Title: Never Easy
Series: Star Trek 2009
Rating: PG-13 (one curse word)
Pairing: pre-Jim Kirk/Leonard McCoy
Summary: Written for da_angel729's 2nd choice request for: Academy Era, Bones gets seriously injured in a training mission. Jim panics. For the mccoy_and_kirk Spring Fling Fic Exchange.
Words: 2,015
Disclaimer: Not mine.

When Bones wasn't back by the time Jim originally expected him to be, he wasn't all that concerned. These training missions sometimes ran over for various reasons – everything from an extended debriefing to an extra task thrown in there by the Academy instructors in charge of the section. The hold-up could be caused by any multitude of things. Whatever it was, he hoped for everyone else's sake that it was resolved soon. Bones had resented the fact that he had to do this at all, and Jim knew that every second he was kept from getting back to what was really important to him ("It's not like I have nothing to worry about but my classes!" he'd ranted furiously. "I'm a doctor…I have responsibilities to my patients!"), was another reason for him to come back in a foul mood.

Carrying take-out from Bones' favorite place, he let himself in to their shared room. He deposited the bags on the desk and paused to look around the room as he pulled off his shoes, letting them thump to the floor. It was a little messy – and it was mostly Jim's mess. Despite the fact that Bones was meticulously ordered, he coped with Jim's…less than organized…way of living fairly well. Tonight though, knowing that he was going to be coming back in less than a great mood after what was sure to be a hard day, Jim spent a few minutes straightening up. As much as he liked pushing Bones' buttons, he really did care about him…cared for him…Jim let himself admit. And he knew Bones cared about, cared for, him as well. Having someone like that in his life was something Jim wasn't accustomed to having, and something Bones had gone too long without.

He hadn't expected it – not from the stressed, desperate, hung over person he'd met on the shuttle. Not that Jim had been in a better state. But they'd kind of fallen into each other's lives last year, and something about the connection they made in that shuttlecraft kept them together. Maybe it was because they were the only two late-comers, both older than the typical new recruit. Maybe it was because they each recognized a familiar emptiness in the other, and instinctively wanted to fill it. Whatever it was, Jim wasn't sure what it meant for them in the long run, but for now, for tonight, it meant being there with Bones' favorite take-out, and a clean, ordered room, and a ready ear, or just companionable silence.

Jim finished straightening up, then changed – hanging up his reds instead of just draping them across a chair. He set a couple of places at the table and then stowed the take out in their small fridge. All he had to do was warm it up and set it out when Bones got home.

Grabbing a PADD, he lay down on his newly-made bed and started thumbing through some of the reading assignments he had, settling in to wait for Bones to return.

Sometime later, Jim jerked awake as the PADD he'd been reading slid off of him and fell to the floor with a thump. He squinted in the bright light of the room, and sat up slowly, rubbing his neck. He'd fallen asleep at an awkward and had a crick to show for it. Disoriented, he looked around the room for any hint that Bones was back, and then grabbed his communicator and peered at it….it was nearly one in the morning and Bones wasn't back yet.

He sat on the bed, thinking the situation through for a moment. There were no messages from him or anyone else. Nothing to indicate there was a problem. On the other hand, he wouldn't necessarily be notified if there was. He'd put Bones down as his emergency contact, but he didn't think Bones had done the same. Bones was hours overdue…Jim swallowed as his stomach rolled uncomfortably. This wasn't normal. He was starting to get a little worried now.

After debating with himself for a couple of minutes, staring at Bones' neatly made bed, Jim made a decision. He got up and moved to the computer terminal. Working for a couple of seconds, he brought up the information about the training course Bones was on and sent it to his own account. He closed the program down then opened it again, using his own information this time. Calling the message he'd just sent to himself back up, he scanned the communique, looking for the name of the SFA coordinator. That person was on communications here the whole time a training group was out with instructors. Finding that information, Jim didn't even hesitate before using the open links in the communique to hack into the wider system and make contact with Lieutenant Kinney.

"Kinney here."

Thinking quickly, Jim put as much authority into his voice as he could. "Lieutenant Kinney, Dr. McCoy hasn't returned yet and I was expecting him to check in before now. One of his patients needs him."

"Cadet McCoy was sent in on a medical transport already. He's at Star Fleet Medical-"

Jim's heart dropped. Why would…"Is he okay?" he asked quickly, without thinking.

There was a pause on the line, then, "Please identify yourself."

Realizing he'd blown his cover, Jim made an adjustment so that Kinney would only hear bursts of static, then signed off. He backed out of the hack he'd done, closed his own program. He didn't think a trace would be a problem. He was pretty good at manipulating low security level communications systems – but really, it was the last thing on his mind.

Bones, he thought. What had happened? Was he okay? Maybe he's treating someone else,Jim hoped. He held on to that thought tightly. Moving quickly, he thrust his feet back into his boots and grabbed his jacket out of the closet. Trying to calm his racing heart, trying to convince himself that he was being ridiculous and of course Bones was okay, he used his comm, to summon a cab to bring him to the main Starfleet Medical facility, not wanting to waste time getting there.

