Chapter 2: What's going on?
Rodney immediately left the infirmary and headed back to his lab, there was no way he was even going to consider heading back to see Teyla. Besides, he had no idea whether she was in his apartment, Sheppard's apartment, or somewhere completely different.
Something had either happened to Carson, Jennifer, Teyla and who knows how many others on Atlantis, or something had happened to him and Sheppard. One thing he knew for sure was he really needed to get to the bottom of it quick, because there was no way he wanted to be a father to twins, not to mention what it would mean for him if he and Teyla were together with.
He loved Jennifer and he knew that Sheppard loved Teyla, so he knew that it was up to him to put things right.
Arriving in his lab a few minutes later, he was irritated to find that Zelenka was there looking at the device that Sheppard had burnt his hand on, "what are you doing here Radek?" He asked with displeasure.
"I found this device on the floor, so I was wondering what it was?"
"Well, it's nothing you need to know about, so why don't you get back to doing something else and let the resident genius work it out," Rodney suggested rudely.
"Well okay then, but I must warn you Teyla is looking for you and she is not very happy, so it wouldn't surprise me if she came to your lab."
Sighing, he plastered a fake smile on his face, "I will go and see her shortly, but I'd like to be left alone for a while, so can you please leave?"
Radek nodded his head and left much to Rodney's relief.
Looking around his lab, he wondered what he was going to do next, so he decided to do what he always did when he had a dilemma, he sat in the middle of his lab and thought about it.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
John was lying in the infirmary and Jennifer insisted on holding his hand and wiping his brow with a damp cloth, although she had done it as his doctor, this time it felt different. It was the most uncomfortable feeling that he had ever felt, and he wished that she would just leave, but he didn't want to appear rude.
Carson came back into the room a few minutes later and he was almost relieved, "okay lad, I've got the results of your scan."
Before Carson had a chance to tell him anything, he decided that it was probably a good time to get rid of Jennifer, "Ummm...Doc I'd rather you tell me the results without Jennifer here."
Jennifer looked hurt, but what could he say, he didn't want her there; "why don't you want me here John and you never call me Jennifer; you always call me Jenn or sweetie?" She said and he could see tears brimming in her eyes.
He looked around the room for a bit of moral support, but Carson was nowhere in sight. He hated it when Teyla was upset, so how the hell was he supposed to deal with a distraught Jennifer Keller? And this woman was nothing like the Jennifer Keller knew, she was a strong confident woman and she certainly wasn't as clingy as this woman appeared to be.
There was no way he was going to call her sweetie, since that was his pet name for Teyla, "I'm sorry Jenn, but I just want to be alone right now."
"I'll respect your wishes, but I feel as if I should tell you what Carson told me this morning. Hopefully, that will make you feel better."
He sighed, wondering what she could tell him that could make this day any worse, "what is it you want to tell me Jenn?"
She smiled at him through her tears, "I'm pregnant and the baby's due in August."
And my days just got worse, his muddled brain thought. Turning to her, he put a fake smile on his face, "that's fantastic news Jenn, and I'd love to celebrate with you when I finally get out of this place."
"Okay Honey, I'll leave you alone for now, but I will be back to see you later."
Honey! He thought, as his muddled brain tried to comprehend what she had just said, Teyla is the only person allowed to call me that, I sure as hell hope that Rodney can work this out soon. There's no way I want to be a father to Jennifer's child.
He immediately relaxed and closed his eyes once she had left the room. Now all he had to do was find a way to contact McKay and hope that he could put whatever mess they were in right.
A voice disrupted his thoughts, "how are you feeling Colonel?"
Opening his eyes, he turned to look at his friend, "you know what Doc; I have to admit that I've had better days."
"I know lad, you do seem rather disoriented today, so I'll tell you the results of the scans and then perhaps you can have a sleep."
"What's wrong with me doc?"
"Well, you have second degree burns to your hand and at some point you've suffered from a concussion and I'm guessing that it must have been about a week ago, but I don't remember treating you for a head injury recently."
"You know what doc, I really don't understand it either, but maybe McKay can figure it out."
"Alright lad I'll let Rodney figure it out, but for now let's get you sorted. Are you in pain son?"
"Yeah, Doc my hand's throbbing a bit and I have a headache, not to mention my knee."
"Okay then, I'll give you something for the pain and then make sure you get some sleep."
"You'll get no arguments from me doc."
A few minutes later John closed his eyes, as he felt a cool soothing liquid flowing through his veins and it wasn't long before the pain in his hand and head began to dissipate. He had no idea what was going on, but he trusted Rodney to find him a way back to Teyla, his Teyla, the one who loved him.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Jennifer left the infirmary in tears, didn't John love her anymore and if not why? She had loved him ever since she'd met him and that was around the time that he'd been fed on by the wraith. He'd spent quite a bit of time in the infirmary after that event and the way his eyes twinkled at her every time she came in to the room to check his vitals, she knew that he felt the same way about her as well, so what had happened since this morning when she'd kissed him goodbye.
