Title: Rings

Summary: Fluffy oneshot. SJ established.

Rating:K+

Season: Nine or Ten

Disclaimer: I don't own them and I'm not making money.

The first time he did it, he knew he was going to have to leave for work early in the morning, before she woke and he wanted to do something to say goodbye. Something to make her smile. Being Jack O'Neill, no spark of romantic inspiration struck his brain and so, while she slept in his bed and he tried to pull clothes onto his exhausted body ready for another day in the military rat race he fumbled around the room looking for something that she would understand.

Eventually, he settled on the one half-idea that his feeble brain had managed to conjure. Her dog tags lay discarded on the bedside table. Ugly things, a visual of the rules they were tied to, the jobs that kept them apart most of the time, the organisation both were sworn to.

Now however, there was a consolation. A simple white gold band lay beside the tags on the same chain. And how fitting that a visual of said consolation was attached side by side with the hideous tags. After all, they had never been able to give up one or the other. Their future together or their service.

Trying not to jangle the damn things as he unfastened the clasp, he slipped Sam's wedding ring off the chain into the palm of his hand. She lay facing him, her perfect face bathed in the soft glow of the lamp he had switched on to get dressed by. The covers pulled up to her shoulders with her left hand resting on top of the comforter. Gently as he could, desperate not to wake her, he slipped her ring into it's rightful place on her finger. She sighed, squeezing his fingers slightly in her sleep and he couldn't help the wide grin that split his face. Kissing her forehead, he left silently.

The welcome he received when he arrived back at his apartment that night on the last evening she had off gave him the impression she appreciated his gesture.

After that, the few times they were able to be together, Sam would always wake to find her wedding ring replaced on her hand and immediately wake her two star general to remind him just how much she liked being married to him.

Occasionally, she would wake after falling asleep alone in her bed, notice the ring on her finger and find jack beside her, having arrived in the night on one of his surprise visits without waking her. She found herself checking her hand every morning. Shaking off the part of her mind that told her it was silly to hold so much feeling in such a simple thing because that simple thing meant Jack and he was something to be downright giddy about. Even though her daily ring check often lead to disappointment, since their visits were tortuously few and far between, it was worth it for the few times he was there.

Jack could not believe how well his stupid idea had gone down with Sam, and was deeply touched by the way she reacted each time she woke to find him there, though he would never be able to say as much.

Sam woke the morning after a late night working and one hell of a week to her first day off in way too long. Immediately, she noticed that something felt very strange. Something about her ear. Reaching up gingerly, fearing finding something hideous, from one of the planets SG-1 had visited this week, she found instead something very familiar.

"Jack?"

The voice penetrated his sleep filled brain and he rolled over slightly managing a rough " mmm?"

"Jack, why is there a ring in my ear?"

She had woken him up for that!? She was supposed to be a genius! But she sounded genuinely confused so he tried his best to explain.

"You were sleeping on your hand." he told her matter-of-factly. It was fairly simple and obvious really!

"I see..." Well, that was that then.

"Good."

Rolling over again, glad that the minor misunderstanding had been solved, Jack was almost asleep again when a large fluffy pillow hit him in the face.

This came to me and I thought it was rather funny so I went with it.

Hope you enjoyed it, please let me know :D

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