Title: Welcome Home
Christmas Present for: Lhinniell
Summary: Jack disappears, and Sam is left wondering if he'll come home in one piece.
Rating: G
Pairings/Characters: Sam/Jack


Welcome Home

He was a general, she thought to herself. General Jack O'Neill wasn't supposed to go on real missions anymore. He was just supposed to do desk work and diplomatic things. But somehow, one of his "purely diplomatic" missions to Atlantis led him on some sort of half-brained mission against the Wraith with only a handful of Atlantis personnel.

And of course, the mission went south. What mission ever didn't?

This unlucky turn of events left his team getting out of the Wraith hive ship and back to Atlantis, but left him captured on the same hive ship. And then the hive ship jumped cleanly into hyperspace, vanishing without a trace. There was worry among the people on Atlantis for him. And desperate rescue efforts and missions were launched.

But they didn't find him.

For those first few days after the news was delivered to the SGC and got around to her, Sam didn't worry. She knew he'd find some way out. Somehow, he'd get free and be back in no time.

Then those days turned into a week, and she started to worry. Started to doubt that he would make it back alive—and in one piece. But she managed to reassure herself in the end that he would get back.

Then that week turned into two. And her doubt grew. Reassuring herself became harder and more futile. After those two weeks, she was pulled from active duty at the SGC for psychological unfitness and emotional trauma.

Then those two weeks turned to three. Then she found she couldn't reassure herself and banish her doubt anymore. And somewhere in her head, she began to strongly consider the possibility that he might not be coming back at all. She cried herself to sleep every night that week, and prayed that somehow, someway, he'd come home safe.

Twenty-two days after he disappeared, she was sitting in her lab at the SGC, attempting to busy herself enough to take her mind off of things. The red alarms along with Sergeant Harriman's voice announced that there was an unscheduled off-world activation, but Sam didn't hear it. She was too absorbed in her thoughts.

Several minutes later, there was the sound of someone walking up to the open doorway of her lab. Again, she was too absorbed in her thoughts to hear it.

"Sam?"

The faint whisper reached her ears unlike the previous sounds, and penetrated her shell of thoughts. She instantly recognized his voice, and her head snapped up to look in the direction from where it had come. She spent a few seconds that seemed like hours convincing herself that her eyes and ears were not deceiving her.

Then reflex took over and she bolted to her feet, dashed across the space between them and fell right into his arms. She clung tightly to him, any semblance of reserve melted completed, and tears of joy sprung to her eyes.

He lightly kissed the top of her head, then her cheek—even though it was wet with her tears—then lightly brushed his lips across hers. Then she let her head fall against his chest, and continued to hold on to him as tightly as she possibly could.

"Welcome home," she whispered.

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