Title: New Beginnings and Old Endings, Chapter 4
Fandom: Stargate: Atlantis / The Mentalist (Crossover)
Pair: Evan Lorne / Patrick Jane
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Not mine, etc.
Summary: Lorne is trying to settle into his new life, but it`s really not much calmer than his old one. Wrong place and wrong timing lead to a chance encounter in the middle of a crime scene.
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Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 "Yeah, I’m sure you’re really good at unpacking, but I’ll manage." Lorne grabbed his bag from Jane and slammed the door in his face. The man knocked a few times, but Lorne didn’t open the door. He had done his duty, co-operated with the officials and even managed to endure the car ride without strangling the bigmouthed blond, and now his approaching headache had turned into a real pain. He opened his backbag and rummaged through the content till he found a small bottle of painkillers he had gotten from the infirmary after his last field mission.
That and couple of bandages for minor cuts, while some of the men had to settle for a body bag and a quick display on the coroner’s table, his mind added spitefully. He shook off those thoughts, fished out a half-full water bottle and washed down two of the pills. Lorne repacked the bottles into the bag and took a quick tour of his small domain.
The motel room had one double bed, a small kitchenette and a bathroom, that would require some good scrubbing. Lorne’s requirements weren’t particularly high and compared to some of the places he had stayed over the years, it wasn’t bad at all. He mentally added some cleaning supplies on his shopping list of necessities. He was used to taking care of his own small space, both in the Atlantis and in the Cheyenne Mountain. They didn’t have much time to stay in their assigned quarters, even when he and his men had returned to the base, but it was good to know he had a little bit of space just for himself.
Lorne peeked out of the window, and let out a sigh of relief. Jane had finally given up and was heading to his car. Lorne waited till the vehicle was gone, and he could almost hear the familiar guideline for any sort of conflicts: Pick your battles and don’t waste your resources, if it’s not necessary.
The CBI consultant had seemed to latch on to every single avoidance tactic he had used to get out of the conversation and the man appeared to notice all the regular lies Lorne normally used when he couldn’t talk about his past assignments. The man was nerve-wracking, and coming from someone, who had even managed to work with Rodney McKay, being categorised as "nerve-wracking" was a real accomplishment.
Well, maybe not nerve-wracking, Lorne softened his estimate. Just someone, who knew he wasn’t getting the right answers and was snooping around mercilessly for the missing pieces. Under different kind of circumstances Lorne would probably like that about him.
Lorne took one more precautionary look through the window, then grabbed his keys and wallet, and stepped outside. He had spotted a supermarket on their way to the motel, and began walking down the street. The store was only a block away, and to his relief there was only few other customers. A pimply clerk gave him a dull look as he walked in, then went back to his surfing magazine. Lorne took a cart and started pulling things from the shelves, mentally reciting his list of necessities.
He had nothing against cooking, but the tiny kitchenette didn’t really lure him to try it, at least not before he had cleaned it, so he loaded his cart with microwave meals. Lorne had never shared McKay’s weird love for MREs, Sheppard’s "if it’s edible, I’ll eat it" attitude or Ronon`s "I`ll hunt it down and eat it raw" mentality, but he was too tired and sore to be picky. The painkillers hadn’t done much for his headache, and his whole head was throbbing as the pain came and went on regular intervals. He paused in the middle of the isle and took a deep breath, closing his eyes for a minute.
He had never been prone to headaches, and he was sure the recent events were finally catching up on him. The fiasco of a mission, discharge, the flight and everything else. The bright lights of the supermarket flashed right through his head and he forced himself to continue his excursion. The sooner he got back to his motel room, the better.
Lorne reached the final shelf before the check-out. An elderly lady was paying for her things and was taking her time digging up the money from her purse. She kept insisting she had the exact amount and the clerk just sent her nasty looks when she wasn’t looking.
Lorne leaned against the handle of his cart, let his mind wander. He noticed the shelf next to him and a little bubble of laughter started crawling up from his belly, up to his throat and he had to let it out.
The clerk and the old lady turned to look at him, and then ignored him again. Sane people don’t have sudden bursts of laughter in the supermarket. At least not when they’re alone.
Lorne pressed his palm against his mouth, little chuckles still escaping from his throat. At first he couldn’t understand why the condom display had somehow tickled his funny bone, but then it hit him.
He wasn’t in the Air Force anymore.
Sex hadn’t been much of an issue in Atlantis. Those who had someone to mess around with, did what they did, and everyone turned a blind eye. The infirmary had discreetly offered the necessary means of protection to those who asked for it, but most of the time people were too busy or just too exhausted to even think about sex.
