Chapter Text
Scotty had been interested in the good doctor for a while. Watching him suppress a smile into a frown had made the engineer’s heart drop. He knew there wasn’t much chance of catching McCoy’s attention. The doctor was always deeply involved in his work. But watching the doctor’s face change so quickly crushed any smidgen of hope he may have had.
“I’m sorry Doc. I know ye get tired of us ‘red shirts’ filling up your medbay.”
Scotty spoke the words quietly towards his own chest. Maybe someday he’d be brave enough to tell McCoy how he felt.
He listened as an apologetic explanation stumbled out of McCoy. Scotty raised his eyes to find the doctor was smiling at him now. Scotty smiled warmly back. Somewhere deep inside him a bloom of hope popped back into existence.
Something happened then. Scotty wasn’t sure what, but McCoy’s expression changed slightly and he seemed to sway a bit before leaning his hand on the bed.
Scotty could see a flush on the doctor’s neck and he stretched a hand to help steady the other man.
“Doc? You alright?”
The flush Scotty saw moved upward to include McCoy’s ears. His heart skipped a beat. Was the good doctor turning red because of him? The bloom of hope became a whole garden of blossoms.
McCoy answered Scotty in a choked voice before clearing his throat. He repeated himself and Scotty followed his eyes as they looked at the engineer’s hand on the doctor’s arm.
Was it too much to hope? Scotty tried to squash down the feeling, but it was filling him. He turned his eyes back to McCoy but before he could ask what he wanted, the machine over his chest beeped.
McCoy pulled his arm from Scotty’s hand and lifted the machine away. He turned his back on the engineer. It was a broad, strong back and Scotty admired it for a moment.
He nearly jumped when McCoy spoke again to say he could put his shirts back on. He sat up and pulled on the undershirt before McCoy turned around again. The doctor had left the PADD on the bed when he moved the regen.
McCoy reached to take it up. Scotty screwed up his courage. Something had happened to doctor in the past few minutes and Scotty knew it had to do with him.
He grabbed McCoy’s wrist before he reached the PADD. McCoy looked as if he’d received a shock.
“Are you sure you’re alright Doc?” Scotty’s courage dissolved into hesitance.
He looked at McCoy and was hit by lightning as the other man gazed at him. Scotty’s heart began to beat faster.
“Yeah. More than alright I think,” McCoy said.
The doctor sounded almost surprised by his own words. For a moment all Scotty could hear was his racing heart. He took a chance and slid his hand down to McCoy’s and interlocked their fingers.
Scotty watched McCoy’s eyes look down at their joined hands and heard his breath hitch. Slowly McCoy looked back up at Scotty and gave him the barest of nods. The engineer felt light as a feather and grinned.
“Would ye have dinner with me some time Doc?”
McCoy was still speechless and nodded again.
It hit Scotty that they were in the middle of medbay and he looked up. Grayson, the young ensign, was staring at them wide eyed and grinning. Nurse Chapel wore a smirk. His other lads and lasses were smiling back and forth with each other and the nurses.
McCoy was bound to be upset at being the center of attention like this. Nurse Chapel must have realized the same thing. She quickly crossed over just behind McCoy and flicked on the privacy screen.
Saying a quick prayer, Scotty took another chance, pulled the good doctor close and kissed him. He could feel McCoy tense up in surprise before relaxing and reaching his free hand around to cup the back of Scotty’s head.
“I’ve wanted to do that for a while,” Scotty said as they broke apart.
“I think I have too, I just didn’t know it yet,” McCoy replied with a smile.
“So,” Scotty asked casually, “tonight for dinner?”
McCoy nodded before pulling Scotty close for another kiss. Scotty’s heart soared and he’d never felt happier for an accident in engineering.
The End