Lessons Learned
by Bren Ren
xoxoxoxox
Summary: Sam looks back through a very interesting evening on a certain little planet designated P3X-595.
Rating: T
Author's Notes: It's been a while, but I caught "Emancipation" airing the other day, and I was suddenly inspired. It's been a fun trip down memory lane, writing for such an early Sam. Hope you have as much fun reading this short bit as I had writing it!
xoxoxoxox
Rule number thirty-two for gate travel: Never drink the native alcohol.
Now bear in mind, I'm really not one to drink on the job, save rare occasions. But I'm no light-weight, either. I can hold my one against the strongest fortitudes. I am a military brat, after all.
This was one of those rare occasions when protocol and social etiquette combined demanded a sample of the gift being offered: a locally brewed potent concoction renowned for its... aphrodisiac effects. Of course, they failed to mention that last aspect until after we had all consumed rather generous portions.
It didn't hit all at once. It was a gradual build-up, egged on in particular by one equally intoxicated Senior Officer who was becoming more and more... attractive... as each minute passed. On the surface, most of it could have appeared fairly innocent. But simmering just beneath the engaging, witty banter, the sexual overtones were growing louder and louder.
That's when the dancing began. When we were invited to join in the festivities--it was a harvest festival, and we were the guests of honor, after all-- we couldn't say no (as Daniel was typically verbose in pointing out).
So... we got up and joined in a rather silly group dance that felt like a strange cross between country line dancing and Native American tribal dancing. Then it was the ladies turn. Feeling unusually bold (and intoxicated, let's not forget), and at Daniel's urging, I took off my heavy (and sexless) outer jacket; it was pleasantly warm out, and I felt absolutely amazing in this (hot) little tank top number. Then our esteemed hosts offered me this sort of shawl-like wrap, the material a deep blue and completely see through. I knew I was in trouble the moment I turned around and caught his eye.
He, too, had shed his jacket, but nothing was covering up his black t-shirt, which seemed to fit incredibly well, I found myself noticing. And there was this twinkle of utter mischief in his eye as we stared at each other for a rather long moment.
The music started, some low bass notes accompanied by a slow, sensual beat. I'm not exactly a natural dancer, but I did force myself through a few lessons at one point. And the moves were pretty easy to follow... really, this particular dance was an undisguised seduction number. I found myself completely unable to break from his gaze as my body began to move with the rhythmic sounds surrounding us. He was certainly enjoying the show.
Everything started taking on a very surreal feeling at that point. I kept moving with the music, which kept getting louder and faster.. and then, my downfall happened. The boys were drawn back out to the dance floor to join the women in this primitive version of "Dirty Dancing".
It did occur to me, once, and only briefly, that I probably shouldn't be this up close and personal with my commanding officer, but no sooner did the thought cross my mind than I found myself lost in his stare once again. That thought, all thoughts, flew right out of my inebriated head.
Then the music slowed down. The bodies stayed close, now moving as one to the steady rhythm. And still, we could not stop staring at each other. Somehow, though we said not a word, we seemed to have an entire conversation that ended with our faces mere millimeters apart, the heat radiating from us and the air positively crackling with unspent potential.
In the end, though, it was Daniel's fault. He bumped into us, accidentally, of course, as he stumbled around feebly fighting off the advances of a rather nubile native. His mass collided with ours, and we made contact.
There were fireworks. Literally. Native traditional climax to the Fertility Festival that they conveniently forgot to mention was the evening portion of the celebration.
Anyway... we kissed. Everybody kissed, not that we were paying attention. No, we were completely lost
As our lips first made contact, I gasped, wide-eyed, as shock waves of pure electricity raced through us. Then I closed my eyes as we crashed into each other. Like the music that chased us over that precipitous edge, it started slow, the pressure between our mouths gradually increasing. We began to move, not just our lips, but our bodies, arms and legs, hands, and, inevitably, tongues. That first taste was as intoxicating as the drink that brought us here. Time truly stood still as we explored one another, as drunk on each other as we were that magical brew.
As slowly as it began, it ended. We drew apart, ever so gradually, our hands and eyes the last to let go. I closed my eyes and took a slow, deep breath before I finally braved meeting his gaze. What I saw took my breath away. I saw a thousand things all at once. Affection. Appreciation. Humor. Even a little mischief as he slowly winked at me.
He leaned forward until his mouth was beside my ear. A chill ran down my back as his warm breath caressed me.
"Rule number thirty-two of gate travel: Never drink the local moonshine." He withdrew just as slowly, and for a moment I thought he was going to kiss me again, but he kept moving until he was once again fully upright, a sly grin playing at his lips. "Gotta admit, though, it was fun."
I found myself sharing a warm, teasing smile. "Yeah... who knows? Maybe we'll get lucky, and gate travel will give us an excuse to try it again." I really liked the smile that statement elicited. All those inebriated hormones were still coursing through my system, and it was just way too damn sexy. I couldn't seem to stop myself from leaning in to catch one last breath near him, speaking softly, just above a whisper. "Good night."
I closed my eyes as I turned away, willing myself to burn every moment of this evening deeply in my memory. Not to dwell upon, but to be lovingly called on during those moments when the loneliness is just a little too lonely and the nights a little too dark and long.
We spoke not a word about it the next day. It turned out that Daniel had been completely, conveniently, preoccupied and out of our line of sight immediately after he had "accidentally" initiated our kiss, and Teal'c... well, he just wasn't saying much of anything as usual, though we all knew he had witnessed the entire... exchange. As for the Colonel... well, he and I simply carried on, business as usual, though I did catch sight of an amused grin aimed in my general direction every once in a while. It was a smile I returned, tinted with a hint of anticipation and a fair dose mutual awareness. The prospect of exploring the galaxy beside this man was getting more interesting by the day, and I couldn't wait to see where it would take us next. One thing was certain though... it was going to be a whole lot of fun.