She really needed to talk, so she thought she'd go and see Teyla for a while. Perhaps she would have some idea what was going on and if not, she'd go and talk to McKay to see if something weird had happened on Atlantis.
A few minutes later she arrived at the apartment that Teyla shared with Rodney and pressed the door chime.
The door opened to reveal Teyla sitting on the couch and looking pale, "Teyla are you alright?" She asked rushing into the room.
"That good for nothing fiancé of mine has not come home and I have had to ask Ronon to look after Torren for me."
Jennifer sighed, she still wasn't happy, "John has been acting strange this morning as well. He is in the infirmary injured at the moment, but I suggest we confront Rodney and ask him to explain what is going on and besides, I thought they were going off world this morning?"
"They must have changed their minds, but confronting Rodney sounds like a good idea. Can you please get me a cup of Athosian tea first?"
"Are you sure you don't want me to confront him alone Teyla?"
A look of anger crossed Teyla's face, "No I want to know why he's ignoring me. When he left this morning, he asked me to let him know if I needed anything and he said that he would come home straight away if I did, but he seems to be just ignoring me at the moment and I have no idea why."
A few minutes later, Jennifer handed Teyla her Athosian tea and she sat beside her, she was still upset by what had happened with John in the infirmary, so she decided that rather than go and confront Dr McKay she would head back to the infirmary to be with John, maybe she could snuggle up alongside of him. She knew that she'd feel comforted by it, so maybe John would as well.
"Jennifer I am ready to go now, I really want to know why Rodney is acting so rude to me and I'm going to get to the bottom of it right now!"
"I think I'll head back to the infirmary and stay with John; I don't want him to be alone when he wakes up."
"Okay if you're sure, but I'm going now, so you'll have to leave my apartment."
She nodded and stood up, she knew that when Teyla was in a bad mood she was someone to steer clear of and she certainly seemed to be in a bad mood now.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Teyla rushed through the halls of Atlantis determined to find out what Rodney's problem was, he had never treated her this way before, he was the love of her life and she had loved him ever since she had met him, the first time she'd set foot on Atlantis. She knew that he was a genius and there was no way that she came close to his intelligence, but he was prepared to love her for who she was, and she loved him for that. Rodney had ignored her for a long time, so she'd had a short relationship with one of her fellow Athosians and she'd had a child with him, but that relationship had lasted for about a year.
She was the leader of her people for a while until she came to Atlantis. At that point Halling had insisted on taking over the leadership, leaving her with no other choice than to stay on Atlantis. At times she still felt bitter about being forced to give up the leadership of her people, but Halling had told her that she was always welcome to visit, especially seeing as Torren's father was still there. That was another problem though, she and Kanaan had had a huge argument before they broke up and they were barely speaking, so she'd usually send Rodney to take Torren to see Kanaan.
It wasn't long before she arrived at Rodney's lab and when she walked in, she was furious to see that he was busy studying an ancient device, "Rodney I asked you to come home, why are you still here?!"
When Rodney looked up, she saw a look on his face that could only be described as bewilderment, "Umm… I'm sorry Teyla, but Sheppard ended up in the infirmary after testing this device and I really need to find out what it does, so that I can help him."
She thought about yelling at him again, but changed her mind, he was certainly dedicated to his friends, that was one of the reasons that she'd fallen in love with him.
Sighing, she softened her tone, "okay, but please come home soon, as I'm not feeling the best today and I really need a rest."
"I'll come and see you after I've finished here, in the meantime why don't you try and get some rest?" Rodney suggested and for the moment she felt that he cared.
After she'd left his lab, she went back to her quarters and hopped in bed as quickly as she could. Torren was with Ronon for the entire day, so she really hoped that Rodney would come home soon and curl up in bed beside her.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Rodney was relieved when Teyla left his lab, this was definitely not the Teyla he knew. The Teyla he knew who was engaged to Sheppard, was a strong warrior, who seemed to always be in control and was always patient and serene. This woman was cranky and argumentative and seemed clingy and needy, totally the opposite of the woman he knew.
It hadn't taken him long to realise what the device Sheppard had activated had done, but the question was why. However, the biggest problem was how did he put it right, there was no way he wanted to be stuck in this reality forever.
He was about to take some more scans of the device when his com activated, "McKay here," he said tapping the earpiece."
"Hey McKay, it's Sheppard here, I've managed to nab Carson's earpiece, so how's it going, have you managed to find anything useful yet?"
"All I know is that we've shifted realities somehow."
There was silence and he wondered whether John had disconnected the transmission, "are you still there Sheppard?"
"Yeah, I was just thinking, if we are in an alternate reality, what happened to the us from this reality?"
