We all know that this is the oldest cliche in the book. It's something that has been done to death but here I am, resurrecting it.

This looks at 5 times that Sam and Jack shared a bed at various stages of their relationship. These will be a mixture of angsty and fluffy.

Here we go...

Season 3

"Carter, would you just stop thinking?" He sounds angry, angrier than he had intended. They had travelled to P3X wherever the hell it was just a few hours ago, and immediately they people of the town had made it clear that unmarried woman had no rights and no voice. Jack hadn't really thought about it, he'd just said it; sure it looked like Daniel was about to say the same thing but he just happened to get there first. He'd told the locals that she was his wife, and here they are.

The bed is small, too small for two people who don't seem to want to touch each other. He's kicking himself for piping up before Daniel, he didn't realise this was part of the deal. He feels her tense next to him as she responds quietly.

"I'm trying, Sir."

Her calling him Sir at this moment in time feels so incredibly wrong but he's not about to encourage her to call him Jack, no that's just a step too far. He feels like he needs those barriers, just for tonight. He also feels like he should apologise, he shouldn't have snapped at her, he just wants them to go to sleep, to wake up and to get out of this bed.

He thinks back to just an hour ago when they had been lead into the room, he'd watched her eyes widen as she clapped eyes on the bed. She'd offered to take the floor, just before he could, but there's barely any room either at the foot or side of the bed, the person would have to sleep under the bed. They both agree that it would be silly for either one of them to do so and that sharing a bed isn't a big deal.

But it is.

Things with the team haven't been great since he returned from Edora and then went off on his undercover mission, and out of all of them, its Carter he's struggling to reconnect with the most. He doesn't know why but she seems angrier than Daniel and Teal'c. He's tried to talk to her about it but she shuts him down, as politely as an insubordinate can. She says it's fine but it doesn't feel fine.

When the townspeople had left them alone they had decided that sleep was the best idea and immediately he began to strip his vest and weapons and she had done the same. Then she'd stopped, hesitating when it came to the next layer. She'd suggested sleeping in clothes, he'd agreed.

He lies on his back, staring at the ceiling and she does the same. He's been trying to get to sleep for thirty minutes but he can feel that Carter is wide awake and it makes him feel uncomfortable.

Before Laira it had been years since he had shared a bed with someone he knew and cared about. He frowns as he thinks about that word, care. He cares about Carter, that's normal, she's on his team. He cares about Daniel and Teal'c too. But, if he's honest, really, really honest with himself, he's starting to notice some differences in the way that he cares for her compared to the rest of the team. He thinks it's because she's a woman, that's natural right? He's spent two years seeing her as one of the guys and of course, she's attractive but that's not it, he knows that's not it because he is perfectly capable of noticing that someone is attractive without it having to be a big deal. Sometimes men and women are just different, it doesn't have to be a bad thing, and it explains why he's feeling differently towards her than Daniel and Teal'c who he also cares about.

He's had one night stands, trysts with women who he knew didn't want anything more than his company in bed, he's no saint. Laira had been something different, once he'd accepted that he wasn't going home he realised that she could be good for him. He'd shared her bed, made love to her but then left her the very next day. He'd realised as soon as he'd seen his team that while he could have been happy on Edora, it never would have been his first choice or even his second.

Jack frowns, he shouldn't be thinking about that while he's in bed with his 2IC. He wonders if that's why Carter is mad at him, for giving up? For accepting the potential of a new life? Maybe it was about Laira? He frowns again, no, it's not jealousy.

The harsh words he'd spoken to her whilst undercover can't have helped things. He'd tried to apologise but she was certain it was fine and all forgotten, but clearly it's not. She hasn't genuinely smiled at him in weeks, she hasn't laughed at any of his stupid jokes; He misses her laughter.

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Sam stares at the ceiling, relieved that Colonel O'Neill hasn't tried to make small talk. Instead he got into the small bed and stared upwards, just as she had.

This couldn't have happened at a worst time. Just weeks ago Janet had asked her if her feelings for him were a problem, she had denied it, of course, but she had lied. She doesn't know when it happened, she can't quite put her finger on it but something has changed. She has always admired and respected him but when he was gone, trapped on another planet, she realised that it was more than that. The thought of never seeing him again had almost crushed her.

Then, he was back and gone again. He'd been cruel, all for an undercover mission, but cruel all the same. She knows that he was following orders but it had felt like she had lost him all over again, this time by choice and it hurt just as much, if not more.

She's so angry at him for his carelessness and his cool attitude over the last few weeks but than that she' angry at herself. She's angry that she's developed a crush on a superior officer, angry that it could jeopardize her future in SG1 and she's scared, scared that it's not a crush, that it could be something more.

And here she is, lying in a bed with him, he's so close to her and yet so far they've managed not to touch. She's been trying to keep her distance from him, she's unsure if it's because she's angry at him or because she's trying to control how she feels about him. He's apologised several times, she's assured him that it's all fine but it's not fine. She doesn't know what to do.

She freezes as his hand accidentally grazes hers.

He mumbles an apology before he turns to he turns his head towards her and meets her eye. "I'm sorry, Carter." He repeats, hoping that she knows what he's sorry for. He's sorry for giving up hope, for thinking for even one second that she wouldn't get him home. He's sorry for not finding a way to tell her about his undercover mission, for telling her that he hasn't been himself since he met her and for insinuating that she didn't really know him because she does. She knows him almost better than anyone in the galaxy and he's made her think otherwise.

"I know," she offers softly, unable to lie and tell him that everything's fine while they are so close. She watches as he visibly relaxes in front of her, it's discreet but she notices. Is it relief?

After a few moments of silence, of simply staring at each other he breaks the tension. "'Think they could have found us a smaller bed?"

For the first time in weeks, she laughs.

Thank you so much for reading, I would love to know what you think. I'd also like to know what other bed scenarios you would like to see them in.