A/N: This is a birthday fic that I wrote for Camy.
Disclaimer: They aren't mine, I'm simply borrowing them.
A Birthday to Remember
It was late at night and yet Teyla found herself walking the hallways of Atlantis. Sleep did not come easily to her; it hadn't for months. But instead of lying in bed all night, fixating on depressing thoughts, she chose to walk the corridors.
The activity helped to divert her attention somewhat, but in the end her mind always returned to the same topic: John. She felt her heart constrict with the pain of loneliness. It hurt so much knowing that she would most likely never see him again.
As Teyla walked further she realized that she was nearing the infirmary. She remembered that she had been planning to see Carson the next day, in order to ask him a favor, but seeing as she was here already…
"Dr. Beckett?" Teyla called out as she entered the infirmary.
Quickly scanning the surrounding area she found that it was nearly deserted save for a few patients and one nurse who was entering information into the computer system. The woman caught Teyla's eye and inclined her head toward the back of the infirmary.
Noticing that the light was on in Carson's office, Teyla thanked the nurse and headed over. She rapped her fingers lightly against the closed door. Upon hearing Dr. Beckett's quiet prompt to enter, she swiped her hand over the sensor and stepped into his office.
"Teyla," he said in a surprised voice as he looked up and noticed who his visitor was. "What can I do for you love?" he asked as he set aside his paperwork.
Teyla smiled softly at him as she sat down in the chair in front of his desk. "I have a favor to ask of you," she began, somewhat hesitantly.
Carson's eyes widened a little in surprise. "All right," he said. "What can I do?"
Teyla took a deep breath before she started to talk. "You and Dr. McKay are making a trip to Earth at the end of the week, are you not?"
"Aye," Carson said a bit slowly, as if he was trying to figure out where she was going with her inquiry.
"Do you think you could perhaps give something to John for me?" she asked hopefully. It was very important, and she hoped she was right in asking Carson to do this for her.
Carson gave her a knowing smile and seemed to relax a bit. "Of course," he said sincerely.
"Thank you," Teyla said, nodding her head slightly. She opened her mouth to say something else, but closed it again as she made to stand up.
"Was there something else love?" Carson asked as he looked at her intently.
Teyla felt her cheeks warm slightly. "Yes," she said quietly as she settled back into the seat. Seeing as he had asked… "I need some advice," she said quietly, not looking up to meet Carson's eyes.
"I'd be happy to help," he said encouragingly.
"As you are aware," she said. "I am not familiar with Earth customs…"
"Of course not love. Not that I can blame you, sometimes I don't even understand why we do certain things."
Teyla smiled at Carson's comment. Looking up at him she continued. "You celebrate the day of your birth, correct?"
Carson nodded. "Yes, our birthdays. Or at least most people on Earth do anyway."
"All right," Teyla said. "And I know that there are gifts that are given to the person on the day of their birth."
"Aye," he said. "And there's usually some sort of party, unless you'd prefer to not remember that you're getting older." He grinned a little at his last comment, and Teyla did too. John had told her something similar once. Her mind almost began to wander as she thought of John, but she forced herself to focus.
"Now about the gifts that are given…" Teyla said. "Is there some sort of accepted way for this to be done?" she asked, hoping that it would not be too difficult for her to achieve what she wanted to.
Carson's eyebrows knit together in confusion. "Not really," he said. He paused for a second. "I'm sorry love, but I have to say that I'm slightly confused. Why are you asking this?"
Teyla gave him a hesitant smile. "It is John's birthday at the end of the week," she said slowly. "Are you and Dr. McKay not going back to Earth so that you may celebrate it with him?" she questioned.
Carson's face lit up with a mixture of realization and surprise. "I had no idea," he said after a few seconds.
Teyla was taken aback. "You did not know that it was John's birthday?"
Carson shook his head. "No, not at all." He really did look shocked by the information. "How did you know?" he asked, looking at her strangely.
"John told me," she explained. "Many months ago I was filling him in on some of the Athosian customs and he was surprised to hear that we do not celebrate the date of our birth. Then he mentioned to me about your birthday celebrations."
"And you asked him when his birthday was," Carson said, correctly guessing the end.
"Yes," Teyla verified with a nod of her head. "Now may I ask why you and Dr. McKay are heading to Earth, if not to celebrate John's birthday with him?"
