Getting a Life
This wasn't how it was supposed to be. When she had resigned from SG1 she'd had such high hopes. This was her chance to step back a bit, and maybe actually get some sleep and put on those five pounds Janet was always harping on her to gain. And of course there was the hope that this would give her a chance to date, fall in love, and maybe even have kids like normal people. She'd even let the tiny hidden desire to go fishing out into the light.
But from the moment she had nervously told her teammates that she was no longer officially on SG1, everything had gone wrong. She hadn't even been able to explain the reasons to them, other than to jokingly say that she was trying to get one of those lives she kept hearing about, when the klaxons had sounded and SG1 had been sent out on a rescue mission. The three men had put aside their shock, and the four had headed out to retrieve SG4.
By the time they came back, two of her former teammates had already formed their own opinions as to why she had left. The Colonel had taken her comments about getting a life seriously, and decided that he wouldn't be the one to stand in the way of her being happy. So he had withdrawn. No more stopping in her lab just to watch her work, and no more lunches in the commissary. He avoided listening to gossip. He really didn't want to know if she was dating anyone. And Daniel in his slightly confused state had decided that his return had something to do with her transfer, and he refused all of her attempts to explain that the request had been made before his return.
Thank goodness for Teal'c who understood instinctively Sam's motives. He had been there during that damned Zatarc testing, and when the Colonel had been missing several months ago. He knew she had simply reached the point where she could no longer pretend on a daily basis that she didn't care more than she was supposed to. And he supported her decision without judging her or thinking she was selfish.
As did Janet. As Sam's doctor she knew that it was only a matter of time before she was going to have to ground Sam anyway. The Major went off-world weekly, and even on a good mission she put her body through grueling hikes, little sleep and only the basic nourishment. She tended to lose two or three pounds every mission. Then she would come back to base, head for her lab, and put in 48 hour shifts trying to catch up on all of the other work that was expected of her. The doctor had been threatening to ground Sam ever since SG1's last run- in with Nirrti to give Sam a chance to gain a few pounds.
As Sam's friend, Janet knew that despite all of that the officer would have continued on until she dropped if it wasn't for the fact that she was in love with her CO. And that fact had worn her down over the last six years almost as fast as the grueling schedule had. Weary of body, she just could no longer overcome the weariness of her spirit.
However, the break from SG1 wasn't having the desired effect. Stressed by the reaction her departure had caused in Daniel and the Colonel Sam began having second thoughts. Had she abandoned them? Was she being selfish leaving for personal reasons? And she was more than a little bit hurt. Daniel had always been one of her best friends, someone she could talk to about almost anything. Had he truly forgotten that friendship? And as for the Colonel, so much for his mantra of never leaving anyone behind. As soon as she was no longer a member of SG1 that rule obviously didn't apply any more. SG1 had been assigned a new team member and she was left in the dust.
The entire situation came to a head a month after she had requested her transfer from the team. SG1 had been given a three-day weekend and the Colonel had decided that they needed to do some team bonding with their new member, Captain Jameson. Teal'c had been expressing interest in the rodeos held in Jameson's hometown of Cheyenne, Wyoming, so the four men had taken off on a road trip.
Sam headed home Friday with a heavy heart. She wouldn't even have known about the guys' plans if Teal'c hadn't stopped by her lab when he'd left the day before. If he had seen the hurt look in her eyes he'd said nothing, simply wishing her a good weekend, and reminding her not to work too hard. Luckily, Janet came over later Friday night, and the two women spent the night getting drunk and griping about men in general. Janet was trying to get Sam to agree to go out the following Friday with her to a bar near the Academy.
"Come on Sam. A lot of cute Doctor's hang out there, plus some of the staff from the Academy. It will be fun, and lord knows we could both use a little action. You left SG1 to try to get a life. You won't find it holed up in your lab," she complained.
"Fine Jan. You're right. Now that I'm not going off-world weekly it's time to remember what life on Earth is like," Sam conceded.
Sam spent the next morning at the gym sweating out her hangover, then headed over to the Fraiser's to pick up Cassie.
"No chess today, Cass. If I'm going to re-enter the human race I need to go shopping," she admitted. "Come to the mall with me. My treat."
