A Birthday To Remember (1/2)
Title: A Birthday To Remember (1/2)
Author: Nytel
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: John/Teyla
Main Characters: John, Teyla
Genre: Romance
Summary: John gets discharged from the military as the result of his actions in The Return Part 1. This fic takes place a few months later, around/on John's birthday.
Spoilers: Up to The Return Part 1.
Word Count: 4,403
Beta: Much thanks to nebakanezer!
Disclaimer: I'm just borrowing them.
A/N: This was written as a birthday present for Camy. :D
A/N 2: This isn't meant to be seperated into two parts, but it's too big for a single post in lj.
A Birthday to Remember
It was late at night and yet Teyla found herself walking the hallways of Atlantis. Sleep did not come easily to her; it hadn’t for months. But instead of lying in bed all night, fixating on depressing thoughts, she chose to walk the corridors.
The activity helped to divert her attention somewhat, but in the end her mind always returned to the same topic: John. She felt her heart constrict with the pain of loneliness. It hurt so much knowing that she would most likely never see him again.
As Teyla walked further she realized that she was nearing the infirmary. She remembered that she had been planning to see Carson the next day, in order to ask him a favor, but seeing as she was here already…
“Dr. Beckett?” Teyla called out as she entered the infirmary.
Quickly scanning the surrounding area she found that it was nearly deserted save for a few patients and one nurse who was entering information into the computer system. The woman caught Teyla’s eye and inclined her head toward the back of the infirmary.
Noticing that the light was on in Carson’s office, Teyla thanked the nurse and headed over. She rapped her fingers lightly against the closed door. Upon hearing Dr. Beckett’s quiet prompt to enter, she swiped her hand over the sensor and stepped into his office.
“Teyla,” he said in a surprised voice as he looked up and noticed who his visitor was. “What can I do for you love?” he asked as he set aside his paperwork.
Teyla smiled softly at him as she sat down in the chair in front of his desk. “I have a favor to ask of you,” she began, somewhat hesitantly.
Carson’s eyes widened a little in surprise. “All right,” he said. “What can I do?”
Teyla took a deep breath before she started to talk. “You and Dr. McKay are making a trip to Earth at the end of the week, are you not?”
“Aye,” Carson said a bit slowly, as if he was trying to figure out where she was going with her inquiry.
“Do you think you could perhaps give something to John for me?” she asked hopefully. It was very important, and she hoped she was right in asking Carson to do this for her.
Carson gave her a knowing smile and seemed to relax a bit. “Of course,” he said sincerely.
“Thank you,” Teyla said, nodding her head slightly. She opened her mouth to say something else, but closed it again as she made to stand up.
“Was there something else love?” Carson asked as he looked at her intently.
Teyla felt her cheeks warm slightly. “Yes,” she said quietly as she settled back into the seat. Seeing as he had asked… “I need some advice,” she said quietly, not looking up to meet Carson’s eyes.
“I’d be happy to help,” he said encouragingly.
“As you are aware,” she said. “I am not familiar with Earth customs…”
“Of course not love. Not that I can blame you, sometimes I don’t even understand why we do certain things.”
Teyla smiled at Carson’s comment. Looking up at him she continued. “You celebrate the day of your birth, correct?”
Carson nodded. “Yes, our birthdays. Or at least most people on Earth do anyway.”
“All right,” Teyla said. “And I know that there are gifts that are given to the person on the day of their birth.”
“Aye,” he said. “And there’s usually some sort of party, unless you’d prefer to not remember that you’re getting older.” He grinned a little at his last comment, and Teyla did too. John had told her something similar once. Her mind almost began to wander as she thought of John, but she forced herself to focus.
“Now about the gifts that are given…” Teyla said. “Is there some sort of accepted way for this to be done?” she asked, hoping that it would not be too difficult for her to achieve what she wanted to.
Carson’s eyebrows knit together in confusion. “Not really,” he said. He paused for a second. “I’m sorry love, but I have to say that I’m slightly confused. Why are you asking this?”
Teyla gave him a hesitant smile. “It is John’s birthday at the end of the week,” she said slowly. “Are you and Dr. McKay not going back to Earth so that you may celebrate it with him?” she questioned.
Carson’s face lit up with a mixture of realization and surprise. “I had no idea,” he said after a few seconds.
Teyla was taken aback. “You did not know that it was John’s birthday?”
Carson shook his head. “No, not at all.” He really did look shocked by the information. “How did you know?” he asked, looking at her strangely.
“John told me,” she explained. “Many months ago I was filling him in on some of the Athosian customs and he was surprised to hear that we do not celebrate the date of our birth. Then he mentioned to me about your birthday celebrations.”
“And you asked him when his birthday was,” Carson said, correctly guessing the end.
“Yes,” Teyla verified with a nod of her head. “Now may I ask why you and Dr. McKay are heading to Earth, if not to celebrate John’s birthday with him?”
“Well, I have to correlate all of our recent medical findings with the information back at the SGC. Normally that kind of information would be sent by computer through the gate, but with the gate bridge, it’s been requested that I come in person.”
Teyla nodded-it made sense. In fact, ever since the gate bridge had been completed a lot of such requests had been made, and as far as she could tell it made the city run more smoothly than it had in the past.
