Notes: Hi there, this chapter, as the rest, will contain OoC, I wrote it without beta, so... crappy English and awkward phrasing. :D And... insults, I am sure I wrote some.
Disclaimer: SG·U and it's characters and settings aren't mine, just the story and what I make them do.
10. In which a desire is born
When Chloe put her plan on, she didn't know that what she would obtain was a grumpier Rush, frantic Eli, unfocussed Matt and a quieter colonel. She didn't mind the three first, but the colonel worried her. It was like he had decided to retreat into himself, not wanting to be near anyone. It was worrisome since he was the commander of the ship. But sometimes, he came back to being himself. She knew when were those times: in the mess hall. Whenever Rush passed near him, the colonel would close his eyes and breath through his nose in deep concentration.
TJ had told her what Young and Matt said about their want, their need. And so, she watched how Matt would brush his fingertips at the minimal opportunity. Matt craved for skin, so he always aimed to the hands, not doubting he would go for other parts if he could. But he couldn't, not in front of anyone else, even if that anyone else was blind.
But with Eli it was different. Eli didn't look like he needed to touch or to smell. What was what Eli needed? Maybe just see? He stared at Rush sometimes with big eyes, almost sweating. And Rush was aware of that, Chloe saw it on the way he moved. But it wasn't that long until she found out. It was just some days after she had slapped Rush, she had bridge shift, Lisa was in charge of watching him.
When she came to the Apple Core, she found that both Eli and Rush had disappeared. Lisa gave her a kino control, knowing by now all the buttons and it's functions by heart. She couldn't go after them without a good excuse, but she set a kino to follow them.
"Eli was missing things and making small mistakes. Rush could fix it, but he was getting exasperate. So he asked Eli to follow him to his mathematical equation's corridor to check on some," she said.
Chloe thanked her and started to walk towards there, but she thought better and stopped on a room near there and watched through the kino. The small floating ball was following them through Destiny's almost empty corridors. Eli followed Rush like a sentenced to death, shoulders hunched, looking at the floor, dragging his feet as he walked. Rush, on the other hand, was stiff, nervous, but walked with strong confident steps.
He hit the release of the door. The swish made Eli look up. They really were on the math's corridor. They both entered and Chloe hurried the kino to follow. Rush closed the door on the other side and locked it, then, leaned on a wall free from his scribblings, arms crossed.
"Care to explain?"
"I can't... concentrate. Not if you are here." Eli shifted, uncomfortable.
Rush sighed. "Okay, come here. Do what you need to do, and then back to work." Eli looked at him, surprised. "You know what I mean. Try not to leave any marks."
Eli nodded and walked towards him while he unfolded his arms. Eli put his hands on both sides of Rush body, at the waists level. Then, unsure, he leaned over and buried his face in the crook of Rush's neck, sticking out his tongue, tracing upwards and leaving a wet trail of saliva. The boy moaned and went for more, nibbling slightly, strong enough to redden the skin, but not so much it would last.
Rush had his lips parted, and his eyes closed. But he didn't move. His hands laid on his sides, fisted. As if he feared he could touch Eli back. Chloe looked away. This was too intimate for her to watch. Feeling her cheeks hot, she switched the screen off, and went back to the Apple Core.
At lunch time, Chloe sat with Camile and other civilians, eyeing the place where Eli, Lisa, Brody and Rush sat. After every mouthful of meal Rush took, he licked his injured lip. It was an unconscious movement, it seemed like the man wasn't even aware of doing that. But that was enough to distract Eli from his meal, and Matt, who just entered the mess, and the colonel, who was a few tables away.
Chloe giggled inwardly. It was fun. Rush himself could drive them crazy by doing nothing. Just standing in the same room and they go wild, she thought. But the spell was broken when an airman entered too and spotted Rush with a smile.
"What's that, Nick? You got yourself into a fight?" he said with a cheerful tone, sitting right beside Eli and in front of Rush.
"Got to hell, David," Rush sneered, and went back to his task of eating, and licking.
"Stop that, Nick. You will make it worse. Just eat and then clean it with water. If you keep liking it, the wound will just get..."
"I don't need your advice, thank you," Rush cut, making the colonel laugh.
Telford got up and patted Rush on the shoulder. "See you latter, then." He walked towards Young and sat with him to discuss something. Rush finished his meal and went out, mumbling insults.