Needless to say Cassie enthusiastically agreed and the two spent the afternoon happily spending Sam's money. After dropping Cassie off Sam headed home to her quiet, empty house. Three hours later she was elbow deep in a gallon of chocolate ice cream when her pager went off. She was needed back at the SGC.
By the time she had fixed the problem she was royally pissed off. It had been a simple fix, something any of the techs could have handled. But no, they called her because they knew she would be home. Trouble was, now that she was on base she dreaded the thought of going home to all of that quiet. She decided to bunk down on base, and try to get some work done in her lab the next day. Sunday's were always good for getting some uninterrupted work in, and she had a device that SG6 had brought back on Thursday that she hadn't had a chance to look at yet.
Not that anybody ever came to disturb her anymore she thought as she sat down to work in the morning. Other than the lab staff and an occasional visit from Janet of Teal'c to take her to lunch she hadn't had any visitors for weeks. No Daniel bringing her coffee and staying to discuss his latest translation, and certainly no Colonel fidgeting with her tools and causing her to frantically check to make sure that nothing dangerous or valuable was laying around.
Darn, she missed them so much. Especially the Colonel. She gotten used to Daniel's absence over the last year, but the Colonel had been around more, almost as if to compensate. She loved having him in the lab while she worked, tossing an occasional question her way, commenting on the latest gossip, and telling horrid jokes to try to distract her. She looked at the device from P2C-927 in frustration. She had no idea what the thing did. Mostly round with a flat bottom, there was what appeared to be a front side that was covered in a mesh- like material.
"So just what kind of doohickey are you," she mused out load. "The Colonel would say you looked like a speaker for a stereo system."
She set the device on her bench while she gathered up a few tools. She noticed the hum building up in the 'speaker' a second too late. As she turned back to face it she barely had time to blink before a silent wave of energy burst out of the device flinging her across the room. Almost as silently glass reigned down from the overhead lights and test tubes, papers and anything else not nailed down landed in a heap around her crumpled body.
Jack looked at his companions in tolerant amusement. Jameson was explaining the rodeo events to an attentive Teal'c who for once looked right at home in his cowboy hat. Daniel was alternately sneezing from the dust being kicked up by the bulls and horses in the arena, and watching the proceedings in horror. Jack himself was bored. He absolutely refused to admit to himself that it was because there was someone missing from the group. Someone who would have shared in his amused observation of the other three, delighted in sharing junk food, and enjoyed making rude comments about everything from the clothes some of the women were wearing to the size of the belt buckles the men were sporting.
No he refused to admit he missed her. He refused to wonder what she was doing back in Colorado Springs, or feel the pain that rose up at the thought of her out on a date. He was still angry and a bit hurt that she hadn't talked over her decision with him before transferring from SG1. He knew she had tried to explain her reasons after the fact, but he just hadn't been ready to listen. She'd made her decision without consulting anyone, now she would have to live with it by herself too.
As he drove home Sunday he noticed that Daniel seemed to be deep in thought and totally ignoring his surroundings.
"What's on your mind Daniel?" he inquired.
"Sam would have told us if she was sick or something, right?" Daniel asked out of the blue.
"I guess, why?" Jack answered suddenly concerned.
"It was just something Teal'c said about us abandoning a good friend when she needed us," Daniel said his eyes now looking at Jack in confusion. "I mean, I've been gone, but she looked ok to me. Maybe a bit thin, but ok. Has she been sick?"
"No. Well, she got snaked about a year ago, but Doc said it was absorbed into her body just fine. And her DNA got scrambled, but everything got put back to normal. I'm sure she's fine Daniel. She would have told us if she had to leave because he was sick," Jack insisted with more confidence than he felt. "Besides, she said she transferred because she wanted to get a life, remember?"
"Yeah. You know we used to joke about that, her trying to get a life. How impossible it would be with her lifestyle to have a boyfriend or husband waiting at home for her. She always said that if she ever felt the urge to settle down and have kids she would have to quit. I guess she finally got the urge," Daniel mused.
"Why now, though? She's only, what 34 or 35? She still has time," Jack complained.
"She's 36 Jack," Daniel corrected.
"No way, Daniel. The last birthday we celebrated was her 34th. We skipped her 35th because you had just gone all glowy and she said she didn't feel like a party," Jack explained.
