he was a doctor he couldn’t afford to look messy. While he was there he decided to make the breakfast order a double. He was pretty sure Pavel wouldn’t eat unless he put the plate of food in front of him and he certainly wasn’t going to be happy if the kid passed out on the bridge from hunger. Besides, a lack of eating would skewer the tests.
While the order was being worked up, he went back into the bedroom to get some clean socks and his boots on again. He heard the shower turn off and the sound of bare feet padding around, presumably to the sink so the younger man could shave his face and brush his teeth and so forth. It should bother him a bit, he supposed, that he felt calmer with Ensign Chekov mulling about his rooms, though he should be even more bothered with how natural it felt to wake up to the soft kisses they had shared that morning. It had been a long time since he had stopped believing in any form of superior being but now… well… he thought that if there was one, it enjoyed making his life hell.
The replicator beeped when the order was done and just in time too since he had just managed to get his second boot on. He got up and went to go get their meals just as the Ensign stepped out of the bathroom, dressed in his usual crisp uniform with not a curly hair on his head out of place. He looked just as serious as he always did, a lean faced young man ready to earn his paycheck at the helm of the very ship they were riding on, but now, to McCoy, that seriousness made the boy look more adult. He supposed that the hard edge to those eyes that came from the experiences he had had in Leningrad while under the “care” of Alabugin did indeed help though he wished that wasn’t the source of that edge at all.
“I hope you’re hungry,” the doctor said as he set the trays of breakfast on the table, “because you’re not leaving until you’ve eaten at least half of it.” Eggs and bacon and toast with jam was not exactly the most healthy breakfast but it was more than enough to get through the tests they needed to do and the morning shift. When he did not get an answer, he looked up at the ensign; he stood, glaring at the food. “What is it?”
“I cannot eat today doktor.”
Hazel eyes narrowed. “Why not, Pavel?”
“I hawe a meeting vit my -how do you say- supervisor today after my sheeft. He vill be suspicious and report me to Meester Alabugin eef I look vell taken care of.”
McCoy fought back the anger he felt building up at whoever this so called supervisor was. “Either way, you are going to sit down and eat this meal. Your shift ends mid afternoon anyhow so you should be hungry by the time you sit down and have your chat with whoever it is.” He took his seat and motioned to the other, keeping his sharp gaze locked on his partner. “Sit and eat. Doctor’s orders.”
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Half an hour later Pavel was in Sickbay, standing in the nude behind a privacy screen while Doctor M’Benga ran his tests and checked every part of his anatomy, making note of every scar on his skin, ever remainder of badly healed bones. There was blood drawn and tests run on that blood while he was tested for his strength and lung capacity just like any other physical. This doctor seemed bothered by the tattoo on his arm when he saw it and, just as McCoy had told him to do, he explained its purpose but did not go any further than that. At least this doctor kept any pity he felt at the story to himself.
But the physical evaluations were not nearly as bad as the psychological ones. He answered every question asked honestly, gave details he normally wouldn’t have given to anyone but his client because McCoy, his boyfriend, asked him to. He tried not to be nervous as his words were written down. Words that were written down could never be taken back. Whatever was submitted to Starfleet, he couldn’t refute if it did come down to the court martial Leonard seemed to think it would. But he couldn’t take back his word. He didn’t want to make the only person on this ship that could destroy his already shattered heart beyond any hope of repair turn on him. He’d just have to do what he could to make his boyfriend happy and in return he’d be protected and loved. That wasn’t so bad a deal.
Both evaluations added up to about an hour and at the end of that, Pavel was more than happy to change back into his uniform and get to his post on the bridge, though he was told that it was recommended that he seek out professional help. He told the doctor he was with all seriousness as he finished getting in uniform shirts on and without waiting for an answer left the small examination area. He wanted to assure Leonard that he had gone through with his promise before he went to work. Well, there was that and he wanted to see the man at least one more time. With Liev being his “supervisor” aboard the ship there was a good chance he would come back to Sickbay broken and unconscious by the end of gamma shift; if he was found by then.
