Secrets

Disclaimer: I don't own Stargate Atlantis or any of its characters, I just like to have fun with them.

Authors notes: This chapter is designed to show Sgt. Bates softer more easy going side that he doesn't show that often and it sets up the mood for his and Sarah's relationship. So please take everything in that context. It also gives a more indepth look at what the relationship between Sarah and Ash is like, basically I feel like Ash is Sarah's source of confidence and that will be revealed in later chapters.

The Ocean and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Thursday evening found Dr. Sarah Reilly quietly leaning against the railing on one of the city's balconies that overlooked the ocean as the warm orange glow of the Atlantis sunset washed over her. The salty smell of the sea filled her senses stirring memories of the younger years of her life on Earth to the surface of her mind. Ash was being uncharacteristically quiet at the moment letting Sarah reminisce without interruption.

Suddenly from behind her, Sarah heard someone clear their throat, quickly turning around she stiffened in surprise for a moment, before her heart started to beat wildly. Standing there was Sgt. Bates looking very handsome wearing a dark blue button down shirt, un-tucked, and with the sleeves rolled up, over a pair of faded blue jeans. He smiled at her in that quietly confident way of his, "hey Doc, what are you doing out here? The party's down the hall."

Sarah smiles nervously as she rubs the back of her neck, "oh good God, Ash what do I say? And could you help with the pounding heart thing!"

Sarah could hear her symbiotes little chuckle inside her head, "just tell him the truth that you were enjoying the view and for God's sake just calm down."

Drawing in a deep breath Sarah finally speaks, "oh, hi Sgt. Bates, I was just enjoying the view… and the smell." She added as an after thought, "smell, what are you doing?"

Bates looked at her curiously, "smell?"

Ignoring Ash, Sarah points out towards the water, "of the ocean,"she says as though it should have been obvious.

The young Sergeant smiles at her as he makes his way over to stand a few feet away, leaning against the railing, he asks, "so you like the ocean?"

Without a moments hesitation Sarah answers, "yeah I love the ocean." Not even thinking about it she lets out a sad little chuckle and turns back towards the view before continuing. "and I sort of hate it too and ironically for the same reason… it makes me think of home."

Sarah could hear Ash grumbling, "oh well that's not a depressing subject to bring up with someone stuck in a galaxy far away from their family, you're going to scare him off."

Sgt. Bates had grown very quiet while Ash was mentally scolding Sarah but suddenly he spoke barely above a whisper, "chocolate chip cookies." Sarah turned a looked at him curiously, he was still looking out at the view, a sad little smile curved his lips as he continued his thought, "my grandmother used to make chocolate chip cookies for me and my brother, she raised us after our mom died and everyday after school she'd have fresh made chocolate chip cookies and milk waiting for us." Letting out a short laugh the Sergeant finally looks at Sarah, "honestly it got to the point where we got sick and tired of them." Sarah couldn't help but smile at his statement, "but of course we still ate them because Grandma made them for us… she died a couple years ago and now every time I smell chocolate chip cookies it make me think about her… and my little brother."

Sarah worried her lip for a moment, as Ash speaks to her, "wow, he's actually kind of… deep."

Sarah swallowed as Ash's words resounded in her head, knowing she needed to say something, "that's a really nice story," a smile lit up in her eyes, "so do you still hate them?"

Sgt. Bates looks a little surprised by the question for a second but then a little smile comes to his lips, "chocolate chip cookies… yeah."

They share a chuckle, then Sarah asks, "so you said you have a brother what's he like?"

The Sergeant again looks a bit surprised, "oh…well um… he's a good kid. Well actually I guess Matt's not really a kid anymore, he's a junior in college now." A big smile comes across Bates face, "he's going to be an architect and he and his girlfriend aretalking aboutgetting married after graduation. I'm hoping to get some leave to go back for the wedding but we'll see. What about you any brothers or sisters?"

Sarah found herself smiling at the proud way that the Sergeant talked about his brother, it made her think about her own brothers, "it sounds like you're real proud of him… and in fact I have three brothers, Josh, Brian and Andy. And they are evil, especially when it comes to practical jokes but I love them anyway."