"That was 14 months ago, Jack. Sam turned 36 two months ago, just before I came back," Daniel said with sigh. "You guys forgot, didn't you?"
Jack thought about it for a minute and then swore. "Yeah, we did," he admitted.
"Don't worry, Jack. I don't think Sam transferred because you forgot her birthday," Daniel said slightly amused.
Jack gave him a sad smile. "No, that's not Carter's style. But come to think of it, her Dad wasn't around either. I hope somebody remembered," he worried.
"I'm sure Janet and Cassie made a fuss," Daniel reassured him.
"So let's assume she's not sick, and she's not angry that we missed her birthday. Why do you think she transferred?" Jack asked.
"I thought it had something to do with me coming back, but now that my memories are coming back I know that's not right. Besides she said she transferred before I returned," Daniel said with a shrug.
"Yeah, believe me Daniel. She really missed you. She's thrilled that you're back. But now that you mention it she did kind of go AWOL right before you came back. Said she had some things to work out. She ended up in San Antonio, but wouldn't say why," Jack explained.
"Her Mom," Daniel cryptically answered. At Jack's confused look he expanded. "Her Dad was stationed at Lackland when her Mom died. She's buried in San Antonio."
Jack let that piece of news sink in. "We've been idiots, Danny boy. Total and complete idiots."
Daniel nodded not really needing an explanation of that statement. "We need to talk to Sam when we get back."
"If she'll even speak to us," Jack sighed.
"I'm certain that Major Carter would welcome the chance to talk," Teal'c chimed in from the back seat. "She has been most distressed that you would not let her explain her reasons for leaving the team."
"Do you know why she transferred, Teal'c?" Daniel asked.
"I do, Daniel Jackson. However, it would not be my place to comment," he acknowledged.
When they got back to Colorado Springs they dropped off Captain Jameson and then decided to just head to Jack's house and crash there rather than driving all the way to the base. Once they had carried in their bags Daniel immediately suggested that they call Sam and ask her to come by. They tried her at home and on her cell. They even tried the lab. Finally they paged her, but she never responded so they turned to the task of ordering dinner.
The next morning the three arrived at the base and made their way down to the locker room to change. They were just exiting the elevator when they became aware that something was wrong. First they heard security and a Hazmet team being ordered to level 19. Then they heard a page for Dr. Fraiser to come to the infirmary. Without even discussing the matter they re-entered the elevator and headed for level 21. They weren't prepared for the sight that met their eyes.
A battered and bleeding Sam was being wheeled into the infirmary with a bevy of medical staff around her. Hammond was just arriving himself.
"What happened?" Jack demanded.
"We don't really know Colonel. One of the lab techs found her in her lab under a pile of broken devices and lab equipment. We think there might have been some type of explosion although no one heard anything and there was no damage to any of the large objects in the room. We are going to have to review the security tape to tell for sure," Hammond explained.
"When did it happen?" Daniel asked, thinking about how they had not been able to reach Sam last night.
"We don't know Doctor. She was called in to fix a problem late Saturday night and didn't check back out, so sometime between then and now," General Hammond admitted sadly.
Jack physically paled at the thought of Carter in her lab hurt for hours. He too was remembering their attempts to call her last night and knew that she must have been lying unconscious on the lab floor. All four men stared silently at the infirmary door waiting for someone to come out and give them some idea of what was going on. Finally a nurse came out and took a deep breath before dealing with the men standing before her.
"She's alive," she began, figuring she could at least offer that small consolation first. "But she's in shock, and hypothermic as well as having several broken bones and a probable concussion. They are concerned about internal bleeding, so they are trying to warm her up and stabilize her so they can take her into surgery. She's drifting in and out of consciousness, and we think her jaw might be broken, so she hasn't been able to speak," she concluded knowing the General would want to try to question her if possible. "Dr. Fraiser will let you know when she's out of surgery."
Quite a crowd had gathered to hear the news, and an eerie hush fell over them all as the nurse retreated back into the infirmary. Hammond finally turned to everyone and ordered then gently back to work.
"We'll keep everyone informed as to the Major's progress," he assured them all. Then he turned to her former teammates. "Did you talk to her at all this weekend?" he asked.
"No," Daniel replied. "We went out of town with Captain Jameson. We tried to call her last night when we got home but we couldn't get hold of her."
