Walking down the corridors of the beautiful city that had since become home to the Atlantis expedition, Dr. Carson Beckett was on his way to the city's infirmary where he worked. This day, however, was not his normal Friday, a day where he often worked lengthy hours, often covering part of the shifts of other doctors as they took Atlantis' form of shore leave." Carson was heading to the infirmary to finish typing his medical reports that he had started the night before. Typically, Carson would have another day or so to finish the reports and forward copies to Doctor Elizabeth Weir, but Carson had a special day planned, one that he had been planning for the past few weeks, which was why he had this day and the next two days off.
While walking down the corridor, he had quite the large smile on his friendly Scottish face. His eyes made full contact with passersby as he nodded to each and smiled back when they smiled at him. "Hello, enjoy your day," he would say to many of them in his soft accent. When he heard loud footsteps charging up from behind him, Carson stopped and turned to see that it was his friend Dr. Rodney McKay.
"'Ello, Rodney, how are you doing today? May I help you with somethin'?"
Rodney's voice was frantic, and he spoke quickly, abnormally quicker than usual. It became evident that Rodney had something on his mind as he began to speak and pace around.
"I took the day off," he said. "You always wanted to go fishing, and I have decided that today, we should go fishing. You know, take a jumper, head to the mainland and just spend the day burning under the sun and fishing. Of course, I most likely will get skin cancer from the sun, but that doesn't matter now."
Carson smiled at his friend and shook his head.
"I appreciate the enthusiasm, Rodney," he said regretfully, "but I already have plans. I told you last week that I was taking the weekend off to spend a few days with Laura. It is our anniversary."
Carson crossed his arms as he spoke to Rodney. "I'm sorry if you took the day off to go fishing with me," he concluded, "but I'm afraid I have plans that I can't just call off, Rodney."
Rodney tiptoed around the subject. "Laura?" Rodney knew very well who Carson was talking about. The woman practically lived inside his body for a short while. Carson and Lieutenant Laura Cadman began dating shortly after that and were now marking another year together as a couple much to Rodney's displeasure. He respected Cadman and even liked her a little, but he was not very fond of her and Carson as a couple. In some ways, Rodney felt cheated of a friendship with Carson, though he would never admit that.
"Oh, Rodney," Carson said, shaking his head. He began to continue his course back to the infirmary with Rodney in tow and soon with Rodney right beside him trying to match pace.
"You know very well who I am talking about Rodney," he continued. "Lieutenant Cadman and I have been together long enough for you to accept her. Frankly, Rodney, I am not sure why you can't just let her into your life. She has been my girlfriend for quite some time now."
Rodney was almost repulsed with these words. He felt a bitter taste in his mouth, almost citrus-like, which completely soured his mood.
"Carson," he said hesitantly, "please don't say that. Don't call her that. You don't know how long this will last."
Carson just sighed and tried to maintain his calm attitude and tolerance of Rodney. When it came to Dr. Rodney McKay, Carson quickly learned that patience was not only a virtue but a necessity. He looked at Rodney and smiled.
"Rodney," he reasoned, "you have made no attempts to get to know Laura. I just want you to be happy for me. I have found this wonderful lass, and I may be a bit brash to say this, but I believe that I am falling in love with her."
Rodney, who had been carrying a bottle of water as he walked and talked with Carson, had just taken a sip of water when Carson mentioned the word "love," causing him to gag and nearly choke on the water as it slid down his throat. Rodney stumbled forward as he spat the water out in a misty cloud of Hydrogen oxide.
"Oh, no, no, no, Carson," Rodney argued, "it hasn't been nearly long enough to say that."
Rodney then considered Carson's statement that he should get to know Cadman.
"I had that woman's consciousness inside me," he continued. "She hijacked my body, Carson. I don't need to get to know her any better than that."
Carson was almost to the infirmary. There was just a long stretch of corridor to go. At that point, he could shed himself of Rodney and escape into the business of finalizing his reports before sending copies to Elizabeth.
"Rodney," he said, groaning, "it has been a few years already. I think that a year alone constitutes enough to say that I love her."
