OK, here's the rest.

Oh, and just pretend that "Letters from Pegasus" hasn't happened yet.


Workday Wonders: Chapter Five

As they walked from the infirmary the uneasiness of the situation melted away to silent concern. McKay could see John glancing at him as they walked down the corridor, no real destination in mind.

"What?" Rodney finally asked, irritated by the looks the taller man was sending him.

"You sure you're ok?"

"Yes. I told you I was thinking, a concept I'm aware you have little knowledge of, but I thought you knew what that meant." 'Jeez.' He shouted inwardly, as much for being asked if he was ok, as it was for the fact he just snipped at someone who was concerned for him.

It didn't seem to bother Sheppard, he just smiled.

"It's just you were really zoned out there, you didn't even say anything when Carson said you might learn to shut up from me."

"What?" Carson was talking about him? He was right there, but he thought the conversation was about whether or not they'd be going on the recon mission.

"He said this might be good for us, getting stuck together, thinks maybe we'll rub off on each other. Now you, you'll learn to shut up and let others talk, when necessary, and maybe you'll be less of a condescending ass. Me, I learn to not touch things, be patient, and respect the wishes of authority figures."

They turned a corner, Sheppard was leading them now, and McKay didn't care. Carson thought he was an asshole who talked too much?

Ok, yes, he did talk a lot, but he had so much to say, he just wanted to make sure it was all heard before some inevitably terrible fate befell him.

McKay felt the familiar sensation of turning, then felt cold metal on his bare arm. He'd walked right into the corner, half a foot to the right and he would have been fine.

Sheppard laughed at him, "There's a wall there McKay."

Rodney glared at him, and then smiled, a second later John's body rocked back, his arms flailed out, trying to regain balance, McKay allowed his arm to move with the Major's.

"Major, there's a step there." McKay grinned. Sheppard sent him a sarcastic 'thanks' smile. Rodney recognized their surroundings now; they were headed toward the control room. Sheppard really wanted to get Elizabeth to let them out.

They made it down the steps without further incident, and through the 'Gate room relatively unscathed. Peter said something about finding them a field of flowers to frolic in, everyone laughed at it, but that was all. That they heard anyway.

"Gentlemen," Elizabeth greeted as they entered her office, "please, sit." They both pulled a chair around, and sat in front of her desk, "Not that I don't enjoy seeing the two of you…especially now," she smirked, "but whatever Carson said you could have told me over the radio."

"Yeah…but I thought if we came in person, and you saw how much we wanted," both Elizabeth and Rodney looked at him, "how much I wanted to go, I should be here to make sure I can charm you into it, since Beckett said we could go anyway, and Rodney doesn't seem to mind."

She shrugged with her eyebrows, and let out a breath, "I hate to burst your bubble, but what if I've already made up my mind?"

Sheppard could be pretty blunt sometimes, but the initial shock that had come along with it seemed to have lost its effect on her. McKay hoped that bluntness wasn't something that had rubbed off onto Sheppard from him; he liked the person Sheppard was, admired even, and he didn't want his own personality flaws to infiltrate Sheppard's.

John sat in seat for a moment, trying to think of something clever to say, "Well…I'd have to say that's not very fair if the answer is no, because you didn't-"

"It's ok. I'll let you go, but only because Lieutenant Ford and Teyla will be there too." She said, McKay was crestfallen, she'd gone with Sheppard, he had her in the palm of his hand.

"Great! I'll make this up to you; I swear…I'll make you dinner myself-"

"And," she continued, cutting off the Major's victory dance, "on the two additional conditions that you don't leave the jumper and you take another pilot."

"What?"

McKay smiled; maybe she wasn't completely on John's side after all.

"You get to go Major, that's what you wanted isn't it? Now, you cant fly like that, and I'll be damned if you two go wondering around some alien planet like that, you're both magnets for trouble and you know it. Take it or leave it."

"Fine." He said through gritted teeth, and he stared at her, and she at him.

"Well…"Rodney said, breaking the silence. It brought them both back, and Elizabeth looked at him.

"You've been strangely quiet Rodney. Are you ok with this?" she folded her hands on her desk top, like she was asking him to say no.

He' d have to remember to talk more, self-deprecation made him too quiet sometimes, which is why he only let take a real hold at night, when no one would be around to ask if he was ok.

