You Can't Be Too Careful [Star Trek/Leonard "Bones" McCoy Love Story]

[12.] As The Years Go By

A/N: Just a little filler chapter, but I hope you all still enjoy! Thanks so much for being patient with me! <3

[12] As The Years Go By

“Astrid,” I whined. “Could you not leave your hairbrush in the sink?”

“Wha?” she said from the shower. “Isn’ tha’ where ‘airbrushes belong?”

I groaned. “Are you almost done? You’ve been in there for twenty minutes!”

“Oi!” she shot back. “Showers are good fer ya!”

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean you have to stay in them for more than ten minutes!”

“Wha’ if yer shaving? Tha’ always makes showers longer.”

“Well, are you shaving?”

She giggled. “No.”

“Astrid!” I shouted, exasperated.

She laughed harder, and the water turned off. I rubbed my fist on the mirror in an attempt to clear the fog so I could finish getting ready. Astrid stepped out of the shower a few minutes later, donned in a lavender bathrobe with her hair wrapped in a towel. She smiled brightly, flashing her perfect, white teeth at me.

“Mornin’ lass!” she said happily, grabbing her toothbrush and sticking it in her mouth.

“Morning,” I grumbled, beginning to run a brush through my hair.

“Ohhh, don’ be such a sourpuss,” she exclaimed after spitting her toothpaste out, playfully shoving me with her elbow. “Today’s the big day!”

“The ‘big day’ could’ve started an hour ago,” I pointed out, “but you overslept, and then you took an excessively long shower.”

She rolled her eyes. “Are ya goin’ to be mad at me all day cause of that? Lighten up, Catherine!”

I sighed. “Sorry, sorry. I know I’m grumpy. I didn’t get much sleep last night.”

She frowned. “Why not?”

“Thinking about dad. Worrying about the upcoming school year. The usual.”

“He’ll be fine. And you’ll be fine. Seriously, whatever happened ta tha’ smilin’ best friend a mine?” she asked, poking me in the ribs and prompting me to giggle foolishly. Stupid tickle spots.

“Ahh, there she is!” Astrid said brightly, then kissing me on the cheek. “I’ll be ready in five minutes, ya?”

I laughed. “Yeah, okay. I’ll be waiting.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know ya will,” she said, shutting the door after me.

Almost two years had passed since that horrific Christmas night. Since then, I had grown a more serious person, worked on my coordination, and spent most of my time studying. Bones and I had become quite close and made it a point to have lunch at least once a week so that we could catch up with each other. Jordan never returned to Starfleet. Astrid, on the other hand, was finally arriving for the first time. Now seventeen and a high school graduate, she was fully eligible to enlist, which she did the minute the graduation ceremony had been dismissed.  And now, she was here, officially my roommate.

As promised, Astrid emerged from the bathroom five minutes later, her hair brushed, makeup done, and finally dressed in real clothes. I smiled.

“Ready?”

“You betcha!” she said, taking my arm.

We exited the room and made our way down to the walkways. Astrid held her schedule in her right hand. The plan was to help her find all her classes, then go to lunch. As we walked along, I gave Astrid directions on where to go, since she had control over both of our stride patterns. But whenever I told her which way to go, she never seemed to hear me.