“And Dr. McKay…”
“Rodney has some sort of project on the go that he can’t seem to complete by himself. Even though he hates to admit it, he figures that it would be best to ask Colonel Carter for her help.”
Teyla almost wanted to smile. It was hard to imagine Rodney admitting that he needed help on anything.
“So you will not be seeing John then?” she inquired, getting back to the reason she was there in the first place.
“No, I’ll see him,” Carson said. “I was planning to just drop by his apartment and say hello, but I don’t have the time to stay long.”
Teyla nodded in understanding. “But you will still be able to drop off a gift from me?”
“Aye, that I will.”
Teyla smiled, feeling relieved. She had spent quite a lot of time in making John’s gift and it would be a shame if he did not receive it in time for his birthday. “Thank you,” Teyla said sincerely. “I greatly appreciate it.”
Carson half smiled back at her. “Of course,” he replied, sounding distracted.
“Is something wrong?” she asked.
“What?” he asked, focusing on her. “Oh no,” he said. “Everything’s fine. I just need to find something to give to him as well.”
Just then Teyla heard the door to Dr. Beckett’s office slid open behind her. She turned around just in time to see Rodney enter.
“Give who something?” he asked as he barged in.
“Rodney,” Carson said indignantly. “Don’t you knock?”
“No,” he replied. “Teyla,” he added, sounding shocked to see her. “What are you doing here?”
“Teyla and I were talking,” Carson explained. “Or at least we were until you came in.”
Rodney raised one eyebrow at her. “What?” he asked. “Are you sick or something?”
Teyla sighed at Rodney’s comment. He really didn’t have very good people skills.
“No, Dr. McKay. I am not sick.”
“For you information Rodney, Teyla and I are friends. Sometimes friends talk.”
“Uh huh,” he replied as he pulled up another chair and sat down beside Teyla. “That’s great,” he added dismissively. “So who do you have to give something to?”
Carson rolled his eyes at Rodney but answered anyway. “John.”
Rodney looked back and forth between Teyla and Carson a few times before replying. “Why?”
“So you didn’t know either,” Dr. Beckett stated.
“Didn’t know what?” Rodney asked shortly. “What didn’t I know?”
Carson sighed. “That it’s John’s birthday at the end of the week.”
The confused look on Rodney’s face was almost humorous. “John has a birthday?”
“Of course he does Rodney,” Carson said impatiently.
“Well, we’ve been here for how long, and I’ve never known when his birthday was.” Rodney actually sounded put out. “I can’t believe he never told me. And now that I know I have to get him something,” he added, a distinct whining tone taking over.
“So do I,” Carson said. “But I have no idea what to get him.”
“And you think I do?” Rodney asked rhetorically. “The only thing he wants is something neither of us can get him-a job in Atlantis.”
“That is not something to joke about,” Teyla said forcefully.
“No, of course it isn’t love,” Carson said sympathetically. “After all he did for this city…” His voice trailed off. “It’s a shame.”
Rodney’s face turned solemn. “If anyone deserves to be here, it’s him.”
“Aye.”
“But seriously,” Rodney said. “What the hell are we going to get him for his birthday?”
Carson sighed. “Well, there’s no point in getting him something from Earth, not when he’s already there.”
Rodney nodded. “And there’s nothing he wants that we can bring him from Atlantis.”
Teyla watched as Carson’s face brightened with Rodney’s words. “That’s not entirely true…”
***
“Are you sure that Dr. Weir agreed to this?” Teyla asked as she followed Rodney and Carson into the jumper bay. “Because I believe that I have done enough rule breaking to last me for my entire life.”
Carson laughed quietly at her comment. “Aye, Dr. Weir approved it, as did General Landry.”
Teyla nodded her head, still trying to figure out if this was the best idea for a present that these two could come up with. She clutched her hand tightly around the gift that she held, knowing that it was something more akin to a normal birthday present, and that was reassuring. She was already uncertain whether or not she was stepping over some sort of invisible boundary by bringing the topic up in the first place.
In addition, she was already feeling quite nervous given how her and John had parted. But at the same time she was excited, more than she ever remembered being in the past.
“All right,” Rodney said, sounding out of breath as he hauled all of his stuff with him into the jumper bay. “Everyone in the jumper, let’s go.”
***
John woke up gradually while the sunlight filtered in through the window and slowly crept across the bed. A long time ago, before his adventures in the Pegasus galaxy, he’d loved lazy days like this. Having the freedom to take all the time in the world had been a wonderful thing. It was refreshing, fun and many other things that it wasn’t any more.
After life in Atlantis, lazing about like he was doing just seemed all wrong. He felt like he needed to be active and working one hundred ten percent of the time, always striving for the betterment of human kind. He wondered if that feeling would ever go away.
John sighed heavily as he rolled over onto his side, away from the sunlight. He might feel the need to be constantly on the go like that, but for him it wasn’t within the realms of possibility. His current job as a flight instructor at the local airport didn’t really meet those qualifications.
It wasn’t that it was a bad job-it had good hours, good pay, even benefits… but it wasn’t Atlantis. Hell, it wasn’t even military. But that’s what he got for disobeying a direct order. Apparently it didn’t matter that he’d saved the lives of both General O’Neill and Woolsey-the only important thing was that he’d rebelled against authority one too many times.
