Musings and What Else Could Possibly Go Wrong Part 3
Chapter Three
If sleeping with Jocelyn and then not being in Joanna’s life anymore were two of the worst things that happened in his life, they had nothing on Jim Kirk. He always found himself in the oddest situations and when he asked how he got there the answer was always the same. Jim had dragged him along. It all started when Len thought joining Starfleet was a good thing. It allowed him to get away and would give him both a purpose and a job. It seemed like a win-win scenario - up until he met Jim on the shuttle. Yes, he did realize that Starfleet operated in space, however, that didn’t mean he loved flying. He'd rather not, but if it got him away from everything that was going on in his life then perhaps he would get over it. The moment he showed up to the shuttle he began to have a feeling that he was wrong. The aviophobia was too strong to get over right away. Everywhere he looked, the butterflies in his stomach beat their wings harder.
He didn’t have to deal with Jim during class, and that was something. Jim had put himself in the Command stream, while even though Leonard was a cadet he was still a doctor. This meant that he would have very few, if any, classes with Jim. Len was personally hoping for none, but if the kid had his way they would at least have one. Jim was attempting to have Len take one of his classes with him. For Jim it was a mandatory class and he wanted Len to take it with him, some sort of tactical class. Not that Len wasn’t good at that sort of thing, but having to take the infamous Kobayashi Maru test was not high on his list of priorities.
If he was being honest, the Kobayashi Maru scared him half to death. He had heard horror stories from some of the other cadets. Lately, it seemed that it was all Jim wanted to talk about. The test was supposedly unbeatable, a test to see how cadets reacted in what seemed to be a no-win scenario - something Jim was adamant that he didn't believe in. It was like the boy had made it his personal private mission to beat the test. As if that would prove anything. Why was any of this important to Len? Because the boy dragged him to all of the practice simulation and classes. If the class hadn't been good for Len he would have flat out refused. As it was he was constantly reminding the boy that he was nuts.
Coming to Starfleet as a mature student and full-fledged doctor did have its perks, one of which was supposed to be no room mate, but Jim took care of that within the first two weeks, finding out where he was staying and deciding that the room was big enough for two after learning that he had it to himself. After, Len swears, finding out all of his classes and making their schedules line up almost perfectly. Then there was another annoying habit of the boy's; calling him 'Bones'. At first the nickname irritated Len but the more Jim used it the more he became accustomed to it. As Jim put it, it was some sort of form of affection.
Several months into their classes, and they had just finished their first round of exams. There had been lots of parties to celebrate, most of which Leonard was dragged to by Jim. After seeing how Jim could be while drunk (not to mention how he acted without the influence of alcohol) Len began volunteering himself as Jim's chaperone to make sure that he made it through the night alive; he had serious doubts regarding whether he could manage that alone. He was starting the second term of Tactical - and oh joy, Jim was already counting down the days until the Kobayashi Maru - and he was sitting through the last few minutes of said class trying his best not to look as bored as he really was. Len had stopped reading the notes that Jim had been passing to him a while ago when they had turned to stupid commentary about what everyone in the large class was doing. It wasn't soon enough when the class was finally let out. Len muttered a few words to Jim about being good and attending his next class before the pair split up for different classes, something he was looking forward to. The class he had next was strictly a medical class, which meant medical personnel only. The instructor was good at what she did, really knew her stuff and she wasn't bad to look at, which was never a bad thing as it did help pass the time.
Leonard hurried across campus to a room made up to look like an average medical bay found on a Federation starship. It was some kind of interpersonal class, requiring everyone to learn how to work together in a crisis. This was one of his favourite things, the reason he had become a surgeon. He enjoyed the thrill of saving lives, but it also required fast thinking and it was never quite the same scenario twice. A board was divided into sections with instructions to divide themselves up into six equal groups and assign roles; appoint lead doctor, head nurse, first responder, etc, and it seemed to be first come, first served as everyone was frantically splitting themselves into groups. Someone called out for a doctor and Len found himself raising his hand. Someone reached out and grabbed him. That was the end of that. They quickly went around and introduced themselves and what they were. He was grouped together with a doctor in training, who would be playing their patient, two trainee nurses and one certified male nurse. It seemed to be a wonderfully diverse group of people and he was hopeful that they would do well during the simulation.
