Entry tags:

pg-13

An Exceptional Cup of Coffee (PG-13)
Title: An Exceptional Cup of Coffee
Author: Sandy
Word Count: ~2,000
Fandom: Stargate: Atlantis
Pairing: John/Rodney
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: S2 through Trinity
Summary: Something had to be done to repair this damaged friendship, and since the two men involved were too childish to get past their hurt feelings, it looked like it was up to Radek to fix the problem.
Disclaimer: As much as I'd love to own Rodney McKay and John Sheppard as well as the rest of the Atlantis team, someone far richer that I owns them. I just like playing with them
A/N: Written for the (Cuff ‘Em, Vamp ‘Em, or Just Make ‘Em Come Already) Kink and Cliché Multi-Fandom Challenge. My prompt: Cliche: Yenta gets the characters together.

~~~


Radek jumped when Rodney burst into the lab and yelled, "Zelenka, don't you have that simulation finished yet?"

"Not yet, Rodney. It is-"

"What are you waiting for," Rodney interrupted, two spots of red highlighting his cheeks, "the next Wraith attack? I need that information, and I needed it yesterday. God! Why is it if I need anything done around here, I have to..."

The lab door slid shut cutting off the rest of the tirade as Rodney stormed back out of the lab, hands flailing about his head as if he were fighting off a swarm of killer bees, but Radek knew he could have filled in the rest of the sentence. He shook his head and returned to his work.

"Is it me," Dr. Ralph Benson asked, "or is McKay even more intense than usual?"

"It's not just you," Christine Simpson said. "If you ask me, he needs to get laid."

"If you ask me," Radek muttered sotto voce, "we all need to get laid."

Simpson heard him and let out a rather unladylike snort. "You aren't wrong there, Radek," she said, her voice tinged with amusement.

Radek felt his ears burning from the heat of his blush, but he sighed and nodded his head. Tension was always a factor in their lives, and the normal stress relievers, sex included, were rare commodities in the Pegasus Galaxy. Still, they were all used to working in high-pressure situations and normally, for all his histrionics, Rodney thrived in the pressure-cooker that was Atlantis. But lately it seemed that Rodney, hyperactive at the best of times, was even more agitated than usual, his tongue sharper, his impatience reaching critical mass. And it seemed to Radek that he was the victim of Rodney's venom more than any other scientist.

Of course part of that was that he worked closer with Rodney than any of the other scientists, so it was logical that he'd feel Rodney's wrath more than the others. Still, he was getting very tired of receiving the sharp edge of McKay's tongue.

Radek was sure he knew what was causing Rodney's ill temper. Ever since the disaster at Doranda, Rodney had been working harder than ever as if he needed to prove his worth, which was ridiculous. Even though Radek had been irritated with Rodney when his advice and calculations had been dismissed out-of-hand, he knew that if anyone could have made Project Arcturus work, it would have been Rodney. The problem was that no one could have made the project work, but Rodney had been too caught up in the challenge to listen, too determined to prove himself smarter than the Ancients who had failed, and his ego had overruled his common sense. To be fair, Radek was also aware that Rodney had desperately wanted the weapon to work so that that they could use it to destroy the Wraith once and for all.

After he and Colonel Sheppard had returned from Doranda, Rodney had been honesty contrite and had offered a sincere apology much to Radek's surprise. And right after that, Rodney had become almost manic as he delved even more intently into his work, working even longer hours than he usually did with few breaks, even for sleep.

Before Doranda, Rodney would have been distracted occasionally from his work by off-world missions or whatever social interaction had been planned for the inhabitants of Atlantis. However, there hadn't been any off-world missions planned for Colonel Sheppard's team for the past few weeks, and Radek suddenly realized that Rodney had not attended any of the social activities. More often than not, Colonel Sheppard or Carson Beckett would drag Rodney away from his work. But Carson was currently spending all his off-duty time with Laura Cadman, and now that Radek thought about it, he hadn't noticed Rodney and Colonel Sheppard together except for staff meetings for weeks now.

"Radek, could you come here a minute?" Simpson asked from her workstation interrupting his musings. Saving his current work, Radek rose from his desk and went over to help Simpson, the problem of Rodney McKay forgotten for the time being.

~~~

"I'm ready for some lunch," Simpson said, standing up. "Ralph? Radek?"

"Sounds good to me," Benson said, quickly imputing a few more keystrokes before he saved his work, stood up and walked with Simpson to the door.

"Radek?" Simpson repeated.

"Yes, yes. I am coming," Radek said, making a shooing gesture. "I will join you in a few minutes."

His co-workers nodded and left. Ten minutes later, Radek reaching a point where the simulation would run without his supervision and he, too, left the lab.

When he entered the dining hall, Radek stopped and looked around, trying to locate his companions. As he glanced across the crowded room, he spotted Colonel Sheppard sitting at a table with Ronon. He was slouched casually in his seat, and he looked as if he hadn't a care in the world. Sweeping his eyes past the Colonel, Radek next saw Rodney, and here was a different story.

Rodney sat alone at a small table covered with his lunch tray and a laptop computer. His body was stiff and tense, and his eyes kept glancing from the computer screen to Sheppard's back. Even from a distance, Radek could see the longing in Rodney's eyes every time they rested on Sheppard. Radek sighed and looked away from the painful display.

