Dead.
Dead.
No.
He couldn't be.
"Help me!" Sam tried to shout at the top of her lungs, but her words came out as a barely audible croak. "Somebody help me..." her voice died away to a whisper, unable to make a sound.
She knelt on the ramp, not noticing the people crowding around her, trying to extricate Jack O'Neill from her grasp, trying to get him on a gurney and down to medical. She didn't want to release him, if she let go of him, she'd lose him, and she knew it.
"Sam, come on," Daniel was tugging gently on her arm, trying to remove her from the ramp. "There's nothing you can do."
Sam shrugged him off and kept her arms clutched around the limp body of her CO. "No," she whispered hoarsely. She felt the feather-light touch of Janet's hand on her shoulder, trying to offer some sort of emotional support through that touch.
"Sam, come with us. You don't have to leave him, but you have to let us get him to the infirmary."
"I can't." she told her friend. "I can't move. If I move, I'll never have him again."
She felt Teal'c's hands pulling her to her feet gently. She could feel the cloth of his fatigues slipping through her fingers, allowing the tips to brush against the ugly wound left by the Goa'uld staff weapon.
She tried vainly to hold onto it, but she could no longer hold her own balance, and the only thing that stopped her from falling to her knees again was Teal'c support. Had he been given a choice, he probably would have taken her to her quarters to rest, but Sam followed the gurney as the medical staff sped it down the hallway.
She had to be physically held back while they tried to revive him, flinching as if it were her body that was being shocked electically, trying to bring life back into it.
After what seemed to Sam like days, Janet slowly straightened and looked at her fellow doctors. "Are we all agreed?" she said quietly. It took Sam a few moments to grasp the implications of those words, and she started shaking, as if she were having a seizure.
"No," she whispered, her voice gaining in intensity as her emotions did. "You can't let him die, you have to do something!"
Janet turned to her. "Sam, there's nothing more we can do." She reached out to place a comforting hand on Sam's shoulder.
In a trance, Sam staggered forward, almost collapsing at the side of the bed, Teal'c, Daniel and Janet let her, turning away to give her some privacy.
As she leaned over him, gently stroking his face, Sam whispered, "I can't do it. I can't live without you."
No one saw her draw her sidearm. But everyone heard the crack of the gun as it fired, and saw it clatter from Sam's hand. And for an instant, they thought they saw relief in Sam's eyes.
-Fini
Story Notes: I'm really depressed right now. This is the result. If I ever feel this miserable again, I might do a sequel. Maybe I'll write it, maybe I won't. Maybe you'll hate it, I hope you won't.
Feedback is A Good Thing. Flames will be fed to an obliging Dragon, after I've composed a scathing retort.
Feedback is A Good Thing. Flames will be fed to an obliging Dragon, after I've composed a scathing retort.
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 ]