Through all of this Jack had been totally silent. Daniel and Hammond were looking at him in concern when an airman came up to them.
"Excuse me, Sir. They have the security tape from Major Carter's lab ready for you," he informed the General. "It's cued up in the Security room on 16."
The four hurried to see what could possibly have occurred that had left Sam in such a bad way. Ten minutes later they watched in shock as the Major put the device she had been studying down on her bench and within seconds was tossed across the room like a rag doll.
"24 hours," Jack said staring at the screen. When the others questioned him he pointed to the time and date stamp on the tape. "She was lying there hurt and alone for 24 hours," he stated and then turned and walked out of the room before he broke down completely.
It was another six hours before Dr. Fraiser could give them a full medical report. Periodic updates had let them know that Sam was out of surgery and in no immediate danger. Jack had spent the time in between the medical reports holed up in his office. Somehow he felt that this was all his fault. They should have invited her along with them this weekend. Even if she was no longer part of SG1 she was still their friend. Teal'c was right. They had abandoned her as if she was of no use to them now that she wasn't out saving their asses on a daily basis. How could he explain to her that he hadn't known how to get over the loss of her by his side out in the field, that he wanted her to be happy, but that he had missed her so much it was like he was grieving.
After repairing some internal bleeding Sam had been sent off for a full set of x-rays, and Janet had sat down to review the tape to see if it would tell her anything further about her patient's injuries. Even as long as she had been at the SGC, she very rarely saw the actual moment of injury. She usually showed up after the fact. Seeing Sam get tossed across the room had made her light-headed. At least it explained a lot. Finally she was ready to brief the General. She wasn't surprised when she saw that Sam's former teammates were present as well.
"Well, I have to admit after seeing that tape I'm surprised that Sam is still alive, but she's stable at the moment. Our biggest concern is the concussion, and any further internal injuries that we've missed. As for the rest, when Sam was hit by whatever that surge was it broke four ribs and cracked several others. Then when she landed she contacted the floor on her left side, which resulted in a broken left clavicle and radius, three broken bones in her left wrist, a fractured jaw, a hairline fracture to her pelvis, and a broken left fibula as well as the concussion. Amazingly, all of the glass and other debris didn't do too much damage, just a lot of cuts and bruises mostly on the right side of her body. She was in shock and hypothermic from lying on the floor for so long, but once we warmed her up she stabilized quickly, so that was a good sign, " she concluded.
Stunned silence reigned over the room when she got to the end of the list. Finally Hammond was able to inquire what the prognosis was.
"Well, she will need to be under observation for at least another four or five days to make sure that there is nothing that we missed and to monitor the concussion. After that if there are no complications… Sir it's going to be months until she is out of the casts," Janet informed them. "Has anyone contacted Jacob?"
"I tried contacting the Tok'Ra several hours ago Doctor. I haven't heard anything back from them yet," Hammond admitted. "Why?"
"Well, most of this is damage that Selmak could easily fix. Without that Sam's going to need constant care. Without someone to stay with her she's going to need to go to a rehab center. Come to think of it, even with someone to stay with her she's going to need an at-home nurse," she advised.
"Can't we just take care of her?" Daniel asked.
"You could certainly stay with her until Jacob shows up, but she is going to need someone to bath her and take care of personal hygiene. I think she would be more comfortable with a woman," Janet explained.
"Well, with any luck the Tok'Ra will be in contact soon and Jacob or someone else can use the healing device on Major Carter. In the meantime she will be in your capable hands Doctor," Hammond stated.
Janet knew that none of the four men would be content to actually leave Sam in her hands until they saw her patient for themselves. Since Sam was likely to be unconscious for quite some time yet, she figured she might as well allow them a quick peek before she banned them from the infirmary. Not that seeing Sam in her current state was actually going to put their minds at ease.
As predicted the four wanted to see Major Carter as soon as possible, but once in the infirmary they stood looking at Sam in disbelief. Her left arm was in a cast from her shoulder to her fingertips and another cast covered her lower left leg to just above the knee. There was also some sort of soft cast around her hips to keep her pelvis in place, and the rest of her torso was tightly wrapped to protect her ribs. Her jaw had been wired shut and the gash on her head bandaged. She basically looked like something out of a cheap remake of 'The Mummy', except she also had more tubes and wires attached to her than they could count.