But when he got to the office, the thoughts he had had of just assuring that his promise was kept jumped out of his head. He could not say he wasn’t surprised at the sight of the doctor sitting at his desk, reading over files on his touch screen desk top and signing off on them as he finished the charts one by one. Some of them he made notations in as he read along but all the while his eyes were focused on the papers in front of him, on the work he had taken on when he had first become the chief medical officer. He didn’t look up, indeed Pavel doubted he noticed, when the Ensign walked into the office and around the desk to stand behind him. It would explain why he jumped a bit when his young boyfriend wrapped his arms around him in a warm hug.
“Jesus, Pasha, don’t startle me like that!” Leonard all but gasped, leaning back into the arms for a second and holding them gently in place by resting his own hands on them, “You done with your evals?”
Pavel nodded and buried his nose in Leonard’s hair. It felt soft against his lips as he pressed a quiet kiss to the dark locks. He needed to remember this for later. He needed to remember what it was he had risked everything for. If Liev got wind of what he had just done by the time the shift ended… no. No thinking about that when he had what he had wished for all this time in his arms.
However, his thoughts must not have been tightly sealed because he heard a soft sob escape himself and felt a tear fall from his eyes. There was a shift of the body in his arms and before he knew it he was pulled onto the doctor’s lap with strong arms holding him close and a soft voice whispering soothing things into his ears. He clung to the other’s blue shirt and buried his nose in the man’s neck, letting his tears fall for real. “I’m sorry,” he muttered in Russian, curling holding onto the man tighter, “I love you and I’m so very sorry I have to do this to you.” This was his good bye.
It took him ten minutes to calm down enough to disentangle himself from Leonard’s arms and get to his feet and another few minutes before he was able to compose himself to kiss the man one last time. He wished he could explain to this loving man what exactly it was he was breaking down about but he couldn’t. Not here. Not now. If he survived this then maybe he would tell. If Liev got through this unscathed, he probably would not.
When they separated, Pavel smiled shakily, looking over Leonard’s face. There was confusion there and fear and concern. He brushed his thumb against the other’s cheeks. “Do not vorry,” he said softly, “Zere ees nozing ‘rong vit me.” Yet. “I just vanted to tell you I hawe done as you asked of me and vill be reporting to the bridge now.”
McCoy shook his head and caught the teenager’s wrists in his hands. “Not until you tell me what all this is about.” His voice was sharp, angry, but not at him. Chekov knew this. “What’s wrong, Pasha?”
The ensign shook his head and pulled his wrists out of his lover’s hold. “I cannot. Not yet.” He took a few steps back then turned on his heel. “Eef eweryzing goes vell, I vill tell you. I just cannot now.” Before he could get a reply, he all but ran from the doctor’s office, heedless of the man calling for him. He had one last shift to perform before he met with Liev and everything was decided.
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Kirk had just gotten onto the bridge when he first noticed something was off with his bridge crew. First there was Sulu, sitting rather stiffly in his seat, his jaw set and his expression downright stormy, as if he wanted to kill something. He never looked away from his console while he silently fumed and his work didn’t suffer but still. Jim decided it was probably a better idea to not talk to him beyond orders today. He really didn’t want to have to demerit the man for snapping back at a superior officer.
Then there was Chekov, normally serious and excitable Chekov, who looked scared and depressed. There were tear tracks still on his face but like Sulu, his work didn’t suffer from his mood. His shoulders were hunched just a little more and he didn’t smile or laugh like he often did when someone said something stupid on the bridge. He was locked away in his own little dark world. It didn’t take the captain long to figure out it must have something to do with Bones but what it was he couldn’t place for a while.