"Well, I have to correlate all of our recent medical findings with the information back at the SGC. Normally that kind of information would be sent by computer through the gate, but with the gate bridge, it's been requested that I come in person."
Teyla nodded—it made sense. In fact, ever since the gate bridge had been completed a lot of such requests had been made, and as far as she could tell it made the city run more smoothly than it had in the past.
"And Dr. McKay…"
"Rodney has some sort of project on the go that he can't seem to complete by himself. Even though he hates to admit it, he figures that it would be best to ask Colonel Carter for her help."
Teyla almost wanted to smile. It was hard to imagine Rodney admitting that he needed help on anything.
"So you will not be seeing John then?" she inquired, getting back to the reason she was there in the first place.
"No, I'll see him," Carson said. "I was planning to just drop by his apartment and say hello, but I don't have the time to stay long."
Teyla nodded in understanding. "But you will still be able to drop off a gift from me?"
"Aye, that I will."
Teyla smiled, feeling relieved. She had spent quite a lot of time in making John's gift and it would be a shame if he did not receive it in time for his birthday. "Thank you," Teyla said sincerely. "I greatly appreciate it."
Carson half smiled back at her. "Of course," he replied, sounding distracted.
"Is something wrong?" she asked.
"What?" he asked, focusing on her. "Oh no," he said. "Everything's fine. I just need to find something to give to him as well."
Just then Teyla heard the door to Dr. Beckett's office slid open behind her. She turned around just in time to see Rodney enter.
"Give who something?" he asked as he barged in.
"Rodney," Carson said indignantly. "Don't you knock?"
"No," he replied. "Teyla," he added, sounding shocked to see her. "What are you doing here?"
"Teyla and I were talking," Carson explained. "Or at least we were until you came in."
Rodney raised one eyebrow at her. "What?" he asked. "Are you sick or something?"
Teyla sighed at Rodney's comment. He really didn't have very good people skills.
"No, Dr. McKay. I am not sick."
"For you information Rodney, Teyla and I are friends. Sometimes friends talk."
"Uh huh," he replied as he pulled up another chair and sat down beside Teyla. "That's great," he added dismissively. "So who do you have to give something to?"
Carson rolled his eyes at Rodney but answered anyway. "John."
Rodney looked back and forth between Teyla and Carson a few times before replying. "Why?"
"So you didn't know either," Dr. Beckett stated.
"Didn't know what?" Rodney asked shortly. "What didn't I know?"
Carson sighed. "That it's John's birthday at the end of the week."
The confused look on Rodney's face was almost humorous. "John has a birthday?"
"Of course he does Rodney," Carson said impatiently.
"Well, we've been here for how long, and I've never known when his birthday was." Rodney actually sounded put out. "I can't believe he never told me. And now that I know I have to get him something," he added, a distinct whining tone taking over.
"So do I," Carson said. "But I have no idea what to get him."
"And you think I do?" Rodney asked rhetorically. "The only thing he wants is something neither of us can get him—a job in Atlantis."
"That is not something to joke about," Teyla said forcefully.
"No, of course it isn't love," Carson said sympathetically. "After all he did for this city…" His voice trailed off. "It's a shame."
Rodney's face turned solemn. "If anyone deserves to be here, it's him."
"Aye."
"But seriously," Rodney said. "What the hell are we going to get him for his birthday?"
Carson sighed. "Well, there's no point in getting him something from Earth, not when he's already there."
Rodney nodded. "And there's nothing he wants that we can bring him from Atlantis."
Teyla watched as Carson's face brightened with Rodney's words. "That's not entirely true…"
"Are you sure that Dr. Weir agreed to this?" Teyla asked as she followed Rodney and Carson into the jumper bay. "Because I believe that I have done enough rule breaking to last me for my entire life."
Carson laughed quietly at her comment. "Aye, Dr. Weir approved it, as did General Landry."
Teyla nodded her head, still trying to figure out if this was the best idea for a present that these two could come up with. She clutched her hand tightly around the gift that she held, knowing that it was something more akin to a normal birthday present, and that was reassuring. She was already uncertain whether or not she was stepping over some sort of invisible boundary by bringing the topic up in the first place.
In addition, she was already feeling quite nervous given how her and John had parted. But at the same time she was excited, more than she ever remembered being in the past.
