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1.First Meeting
You met the Enterprise's famous (or infamous) CMO the day you reported to him for your first physical on board the rebuilt Enterprise A as it prepared to leave on the last two years of the five year mission. You'd heard wild and crazy tales about his bad temper and gruff bedside manner and sat on the exam table hands clasped together very nervously when the nurse went to get the doctor. Expecting him to be seriously unpleasant, you were very surprised when he turned out to be anything but.
"Lieutenant Y/L/N?" He said. You nodded and looked up at was undeniably a good looking man without the hint of grump on his features. Nevertheless, you remained wary as he approached, not wanting to upset the apple cart.
"I'm Dr. McCoy and I'll be doing your physical today. Is there anything you have concerns about before we start?"
"No, Dr." you said briefly, gulping a bit. Goodness, those scrubs didn't hide the broadness of his shoulders one bit.
"Can you relax for me, Lieutenant?" He asked at one point. You hadn't realized how tensely you'd been holding yourself until then.
"Oh, sorry," you said with a sheepish expression.
"Nothing to be sorry about. Lots of people don't like doctor visits."
"I don't usually mind them, but I'd heard a few.....stories...that made me freak out a bit."
"What kind of stories?" he asked, making notes on his PADD.
You squirmed uncomfortably, face heating up at the awkward position and wishing you'd kept your mouth shut.
"Oh, you know, you're supposedly hypo happy and irritable." (Sadist was the word Jim had used, but you weren't about to tell him that.)
Surprisingly, the doctor chuckled as he picked up his tricorder and started scanning you.
"Well, I can be both, but it's usually reserved for fool-headed rascals who continually avoid their required exams for no good reason and have no regard for bodily safety. Judging by your record, you're neither of those things. Microbiology? Is that correct?"
"Yes, it is," you nodded proudly.
"Good. That's a very important field and I'll probably run into you again when I go to the labs."
At last, he laid down the tricorder and smiled at you.
"Clean bill of health, Lieutenant. Welcome to the Enterprise."
He signed the required form and sent a notification of the passed exam to the captain so you could officially be placed on the duty roster. You were so frozen by the smile and resulting dimple, you could barely mumble out your thanks before you fled the room.
Jim had definitely warned you about the wrong things when it came to the good doctor.
2.Second Meeting
A month into your new life on the Enterprise, you'd thrown yourself wholeheartedly into your job--to the point you barely came out of the labs. While this had earned you the approval of Spock, who remarked on your diligence, it came at the detriment of your social life. This point hit home the first time you actually ate in the mess and didn't have anyone to sit with. Shrugging, you took your tray and sat down at an unoccupied table.
"Y/N! You're really here!" Came the Captain's voice. "I'd heard rumors of your existence, but they all proved to be unsubstantiated. Finally pry yourself away from the labs?"
"Good to see you, too, Jim," you smiled as another figure plopped down beside Jim across from you. Realizing it was the handsome doctor from last month, you blushed and started shoving food in your mouth.
"You botherin' the lady, Jim?" Came McCoy's rumbly voice.
"Just being social with my cousin, Bones," Jim replied.
"Your cousin?" Came the surprised question and you swallowed your mouthful and looked back up.
"Yes," you confirmed for Jim.
"Well, ain't that cute? Guess I know who fed you all that untrue info about me," McCoy said, with a wink at you that made you drop your fork.
"What untrue information?" Jim asked in confusion, looking back and forth between the two of you.
That was when something clicked and the evil part of you decided to teach him a lesson.
"That the doctor was a terrible grump, rude to patients, and outright sadistic, Jim," you answered calmly, watching McCoy's eyebrows shoot up as he heard the non-watered down version of Jim's claims. "I'm assuming that Jim is the fool-headed rascal with no regard for his own safety you were referring to?"
"I can neither confirm nor deny," McCoy said, fixing Jim with a glare that meant no good to the captain.
"If you're going to tell lies about me, kid, the least you can do is properly introduce me to your delightful cousin here," he continued.
Jim's red face was a study in wildly different expressions, but
at length he managed to quit looking like a gasping clownfish and stutter out the introduction.
"Bones, this is Y/N Y/L/N--my cousin and feared evil genius. Y/N, this is my equally evil genius best friend, Leonard Horatio McCoy."
"You can call me Len," the doctor put in, reaching out a big hand to shake.
Smiling half shyly, half triumphantly, you took it willingly. "And you can call me Y/N."
3.Flirting
Before long, you and Len had struck up a weird friendship/flirtation that had Jim alternately giggling and groaning. Much as you enjoyed your research, you made it a point to eat with the crew regularly in order to see your new friend more. Leonard did like to gripe and moan about space and its treachery, but he really wasn't a bad-humored person at all, just a bit cynical from his painful past. Given that your work tended to be helpful to his work, the two of you talked a lot about the various potential for medical advances as well.
In general, though, given how busy the doctor's schedule was, most interaction was the occasional brief exchange in the labs or chats over dinner.
