Sorry for the cheesy play on words, couldn't help it. Many thanks go out to DaniWilder for her pre-reads along with the use of her creation, Captain Kidd, and to Koinekid for supplying a few extra details immediately upon request.
Oh, and a happy Valentine's Day, everyone.
A Sundae Stroll
Three. Four. Five times the tiny spoon blended the pure vanilla ice cream. It looked to be a delicate art, the way she twirled the spoon so tenderly through the frozen treat, unaware of time or company.
"Are you actually going to add the chocolate or what?" Marie Cho, the young CMO's second in command, asked in annoyance as she finished up the last of her own small pistachio ice cream.
Jennifer blinked twice at her company and then slowly looked down at her dessert. "Uh, yeah, chocolate would be good," she decided.
Thin lines of chocolate now zigzagged across her ice cream as she took a small spoonful to her lips.
Marie sighed as her boss's eyes wandered back to a man chatting away across the mess hall about God knows what with the wildest hand gestures she'd ever encountered.
"Jennifer, your ice cream's melting," she tried again, this time lighter.
Her head snapped back. "Hm?"
"Ice cream?" Marie repeated.
"Right." Jennifer scooted her chair toward the table and added another scoop of chocolate-covered ice cream to her mouth. "This needs whipped cream," she blandly stated through her full mouth.
The slightly older nurse did her best to keep a straight face as she handed her friend the can of whipped cream. A smile finally cracked to the surface as she watched Jennifer drown her ice cream with the light fluff. "How about some ice cream with that whipped cream?" she teased.
"No thanks," she grinned childishly, "just a cherry, please."
Marie handed her one, stem and all, and watched as Jennifer plopped it unceremoniously on top of the sugar-filled pile of goodness. She then opened her mouth in shock when Jennifer pushed it to the very bottom of the rather shallow bowl with her spoon. "What happened to cherry on top?"
"What happened to save the best for last?" she countered easily.
"Fair enough," Marie allowed, sliding her chin onto her folded hands held up by her elbows. She went back to watching her friend, just happy to spend some time together again. Both had been working far too much for anything social in the last few weeks. That's why the two were in the mess hall, to enjoy the other's company and get some of the short-supplied ice cream the Daedalus last dropped off.
"How's it going with the Captain?"
The question caught Marie off guard and she simply sat a minute as she processed the abrupt inquiry. "Pretty good I'd say. We've been to a movie night or two but nothing too major yet. He's such a gentleman though."
"He sounds like a sweet guy, I'm glad." Jennifer stirred her ice cream again. "If only I could find a guy like that."
"Well, I don't know about sweet but it seems you already have." Marie's eyebrow rose in challenge as a smirk played across her lips.
Jennifer reverted to blinking at her in surprise a second time. "What?"
"Oh come on, the entire hall has noticed you drooling over him since you walked in. Subtlety isn't exactly your forte, hon."
Jennifer went back to picking at her ice cream as her face lit up brightly. Then she glanced up at her friend. "Is it really that obvious?"
"Couldn't be more obvious," Marie responded in all honesty.
As the whipped cream was pushed to the side, the blushing doctor started to excavate around her cherry. "You don't think he knows, do you?"
Her company laughed as if she'd actually suggested that as a possibility. "I'd say you're safe there."
"Good," she exhaled in relief, flipping her bangs up and scattering them haphazardly across her forehead. "But," she continued, unsure of her words, "do you think I have a chance?"
Both eyebrows rose this time. She was being serious. "Well," Marie began, "I think you could easily find out."
"You think so?" Jennifer asked hopefully.
The nurse nodded but with a perplexed look shaping her features. This was Rodney they were talking about, right? Was this something she could condone?
"I think I'll go talk to him. Thanks, Marie," Jennifer boldly stood up, forgetting the rest of her ice cream and leaving Marie with a severe look of bewilderment.
Her steps started out as if this was any other walking experience in her life. Left, right and so forth. Once her legs started to stiffen, she knew her voice wouldn't do any better of a job yet she walked up to the table holding Rodney and the remaining three members of SGA-1.
Rodney looked up first and his mouth fumbled to open but John beat him to actual words. "Care to join us, Doc?"
Without wasting the time to breathe, she replied, "No thanks, but I would like to talk to Rodney for a minute if that's all right with him?" She switched her look over to Rodney as she said his name and noticed how his eyes widened slightly. This was bad. What was she doing over here? "Uh, never mind," she hastened to add before turning and walking with direct plans to leave the mess hall and hide out for a few days.
"Wait, Jennifer! Uh, Doctor Keller," a voice called from behind her, regrettably stopping her progress to her quarters.
Rodney came bounding and stopped at her side just outside of the mess hall doorway. "What did you want to talk about? Is it something serious?"
"No, Rodney, nothing like that." She bit her lip and bravely tried again. "Well, actually, I was just wondering if by chance you'd consider going on a walk with me later."
His eyebrows rose again and Jennifer instantly regretted her actions of the past five minutes.
"You're asking if I'll go on a walk? With you?" he asked in complete disbelief as a grin overcame at least a third of his face.
"Yes," she murmured, never tearing her eyes from his mystifying expressions that heavily conflicted with her view of the embarrassing situation.
"I'd," he paused, knowing his dream was being especially cruel to be this lifelike. "I'd really like that."
"Really?" Jennifer asked in astonishment. She had to know though. "Why?"
Well that was a simple one. If only spending time alone with Jennifer outside of his dreams was this easy. "Because I love you," he responded undauntedly.
"You what?" This time her own eyebrows flew up. She had been expecting to be let down and crushed or accepted as company for only one walk but to hear this? It was too much. "You- you love me?"
"I have for months now." This is one dream I'm making the most of. "How about that walk?" Rodney offered Jennifer his arm and his breath caught in his throat, capturing her scent within as she stepped closer. His arm stiffened and then melted as her electrifying touch breached every last baroreceptor in his body. Slowly his mouth came unhinged as he stared hard at the woman on his arm. This couldn't be a dream. Jennifer Keller was actually walking arm-in-arm with him? Not possible. Yet what could he do to really check? The proverbial pinch?
They hadn't gone three steps before he stopped, bringing Jennifer's eyes to his own. He released her arm and she reluctantly returned it to her side. Her eyes never broke contact with his as he stepped in towards her and reached up to cup each cheek. A ragged breath tickled her nose as she placed her hands encouragingly, if uncertainly, on his chest.
It couldn't hurt to just ask. "This isn't a dream, is it?"
A smile reached the tip of each palm as she slowly shook her head, feeling the warmth of both hands with every movement.
Crooked as it was, a slight smile pulled at his lips before he leaned in just to double check.
"How was your ice cream date with Doctor Keller?" Captain Joseph Kidd asked as he joined his girlfriend with a fresh bowl consisting of a few scoops of vanilla ice cream and two spoons.
"Quite enjoyable actually," Marie smiled as she caught a second's glance of a kiss between her closest friend and the normally arrogant genius. "Whipped cream?" the young nurse offered the expert linguist with another smile.
"What's ice cream without whipped cream? Thanks," the Captain replied, handing her a spoon to start eating as he added a moderate amount of the topping. He grabbed a cherry from the nearby dish and placed it neatly on top, taking hold of the other spoon. He looked back just in time to see his girlfriend of only a few weeks use her finger to push the cherry to the very bottom. "What was that?"
Marie turned her spoon through the treat and grabbed a little of everything except the cherry, bringing it to her mouth. "Just saving the best for last."