Sgt. Bates found himself laughing at how much that reminded him of himself and his brother, "you're all pretty close then," Sarah nods, "my brother and I are the same way, you should have seen some of the practical jokes we pulled on each other, but like you said we both knew that no matter how much we might act like we hated each other, at the end of the day I still loved the little brat."

Sarah lets out a little laugh before her mouth settles into a playful little smirk, "So what kind of practical jokes because I bet you Sergeant that the stuff my brothers and I pulled will blow yours away, we Reilly's are a rather creative bunch."

Bates smirks back at her, "a challenge doctor, well I'll accept and… you should really just call me Chris."

Sarah's face brakes into a huge grin, "then you should call me Sarah and I dare you to give it your best shot."

For the next two hours Chris and Sarah sat on the balcony talking and laughing at each others stories. At the end of their competition over who pulled the worse practical joke Sarah had won hands down, when she told him the story of how she and her brother Andy set up their older brothers by having Sarah fake a head injury while they were on a camping trip by using real blood thatAndy had drawn out of her arm.

By the end of those two hours there was no doubt in Chris's mind Sarah was nuts but a good kind of nuts, funny and she had this sort of evil mastermind thing going. "Well, so now I know about all of the mayhem you and your brothers caused as kids, what are they like now?" Chris found himself asking her.

A big smile comes to Sarah's face, "well my two oldest brothers are both in the Navy just like our Dad, Josh and his wife Mary, have two boys, they're stationed in Norfolk, Virginia. Brian is stationed in Hawaii and loving it, since he's still single but he's got a few years left before we'll start to actually worry. However, then there's Andy, he is a doctor like me, actually we went to med school together, our brother's claim the two of us got all the brains in the family. Andy decided that the military wasn't for him, so he works at a little pediatric hospital in Huston, Texas and well apparently Andy's wife doesn't get a lot of sleep. He and Christine have been married for six years and already have four children."

Chris's mouth drops open in surprise, "wow four kids in six years, are they going for a record or something."

Sarah starts laughing, "I know we'll get together for holidays and stuff and every time I see the poor woman she has a belly full of baby. The last time I saw them I walked in looked at her and just turned to my brother and said, 'good GAWD Andy, you knocked her up again! You're a doctor, you're suppose to know how that happens'." Chris starts dying laughing, "that's not even the funniest part, Andy's rebuttal to that was to say, 'it's not my fault she can't keep her hands off me'."

Chris laughs for a minute, before rolling his eyes, "yeah I'm sure that's the problem."

Sarah went on the tell Chris all about her childhood, how she had always moved every two or three years when she was little and how it was always near the ocean since her Dad was in the Navy and that's why the smell had reminded her of home. Sarah's Dad had been a submarine captain when she was a kid so she didn't get to see that much of him while she was growing up. She told him that she thought that her mother was probably one of the strongest people she knew; since she'd raised Sarah and her brothers pretty much on her own since their Dad was always gone.

Chris told Sarah about growing up in L.A. and about his grandma and his little brother, Matt. He even opened up enough to tell her about how his Dad had been a Marine like him but he had been killed in combat when Chris was nine, and Matt was only a year old. Then when Chris was eleven his Mom, who had been a teacher, got cancer and that's when he and Matt ended up living with their grandma. By the time Chris had finished telling her about his family, Sarah felt so bad for him, Chris had been through so much. Now the only real family he had left was his brother and here he was a galaxy away from him, it must be so hard. Sarah found herself, wanting to give him a big hug but she realized that she didn't really know him that well and it might make him uncomfortable.

Also things might get a little to interesting if she tried, at some point during their talk they had decided to sit down. Then they started to get even more comfortable so now Sarah found herself laying on her side propped up on her elbow with Chris lying opposite her in an almost mirrored position and even though they had become very comfortable talking with each other they had yet to actually touch.

Thankfully Ash suggested a way to change the subject, "so why did you decide to become a Marine, was it because of your Dad?" Sarah asked.