"All right," Rodney said, sounding out of breath as he hauled all of his stuff with him into the jumper bay. "Everyone in the jumper, let's go."
John woke up gradually while the sunlight filtered in through the window and slowly crept across the bed. A long time ago, before his adventures in the Pegasus galaxy, he'd loved lazy days like this. Having the freedom to take all the time in the world had been a wonderful thing. It was refreshing, fun and many other things that it wasn't any more.
After life in Atlantis, lazing about like he was doing just seemed all wrong. He felt like he needed to be active and working one hundred ten percent of the time, always striving for the betterment of human kind. He wondered if that feeling would ever go away.
John sighed heavily as he rolled over onto his side, away from the sunlight. He might feel the need to be constantly on the go like that, but for him it wasn't within the realms of possibility. His current job as a flight instructor at the local airport didn't really meet those qualifications.
It wasn't that it was a bad job—it had good hours, good pay, even benefits… but it wasn't Atlantis. Hell, it wasn't even military. But that's what he got for disobeying a direct order. Apparently it didn't matter that he'd saved the lives of both General O'Neill and Woolsey—the only important thing was that he'd rebelled against authority one too many times.
Though thinking back on it, John knew that he wouldn't change his decision if he had a chance to relive it again. It had been the right thing to do and just because Landry had ordered him not to didn't change a thing. He just wished that saving the city hadn't cost him his job, and more importantly the only woman that he had ever truly loved.
He and Teyla had been on the verge of something big, but given that he was now back on Earth there was no chance for anything between them. Truthfully, that was the thought that haunted him most often—knowing that he had been so close to being happy only to have it be ripped away from him in one fell swoop, and by people that he respected no less.
Determined not to dwell excessively on those depressing thoughts, John pushed himself upright and swung his legs over the side of the bed. Stretching his arms above his head he wondered what he'd do with his day. It was Saturday and he had the entire weekend off—it opened up a lot of possibilities. Unfortunately the possibilities weren't anything that he actually wanted to do.
Still completely undecided, John stood up and made his way out of the bedroom. As he crossed the small hallway of his apartment he turned on the radio that sat on the table outside the bathroom. He paused to turn up the volume a bit before he entered the bathroom.
Satisfied for the moment, he went in and stripped out of his boxers before stepping into the shower. As he turned on the water the song on the radio ended and switched to some overly cheerful idiot doing the news.
Even with the water pounding down on him, John could make out the words.
"Welcome to the noon hour news for CJSR radio. First off, the weather: It's a beautiful 84-degree day outside, and there isn't even a cloud in sight. August fourth is turning out to be one fine summer day folks."
John paused, one hand halfway through massaging shampoo into his hair.
"Happy birthday to me," he muttered sarcastically.
Realizing that it was his birthday only put John in a more sour mood. When he was little he'd looked forward to the 'special' day like every other kid, but as he got older and grew more distant from his family he'd come to dread it. It was now simply another occasion that reminded him of how alone he really was.
John was finishing up a cup of coffee while he was watching TV when he heard a knock at his door. Distinctly confused, he set the mug down on the table beside him and turned off the TV. He pushed himself off the couch, intent on finding out who the hell was bugging him on his day off.
Peering through the eyehole John was presented with a rather up-close view of Rodney's face. Reluctantly he turned the lock and opened the door. Even though him and Rodney had become quite good friends, he wasn't all that inclined to spend time with him. It was just another glaring reminder of what he no longer had.
"McKay," John said, as he pulled the door open fully. He was surprised to see someone else with him. "Carson," he said, acknowledging the doctor's presence.
"Good," Rodney said immediately, interrupting any response that Carson may have had. "You're home."
"Yes, I'm home," he said slowly as he noticed that those two were standing much too close together—way too close together. It was like they were hiding something behind their backs. Before he could stand on his tiptoes and peer over them, Rodney was talking again.
"Listen, things took a little longer than we thought. If the traffic…"
"What Rodney's trying to say is that we have to go, but we hope you enjoy what we've brought you for your birthday," Carson said smiling.
John groaned. How the hell did they know it was his birthday? He hadn't told anyone except for…
"Teyla?" John asked in disbelief as both Carson and Rodney stepped to the side to reveal the slightly crouched over woman in question. She immediately stood to her full height, looking quite relieved that she did not have the hide behind the two men anymore.
"So anyway, we're out of here," Rodney said.
