something to do (Pavel Chekov)

42

Pavel's phased out when the lights eventually swirl around him a half hour later. He holds his hands up to his face and tells himself it's death finally coming for him. He rematerializes on the floor of the transporter room and feels his lungs start to give in. He can't breathe and he's coughing uncontrollably, spots dancing in his vision as he fights for oxygen.

"I told you to wait for me, dammit!" A voice calls, slipping something over Pavel's face. He starts breathing a little easier and he looks up at McCoy, smiling to himself. McCoy and someone in a red shirt lifts him onto a biobed and start pushing him towards medbay.

"Eadie," Pavel says, waiting for a reply from McCoy.

"She's fine," he confirms. "She's just a little dazed. She'll be happy to see you."

Pavel nods, not having the air to say anything else. He waits until Eadie comes into his vision and he calls out to her, not getting anything in response. McCoy puts him next to her and he reaches for her hand, squeezing it gently. She stirs and turns over to him, starting to cry when he realises who it is.

"P-pav," she mutters, squeezing his hand.

"Eadie," he says, his eyes closing and his head spinning. "Eadie... Eadie..."

"You... Y-you... going to m-m-marry... M-me?"

"Definitely," he laughs. "Maybe not right now. But yes, at some point. Providing you say yes, that is."

She gives him a smile and he tries not to worry about how badly she's stuttering. He gives her hand one more squeeze and McCoy hooks a different mask around Pavel's face. He can breathe a little easier with it on and his eyes start to open a little more. McCoy presses a hypo into Pavel's neck and he doesn't even flinch. He's thinking about taking his boots off and putting clean clothes on. McCoy gives him a gel pack and Pavel takes a sip of and starts coughing.

"Oh my God, what is this? I can drink this, right?"

"Chekov, I've seen you finish a whole bottle of scotch in less than an hour. I'm sure you can manage."

Eadie laughs from her bed and Pavel rolls his eyes. He clenches his eyes shut and finishes the whole thing in one go, grimacing and coughing as soon as it's finished.

"Christ," McCoy mutters. "You're a machine, Chekov. I wouldn't want to try competitive drinking with you."

Chekov smiles to himself, a little lightheaded from the whatever was in the gel pack. He blows the packet back up like a balloon and stares at the ceiling. He wants to fall asleep with Eadie in his own room but he has a feeling that mightn't happen for a while yet. His whole body is loose and feels a little buzzed almost, dreaming of all the things he can do with Eadie now that they're safe again. He has little time to think about it before slipping under comfortably, smiling stupidly again.

Eadie and Pavel wake up still in medbay. They're glad to see bright lights over the dark glow they were scared they'd find opening their eyes. Eadie looks over to make sure that Pavel is there, and she sees his sleepy face smiling at her.

McCoy isn't there but another doctor comes over and checks them, noting that their vitals are quite normal. They're still a little vitamin deficient but the doctor assures them that can be fixed within the next few days. The doctor checks over Pavel's abdomen with a tricorder and notes that he has a normal amount of kidneys and goes over to Eadie. She swallows uneasily and Pavel takes her hand, squeezing it gently.

"Look," the doctor mutters, a little unsure how to phrase what she's thinking. "It's not exactly where we want it to be, but it's better than what it was. I think you're showing signs of improvement. It may be a slow process, Eadie but this shows you're on the right track to recovery."

Eadie breathes out, feeling herself shake a little. Pavel squeezes her hand and asks if they can go back to their room for a while. She tells him she'd have to clear it with McCoy first and they sigh, a little annoyed about spending more time in medbay.

McCoy shows up a couple of hours later and checks them over again. He's glad to see Eadie is making some progress, though he's yet to comment about the stuttering. Pavel asks about it when he gets the chance. McCoy seems reluctant to say anything but Pavel asks again and the doctor just sighs.

"Stuttering can start after trauma. It mightn't be easy to fix but she should be able to overcome it. It might take a bit of speech therapy, but she isn't stuck with it forever."

Pavel nods, telling himself that's good news. She hasn't spoken much since they found themselves in the cell again and he misses hearing her voice. He asks when they can go back to their room and McCoy anticipated the question. He thinks he could probably let them go for a few hours to get some rest. He tells Pavel to watch his sugar intake, not binging like last time.

When Eadie comes back, Pavel tells her that they can go back to their room and she sighs in relief. He takes her hand and swings it as they walk, telling her about McCoy's request that he cuts down on the sugar. He isn't too happy about it. McCoy said he can have one small bar of chocolate at max. Eadie signs asking if he's thinking of white chocolate and Pavel smiles.

Eadie has a shower while Pavel savours his white chocolate. He smiles thinking about the moments that lay ahead. He wants to pick out a ring. He wants to kiss her and get down on one knee and watch her smile. He gets lost in thought when Eadie's soft voice pulls him from his thoughts. She's singing and Pavel closes his eyes and listens.

"You don't stutter when you sing," Pavel notes, as soon as she's finished and climbing out of the shower. "It's a different part of the brain. It's beautiful to listen to. It feels like it's been too long since I last heard you sing."

She kisses his cheek and ruffles his hair. He pulls off his own shirt and throws it at her and she giggles. He tells her he's going to shower and then join her and she nods, leaving the bathroom and humming to herself.