Though thinking back on it, John knew that he wouldn’t change his decision if he had a chance to relive it again. It had been the right thing to do and just because Landry had ordered him not to didn’t change a thing. He just wished that saving the city hadn’t cost him his job, and more importantly the only woman that he had ever truly loved.
He and Teyla had been on the verge of something big, but given that he was now back on Earth there was no chance for anything between them. Truthfully, that was the thought that haunted him most often-knowing that he had been so close to being happy only to have it be ripped away from him in one fell swoop, and by people that he respected no less.
Determined not to dwell excessively on those depressing thoughts, John pushed himself upright and swung his legs over the side of the bed. Stretching his arms above his head he wondered what he’d do with his day. It was Saturday and he had the entire weekend off-it opened up a lot of possibilities. Unfortunately the possibilities weren’t anything that he actually wanted to do.
Still completely undecided, John stood up and made his way out of the bedroom. As he crossed the small hallway of his apartment he turned on the radio that sat on the table outside the bathroom. He paused to turn up the volume a bit before he entered the bathroom.
Satisfied for the moment, he went in and stripped out of his boxers before stepping into the shower. As he turned on the water the song on the radio ended and switched to some overly cheerful idiot doing the news.
Even with the water pounding down on him, John could make out the words.
“Welcome to the noon hour news for CJSR radio. First off, the weather: It’s a beautiful 84-degree day outside, and there isn’t even a cloud in sight. August fourth is turning out to be one fine summer day folks.”
John paused, one hand halfway through massaging shampoo into his hair.
“Happy birthday to me,” he muttered sarcastically.
***
Realizing that it was his birthday only put John in a more sour mood. When he was little he’d looked forward to the ‘special’day like every other kid, but as he got older and grew more distant from his family he’d come to dread it. It was now simply another occasion that reminded him of how alone he really was.
John was finishing up a cup of coffee while he was watching TV when he heard a knock at his door. Distinctly confused, he set the mug down on the table beside him and turned off the TV. He pushed himself off the couch, intent on finding out who the hell was bugging him on his day off.
Peering through the eyehole John was presented with a rather up-close view of Rodney’s face. Reluctantly he turned the lock and opened the door. Even though him and Rodney had become quite good friends, he wasn’t all that inclined to spend time with him. It was just another glaring reminder of what he no longer had.
“McKay,” John said, as he pulled the door open fully. He was surprised to see someone else with him. “Carson,” he said, acknowledging the doctor’s presence.
“Good,” Rodney said immediately, interrupting any response that Carson may have had. “You’re home.”
“Yes, I’m home,” he said slowly as he noticed that those two were standing much too close together-way too close together. It was like they were hiding something behind their backs. Before he could stand on his tiptoes and peer over them, Rodney was talking again.
“Listen, things took a little longer than we thought. If the traffic…”
“What Rodney’s trying to say is that we have to go, but we hope you enjoy what we’ve brought you for your birthday,” Carson said smiling.
John groaned. How the hell did they know it was his birthday? He hadn’t told anyone except for…
“Teyla?” John asked in disbelief as both Carson and Rodney stepped to the side to reveal the slightly crouched over woman in question. She immediately stood to her full height, looking quite relieved that she did not have the hide behind the two men anymore.
“So anyway, we’re out of here,” Rodney said.
“I’ll be by to pick her up later,” Carson added as they made their way back down the hallway of the apartment building.
The words barely registered, as John was too shocked to think about anyone other than Teyla-he thought he’d never see her again, but here she was standing in front of him.
“Happy Birthday John,” she said quietly, a tentative smile gracing her face.
***
Teyla watched John closely as he stood in the doorway, the expressions on his face cycling from disbelief, to happiness, to nervous and then back again. She could not blame him-she’d had time to prepare for this and even then she did not know what she should do, let alone feel. If she had to pick one word to describe how she was feeling however, it would be nervous. She could not remember the last time that simply being in the presence of another made her heart beat so quickly and her stomach feel as if it was performing one of the complicated Athosian ceremonial dances.
Needing to do something to break the tension between them she took the bow that Rodney had given her and held it out to John. “I believe their plan was to put this on my head, and wrap me with ribbon, but I managed to persuade them otherwise.”
John looked at her oddly for a few seconds before breaking out into laughter. It wasn’t long before she joined him. Eventually they both caught their breath and Teyla was quick to notice that John looked truly happy. It was almost nerve-wracking knowing that she was the reason why.
The free feeling of the joke drifted away as they simply looked at each other. It had been a long time-months in fact. The palpable tension between them was only heightened by the memories that were running through her head-the ones of the last night John had spent on Atlantis.
Unlike the first time when the ancients had sent them from the city, Teyla had known that John leaving was a permanent thing. He had known it too. It had been their last chance to be true to their feelings, and for once they actually had.
The night they’d spent together had been meaningful, passionate, truthful and a million other things that she could not describe with words. Looking into John’s eyes now she could tell that he was remembering the same moments.
“Teyla, I…”
“I know,” she said. “I also find it difficult to put into words what I am feeling upon seeing you again.”
He gave her the characteristic John Sheppard grin. “How do you do that?” he asked, trying to keep his voice light.