"I'll be by to pick her up later," Carson added as they made their way back down the hallway of the apartment building.
The words barely registered, as John was too shocked to think about anyone other than Teyla—he thought he'd never see her again, but here she was standing in front of him.
"Happy Birthday John," she said quietly, a tentative smile gracing her face.
Teyla watched John closely as he stood in the doorway, the expressions on his face cycling from disbelief, to happiness, to nervous and then back again. She could not blame him—she'd had time to prepare for this and even then she did not know what she should do, let alone feel. If she had to pick one word to describe how she was feeling however, it would be nervous. She could not remember the last time that simply being in the presence of another made her heart beat so quickly and her stomach feel as if it was performing one of the complicated Athosian ceremonial dances.
Needing to do something to break the tension between them she took the bow that Rodney had given her and held it out to John. "I believe their plan was to put this on my head, and wrap me with ribbon, but I managed to persuade them otherwise."
John looked at her oddly for a few seconds before breaking out into laughter. It wasn't long before she joined him. Eventually they both caught their breath and Teyla was quick to notice that John looked truly happy. It was almost nerve-wracking knowing that she was the reason why.
The free feeling of the joke drifted away as they simply looked at each other. It had been a long time—months in fact. The palpable tension between them was only heightened by the memories that were running through her head—the ones of the last night John had spent on Atlantis.
Unlike the first time when the ancients had sent them from the city, Teyla had known that John leaving was a permanent thing. He had known it too. It had been their last chance to be true to their feelings, and for once they actually had.
The night they'd spent together had been meaningful, passionate, truthful and a million other things that she could not describe with words. Looking into John's eyes now she could tell that he was remembering the same moments.
"Teyla, I…"
"I know," she said. "I also find it difficult to put into words what I am feeling upon seeing you again."
He gave her the characteristic John Sheppard grin. "How do you do that?" he asked, trying to keep his voice light.
She shrugged. "It is a gift," she said, joking in return. "May I come in?" she asked as she peered past him into the apartment. "I also have a gift for you and perhaps it would be best to give it to you in private." She held out the present, the plain brown wrapping crinkling with the movement.
"Oh yeah," John said as he stepped aside and indicated that she should enter first. He followed and closed the door behind him. "Sorry about the mess," he said, sounding almost self-conscious as he moved past her and began to move things around on the small table in front of the couch. "I can't say that I was really expecting company."
Teyla smiled at his actions—it was very sweet. "I cannot say that I was expecting to be coming here either."
John stopped what he was doing and turned around to look at her. "You weren't?" he questioned.
She shook her head lightly. "I made something for you," she began, indicating the package in her hands. "And I had asked Carson to give it to you when he came."
"Okay…"
"I was asking him about your Earth tradition of birthdays when he asked me why I wanted to know. I told him that it was your birthday, and then Rodney came in and he found out too." She paused for a second. "I am sorry if it was something you meant to keep a secret, my intention was not to go against your wishes."
"No," John said quickly. "That's fine, don't worry about it."
She nodded and continued on with her explanation. "Anyway, when they found out they decided that they too needed to give you a gift. Apparently they did not have any good ideas, so they determined that I should be your gift." Teyla looked at him with an almost sideways glance, not sure what he would make of her words.
"What do you mean?" he asked incredulously. "Seeing you is the best birthday present I ever could have asked for."
Teyla felt her cheeks get warm upon hearing John's words. She knew how he felt about her, but to hear him say something of that nature aloud, when the circumstances weren't quite so dire… it was a completely different feeling. "Thank you," she said quietly.
This time it was his turn to blush. "Look," he said slowly. "I don't exactly know how to do this…" he let his words hang in the air as he moved his hand back and forth, indicating the space between them. "I never knew if I was going to see you again…"
Teyla felt her pulse quicken. "Do you regret it?" she asked, her voice barely audible.
"What?" John asked, obviously taken aback by her question. "No," he said firmly. "Why? Do you?"
She shook her head. "I do not. I could never regret letting you know how I truly feel about you." It felt odd to be saying things like this out loud—emotional honesty wasn't something they'd had until recently, but at the same time it was refreshing.
"Good," John said decisively. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but then closed it again. He glanced upwards, seemingly looking for the correct words to say on the ceiling. "I just…" he began. "Where do we go from here?" he asked, looking down and catching her eyes with his.