There was a sharp whistle and all talking ceased at once. Everyone turned to the front of the room. Leonard almost fell over. It had been a while but there was no mistaking who was standing up at the front of the room looking out at everyone. After she quickly gave everyone a scenario - the ship's engine just failed and the Chief Engineer had been badly burned carrying out repairs - he was sure it was her. She was precise in her feedback, not just pointing out what people were doing wrong but what they were doing right. It was her entire demeanor and they way she carried herself. Len was sure his instructor was none other than Christine Chapel. Forgetting that she had a class list, with his name on it, he hoped that she wouldn't recognize him. She would .be aware that he was in the class, but with any luck, she didn't know exactly which one was him. A few times he wondered if he should talk to her, introduce himself, but he always lost his nerve. Finally, near the end of the class, found the courage to look at her left hand ring finger and wasn't sure how he felt when he saw it was naked. No ring of any sort. No engagement ring, and certainly no wedding ring. Somehow Len was sure he felt relief, and for the first time since the divorce became final he slipped off his own ring.
He had somehow managed to escape the prying eyes of Christine Chapel, for one class. He did have to admit she seemed to have immersed herself in nursing and her passion. Now all he had to do was keep this up for the rest of the semester. Somehow he doubted that the odds would be in his favour but he had to try. Surprisingly Starfleet was going well, and for the most part he was enjoying all of his classes. Heck, even Jim Kirk was growing on him. Not that he would ever tell him that. He didn’t even mind seeing the very girl that had him run off with Jocelyn. In a way it seemed perfectly fitting.
He was surprised that his first encounter with Christine was more like the first time he met her. In the library while he was working on a paper for some class that had long escaped his mind. About the time that the words seemed to meld together, when a voice inturpted his thoughts.
“Can I sit here?” He was half expecting Jim to be there bugging him so he was midly confused when he realized it was a female voice. So he looked up and did all he could do. Nod his head yes. She slipped into the chair beside him. “How have you been?” it was as if they hadn’t taken a break and stopped talking for a bit. It was just small talk and he didn’t give away much about him and he was sure she wasn’t telling him much either. It wasn’t as awkward as he was expecting and for that he was actually glad. After that initial meeting he didn’t go out of his way to see her but he certainly didn’t avoid her either. It was almost as if his life since he got to Starfleet hadn’t changed much. Though he didn’t really want to work with her beacsue there was history between them (most of it was on him as looking back he had been stupid with her inviations). In his opinion it would be better for the both of them if they didn’t work together.
He received the message in one of his more boring classes and decided to check it. And reread it. As he read the message he had received on his PADD for the third time. According to the message he had received on his PADD, Doctor Puri wanted to see him right away in his office. Leonard respected the man as a doctor and had actually worked with him in a hospital in Mississippi for a few months, while he was on break from the Academy to brush up on his skills. He was a much kinder doctor than Len, he would be the first one to admit that. Not wanting to keep the good doctor waiting, he excused himself from Jim's company. It didn't take long to walk back to the Academy's medical department, nor did it take long to locate Puri's office. He knocked once and waited for a response.
"Doctor McCoy, good to see you." Dr. Puri had opened his door with a smile and was gesturing for Len to enter. "Please take a seat. This won't take long, I promise."
Len inclined his head and sat down in one of the chairs. "I have all the time in the world."
"I've been made Chief Medical Officer by Captain Pike, and I am permitted to pick the crew that will serve with me aboard the Enterprise. After careful consideration and deliberation I would like to make you my senior officer."
Len was speechless. "Thank you so much, sir!" Puri held out his hand and he gratefully took it. "This is wonderful. I really appreciate this."