He finally spotted Benson and Simpson, and getting his lunch, he joined them at a table far enough back that he could see both Rodney and Sheppard. Just as Radek started to eat, Rodney stood up and walked stiffly out of the mess hall, eyes straight ahead, not acknowledging anyone else in the room. Sheppard tensed as soon as Rodney entered his peripheral vision, and he watched the scientist until he was out of sight. Once Rodney was gone, Sheppard's shoulders slumped. Radek filed that information away to consider later, and turned his attention to his food and his friends.

The next day, Radek had the opportunity to more closely observe Rodney and the Colonel when he attended a meeting called by Dr. Weir. The two men remained stiff and formal when together, not speaking directly to each other unless it was necessary to the topic under discussion. But, Radek noticed, that didn't stop them from stealing glances when they were sure the other wouldn't notice.

Sheppard would dramatically roll his eyes whenever Rodney made an acerbic remark but a smile would twitch at his lips, and Radek was sure he saw pride in Sheppard's eyes whenever Rodney said something particularly brilliant. If Rodney looked his way, however, Sheppard's face would quickly close off into a cool and aloof mask.

As for Rodney...the look in his eyes when he surreptitiously glanced at Sheppard was so full of longing and loneliness that it made Radek, well, it made Radek want to knock their two stubborn heads together.

Something had to be done to repair this damaged friendship, and since the two men involved were too childish to get past their hurt feelings, it looked like it was up to Radek to fix the problem.

~~~

"Colonel Sheppard, may I join you?" Radek asked holding his dinner tray a few inches over the table where the Colonel sat.

Sheppard looked surprised at the request, but smiled charmingly and said, "Sure, Doc."

Radek smiled nervously, placed his tray on the table, and took a seat across from Sheppard. He ate a bite of food and then said, "We have retrieved the crashed puddle jumper from Olesia. I have just begun the assessment, but I believe it can be repaired."

"That's good," Sheppard said, taking a sip of coffee. "I was afraid there was too much damage. McKay said..." Sheppard's lips tightened into a thin line, and he didn't finish his sentence, instead taking a bite of pie.

"So, you are still angry at Rodney?" Radek asked casually as if he wasn't aware of the continued breach.

"And you're not?" Sheppard answered tersely.

"No. Rodney was wrong, and he apologized. I have forgiven him. He has not, I think, forgiven himself though."

Radek could tell that Sheppard forced himself to slouch back in a casual pose. "Well, that's good. He destroyed a solar system and almost got us killed. A little guilt is just what he needs to bring that super-sized ego of his under control."

Radek looked at him curiously. "You really think so? You think that he needs to doubt himself and his abilities?"

"A little doubt-" Sheppard began stubbornly.

"Could get us all killed," Radek interrupted, speaking gently.

"What?" Sheppard said, sitting back up.

Radek put his fork down and looked seriously at the man sitting across from him. "I would not think it necessary to remind you of how many times Rodney's genius has saved us all. I have helped, of course, and could have probably done the same things, but not as quickly. Yes, Rodney has a giant ego, and it is irritating when he continually brags about his genius, but we all depend on him and his genius and even his ego to keep us alive."

"And when his ego nearly gets us killed?" Sheppard said stubbornly.

"Tell me, Colonel," Radek said, leaning in closer and lowering his voice. "Was it because Rodney almost got you killed that you are angry at him, or is it more that Rodney disappointed you? When he did not give you your shiny new weapon, you discovered your hero is not infallible."

Sheppard stiffened. "Rodney is not my-"

Radek raised his hand, and to his surprise, Sheppard stopped talking. "I think he is. I see the way you two interact, and I think you have come to admire him very much. That is why when he asked you to trust him, to go to Dr. Weir and talk her into allowing him to go back to Doranda over my objections, you did. But then he failed, and I think you feel betrayed because of it."

Sheppard sat back and crossed his arms defensively over his chest. "You know, Zelenka, for a psychologist, you make a good physicist."

Radek sighed and stood, picking up his tray. "I am sorry if I have offended you, Colonel. I am worried about Rodney. I think he misses your friendship, and I think you miss his. I was only trying to help. Good night, Colonel."

He turned away acutely aware of the silence that followed after him.

Several hours later, Radek shut down his work for the night and headed to his quarters. A soft murmur of voices caught his attention, and he glanced down a hallway to see two figures standing close together and talking. Rodney stood facing Sheppard, his eyes wide and intense as he listened to the other man. Then Sheppard reached out and squeezed Rodney's arm, and Rodney broke into a brilliant smile. Radek smiled and moved on. Apparently his words had not fallen on deaf ears after all.

~~~

The next morning, Radek was once again in the lab he shared with Benson and Simpson. The door slid open and Rodney bounced into the room.

"Good morning, people," Rodney said enthusiastically. "Radek, I just finished going over that simulation. Good job. I want to get together with you later so we can begin to implement the changes necessary to integrate your suggestions." He turned and swept out of the lab again with the words, "Have a good day, everyone," trailing cheerfully behind him.

There was total silence in the lab for a few seconds before Benson said, "I'll be a son-of-a-bitch. He got laid last night."

Simpson choked a bit, and said, "McKay? Are you serious? He probably just had a really good cup of coffee this morning. What do you think, Radek? Coffee or sex?"

Radek had been staring at the closed lab door, and his eyes had widened in shock at Benson's words. At Simpson's question, he turned back to his computer and said calmly, "Yes, I think you are right, Christine. I am sure that Rodney just had an exceptional cup of coffee this morning."

His colleagues didn't see his knowing smile.


The End