kageygirl

Atlantis snippet for

miera_c, per her request, though I'm fairly certain this isn't even close to what she was looking for. *g* But hey! Between this and TiVo, I haven't had to watch actual live television, so that's good.

Keeping Up Appearances

"Ow! Look, is that really necessary?"

Carson looked across the infirmary, but Nurse Ishimura merely gave Rodney a hard look, narrowing her eyes at her patient. "Yes. And if don't sit still, it will hurt more."

"Fine, just--watch where you put that thing, all right?"

Carson hid a smile--Rodney was giving him lots of practice at that--and turned back to Dr. Zelenka, picking up where he'd left off. "That's when the panel came loose, is it?"

"Er, yes." Zelenka winced as Carson irrigated the laceration across his upper arm, but he remained otherwise motionless. It was a pleasant change of pace--the military types were often a bit too gung-ho about getting up and around as soon as possible.

Then there were the ones who squirmed like children when they were hurt. Carson snuck another look at Rodney, who'd gone quiet. Naoko had stuck a thermometer in his mouth, and the affronted look Rodney was giving her threatened to make Carson smile again.

"McKay pushed me out of the way. That's how he got the--" Zelenka gestured at his own head with his good hand. He was looking across the infirmary, too, though his glasses and the unruly hair that tangled across his forehead kept Carson from seeing his eyes.

"Did he, now?" And Rodney hadn't said a word about it--though he had raised holy hell about the bump on his head. Zelenka shrugged, then grimaced when the movement pulled on his injured arm.

"Yes." Zelenka looked back up at Carson, giving him a fleeting smile. "But don't tell him I told you. I think he has--" Zelenka made a vague circle with his good hand. "An image to maintain."

Carson chuckled. "That he does." He laid the last of the butterfly stitches across the laceration, then taped a gauze pad over it. "I need to give you a tetanus shot, then you'll be free to go."

Zelenka nodded. "Thank you, Dr. Beckett."

"No need--it's all in a day's work."

He looked up from administering the injection to meet Zelenka's eyes. Tipping his head to the side, Zelenka seemed to consider Carson for a moment. "Maybe yes, but I can't thank him, so I thank you. For both of us."

Carson frowned, perplexed. "I'm sorry--you can't ...?"

"We don't talk like that." Zelenka blinked at him, his expression mild. "It's not our way."

Carson shook his head in sudden understanding, laying a hand on Zelenka's shoulder. "Oh, aye. That just means he's comfortable with you."

Zelenka gave him a grin that made him look surprisingly boyish. "That is a frightening thought."

Carson helped Zelenka off the table with a hand on his back. "Keep that clean and dry, and come back tomorrow so I can have a look at it." He raised his voice enough that Rodney could hear him. "And try to keep that one over there out of trouble, will you?"

"You're an absolute riot, Carson. A walking advertisement for the healing power of laughter." Rodney made as if to get off the table, but Naoko fixed him with a quelling glance, and he settled back down.

Carson traded a look with Zelenka. They shared a smile as Zelenka headed for the door, and Carson headed over to keep Rodney from getting himself a bigger lump than he came in with.

***

can I look yet? I'm afraid to find out.