Teyla let out a sigh. "I do not know," she replied honestly. "The situation is not the most admirable."
John nodded. "You're right about that."
Teyla took a deep breath. "Perhaps we should… play it by ear?"
He smiled at her warmly. "Yeah," he agreed. "That's probably for the best."
She smiled back at him, and he couldn't believe how happy he was. For the first time since he'd been sent back from Atlantis he was truly happy and that was all because of the woman who was standing in front of him. He never thought that he would see Teyla again; he never knew that he'd have another chance to look into her eyes and see her warm smile.
His grin grew even larger as something clicked in the back of his mind. He was no longer her commanding officer.
Completely giving into his impulses John leaned down and kissed Teyla firmly on the lips. He wrapped one hand lightly, but securely around the back of her neck as he moved to deepen the kiss. The speed at which Teyla responded told him that she had been at least partially anticipating this—good; they were on the same page.
That was the last coherent thought that ran through his mind before his body started moving completely on its own accord, recalling everything from the one amazing night they had spent together, and wanting to feel it again. His actions became frantic almost—he needed to touch and caress every part of her, making sure that she was actually there. He might have been embarrassed by his lack of control had it not been apparent that she felt the same.
He heard something fall to the ground, but he dismissed it. The next thing John knew Teyla was pressing herself against him tightly and he wrapped both arms around her, as if never intending to let go.
"John," she whispered fervently against his mouth.
Something in the way she said his name made his heart beat faster. "Teyla," he murmured in response against her soft skin as he kissed his way down her throat to suckle on her pulse point. "Missed you," he added—he needed her to know.
There was something else that he needed her to know.
John stopped his ministrations on Teyla's neck and pulled away, but just enough so that he could look down at her properly.
"What is it?" she asked, sounding almost worried.
He took a deep breath. "I love you Teyla." Not wanting to lose his courage he continued. "I meant it the last time I said it, and I need you to know that it wasn't something that just came out in the heat of the moment. I love you, I have for a long time." He intended to continue, but one of Teyla's fingers placed lightly over his lips stopped him.
"I know," she said, looking deeply into his eyes. "Despite the rushed circumstances of before, I knew that what you said was from your heart."
John smiled at her softly. "Good."
She returned the smile. "I wish for you to know that I meant what I said as well." She paused for a moment. "I love you John Sheppard."
Beaming from ear to ear John leaned in to kiss Teyla again. "I was hoping you'd say that," he said through kisses as he lifted her off the ground.
Other than a small squeak of surprise she didn't protest, and instead wrapped her legs firmly around his waist. As he began to walk them toward the bedroom, John felt Teyla's hands reach down to tug at the bottom of his shirt. He couldn't help but grin against her mouth—this was turning out to be the best birthday ever.
Teyla was still seeing stars when John rolled off of her. She had thought the last time had been amazing… but that was nothing compared to this. She knew that in her heart it was because their time together now was filled with hope and happiness instead of desperation and despair. She could easily get used to such a thing.
"I'm glad we're playing it by ear," John said as he tried to catch his breath.
The laughter escaped her before she knew it—it was marvelous to feel so happy, alive and care free.
"Spontaneity can be a wonderful thing," Teyla said warmly as she rolled onto her side so that she was facing John, pulling the cover over her bare form as she did so.
John wrapped one arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. "Yep," he murmured against her hair before placing a gentle kiss there.
Teyla sighed in contentment as she relaxed into John's loving embrace. "I did not think that I would ever have the chance to do this again," she admitted quietly.
"Neither did I," John whispered. A second later he added, "So I guess I have to thank Rodney and Carson for this then, huh?"
Teyla angled her head so that she could give John an incredulous look. "I believe that I was the one who remembered it was your birthday."
He chuckled softly as he ran one hand through her hair. "True," he assented. "Even so, I've never had a birthday present this good before and for that I think they deserve something."
"Is that true?" Teyla asked, surprised to hear her voice sound so doubtful.
John squeezed his arm around her shoulders tightly. "Yes," he stated as he looked directly at her.
She felt her cheeks getting warm at his admission. "Surely you have had pleasant birthday presents in the past." She was more than a little surprised when John shook his head in response to her words.
"Not since I was a kid," he admitted.
"Why?" she asked quietly.
John sighed. "Never had anyone to celebrate with."
