SGA Fic: Out Of Bounds - John/Rodney - NC-17 overall

[icarus]

An Out Of Bounds nibble. Just to keep the momentum going and not tease you with "almost there!" updates.

The story in one file up to an earlier chapter: Out Of Bounds.

Title: Out Of Bounds
Author: Icarus
Rating: NC-17
Pairing: John/Rodney
Summary: "This time you're allowed to fall if you want to."

A/N: Thank you once again to my tireless betas (we're having fun), rabidfan and roaringmice, and now tingler and mariamme, too.

Previously in Out Of Bounds: Known more for his jumps than his artistry, figure skater John Sheppard hires ex-skating champion and "artiste" Rodney McKay to be his coach. Their teasing friendship warms into something more. After a year of training and preparation... the U.S. Championships.

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Out Of Bounds
by Icarus


"There is one minute remaining in this warm-up," the announcer said, voice ringing across the arena.

Sweat beading in his hair, John stood at the boards with his head bent, water bottle dangling his hands. Rodney gave him an appraising look.

"So that's a negative... oh, let me see, carry the two...." Rodney wrote the math in midair, grinning.

"Shut up," John growled. "You set it up so I couldn't add any points."

"Always read the contract." Rodney smirked. "Try it one more time. This time you're allowed to fall if you want to. A freebie as it were."

John rolled his eyes, capping the bottle of water and handing it back to Rodney. Then steadied himself a moment and set his jaw. As he skated off, he looked back and shook his finger warningly at Rodney, an unspoken signal that read to them (and no one else) that Rodney was going to pay through the back door for this, just you wait. Rodney just beamed.

John took a small leap step and bounced once, turning. Then, gathering energy, he arced around the arena at full speed. Hitting the far end he dug in his toe pick and pushed into the air -- no, no, not high enough -- and twisted, one, two, three, almost four -- he found the ground and slid out on the landing, arms up, knee bent, and barely catching himself.

John skated around to Rodney, curving with both skates parallel. "Ha," John said with a little smug smile, preening.

"Mmm... well...." Rodney tipped his head back and forth in grudging appraisal. He ran his thumb along his lower lip.

John raised his eyebrows, daring Rodney to lie.

"All right," Rodney admitted. "That would have been perfect if you hadn't been worn out. Would have been," he emphasized. "Your concentration's improved."

"Gentlemen, this warm-up is completed," the announcer interrupted in a smooth feminine voice.

"I want to go through my choreography for the long program," John said with an eager light in his eyes. "I mean, outside the main run-through of the short."

Rodney winced. "No, um, you really should...." John gave him a pleading, puppy-dog look. No one withstood the pleading puppy-dog look. But Rodney was resilient. "The short is tonight," he insisted

"Rodney. Which needs it more?"

Rodney sucked in a breath through his teeth, eyes squinted as he tilted his head. "You need to steep in Surf Rider like a teabag. You have to embody that music."

John turned up the pressure with a sarcastic shrug, pursing his lips. "Yeah, you're right. No problem," he said in a dry voice, nodding. "I'm all set for Friday anyway."

Rodney squeezed his eyes shut, hand over his face. John was a long way from ready for his long program and Rodney knew it.

"Fine," Rodney snapped, giving in ungraciously. John slapped his knee in open celebration. His freeskate was way cooler than the short program. "But you do a full run-through with your music first, you got that?"

"Yes, sir," John said with a mock salute, willing to even be respectful if he got his way.

"Skating first is Frances Caliaro, to be followed by Michael Estey."

Eyeliner guy traveled out to center ice, arms held high for the small audience. The other skaters made room for him, continuing their own snatches of choreography.

Skating far ahead of them all, silver medalist Mike Estey flowed across the ice with effortless grace and speed. John took a moment to admit that Estey was an elegant skater who outclassed everyone here today, even though he'd been having a terrible season. He shouldn't be in this flight; wouldn't be, except for one bad fall.

John watched him for a long uncomfortable minute, then followed him on the ice.


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Comments

[lauramcewan.livejournal.com]

just to let you know, I have successfully put this on my Palm and have been reading it today. I'm still way back at the beginning, but I am enjoying it very much. :)

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

Really? People can fit novels and whatnot on a Palm Pilot? Is that hard to do?

