Rodney McKay looked dumbstruck as he stared at John Sheppard in the briefing room. Then, he turned to Dr. Elizabeth Weir and asked, "Isn't that what I said when we first convened this meeting," he turned back to Sheppard for the rest, "TWO HOURS AGO?"
Radek Zelenka and Carson Beckett both put their heads down, not wanting to laugh in the middle of what had turned into a rather caustic discussion about the pros and cons of the next gate address in their harvesting program. Teyla Emmagen and Ronon Dex watched their teammates in knowing amusement – this had not been the first time they'd had to sit through one of these arguments. The only problem was that this time it seemed to be turning uglier than normal between McKay and Sheppard.
Rodney, based on extensive information gathered from the MALP that had been sent through the previous day, had fought from the moment he'd stepped foot into the conference room that this was a bad option, considering the less than kind atmospheric conditions. Simply put, the weather was brutal. They would be forced to wear protective clothing, and if they came in contact with anything threatening, those clothes might put them all in jeopardy if they were forced into any kind of a fight. The MALP was very clear on the severity of the conditions on the planet. The one thing the MALP had been unable to provide was intel on what it could not see, so whether or not there was a security threat, John contradicted Rodney's argument, claiming that they could only find that out by launching a mission to do so.
Sheppard had countered that they were behind on their quota and needed to push forward, and that he and the military back-up would be able to protect them in the event of the circumstance that Rodney described. The Air Force colonel went on to say that McKay always managed to put the worst spin on the situation when he had to in order to make his point.
It was once that last bit slipped out that John Sheppard knew that he would lose this argument. The brilliant Dr. Rodney McKay took up most of the next two hours logically explaining his position and finally, in the end, brought John Sheppard in line with everyone else in the room, yet still, when you'd think that McKay would be satisfied with the victory, he sat in his chair, mad as hell at Sheppard, even though he had brought the man to his knees in front of everyone else in the meeting.
"Okay," Elizabeth said, taking her cue from the fact that McKay and Sheppard were now locked in a mini war all their own, staring each other down in tense and unfriendly ways. "I think we'll take Rodney's advice and move on to the next gate address." She looked from one man to the other, and then looked around the room. The rest of the participants looked ready to bolt, as though they were anticipating the shotgun start at a sprint at the Olympics. She shook her head, because she really wanted to cover a few more things with everyone, but the atmospheric conditions in the room had deteriorated to the point where satisfactory progress on those topics was unlikely.
"Dismissed," she said, as she rose and left the room, beating everyone to that finish line.
John and Rodney stayed behind, though it wasn't long before Rodney asked, "What exactly was the point of that?" He stood up and headed out the door, assuming that John would be answering, but projecting through his actions that the answer was pretty inconsequential in the overall scheme of things.
"I think that sometimes, Rodney, you hesitate when you should be more curious."
McKay stopped short, and felt the blow of Sheppard slamming into his back. He turned around and said, "Me? Not curious? You must be on some pretty special drugs. But what is true is that you are too reckless," he countered, followed under his breath with, "as though your track record really affords you the right." He turned back and started walking again, away from Sheppard.
John took long, quick strides to catch up and asked, "What did you say?" Rodney kept walking, but John grabbed the scientist's arm and spun him around roughly. "Did you say what I think you said?"
Rodney looked into John's eyes and knew that he'd gone too far with that last statement. It wasn't fair to judge him that way; it wasn't like the Air Force playbook really gave you any advantage with what they had been faced with out here in the Pegasus Galaxy.
"Look," McKay started, regret and sadness in his voice, "I didn't mean that. I was just mad, you know, from before," he said, pointing his thumb back to the briefing room.
"Well, you know Rodney, I'm a little mad, too. So you know what that means." Sheppard was now the one who stalked off.
Rodney watched as John left, the scientist's face moving quickly from apologetic to disbelieving to amused in the course of just seconds. He snorted loudly, loud enough for others in the hallway to look his way, and then he said, "Hah! Like THAT would ever happen."
John Sheppard's stride faltered just a little, he ground his teeth, not planning to say anything further. Unable to hold back, he yelled, "See you tomorrow, Rodney." A hearty 'aha-ha-ha-ha' from McKay followed John down the corridor.
A surprisingly few hours later, Rodney McKay headed for his quarters. It was unusual for Atlantis' resident Number One genius to call it a day so early, six Post Meridian on the Earth clock. He whistled a Bach sonata to accompany his jaunt from the lab to his room, and he waved his hand to the beat of the musical genius to let himself in to his abode in the Pegasus Galaxy. He walked in and then whistled a far different tune, followed by a smirk as he witnessed what was sprawled on his bed.
"Well, well, what have we here. I thought I wasn't seeing you until tomorrow," Rodney said as he tossed his jacket onto the chair. He headed toward the bathroom, looking at the occupant in his bed, but not allowing said occupant any real hint of what he thought of his presence. Well, maybe his previous comment said all that needed saying about that.
"You're here early," John said loudly, wanting to be heard over Rodney's ablutions in the bathroom.
