Chapter Three
"Well, here we are – home." Rodney looked across at Elizabeth as they all walked into the Gateroom. Holding her gaze for a few seconds, he then grinned, and began heading down the steps, "I am so starving. I just have to go to the mess right now." As he headed away, he pointed a demanding finger at one of the Marines standing guard, "You! Power bar. Now!" sending the Marine scrabbling in his pockets and hurrying after him, as Rodney clicked his fingers and kept walking.
Being unconscious on the planet where the mist beings lived had left them all a little hungry, and Elizabeth told the remaining team members to follow Rodney and get some food and rest. Debriefing would be in one hour.
Elizabeth headed straight up to her office. She wanted to prepare for her report before she attended to her physical needs.
Barely fifteen minutes had passed before Rodney appeared in the doorway. "Um… Elizabeth. Are you OK?"
She looked up. There he was. Concern all over his face. How did someone with such a large ego have space to accommodate her? She hadn't figured that one out yet, but she wasn't complaining. And there was no use making up an answer. From the first day they'd met, she had learned that she had to tell Rodney the absolute truth, or he would know, and complain bitterly. It had taken some getting used to, it had even been uncomfortable at times, but now she had a completely open working relationship with her chief scientist, and one that provided her with a strong and surprisingly warm friendship.
Rubbing her forehead, she replied, "I need to eat, I just wanted to make a start on the report." She smiled at him, "Thanks for asking, Rodney. I'm going to the mess in a moment."
His smile twitched nervously, "Good. I just got worried when you never appeared." He had heard with his own ears and seen with his own eyes that she was fine, and she knew that was enough for him. He turned and made to leave. One hand on the doorjamb, he looked back.
"You did mean Atlantis, didn't you? When you said to dial 'home', I mean?" He rarely gave her that look now. It was the one laced with almost-disappointment. She couldn't remember the last time she had ever even attempted to deceive him on any level, so she only saw it when they had a genuine misunderstanding, or when he was uncertain about how she might feel about something.
"Yes, Rodney. I meant Atlantis. I wouldn't sacrifice those mist beings just for us to see Earth. And I think Atlantis really is home now, don't you?" It was true. Rodney, John, Aiden, Teyla, the whole team – they had become her friends, her family. They had carved out a life together, shared so much. She didn't feel anything was missing.
Believing that she was back with Simon had turned out to be shocking. She'd slipped back into it, but deep down she wondered why he hadn't broken it off. Her video message telling him to get on with his life should have been the final cowardly straw. She'd never been totally honest with Simon, she knew that now. When they had been together, it hadn't seemed such a big deal, and even when she had first experienced the illusion of being reunited with him, it hadn't immediately occurred to her. But after the first day, she found herself seeing her relationship with Simon in a new light. What they had was artificial, even superficial. How appropriate to see it that way through an illusion.
She thought to herself, 'What I have with Rodney is so much more real…' and she was pleased to discover the truth in that. She blinked, watching him wander across to her desk.
"Yes, I guess you're right. Atlantis is home now. Come on, I haven't had my dessert yet." Rodney held out a hand, and she grinned, grabbed his hand gratefully, and let him pull her out of her chair.
TBC
