Sam Carter was packing away the last of her gear when Jack O'Neill entered the change room. The captain looked up, smiling.
"I'm almost done, sir," she told him, answering his unasked question.
"Take your time," Jack replied, sitting on the bench. He watched as she continued neatly putting everything away.
"Do you have any plans for Christmas?" Sam asked, seemingly out of the blue. She closed her locker door, then turned to face the colonel as he answered.
"Nothing special. I'm not really big on holidays, haven't been since... for a while," he replied. Sam nodded in understanding. "What about you?"
"Oh, just the usual. Going up to see my dad, have him ask me about anyone 'new' in my life," she answered, rolling her eyes at the last part and making Jack smile. "And we usually end up talking shop at some point, agreeing to disagree on many points."
"Sounds... nice." Sam chuckled at his response.
"I suppose it is." Sam seemed to consider something as she went to pick up her jacket, then made the decision.
"Would you like to come with me?" To say that Jack was surprised by her invitation would be an understatement.
"I... I wouldn't want to intrude..."
"Oh, you wouldn't be. And I know you'd be a great distraction for my father."
"Nice to know I'm useful for something," O'Neill replied, a tinge of joking sarcasm colouring his tone. Sam flushed when she realized how what she had said had sounded.
"Oh, sir, I didn't mean..." Jack waved her off.
"Don't worry, I know what you meant." He paused, and Sam seemed about to leave, but he first finished with, "I'll think about it. Thanks." Jack gave her a reassuring smile, which she returned.
"Okay. I'll see you." Sam turned and left, leaving Jack to his thoughts.
****
"Damn!" Sam swore as she jabbed her finger on her overnight bag zipper. She was finishing up her packing for the trip to her dad's, and, as always, she had overpacked.
Sam sucked on her sore finger, now ready to go in search of some iodine for the cut that had made itself evident. She was quickly distracted from her quest though by the ringing of her doorbell.
Carter opened the front door to the sight of her commanding officer looking very casual in jeans and a t-shirt. He also seemed a touch nervous.
"Colonel," she stated, mildly surprised. He had never come to her house before, so to see him standing on her doorstep was something new for her. She didn't even know that he knew where she lived.
"Hi. I was wondering, is that invitation still open?" Sam smiled.
"Of course. I was just about to leave," she told him, then ushered him inside. "I'll just be a second, I need to find some iodine," she continued, showing her finger in explanation.
"'Revenge of the killer zipper'?" he joked. She laughed.
"How'd you know?" she asked as she disappeared into the bathroom.
"I've had my fair share of zipper cuts." Jack stood around, rocking on his feet as he waited for Sam to reappear. He glanced around the front hall, liking what he saw. He was surprised that he had never been to her place before. Somehow they had always ended up at Daniel's apartment or his house. Now that he thought about it, Sam had never really offered for them to come over, but she hadn't denied them the opportunity either. He was glad he had decided to take the next step and come to her 'territory'.
Sam returned, and triumphantly showed her now cleaned and bandaged cut, causing Jack to smile.
"Ready to go," she said as she breezed past him and into her bedroom to gather up her bags. When Jack saw how much she had with her, he began to wonder what he was getting himself into.
"Don't worry, I always overpack," she reassured him. She headed for the door, but Jack made sure he got there first to open it for her. As he opened it, he had a thought.
"Who's car are we taking?" Sam shrugged.
"Doesn't matter to me. We can take yours, if you'd prefer."
"I am parked behind your car," he agreed. With that decision made, they continued out the door and down the driveway, once the house was locked up.
Jack took Sam's bags and indicated for her to take her seat. Once all the bags were in the trunk, Jack closed it and slid into the driver's seat. He paused momentarily, as if he had forgotten something. He looked at Sam.
"Did you tell your father?"
"Yeah, he knows a friend was possibly going to come with me. Any more questions I can answer before we get going?" she teased. Jack smirked.
"One last thing. Will you call me Jack? I want to try to get away from formality for a while." Sam smiled.
"I'll see what I can do." Jack nodded, then started the engine and backed out of the driveway, headed for the highway.
****
"Nice to see Samantha bringing friends home again," Sam's father commented pointedly as he hugged his daughter hello.
"*Dad*," Carter answered as she moved out of his embrace, sounding for all the world like an embarrassed teenager on her first date.
"Nice to see you again, sir," Jack replied, shaking the older man's hand.
"Glad to have you here, colonel."
"Dad, do you think we can hold off on the official stuff until later?" Sam requested. Her father acquiesced.
"Of course, darling. Here, let me show you where you'll be sleeping," the elder Carter replied, indicating for them to head up the stairs before him.
****
"So then..."
"Oh god," Sam groaned quietly, holding her head in her hands. Her father stopped midsentence, looking curiously at his daughter.
"Something wrong, Sam?" he asked, a twinkle of mischief in his eye. She pulled her head up from its 'resting' position. Her cheeks were reddened from the deluge of stories her father had been telling O'Neill, and now he was about to tell her commanding officer, and friend, about one of the more embarrassing moments of her life. That was the *last* thing she needed.
"You know what's wrong."
"What, you can't let an old man enjoy talking about his child?" he teased.
"Dad, I have no problem with you telling praising stories of me. But when it comes to 'The Most Embarrassing Moments in the Life of Samantha Carter', I *have* to draw the line," she replied, a determined look on her face. Her expression caused her father to smile widely, then chuckle, and soon Jack was joining in.
"Oh, I can't count how many times I've seen that stubborn look on her face," Jack told her father, once he stopped laughing.
"Nice to know I'm a source of amusement for you two," she said, trying to stay 'angry' with the two men. It didn't last long as they both watched a smile finally work its way onto her face, although she tried her best to hide it.