[lauramcewan.livejournal.com]

I use Mobipocket software. It's free. I took your story, copied and pasted it to Word. Then using the desktop software, I converted the Office document to a Mobipocket file. Then I used hotsync to put it on the Palm (I have a Palm TX.) (having already installed the Mobipocket Reader on it.)

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

Is it awkward to read entire stories on the small screen of a Palm Pilot?

[lauramcewan.livejournal.com]

I have no problem with it at all. The screen is bigger than I thought it was when I first decided to get one.

I've been putting stories on Palm in Word and then .pdf for years, and now Mobipocket and I love the Mobi.

There are two sizes to make the font, and both of those can also be made bold if that's helpful. Scrolling changes pages altogether, which is nice - push the down or right button, and the next page comes up, rather than scrolling constantly line by line. If you abandon a story and go to another in the Mobipocket style, if you come back to that story, it picks up where you left off.

Waiting for the dentist I kept on reading...I just hit the "spotlight" lesson way back near the beginning. :) After Rodney's "almost leather 3 way". :D

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

I was talking to my professor about this today. She's still surprised anyone could read on those little Palm Pilot screens.

Oooh, that spotlight lesson. I was very worried that wouldn't work, but one person told me it was her favorite scene (I stopped worrying then). How many years do you think it'll be before Rodney's bragging about that leather 3-way (which then he'll quickly admit never happened).

Would you like a little more (http://icarusancalion.livejournal.com/873029.html)? I don't know how you would add it to the file.

(Psst. What part are you on now? *is so gleefully curious*)

[lauramcewan.livejournal.com]

I make a new file. :)

I haven't gotten too much further....last thing I remember, Rodney just pulled himself through Radek's window...

[with-apostrophe.livejournal.com]

Novels PLURAL. I have a very basic Palm Pilot and currently have "1984" and a selection of about 20 SGA Big Bang stories on it with room to spare.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

That must be handy. Wouldn't be a bit of a struggle to read a whole fic (especially one this long) on that little screen?

[tashabear.livejournal.com]

Not at all. I read long books on my Palm all the time when I was in Kuwait. Text files are remarkably small; I had like 80 books in less than 1gb of space. (I was irked, however, that out of all the electronics I brought with me, which included laptop, DVD player, iPod, and iPod speakers, the Palm was the only one I couldn't plug into 220v power. All the rest had international adapters.)

[lauramcewan.livejournal.com]

I love my Palm. Short of my laptop, it's the best piece of electronics I have ever owned. It comes with me on every trip, and since I have the Palm TX, I can connect to my wireless router here at home and anywhere else I can snag a free signal and check my LJ, email, etc. I even put video software on it, converted some Life On Mars UK episodes, and can watch them while I walk the treadmill at the gym!

[tashabear.livejournal.com]

I do all that with my iPod touch these days -- it has my to-do and grocery lists, calendar, contacts, Kindle books, games, music and video, and I can access email and the Internet. If it took pictures, it'd be perfect.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

80. Books.

So one of the big benefits is for overseas travel? I've been discussing this with my professor.

(Here's a little more Out of Bounds (http://icarusancalion.livejournal.com/873029.html).)

[tashabear.livejournal.com]

Any kind of travel, especially if you have a short attention span. I use my Kindle or my iPod touch, now, but the Adobe books I could read on both my Palm and my laptop. There was no way I could carry enough dead tree books to occupy me in my off-hours, and I wasn't relying on the library at the MWR tent to satisfy my weird reading habits (MWR: Morale, Welfare, and Recreation).

Thanks for the link! I love love love this AU.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

It's like carrying along a bookshelf. Do you end reading that many books and stories? Find yourself switching them out?

And a little bit more Out of Bounds... (http://icarusancalion.livejournal.com/873029.html).

[with-apostrophe.livejournal.com]

It is indeed! It's much easier than carting books around. The screen size drove me mad at first, but I got used to it, much like reading fic on a screen instead of printed books.

I don't read that much on the Palm Pilot - it's my public transport entertainment, so not more than about 45 mins a day.

I've had shorter stories on there that I've switched over. It's also good if you've seen a fic you want to read a few minutes before goign out of the door - a little conversion using Mobipocket as was explained above and voila! Fic in your pocket!