/0/
Colonel Telford came again in Young's body a few days later. He had a briefing with them, while Young was having one in Earth. Rush had an obviously big stomach by now and Dr. Lam had told him that in matter of weeks he should stay in bed all day. Eli talked about making a floating chair for him, but Rush preferred the other option: stay in his quarters, untroubled. He was now more in than out, and felt tired easily, pain in the small of his back, as his column stained by the effort to support him and the baby. He felt his feet hurt, too.
So it wasn't that surprising when he stayed on his seat and didn't get up when the briefing was done. It was also not surprise when he refused the help to get to his quarters, but to Telford, it was. So he stayed too. Rush huffed when he got up, leaning heavily on his hands over the table.
"Holy cow, man, you are big!" exclaimed the colonel.
"Fuck off, prick." Was the answer. Rush was obviously annoyed.
"Do you need help?" Telford asked, slightly worried.
"Do I look like I want it?" Rush was clever with his answer. He might look like he needed help, but he didn't want it. And he said it clearly.
"C'mon, Nick, let me help," he replied, coming closer, rolling his eyes.
"No, I don't want your help. What I want is going back and lay down on my bed and be left alone."
"Don't be like this." By now, Telford stood by his side, one and almost reaching Rush's arm.
Rush glared at him. "Why are you being so nice? I don't have any secret information that could be a threat."
Telford laughed, putting his arm around Rush, unbalancing him so he had to lean on the colonel. "You may not have a secret in which I am interested, but you sure have secrets. You always had," he retorted.
Though Rush was still complaining, he let Telford help him walk pass the door, down the corridor towards his quarters. In their way the people they passed stared at them, surprised. Of course, what they saw was Rush leaning on Colonel Young, not Rush being helped by Colonel Telford. And, of course, the word spred and Lt. Scott was with them in a heart-beat.
Telford welcomed the young man with a smile, Rush with a grunt, but let him help too. He was feeling too sore to let it pass. Neither of them thought about when was the last time they had been this close. It was that that got Chloe break up with Scott.
The colonel couldn't help but notice that Scott's hands and arms where touching as much as they could, as if it was a necessity for the youngster, to touch. It was interesting. Rush had told him that one of the side effects of Fate was to increase the sexual desires through the senses, mostly the touch, the smell and the taste. And he had confided in him by telling him that Eli and Scott had those.
But he kept to himself who had the smell. However, Telford had discovered it right after exchanging his mind with Young. He had felt it, the need to bury his face on Rush neck and breath. He had had a hard time trying to suppress it, since he didn't though Young would welcome him doing that in his body. But, then again, Young was affected by Fate, so he could blame it into the device.
When they arrived at Rush quarters, the scientist dismissed the lieutenant, for Scott's discomfort, and asked Telford to help him get to his bed. And Telford did. Telford held him until he sat down on his bed. The colonel knelt and took off his shoes and shocks. He laughed when he saw all the holes they had.
"You should get new ones," he commented.
"Shut up."
"Hey! It's not my fault your shocks are slowly disappearing."
"No, it's not."
Telford knew what was the man thinking. "Get over it. Just work on getting them home. Work on opening the 'Gate with minimal damage. Maybe you will be able to stay here."
"Yes... I could even get that from them, but they would have my daughter on Earth, as hostage," he grunted.
Telford rose, brows up in surprise. "Do you think that?"
"Yes, they will have her-"
"No, no. I mean... Is it a girl?"
Rush looked at him, frowning. "Of course is a girl. She has strong legs and likes to kick me in the middle of the night."
"Is she that big? And how do you know it's a girl?"
"A hint. And I don't know how big she is, but she kicks me."
Telford smiled warmly, kneeling again and putting both hands over Rush swollen stomach. But it didn't last, Rush took his hands by the wrists and put them away. Telford looked at him. In less than a second Rush was sitting between Young's legs on the floor, hands at his back, feeling the front of Young's military clothes with his fingers.
"What are you doing?" he asked, feeling dizzy.
"Self-defence?" Telford said, amused.
"Don't do that!" He struggled weakly. "Let me go. I want to sleep. Let me go."
"Calm down, Nick," he whispered on his neck.
Rush shuddered. He knew it was Telford, he knew Telford wasn't affected by Fate. But it was Young's body, his heat, his voice, his hands. He gasped when the tip of his nose ran down his neck.
"What are you doing now? Stop that," he pleaded. It was too good. He liked it, the feeling. His body would react, he knew. It was Young's body, but not Young's mind. His body liked it, he liked it, but he didn't want it. Not from Telford. "David!"
"Nick, you smell really well."
Rush started to panic. "Wha-?"
"I know who is the one affected by the smell, Nick. I have known since long ago. It's is strange. I have the need to do this but it's not as if..."
