Their journey to the portal was uneventful, but seemed to drag on endlessly. John was silent, bristling with a quiet intensity. Elizabeth peered at him from time to time, but his eyes bore straight ahead, never turning to meet hers. Ronan and Teyla flanked them and though they were safe behind the shield barrier, their eyes were ever watchful. Rodney alone chattered idly, never seeming to notice the tension around him.
They'd been walking for over an hour when they finally reached the ridge line. They stalled before the cave where John's team would be permitted to cross the portal and would return to Atlantis via the Stargate. Ronon grabbed a quick swig of water, while Teyla's watchful eyes continued to scan the area around them. A moment later, Rodney snapped his fingers rapidly to get their attention before taping his earbud.
The ancients must have dropped the barrier allowing the Daedalus' radio transmission to finally break through. John was somewhere behind her now and Elizabeth didn't want to turn around to meet his eyes. She ached at the thought of saying goodbye.
"Yes, yes, yes. Give us a couple minutes and she'll be ready to depart." Rodney wrapped up his conversation and glanced towards Elizabeth. "Novak is ready."
Oblivious to her distress, Rodney began rambling off a virtual shopping list of items he wanted when she returned from Earth. Teyla took his arm, drawing him away while he chattered on.
Elizabeth's skin prickled and she knew that John had edged up behind her. She turned, finding him closer than she realized. Her palms landed on his chest as she tried to avoid crashing into him. A sense of urgency flared through her body, there were so many things she should say. Instead, her hands fisted into his shirt and she lowered her eyes, pushing her forehead into his chest.
He gently pressed a kiss into her hair, his fingers trailing down her curls. She released his shirt, her hands falling, strumming along his sides. He grasped her head, drawing her up and firmly guiding her mouth to his. His lips were dry, the friction sending spirals of heat down her spine. Her hands stretched to his shoulders, drawing him closer and deepening their kiss. A moment later, she was breathless and it took every ounce of self-control she could harness to break away from his lips.
She shifted slightly, the side of her forehead coming to rest upon John's cheek. His hands were still in her hair, his thumb tracing light circles behind her ear. She needed to go, but wanted to feel him pressed against her just a moment longer.
Her fingers trailed down his muscled arms, stalling at the crook of his elbows. She squeezed softly. "I'll be back before you know it."
"Better be." He murmured against her ear.
She was dimly aware that Rodney's voice had trailed off to complete silence and could only imagine the horror on his face. She had seconds before the Daedalus would beam her up so she grudgingly let go, taking a half step back from John.
"I love you." Her voice a whisper, but he heard, his head nodded almost imperceptibly. Though it was the first time she'd told him, his eyes searing into her own were the only answer she needed in return. Moments later she was on the Daedalus, reality crushing the air from her lungs. This separation was going to be harder than she could have imagined.
John stood frozen, reluctant to emerge from the sublime rush of that kiss. Her goodbye had burned away the shadows that ravaged his mind after discovering she was being sent back to Earth. Remembering her final words, he felt a smile stretch slyly across his face. Over the years, she'd seen into the darkest parts of his being, yet somehow she loved him. It was a heady sensation.
He finally looked up, pretty sure his facial expression was somewhere left field of professional. Most likely it was closer to outright cockiness, but he really didn't give a damn. This was his team, they knew he and Elizabeth all too well. They'd have figured it out sooner rather than later.
"What was that?" McKay squawked. His face was a brilliant flush of indignation.
"What?" John shrugged his shoulders feigning ignorance.
"What do you mean what? You know exactly what I mean, Kirk. We all saw that kiss."
"Oh, that." John felt a full on smirk takeover his face. "Yeah. I can do that now."
"Pretty sure she's the one who started that." Ronon quipped, the corners of his mouth twitching with amusement.
"Unbelievable. You and Elizabeth?" All the color drained from Rodney's face. "I need to sit down. Anyone have anything to eat? I think my blood sugar is low, I'm feeling..."
"Faint?" John offered, pressing his lips together, casting his eyes speculatively towards Ronon and Teyla.
"Hey, I do not faint! I-"
"John, it pleases me to see you happy." Teyla's smile was warm, but she seemed distracted. "Perhaps we should be getting back. You can share more of your time away and I'm sure you're anxious to hear reports from when you were gone."
"Reports from when I was gone?" John scoffed. He routinely put off reading mission reports for days, Elizabeth or Lorne always brought anything unusual to his attention. "How long was I gone in your time anyway, 3, 4 hours?"
"Less than six, but there have been some developments." Teyla's eyes arched pointedly towards Ronan. "I'd feel more comfortable briefing you back on Atlantis."
"Let's go." Ronon was already walking. "Before they change their minds about letting us leave."
John eyed them carefully wondering what they weren't saying. At any rate, they had a point and with Elizabeth gone, he was more than ready to get off this rock.
McKay slumped back against rock wall near the entrance. "I don't think I can walk. Maybe I am feeling faint." He sounded morose
"C'mon, McKay." John hissed, grabbing McKay's elbow and tugging him into the cave. "After six months on this planet, I'm overdue for a beer."
"I thought perhaps losing the beard would take priority." Teyla turned back, a knowing smile on her face.
John ran his fingers down his chin, finding the stubble not as overgrown as when he'd left the cloister. "We'll see. I think it's grown on Elizabeth."
TBC: I hope you enjoyed! Thank you for reading and for the reviews.