"I don't even want to contemplate that right now Sheppard; I just hope that we don't bump into them."
"I'd have to agree with you on that one, but can you find us a way home?"
I'm doing my best, so if you'd kindly stop talking to me, I can get back to work."
"Well work quickly, because the Jennifer Keller in this reality is nothing like your fiancée McKay, she's clingy, weak, and miserable, and believe me when I say you wouldn't want to spend the rest of your life with her and I certainly don't.
"Yeah, well the Teyla here is clingy and angry, so believe me when I say I don't want to spend five minutes with her."
"Well, you'd better get to work then, because I don't think I cope if Jennifer started kissing me again."
"Yeah, well the last thing I want is to have to curl up in bed with Teyla and believe me when I say, I think that's what she wants me to do right now."
"Well, I'm going back to sleep until you need me again, Sheppard out."
He was just about to get back to work scanning the device, when his com activated again, sighing he tapped his earpiece, "McKay here, what do you want?"
"It's Woolsey here, I was just wondering why you and Sheppard didn't go off world like you were supposed to today? Teyla tells me there has been an accident in your lab."
"Uhh…sorry change of plans, we're going supposed to be going tomorrow, but I will have to see how Sheppard is before we go."
"Well make sure you do, we need to establish good relations with the people of Lisk, as they have the closest thing to coffee in this galaxy."
"We'll definitely get to it as soon as we can, McKay out."
They hadn't come across the Lisk people in their reality, perhaps they should, it was always a good idea to have plenty of coffee on hand.
The conversation with Woolsey had explained why he hadn't come across his alternate self as yet, he just hoped that he could get Sheppard and himself home before their alternate's arrived back on Atlantis.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
The next time John awoke, there was something soft and silky in his face and it smelt divine, he suspected that it was probably Teyla's hair. Maybe the whole alternate reality thing had been a nightmare and he was back in his apartment cuddling Teyla, he certainly hoped so.
He didn't dare open his eyes in case it wasn't Teyla and he was still stuck in the horrible reality where he and Teyla weren't together, but if he didn't, he'd never know what was going on, so he slowly opened his eyes, and he was disturbed to find a mass of blonde hair in his face. Trying desperately to get away, he fell out of the narrow infirmary bed hitting the floor with a loud thud and all he could do was moan.
Jennifer was by his side in a flash, kissing him on the cheek, "Oh my gosh, John darling are you alright, maybe I should go and get Carson for you?"
This sounded strange to him, since she was actually a doctor and surely, she should be able to take care of him, "aren't you going to check me out to make sure I'm alright Jenn?"
"Oh no John, Carson needs to look after when you're in the infirmary and when you come home, I will not leave your side."
Feeling a little afraid of what she had just said, he plastered a fake smile on his face, "I look forward to that, but would you be able to get Carson, so that I can get back in bed?"
Once she had disappeared, he closed his eyes and groaned, somehow, he'd managed to land on his knee again and his hand was beginning to throb. Rodney had better get them out of here quick smart because the last thing he wanted was to go home; wherever that was and have Keller fussing and fawning all over him.
"Laddie how did you manage to fall out of bed!?" Carson exclaimed as he came into the room.
"Honestly, Doc I have no idea what happened," he knew dam well what happened, but there was no way he was going to tell them that he'd fallen out of bed trying to get away from Keller.
"I think I may have to put the bed rails up, so that you don't fall out again," Carson suggested.
"Yeah, that's probably a good idea, Doc," he said, hoping that would stop a clingy Keller, from trying to cuddle up to him again.
"Okay then lad, let's get you into bed, can you please help Jennifer?"
A few minutes later when he was finally back in bed, her turned to Beckett and asked, "when can I get out of here Doc, because I really need to talk to McKay about something?"
"You are not getting out of here in the next twenty-four hours, so I suggest you rest."
It's probably a good idea to stay here, he thought, maybe Carson can drug me to the gills, not only will it kill the pain, but I won't notice whether Keller is here or not."
"I'll stay here on one condition Carson."
"This isn't a negotiation son; you will stay here because I said so!"
"All I wanted was some pain medication and maybe something to help me sleep?"
"Oh, I think I can manage that laddie, just give me a few minutes to go and get something."
Once Carson had disappeared, he turned to Jennifer and smiled, "you don't need to stay here Jenn, Carson will look after me."
He flinched when he saw tears brimming in her eyes again, "only if you're sure John."
"I'm positive, why don't you go and get some rest and I'll see you in the morning?"
She leant down and kissed him on the lips and he shivered. Luckily, Carson came and interrupted before it went on for too long.
"I'll see you later," Jennifer whispered, before leaving the room.
Closing his eyes, he was relieved when he felt Carson inject his pain meds into his IV, now all he had to do was go to sleep and wait for Rodney to find a way to take him home.
TBC…