She shrugged. “It is a gift,” she said, joking in return. “May I come in?” she asked as she peered past him into the apartment. “I also have a gift for you and perhaps it would be best to give it to you in private.” She held out the present, the plain brown wrapping crinkling with the movement.
“Oh yeah,” John said as he stepped aside and indicated that she should enter first. He followed and closed the door behind him. “Sorry about the mess,” he said, sounding almost self-conscious as he moved past her and began to move things around on the small table in front of the couch. “I can’t say that I was really expecting company.”
Teyla smiled at his actions-it was very sweet. “I cannot say that I was expecting to be coming here either.”
John stopped what he was doing and turned around to look at her. “You weren’t?” he questioned.
She shook her head lightly. “I made something for you,” she began, indicating the package in her hands. “And I had asked Carson to give it to you when he came.”
“Okay…”
“I was asking him about your Earth tradition of birthdays when he asked me why I wanted to know. I told him that it was your birthday, and then Rodney came in and he found out too.” She paused for a second. “I am sorry if it was something you meant to keep a secret, my intention was not to go against your wishes.”
“No,” John said quickly. “That’s fine, don’t worry about it.”
She nodded and continued on with her explanation. “Anyway, when they found out they decided that they too needed to give you a gift. Apparently they did not have any good ideas, so they determined that I should be your gift.” Teyla looked at him with an almost sideways glance, not sure what he would make of her words.
“What do you mean?” he asked incredulously. “Seeing you is the best birthday present I ever could have asked for.”
Teyla felt her cheeks get warm upon hearing John’s words. She knew how he felt about her, but to hear him say something of that nature aloud, when the circumstances weren’t quite so dire… it was a completely different feeling. “Thank you,” she said quietly.
This time it was his turn to blush. “Look,” he said slowly. “I don’t exactly know how to do this…” he let his words hang in the air as he moved his hand back and forth, indicating the space between them. “I never knew if I was going to see you again…”
Teyla felt her pulse quicken. “Do you regret it?” she asked, her voice barely audible.
“What?” John asked, obviously taken aback by her question. “No,” he said firmly. “Why? Do you?”
She shook her head. “I do not. I could never regret letting you know how I truly feel about you.” It felt odd to be saying things like this out loud-emotional honesty wasn’t something they’d had until recently, but at the same time it was refreshing.
“Good,” John said decisively. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but then closed it again. He glanced upwards, seemingly looking for the correct words to say on the ceiling. “I just…” he began. “Where do we go from here?” he asked, looking down and catching her eyes with his.
Teyla let out a sigh. “I do not know,” she replied honestly. “The situation is not the most admirable.”
John nodded. “You’re right about that.”
Teyla took a deep breath. “Perhaps we should… play it by ear?”
***
He smiled at her warmly. “Yeah,” he agreed. “That’s probably for the best.”
She smiled back at him, and he couldn’t believe how happy he was. For the first time since he’d been sent back from Atlantis he was truly happy and that was all because of the woman who was standing in front of him. He never thought that he would see Teyla again; he never knew that he’d have another chance to look into her eyes and see her warm smile.
His grin grew even larger as something clicked in the back of his mind. He was no longer her commanding officer.
Completely giving into his impulses John leaned down and kissed Teyla firmly on the lips. He wrapped one hand lightly, but securely around the back of her neck as he moved to deepen the kiss. The speed at which Teyla responded told him that she had been at least partially anticipating this-good; they were on the same page.
That was the last coherent thought that ran through his mind before his body started moving completely on its own accord, recalling everything from the one amazing night they had spent together, and wanting to feel it again. His actions became frantic almost-he needed to touch and caress every part of her, making sure that she was actually there. He might have been embarrassed by his lack of control had it not been apparent that she felt the same.
He heard something fall to the ground, but he dismissed it. The next thing John knew Teyla was pressing herself against him tightly and he wrapped both arms around her, as if never intending to let go.
“John,” she whispered fervently against his mouth.
Something in the way she said his name made his heart beat faster. “Teyla,” he murmured in response against her soft skin as he kissed his way down her throat to suckle on her pulse point. “Missed you,” he added-he needed her to know.
There was something else that he needed her to know.
John stopped his ministrations on Teyla’s neck and pulled away, but just enough so that he could look down at her properly.
“What is it?” she asked, sounding almost worried.
He took a deep breath. “I love you Teyla.” Not wanting to lose his courage he continued. “I meant it the last time I said it, and I need you to know that it wasn’t something that just came out in the heat of the moment. I love you, I have for a long time.” He intended to continue, but one of Teyla’s fingers placed lightly over his lips stopped him.
“I know,” she said, looking deeply into his eyes. “Despite the rushed circumstances of before, I knew that what you said was from your heart.”
John smiled at her softly. “Good.”
She returned the smile. “I wish for you to know that I meant what I said as well.” She paused for a moment. “I love you John Sheppard.”
Beaming from ear to ear John leaned in to kiss Teyla again. “I was hoping you’d say that,” he said through kisses as he lifted her off the ground.
Other than a small squeak of surprise she didn’t protest, and instead wrapped her legs firmly around his waist. As he began to walk them toward the bedroom, John felt Teyla’s hands reach down to tug at the bottom of his shirt. He couldn’t help but grin against her mouth-this was turning out to be the best birthday ever.
