Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Stargate Atlantis or it's wonderful characters.
Spoilers: Through Reunion in Season 4
On the timeline: Echoes – Season 3 (the one with the whales, Lantean ghosts, and a solar flare)
6 – Restless
Ronon was on his fourth jog of the day. He'd just been so agitated lately and nothing was helping. His attempt at meditating with Teyla had only gained him some much needed sleep and a glare from her.
As usual, he and Sheppard had gone running about an hour after dinner. A couple of hours later, Ronon was out on another run, this time without Sheppard and on a different course than before.
He wasn't sure why he was so out of sorts, but he needed to get it under control soon or he was going to stun someone for simply breathing too loudly near him. He was running at a pounding rate, hoping to wear himself out.
As he turned a corner in one of the corridors in an unused section of the city he heard the faint echo of footsteps ahead of him. Curiosity and instinct took over as he pushed himself a little harder to shorten the gap between them.
As he rounded another corner he could tell he was getting closer. The sound of the foot falls were becoming clearer. As he rounded yet another corner he caught a flash at the end of the corridor of a woman as she rounded the corner. He noted that she had picked up her speed.
Ronon picked up his speed as well. He rounded the next corner and found the corridor ahead empty. He slowed to a stop and listened, but he heard no steps ahead of him.
The tracker in him took over and he slowed his breathing to hear better as he walked silently down the corridor. He wasn't sure what was going on, but all of his senses were on alert.
As he neared the end of the corridor he heard a small breath behind him and he stopped cold, waiting for another sound. He slowly began to turn and heard a small voice behind him.
"You scared me to death, Ronon." He looked to his right and saw Dr. Keller peeking out of an open doorway. "Thank god for your dreads or I'd still be quaking in my boots."
Ronon looked down at her feet.
"Or running shoes in this case," she said laughing lightly.
"Sorry 'bout that. I didn't expect to see anyone running out here this late," he told her.
"That's because I'm usually the only one running out here this late," she informed him as he watched her stretching her legs to keep from cramping up. He'd only caught glimpses of her in the last several weeks since she stitched him for Dr. Beckett.
"I usually run with Sheppard, but I've been feeling a bit…"
"Restless?" she finished for him.
Ronon nodded his head, "Thought more running might help," he replied.
He could now add running to the list of things he knew about the doctor. It wasn't that he was interested in the doctor or what she did or didn't do. He'd just noticed their paths were crossing more than he had noticed in the past.
"Ronon," she said pulling him out of his musings.
"What?"
"Kind of lost you there for a moment," she teased him. "I was just wondering if you wanted to finish jogging together or if I should give you a head start."
"Let's go," he said and they started back. They ran the rest of the way in silence. He noticed she seemed at peace without talking and he was grateful she didn't feel the need to make this a social thing.
After they entered the crew quarters he said goodnight and they both headed off to their rooms.
Two nights later Jennifer was out running again, trying to wear off some of the restless energy she couldn't seem to shake. At least now they knew what had caused the restlessness, something to do with the sun and coronas… after that it was all McKay-speak. She was just thankful it hadn't been the whales, directly anyway.
About ten minutes into her run she came up on a set of stairs that led down a few levels. She enjoyed the going down part, but hated the back up part at the end of her jog.
As she rounded the corner she saw the stairs laid out before her and a solo figure sitting upon the first step. She wasn't going to even imagine Ronon was there waiting for her. From the other night she knew this was a route he took, just not usually at the time she did.
He'd said he was anxious and irritable lately and running helped. She'd also seen him spending most of his day worried about Teyla. She'd not realized they were that close, like siblings even. He handled Teyla with such care and tenderness that Jennifer felt like an intruder the few times she had approached Teyla's bed to take her vitals.
Ronon looked lost in thought, but she was not fooled. That man knew she was there. He was probably wondering why she hadn't approached him yet, so she began to walk. Once she reached his side she sat down on the step.
"Am I intruding? I can move on," she offered.
"No," was the single syllable reply.
"Teyla's feeling better," Jennifer offered, knowing he wouldn't be out here if it wasn't the case.
"Dr. Beckett said she should be released in the morning."
"Did it kind of hit you?" she asked him knowingly.
"A little," he raised his head that had been studying the stairs and peeked at her before his gaze returned to the stairs. "Wasn't expecting that."
"It does kind of sneak up on ya," she offered. Jennifer knew what he meant, until they'd had to leave for Earth when the Ancients demanded their home back, she hadn't realized how attached she'd gotten to Atlantis and its inhabitants.
"Would you like to run with me?" she inquired, sensing his need to escape.
His response was to stand and begin walking down the stairs. When he reached the bottom he waited for her to join him. She looked up at him with a soft smile before turning and beginning to run down the corridor. She couldn't help but notice he was letting her set the pace. After a few moments she picked it up a bit. Jennifer knew his thoughts would consume him and a faster pace always helped her when she was feeling that way.
The only sound heard while they jogged was the thumping of their feet. It had a very hypnotic quality that carried them for the next hour.
As their run came to an end near the crew quarters they said their goodnights without missing a step, both a little more relaxed then when they began.