"Rodney, I have a problem with this."
"Radek, what could possibly be the matter? We go down, redirect the power through the secondary conduits, we come back. Sure, we might have to make a few trips, but we can rotate so that we're working continuously. Half an hour, tops. Now move!" Rodney barked, dragging the unfortunate Czech out of the Astrophysics lab. Hopelessly, Radek looked to the rest of the physics staff for support, but none were brave (or stupid) enough to challenge their boss when he'd made his mind up about something.
Still protesting, Radek was pushed along the Atlantean corridor, his attempts to escape growing more desperate with each step. Rodney, however, seemed oblivious to his 2IC's distress and continued towards the transporter, muttering about incompetent military personnel.
Falling into the alcove, Dr. Zelenka tried to make Rodney understand, but how could he explain without being laughed at? Yet he was terrified and there was no way on Earth - or indeed, Atlantis - he was going to go through with this. Opening his mouth, Radek attempted coherent speech, but the words died in his throat.
At that moment, the other scientist chose to touch the icon for the South pier. The doors of the transporter reopened and Rodney stepped out, clutching the data pad and tools he'd snagged on his way out of the lab, followed somewhat reluctantly by Zelenka. _Now_, he thought, _tell him now before its too late_ ... just as they arrived at a peculiar sight; a square pool of water at the end of a corridor.
"I think the water level has risen slightly since I was here last week," came a disembodied voice from the shadows.
"Laura! You scared us half to death, what do you think you're playing at? Why couldn't you meet us at the transporter like all the other jarheads?"
Lt. Cadman bristled at McKay's usual acerbic words. "Jarhead? Do you have a death wish or something, Rodney? Because, I promise you, no-one would ever find the body."
For once, Rodney recognised the dangerous glint in Laura's eyes and decided to back down instead of retorting, getting on with the business of removing his socks and shoes.
"So let me get this straight. You and Dr. Zelenka are going to repair some power conduits in the corridor below us... the ones that are underwater?"
"That's the plan, yes."
"Can you swim? No... that's a stupid question. Let me rephrase that. Can you hold your breath long enough to complete the task? And just how far do you have to go? I mean, I'm down here trying to keep your asses safe and you want to pull a crazy stunt like this?" Laura shook her head incredulously.
Dr. McKay just snorted. "Gee, thanks for the concern," he snarked, "Obviously, I can swim. I'm pretty good, actually, and I can hold my breath for longer than most. However, we will need to make a few trips; the conduits are a few hundred feet away from this position, so we'll be rotating so that the repairs are continuous. Now, Dr. Weir approved this, so if you'll excuse me." Rodney prepared to dive into the pool, now bare-footed and down to his blue t-shirt and tan trousers. He stopped, however, when he realised that Radek was still fully clothed and had remained motionless throughout his and Laura's bickering. Laura noticed too.
"Hey, Dr. Z, you alright? You look a bit pale." Belatedly, Rodney realised that Radek was more than a bit pale; he was white and shaking. Acting on a hunch, Rodney took Zelenka by the shoulders and manoeuvred his 2IC to sit on the floor, well away from the water's edge.
"S'ok, look, no fainting on me, alright?"
"Rodney, I..."
"Can't swim?" finished Rodney helpfully. Radek just nodded to the floor, unable to meet McKay's eyes.
"Is a bit more than that. I am... very frightened... of the water. I apologise; I cannot accompany you to make the repairs." Radek continued to speak to the floor, not daring to look up. He was never going to hear the end of this: Radek Zelenka, scared of water and unable to swim, was living in a floating city. Fate was a cruel mistress. The Czech closed his eyes, fighting back tears, waiting for the tirade and teasing McKay was sure to give.
Rodney ran his fingers through his hair exasperatedly. Who would help him with the repairs now? It would take twice as long by himself. He quickly came to a decision.
"Laura, run back to the labs quickly and fetch Dr. Song." He whispered in Laura's ear, "Tell him to leave his project and come down here. Oh, and make sure that he can swim!" His tone was low but brisk, yet his eyes said belayed that. Laura opened her mouth to object - after all, what were radios for? - but she caught the hint and shut it again.