TBC in Part 2
Author: Nytel
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: John/Teyla
Main Characters: John, Teyla
Genre: Romance
Summary: John gets discharged from the military as the result of his actions in The Return Part 1. This fic takes place a few months later, around/on John's birthday.
Spoilers: Up to The Return Part 1.
Word Count: 4,403
Beta: Much thanks to nebakanezer!
Disclaimer: I'm just borrowing them.
A/N: This was written as a birthday present for Camy. :D
A/N 2: This isn't meant to be seperated into two parts, but it's too big for a single post in lj.
A Birthday to Remember
It was late at night and yet Teyla found herself walking the hallways of Atlantis. Sleep did not come easily to her; it hadn’t for months. But instead of lying in bed all night, fixating on depressing thoughts, she chose to walk the corridors.
The activity helped to divert her attention somewhat, but in the end her mind always returned to the same topic: John. She felt her heart constrict with the pain of loneliness. It hurt so much knowing that she would most likely never see him again.
As Teyla walked further she realized that she was nearing the infirmary. She remembered that she had been planning to see Carson the next day, in order to ask him a favor, but seeing as she was here already…
“Dr. Beckett?” Teyla called out as she entered the infirmary.
Quickly scanning the surrounding area she found that it was nearly deserted save for a few patients and one nurse who was entering information into the computer system. The woman caught Teyla’s eye and inclined her head toward the back of the infirmary.
Noticing that the light was on in Carson’s office, Teyla thanked the nurse and headed over. She rapped her fingers lightly against the closed door. Upon hearing Dr. Beckett’s quiet prompt to enter, she swiped her hand over the sensor and stepped into his office.
“Teyla,” he said in a surprised voice as he looked up and noticed who his visitor was. “What can I do for you love?” he asked as he set aside his paperwork.
Teyla smiled softly at him as she sat down in the chair in front of his desk. “I have a favor to ask of you,” she began, somewhat hesitantly.
Carson’s eyes widened a little in surprise. “All right,” he said. “What can I do?”
Teyla took a deep breath before she started to talk. “You and Dr. McKay are making a trip to Earth at the end of the week, are you not?”
“Aye,” Carson said a bit slowly, as if he was trying to figure out where she was going with her inquiry.
“Do you think you could perhaps give something to John for me?” she asked hopefully. It was very important, and she hoped she was right in asking Carson to do this for her.
Carson gave her a knowing smile and seemed to relax a bit. “Of course,” he said sincerely.
“Thank you,” Teyla said, nodding her head slightly. She opened her mouth to say something else, but closed it again as she made to stand up.
“Was there something else love?” Carson asked as he looked at her intently.
Teyla felt her cheeks warm slightly. “Yes,” she said quietly as she settled back into the seat. Seeing as he had asked… “I need some advice,” she said quietly, not looking up to meet Carson’s eyes.
“I’d be happy to help,” he said encouragingly.
“As you are aware,” she said. “I am not familiar with Earth customs…”
“Of course not love. Not that I can blame you, sometimes I don’t even understand why we do certain things.”
Teyla smiled at Carson’s comment. Looking up at him she continued. “You celebrate the day of your birth, correct?”
Carson nodded. “Yes, our birthdays. Or at least most people on Earth do anyway.”
“All right,” Teyla said. “And I know that there are gifts that are given to the person on the day of their birth.”
“Aye,” he said. “And there’s usually some sort of party, unless you’d prefer to not remember that you’re getting older.” He grinned a little at his last comment, and Teyla did too. John had told her something similar once. Her mind almost began to wander as she thought of John, but she forced herself to focus.
“Now about the gifts that are given…” Teyla said. “Is there some sort of accepted way for this to be done?” she asked, hoping that it would not be too difficult for her to achieve what she wanted to.
Carson’s eyebrows knit together in confusion. “Not really,” he said. He paused for a second. “I’m sorry love, but I have to say that I’m slightly confused. Why are you asking this?”
Teyla gave him a hesitant smile. “It is John’s birthday at the end of the week,” she said slowly. “Are you and Dr. McKay not going back to Earth so that you may celebrate it with him?” she questioned.
Carson’s face lit up with a mixture of realization and surprise. “I had no idea,” he said after a few seconds.
Teyla was taken aback. “You did not know that it was John’s birthday?”
Carson shook his head. “No, not at all.” He really did look shocked by the information. “How did you know?” he asked, looking at her strangely.
“John told me,” she explained. “Many months ago I was filling him in on some of the Athosian customs and he was surprised to hear that we do not celebrate the date of our birth. Then he mentioned to me about your birthday celebrations.”
“And you asked him when his birthday was,” Carson said, correctly guessing the end.
“Yes,” Teyla verified with a nod of her head. “Now may I ask why you and Dr. McKay are heading to Earth, if not to celebrate John’s birthday with him?”
“Well, I have to correlate all of our recent medical findings with the information back at the SGC. Normally that kind of information would be sent by computer through the gate, but with the gate bridge, it’s been requested that I come in person.”
Teyla nodded-it made sense. In fact, ever since the gate bridge had been completed a lot of such requests had been made, and as far as she could tell it made the city run more smoothly than it had in the past.
