No. 7

Prompt: Stargate Atlantis, Rodney McKay, not easy being the smartest kid in school
http://comment-fic.livejournal.com/687901.html?thread=90348573#t90348573

The hardest part about being the smartest kid in class was the loneliness, but Rodney would never admit it. The boredom was mostly alleviated because his teachers piled advanced work on him to keep him quiet and compliant. The frustration was easily alleviated by a good tantrum. Some well-meaning numbskull offered to help Rodney with his science project like a finger-painting toddler offering to help Da Vinci, Rodney screamed, the numbskull went away, and Rodney could work in peace.

But that didn't mean he wasn't sometimes lonely, having no one to talk to during lunch breaks.

And then John Sheppard showed up. He was lanky, with stylish clothes and trendy scruffy hair. No one at school knew anything about him, except his family had just moved in, his family was super rich, he was fourteen years old, and his mother was dead. (Some of the older girls in the halls talked about his older brother, Dave, who had a really cool car.)

Rodney looked John Sheppard up and down and knew he wasn't one of those meat-headed jocks. Too slender for that. He had long-fingered hands and wore a plain black band on one wrist. Judging by his Johnny Cash t-shirt and his insufferable smirk, he was probably one of those dark, moody musicians. Guitar. Girls loved guys who played guitar. (Rodney played piano. That was dorky.)

John sat beside Rodney in math class and immediately set about doodling spaceships in his notebook instead of listening to the teacher. Not a meat-head jock, but stupid all the same. The teacher wrote a problem on the bored, one that had all the other students stumped and that Rodney wouldn't even dignify by raising his hand.

"John?" The teacher raised her eyebrows at the new kid.

John lifted his head. "Sorry, I don't know. We hadn't covered this at my old school yet." But he had the correct answer scrawled next to a particularly explosive-looking battle between aliens and soldiers.

Rodney ignored everyone around him and set about on his own math assignment, which was something the teacher could barely grasp. He was halfway done with his assignment when a paper airplane landed on his desk. Judging by its landing trajectory, it had come from the desk beside him. When Rodney glanced over, John had moved on to drawing what looked like a series of spikes but was labeled Atlantis: city in the stars.

Rodney unfolded the note, ready for anything, a prank "do you like me? Check yes or no" or an insult or joke about his hair. Instead was a string of numbers and a single question: "Prime/not prime?"

Rodney glanced at John again. John looked at him sidelong and grinned.

Rodney was still by far the smartest person in the class - in the whole school - but maybe he didn't have to be alone anymore.