That was until he got the report from Sickbay, a special attachment that said it was for his eyes only and should be prepared to be sent to Starfleet. He knew immediately what it was. So Bones had managed it then. He moved that particular file to a separate screen and sent it to himself for further review, making note of what he did, before he signed off on the PADD and gave it back to the medical yeoman to take it back with her to McCoy. It didn’t really explain the tears but small steps. He’d ask about it later.
Or so he would have asked about it later if someone hadn’t stepped on the bridge and, without warning pulled the ensign out of his chair and punched him so hard in the face there was the sound of bones breaking echoing in the air as the teenager fell to the ground. Before anyone could react the man was kicking in his ribs and he was cussing up a storm in what had to be Russian before pulling out a phaser and aiming it at the boy. Sulu, who had gotten out of his seat and was about two seconds away from knocking the fucker flat, froze where he was, as did everyone else. “Liev, you fucker, what’s wrong with you?!” the pilot all but hissed.
The lieutenant didn’t answer, Sulu, just kicked Pavel onto his back and pressed his boot against the young man’s chest, the phaser, now obviously set to kill, aimed right at Chekov’s head. “Eet does not concern you,” Liev answered casually, applying a little more pressure to the ribs he stood on until his victim was gasping desperately for air, “Eet ees simply a business matter I must take care of.”
“Don’t you think I’ve got a say in the matter there, bud?” a familiar but far too cold voice said sharply from the lift behind the chair and Jim turned just enough to see McCoy with his arms crossed over his chest and enough anger in his eyes to make even Spock think twice before crossing him, “since, after all, it’s my property you’re fuckin’ with?” He stayed where he was by the banister though when he had gotten there the captain couldn’t tell.
Liev looked up but didn’t seem impressed. In fact, he wrinkled his nose in disgust at the CMO. Jim was very careful to keep his temper under control and his eyes just watching the guy. “Doktor, vhen you cease to treat zem like ze animals zat zey are, zey start to become human and zink for zemselves and zat ees wery bad for business.” Spock was moving very slowly behind him. Stupid fucker didn’t take into account just how quiet Vulcans really were.
He turned back to Pavel and said something in Russian, something that sounded mocking and downright cruel, his finger tightening on the trigger but Spock’s quick hand nerve-pinched the star cartographer before the weapon could go off and Sulu snagged it from the man’s hand, turning down the setting but holding it at the ready just in case. Neither man moved to catch the officer. He fell rather hard on the ground. Kirk could care less about that. He was too busy calling up security to take the man away while the doctor rushed to the side of the still gasping young navigator who was fighting to recover his ever breath.
As soon as the security personnel acknowledged his order, Jim was quick to get out of his chair and snag the phaser from the clearly even more pissed off pilot’s hand. He looked about ready to use it on someone and the captain wasn’t about to lose his best friend and CMO to a trigger happy pilot. “Cool it, Hikaru,” he all but snapped coldly, pulled the man away, “this ain’t Bones’ doin’ and you know it. Either help him get Pavel to Sickbay or go chill for the rest of the shift. I can’t have you at the controls when you’re this ready to snap.”
Sulu was about to answer but then thought more wisely of it, handing over the weapon and walking away just as the security personnel and presumably the replacement helmsmen came onto the bridge. McCoy, he saw, was helping the teenage navigator to stand though he was clearly still winded and hurting a bit. For a minute or two, Kirk wondered if maybe, just maybe, he had been wrong about the boy who was, whether he knew or not, stealing the old doctor’s heart. He had never seen Bones look so worried and move so carefully to escort someone to sickbay as he did right now, even if the difference was subtle.
That was it. He was going to submit that paperwork as soon as he got off shift to Starfleet and now he had one more name to add to the list of the people he was going to bring up on charges. What was it with these Russians? It wasn’t as if he had enough crap to deal with on a daily basis. He sighed and rolled his eyes as he took his seat at his chair again. “Spock, come with me after shift to visit McCoy and Chekov in Sickbay. I have something I need to discuss with them and need a witness to say it.”
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PART 15 | PART 17