“And Dr. McKay…”
“Rodney has some sort of project on the go that he can’t seem to complete by himself. Even though he hates to admit it, he figures that it would be best to ask Colonel Carter for her help.”
Teyla almost wanted to smile. It was hard to imagine Rodney admitting that he needed help on anything.
“So you will not be seeing John then?” she inquired, getting back to the reason she was there in the first place.
“No, I’ll see him,” Carson said. “I was planning to just drop by his apartment and say hello, but I don’t have the time to stay long.”
Teyla nodded in understanding. “But you will still be able to drop off a gift from me?”
“Aye, that I will.”
Teyla smiled, feeling relieved. She had spent quite a lot of time in making John’s gift and it would be a shame if he did not receive it in time for his birthday. “Thank you,” Teyla said sincerely. “I greatly appreciate it.”
Carson half smiled back at her. “Of course,” he replied, sounding distracted.
“Is something wrong?” she asked.
“What?” he asked, focusing on her. “Oh no,” he said. “Everything’s fine. I just need to find something to give to him as well.”
Just then Teyla heard the door to Dr. Beckett’s office slid open behind her. She turned around just in time to see Rodney enter.
“Give who something?” he asked as he barged in.
“Rodney,” Carson said indignantly. “Don’t you knock?”
“No,” he replied. “Teyla,” he added, sounding shocked to see her. “What are you doing here?”
“Teyla and I were talking,” Carson explained. “Or at least we were until you came in.”
Rodney raised one eyebrow at her. “What?” he asked. “Are you sick or something?”
Teyla sighed at Rodney’s comment. He really didn’t have very good people skills.
“No, Dr. McKay. I am not sick.”
“For you information Rodney, Teyla and I are friends. Sometimes friends talk.”
“Uh huh,” he replied as he pulled up another chair and sat down beside Teyla. “That’s great,” he added dismissively. “So who do you have to give something to?”
Carson rolled his eyes at Rodney but answered anyway. “John.”
Rodney looked back and forth between Teyla and Carson a few times before replying. “Why?”
“So you didn’t know either,” Dr. Beckett stated.
“Didn’t know what?” Rodney asked shortly. “What didn’t I know?”
Carson sighed. “That it’s John’s birthday at the end of the week.”
The confused look on Rodney’s face was almost humorous. “John has a birthday?”
“Of course he does Rodney,” Carson said impatiently.
“Well, we’ve been here for how long, and I’ve never known when his birthday was.” Rodney actually sounded put out. “I can’t believe he never told me. And now that I know I have to get him something,” he added, a distinct whining tone taking over.
“So do I,” Carson said. “But I have no idea what to get him.”
“And you think I do?” Rodney asked rhetorically. “The only thing he wants is something neither of us can get him-a job in Atlantis.”
“That is not something to joke about,” Teyla said forcefully.
“No, of course it isn’t love,” Carson said sympathetically. “After all he did for this city…” His voice trailed off. “It’s a shame.”
Rodney’s face turned solemn. “If anyone deserves to be here, it’s him.”
“Aye.”
“But seriously,” Rodney said. “What the hell are we going to get him for his birthday?”
Carson sighed. “Well, there’s no point in getting him something from Earth, not when he’s already there.”
Rodney nodded. “And there’s nothing he wants that we can bring him from Atlantis.”
Teyla watched as Carson’s face brightened with Rodney’s words. “That’s not entirely true…”
***
“Are you sure that Dr. Weir agreed to this?” Teyla asked as she followed Rodney and Carson into the jumper bay. “Because I believe that I have done enough rule breaking to last me for my entire life.”
Carson laughed quietly at her comment. “Aye, Dr. Weir approved it, as did General Landry.”
Teyla nodded her head, still trying to figure out if this was the best idea for a present that these two could come up with. She clutched her hand tightly around the gift that she held, knowing that it was something more akin to a normal birthday present, and that was reassuring. She was already uncertain whether or not she was stepping over some sort of invisible boundary by bringing the topic up in the first place.
In addition, she was already feeling quite nervous given how her and John had parted. But at the same time she was excited, more than she ever remembered being in the past.
“All right,” Rodney said, sounding out of breath as he hauled all of his stuff with him into the jumper bay. “Everyone in the jumper, let’s go.”
***
John woke up gradually while the sunlight filtered in through the window and slowly crept across the bed. A long time ago, before his adventures in the Pegasus galaxy, he’d loved lazy days like this. Having the freedom to take all the time in the world had been a wonderful thing. It was refreshing, fun and many other things that it wasn’t any more.
After life in Atlantis, lazing about like he was doing just seemed all wrong. He felt like he needed to be active and working one hundred ten percent of the time, always striving for the betterment of human kind. He wondered if that feeling would ever go away.
John sighed heavily as he rolled over onto his side, away from the sunlight. He might feel the need to be constantly on the go like that, but for him it wasn’t within the realms of possibility. His current job as a flight instructor at the local airport didn’t really meet those qualifications.
It wasn’t that it was a bad job-it had good hours, good pay, even benefits… but it wasn’t Atlantis. Hell, it wasn’t even military. But that’s what he got for disobeying a direct order. Apparently it didn’t matter that he’d saved the lives of both General O’Neill and Woolsey-the only important thing was that he’d rebelled against authority one too many times.