"Actually, your stipulations make it completely acceptable." He smiled at her, and she smiled back. He loved her smile; he loved everything about her, especially the way she asserted her power.

"Ok then, tomorrow morning." She smiled bigger, "Try to have a good night."

"Well, we won't be sleeping yet. There are still some things that I'd like to look at. Let's go Major." McKay said standing up.

As they walked from the room Sheppard turned back to her, "So…no dinner then?"

"Maybe another time."

They walked away, and she went to the door. "Shut up Peter." She heard Rodney shout, as she leaned in the doorway, watching them go.

She went back to her desk, and sat down with a heavy sigh. What was she supposed to do with the two of them? Did she give into Sheppard's shameless flirting or Rodney's subtle attempts to get her alone?

She'd only just recently decided, if given the chance to talk to Simon again, she'd have to tell him to forget about her, she didn't know when, or if she'd ever make it home. As horrible as it made her feel to think, it was only inevitable before something happened with someone here.

John and Rodney made it to the lab, and decided that John couldn't stay in the lab anymore, if Rodney wanted to look over the readings, then he need to go somewhere where John would have something to do as well.

It was getting dark now, and sooner or later, to the dislike of both, they would have to sleep, or at least lay down next to each other so they could pretend to sleep.

They gathered the printouts from earlier and made their way to Sheppard's room, their arms full of papers, and a laptop and few tiny machines in McKay's.

They set everything up so that Rodney's laptop and machines were on the table near John's bed. Rodney sat in a chair at the table, looking over the information at hand, while Sheppard lay on the bed, his free hand propping up 'War and Peace', his other was stretched out by his head, so that Rodney would be comfortable.

There was a soft beep being emitted from his tiny machine, letting them know, that even at this very second it was reading energy signatures, and variations in said energy.

After the better part of two hours, Rodney rested his head on his fist. He'd found nothing, and was growing tired. Major Sheppard's book lay flat on his chest, his eye lids drifting shut.

"How are we going to do this?" McKay asked, rousing him.

"Hmmm?" was his reply.

"Sleep, how are we going to sleep?"

His eyes opened a bit, he looked at McKay, as though he were sizing him up, and then looked down his body and the bed. He closed his book and tossed it onto the floor, hoping the bookmark stayed in place, and then he scooted over.

"No, no. Not happening, what if Ford decides to come get us? It'll be worse than this!" he said lifting their hands.

"Well then," John said tiredly, "You can sleep in the chair."

"I swear on my life, that if you touch me I will kill you." McKay said, moving onto the bed.

"Look, we can sleep with our backs to each other…"

McKay lay down, adjusting himself to the small space, and turned onto his side, his right arm on top and behind him, resting in the middle of the bed. Sheppard laid the same way, only his left hand rested in the middle.

The lights blinked out of existence, and McKay was plunged into darkness. Nighttime was the worst, that's when he let the self doubt run amok.

An entire day worth of change ruined….

His train of thought derailed as he felt an arm slither around his stomach.

"Get the hell off me." He said, batting Sheppard's arm away. "Did you hear what I said before, or have you developed selective hearing?"

Sheppard laughed as he rolled back onto his side.

McKay grimaced, he made himself an easy target, he'd have to stop doing that.

"You know you don't have to worry." Came John's groggy voice, sleep was once again taking hold.

"Worry about what, Major?"

"Whatever it is you think I'm going to do to you…"he yawned, "You're me friend Rodney…I'd never…" he trailed off.

Never what? Steal away the one thing I want most in this galaxy?

How did he even know that McKay was worried about something he might willingly or unwillingly do to harm his already damaged self esteem?

Was he that easy to read when it came to things like that? Matters of the heart are things he'd spent years perfecting cover-ups for, no one ever saw through them.

Was it because Sheppard was Rodney's first real, true friend? Was he the kind of friend that knows everything? Knows all the unspoken fears, the kind of friend that could untwist even the most tangled web of lies?

And if he was…was McKay ready for that kind of friendship?

He drifted off to sleep beside his friend. Tomorrow was another day, and who knows what they'll find out, about the handcuffs, Atlantis, or their friendship.


Ok, good. This was supposed to all be in Ch. 4, but I had to go to class before, I got it all done. And as I said, I would post the rest, and here it is! Hope it's good. Please R and R!