Work Text:
Leonard McCoy thought back to when his life had turned around. He could pinpoint the exact moment when life started looking up, even though at the time he was convinced his life was ending. It was as he sat down on the Starfleet shuttle in Nowhere, Iowa (sometimes called Riverside, despite there being no river that Leo could see) next to the only other recruit not in a red cadet uniform. As soon as he saw the blue eyes on the kid, Leo knew he was fucked. He had just left a loveless marriage with an even worse divorce, and he wasn’t sure why he had decided that Starfleet was the best career option (he was an aviophobe, for fuck’s sake), but as soon as he saw those eyes, he knew he was fucked. Those eyes were the type of eyes that a man couldn’t resist falling in love with, and Leo saw hope in them, despite the battered face they were a part of. It was the overdue hope that Leo needed, and he suddenly found himself introducing himself to the gorgeous man.
Jim was listening to Bones chatter on about his day in their quarters when he realized how lucky he was. When he met Bones on the shuttle, he was a mess, both literally and figuratively. Jim was vulnerable underneath his bravado, and he knew that Bones could tell. Bones had shown up at his door after the first day of class holding a box of takeout and a holo-vid of some old movie, and had just smiled when Jim asked what he was doing. And when Jim had a nightmare (about Tarsus, of fucking course, the one time he has a hot guy next to him) after falling asleep on the couch, Bones had soothed him and cradled Jim in his arms until the morning. Bones was the first person he had met that could drive away the nightmares.
“Bones?”
“Hmm? You alright, Jim?” Leo stopped his movement and moved to Jim’s side, worrying like he always did.
Jim laughed. “I’m fine, Bones. Just hear me out, okay? I know I’m not the greatest person in the world, and I’m far from being the best boyfriend. But you have changed my life, and I have no words for what you mean to me. You’re my everything, Bones, and no matter what happens, no matter how messed up we are, I promise you I’ll never leave you. I’ll always be by your side, okay?”
Leo frowned. “Jim... Is everything okay?”
Jim laughed. “Remember the first time I kissed you?”
Leo grinned, stepping closer to intertwine his fingers with Jim’s. “How could I forget?”
“That was the exact moment when I decided that I had something truly great and that I was never, ever going to let you go. And I just felt so loved, Bones. I never dreamed that anyone could love me like you showed me when you kissed me back. I love you, Bones,” Jim finished with a whisper, and Leo pulled Jim closer.
“I love you, kid,” he whispered. “More than I’ve ever loved anyone. You’ve changed my life too, and don’t you forget it, you asshole.”