Though thinking back on it, John knew that he wouldn’t change his decision if he had a chance to relive it again. It had been the right thing to do and just because Landry had ordered him not to didn’t change a thing. He just wished that saving the city hadn’t cost him his job, and more importantly the only woman that he had ever truly loved.
He and Teyla had been on the verge of something big, but given that he was now back on Earth there was no chance for anything between them. Truthfully, that was the thought that haunted him most often-knowing that he had been so close to being happy only to have it be ripped away from him in one fell swoop, and by people that he respected no less.
Determined not to dwell excessively on those depressing thoughts, John pushed himself upright and swung his legs over the side of the bed. Stretching his arms above his head he wondered what he’d do with his day. It was Saturday and he had the entire weekend off-it opened up a lot of possibilities. Unfortunately the possibilities weren’t anything that he actually wanted to do.
Still completely undecided, John stood up and made his way out of the bedroom. As he crossed the small hallway of his apartment he turned on the radio that sat on the table outside the bathroom. He paused to turn up the volume a bit before he entered the bathroom.
Satisfied for the moment, he went in and stripped out of his boxers before stepping into the shower. As he turned on the water the song on the radio ended and switched to some overly cheerful idiot doing the news.
Even with the water pounding down on him, John could make out the words.
“Welcome to the noon hour news for CJSR radio. First off, the weather: It’s a beautiful 84-degree day outside, and there isn’t even a cloud in sight. August fourth is turning out to be one fine summer day folks.”
John paused, one hand halfway through massaging shampoo into his hair.
“Happy birthday to me,” he muttered sarcastically.
***
Realizing that it was his birthday only put John in a more sour mood. When he was little he’d looked forward to the ‘special’day like every other kid, but as he got older and grew more distant from his family he’d come to dread it. It was now simply another occasion that reminded him of how alone he really was.
John was finishing up a cup of coffee while he was watching TV when he heard a knock at his door. Distinctly confused, he set the mug down on the table beside him and turned off the TV. He pushed himself off the couch, intent on finding out who the hell was bugging him on his day off.
Peering through the eyehole John was presented with a rather up-close view of Rodney’s face. Reluctantly he turned the lock and opened the door. Even though him and Rodney had become quite good friends, he wasn’t all that inclined to spend time with him. It was just another glaring reminder of what he no longer had.
“McKay,” John said, as he pulled the door open fully. He was surprised to see someone else with him. “Carson,” he said, acknowledging the doctor’s presence.
“Good,” Rodney said immediately, interrupting any response that Carson may have had. “You’re home.”
“Yes, I’m home,” he said slowly as he noticed that those two were standing much too close together-way too close together. It was like they were hiding something behind their backs. Before he could stand on his tiptoes and peer over them, Rodney was talking again.
“Listen, things took a little longer than we thought. If the traffic…”
“What Rodney’s trying to say is that we have to go, but we hope you enjoy what we’ve brought you for your birthday,” Carson said smiling.
John groaned. How the hell did they know it was his birthday? He hadn’t told anyone except for…
“Teyla?” John asked in disbelief as both Carson and Rodney stepped to the side to reveal the slightly crouched over woman in question. She immediately stood to her full height, looking quite relieved that she did not have the hide behind the two men anymore.
“So anyway, we’re out of here,” Rodney said.
“I’ll be by to pick her up later,” Carson added as they made their way back down the hallway of the apartment building.
The words barely registered, as John was too shocked to think about anyone other than Teyla-he thought he’d never see her again, but here she was standing in front of him.
“Happy Birthday John,” she said quietly, a tentative smile gracing her face.
***
Teyla watched John closely as he stood in the doorway, the expressions on his face cycling from disbelief, to happiness, to nervous and then back again. She could not blame him-she’d had time to prepare for this and even then she did not know what she should do, let alone feel. If she had to pick one word to describe how she was feeling however, it would be nervous. She could not remember the last time that simply being in the presence of another made her heart beat so quickly and her stomach feel as if it was performing one of the complicated Athosian ceremonial dances.
Needing to do something to break the tension between them she took the bow that Rodney had given her and held it out to John. “I believe their plan was to put this on my head, and wrap me with ribbon, but I managed to persuade them otherwise.”
John looked at her oddly for a few seconds before breaking out into laughter. It wasn’t long before she joined him. Eventually they both caught their breath and Teyla was quick to notice that John looked truly happy. It was almost nerve-wracking knowing that she was the reason why.
The free feeling of the joke drifted away as they simply looked at each other. It had been a long time-months in fact. The palpable tension between them was only heightened by the memories that were running through her head-the ones of the last night John had spent on Atlantis.
Unlike the first time when the ancients had sent them from the city, Teyla had known that John leaving was a permanent thing. He had known it too. It had been their last chance to be true to their feelings, and for once they actually had.
The night they’d spent together had been meaningful, passionate, truthful and a million other things that she could not describe with words. Looking into John’s eyes now she could tell that he was remembering the same moments.
“Teyla, I…”
“I know,” she said. “I also find it difficult to put into words what I am feeling upon seeing you again.”
He gave her the characteristic John Sheppard grin. “How do you do that?” he asked, trying to keep his voice light.
