Life Is Too Short
A/N: This one really doesn't need any explanation. I will say it's the only one written in first person. I don't normally write first person, but it seemed to fit the nature of this piece. I think it's the shortest story, since it's pretty straightforward. And I'll admit it's somewhat cliché, but it gets the job done. Probably one of the more realistic scenarios, really.
Disclaimer: I do not own Stargate SG-1, and I make no profit.
When we stepped through the gate, we had no idea we were stepping right in the middle of a civil war. A truly ugly civil war, not that war could ever be any kind of pretty. But these particular peoples were using children, and none of us could stomach that. We had no idea what the issues at hand were, so there was no way we could pick sides. But neither could we sanction the wholesale slaughter of children, so we began doing everything we could to protect them from either side.
Vala was the most fanatical. We all did our part to save as many of the young ones as we possibly could, but she was driven by some inner madness. I think she was trying to atone for some remembered atrocities committed by Qetesh. I was too busy myself to spend much time watching her, but every time I caught sight of her I could see her desperation. I saw her pull a child out of the line of fire to safety. I saw her shelter two youngsters from a nearby explosion with her body. She seemed to be everywhere at once. I fully expected her to take a shot for one of the kids before all was said and done, and that idea scared me nearly witless.
Now, sitting beside her in the infirmary back at SGC, I kind of wish that was actually what had happened. I could have forgiven her for nearly getting herself killed if it had been to protect an innocent child.
I wasn't so sure I could forgive her for taking the hit to protect me.
The scene played over and over in my mind. The native raising his crossbow and taking aim at me as I shoved a child to safety. I remembered watching his finger on the trigger, but before he had even pulled it all the way, Vala was in front of me, blocking the arrow. It hit her squarely in the chest, and the sound that came from me in that moment was almost inhuman. I dropped to my knees beside her on the ground, watching in horror as the blood spread.
Mitchell took out the shooter with a look of black rage on his face that I have never seen before and hope never to see again. I sprinted toward the gate, carrying Vala, Teal'c and Mitchell covering me. Later, we would send others to try to help the children, but right now we had to save one of our own.
Vala had lost a lot of blood, and the arrow had punctured her lung. Carolyn had rushed her into surgery as soon as we brought her through the gate. She was now heavily sedated and resting somewhat peacefully. I watched her chest rise and fall, grateful that she was still breathing.
Still, I was angry, even though I knew it was beyond ridiculous and ungrateful to be so. How dare she risk her life to save my sorry hide?
She had just better wake up. I wanted to thank her, then I wanted the chance to kill her myself for her foolish stunt. I wanted her never again to try to take a hit intended for me. I closed my eyes and clenched my fists.
A groan came from the bed. I glared at her briefly, then sighed as the anger drained away to be replaced by overwhelming relief. I touched her cheek. Her eyes fluttered open. "Daniel?" Her voice was hoarse and raspy and unbearably weak.
"Yeah, I'm here." I tried to think of what to say to her. But even with all my knowledge of language, I couldn't find the words I needed at that moment. The terror of the last several days must have short-circuited my brain. So I settled for, "I'll get Dr. Lam."
She nodded faintly. I left to fetch the doctor.
Days passed. Vala slowly regained her strength. I still didn't know quite what to say to her, so even though I hadn't left her side the entire time she had been unconscious I avoided her like the plague now that she was awake.
She had almost died. That scared the crap out of me. The thought of what my life would be like without her scared the crap out of me. That fact that she mattered so much to me scared the crap out of me.
And I was far too frightened to tell her any of that. I buried myself in work instead.
Finally, though, I couldn't avoid her any longer. It had been a few days since I even popped my head in the door of the infirmary, and I knew I was probably hurting her feelings—not to mention pissing off the rest of the team.
I walked in to find her sitting up in bed, playing cards with Mitchell. Teal'c stood off to the side. They all looked up as I walked in. Teal'c raised a disapproving eyebrow. Mitchell scowled outright.
Yep, they were pissed. I couldn't really blame them. I should have come long before now.
Vala barely spared me a glance. Damn. If she were angry, she would have let me have it. The fact that she wouldn't even look at me meant she was hurt. Frankly, I would have preferred anger. I sighed. "Guys, could I talk to Vala for a minute?"