Daniel was the first one capable of putting their thoughts into words. "She looks awful. I hope Jacob gets here soon," he said, his voice cracking with emotion.
"If not, we are going to have one grumpy bored patient in a few days," Janet agreed. "You three had better get some rest while you can," she warned Sam's old teammates, knowing that they would take on the job of keeping Sam sane until her Dad arrived.
Jack looked at the General in concern. Technically there was no reason why SG1 should be given any downtime, but there was no way in hell he was going to be leaving Carter until she was back on her feet. Before he could bring up the subject the General beat him to it.
"I'm granting SG1 a week's downtime. We'll see what the Major's condition is then and re-evaluate what is needed," he said to the relief of the other three.
Jack's gaze settled back on the pale features of the woman in bed. He had missed her so much the past few weeks and now he was kicking himself for letting his stubborn pride keep him away from her. He didn't care what the General or anyone else thought about it, he knew where he needed to be. Then he realized something. It was all right for him to show his concern for Sam. She was no longer under his command, and there would be no repercussions to face afterwards. That thought almost brought a smile to his face.
"Now, I want you all out of here until at least 0700 tomorrow. I promise she will not be waking up before then," Janet warned them.
The four all headed for the door, but Jack lingered back a couple of steps. "Uh, Doc. Is there anyone outside of the SGC that needs to be called to let then know about Carter?" he asked keeping his eyes firmly on his boots, hands stuck in his pockets.
"Just Cassie, why?" Janet asked in confusion.
"I just figured you would know if she was seeing someone who would be worried about her," he said haltingly.
"No, Sir. Sam hadn't gotten around to getting that life yet," Janet said. If she hadn't been watching him closely she would have missed the small exhale of relief at her words.
"Ok, just thought I'd check," he said and left quickly before she could comment.
Janet shook her head in dismay. He still hadn't figured out that he played a prominent role in the life Sam wanted. And of course Sam hadn't had the courage to tell him yet. Would those two ever get their acts together?
The next two days passed slowly. On Tuesday Sam slowly regained consciousness, but only stayed awake for a few minutes at a time. The Tok'Ra still had not responded at all, indicating that they were moving again, or in hiding. Captain Jameson took his unexpected downtime and went off to visit family. The other members of SG1 spent the day taking turns at Sam's bedside, and working on clearing out any work that they had unfinished. They wanted to be free to spend their time with Sam once she was truly awake.
Even Hammond was impressed at the backlog of paperwork that the Colonel made his way through. As the day wore on he noticed that his 2IC was looking happier than he had in weeks. Since Jack never looked happy while slogging through expense reports and requisition forms he could only assume that certain aspects of Major Carter's transfer were beginning to sink in. He shook his head in a motion that echoed Dr. Fraiser's the day before. Just how long was it going to take for those two to admit their feelings to each other?
By Wednesday Sam was aware enough for people to start talking to her. Since her wired jaw kept her from doing more than grunting, Janet had offered her the laptop with the voice synthesizer attached, but Sam resolutely refused to touch the thing. Too many bad memories. She settled for using a small whiteboard, marker and eraser to communicate.
In the afternoon, Daniel wore her out with a long apology for his behavior of the last few weeks. They talked for an hour, and afterwards Sam felt relieved to know that her friendship with Daniel was in tact. As a result she took a long late nap. Which meant that she was wide-awake when the Colonel snuck into the infirmary after hours to check on her.
He'd purposefully waited until he was sure she would be asleep. He'd made small talk the couple of times he had seen her awake during the day, teasing her about the mummy look, and doodling a limerick on the cast on her arm. It had been safe then with the infirmary buzzing with staff. Now in the quiet of the early morning the two just looked at each other. He was about to make an excuse and leave when Sam shook her head and scribbled furiously.
PLEASE STAY
Her eyes begged him even more than the words on the board demanded, so he pulled up a chair and started playing with the variety of pens and markers that people had used to write on her casts. He heard Sam give a big sigh and looked over to see her looking at him with so much sadness that he broke down and finally spoke.
"I'm sorry. I know I've been an ass," he apologized, then waited for her to finish what she was writing.
I MISSED YOU
She was trying to make eye contact, but he closed his eyes and took a deep breath before responding. "I missed you too, more than I thought possible," he admitted softly. He only looked up when he heard her grunt. She was pointing to the board where she'd written one word.