Teyla propped herself up on one elbow so she could look at John directly. "You do today," she said quietly.
He grinned at her, before leaning up to steal a quick kiss. She no longer felt like blushing every time he showed affection, and it startled her, knowing that she was falling into this so easily.
Teyla was right; this was one birthday that he wouldn't have to spend alone. More importantly, it was one day that he could spend with Teyla, no longer having to worry about how it would affect their working relationship. For once, leaving Atlantis did not seem like an entirely bad thing.
"Come on," he said as he sat up. "I want to take you somewhere."
Teyla sat up beside him on the bed and looked at him peculiarly. "All right…"
"Listen," he said cheerfully. "On your birthday it's a tradition to have fun, and just do whatever you want."
"Whatever you want?" Teyla asked, eyeing him suspiciously.
"Okay," he admitted. "Within reason anyway. But there's some place I want to take you, and it's my birthday so that pretty much means you have to come with me." He gave her what he hoped was a handsome looking smile. "Please?"
She laughed lightly. "Of course John, you need only ask. I would even if it were not your birthday."
He grinned as he swung his legs over the side of the bed. "I know."
Teyla followed John out of the bedroom and into the small hallway of his apartment. Admittedly it did not look familiar at all, but that was because she had not been paying even the slightest bit of attention to her surroundings since John had kissed her. It was quite possible that they had gotten carried away, but she had expected no less.
"John," she said quietly, causing him to stop and turn around.
"Yeah?"
"May I ask you something?" she inquired, even though she already knew the answer.
He met her gaze with a look that told her she should know better, but that was fine because she did.
"Does this look all right?" she asked self-consciously as she indicated her outfit. "I am always unsure about Earth clothes."
He smiled warmly at her. "It looks amazing, you look amazing."
"Are you sure?" she continued. "Both Rodney and Carson said that it looked fine, but there are times when I am not fully inclined to trust their judgment, especially on aesthetic things."
"Well," John said seriously. "In this case they were right." He paused for a second and looked her over again. "I mean it Teyla, you look great."
"Thank you John," she said sincerely.
He nodded his head once in acknowledgement. "Now," he said. "Are you ready to see some of my world?" he pointed to the door. "I figure since I've been all over your galaxy, I at least owe you the courtesy of showing you my planet."
"For real this time?" she asked lightly, remembering back to one of their first adventures together.
"Yes, for real," he said playfully as he turned around and made his way for the door. "Smart-ass," he added under his breath.
"John," she berated lightly as she smacked his backside. "Manners."
He laughed and grabbed her hand, tugging her forward so that she was standing beside him. "I really missed this you know," he said, his voice taking on more of a solemn note. "Things aren't nearly as fun without you around."
"The same is said for you," she replied honestly. "I cannot even begin to tell you how often I wish that you were leading our team instead of Major Lorne. It is not that I do not appreciate the Major," she said, figuring that it would be best to clarify. "But it is just not the same."
John sighed and his shoulders slouched. "I'd give anything to be back there."
She squeezed his hand in comfort. "And we would all wish for nothing more than to have you back."
John wasn't sure how things turned so serious so quickly, but maybe he should have been expecting it. It wasn't as if he could pretend that his discharge from the military hadn't happened. Actually, it was probably better that they addressed it now, seeing as talking about it was inevitable. He figured it was best to get the painful stuff over quickly so that he could move on.
Just as John was turning his head to look at Teyla again, he noticed something lying on the floor. It took him a second to realize that it must be the gift Teyla had brought with her—he'd completely forgotten about it, having been too wrapped up in the woman who'd brought it instead.
She must have noticed it too because the next thing he knew Teyla pulled her hand from his and walked over the few steps to retrieve it. Picking it up, she walked back over and held it out in front of her.
"Happy birthday," she said sincerely.
"What is it?" John questioned as he took the odd shaped package from her hands.
She smiled at him. "I believe that you must open it to find out for yourself."
After stealing another quick glance at Teyla, John began to unwrap the parcel, letting the plain brown paper fall onto the floor at his feet. When he made it to the third layer of paper he realized that either Rodney or Carson must have helped wrap the gift—his money was on Rodney.
Turning it over to start on the next layer, John realized that the shape of it felt familiar.
He hadn't recognized it immediately thanks to McKay, but now that there was only one thin layer separating his hands from the gift he was almost certain his guess was correct.