"Go right ahead," Mitchell said coldly, not moving an inch. Teal'c crossed his arms and stayed put as well. Vala's champions. Double damn. I shoved my hands in pockets and looked at them pleadingly. "C'mon, guys, please?"
Mitchell rolled his eyes, but this time he got off the bed. Leaning forward, he pressed a quick kiss to Vala's cheek. "We'll be back, Princess. You take it easy. No hauling off and slugging Jackson, okay? It's bad for your recovery." Teal'c touched her shoulder briefly, and they both left. I sank down into the chair by her bed.
"So how are you doing?" I asked, still not sure what I wanted to say or how to start this conversation.
She stared at the bed covers. "I'm fine, darling. Getting stronger every day. Carolyn says she'll probably let me go soon, although it will be awhile yet before I'm cleared for duty."
That reminded me of just how seriously injured she had been. And the fear rose up again, almost choking me. I did the only thing I could to relieve the pressure: I exploded. "What the hell were you thinking?"
And then she was angry with me. She looked up, her eyes flashing. "Oh, I don't know. I think maybe I was thinking that there was an arrow headed your way and I'd better stop it from hitting you! Which I did! You're welcome, by the way!"
"Don't expect me to thank you for risking your life like that!" I yelled. "Dammit, Vala, you could have been killed! You almost were!"
"Well, I wasn't. I didn't die. I'm fine, and you're fine, and everybody's fine." She sat back huffily against her pillows, crossing her arms over her chest. The scowl on her face made Mitchell's look mild by comparison.
The fight left me as suddenly as it had come. I leaned back into the chair, sighing wearily. "Vala, you scared the hell out of me. There was so much blood..." I shook my head. "I really thought I'd lost you this time."
Her expression softened. "I'm all right, darling, really. Carolyn assures me that I'll make a full recovery. You don't need to worry."
"I do worry," I said softly. "I worry that next time we won't be so lucky. Vala...promise me something, please. Promise you won't ever do anything like that again, okay? Just let me take my own hits."
She stared at me for a long moment, then said quietly, "I can't promise that, Daniel. Any time it's within my power to do so, I'm going to try to save you. It doesn't matter if it's an arrow, a bullet, or a staff blast—if I can take it for you, I will."
I closed my eyes. "But I don't want you to," I said hoarsely. "I would rather take the shot myself than lose you."
She smiled slightly. "Well, I guess we both feel the same way then. Cameron told me something once. He said the hardest part about this job wasn't risking your own life, but watching your friends take chances with theirs." She eyed me briefly. "I'd have thought you'd be used to that part by now, but I guess it never gets any easier, huh?"
"No, it never gets any easier," I answered. I hesitated, then decided to go for broke. Life was too short not to take the chance—her nearly dying only confirmed that. "But, Vala, this was different. Yes, it's hard to see my friends and teammates risk their lives. It won't ever stop being hard. And if anything happened to Mitchell or Teal'c, I'd be devastated. It would be even worse if it were Jack or Sam. But you..." I trailed off, not sure I had the courage to say this after all, but I forced myself to continue. "Vala, losing you would kill me. Completely and utterly destroy me. I can't face that. I can't deal with that." I reached for her hand.
She was staring at me again, eyes wide. I could see the tears welling up, and I watched her draw a shaky breath. "Why?" she whispered, looking hopeful and terrified at the same time.
I understood those dueling emotions, because I felt the same way. "Because I love you," I said simply.
Her tears fell then, and she brought a trembling hand to her mouth. Then she smiled through her tears, a bright, beaming smile. "Oh, darling. I love you too."
I smiled back, leaning forward to kiss her gently. "I know," I murmured. "I kind of figured it out when you leaped in front of that arrow. I'm still mad about that, by the way. I'm either going to strangle you for it or marry you. I haven't decided which yet."
She giggled. And when she kissed me there was nothing gentle about it at all. It was a kiss that was pure Vala, hot and sexy and passionate. It was reminiscent of the kisses on the Prometheus, but it had an underlying affection that those first kisses had lacked. This was a kiss full was promise. This was a kiss born of love and genuine desire. This time, she kissed me like she meant it.
And as I kissed her back, I meant it too.
END.