Gradually, though, it morphed into secret smiles, winks and whispered "hey, science!" Or "hey, Darlin!" whenever you crossed paths. The doctor had a vast arsenal of facial expressions that could leave your heart fluttering or knees weak depending on how he used them.
4.Dating
After a few months of the incessant flirting, an exasperated Jim started asking Bones why he hadn't asked you out.
"I see you two making eyes at each other whenever you're together. It's obvious you like her, so go for it, pal!"
"It's not that easy, Jim," the doctor sighed. "I'm real rusty at the dating game for one thing and for another, would she really want to go out with a crabby doctor almost ten years older than her? Even you can admit, Y/N can do a lot better."
"On principle, as a concerned cousin, I should agree, but as your best friend and a supportive cousin, I think you're selling yourself short. Let her decide what's good enough for her and don't just lead her on if you have no intention of it going anywhere."
"Says the serial heartbreaker!" Leonard retorted, but he thought over Jim's words and knew the man was right. He'd never know if he didn't try.
So, when you went for your vaccinations and got Dr. M'Benga instead of Doctor McCoy, you were more than a little confused.
"Um, I hope nothing's happened to Doctor McCoy," you said. "The schedule said he was doing my hypos. Not that I dislike you, Dr, I'm just surprised."
"Understandably. Dr. McCoy said he'd explain it all to you this evening. That's all I'm at liberty to tell you."
You were mystified, but given the obvious mirth in Dr. M'Benga's face, decided it wasn't anything to be alarmed over.
Sure enough, Len was waiting for you at your usual table. He seemed slightly nervous you noted, and Jim didn't even attempt to join the two of you--in fact, nobody did.
"Care to explain why you stood me up today, Len?" You asked as you dug in.
"Protocol, darlin'," he drawled. "Can't be your physician if I want to date you."
You plopped your spoon back into the dish in shock and delight.
"You want to date me, Len?" You breathed. You'd crushed on the guy for awhile now, but has kept in mind Jim's hints that he was gun shy about relationships.
He nodded, looking almost shy.
"Yeah, I do."
You beamed at him. "Good, because I was about to ask Jim if he'd threatened you or something. He can be ridiculous."
"Sure can," Len agreed with a "don't I know it" expression. "But surprisingly, he seemed in favor of it. Told me to get off my duff and ask you out already."
"Well, bless his heart!" You declared happily.
"I assume that means you're also in favor of a relationship?" He asked, giving you that special smile.
"Yes it does, Len," you confirmed.
"We'd best get busy date planning, then," he said with a wink, one hand inching forward to clasp yours.
5.First kiss
Once you were official as a couple, the two of you were in no hurry to rush things, being content with being with each other, hand holding, and sometimes hugs in the beginning stages. Your fellow scientists were all envious of your dashing suitor and sighed with you when you described his southern gentleman style of Courtship.
You rejoiced together when you were selected for your very first away mission--studying the simple organisms that inhabited the small planet Jim was cataloging. It may not have been danger filled and you were only on the planet for a few hours, but when you got back Leonard presented you with a big bouquet of flowers and a proud bear hug.
"Congratulations on a successful first mission, darlin'."
"You make it sound like I was walking into horrible danger, Len," you laughed, taking a big sniff of the very fragrant bouquet.
"Well, given who the captain is and the treachery of space, you can never take anything for granted," Len sighed.
You found out just how true that was when the doctor was captured by rebels in the midst of tense negotiations and held hostage for four terrifying days before Jim and a team were able to free him. There was nothing worse than the uncertainty of not knowing whether he was alive or dead and you badgered Jim for updates often.
Nothing could have stopped you from rushing to meet him in the transporter room, when word came they'd found him. He was rather dirty and bruised, but otherwise intact and with a sob of relief, you rushed into his arms.
"Hey, easy there, darlin'. I'm all right," he soothed."
"But I'm not," you sniffled against him. "Thought you were being tortured or maybe even dead."
"Naw, those rebels just wanted to make a statement. Most of them were scared kids. It's an ugly situation down there. I get the sense the governor's not telling you the whole truth, Jim."
The captain looked grim. "Yeah, Bones. Uhura agrees with you. I don't think I can make a treaty with this government that seems to be more interested in oppressing people than thriving. But, right now, you need to get down to Sickbay. We're not doing a thing until you're checked out."
Len nodded, but before he could step down from the transporter room, you'd seized him in a desperate kiss, pulling his tall head down to meet your lips. Jim gaped then grinned, shooing the rest of the away team out and giving you a thumbs up before he too left.
"What was that for, sweetheart?" Len gasped, when you'd finally broke apart. "Not that I minded."
"That was a thank-goodness-you're-alive reaction combined with I-should-have-done-this-a-long-time-ago," you said breathlessly, arms still around his neck. "I love you, Leonard McCoy." He pressed another kiss to your lips.
"And I love you, Y/N; so very, very much."