"Dad. Dad, wake up, Dad. Come on! It's me. Dad?"
This is a nice dream, O'Neill thought, finally cracking his eyes open. Charlie's here and he looks happy to see me. Gee, he's gotten old! Look how big he is.
"Hey, Son. Wow, you look good. Older." His voice rasped.
"Oh, thanks Dad! Wake up out of a coma and first thing you do is tell me how old I look! Jeeze!" He smiled as he spoke, squeezing O'Neill's arm. "You feel alright?"
"Yah. I'm great. This is a great dream." O'Neill mumbled a little sleepily.
"Dad, it's not a dream."
"Sure it is. You're here."
"Well, why wouldn't I be here Dad? I am your son, after all." he said with a worried grin.
O'Neill looked up at him. "Cause you're dead, Charlie. It's got to be a dream 'cause I killed you." He turned away in pain, squinting back his tears. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't 'ave said it. This was a good dream."
"Dad," the boy asked in a shaky voice, "who's Charlie?"
O'Neill's eyes widened as he turned back. "You are."
"Dad, my name's Sam. Don't you remember?"
"No. You're Charlie O'Neill. You're my son."
"Dad... Do you remember your name?"
"Sure I do. My name is Colonel Jack O'Neill. You know that, Charlie."
"Nurse! Nurse, get a doctor! Get someone!" Sam shouted.
"What seems to be the problem?" a snooty nurse asked.
"He doesn't remember who he is! He doesn't remember who I am." Sam finished in a whisper, looking over at O'Neill with pain in his eyes.
-000-
"Jack. Jack, wake up. Come on, Jack."
"ColonelO'Neill, it would be advantageous if you would awaken at this time."
Who the heck talks like that? "Humph." is all he could manage, the pain in his head an 11 on a ten point scale.
"Jack?"
"I do believe he is awakening, DanielJackson."
"Ow. My head." MacGyver whispered, his eyes still squeezed shut. "I feel like I've been hit by a Mack truck."
"Probably more of a ribbon-device feeling than a ran-over-by-a-truck headache. You look terrible." Daniel enthused.
"Uh, thanks?" MacGyver mumbled, forcing open his eyes and wondering what in heck a ribbon-device was. "Where am I?"
"We have returned to the SGC."
"Thanks for the help, Teal'c, but I think he wanted something a little more specific. You're in the infirmary, Jack. You've been in a coma for..."
MacGyver cut him off. "Where's my son? Is he okay?"
Daniel paled and Teal'c's frown intensified. "Um, Jack, he's not here." Daniel pinched the bridge of his nose, just above his glasses.
"Well, where is he?"
"Jack... If you don't remember, then maybe I should..."
"Just tell me where he is!"
"Your son is dead, O'Neill." Teal'c rumbled sadly.
MacGyver paled and fell back into the hospital sheets. "No." he whispered, his voice reed-thin. "No, he can't be." Panic entered his deep brown eyes. "Sam! Sam! SAM!"
"What's going on!" The doctor stormed into the room holding a needle.
"Janet, he asked about Charlie." Daniel said softly, looking away from the sobbing form of his friend.
"Teal'c, hold him down. I'm going to give him a sedative. Daniel, you better go find Sam and get her in here. Maybe she can help." Janet commanded.
Daniel nodded.
-000-
"Mr. MacGyver? Mr. MacGyver, can you hear me? Mr. MacGyver, are you listening?" the strident voice of the psychologist broke O'Neill out of his blank stare.
"I told you. My name's O'Neill. With two Ls! I am a Colonel in the U.S. Air Force. My serial number is-"
"Mr. MacGyver! We have been over this. Your name is Angus MacGyver. You recently retired from the Phoenix Foundation-"
"Doctor, and I use that term lightly, what person in their right mind would name their child Angus! What is he, beef? I am Colonel Jonathan O'Neill, U.S. Air Force, under the command of General Hammond, currently assigned to a classified project known as 'Stargate Command'. If you'd just call the Pentagon, we'd get this all straitened out!"
"The Pentagon. Yes... Previously you said your name was Jack. Did you forget?"
"No, I didn't forget! Jack is a nickname! Like Sam for Samantha or Danny for Daniel! If you'd just let me call my team-"
"Your phone privileges are limited until we can better understand your problem."
"My problem! My problem is I'm stuck in this blasted hospital with no phone and you guys think I'm someone else, that's my problem!"
"Mr. MacGyver, you're getting overexcited. I'm afraid I'll have to shorten our session today. Have a good night, Mr. MacGyver."
"Yah, sure, whatever. And the name's O'Neill!" He collapsed back onto the hospital bed as the door slammed shut. "Come on, guys. Where are you?" he whispered.
-000-
"Sam? Sam?" MacGyver asked, restlessly turning.
"I'm here, Sir."
"Oh, Sam. I had the worst nightmare. They said you were dead." He relaxed into the bed, eyes still closed.
"No, I'm fine, Sir." Sam squeezed his arm. "I'm right here."
"What's with all the Sirs? You afraid of your old man?" He smiled and cracked open his eyes. Blinking rapidly, he looked up in confusion. "Where's Sam?"
"I'm right here, Sir. Don't you see me?" Sam asked, throwing a concerned look over to the group in the corner.
"You're not Sam. Where is he? Where's my son!"
"Wait a minute." Daniel stepped forward. "Sam is your son? Your son's name was Charlie."
"No! Sam! Short for Shawn. Where is he? Is he okay?"
"Jack..." Daniel started.
"Who the heck is Jack! My name's MacGyver." The group of three men and two women looked at him in shock.
"ColonelO'Neill, perhaps..."
"I'm no Colonel, and why do you talk like that! Jeeze, you sound like you're from another planet! Tell me where I am and where my son is!"
"I, we, uh... General Hammond?" Daniel sputtered, amazed.
"That's enough, people. From now on we keep the classified material quiet. It looks like we could have brought home the wrong man."
"Thank you!" MacGyver said, exasperated. "Now, can someone please tell me what happened?"
"I'll let Major Carter fill you in. Meanwhile, let's find Colonel O'Neill." General Hammond stormed out of the room, followed closely by the rest of the team. Janet and Sam stayed behind.
"Mr... MacGyver, right?"
"Yes."
"Well, my name's Janet and this is Sam, Samantha." she corrected herself. "You have second degree burns on your palms and scalp, but they're clearing up nicely. What I can't understand is why you were in a coma for three days."
"Three days!"
"Mr. MacGyver." Sam started.
"Please, just MacGyver."
"Okay, MacGyver, what's the last thing you remember?" She smiled, hoping to put him at ease.
"Sam and I were watching the fireworks, and I went down to grab a pair of binoculars from my bike... That's it. The rest is a blank."
"You said fireworks?"
"Yes?"
"Si... MacGyver, this is July 10th. You were only in a coma for three days." Sam's face looked haunted.
"Where was I?" he asked, searching their faces for answers. "And why don't I remember?"