Chapter Text
After seeing a lot more patients, more than he could possibly count, Bones slowly but surely started to feel the effects of working non-stop. Still, he pushed himself further towards his limits, ignoring his tiredness and keeping himself fuelled by coffee, the strongest the little replicator in his office would make.
Each time he went for a quick refill, he was expecting to feel some anxiety, holding his breath in when he went in, but his small office was so familiar and related with being busy, that he had no problem being in there completely alone, so after the first two times, that a nurse came hurrying in after him to check on him, he had told them all that he didn´t needed babysitting in his own office and that they could well enough leave him alone in there. They eventually left him in peace when everyone had realized that he didn´t came out in a worse state than he went in and he was secretly feeling quite pleased about the fact that he was faring so well alone in there. Of course, the busy medbay background noise did help just as much as the save, familiar surroundings.
When the last of the critical patients was sufficiently stable, he went around to check one more time on every andorian in his care, to see if he could leave them in the supervision of the current gamma shift, which had started some while ago with the according staff rushing in and relieving the beta personnel. The head of the shift, Dr. Jenning, had tried to convince him to leave, but he had insisted on staying at least until it was clear that he wouldn´t be needed for another operation.
Finally satisfied with the readings of the last patient he checked, he rubbed his tired eyes, stretched a little and took a deep breath, followed by a big yawn that he couldn´t quite suppress. Walking from the deep end of his medbay back towards the more open main area with his legs feeling heavy and his steps wobbly from tiredness, he hesitated once he was there, stopping to lean against the wall near the exit for a second. One nurse at his left side had shortly looked up when he passed her, but was busy calmly talking to a restless andorian who needed some positive assurance, another was running a tissue regenerator over her patient’s leg in concentration, and a third was removing some equipment they didn´t need any longer, just exiting the room when he came in, but no one was giving him much attention.
The urge to leave and finally get some much needed rest was strong, nearly making him just step up to the exit and go out there, but he definitely didn´t quite trust himself with making in to Jim´s quarters alone without having a massive panic attack somewhere along the way, despite being so tired that he might just as well fall asleep instead, so he would have to ask someone to accompany him. He hated that he was still depending so much on other people to get him anywhere, especially at this ungodly time, when most, if not all of his usual shadows would be fast asleep.
He knew that everyone had worked themselves rugged today and not only deserved, but needed some uninterrupted sleep. He could ask one of the nurses, but they all seemed to be quite busy at the moment and he didn´t wanted to disturb any of them. The head of gamma shift shouldn´t be dragged out of medbay in the middle of his shift, either. So, it looked like he had to call someone of his shadows if he liked it or not. He sighed, wondering who he would disturb the least.
Jim came to his mind first; he would probably wake up anyway once he entered their – that was his – quarters. Still, he had done so much for him today already and much like him, he must´ve done massive overtime, staying on the bridge until the situation with the andorians had considerably settled down. If he wasn´t still up there. Nah, he wouldn´t disturb him quite now.
As much as he hated to admit it, but Spock would be his next best choice, since Vulcans needed less sleep that humans, so from all of his shadows to call upon, the changes were highest that Spock wouldn´t be sleeping just now and even if he was, Vulcans were also able to wake up and be instantly awake, without the need of a coffee or anything else. He was quite envious of that fact. As a doctor, he was used to sometimes needing to wake up and function quite quickly, but it would still leave him grumpy until he had had his first coffee. Spock wasn´t like that at all as he had already observed in past occurrences.
“Fine, Spock it is,” he grumbled to himself under his breath, not having the energy to spend any more time considering, picking up his communicator.
“McCoy to Spock”, he spoke into it, and not even a second later, the Vulcan was answering briskly, as if he had been waiting for him to call. Feeling relieved and annoyed at the same time, because how in space can anyone sound this alert at that time, he asked if he could come to accompany him out of med bay.
“Of course doctor. I will be there in approximately four minutes and twenty two seconds. Please don´t step out in the corridor before I have arrived,” he added, and Bones rolled his eyes. “Sure thing, see you soon, Spock,” he more yawned than answered, putting the communicator back on his hip and twisting around a little, trying in vain to find a more comfortable position against the hard wall.
When Spock entered, he was still leaning there, trying hard not to fall asleep and ripping his eyes back open once more when they had fallen shut against his will.
“Finally, took you long enough,” he grumbled, inelegantly pushing himself off the wall, towards the Vulcan. The latter rose one eyebrow minutely. “I entered exactly after two minutes and twenty seconds, as I had estimated and told you before I left,” he unnecessarily reminded him, making Bones roll his eyes again. Damn it, he was too tired to think of a good retort, so his eye acrobatics would have to be enough.
“Come on, let´s just get outta here, I´m tired, dammit,” he mumbled, dragging himself towards the exit and Spock followed, strategically taking the place at this side. Wisely, Spock didn´t comment on his foul mood and just made sure he stayed in his field of view while they walked towards Jim´s quarters. There, Bones slowed to at stop, and looked up to the Vulcan, now feeling a little bit guilty about having acted so rude. “Sorry Spock, I´m just tired is all... Thanks for coming and getting me here,” he lamely ended, feeling a little embarrassed once again.
“You have nothing to apologise for, I am not averse to a “midnight stroll”, as you would call it, even if there is no such thing as “midnight” in space,” Spock replied, a rare trace of humour in his voice.
Bones just huffed in reply, already opening Jim´s door, ready to stumble to bed at last, and Spock nodded goodbye and left as quickly and quietly as he had come.