STORY STATUS: Completed 8/14/07
WORD COUNT: 1,080
AUTHORS NOTE: Ficlet for the August 10th JackFic drabble word "swelter, or sweltering". This did start out as a drabble then it just kinda . . . grew on it's own.
Jack stopped the mower, removed his T-Shirt, and draped it over the mower's handles. In the sweltering July heat, it was already sweat soaked even though he was only about three quarters of the way done with the front yard. And he still had the backyard to do. Granted, the yard was huge. At just a touch over two acres (including the land the house was on), it was almost twice as large as his own sizeable yard.
"Would you like some ice tea, Colonel?"
Jack turned and smiled at his neighbor. "Thanks, Nadine." He said as he took the large glass of ice-cold tea from the offered tray. He downed the delicious sweet tea in two large gulps then replaced the now empty glass on the tray. "Ahhh, that hit the spot."
"I'll bring you out some more in about an hour?"
"That would be wonderful."
He turned to return to his task as she headed back to the house, and then turned back towards Nadine. "Nadine. Make sure Joey's ready to go by seventeen hundred, okay? We don't want to be late, and please, call me Jack."
"I will, Col-," she hesitated then said, "Jack."
Jack turned back to the mower and started it up again. Fifteen minutes later he had the front yard finished and headed off to the backyard. As he started on the backyard, he thoughts turned to his neighbor.
Nadine Carlson was a new to the neighborhood and lived less than a quarter mile from Jack. She was a twenty-four year-old mother of three whose husband had been deployed to Iraq three months earlier. Taking care of her two-year-old twins and five-year-old son in addition to her regular job (she worked on an assembly line in one of the local factories) and much needed repairs to the house (including remodeling the kids rooms and child proofing the house), had resulted in the lawn being neglected. On top of all that, she was now four months pregnant with the couple's second set of twins. The young couple had only been in their new home (which had been vacant for two years) for a few days when her husband, Joe, a Sergeant in the Army, had received the word that his unit was being deployed to Iraq. Two weeks later, he was on a plane. Knowing how hard it was for Nadine after Joe had been deployed, Jack had volunteered his services, when he was home, as a gardener and handyman.
He was glad to help out, to do something for someone else that didn't include saving the planet, snakes, or lying to his team and ripping their friendship apart. It had been a rough couple of months for SG-1 and the SGC. Kinsey was breathing even harder down their necks. Especially now the last few weeks. He had just come off a particularly difficult mission that he was sure would rip his team apart. Coming on the heels of the Eudora mission had only made it worse. Luckily, although it took Daniel a few days to work it through and even be willing to speak to him, his team had understood and forgiven him. Saying the things he'd said to the, especially Daniel, had really torn him up inside. He was an Airman, though, and he did his job well. Much as he hated the mission (particularly the lying to his team part), it was necessary. He was just glad it was over. They'd had a "team night" the night before and had spent the better part of the day just talking.
Jack had met both Nadine and Joe the day they moved in. Jack had just been finishing his usual (when he was home and not sick or injured) five-mile jog when he came up to the house. He noticed the young couple struggling with a large and awkward couch and stopped to help out. He wound up helping them empty the entire moving truck, getting to know his new neighbors as they went along. He'd taking an instant liking to them. Their oldest boy, Joe Jr., had taken to Jack just as quickly. When they had sat down to dinner that night, the Carlson's had insisted since Jack had been such a big help, the boy had bombarded Jack with questions, which he was all too happy to answer.
In the absence of his beloved father, Joey, who was usually very active and talkative, had become very quiet and withdrawn. Worried for her young son, Nadine had called Jack a month ago and asked if he would mind coming over and talking to the boy. Knowing what Joey was going through, Jack had been happy to do it. As he'd left that day, he'd asked Nadine if it would be all right if he came over now and then and took Joey to a movie or something. Worried about her (and her husband's) reaction to this request, he'd been hesitant to ask. She was thrilled, and assured him that Joe Sr. would be too, that Jack was willing to spend time with their son. She was only worried that this would be asking too much of her generous new neighbor. Jack had assured her it was no trouble at all.
The next day, he'd taken Joey to the zoo. Jack had forgotten how much Charlie used to love the zoo and how much fun it could be. He'd forgotten how much he missed taking Charlie there.
Going to the ballgame tonight would be their second outing together. He was probably just as excited, if not more so, as the boy about the game, the Rockies versus the Cubs. Before he new it, the backyard was done. Jack slung his still sweat soaked shirt over his shoulder and locked the mower back in the tool shed. He checked his watch, 14:25. He had just enough time to get home, shower and shave, and get back in time to pick up Joey. Satisfied with the days work, he started back out to the front.
As he reached the end of the driveway, Jack looked back and took one more look at the yard. He couldn't help the since of pride he felt. This, he thought, is what makes it all worthwhile. It felt good to work with his hands and to help someone in his own town. It was an honest days work done, not for payment or reward, but simply to help a friend.
THE END