The whole ride over, Jim repeatedly tried to reach Bones on his comm. Nothing. Fidgeting restlessly, he took a deep breath, chewed on his lip. As soon as the cab pulled to a stop, Jim swiped his card to transfer the due credits and slammed the door behind him as he ran to the Emergency Center entrance.

Squinting the harsh light, he ran through the room, ignoring the people waiting for attention.

"Excuse me, excuse me," he said in a rush, unable to completely quell the feeling of panic. "Did Dr. McCoy bring a patient in? He should be arriving on a medical transport any second, if he isn't already."

"Bring a patient in? No…he's…"

Oh, god."Is he okay?"

"Sir, I can't…"

"Please…please…I just need to know if he's okay. He's…we're at the Academy together. It was a training mission. He's the only one….just…please."

The woman looked at him for a moment, saw the real concern and fear on his face, heard it in his voice, and couldn't help but be affected by it. That type of emotion couldn't be faked easily.

"They brought him in just a few hours ago. They got him stabilized enough, and he's in surgery now. You can go up to the second floor waiting room, if you want."

He swallowed as his stomach seemed to drop to his feet, and he had to lean on his elbows, letting his head hang as lack of sleep and lack of food and before now, it was all just a late return. Now it wasn't. Now, it was real.

"What happened?" he asked, voice hoarse. "What's wrong with him?"

"I'm sorry, sir…I can't. I'm really sorry," she said.

Jim nodded wordlessly, his mind in turmoil. If he was going into surgery, it had to be bad. Oh, god…what if…

The horrible train of thought was cut off when he felt a gentle touch on his arm. He looked back up, meeting the eyes of the young woman again.

"Why don't you go upstairs. I'll let the nurses up there know that you're waiting for word of ."

Coming back to himself a bit, Jim felt his brain reengage. He wasn't helpless here. "Okay. First, though, I need a comm terminal."

Sitting beside Bones' bed, Jim leaned forward to rest his head on his crossed arms, bent practically double at the waist to reach it. His eyes were closed, but he wasn't sleeping. He was exhausted, but he couldn't sleep. He had to know that Bones was okay. And Bones was lying so still, so quietly, the only way to know that was to listen to the beeps quietly counting out his steady heartbeat. In any other circumstances, it would've been annoying after a while. In this circumstance, it was the most comforting sound he'd ever heard.

A fucking rockslide,Jim thought to himself. Of all the things that could go wrong on a training mission – planned and otherwise – a rockslide was the last thing on Jim's list of things to watch out for. In Bones' training mission, one of the goals was to use strategically placed charges to clear a way that had to be traversed. They'd cleared the way all right, but the placement had loosened a secondary support system and some of the group had been trapped beneath resulting slide.

It turned out that Bones was hurt because he didn't get out of the way. No. He put himself in harm's way to protect one of other team members – Cadet Shaina Trewer. Shaina had been spared, but Bones had taken a glancing blow to the head. Fractured skull, brain bleed, livid bruised up and down his left side…Jim felt his closed eyes water and he swallowed hard.

They expected a full recovery. They'd said it to him, and to Bones' mom. As a matter of fact, it was the doctors' assurances and Jim's presence that convinced Mrs. McCoy not to rush across the country. His injuries had been serious, but he'd been treated immediately. He was going to recover fully, probably be out of the hospital in a couple of days. Leonard would be fine. He would.

He just needed to wake up.

Please wake up.

Jim took a shuddering breath, and blindly reached to touch Bones, needing to feel the warmth of life under his fingers. He gripped Bones' hand.

Bones gripped back.

Jim lifted his head, quickly wiping his eyes. "Bones?" he said quietly. "Bones? Are you awake?"

Bones groaned softly, his eyebrows furrowing in pain.

"Hurts," he whispered.

"Oh, thank god," Jim said, the relief almost enough to knock him over. He fumbled with the call button. "Okay…hold on…I'll get a nurse."

Jim continued to talk quickly, and Leonard dared to open his eyes slowly. Thank god the lights were down in the room. Jim's face swam into view, and Leonard frowned.

"You ok?" he asked Jim. "You look like shit."

Wiping his eyes, Jim let out a laugh that was more like a sob. "Ilook like shit?" he repeated. "You should see yourself."

Leonard grimaced. "Fucking training mission."

Jim looked down to where their hands were still joined, for the first time noticing that he hadn't let go. He flushed, but didn't pull away. Neither did Bones.

"Yeah. I'm just…really glad you're okay," Jim said softly. He looked back up, meeting Bones' eyes. "Really glad."

The nurse and doctor came into the room then, and Bones didn't have a chance to respond. Jim let him go and stepped back, making room for the medical personnel, but Bones kept his eyes on Jim, watching as he dashed a hand across his eyes again, wiping the moisture away.

Even with the head injury, Leonard recognized what he saw there. He closed his eyes, a small smile gracing his lips. Figured that it would take something like this happening to him in order to knock some sense into Jim.