"David, release me, please."
"And then what?"
"Self-defence?"
Telford chuckled. "Now? You shouldn't take more lessons now. We can practice again after you give birth." He released Rush and helped him lay on the bed.
Rush faced the other side. He didn't want to look at Young –Telford– anymore. He was tired. "You know?" he talked when he heard the other man moving towards the door. "Sometimes I thought you only wanted to give me lessons in self-defence so you could touch me." Rush said, not knowing why he was confessing this, but he felt like telling, like taking it out. Right now he had the same feeling than at that time.
When a weight moved the mattress, he looked over his shoulder. Telford was there, sitting right behind him, looking serious. Then he leaned in and put a hand over his stomach. "I did it on purpose. I wanted to touch you. I wish this baby was mine."
Then, he got up and left. Rush couldn't breath from the shock. He just stared blankly towards the door.
/0/
When she opened the door and looked at the airman in front of her, she recognised her in the blink of an eye. They shared a tight embrace before letting Camile in. They ate and watched TV for a while. Camile was feeling uncomfortable, she had to tell her.
"Sharon, I need to tell you something." She nodded and turned off the TV. "Look, I want you to know that I still love you the same, and I wasn't planning anything like that. I didn't do it on purpose. It was just a mistake and now..."
"Camile, what's wrong?" Sharon took one of her hands, looking straight at her eyes.
"I am going to be a mother."
Sharon didn't let go, but her grip loosened. "Who?"
"It's another woman," she said, looking away. Sharon let go of her hand, and sat up straightening. "Remember about the device I told you about?" Camile continued, when Sharon nodded she sighed. "Well, I wanted to take a look. I thought that maybe, that would work without a partner in the case of a woman. I was wrong."
"Wha... Ho.." Sharon didn't know what to say. Their eyes met again. "How is she?"
"She... she is in her last three-months of pregnancy."
Sharon looked down.
Camile looked at her wife. Sharon had a strange face. She didn't move, she didn't look up from her hands, she was not getting it. "Sharon..."
"No, wait. Wait. I... You... I mean..."
"Sharon, I am sorry. I didn't plan it. I... It just happened. I wanted to know if the device..."
"No, no, no. I know. I got it. I... It's just... Well... When you come back, who will have the custody." Sharon looked up now.
This wasn't what she had expected to happen. Divorce, an argument, tears, recriminations, yes. But not this. Camile gaped, eyes wide as her mouth. "Wha...?"
"No, I mean. Well, you say that this lieutenant is pregnant and that she... she has twins, right? So, what if she wants to have them for herself?"
"Sharon... why?" Camile could not understand.
Sharon smiled at her sadly. "When you first came back, I knew it was you. And when you kept coming back in other bodies... I knew, but I still felt like I was betraying you." She took one of Camile's hands. "So, about the twins?"
"Maybe we could get some sort of arrangement." Sharon nodded.
They planed and planed. They searched for names, they shared emotions and giggled. They kissed and finally Camile went back to her own body. Sharon kept smiling, letting the illusion of being a mother take over her, and when she finally closed the door after Camile left, she let out a long sigh. Then, she leaned on the door and slid downwards.
That was when she started crying. She could help it. She cried, feeling rage and exhaustion, sadness. She let all out bleed from her eyes. She got up in a jump and took the nearest thing to throw it towards the wall. The poor lamp crashed, spreading thousand of ceramic pieces. Sharon kept destroying her living room for an hour or so.
Tired, she took a shower, letting the warm water wash away the tray of her tears and got into bed. It hurt. It hurt too much. She would have preferred it was a man and not a woman. If it was a man, she knew she had some opportunity to win, but against a woman? She felt so bad. She cried to her sleep.
/0/
Telford didn't come back the next time, nor the time after that. Rush knew he was avoiding coming to Destiny because of what he told him last time. That confused him. Telford never showed that kind of interest on him, ever. Sometimes he could feel Telford's hateful stare on the back of his neck. He remembered how much he tried to get in his way. And the things he said to him. Before Destiny, there were more insults, and directly told to their faces.
That the colonel now confessed something like this was kind of misleading. He couldn't find anything in the past that would assure him Telford wasn't messing with him again. In the end, he gave up about that matter. It wasn't like they could ever be together. That thought made him snarl in disgust. Ugh!
There was a party off world on a nearby planet recollecting seeds. They had called back to report that they had seen a herd of what looked like herbivores so the party grew bigger. On board were just a few, taking repairs and analysing data.