Carson corrected himself dropping the formality. "Laura." He then began to walk ahead.
"Sorry, Rodney, but I have a few reports to finish before I leave. We can talk when I get back. Perhaps you will join Laura and I for dinner Tuesday evening?"
"I don't know," Rodney replied, shaking his head. "I will have to get back to you on that. You know how it is here. I just can't have any time to relax, always on my feet fixing Zelenka's problems. You never know when I won't be needed."
Rodney began to step backwards to break off the conversation, but before he left, he looked at Carson.
"What if I get sick while you are away?" he tried desperately. "What if my life needs saving? What if I accidentally eat a lemon, or some idiot uses citrus cleaning supplies in my lab?"
Carson almost laughed at Rodney's ridiculous behavior, but he simply scuffed and sighed.
"I am leaving Dr. Keller in charge while I am gone. She is quite the promising doctor and a fine young woman if I may say so myself. I won't leave without informing her to expect you, Rodney, I promise."
Dr. Carson Beckett watched as his friend walked away. Finally, he had gotten rid of Rodney McKay. Their friendship was an interesting one. Despite Rodney not caring much for Carson dating Laura, the two remained quite close, but like everyone else on Atlantis, Carson could grow tired of Rodney's annoying and arrogant self-boasting nature.
Carson was about to enter the infirmary when he saw Lieutenant Colonel John Sheppard, who had undoubtedly caught tidbits of the conversation with Rodney. Carson smiled and nodded at John, and John did the same.
"Good morning, Doc," he said in a friendly manner. "I take it McKay is up to his usual?"
"Aye, Colonel," he said, sighing. "He refuses to acknowledge Lieutenant Cadman and I as a couple. Quite frankly, Colonel, I am beginning to think that there is no chance of the two of them getting along."
Carson appreciated the support Sheppard was giving him when he reached out and patted him on the shoulder.
"Lord bless my mother, but sometimes Rodney reminds me of her," Carson continued. "Love her to death, but she can be quite overbearing at times, and Rodney is working on becoming exactly like her when it comes to my relationships."
Carson then had a short flash memory of the time Cadman had been in control of Rodney's body and had kissed him.
"Sometimes, it makes you wonder if it was Rodney that kissed me and not Laura," Carson said, chuckling.
He then let out a small moan. "I forgot that I have to ask Rodney something," he said. "I will have to see him again before I leave. Hopefully, he won't try to delay me any further."
John let out a small laugh in response to Carson's joke. "Maybe it was McKay that kissed you and not Lieutenant Cadman."
Carson gave Sheppard a confused look but then realized that he was joking about Rodney actually kissing him instead of Laura. Carson's body posture became relaxed again
"Oh, bloody hell, Colonel," he said. "Let's hope not or else I have been with the wrong person."
John then let Carson in on a little secret as he unzipped a pocket on the side of his vest and pulled out a lemon.
"Whenever I go on a mission with him," he said mischievously, "I bring one of these. You know, just in case he gets on my nerves more than usual."
Carson grinned. John put the lemon away and was about to let Carson be when he remembered he was carrying something in his pants pocket. John was always a bit of a joker, and before departing, he reached into the pocket of his pants and tossed a small tube to Carson, who caught it.
"Just in case he tries to make a move on you, Doc," John said jokingly.
Carson fumbled around with the tube in his hands, turning it to read the label. As he studied the small tube, Carson saw that what was in his hand was chapstick. Even more specifically, it was lemon-flavored chapstick.
"Very funny, Colonel," Carson said, chuckling and then sighing, "but let's hope I don't have to use this."
Carson then approached the doors to the infirmary and punched the control panel lightly, and the doors slid open with the familiar sound. He walked through the infirmary and headed to the small room within the infirmary that served as his office. As he headed towards his office, Dr. Keller smiled as he approached. She was examining a cut on a patient's head. Carson caught a quick glimpse of the cut, which was more like a gash than a cut, and he had seen similar gashes before. The young male patient was a marine, and Carson simply smiled back at Keller as he grew closer. He did briefly make a comment.
"I see Ronon has been keeping us busy down here," he said. "Someone needs to tell that boy to stop roughing up the marines."