ALLOWED
His eyes flew to hers, which now were waiting patiently. He tried ruthlessly to squash the small bubble of hope he was feeling. He didn't want to jump to conclusions. "What's allowed?" he asked holding his breath.
She thought for a minute and then wrote.
ANYTHING WE WANT
His eyes never left hers. "And what do you want?" he said watching as her eyes began to sparkle.
'This is it' she thought. She'd taken the first step when she transferred. Now it was time to reach for the one thing she wanted and hold on for what was sure to be a wild ride. She took her time writing her response.
I WANT TO GO FISHING
Jack stood and looked at the words in disbelief. Then slowly a smile began to transform his face. He stuck his hands in his pockets and rocked back and forth on his feet a few times before finally meeting Sam's eyes. The look in them took her breath away, the desire was so blatant.
Then in a voice husky with emotion he assured her, "Oh, I think that can be arranged, Major."
Their eyes locked and six years worth of longing passed between them before the moment was ended by approaching footsteps. Jack automatically took a guilty step back from the bed, and Sam quickly wiped the words from the board. Then they exchanged an amused glance as they realized that their defenses were no longer necessary. Still, better to not start the rumor mill going before anything had actually happened between them There was still some serious discussion that needed to occur before they got to that point Sam thought. Then she met Jack's eyes over the head of the fussing nurse and realized that everything she needed to know was right there in the look he was giving her.
The night nurse predictably shooed the Colonel out of the infirmary so that her patient could get back to sleep.
"See you in the morning, Carter," he said throwing her one more heated look.
Even with her jaw wired shut he could tell that she was smiling. 'It's the eyes' he thought. When she's happy they turn the most incredibly blue. With a grin of his own and a small wave he left walking with a bounce in his step that had been lacking for a long time.
Over the next two days Jack, Daniel and Teal'c spent every waking moment trying to keep Sam from sinking into depression. They smuggled in milk shakes for her and since they were mostly melted by the time she got them she was able to eagerly sip them through a straw. They dragged a TV and DVD player in and let her pick the movies, which she took total advantage of making then sit through several romantic comedies before finally having pity and letting them argue over what action film to watch. They spent an entire afternoon playing old board games and making up their own rules.
And if their friends noticed that Sam and Jack were not only back to flirting but had ramped it up a few notches they were smart enough not to mention it. In truth, Daniel, Teal'c, Janet and even Hammond were totally enjoying watching the two officers gradually relax around each other. At first, force of habit had them backing off after accidentally touching or making a comment that was too familiar. Soon though they started to be comfortable with the fact that no one there was going to disapprove of their actions.
And so it was that Jacob would find the group six days after Sam had been injured. He was surprised to see only George Hammond at the base of the ramp when he arrived, and concerned when he was told he would find SG1 in the infirmary, especially when he learned that it was just his daughter that had been injured.
"Don't worry Jacob, she's not in any danger. But she will be thrilled to see you. And Selmak," the General told him cryptically.
Jacob heard the laughter coming out of the infirmary before he entered. SG1 was obviously in high spirits, which relieved his mind momentarily. Then he entered the room.
They had switched to cards that day, and the three men were lounging in chairs pulled up around Sam's bed using her tray table to lay down their hands. Jack was towards Sam's head on her left side, and since she was having to awkwardly hold her cards one handed he kept trying to peek at them as she shifted. Finally Sam shuffled all of cards into a pile and gave Jack a whack on the head with them out of frustration.
"That would be 'Stop looking at my cards' *SIR*, Carter," Jack complained, correctly interpreting her action.
SORRY 'SIR'
Sam wrote on her board, and then picked up the cards, hit Jack on the head again, and followed with a salute. Which was the moment Jacob and Hammond chose to walk in.
"Samantha Elizabeth Carter!" Jacob reprimanded causing the three men to jump from their seats and cards to scatter.
That was when he got a good look at his daughter, or what he could see of her between the casts, bandages, and monitors. Any thought of why she had been hitting a superior officer flew out the window.
"Sam, my god, what happened!" he demanded.
"You're daughter decided she would try to add flying across a room to her skill set. It was a pretty impressive flight but the landing left something to be desired," Jack quipped causing Sam to roll her eyes even as she scribbled on the board.
