A/Note: I give up! There is no way I can get these two to admit they care about one another without it seeming OOC! *ANGRY FACE* Well, this is my best attempt. I'm not sure I can do any better.

~ 7 ~

Jack was the first to wake. He couldn't tell if it was morning or not, given the lack of windows, but he was able to ascertain the fact it was still raining heavily outside. The fire had dwindled to a large pile of hot, glowing coals that cast the barest of glows across the stone floor. Jack had already woken up twice in the middle of the night to feed the fire, but the coals were doing a reasonably good job of keeping the room warm.

Sam was dead to the word, figuratively speaking. She had flung her right leg over his during the night and radiated heat like a wonderful little hot water bottle. Jack indulged himself and watched her sleep; her nose twitching every now and then when a piece of her hair tickled her brow. She looked five years younger; her face free from tension or worry lines. Sam would probably give him an earful if she caught him.

Jack turned his head to the left and yawned deeply, her head shifting as his chest expanded. Sam stirred and a sleepy moan drifted into Jack's ears. He stopped himself mid-yawn. That feeling of really, really, really wanting her had come back with a vengeance.

"Oh god..." Sam groaned, her eyes still closed. Jack's eyebrows rose at the possibility that not only Sam was still asleep, but she may have forgotten exactly who she was snuggled up to.

"I'm aching... everywhere." She added.

Nope. Definitely awake. Bugger.

"You have my permission to sleep in Carter," Jack said wittily.

"We should be getting paid overtime for this," Sam retorted with a sleepy groan.

"Oh yeah," Jack agreed. His stomach grumbled loudly. "I'm hungry. We haven't eaten anything except that spider-fish thingy yesterday."

Sam finally opened her eyes and rolled onto her back, still resting her head on his arm. Jack sobered quickly when she slapped a hand on his thigh, grabbing the material in a clenched fist. Jack mind raced in wonder, until she pulled on his pants and hauled herself into a sitting position. Ah: leverage. Good thing she had good aim. That could have been awkward.

"I'm glad I didn't expect you to catch anything yesterday," Sam slid a hand through her hair.

"Oh?" Jack rubbed his eyes, now that his hand was free.

"I packed lunch..." She looked over her shoulder to him. "...and I brought coffee." She grinned.

"You are amazing," Jack's smile was fleeting, but not because he had said that in jest, as Sam assumed. It was because he realised that the statement held far more sentimental weight then he was comfortable admitting.

Sam didn't appear to notice, returning his compliment with an innocent shrug and half a smile. Oh Carter, if you only knew. Sam growled in pain as she stood up, though once she was on her feet, she let out a huff and looked right as rain. Jack felt less guilty about not detecting her suffering yesterday; she hid it very well.

Sam limped – a little more obviously – to the tub and picked up the empty pail.

"Can you do dig out some food from my pack and get our kidney cups whilst I go and try to catch some rainwater?" Jack heaved his stiff body off the floor and straightened his back.

"Yeah, sure," Jack groaned as he stretched his muscles. Sam retreated out the front door. Jack slumped as his muscles loosened and shuffled into the other room. He scanned the floor or anything that resembled an MRI, eventually finding it underneath the bed. He dug through her pack and found the two steel cups she had put her canteens in. It was a bit of a task to pick everything up with one hand, but found the inside of his sling a convenient storage place to carry the sealed MRI.

Sam was still outside. Jack tossed their breakfast on the bench in the main room and threw another log on the fire, puffing tiny embers in the air. The cabin was quiet except the crackle of the growing fire and the steady pounding of water on the roof. Jack decided to join Sam outside.

Sam stood on the far left of the cabin, the pail at her feet as the runoff from the overhanging roof slowly filled the container with fresh water. She folded her arms across her chest and stared out into the rain. Jack took in her figure. Despite her injuries, she still stood tall and proudly, unmoved by their present situation.

Jack walked on the dry stones towards her. Sam turned her head and smiled briefly to him, before turning back to look down the mountain. Jack took his place behind her. He was her commanding officer, but she had proven herself to be the stronger individual.

"I still can't believe you carried me all the way up here," Jack frowned and sighed.

"There were moments when I didn't believe I could either. I could see the cabin. It was there, but it was..." Sam's voice was distant. "...it was so damn hard."

"I meant what I said Carter. You are..." He stopped and searched for the right word. "...Extraordinary."

Sam's head dropped to her chest. It was far easier for Jack to speak openly when he only had to look at the back of her head.

"We're here and..." Jack's voice caught in his throat, not from emotion, but from discomfort. It was nearly impossible to verbalize eight years of history. "...I can't deny that I feel a lot of things for you. But I can't bring myself to act on what I want..." Jack turned away, trying to understand what he was saying.

Sam whipped around, her eyebrows cresting in confusion. Thinking back over what he had said, he realised how it probably sounded. Oh, good one Jack! She probably thinks you're rejecting her!

"Because the woman who would throw away the rule book is not the one I fell for," His voice lifted higher than he intended. "I fell for Carter, the woman who was my second in command for all these years."

"The soldier who acts out of duty and honour?" Sam snapped. She was getting angry. See? This was why Jack kept his thoughts to himself!

"You wore the uniform, but I saw the woman underneath. The one who knows better! The one who would carry the weight of the world on her shoulders for God and country, the one who would carry me up a mountain because I know you care!" Jack barked back. Sam held her ground and Jack turned away from her, rubbing his eyes with his good hand. This wasn't how it was supposed to happen. Her silence weighed down on him.

Just as he was ready to flee, Jack felt a pair of warm hands slide around his waist and her forehead press between his shoulder blades. He suddenly felt drained, but he wasn't willing to move away. He sighed and lowered his head, lifting his good hand to cover hers as they link across his stomach.

There was so many more words to be said, but now was not the time. This was not the place, and they were not the kind of people to say them. Jack never knew. He never knew, until now, that she loved him. He knew he cared about her. But it took all of this, Jacob, Pete, Kerry, for him to realise that somewhere deep down, he may have loved Sam back.

Since they were uncertain if they were even going to get out of this in one piece, it was also not the time to tell her that he was due for promotion.

~ SJ ~

*Unamused face* These two frustrate me!