He let out a small chuckle to his joke as did Dr. Keller. Dr. Jennifer Keller was just finishing up stitching up the gash on the man's face when Carson began to stir in his office after being in there for a few minutes. She knew that Carson had been on Atlantis since the Atlantis expedition had arrived on the city. However, she herself was rather new to the city, having only arrived a few months ago and often worked the late-shift before Carson recommended her for a day-shift, allowing her to work alongside him. Unintentional or not, Jennifer felt as if Carson had taken her under his wing, and she looked up to him as a mentor and respected him greatly as a fellow medical doctor. She often found herself cracking a smile or a laugh when he was on duty in the infirmary. The man just glowed of radiant charm and humor which was one reason Jennifer admired him so much. She had only met Laura Cadman a few times, but from what she could tell, the two made a great couple.
"Doctor," Jennifer asked Carson as he was heading back from his office with papers in hand, "are those the medical reports that Dr. Weir is expecting? Couldn't you have just sent them to her, or are the computers down?"
Carson smiled at the younger doctor and briefly acknowledged her questioning.
"Aye," he responded. "Oh, those bloody machines are working fine, love, but I care to see these get to Doctor Weir personally. I want to thank her for granting the leave of absence Laura and I requested together."
Carson then fixed the papers in his hand and made sure they were all together in proper order before heading off. "Excuse me, Jennifer, but I would rather not be running any later than I already am. Please make sure you get something to eat, love. You are looking a wee bit pale."
With that, Carson exited the infirmary and headed towards the nearest transporter so that he could see Elizabeth.
Dr. Elizabeth Weir sat in her chair behind her desk wearing her Atlantis uniform with its soft red accents, her earpiece in her ear and a mic protruding around ending near her mouth. She had her head down and wasn't paying attention to anything besides her work, which presently was reading over Colonel Sheppard's latest mission report. She heard a light knocking at her doorway, and she gazed up to see Dr. Beckett's warm smile. She politely folded her laptop closed and gave him her full attention as well as a warm and inviting smile in response to his glow.
"Carson," she greeted him, "please come in. I was just reading over a mission report. Is there something that I can help you with?"
Carson extended his arm and handed Weir the small stack of papers.
"I just wanted to make sure you got these before Laura and I left," he said to her, making eye contact and smiling further. "Everything should be in order, Elizabeth. I wanted to personally thank you for allowing Lieutenant Cadman and I both to have time off together."
Dr. Weir let her smile expand, and she accepted the stack of papers.
"Carson," she told him, "you didn't need to have these in until you got back, and I would have extended the deadline if you needed me to. You both are quite welcome, Carson. I hear that Celestia is charming this time of year. If I remember correctly, it is during their autumn season which is also time for harvesting some of their goods, so I may send Teyla and Ronon along to trade with the Celestians."
It wasn't that Elizabeth was trying to be sly by any means, but she wanted to ensure Carson and Lieutenant Cadman's safety, though she wasn't wrong by any means that it was a good idea to send Teyla and Ronon to trade, as Atlantis was running low on fresh crops, and the crops on the mainland were not faring so well due to the excessive amounts of rain as of late.
Carson somewhat suspected Dr. Weir had alternative motives for sending Ronon and Teyla along aside from trading during the planet's prime harvesting season, but it wasn't something that Carson let bother him. He knew that Weir would respect his and Cadman's privacy, as Ronon and Teyla's presence on the planet would be enough to put her at ease. Carson did not expect to see the two of them shadowing over him, as that wouldn't have been Elizabeth's way.
"Aye, Elizabeth," he said, smiling at Elizabeth, "Celestia is a beautiful planet any season, but at this time of year, with the leaves on the tree turning colors and the clear starry nights under the four moons, it is going to be something special."
Weir returned her eyes to her laptop as Carson prepared to leave her office. She smiled and let out a small, delightful yet muffled chuckle as she bid Carson a happy vacation.
"Carson, have a lovely time with Lieutenant Cadman. I will see you when you both get back." Carson then left her office, and Weir returned to reading John's latest mission report.