At this point Rush couldn't get off his bed. On the morning, Tamara would come to help him sit up, adding cushions at his back so he could be comfortable. He was being monitoring, Dr. Lam expected him to deliver shortly, maybe in a week. He had been whispering to the baby her name. Tamara knew by now, but didn't say a thing. Maybe she knew the gender and the name he had picked didn't match it. It didn't matter, he could make it match.
This morning seemed as dull as the rest. He was working on a wireless screen when he felt pain. The contraction left him without air. The screen fell to the floor. His insides felt stranger than ever. The sheets got damp in a heart-beat. He reached for the radio.
"..." When he was about to call, he felt another contraction, this one being stronger. "T... Tamara..." he dropped the radio too.
Rush gritted his teeth, hands fisted on the sheets trying to hold back a yell. "Please, Desiree, please, wait," he chocked between pain stabs. "Wait, Desiree, not now."
/0/
When TJ didn't receive any answer at her calls, she knew what was happening. She took Chloe to the stones' room and told where Dr. Lam should go after arriving, then she went straight to Rush's quarters. She found the man in a bad shape, almost tangled with the sheets of his bed, sweating, face red.
"Doctor, I am here, don't worry. Breathe. Ah... Don't worry." To be fair, she didn't know what to do. In fact she was freaking out like a bit too much. It wasn't until Dr. Lam came that she could calm down. After her, col. Young, Camile and airman Becker. Camile and Becker started to aid Dr. Lam right away, so she deduced they must be medics too. Col. Young didn't move at first, then, walked in and took one of Rush hands.
The man griped the offered hand, knuckles white, tendons marked.
"Can we give him some painkiller? Anaesthesia?" asked Camile, while her and Becker stripped Rush waist down and pulled up his shirts.
"No. I tested our only anaesthesia, it would be dangerous for the child, maybe even kill her."
"Then, we will have to add a topic one over there," said Becker. They put over Rush a blanket, then Dr. Brightman-Camile took out a scalpel, while Becker disinfected the area they would work on.
/0/
It was boring as hell. They have been following the herd like for hours and the traps weren't ready yet. Varro helped a great deal, and his man, Koz, leaded the other team. They had split into two so they could trap the herd. Just one or two would be enough, but only thinking about having more meat stored for the future made them wanting to catch four or five.
So they hunted, and had a barbecue. They played and hunted more, relaxing in the sun, but still alert to any danger that could arise. Eli was blabbering a lot to Koz, trying to explain him about video games and how to master them. He had gone from one to another without pause, and compared some with the use of Destiny's sensors.
Near them, Greer yawned. It had been months since he had his surgery, and now he had an incredible scar on his torso. One he so proudly showed whenever he could. Scott never thought his friend was vain, but he had to agree: it was a pretty amazing scar. It wasn't only the surgery scar, but the one left by that feline-like alien. They still hadn't figured out how that thing could make that much damage without ripping off his clothes.
When they called Destiny to inform, Sr. Park wanted to talk with Scott in person, so he went to the 'Gate, and came aboard the starship. He found a mid-worried, mid-excited Dr. Park, rushing towards him. This worried Scott.
"What's the matter?"
"Rush is in the infirmary," she said, and before he could freak out she talked again. "TJ told me he is good now. Apparently he woke up a few minutes ago."
"What happened to him?" He wanted to run towards the infirmary, but he had to calm down first, right? Dr. Park was telling him something important he needed to know, right?
"He was in labour. We were about to call you but he yelled at us saying that if you came near him right then he would murder you," she confessed.
Scott gaped. "Oh, my God... Oh, my God! I am father... I am..." He ran.
"TJ told me it's a girl," He heard her screaming.
/0/
It had been a nightmare. Blood everywhere, they needed to call some more people in to hold Rush still, his yells and screams won't face easily from their memories, but it was worth it. After they had had the child out, they sewed the wound and took both "mum" and child to the infirmary where they rested.
Rush, who had been sedated, had on his chest a tiny pink baby, full covered, sleeping peacefully. Rush waked slowly, feeling pain in every part of his body, and a warm weight over his chest. When he looked, he found a small head there. He couldn't help but smile. His hands seemed too big around the small body.
"Hey, how are you?" He looked up. Tamara was there. "Here, let me help you." She took the baby and left her in a crib. He surely looked surprised, because she laughed a bid. "It was supposed to be a surprise. For next week. She came earlier."
Tamara helped him to a sitting position, taking their time, going slow. When he was seated, panting for the effort and the pain, she took the girl and gave her to him. He embraced his baby and talked to her. She recognised his voice, or maybe she was hungry, because she woke up.