"Yes. How surprising that must be for you," he returned snidely.
"Not really," John said under his breath.
"What was that?" Rodney yelled.
"I didn't say anything," Sheppard lied. Rodney returned to the room in his t-shirt, boxers and socks.
"Nice socks," John said.
"What are you doing here?" Rodney asked as he sat on his bed, pushing Sheppard over to the far edge.
"What do you think I'm doing here?" Sheppard replied, opening his palms wide to show Rodney the why and wherefore of his presence.
"Naked at six in the evening. And after that well disguised hint that you wouldn't be putting out tonight."
"It's more like you wouldn't be gettin' any, McKay."
"And yet here you are. How long have we been together?" Rodney asked as he pulled his own t-shirt off and scooted out of his shorts. "Have you ever, EVER followed through on that threat?"
"That's not the point," John started in self defense. He paused and looked at Rodney, now sitting up at the head of the bed, his legs crossed, socks still on. "What's with the socks?"
"My feet are cold. Don't change the subject. What was your problem today, anyway? You had to have known that my arguments were sound. I gave you a heads up before the meeting."
"We need some gates. I thought it was worth a try."
"Idiot."
"Thanks."
"You're welcome. So, I won't be denied your services after all?"
"What would be the point?" John asked, turning over and snuggling up close to McKay, planting a big, wet kiss on the physicist's cheek. Rodney rolled his eyes and wiped the wetness off with an exaggerated swipe. Then he dove in himself, forcing his tongue rough and rowdy into Sheppard's mouth. They wrestled a bit until John had Rodney pinned to the bed and they both needed to stop for air.
"I don't see you ever denying yourself sex. I'd have to do something really bad…" Rodney stopped that thought in its tracks. Oops. They were both thinking the same thing, it was clear, except Rodney was beginning his own private angst-fest about Duranda, at the most inopportune moment.
"Hey, I don't think we have to go there," John said, pushing up from the bed with his left arm and gently cupping his lover's cheek in his other hand. "Maybe we can talk more about me and my penchant for recklessness." John wiggled his eyebrows, took the hand that rested on Rodney's cheek and slapped the other man hard, but playfully a couple of times where he'd just been comforting him.
Rodney grinned and said, "You know, you are asking for it." He leaned up and nipped at Sheppard's ear. "Come on, get back down here, I'm breaking my back here."
John did as he was ordered. It was just the first of many orders he obeyed for the remainder of the night.
The next morning…
"So, I trust that things went alright last night," Carson Beckett noted as Rodney hummed a little Mozart in the breakfast line.
"Oh, you know how it is. It's not like Kirk to deny himself."
"If he's Kirk, what does that make you, Yoeman Rand?" the Scot asked wryly as he took a banana and added it to his tray. His breakfast looked almost like a normal Earth breakfast: oatmeal, coffee and orange juice. The banana was actually a fruit recently traded for with a culture on a paradise of a planet; the Atlantis community was lucky and grateful for the new and abundant source of fruits.
"Very funny. I like to think of myself as Spock to Sheppard's Kirk. A better looking, more well-rounded, fun-loving Spock, but Spock none-the-less."
"Really? Good for you," Beckett added as he walked with Rodney to a table to enjoy their breakfast.
At the same time in the Jumper bay…
"So, you and McKay kissed and made up?" Dr. Radek Zelenka asked in happy amusement.
John grinned the happy grin of a well-sated man. "That was the plan."
"It seems to me it almost backfired this time. Rodney was pretty angry with you."
"Well, I have to push the envelope with him. We wouldn't want him becoming complacent. And there is only so much that I can do to keep things different."
"So getting him mad and almost not getting any is the way to 'keep things different'?"
"You have no idea what a tiger he is in bed when he's had a victory like that. It's as good as the adrenaline rush you get after a great air battle, with no casualties, only it's sex!"
"Please say no more! I do not need to know details of your sex life with Rodney McKay."
"Oh, come on. You like the dirt and you know it."
The Czech stared John down but finally gave in. He smiled when he said, "You are correct. I guess that this is my way of living life on the edge. I only have regular, ordinary-though-frequent sex with, well, let's just say that I am happy with what I get, but I have not had a tiger in bed in some time." He leaned his head in close to Sheppard's and asked, "So, describe Rodney's tiger tendencies."
"You have to promise not to tell him any of this. My threats of withholding sex are just that – threats. But Rodney, he'll punish me if he finds out."
"Punish?" Radek said, wriggling his eyebrows in an impressive Groucho Marx impersonation.
"Not in a good way, Doc. But man, Rodney was incredible last night. You wouldn't think he'd have the stamina to…" he leaned over, seeing a technician just a little too close for comfort to speak the next part out loud. "He took his…"
Radek Zelenka's eyes grew wide and his mouth dropped open as the Air Force colonel whispered amazing things into his ear. Never before this moment had Zelenka ever entertained the option that he might be gay. But this…this…this was hot. McKay and Sheppard – they were hot together.
And who would ever have thought that?
The End.