Sure enough, removing the last of the paper revealed to him a pair of Athosian bantos rods. Too stunned to say anything, John turned them over in his hands. They were beautifully hand carved, and the details of the designs were exquisite.
"I thought that perhaps it would remind you of all of the afternoons we spent sparring," Teyla said quietly as she stepped closer to him and looked over the rods too. "Also, I believe that you know the solitary training exercises, even if you've chosen to pretend you don't." There was a hint of teasing in her voice.
"These are… they're amazing Teyla," he said, finally tearing his gaze away from the gift to look at her. "Thank you."
She smiled happily at him. "I am glad, although I must admit that I was not sure that you would like the design, but it was one that would not leave my head."
John's eyes widened in surprise. "You made these?" he asked, looking back and forth between her and the rods.
She nodded proudly. "Yes."
John reached across the small distance between them and pulled Teyla into a hug. "Thank you," he whispered sincerely before placing a gentle kiss on her temple.
"You are most welcome," she whispered in return.
"Now," she added as she pulled away. "I believe that you had some place to show me."
"Where are we?" Teyla asked impatiently as she followed John through a large crowd of people, her hand tucked securely in his. Truly, see had never seen this many people gathered in one place before, but Earth was much more crowded than either Atlantis or the Athosian settlement had ever been.
"You'll see," he said smugly as he gripped her hand a little tighter and dodged around people to reach some sort of booth.
He stopped there and pulled out his wallet from the pocket of his jeans. Teyla watched as he fished out some money and handed it to the grouchy looking man inside the booth. She was unsure what to make of the exchange, as next the man reached out and wrapped what looked like a thin piece of paper around John's wrist.
John held out her wrist to the man as well, and soon she was wearing an identical… she didn't know what it was. She looked at John questioningly, but he just smiled and led her through the gate.
Finding a less crowded place, John stopped. "This," he began, pointing around him with one hand, "is a state fair." He was beaming proudly and she couldn't help but smile.
"All right," she said. "And what is the point of such a thing?"
"To have fun," John replied simply. "Now, come on," he prompted. "There's a lot of stuff to do."
John wasn't sure he'd had this much fun, ever. Being at the state fair with Teyla was something that he would remember until the day he died, and probably even after. He'd always loved fairs, but now it was like he was seeing them through a whole new view.
Every single thing seemed to make Teyla happier. John couldn't get enough of watching her experience new things. Even simple things that he'd never taken much notice of before brought a smile to her face.
He was bound and determined for them to experience everything at the fair before their time together was over. Shoving the unpleasant thought of the end out of his mind, John led her over to a food kiosk.
"What is this?" she asked excitedly, leaning around him to look at the cotton candy machine. Her eyes went wide and he couldn't help but laugh cheerfully.
"Cotton candy," he said happily as he handed over a few bills to the woman working there.
"Is it as good as the corn dogs?" Teyla asked, an impish smile on her face.
He grinned down at her. "It's even better."
As the day faded into night, the excitement that both Teyla and John had been feeling subsided somewhat. It was not gone, nor were they any less happy to be there, it was just that things seemed to be calmer. In fact, walking around the brightly lit fair grounds with John, her hand intertwined with his, Teyla could not remember a time when she had been happier.
"John," she said quietly, squeezing his hand lightly as she stopped walking.
"Yeah?" he asked, stepping closer and looking down at her.
She smiled at him. "This has been the most wonderful day of my life." The words were in no way a lie—and she needed him to know.
John's face instantly lit up. "I know," he said. Realizing how he must have sounded, he started to correct himself. "What I meant was…"
Teyla spoke softly. "I know," she said. "I am glad that you enjoyed your birthday."
"What do you mean enjoyed?" he asked. He quickly looked at his watch. "We still have an hour left. There is more enjoying yet to do," he said. "Besides, there's one more thing I want to show you."
Teyla raised one eyebrow questioningly. "Have we not seen everything here?" she inquired.
John shook his head slightly. "Not quite. I saved the best for last."
"You mean that there is something better than the Screaming Mountain of Death?" she asked with a hint of teasing in her voice, referring to the rather frightening roller coaster ride they had gone on earlier.
"Yeah," John said happily. "It's much better." He started walking and tugged her hand, urging her to follow behind him. "Come on," he said quietly as he headed toward the far side of the fair ground.
