This Kiss

a Stargate: Atlantis ficlet by Setcheti

written by request for TexasAries

based on one scene from a Season 2 episode (“Rodney kissed who?!  For real, on the actual show?!”)

 

Disclaimer:  Don’t own Stargate Atlantis or any of the characters thereof. 

 

Carson Beckett had a problem.  His problem’s name was Rodney McKay.

 

But this wasn’t Carson’s usual Rodney McKay problem.  Under normal circumstances, a Rodney McKay problem involved having the Canadian astrophysicist under foot so much that Carson wanted to pitch him off the nearest balcony into the ocean or toss him through the wormhole.  In this instance – and it was an isolated one, in Carson’s experience – the problem wasn’t getting rid of Rodney, it was getting Rodney to stop avoiding him.

 

And Carson was positive that the avoiding wasn’t accidental.  Rodney was ducking him like a teenager with a library-night hickey, and it was all because of The Kiss.

 

The Kiss was a problem all by itself.  It was keeping Carson awake nights and distracting him during the day.  And since the chief medical doctor of the entire Atlantis mission couldn’t afford to be so distracted…it just wasn’t possible for him to pretend it hadn’t happened.  He had to talk to Rodney, and it couldn’t wait any longer.

 

So here he was, waiting just one last time.  Because Rodney would be coming this way soon, and Carson had decided to just surprise him and force the talk on him whether he wanted it or not.  There had to be an end and this was going to be it.  Or so he hoped, anyway.  Rodney was just a bit bigger than he was…

 

Footsteps, heavy and tired.  It had to be him.  Carson straightened in his shadows and prepared himself.  The steps neared, turned the corner.  Rodney registered someone standing almost in front of him in the shadows just seconds before Carson jumped out of them and pushed him against the opposite corridor wall.  “You’re not duckin’ me any more,” he growled.

 

The growl even surprised him, and it made Rodney’s pale blue eyes widen appreciably in the dim light.  The astrophysicist seemed to be having some difficulty finding words to address the situation.  “Carson, I…what…”

 

Carson firmed his hold on his aggravating friend’s upper arms as he felt the muscles tense.  “You know, for the supposedly smartest man on the whole bloody planet, you can be one daft bugger,” he interrupted the stammering astrophysicist, pleased that the growl still seemed to be with him.  Had he really been that frustrated by this whole situation?  It seemed so.  “Rodney, I know you seem to want to just forget it happened…but I can’t.  We have to talk about it.”

 

Rodney twitched against his hold, looking miserable.  “Why?”  He sounded almost…plaintive?  “I…I’m sorry, okay?  I didn’t mean…it wasn’t my idea!  I just hoped that if I stayed away you wouldn’t…”  He twitched again, almost helplessly, and dropped his eyes.  “I didn’t want this to have to get…violent, okay?  It’s bad enough when…other people let me know how they feel about it…but I didn’t want to force you to that point.”  The sigh seemed to shake his whole body.  “If you need to, though, just…go ahead.  I won’t…I won’t fight back.”

 

“You wont, will you?  Well then…”  Carson attacked.  He captured Rodney’s downturned mouth and repeated The Kiss with everything he had in him.  And once he was finished, he pulled back and took a look.  Bewildered was a good look on Rodney, he decided.  Much better than fearful and resigned had been.  “I had meant to talk first,” he apologized.  “But I think that pretty much got over all the important parts for me – for the moment, anyway.  I am goin’ to want to know the who’s and how’s of whoever’s been lettin’ you know their feelin’s, but we’ll get to that.  Right now I’d just like you to say somethin’.”

 

Rodney blinked, and found himself looking straight into the Scottish doctor’s blue eyes.  There was no anger there, no disgust, maybe just a touch of worry and a little more concern.  He found his voice.  “You…you kissed me.”

 

“Yes, that I did.”  The doctor was reassuringly matter-of-fact about it.  “You kissed me first, and I wanted to see if it would be as good when you were in charge of your own self again.”

 

“Was it?”  It just slipped out, and Rodney immediately turned bright red.  “I mean, not that it matters…”

 

“Of course it matters,” Carson interrupted.  “If it didn’t matter I wouldn’t have done it, now would I?  And I bloody well wouldn’t have been skulkin’ about in the halls of a night to waylay you either.” He cocked his head, thoughtfully.  “Would you like me to do it again, just so you can be sure?”

 

Rodney had barely nodded before Carson captured his mouth again.  This time The Kiss went on long enough to leave them both gasping, and when the doctor pulled back Rodney let his head fall back against the wall and kept his eyes closed.  “I’m…sure.”  He waved one hand aimlessly.  “For the moment, anyway.  I think…I think part of my brain just stopped working.”

 

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” the doctor told him, grinning.  “But you’ve had me distracted ever since that first kiss, you know – I haven’t been able to think about anythin’ else.”  He let go of one arm and tugged – gently – on the other.  “Come on now, let’s not be standin’ around.  I know you were headin’ for bed, but before you get there I’d at least like to share a nightcap with you.”

 

“And talk?”  Carson answered in the affirmative, and Rodney opened his eyes and allowed himself to be pulled away from the corridor wall.  “Can we…”

 

“Yes, I’d planned on it.”  Carson kept leading.  “And then tomorrow we’ll find time to do it again.  The day after that, too.”  Rodney was following a little faster now, and the doctor grinned again.  He didn’t know if he was still going to be distracted tomorrow or not…but at least in the future he’d hopefully have a better reason for not getting enough sleep.