[Stargate: Drabble] "In the Night" [John/Rodney, G]
Title: In the Night
Prompt: writerverse challenge #08 quick fic #3, prompts ‘war’ & ‘oil & water’
Bonus: historical fiction
Word Count: 487
Rating: G
Original/Fandom: Stargate Atlantis (part of my Two Gentlemen Victorian AU ‘verse)
Pairings: John Sheppard/Rodney McKay
Summary: “I thought you were asleep.”
Note(s): originally posted to the writerverse wv_library
In the Night
For the first time, Rodney wished he did not sleep as deeply as he did. It had always seemed like a blessing before, his ability to remain asleep despite any noise or distraction, but now it only meant that by the time he realized that he was alone in bed, the sheets on John’s side had long since gone cold.
Rodney slid out of bed, frowning when he found John’s dressing gown still on the peg beside his own. He grabbed it, pulling his on one-handed as he searched under the bed for his slippers, then headed down the stairs.
He could see that a lamp had been lit in one of the downstairs rooms, but as he reached the bottom of the stairs, Rodney could see that it was coming from his own study. John had pulled the chair back from the desk, elbows resting on his knees. He wore a pair of trousers over his nightshirt, but he was barefoot, and just looking at him made Rodney feel cold.
“John?” he asked, softly.
The other man looked up sharply, and Rodney grew more worried that he clearly hadn’t heard him approach. “I thought you were asleep.”
“I was,” Rodney told him. “But my bed was empty.”
John didn’t quite meet his eyes. “I’m sorry,” he murmured. “I… I couldn’t sleep.”
“You had a nightmare,” Rodney corrected, bluntly. He strode forward to pull John’s dressing gown around his shoulders, a little more roughly than he’d intended. “And you decided to come down here to suffer by yourself.”
“You have classes to teach,” protested John, “you need your sleep.”
“My sleep is not more important than you,” said Rodney.
“McKay…”
Rather than answering, Rodney crowded into John’s space, turning the chair so that when he leaned against his desk, he could still wind his arms around John’s shoulders.
Most people wondered how two men with such different personalities could stand to live together, given how often they argued and bickered about every available subject, but those people were never privy to these quiet moments, when they needed no words to understand each other.
John was stiff for a long moment, then he seemed to melt, slumping forward into Rodney’s arms. “It was Afghanistan,” he said, knowing Rodney had read every page of his military record and had never judged him for it. “It’s always Afghanistan. I still don’t know why I lived, when so many good men died.”
Rodney pressed a kiss to John’s temple. “I, for one, am glad you did. I was… I was quite alone before you came along, John.”
“So was I,” John admitted.
They were silent for a long moment, each just listening to the other breathe, then Rodney said, “Will you be able to sleep?”
John pulled back slowly, but kept hold of the scientist’s hand. “If you’re with me, yes,” he said, and allowed Rodney to lead him back upstairs.
THE END
Current Mood:
blah
Prompt: writerverse challenge #08 quick fic #3, prompts ‘war’ & ‘oil & water’
Bonus: historical fiction
Word Count: 487
Rating: G
Original/Fandom: Stargate Atlantis (part of my Two Gentlemen Victorian AU ‘verse)
Pairings: John Sheppard/Rodney McKay
Summary: “I thought you were asleep.”
Note(s): originally posted to the writerverse wv_library
In the Night
For the first time, Rodney wished he did not sleep as deeply as he did. It had always seemed like a blessing before, his ability to remain asleep despite any noise or distraction, but now it only meant that by the time he realized that he was alone in bed, the sheets on John’s side had long since gone cold.
Rodney slid out of bed, frowning when he found John’s dressing gown still on the peg beside his own. He grabbed it, pulling his on one-handed as he searched under the bed for his slippers, then headed down the stairs.
He could see that a lamp had been lit in one of the downstairs rooms, but as he reached the bottom of the stairs, Rodney could see that it was coming from his own study. John had pulled the chair back from the desk, elbows resting on his knees. He wore a pair of trousers over his nightshirt, but he was barefoot, and just looking at him made Rodney feel cold.
“John?” he asked, softly.
The other man looked up sharply, and Rodney grew more worried that he clearly hadn’t heard him approach. “I thought you were asleep.”
“I was,” Rodney told him. “But my bed was empty.”
John didn’t quite meet his eyes. “I’m sorry,” he murmured. “I… I couldn’t sleep.”
“You had a nightmare,” Rodney corrected, bluntly. He strode forward to pull John’s dressing gown around his shoulders, a little more roughly than he’d intended. “And you decided to come down here to suffer by yourself.”
“You have classes to teach,” protested John, “you need your sleep.”
“My sleep is not more important than you,” said Rodney.
“McKay…”
Rather than answering, Rodney crowded into John’s space, turning the chair so that when he leaned against his desk, he could still wind his arms around John’s shoulders.
Most people wondered how two men with such different personalities could stand to live together, given how often they argued and bickered about every available subject, but those people were never privy to these quiet moments, when they needed no words to understand each other.
John was stiff for a long moment, then he seemed to melt, slumping forward into Rodney’s arms. “It was Afghanistan,” he said, knowing Rodney had read every page of his military record and had never judged him for it. “It’s always Afghanistan. I still don’t know why I lived, when so many good men died.”
Rodney pressed a kiss to John’s temple. “I, for one, am glad you did. I was… I was quite alone before you came along, John.”
“So was I,” John admitted.
They were silent for a long moment, each just listening to the other breathe, then Rodney said, “Will you be able to sleep?”
John pulled back slowly, but kept hold of the scientist’s hand. “If you’re with me, yes,” he said, and allowed Rodney to lead him back upstairs.
THE END
Current Mood:
blah