Author's Note: Just a little warning here... I'm not sure how Shep would handle things here. I'm pretty confident he'd be royally pissed because if you think about what they've done... well... read on... :) We don't see John lose it often, so I'm channeling the anger from the scenes in The Storm and The Eye where he thinks Koyla's killed Elizabeth. Lemme know if you think it's too little or too much... :P - Nika
"All right! All right!" Rodney walked quickly into the room, glancing curiously at Ronon before turning towards the Colonel. "What the hell is the all fired emergency! I was in the middle of…" Rodney paused. "Did you just lock the door?"
John stepped away from the controls and crossed his arms tightly in front of his chest. He'd done the good-cop routine with Ronon, but in the four minutes it had taken Rodney to get his scientific ass to the gym, John's frustration and anger had slammed him very firmly into bad-cop.
"What the hell is going on between you…" John glared at Rodney. "And you…" He glared at Ronon. "And Dr. Keller?"
"Uh… what?" Rodney looked momentarily worried, wringing his hands before quickly clasping them behind his back. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Rodney." John growled. "I am so far beyond the mood for games you'll be lucky if I don't deep six your ass off the north pier."
Rodney twitched and glanced at Ronon, who was still sitting in the window sill, glaring at John.
"Do either of you two have any idea where Dr. Keller is right now?" John asked.
Ronon blinked and shrugged, and Rodney shook his head.
"She's decided to run off and explore the lab Major Whalen's team cleared two days ago."
"What!" Ronon stood up with a growl. "Michael's lab?"
"Alone?" Rodney squeaked.
"Well now here's the funny thing." John shifted his weight and continued to glare between the two men, riding their obvious discomfort. "It seems our ever-popular Chief Medical Officer specifically requested that our Commanding Officer not include me on the mission request… or more specifically… that my team not be included on the mission request. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that little tidbit in a very early meeting with Mr. Woolsey this morning."
"She… can she do that?" Rodney looked from John to Ronon then back again.
"Yes." John clenched his jaw. "She can, and she did."
"Who's she with?" Ronon asked.
"Lorne." John watched Ronon's shoulder's drop with relief, if only slightly.
Rodney rolled his head back with a relieved sigh. "So she's not alone."
"No." John glared at Rodney. "No thanks to you."
"Hey!" Rodney blinked, then glared at Ronon. "I didn't do anything."
"What…" John dropped his arms and stepped forward. "Are you two up to?"
Rodney found an interesting spec on the corner of his shoulder to pick at, his eyes raising to glare at Ronon.
John turned towards Ronon, who was standing stiffly, his arms threaded tightly across his chest, glaring back at McKay.
"Oh. My. God." John exclaimed, not liking the idea that had just popped into his head.
Both men looked towards him.
"Please. Please tell me you're not having some kind of… competition?" John knew Ronon's face would be locked, but Rodney couldn't play poker to save his life. He turned directly towards the scientist, who was looking everywhere but at John, and immediately got his answer.
John swore.
"Now wait a minute." Rodney stammered, stepping forward. "It's not what you think… we just… we were just… It's not a competition. Not in the sporting sense… I mean, we did shake on it… but…"
"You what!" John shouted, anger ripping into his voice. "You shook on it? Over... Jennifer?"
Silence.
Stressed. John almost laughed aloud. Cadman said Jennifer was 'a little stressed'. Well no shit, Sherlock. No wonder she was stressed. She had a collection of alpha males digging at her heels, and these two idiots making bets over her love-life!
He cursed again, and ran his hand down the length of his face. Then he spun around, took two steps towards the door, his fingers digging into his hair before dropping to his side. He snapped his hand into a fist and spun back around.
"What the hell is wrong with you two!" He shouted. He pointed from one man to the other, riding the anger that twisted through his abdomen. "God damn it. You tell me right now you don't have any money riding on this. Because if you do, I swear…"
"What!" Rodney blanched and looked sufficiently shocked. "Money? No!"
Ronon shook his head quickly.
John's hands clenched and unclenched at his sides as he fought the urge to slam his fists through them both.
"Does she know?" He growled, the muscle in the side of his jaw bulging.
"Know what?" Rodney stared at him wide eyed.
"Does she know… that you two idiots are playing her like a poker pot?"
"We're not…" Rodney glanced quickly at Ronon.
"We never…" Ronon started forward at the same time.
John held up his hand, cutting them both off.
"Does. She. Know?" He knew he was shouting but he was too far gone to stop.
Both men shook their heads.
John would have sighed with relief if he wasn't barely containing an urge to pummel them both. Because that heartache he sure as hell didn't want to come fact to face with. And he couldn't even begin to fathom the kind of backlash this could cause. He could almost hear his old quarters at McMurdo calling him. Not to mention the emotional issues this would leave behind. And Jennifer… shit. He liked her, damn it. She didn't deserve this kind of disrespectful behavior. No one did. But Jennifer…
Fuck!
He glared at Ronon, then Rodney. "This discussion never leaves this room, do you hear me? Never. If she doesn't know already, then she is never going to find out. Do I make myself clear?"
Silence.
"Do… I… make… myself… clear!"
Two nods.
"Not even Teyla."
Two more nods.
"No sleep talking. No drunken confessions. Nothing!"
Ronon opened his mouth and John cut him off with an abrupt wave. "I don't want to hear it. Not a damn word! What I want… is for you two end it. Now. No fighting. No bloodshed. Nothing. This is the god-damn twenty-first century! Women are not prizes to be had in a game of chance! What the hell is wrong with you two?"
"We didn't…" Rodney started.
John shut him up with a glare. Then he shook his head slowly, a short bitter laugh falling out. "This is… by far… the stupidest… lowest… cruelest… most disrespectful thing I've come across in a long… long time. And gentlemen, I assure you, I've seen some pretty asinine stunts over the years. But this? This… Hell, I don't even have the words to describe it!"
"But we… I mean… It wasn't like that…" Rodney started.
"McKay." Ronon interrupted. "He's right."
Rodney frowned at Ronon. "He… He is?"
"Yes." John nodded, his voice dropping a few decibels in surprise at Ronon's agreement. "I am."
Ronon shrugged and continued to watch McKay, with Rodney staring silently back.
John shook his head sadly and turned around, leaving the two to their silent staring match. His shoulders slumped in disgust as he swiped his hand across the access panel. This was just as much his fault as theirs. He should have seen it. Should have noticed sooner. Jesus, if Jennifer knew what they were up too…
"John." Rodney called, as the doors swished quietly open. "Wait."
John hesitated in the opening, but didn't turn around.
"I… we… we're sorry." Rodney said quietly.
John shook his head and stepped out of the room, refusing to look back.
"I'm not the one you need to apologize to."