It hadn’t been that different in the base. The living quarters were all in bunched up and badly soundproofed. The rumours and possible repercussions weren’t worth it. Lorne tried to think back, but he could barely remember the last time he’d had to think about protection.
It had been some time before Atlantis, he remembered that much. He and his men were given a two week leave and he had flown to San Francisco to meet his family. His mother had fussed over everything and his sister had made sure he spent time with his nephews, the younger one had been just few months old. The more he thought about it, the more vivid his memories became.
His mother and sister had urged him to contact some of the old friends he had known most of his life. The ones he hadn’t seen in years. Those connection had been severed very quickly once he had joined the Air Force. He couldn’t be reached through the phone or e-mail, and people soon forgot to call again.
The two week visit had turned out to be better than he would have thought. His family ignored the fact that they hadn’t seen him in ages, and his sister had even contacted some of his old friends. The old circle of guys had come together in the same bar they used to go to when they had first reached the age, where they could actually go in and get a drink legally.
Lorne had later told his family he’d had a great time, but he left out the hour he had spent with an old classmate. It had been a hurried affair and Lorne had made a hasty exit from the poor man’s apartment, but didn’t want to explain to his mother why he had spent the whole night away and sneaked back home in the morning. He had called the guy and apologised, but the memory did still bother him. Lorne had never considered himself the type to have one night stands and that experience had only confirmed his belief.
That had made life at the base a lot easier. He had friends, some of them quite good friends, and his own right hand was a problem free lover. There was no temptation to get involved with anyone for real.
Now he didn’t need to think about that.
He was free to get involved with anyone he wanted, without the fear of repercussions. He could get involved with whoever he wanted, and it wouldn’t end because he was transferred to another base. Or another galaxy.
The thought softened the crushing weight of all the changes. Maybe he would even accept his sister’s standing offer to fix him up on a blind date. He’d just have to correct her about the gender of the candidates. Lorne tried to imagine her face, if he’d ask her to find him a nice guy, and another fit of laughter took over.
"Don’t hurry me!" The elderly lady in front of him hissed at him. She went back to digging her purse.
Lorne turned to look at the condom display again. Sex would be nice, but he couldn’t imagine himself getting into bed with someone just for the sake of it. Maybe it was old age, or maybe his time in the Air Force, but he had long ago lost the young man’s urge to react to a good-looking guy with his hormones. He liked to think it was due to maturity: He couldn’t get interested in anyone just for the sake of his looks. It would be a nice bonus, but it wasn’t something that first drew him in.
He picked the first packet of condoms from the shelf and tossed it down into his cart. He had no intention of using them for a while, but it felt like an actual sign of a new phase in his life. He had lost some things he had cared for, but maybe the freedom to live his life the way he wanted was worth it in the long run.
He wasn’t sure what exactly he wanted, but staying in the same place, without a risk of life-sucking aliens would be a good start. Maybe pick up some art supplies and see if his muses were in the mood.
And maybe find some company. He hadn’t woken up next to anyone in years, and it was one of the things he missed the most. He hated the word "cuddler" and he would never call another man "cuddly", but waking up together, arms around each other, had to be one of the most intimate things in a relationship.
That was the thought that brought the CBI consultant back to his mind. He had successfully blocked the nosy blond in a three-piece-suit out of his mind, but now that the man wasn’t around to bug him, he had to admit the man fit the term "cuddly" very well. Maybe it was the hair, maybe the eyes, or maybe the suit that would have looked ridiculous on most men.
Lorne grinned at the thought and he could feel a slight blush rushing up to his cheeks. If the guy’s mouth had a zipper and a padlock, he would be hard to resist. He thought about it and he had to admit, the annoying attitude might have been part of the guy’s questionable charm. He had given Lorne a few lopsided smiles, that he had promptly ignored, mostly due to his annoyance at the man, but now when it all came back… It was quite adorable.
"Dude, are you gonna pay or not?"
Lorne snapped himself out of his thoughts and pushed his cart to the check-out. He started piling up his purchases to the line while the clerk focused on looking bored. Lorne took his time unloading the cart, just to annoy the kid a bit in return. Finally he got to the last item and placed the packet of condoms on top his other purchases.
He had told the cops everything he could and he wouldn’t see any of them again, including Patrick Jane. Before a tiny bit of disappointment surfaced, Lorne assured himself that the world was full of cuddly-looking blonds in freaky three-piece-suits.
Somehow it didn’t sound very convincing.
Chapter 5 (NC-17)