The month was finally over and Rosalie couldn't be more grateful for it. During her suspension, at one point, she thought she was going insane, after all that time stuck in her room. The only time she actually got to leave, other than for meals, was when she took Ollie back to his mother.

Elizabeth sent Sheppard to take her, Fay, Bassel, Chantria and Ollie back to their home world and Rosalie has to admit that it was harder than she thought it would be. Saying goodbye to the little girl and her parents was a lot harder than the first time she did it.

The silver lining was definitely seeing Ollie being reunited with Juniper, his mother. Seeing the happiness on the woman's face when she saw her son brought tears to Rosalie's eyes and even Sheppard was touched at the scene before them.

By the time they returned to the city, not only did they returned with their hearts full, but also with a promise from the new village leader that negotiations for a new trade deal could commence as soon as Elizabeth was ready.

It seemed that having saved all those people showed the villagers that the Atlanteans were people who kept their word and were valuable allies and, most importantly, friends, in the words of their leader.

When they gave the news to Elizabeth, she was actually surprised by it, since she had had trouble in restarting negotiations with them, because they believed the Atlanteans were just trying to take advantage of them.

After that little excursion, Rosalie found herself back stuck in her quarters. The only thing bringing her happiness were the nights she would spend with Evan. Since that first day, Evan had spent every night with her, much to her heart's despair. Don't get her wrong, she loved every minute of it, but come morning she would hate her heart for falling even harder for him.

And it wasn't as if they would have sex every night. In reality, most nights they would just sleep, holding each other, and nothing more. And that was exactly the problem, since it gave her a taste of what it could be if they were together.

Rosalie smiles sadly as she watches the sunset, sitting in one of the many balconies in the city. She wishes things were different, but there's nothing she can do without the risk of losing her best friend.

The doors behind her open and she looks over her shoulder, watching as Sheppard walks over to her, a smile on his lips.

-"Hey. What're you doing here? Everything okay?" - Rosalie knows he isn't supposed to be in the city.

-"Got back earlier. Everything's fine. I just want to talk to you about something."

-"Am I in trouble?" - She's sure she has been on her best behavior, but still…

-"You're not in trouble, relax." - He chuckles. - "I just want to check in and… and make sure we're okay."

-"Oh. Look, I get it why you stood by Elizabeth when she suspended me. And I do owe you an apology for what happened."

-"You owe me nothing, Rosalie. I get why you did it and you were right when you said that I would've done the same thing. Hell, I've done the same thing. As far as I'm concerned, we're good."

-"Same." - She smiles at him and lightly punches his arm, seeing him look back at her with fake hurt on his face, making her laugh.

They stay in comfortable silence for a while, just watching the sunset. From the very beginning that Rosalie had understood why Sheppard had taken Elizabeth's side and she hadn't been mad at him. She knew she had gone against a direct order and she deserved some sort of punishment for it. She was just grateful that that punishment didn't involve her getting sent back to Earth.

Rosalie hears Sheppard clear his throat, making her focus on her surroundings and not on her thoughts.

-"So… Have you finally told Lorne how you feel?"

-"No. I don't know how to do it without losing him."

-"I thought you already had, considering he just spent the last month sleeping in your quarters."

-"Now, how in the world do you know that?"

-"It's really hard to keep secrets from the security team." - He looks back at her and smirks.

-"Crap! The Airmen outside my quarters." - She slaps her forehead as she finally puts two and two together.

-"Bingo!"

-"I should've known they would say something to you." - She lets out a laugh.

-"What happened there?"

-"Well, like you said, he spent the last month with me. It wasn't as if we were… intimate, every night. Most nights we just cuddled. The problem is that now I have no idea what it means. If it was just because he was lonely or if there's something more to it. It's all a big mess."

-"If you want my opinion, it seems that Lorne also has feelings for you and just doesn't know how to tell you either."

-"You think so?"

-"I do. Listen, if you want, I can probe him a little and see what he tells me."

-"Don't you think that that will make him suspicious?"

-"You do know who you're talking to, right? I can make him talk, don't worry."

Rosalie leans on her knees, her eyes on the sun setting before them, thinking about Sheppard's offer.

-"Do it."

-"You sure?"

-"Yeah, I'm sure."

-"Okay. I'll let you know as soon as I have something."

Rosalie lets out a breath, thinking that this can turn out great or be a great disaster.