Author's Note: A result of procrastinating homework at ten o'clock at night. :) Short little thing; I might do another 'chapter' with Carson's thoughts and Rodney's, but I don't know. Anyway, hope ya like. Please review!
Disclaimer: I own two Atlantis posters and that's about as close as I come to owning the characters.
Warning: Written while on NyQuil and a result of evil Geometry homework. Also unbetaed.


One Day

Every time a team went through the 'gate, there was a risk that they wouldn't be returning. Against all odds, most of them did. Elizabeth Weir smiled sadly as she brushed her hand across Rodney McKay's burning forehead. He was lying in one of the many hospital beds; his face flushed and his body motionless. She sighed softly, glancing at the heart monitor as if to reassure herself that he really was okay. 'It could've been worse,' she reminded herself of all of the expedition members who hadn't returned through the 'gate.

Rodney and the rest of AR-1 had left on a mission to a planet named Regalus to establish trade, only to find that the entire civilization on the planet was in the middle of a horrifying plague. Once they'd found out, the team had gotten home as quickly as possible. 'But not soon enough,' Elizabeth thought grimly as she looked at Rodney. Still, it was better than to be expected.. Out of the four, Rodney was the only one to catch it. Elizabeth bit back the self-indulgent, immature feeling that she'd rather John, Aiden or Teyla fall victim to the sickness.

She sighed softly, resting her hand in his motionless one. Carson and the medical staff had been working for almost a week with little sleep so they could find a cure. When they realized how much damage the disease was doing to Rodney's immune system, they had decided to test the new drug immediately on Rodney, for fear of a recovery becoming non-existent due to the extensive damage on his immune system.

Elizabeth squeezed his hand softly. If this drug worked…they would be able to save hundreds of lives on Regalus. 'C'mon, Rodney,' she encouraged mentally. It would be wonderful to save those lives, but here and now, she just wanted Rodney to be okay. It didn't matter to her in this moment that this drug could save hundreds of people.

Right now, all it needed to save was Rodney. She leaned back in her chair and looked around the drab area. 'How many hours have I spent here?' she wondered, but she wasn't referring to the infirmary itself. Her eyes returned to Rodney, and she blinked hurriedly to push the building tears away. A soft, pained laugh escaped her lips as she thought of how many times he had been in this hospital bed--and how many times she had been sitting in the chair next to him. The faint, optimistic smile on Elizabeth's face wavered. She could recall countless times when she was in the same situation. Rodney, lying unconscious, and she, holding his hand and waiting for the briefest flicker of life behind his eyelids. And once it came…she fled.

Elizabeth bowed her head, allowing a mask of hair to cover her face, lest any medical personnel pass her. She felt horrible each time she left him. What must it feel like, she wondered, to wake up to no one? Elizabeth swallowed tightly. It wasn't her place. She had other duties to attend to. 'But that's not the real reason, is it?' she questioned herself, and knew it wasn't. She was worried. If Rodney woke up, what would he think? What would everyone else think? Elizabeth thought of the unexplainable look in Carson's eyes every time he saw her at Rodney's bedside. It was as if he knew something that she didn't.

'No one would understand,' Elizabeth sighed to herself, threading her fingers through Rodney's as she looked over at him. How could they, when she couldn't even begin to understand it herself? How could they understand the sudden clamminess in her hands when he was carried through the 'gate harmed; how could they understand the urge she had to remain with him until she was sure he was okay? She sighed softly, resting her chin on top of their hands, simply watching him. A faded smile appeared on her face as she speculated that this was the first real sleep he'd gotten in months.

"Mmm…" a low groan from Rodney jerked her to attention. She lifted her head, staring down at him. His eyes moved beneath his eyelids as he slowly began to regain consciousness. Elizabeth smiled sadly as she pulled her hand away from his.

"Carson, he's waking up," she called softly, and heard the quick steps of the Scottish doctor toward her. "He's gonna be okay," Elizabeth stated aloud as Carson glanced toward the various machines hooked up to Rodney's body. Her joy at knowing he would be okay crumbled when the realization that she would have to leave came.

Carson turned to her, again with that unexplainable look in his eye. "Ay, that he is," he confirmed, smiling with relief. Elizabeth nodded as she stood up and turned away from Rodney; walking toward the exit. Back toward Carson, she couldn't see the sorrowful look in the Scot's eyes as he watched her go. Her footsteps stopped, and, though mentally berating herself even as she did so, she turned and looked at Rodney. Her gaze caught Rodney just as his hand closed; looking to grasp another hand that wasn't there. Tears blurred her vision and she turned and walked away, each click of her shoes on the floor a stab to her heart.

One day she would find the courage to stay.

One day.