As she marched off, Lt. Cadman turned and said, "Just do me a favour? Don't move from this spot and radio for help if you need it, ok?"
"No problem. No need to rush either, we're not in any danger."
"Roger. See you in a bit." Turning, Rodney lent against the wall and slide down it to sit next to Radek, who was still staring at his shoes and shaking slightly.
They sat in silence for a while, each man listening to his own thoughts. Eventually, Rodney spoke very quietly, as if he did not wish to ruin the silence.
"When I was ten, my sister and I fell from a bridge into a river, near our family home. It was quite a way out; there was no-one around and the spring-time snow-melt had swollen the river, causing the bridge to disintegrate. The river was deep, fast-flowing, bloody freezing and full of debris washed down from the mountains," he paused only to draw breath. Now that he'd started, he didn't want to stop.
"I was scared to death and grabbed onto Jeanie as we fell; she was screaming for help - so was I - but the current kept pulling us under. Then she hit her head on a log and stopped screaming. That scared me more than the water; my sister, who normally never shut up, went silent. Somehow, and I'll never know how, exactly, I managed to grab onto a branch that was trailing in the water and held on to it and Jeannie, still screaming for help.
"We got out eventually but to this day, Jeannie is still petrified of water and can't swim. I was so scared by the incident that I took up swimming lessons. It took me a long time to get over my fear, but I did it." At this, Rodney turned to his friend and gently lifted his chin so that he could look Radek in the eye. "I learnt to swim so that if ever, god forbid, it should happen again, I would be able to help my sister. I did it for her, Radek."
Radek merely stared in disbelief. Rodney had _never_ spoken about his childhood before, let alone something like this! Rodney's quiet revelation in some way managed to loosen his tongue.
"I was six. My older brother Dimitri and I were skating... he fell though some thin ice because he was heavier. I went after him, I tried to pull him out, but I was only six and he was so much bigger... he pulled me under in his panic. The water, it was so cold! I could not think, could not breathe, then Dimitri pushed me out. I skated as fast as I could, I tried to get help, but by the time... he... he was dead," he hiccoughed, tears running freely and unchecked down his cheeks, "Sometimes, at night, I can see Dimitri's face when they pulled him out. It was blue, it didn't look like him at all." At this, Radek gave up and just sobbed. Rodney awkwardly patted him on the shoulder.
"I'm sorry, Radek, I should have realised that you were uncomfortable with this... you were trying to tell me in the labs, weren't you? I'm sorry for not listening, and for your brother. Please forgive me."
"No."
"Um..." Rodney looked awkward.
Radek smiled through his tears. "No, I cannot forgive you when there is nothing to forgive. Though, perhaps, hearing you apologise has given me heart failure..."
"Oh har-di-har-di-har..." The familiar snark returned, confirming to Radek that Rodney hadn't been replaced by a pod person.
"Thank you for understanding."
Rodney shifted, looking uncomfortable. "Um, no problem. Just... don't say anything, yeah? I don't want to lose my rep as a cold hearted son-of-a-bitch."
Radek chuckled, wiping away the last of the tears. "Ano, our secret."
"Oy, are you two still down here? Not been eaten by anything?" Laura Cadman announced her return as loudly as possible.
"Yeah, we're still here. Like we'd go anywhere else. So? Where's Song?" snapped McKay, noticing that Laura had returned alone.
The Lieutenant rolled her eyes. "He refused to come, on the grounds that if he came to help you, he would have left Dr. Kavanaugh unattended in Lab. 3," she said, bringing Rodney up short.
"Hmm," he mused thoughtfully, "Ok, he has a valid point. We'll scrub the repairs until tomorrow. Oh, and Laura..."
"Yes?"
"Mum's the word, yeah?" said Rodney, nodding discretely in Zelenka's' direction.
"Sure, no problem."
"Cheers."
"Besides, I like Dr. Z. You're *much* more fun to tease."
"Hey!" cried Rodney indignantly. Radek just laughed.
Apologies von FumblesMcStupid
Story Bemerkung:
Please send feedback! Inspired by L.E McMurray's Dr.Who/Atlantis crossover fics
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