Tegan Chronicles

Affairs of Love 9

"Hey." Janet stood in the doorway of Tegan's research lab. "Making any headway?"

"No. You were right, the symbiote is too far gone. It's nothing more than a dried husk. I could learn as much from watching corn grow."

"Sounds exciting." Janet gave her a sardonic smile. "You going to be finishing up soon?"

"Actually, I've got a few simulations I want to run on the computer before I close up shop."

"Mind if I ask what?"

"DNA stuff, genetics, mind-numbing stuff." Tegan shrugged.

"How important is it?" Janet looked at her watch.

"To the world, not important at all. To me, wild horses couldn't pull me away."

"How about grilled bovine?"

Tegan shook her head.

"A girl's got to eat."

"Mess hall." Tegan peered into her microscope.

"Sam and Cass will be there."

"Science needs me." Tegan jotted down some figures on her clipboard while still making observations through the scope.

"Chip-n-dales?"

"Chipmunks, or barely dressed studs."

"Studs."

"DNA." Tegan pulled her current slide and put in a new one.

"I thought you said you could learn as much from watching corn grow?"

"Have you ever watched corn grow?" Tegan shot back, a frown creasing her forehead.

"Can't say that I have."

"You can learn a lot."

"It'll still be here in the morning." Janet insisted.

"Janet, I really need to finish this up and run those simulations."

"It was just a dinner invitation."

"No," She let out an exasperated sigh. "It's never just a dinner invitation with you Janet. I can take care of myself." Whether she chose to or not was an entirely different matter. "I'm not a child. I've been taking care of myself since I was old enough to walk."

Janet knew all too well there was a deep rooted truth in the statement, and let it drop. "Fine, if I can't entice you with half naked men and steak."

"I'm a doctor, I've seen it all."

"You're telling me." Janet let her eyes travel the Major's body. There was only one other female who made BDUs look good… she shook the thought from her head and tried to focus on Chip-n-Dale, and not the half naked ones. "Just don't stay here too late."

Tegan buried her face back in her microscope.

"If you change your mind…"

"I won't."

"Hey." Janet walked into the lab not surprised to see the redhead still hard at work.

Tegan was ready to tear into Janet about having just been there, when she glanced at the clock. It was after ten. "Shouldn't you be in bed or something?"

Rather than return the cutting remark Janet held up a plate covered in saran wrap. "I brought you dinner."

"Steak?" Tegan raised her eyebrows.

"Well done like you like it, I thought you could heat it up in the mess hall." Janet walked over and placed it on Tegan's desk knowing that OSHA would have a fit if they saw it. "I'd better get back home, so Sam can get to bed. You need to do the same."

"I will." Tegan reached for another slide.

The next time Janet appeared in the doorway there was no happy greeting, just an annoyed clearing of her throat as she spotted the untouched plate of now spoiled steak, cold baked potato, and wilted salad.

"What'd I do now?" Tegan looked up once again at the interruption. Janet couldn't have been gone more than ten minutes by her calculations. It took Tegan a second to notice Janet was in uniform. A glance at her watch told her it had been ten hours since she'd last seen her. "Oh."

"Oh?" Janet repeated.

"I – uh…" Tegan looked around, a grin pulling at her lips. "Time flies when you're having fun?"

Of course Janet failed to find it amusing. As much as she wanted to give into the smile, she couldn't. "You can take care of yourself huh?"

There was no escape and Tegan knew it. She reached over and cut the microscope off. It was best to just try and appease her for the moment. She could always sneak back in after she'd had a shower. "Time got away from me."

"Hey Kiser, what cha working on?"

Tegan tried not to growl at Jack's interruption as she put the sample she'd been working with in the centrifuge.

"Still watching corn grow?" He stepped up on the other side of the raised island where she was working.

"Something like that."

"Well it's quitting time."

"I just need five more minutes." She jotted something on the clipboard in front of her, having not even glanced in his direction.

"Too bad." He pulled the plug and Tegan looked up in horror at the machine ground to a stop.

"You didn't."

He raised his eyebrows and tapped his watch. "Quittin' time."

"Sir, do you know how long I've been working on that?"

"I have an idea."

"Janet put you up to this?"

"Nope. Doing my job Kiser."

"Watching corn grow? She tells you I worked all night and all of a sudden you grow balls and come in here to tell me its quitting time?"

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that last part." He rubbed his chin. "I was reviewing security footage. Do you know when the last time was you actually left your lab at quitting time?"

Tegan didn't answer, and instead reached for the vial sitting it the centrifuge.

"It can wait." Jack put his hand over hers. "I couldn't find any footage where you'd actually left on time. And I know for certain you've worked pretty much through the night the last two nights. As for corn…"

"Security tapes?" She rolled her eyes, why did they have to be wired for sound too?

He nodded. "But Doc does want to see you, and if you're not too mad at me, we're getting together at Mac's tonight."

"Yes sir." She slipped her lab coat off and tossed it over her chair.

"Do I need to walk with you down to the infirmary?"

"No sir." She patted her leg and made a loud kissing sound getting Shadow's attention. "Let's go boy."

"You went back to your lab today." Janet spoke as soon as she saw Tegan come in followed by Shadow.

"You didn't tell me not to."

"I didn't think I had to." She shook her head. "But I am telling you I don't want you driving home, or at all this weekend for that matter."

"I'm meeting Sam and the guys at Mac's tonight."

"Then I'll take you."

"I can drive."

"You can spend the weekend in the infirmary," She threatened. "You have no business getting behind the wheel of a car after the amount of sleep you've had."

"Who says I'm driving a car?" She smirked.

"Tegan!"

She wasn't sure if it was the tone of Janet's voice or her expression, maybe it was the combination, but she knew when to stop. "Fine, I won't drive."