He smiled broadly. "Hi, Desiree." She wasn't as small as a newborn, and her eyes had colour. She had blue eyes. "Your eyes are beautiful, my child."
Tamara let them have some intimacy, but she noticed three people on the door. She walked towards them. "I can't let you in, right now, he just woke up."
Scott was panting, Eli was panting, col. Young was just there.
"I... I want... Can I see her?" Scott asked.
She smiled. "I suppose you can, but not now, okay? Latter, she is with her other dad. But you can stay. You two, on the other hand, can't."
"But... But..."
"Not "buts" Eli. You can come back latter." Math-Boy left. She turned towards the colonel. "Colonel Young, you should leave too."
"Well, while I am truly intrigued about our new crew member, I came here for other purposes." He lifted his hand. It looked swollen. "I think I deserve an explanation on how did David got my hand like this."
Scott had entered completely by now, and was sitting on a faraway corner, watching Rush interacting with the baby girl, not minding them at all.
"Oh! When he came, our little Desiree was impatient and decided to come out. So he went to Rush quarters with the rest of us and held his hand through all the process. I'm sorry I forgot about it. Come here, I'll take a look."
With his hand bandaged, he approached the lieutenant who was looking at the scientist with adoration. "Lieutenant Scott," the younger looked at him, "congratulations."
Scott smiled widely, then, looked back at Rush, who was smiling too. It was such a warm, happy, welcoming smile none of them recognised him in that man. "I think this must be Fate's doing but I can't help but thing about him as beautiful right now. Also, I have never, ever seen him smile like that before."
Young nodded, looking too. Rush was so focused on the girl in his arms, he didn't noticed Tamara putting over his shoulders a blanket. "Well, whether it's Fate or it's your own judgement, I can assure you I haven't seen him smile like that either, and that it suits him."
Scott gave him an odd look, before turning again, with resolution burning in his eyes. "I can't back off now." Young raised a brow. "I am more determined than ever. I will conquer him. And I don't care if it's Fate or it's me. I'll do it."
Young let a low chuckle. "Well, lieutenant, good luck with that. It seems to me that you have a strong opponent." When Scott looked at him, alarmed, he laughed again. "She has cast a spell on him, and won't let go," he said, nodding toward Rush.
One of Rush's fingers was trapped in the tiny hold of Desiree's hand.
/0/
By now, it was pretty obvious that there was something odd going on between Lt. Scott, Col. Young, Eli and Dr. Rush. And even when the bets were still on, people had changed theirs in the last few days. Some risked betting for Young, even when the animosity between he and the scientist never faded completely. Others were still betting for Eli. But Volker, after that comment Math-Boy said, changed his to Lieutenant Scott.
He knew he was going to win. And when he heard Lisa calling for Scott and sending him to the infirmary to meet his child, he confirmed it. Now, he just had to thanks Eli for his thoughtless comments. But maybe what he wanted most was to meet the new crew member. There were bets about it too, but he didn't take part on them. It was fifty/fifty so no real risk about it. But what he did was on betting about the name.
There were some who thought, if she was a girl, the names would be either Faith or Hope. He chose to pick the one Eli wrote himself: that Rush would choose a name, and that it wasn't going to be something as cliché as "Hope" or "Faith". If it was a boy, they were all sure it would be Nick Jr. Volker opted again for Eli's response: a very Scottish male name like James or Roderick. Whether those names were as "Scottish" as Eli said, he wasn't sure, but he agreed with him about that.
He sighed. It was his shift on the 'Gate Room and he was alone. Lisa strode out when she heard it was shift change, surely to meet the little girl. Ten minutes after, the 'Gate dialled and the off-world team came in. He grinned, none of them seemed to know about the good news. Oh! They had meat with them!
"Well guys, I can see today we will eat good. And I don't want to spoil your gift but I have news." They all waited for him to continue. He waited until the 'Gate closed and they were on FTL. Grinning with self satisfaction, he looked at them. "Rush gave birth a couple of hours ago." The best was to come yet. "It's a girl."
A roar filled the room, people talking about the bets, about the name, about how they wanted to see her. Volker called Becker and both of them and Greer, got the herbs to the kitchen. The rest just ran into Destiny's bowels, predictably towards the infirmary.
Okay, I am desperate, because, readers I am a reader too. I like to read stuff, so you, who are a fan of SG·U too, WHAT ARE YOU DOING THAT YOU ARE NOT WRITING A FIC TOO? Well, you, reader, could write fics or challenge me to write something ;) I used to answer lots of those, but since I came to this fandoom I have not, so... I am all ears :D