DAD! – SO GLAD YOU'RE HERE – SAVE ME?
Despite his shock Jacob couldn't help but chuckle. If poor Sam had been at the mercy of her teammates for any length of time she must be going crazy. That explained the little act of aggression against Jack.
"Hey we resent that!" Jack complained getting a look at what she had written.
Sam shrugged, but her eyes were twinkling with laughter. Then she turned to General Hammond for help.
"Jacob, we will explain it all to you later. For now we were hoping that Selmak could help Major Carter out. She's in for a very long recovery otherwise," Hammond requested.
*We will be happy to do whatever we can, General. Major, it make take several sessions with the healing device to fix all of the damage* Selmak informed them.
Daniel ran down to Sam's lab to get the healing device while Janet filled Jacob and Selmak in on Sam's injuries causing Jacob to once again pale at the amount of damage. Selmak assured him it was nothing they couldn't easily fix, and Jacob was once again grateful for his other half's abilities, and willingness to help.
*I love her as if she was my own, Jacob* the Tok'Ra reminded him.
"What first?" Jacob asked his daughter.
She thought for a minute and then wrote down her top three complaints.
JAW, PELVIS, RIBS
Two hours later while Selmak rested, Sam was returned to her bed with the wire removed from her jaw, and the soft cast off. Her ribs were still wrapped as they were tender, but all in all she felt so much better. She could actually sit up in bed instead of laying on an incline and she was no longer hooked up to the monitors allowing her some freedom of movement. Her first order of business was to put in a food order to her friends.
"No commissary food. I want an Italian beef and fries from that place by Daniel's old apartment. And stop at that German bakery right across the street from it and get a black forest cake," she requested actually sighing in anticipation.
"Was she this bossy before, Daniel, or is it just having us at her beck and call that is bringing out her command skills?" Jack teased.
"Jack, she hasn't eaten in six days, I wouldn't press your luck. Just do what she wants and nobody will get hurt," Daniel warned.
"Ok. I know better than to come between a woman and her chocolate. T you want to come with?" Jack asked and the two headed out to pick up dinner.
Once alone Daniel used the opportunity to question his friend. "So what's up with you and Jack?"
"Nothing Daniel. Well except that there are no regs really keeping us apart anymore, so we are free to explore whatever there *might* be between us," she told him honestly.
"But he's still a superior officer and Hammond's 2IC, doesn't that matter?" Daniel asked.
"Not as long as I don't report to him, and I now officially report directly to Hammond as head of the SGC's Science Department," she explained.
"We have a Science Department?" he asked trying to remember if that was something that had existed before he ascended.
"It's new Daniel, as of my transfer off of SG1. Since I am going to be around more, the Joint Chiefs decided to give us more responsibility for new technology, I won't have to send off as much to Area 51," she said with a huge smile.
"That's great! So is that the reason you transferred, to spend more time in the lab? Which by the way hasn't worked out too well for you," he pointed out.
"Sort of. When the Colonel and Teal'c get back I'll try to explain it all," she offered.
An hour later Sam was polishing off the last crumbs of her second helping of cake as the men watched in amazement.
"Carter, you actually ate more than Teal'c. I would never have guessed it was possible," Jack said shaking his head in disbelief.
"Let me tell you, having my jaw wired shut is an experience I never want to repeat. As if not being able to talk wasn't frustrating enough I was seriously starting to have cravings," Sam said with a sigh.
"And it's not as if you needed to lose weight in the first place," Daniel commented.
"No, it's not. So I suppose now that I *can* talk, and you guys are finally ready to listen, you want an explanation, huh?" Sam asked. "You better come over and listen in too, Janet," she added to the doctor who had been hovering in the background.
"Yeah, we've already figured out that you weren't sick, or mad at us for forgetting your birthday," Jack said causing Sam to look at him in confusion.
"We we're speculating, Sam. I figured you were just ready to settle down and have a family," Daniel explained.
"Actually all of those played a part in my decision. And while Daniel's coming back was after the fact, his leaving in the first place did contribute," Sam began. "I've been doing a lot of thinking lately, since the Colonel came back from his month away with Maybourne and the whole Nirrti fiasco. I lost a lot of weight during all of that, and Janet's not happy with the fact that I haven't put it back on again," Sam admitted.