Chris thought about it for a moment, "yes and no, I joined because I wanted to go to college but I chose the Marines because that was the branch my Dad had served in. Only then I got assigned to the SGC and found that I didn't want to leave it when my time came, so I re-uped and now here I am," adding sarcastically, "I'm not sure what I was thinking at the time."

A soft chuckle left her mouth before she asks, "so what was your major going to be?"

Chris looks a little embarrassed for a moment, before answering sheepishly, "my major… was going to be English Education with a minor in Literature."

Sarah's eyes widened when she realized what he had just told her, "you were going to be teacher!"

Chris chuckles at her response, "yeah but somehow once you've been shot across the galaxy through a wormhole, teaching a bunch of kids the proper use of a semi-colon somehow loses it's appeal a little."

Suddenly Sarah has to fight back a fit of giggles when Ash pushes into her mind an image of a room full of little girls, looking all moony over Chris.

Chris eyes her suspiciously, "what?"

Finally regaining her composure somewhat but still with a huge grin on her face she answers, "it's just that I suddenly got a mental picture of a room full of little girls sitting at their desks trying to look all cute and innocent while they're batting their eyelashes at you." Chris starts laughing as a response, and Sarah just rolls her eyes at him, "oh come on just think about it your young and a good looking guy, most of the girls would probably have huge crushes on you and I imagine a good chunk of the teachers. Hopefully only the female ones though right," Sarah couldn't help adding that last bit with a mischievous grin on her face.

Her statement seemed to have the desired effect when Chris started laughing even harder, and Sarah joined in for a minute or two, finding his laughter to be very infectious. They finally regained their composure, and Chris just smiles nervously at her before asking, "so would you?"

Sarah feels confused for a second, but then Ash chimes in "would you have a crush on him, silly?" Sarah feels her cheeks warm up in a blush, as she realizes that is what he meant.

Biting down nervously on her lip for a second, "I think that back when I was young and immature I might have had a little crush on you… but now that I all grown up I think."

Swallowing nervously, "oh God I can't believe I'm about to say this, Ash. Should I even say this, what if he doesn't fell the same way?"

Sarah could feel her heart pounding in her chest, as Ash answers her, "Sarah he just asked you if you'd have a crush on him I think it's safe to say he likes you, you should definitely say it, and if you don't I will because I'm really starting to like him, too."

Chris didn't think his heart could pound any faster than it had been while he was waiting for Sarah to finish her thought. He couldn't seem to take his eyes off of her, she was just so beautiful. Sarah was a slender woman but curvy in all the right places, she was wearing these black pants that fit her a little to well for Chris's comfort and the tight green top she had on was a perfect compliment to her eyes, he could swear that the color was actually making them look even more like bright sparkly emeralds. Then there was her hair it had fallen to one side as she leaned on her elbow and her fingers were all tangled into the mess of dark copper curls. But the thing that kept his attention the most was her mouth. Sarah's lips were probably about the most perfect he'd ever seen, they were full and pink and looked extremely kissable.

Chris wanted to kiss her so bad at that moment he could almost taste it. It wouldn't be difficult she lay only about a foot away from him he could easily reach out and capture her mouth in a second, but he didn't know if she wanted him to. However, if she didn't finish answering him soon he might very well lose his control and do just that. But then she finally took in a deep breath and the words that slipped quietly from those two perfect pink rose petal lips made the wait totally worth it, "I think that now… I have a very BIG crush on you."

Chris's face broke into a relief laden grin as he blew out the breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding, "really?"

He was wrong his heart could definitely beat faster and apparently his hand had developed a mind of it's own as it came up to caress Sarah's cheek. Chris felt the ragged breath that escaped Sarah's lips as his thumb rubbed over the silky soft flesh, like an unspoken question. He barely heard the soft whisper of his name escape her mouth, but that was all it took. Before Chris could even think about what he was doing he'd leaned over to capture her mouth in a passionate embrace.

Reviews:

NatalieJ: Yey Bates! hehe, and since you love our security guys so much I may have to add Major Lorne in there later, and what do you think his first name should be?