Dr. Puri laughed. "I would be stupid not to. I've worked with you before, Len; you're a great doctor and a talented surgeon. However, your bedside manner leaves much to be desired."
"So I've been told," Len responded honestly.
"I expect that you'll get along with the other members of the team and I'm sure my head nurse will easily make up for your bedside manner. Pity she won't become a doctor." Len was too happy with what Puri had told him to pay much attention to the rest of the conversation and soon he was leaving the office and on his way to the nearest bar to find the kid.
It wasn't long after Len walked into the bar that he spotted Jim talking to a group of girls. "Bones!" Jim exclaimed once Len had entered his eyesight. "What did Dr. Puri want?"
Len grabbed the kid by his wrists while apologising to the girls. "If you'll excuse us, ladies." Once they were away from them he turned to Jim. "Good god, man, what were you thinking? They're instructors!" Before Jim could say anything about how he didn't discriminate against age he continued, "Doctor Puri asked me to be his senior medical officer when he serves aboard the Enterprise with Captain Pike."
At least Jim was sober enough to realise that what Len was saying was good news. "That's great, Bones! That flagship is set to have its maiden voyage after I take the Kobayashi Maru test."
He regarded Jim. "Are you out of your mind, man? This is the third time. They should just put you out of your misery and not let you take it any more. Now, Jim, I don't want you too drunk when you come back to the room." Len turned and left ignoring questions like 'why aren't you staying?'.
It wasn't long before Dr. Puri had gathered his team together so that they could get to know one another. They were all scheduled to report to a specific simulation room at oh-nine-hundred. Though a little early in the morning for him, Len was there with a few minutes to spare and looking around. He knew a lot of the people present in passing, a few of them he knew a little better but not much. However, he did notice, out of the corner of his eye, Christine Chapel. It dawned on him a bit too late that she was the head nurse Dr. Puri had been talking about. He could be completely professional and work well with her. The drills and simulations went by (mostly) without a hitch, and soon they were all dismissed for the day and given their orders about when they would report for duty.
If sleeping with Jocelyn and then not being in Joanna’s life anymore were two of the worst things that happened in his life, they had nothing on Jim Kirk. He always found himself in the oddest situations and when he asked how he got there the answer was always the same. Jim had dragged him along. It all started when Len thought joining Starfleet was a good thing. It allowed him to get away and would give him both a purpose and a job. It seemed like a win-win scenario - up until he met Jim on the shuttle. Yes, he did realize that Starfleet operated in space, however, that didn’t mean he loved flying. He'd rather not, but if it got him away from everything that was going on in his life then perhaps he would get over it. The moment he showed up to the shuttle he began to have a feeling that he was wrong. The aviophobia was too strong to get over right away. Everywhere he looked, the butterflies in his stomach beat their wings harder.
He didn’t have to deal with Jim during class, and that was something. Jim had put himself in the Command stream, while even though Leonard was a cadet he was still a doctor. This meant that he would have very few, if any, classes with Jim. Len was personally hoping for none, but if the kid had his way they would at least have one. Jim was attempting to have Len take one of his classes with him. For Jim it was a mandatory class and he wanted Len to take it with him, some sort of tactical class. Not that Len wasn’t good at that sort of thing, but having to take the infamous Kobayashi Maru test was not high on his list of priorities.
If he was being honest, the Kobayashi Maru scared him half to death. He had heard horror stories from some of the other cadets. Lately, it seemed that it was all Jim wanted to talk about. The test was supposedly unbeatable, a test to see how cadets reacted in what seemed to be a no-win scenario - something Jim was adamant that he didn't believe in. It was like the boy had made it his personal private mission to beat the test. As if that would prove anything. Why was any of this important to Len? Because the boy dragged him to all of the practice simulation and classes. If the class hadn't been good for Len he would have flat out refused. As it was he was constantly reminding the boy that he was nuts.