"I was going to ground you until you gained 5 pounds," Janet reminded her.
"Then my birthday came around, and for some reason I couldn't help thinking back to my Mom's 36th birthday. Dad had just transferred to Lackland and we hadn't even unpacked yet. We decided that since Mom had just the three of us to celebrate with we were going to make a special effort. We decorated the whole house with balloons, and got a cake. I was about 11 and Mark was 14, but even he put aside his sullen teenager persona for once. Dad took a day off and we spent the whole day as a family. It was great, and Mom was so proud and happy. And I suddenly realized how much I wanted that. And that my time was running out," Sam shrugged.
"Where does my leaving come in?" Daniel inquired.
"I started thinking seriously about what I wanted to be doing in 5 years, and what realistically was going to happen in that time frame. And I realized that I was the only member of SG1 that was likely to still be at the SGC in 5 years. Daniel was already gone, and while the Colonel wasn't going to retire in the immediate future, he certainly could have sometime in the next 5 years. It was always likely that Jonas would go back to Kalowna, and I know that Master Bratak wants Teal'c to come help him with the Jaffa rebellion," Sam explained.
"And that left just you," Janet surmised.
"Yeah," Sam nodded.
"You abandoned us before we could all abandon you," Jack concluded.
"Not exactly, but I do have to admit that was part of the appeal of doing this now," Sam said. "I just thought long and hard about what I wanted, and what I wanted was to be part of the SGC, but in a way that would allow me to have a life outside of this place. I went to Hammond and threatened to resign if he didn't let me transfer. We had a little talk off the record, and then he went to the Joint Chiefs and suggested a new position as head of the SGC Science Department for me. It would get me off of field work, and allow us to do more research here instead of at Area 51. They went for it. Hammond made the position report directly to him," she added looking pointedly at Jack.
"Thus eliminating that pesky chain of command," Janet grinned.
"Yes," Sam said blushing slightly.
"Well," Daniel commented. "As much as we are going to miss you out there, if you are happy then that is what matters. And I think that is our cue to leave. Except for you Jack," he added with a smile.
Daniel and Teal'c told her they would see her first thing in the morning, and Janet headed off to her office, discreetly pulling the privacy curtain to block the couple from prying eyes and the security camera.
"Sooo," Jack said looking for something to fiddle with.
"So," Sam echoed in amusement.
"I thought I lost you," he admitted, stilling his hands and looking at her.
"I'm going to be fine, Tomorrow Selmak will take care of the rest of the damage and I'll be back on my feet," she assured him.
"No, when you transferred, I thought I'd lost you," he corrected her.
"Oh," she said. "That's why you put the wall up."
"Yeah, stupid I know. I could have saved us both a lot of pain if I'd just let you explain then," he apologized.
"Yes, you could have. But I guess I've learned that it's never going to be easy between the two of us. And I should have found the courage to just blast through that stupid wall and tell you how I felt. I would have eventually," she confessed.
"And yet you still want to go fishing with an old fool?" he questioned studying her.
This time he got a proper smile. One of her dazzling ones. "You know I don't want to actually *fish* don't you?" she teased.
"Really?" he quizzed moving over to sit on her good side facing her on the bed. "Because you know it's not actually about catching fish…"
"Shut up and kiss me," she ordered.
And then he did. And it was everything she had dreamed of and nothing like she had imagined. Who would have guessed that she could find everything she wanted in life in the one brief moment it took for his lips to find hers? Because if she'd known? She so would have gotten a life sooner.
The end.
Story Notes: Season: Season 7, After Homecoming
Spoilers: Nothing major, small ones through Homecoming
Sequel to: Giving Notice
Author's Notes: This was supposed to be simmering on the back burner until I got a few other things done. Funny though, every time I sat down to write, I found myself working on this. With my eldest going off to college I guess I am just in the mood for angst.
As always feed back craved!
Email: jackiesfic@aol.com
Spoilers: Nothing major, small ones through Homecoming
Sequel to: Giving Notice
Author's Notes: This was supposed to be simmering on the back burner until I got a few other things done. Funny though, every time I sat down to write, I found myself working on this. With my eldest going off to college I guess I am just in the mood for angst.
As always feed back craved!
Email: jackiesfic@aol.com
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 ]