"Well, I think it's about time I headed off to bed," her father finally stated, getting up from his chair. He walked over to Sam and kissed her on the forehead, then nodded at Jack. "Goodnight, you two. Don't stay up too late," he teased, gaining another unappreciative groan from his daughter.
"'Night, dad."
"G'night, sir."
Once her father was gone, Sam got up from her seat and went over to the fireplace, stoking the fire. Jack soon joined her when she didn't seem to be moving away from it.
"So, Teal'c went to visit his family?" Sam asked, even though she knew the answer. Jack nodded.
"Felt it was as good a time as any to do so. Daniel's off on some expedition. You know him and digging things up." Sam smiled softly.
"He does love to dig." They sat for a few minutes in comfortable silence, only the sound of the crackling fire interrupting the peacefulness of the moment.
"Is is too early to give gifts?" Jack asked, finally breaking the silence. Sam looked a little surprised at first, but quickly hid it.
"Um, no. It is after midnight, so technically it is Christmas day."
"Good," Jack stated, then went in search of something under the tree. Sam tried not to be conspicuous as she did the same. Jack returned to sit in front of Sam, a smallish box in his hands. Sam produced a book-sized package, and she tried not to appear embarrassed as she held it out to him.
"I'd like you to open this first," she stated simply, and he obliged her by taking it. He smiled.
"Thanks," he said.
"You haven't even opened it yet."
"Actually, I was thanking you for the thought," he responded, gaining a quizzical look from Carter. He continued. "You've been such a good friend to me over the past couple of years. You've certainly put up with a lot of crap, and not just anyone would do that. Sometimes I don't think I've deserved you." Jack paused, sighing, but continued before she could say anything. "You've atually given me a gift long before this." He paused again, looking away from her. "Not only have you given me friendship, but you've helped me feel again, something I wasn't sure was ever going to happen for me."
Sam felt tears pricking at her eyes as she listened to Jack talk. This confession of sorts was the last thing she had expected from him. Hell, she had *never* expected anything like this from him.
"Look, I've gone and upset you," he chastised himself, having looked up and seen the tears now rolling down her face. Jack brought his right hand up to her face, wiping away the tears.
"No, you haven't. It's just so... No one's ever said anything like that to me before," she replied, her voice getting quieter.
"Then they're fools," he told her, gently brushing away the last tears. His hand lingered, cupping her face as his thumb softly caressed her cheek. Sam leaned into it, closing her eyes and enjoying the feelings his touch gave her. In that instant, Jack gave into temptation and leaned in, gently touching his lips to hers. She opened her eyes in surprise, but didn't push him away. They brushed their lips together, never making full contact, almost as if they were afraid to do so. After a couple of minutes, they moved apart, but they continued to keep very little physical distance between them.
"I guess I should open this," Jack stated, sounding slightly breathless. He removed the wrapping paper to reveal a journal-type book.
"'The Adventures of SG1'," Jack read aloud from the cover. He opened it up and began reading it to himself. He smiled as he read, then stopped, looking up at Sam.
"I just thought it would be nice to have something to remember from all our missions so far," Carter explained.
"Thank you. It's wonderful," Jack said with sincerity. He gently squeezed her hand. "Now, I do believe you have a gift to open." He handed the box to her and Sam tried not to seem like an eager child as she unwrapped it. It was a green velvet box. Sam carefully opened it, and inside was a beautiful, antique gold chain with an interesting looking pendant. Sam looked up from the box, virtually speechless.
"Ja... sir, I can't..."
"Yes, you can," he interrupted, moving around behind her. "May I?" he requested, indicating that he wanted to put it on for her. She nodded, still unable to speak coherently. He was certainly throwing curveballs her way tonight.
"Do you know the significance of the pendant?" he asked as he put it around her neck. Sam shook her head negatively. Jack moved around to face her once again, the clasp firmly closed. He took the pendant in his hand as he explained.
"It's called a claddagh. The crown stands for 'loyalty', the hands 'friendship', the heart 'love'. My grandmother believed it to be a good luck charm for her, and she willed it to me. She was a great lady, and I know she would have liked you. And I do believe she would be proud to see you wear this." Sam was even more taken aback than she thought she could have been. She had not really expected a gift from him, let alone one so incredibly personal.
"Jack... thank you," she said, finally finding her voice again. They shared a smile briefly, then Jack let go of the pendant, letting it drop gently against her. He moved to get up, taking the journal with him.
"Are you leaving?" she asked, sounding disappointed.
"I should get to bed." Sam nodded in understanding.
"Yeah, I guess I'll be heading up soon myself. We have a big day to be getting ready for." Jack looked at her curiously. "Dad usually has some of the neighbours around, some friends, lots of food and drink," she explained.
"Well then, I better be in tip top shape if I aim to keep the Carters looking good." She smiled at his joking. "G'night, Sam."
"'Night." Jack turned and walked to the doorway, then turned back briefly.
"Merry Christmas, Sam," he said softly. He left before she had a chance to respond directly.
"Merry Christmas to you too, Jack." Sam reached up and touched the pendant, pondering the meaning behind the gift.
To her, Jack O'Neill was the proverbial mystery wrapped in an enigma, but tonight he had allowed her a brief glimpse inside. Sam looked forward to peeling away more layers in the future.
THE END
Story Notes: I will forewarn you all, I wrote this *very* late at night, and I blame that on Jennifer Goll . She told me about there being a Christmas story challenge, so of course my brain began working overtime, keeping me awake until I had the whole thing written out. Hopefully this all makes sense and is more or less what was asked for in the challenge! Oh, and since I have not seen many episodes still, I'm relying on episode synopses for a lot of character information, as well as just making up some of my own background stuff along the way. Enjoy! =)
DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognisable characters, settings, etc, are the property of their respective owners. Any original characters and plots are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended. ... [ read more ]