Coming to Starfleet as a mature student and full-fledged doctor did have its perks, one of which was supposed to be no room mate, but Jim took care of that within the first two weeks, finding out where he was staying and deciding that the room was big enough for two after learning that he had it to himself. After, Len swears, finding out all of his classes and making their schedules line up almost perfectly. Then there was another annoying habit of the boy's; calling him 'Bones'. At first the nickname irritated Len but the more Jim used it the more he became accustomed to it. As Jim put it, it was some sort of form of affection.
Several months into their classes, and they had just finished their first round of exams. There had been lots of parties to celebrate, most of which Leonard was dragged to by Jim. After seeing how Jim could be while drunk (not to mention how he acted without the influence of alcohol) Len began volunteering himself as Jim's chaperone to make sure that he made it through the night alive; he had serious doubts regarding whether he could manage that alone. He was starting the second term of Tactical - and oh joy, Jim was already counting down the days until the Kobayashi Maru - and he was sitting through the last few minutes of said class trying his best not to look as bored as he really was. Len had stopped reading the notes that Jim had been passing to him a while ago when they had turned to stupid commentary about what everyone in the large class was doing. It wasn't soon enough when the class was finally let out. Len muttered a few words to Jim about being good and attending his next class before the pair split up for different classes, something he was looking forward to. The class he had next was strictly a medical class, which meant medical personnel only. The instructor was good at what she did, really knew her stuff and she wasn't bad to look at, which was never a bad thing as it did help pass the time.
Leonard hurried across campus to a room made up to look like an average medical bay found on a Federation starship. It was some kind of interpersonal class, requiring everyone to learn how to work together in a crisis. This was one of his favourite things, the reason he had become a surgeon. He enjoyed the thrill of saving lives, but it also required fast thinking and it was never quite the same scenario twice. A board was divided into sections with instructions to divide themselves up into six equal groups and assign roles; appoint lead doctor, head nurse, first responder, etc, and it seemed to be first come, first served as everyone was frantically splitting themselves into groups. Someone called out for a doctor and Len found himself raising his hand. Someone reached out and grabbed him. That was the end of that. They quickly went around and introduced themselves and what they were. He was grouped together with a doctor in training, who would be playing their patient, two trainee nurses and one certified male nurse. It seemed to be a wonderfully diverse group of people and he was hopeful that they would do well during the simulation.
There was a sharp whistle and all talking ceased at once. Everyone turned to the front of the room. Leonard almost fell over. It had been a while but there was no mistaking who was standing up at the front of the room looking out at everyone. After she quickly gave everyone a scenario - the ship's engine just failed and the Chief Engineer had been badly burned carrying out repairs - he was sure it was her. She was precise in her feedback, not just pointing out what people were doing wrong but what they were doing right. It was her entire demeanor and they way she carried herself. Len was sure his instructor was none other than Christine Chapel. Forgetting that she had a class list, with his name on it, he hoped that she wouldn't recognize him. She would .be aware that he was in the class, but with any luck, she didn't know exactly which one was him. A few times he wondered if he should talk to her, introduce himself, but he always lost his nerve. Finally, near the end of the class, found the courage to look at her left hand ring finger and wasn't sure how he felt when he saw it was naked. No ring of any sort. No engagement ring, and certainly no wedding ring. Somehow Len was sure he felt relief, and for the first time since the divorce became final he slipped off his own ring.
He had somehow managed to escape the prying eyes of Christine Chapel, for one class. He did have to admit she seemed to have immersed herself in nursing and her passion. Now all he had to do was keep this up for the rest of the semester. Somehow he doubted that the odds would be in his favour but he had to try. Surprisingly Starfleet was going well, and for the most part he was enjoying all of his classes. Heck, even Jim Kirk was growing on him. Not that he would ever tell him that. He didn’t even mind seeing the very girl that had him run off with Jocelyn. In a way it seemed perfectly fitting.
He was surprised that his first encounter with Christine was more like the first time he met her. In the library while he was working on a paper for some class that had long escaped his mind. About the time that the words seemed to meld together, when a voice inturpted his thoughts.