As they made their way, Teyla realized that they had not been to this part yet. She vaguely remembered heading this way before, but John had persuaded her not to. She hadn't thought much of it at the time, but now she couldn't help but wonder.
It wasn't long before Teyla saw what must be their destination. It appeared to be an enormous wheel that was illuminated by many white lights. Just then it began to rotate, and she stared openly.
John stopped walking and she paused too. "Is that…?"
He nodded, a huge grin plastered on his face. "A Ferris wheel."
John watched Teyla closely as they sat down in the seat of the Ferris wheel. The way she looked, beautiful and utterly happy, would be engrained in his mind forever. She seemed to grow even happier as the ride began to move, slowly raising them and then lowering them before repeating the motions.
When they came to stop at the top, Teyla peered around them, taking in the view. "This is breathtaking," she said. "I believe I understand why this is your favorite part of the fair." She turned to smile warmly at him.
"No," he said quietly as he moved his hands to cup her face, not letting his eyes leave hers. "I lied. This is my favorite part."
He tilted his head down towards hers until their lips met. The kiss was soft, and full of emotion. John didn't even notice when the ride started to move again, all he could focus on was the woman whose mouth was moving magically against his.
Teyla leaned back against John's chest as she looked up at the stars. They were both seated on a lounge chair on the small balcony of his apartment. A few minutes earlier Carson had called, and he said that he would be over in a while to take Teyla back to the SGC. Leaving was the last thing she wanted to do, but it was not an option.
John wrapped his arms securely around her and pulled her tighter against him before angling his head so that he could place a loving kiss on the side of her neck. She knew that he was cherishing these last few moments, as was she.
"John," she whispered, afraid that talking too loud would break the apparent spell they were under.
"Hmm," he responded as he leaned his chin on her shoulder.
"Which of those is the Pegasus galaxy?" she asked as she tilted her head towards the sky.
She felt John shrug from his place behind her. "Don't know," he answered honestly. "But I do know that it's far away."
Teyla sighed. "It is," she replied honestly. "But not too far."
"Huh?" he asked, apparently confused by her statement.
She shifted in his arms so that she could look at him properly. "Atlantis may be many light-years away, but I will find a way to come back," she said honestly. It was a decision that she had made unconsciously sometime that day, and it was the right one.
John sighed as he raised his hand to move a stray piece of hair from her eyes. "Teyla," he began quietly. "As much as I want you to, I just don't see how it's going to work." His voice had turned bitter and it was filled with despair.
"I have been allowed to come this time, have I not?" she asked, raising one eyebrow at his pessimism. "I am sure that it will not be problematic if I were to return again… and again, and again." She smiled at him sheepishly.
He still didn't look happy. "I wish you were right, but they aren't going to let you visit me, not after what I did."
"John," Teyla said sternly. "I know of many, many people who agree that your decision to save Atlantis was the right one. They admire and respect you for it. They also believe that the military made the wrong decision by discharging you, but it is not something they have the power to change. However," she added, pausing for a moment. "They do have the pull needed to see that I am allowed to visit Earth."
John looked at her skeptically, as if he couldn't believe what she was saying because it was too good to be true.
"How do you think I came to be here now?" she asked.
John shrugged his shoulders. "Rodney and Carson."
She tilted her head. "It was their idea yes, but it was Dr. Weir and General Landry who approved the trip. They respect what you did John, even though that cannot acknowledge that on a professional level."
A smile broke out on his face. "How'd you get so smart?" he asked jokingly.
"Seeing as I no longer have you to keep me company, I am forced to spend the majority of my free time with Rodney."
When John laughed, she knew that everything was going to be all right. Already he was beginning to accept what had happened, and he was moving on.
"So," John said, the laughter leaving his voice, but not the happiness. "I guess this gives a whole new meaning to long distance relationships."
Teyla smiled at him. She did not know exactly what the phrase meant, but she had a good idea.
"And," John said slowly. "I guess that means that we have to make the most of the time we do have together."
"I do not mind," she said teasingly.
"Well that's good," John said seriously. "Because if I remember correctly, we have an hour until Carson gets here…" He winked at her suggestively and she laughed.
"What do you suggest John?" she asked, in a mock-serious voice.
"Well," he said as he leaned down to kiss her neck sweetly. "I can think of a few things."
The End