She shrugged. “It is a gift,” she said, joking in return. “May I come in?” she asked as she peered past him into the apartment. “I also have a gift for you and perhaps it would be best to give it to you in private.” She held out the present, the plain brown wrapping crinkling with the movement.
“Oh yeah,” John said as he stepped aside and indicated that she should enter first. He followed and closed the door behind him. “Sorry about the mess,” he said, sounding almost self-conscious as he moved past her and began to move things around on the small table in front of the couch. “I can’t say that I was really expecting company.”
Teyla smiled at his actions-it was very sweet. “I cannot say that I was expecting to be coming here either.”
John stopped what he was doing and turned around to look at her. “You weren’t?” he questioned.
She shook her head lightly. “I made something for you,” she began, indicating the package in her hands. “And I had asked Carson to give it to you when he came.”
“Okay…”
“I was asking him about your Earth tradition of birthdays when he asked me why I wanted to know. I told him that it was your birthday, and then Rodney came in and he found out too.” She paused for a second. “I am sorry if it was something you meant to keep a secret, my intention was not to go against your wishes.”
“No,” John said quickly. “That’s fine, don’t worry about it.”
She nodded and continued on with her explanation. “Anyway, when they found out they decided that they too needed to give you a gift. Apparently they did not have any good ideas, so they determined that I should be your gift.” Teyla looked at him with an almost sideways glance, not sure what he would make of her words.
“What do you mean?” he asked incredulously. “Seeing you is the best birthday present I ever could have asked for.”
Teyla felt her cheeks get warm upon hearing John’s words. She knew how he felt about her, but to hear him say something of that nature aloud, when the circumstances weren’t quite so dire… it was a completely different feeling. “Thank you,” she said quietly.
This time it was his turn to blush. “Look,” he said slowly. “I don’t exactly know how to do this…” he let his words hang in the air as he moved his hand back and forth, indicating the space between them. “I never knew if I was going to see you again…”
Teyla felt her pulse quicken. “Do you regret it?” she asked, her voice barely audible.
“What?” John asked, obviously taken aback by her question. “No,” he said firmly. “Why? Do you?”
She shook her head. “I do not. I could never regret letting you know how I truly feel about you.” It felt odd to be saying things like this out loud-emotional honesty wasn’t something they’d had until recently, but at the same time it was refreshing.
“Good,” John said decisively. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but then closed it again. He glanced upwards, seemingly looking for the correct words to say on the ceiling. “I just…” he began. “Where do we go from here?” he asked, looking down and catching her eyes with his.
Teyla let out a sigh. “I do not know,” she replied honestly. “The situation is not the most admirable.”
John nodded. “You’re right about that.”
Teyla took a deep breath. “Perhaps we should… play it by ear?”
***
He smiled at her warmly. “Yeah,” he agreed. “That’s probably for the best.”
She smiled back at him, and he couldn’t believe how happy he was. For the first time since he’d been sent back from Atlantis he was truly happy and that was all because of the woman who was standing in front of him. He never thought that he would see Teyla again; he never knew that he’d have another chance to look into her eyes and see her warm smile.
His grin grew even larger as something clicked in the back of his mind. He was no longer her commanding officer.
Completely giving into his impulses John leaned down and kissed Teyla firmly on the lips. He wrapped one hand lightly, but securely around the back of her neck as he moved to deepen the kiss. The speed at which Teyla responded told him that she had been at least partially anticipating this-good; they were on the same page.
That was the last coherent thought that ran through his mind before his body started moving completely on its own accord, recalling everything from the one amazing night they had spent together, and wanting to feel it again. His actions became frantic almost-he needed to touch and caress every part of her, making sure that she was actually there. He might have been embarrassed by his lack of control had it not been apparent that she felt the same.
He heard something fall to the ground, but he dismissed it. The next thing John knew Teyla was pressing herself against him tightly and he wrapped both arms around her, as if never intending to let go.
“John,” she whispered fervently against his mouth.
Something in the way she said his name made his heart beat faster. “Teyla,” he murmured in response against her soft skin as he kissed his way down her throat to suckle on her pulse point. “Missed you,” he added-he needed her to know.
There was something else that he needed her to know.
John stopped his ministrations on Teyla’s neck and pulled away, but just enough so that he could look down at her properly.
“What is it?” she asked, sounding almost worried.
He took a deep breath. “I love you Teyla.” Not wanting to lose his courage he continued. “I meant it the last time I said it, and I need you to know that it wasn’t something that just came out in the heat of the moment. I love you, I have for a long time.” He intended to continue, but one of Teyla’s fingers placed lightly over his lips stopped him.
“I know,” she said, looking deeply into his eyes. “Despite the rushed circumstances of before, I knew that what you said was from your heart.”
John smiled at her softly. “Good.”
She returned the smile. “I wish for you to know that I meant what I said as well.” She paused for a moment. “I love you John Sheppard.”
Beaming from ear to ear John leaned in to kiss Teyla again. “I was hoping you’d say that,” he said through kisses as he lifted her off the ground.
Other than a small squeak of surprise she didn’t protest, and instead wrapped her legs firmly around his waist. As he began to walk them toward the bedroom, John felt Teyla’s hands reach down to tug at the bottom of his shirt. He couldn’t help but grin against her mouth-this was turning out to be the best birthday ever.
TBC in Part 2