“Can I sit here?” He was half expecting Jim to be there bugging him so he was midly confused when he realized it was a female voice. So he looked up and did all he could do. Nod his head yes. She slipped into the chair beside him. “How have you been?” it was as if they hadn’t taken a break and stopped talking for a bit. It was just small talk and he didn’t give away much about him and he was sure she wasn’t telling him much either. It wasn’t as awkward as he was expecting and for that he was actually glad. After that initial meeting he didn’t go out of his way to see her but he certainly didn’t avoid her either. It was almost as if his life since he got to Starfleet hadn’t changed much. Though he didn’t really want to work with her beacsue there was history between them (most of it was on him as looking back he had been stupid with her inviations). In his opinion it would be better for the both of them if they didn’t work together.
He received the message in one of his more boring classes and decided to check it. And reread it. As he read the message he had received on his PADD for the third time. According to the message he had received on his PADD, Doctor Puri wanted to see him right away in his office. Leonard respected the man as a doctor and had actually worked with him in a hospital in Mississippi for a few months, while he was on break from the Academy to brush up on his skills. He was a much kinder doctor than Len, he would be the first one to admit that. Not wanting to keep the good doctor waiting, he excused himself from Jim's company. It didn't take long to walk back to the Academy's medical department, nor did it take long to locate Puri's office. He knocked once and waited for a response.
"Doctor McCoy, good to see you." Dr. Puri had opened his door with a smile and was gesturing for Len to enter. "Please take a seat. This won't take long, I promise."
Len inclined his head and sat down in one of the chairs. "I have all the time in the world."
"I've been made Chief Medical Officer by Captain Pike, and I am permitted to pick the crew that will serve with me aboard the Enterprise. After careful consideration and deliberation I would like to make you my senior officer."
Len was speechless. "Thank you so much, sir!" Puri held out his hand and he gratefully took it. "This is wonderful. I really appreciate this."
Dr. Puri laughed. "I would be stupid not to. I've worked with you before, Len; you're a great doctor and a talented surgeon. However, your bedside manner leaves much to be desired."
"So I've been told," Len responded honestly.
"I expect that you'll get along with the other members of the team and I'm sure my head nurse will easily make up for your bedside manner. Pity she won't become a doctor." Len was too happy with what Puri had told him to pay much attention to the rest of the conversation and soon he was leaving the office and on his way to the nearest bar to find the kid.
It wasn't long after Len walked into the bar that he spotted Jim talking to a group of girls. "Bones!" Jim exclaimed once Len had entered his eyesight. "What did Dr. Puri want?"
Len grabbed the kid by his wrists while apologising to the girls. "If you'll excuse us, ladies." Once they were away from them he turned to Jim. "Good god, man, what were you thinking? They're instructors!" Before Jim could say anything about how he didn't discriminate against age he continued, "Doctor Puri asked me to be his senior medical officer when he serves aboard the Enterprise with Captain Pike."
At least Jim was sober enough to realise that what Len was saying was good news. "That's great, Bones! That flagship is set to have its maiden voyage after I take the Kobayashi Maru test."
He regarded Jim. "Are you out of your mind, man? This is the third time. They should just put you out of your misery and not let you take it any more. Now, Jim, I don't want you too drunk when you come back to the room." Len turned and left ignoring questions like 'why aren't you staying?'.
It wasn't long before Dr. Puri had gathered his team together so that they could get to know one another. They were all scheduled to report to a specific simulation room at oh-nine-hundred. Though a little early in the morning for him, Len was there with a few minutes to spare and looking around. He knew a lot of the people present in passing, a few of them he knew a little better but not much. However, he did notice, out of the corner of his eye, Christine Chapel. It dawned on him a bit too late that she was the head nurse Dr. Puri had been talking about. He could be completely professional and work well with her. The drills and simulations went by (mostly) without a hitch, and soon they were all dismissed for the day and given their orders about when they would report for duty.