In all fairness, Carter should have been checking up on him. He had spent his time in the infirmary, spent his time off-duty, and all through it she had doted and joked and talked – she had been there.
At least, in body. But not in mind.
She had been just the littlest bit aloof; her smile was never all there, her laugh was always distant. It was unlike Carter, and she had to have known that he would notice it.
Needless to say, he was worried about her. He wasn't stupid; he knew her well enough to know why she would want some distance from him.
But, of course, he wasn't about to let her have it.
Walking quietly to her lab, he raised his hand and rapped his knuckles against the door. "Carter?"
It was silent for a moment, then he heard her softly from inside. "Come in, sir."
He opened the door and stepped inside, and stopped.
The lights were out.
Not even her computer monitor was on, which was just about as radical for Carter as Maybourne's grenade fixation.
He slid his hand along the wall, found the light, and flipped it on. When his eyes adjusted, the sight would have amused him if he hadn't been so damned bemused by her behavior. She was sitting slouched in her chair, feet propped up on her desk, with her eyes closed. She didn't open her eyes, just sighed heavily.
He frowned. "Whatcha doing, Carter?"
She did open her eyes then, an honest smile on her face. "Believe it or not, thoroughly enjoying myself."
He raised his eyebrows. "Ah. How exactly?"
She leaned back further in her chair, obviously unconcerned with his presence. She motioned him to an adjacent chair. "The lights aren't on, the machines are off, and I'm not doing a thing. Well, not actively anyway. It's nice."
He looked at her skeptically. "Really?"
Her smiled lessened a bit. "What, you don't think I can just enjoy not doing anything every once in a while?"
He should have been bothered by her soft, familiar tone, but he wasn't. He was disturbingly pleased by it. He moved to sit. "No. I'm just saying it's…unusual for you. Not fitting with what I know as your normal behavior."
Her face went carefully blank. "Not a lot of things have been normal lately."
Searching her eyes, he nodded slightly. "No, they haven't." He leaned forward and put his elbows on his knees, getting a closer view of her face. "It really wasn't your fault, you know. You don't need to beat yourself up about it."
The smile came back, albeit small and a little self- deprecating. "You wouldn't have let him get the zat."
He conceded. "But I had reason to not trust him."
She leveled a look at him, reminding him of old times. "And I didn't?"
He winced. "Look, it doesn't matter. You got me back. Again, I might add."
~
She knew what he was doing; he was trying to lift the burden of blame from here shoulders, regardless of whether or not it belonged there. He didn't think about it. He just knew it was bothering her and his natural instinct was to fix it.
She appreciated it. It was just misguided.
She looked away, and her gaze settled on her desk. The closeness they felt here, behind closed doors and away from prying eyes was wonderful; it fed her heart in ways she didn't want to acknowledge. But it also came with a heavy price.
She licked her lips, took a deep breath, and said – for once – exactly what she was thinking. "I don't want to lose you."
He drew himself up, taken aback. "You won't."
Tearing her eyes away from her desktop, she saw startling honesty in his. Serious, absolute confidence and honesty.
"I'm not going anywhere, Carter. I don't care what you think might happen. I have too much to look forward to." It was a not-so-elusive hint of the future, and she felt her pulse kick up a notch.
She knew her voice was husky, and she didn't care. "I'll hold you to that."
His eyes darkened, and a ghost of a grin touched his face.
"Yes, I believe you will."
Story Notes: EMAIL: gene_este@hotmail.com
CATEGORY: Paradise Lost
SEASON / SEQUEL: S6.
SPOILERS: 'Paradise Lost'
ARCHIVE: SJD yes, as well as Helio, The Gene Pool, and probably anyone else that asks.
STATUS: Complete
DISCLAIMER: Stargate SG-1 and its characters are the property of Showtime /Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. No copyright infringement is intended. No money is being made. The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the author. Not to be archived without permission. Feedback and constructive criticism most welcome, flames are not.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Yep, my addition to the PL fic frenzy. Enjoy. Feedback, constructive criticism, and flames are welcome. Hit me with your best shot.
CATEGORY: Paradise Lost
SEASON / SEQUEL: S6.
SPOILERS: 'Paradise Lost'
ARCHIVE: SJD yes, as well as Helio, The Gene Pool, and probably anyone else that asks.
STATUS: Complete
DISCLAIMER: Stargate SG-1 and its characters are the property of Showtime /Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. No copyright infringement is intended. No money is being made. The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the author. Not to be archived without permission. Feedback and constructive criticism most welcome, flames are not.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Yep, my addition to the PL fic frenzy. Enjoy. Feedback, constructive criticism, and flames are welcome. Hit me with your best shot.
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 ]