A persistent knocking woke Daniel up in the early hours of the morning. He crawled reluctantly out of bed, and opened the door, to a dripping Sam. He ushered her inside, grabbed several towels, some sweatpants, and a t-shirt. By the time she was changed and dry, Daniel had steaming coffee made. He handed her a cup when she sat on his couch. She didn't take a sip, holding the cup in her hands, warming them.
"Daniel, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gotten angry with you."
"Don't worry about it. That's what friends are for."
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"Telling me the truth." Sam looked directly into his eyes, and he could see nothing other than anguish.
"Sam, I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have said some of that, at least not when you were angry."
"But it was true. I did hurt him, and I didn't realise it fully until now."
"It's not all your fault."
"But I'm not blameless."
"Sam, did you walk here?"
"No. I took a cab, but I walked the final few streets."
"Why didn't you call me? I would've come over."
"I didn't know if you'd answer."
"Sam, no matter what, I'll be there for you."
"Thanks Daniel."
"Tonight, stay here. I'll run you home so you can change, in the morning."
The two stayed up, drinking their coffee, and talking. Daniel stayed clear of discussing Jack, or anything that could lead to their earlier argument, and only went to bed when it was obvious that Sam couldn't keep her eyes open. She stayed in his guest room, that she had vacated a few days ago.
The next two weeks passed by in a blur to Sam. She couldn't believe how much stuff she had accumulated in her small apartment, and spent most of her evenings packing, and throwing junk out. Daniel had helped as SG-1 had been on a few missions during those weeks, but had run into no trouble personally. The Free Jaffa continued their search for Ba'al, but so far, had uncovered nothing, other than dead ends. No other SG team ran into unfriendly Jaffa, but there were signs that they had been on several of the planets they visited.
Vikki had returned to work, pale and not her usual cheery self. Sam had tried to talk to her, but Vikki wouldn't open up about whatever was depressing her. After several attempts to draw her out failed, she went to talk to Scott. He had not been of any help either. He asked that Sam leave Vikki alone for a bit, as she'd be back to her usual self in no time. Wondering if they had quarreled, Sam stayed out of it, watching for signs that Vikki was either deteriorating, or improving.
Daniel spent a great deal of time with Vala, talking to her, and just being there for her. She had recovered from the mission to 412, but still held herself responsible for what had happened. General Landry had suggested she visit Dr. Mackensie, but Daniel had intervened, asking for more time. He tried to suggest that allowing Vala off the base to see Earth, might cheer her up, but so far, permission to do so, had not been granted.
When Daniel was off world, Vala spent her time with Sam, trying to help in the lab. Sam began to like the woman more, as she spent time with her. Despite her flirtatious, and sometimes childish attitude, Vala was a strong woman, who knew how to take care of herself. When Sam brought up the Jolinar experience, the two had shared their memories of being a Goa'uld and a Tok'ra. After listening to Vala's memories, fragmented as they were, Sam was thankful that her experience had been with a Tok'ra, and only for a short period of time.
Teal'c had remained on Earth for a few days, before heading back to Dakara. Sam had inquired, when she had returned to the SGC, as to why he still lived on the base, even though he had permission to live in the city. Now she understood his answer. While he was with SG-1 for the majority of his time, he was usually off world. If he had a home on Earth, he would never be there, as his duties with the Free Jaffa filled his spare time. She never heard him complain, in fact, she thought he loved it. It was everything he had dreamed for since the day he had turned against Apophis.
Sam had not heard from Jack. No communication in the form of a phone call, or email. She had sent one email inviting him to the BBQ after she was moved in, but had yet to hear a response. After having some time to do some serious soul searching, and thinking, she had come to her decision, and she was going to stick by it. Since that evening of her and Daniel's argument, neither had breached the subject again, and Sam was grateful to him for that.
The morning of the moving day, Sam woke before the sun was up, and once she was showered, packed the final few items. At 0700 Daniel, Cam, Teal'c, and to Sam's surprise, Vala, started hauling boxes down the stairs into the rented truck. With Sam's leg still in the brace she was relegated to carrying boxes to the top of the stairs, and organizing what items to go in the truck first. The furniture proved to be a bigger hassle going down the stairs than Sam remembered getting them up. Vala was having a ridiculous amount of fun, hassling the boys, and going through Sam's apartment thoroughly, commenting on improvements that could be made, according to one of those design shows.
Sometime around 0900 as Sam was carrying another box to the top of the stairwell, someone grabbed the box, and gently tugged it out of her hands. Once the cardboard was no longer blocking her view, she grinned at Jack.
"Hi."
"Hi yourself. You sure you should be haulin stuff around?" Jack eyed her brace, as the corners of his mouth turned up.
"Yeah, just no carrying them down the stairs. Thanks for coming."
"Hey, couldn't miss it. Going downstairs?" He gestured towards the boxes, and when Sam nodded, he headed down the stairs as Daniel ran up.
"You could've warned me."
"About what?" Daniel looked very confused, and considering he just passed Jack on the stairs, Sam figured he should have a clue what she was talking about.
"Him. Here." Sam gestured towards where Jack had gone, just moments before.
"I thought I told you, didn't I?"
"You said he might come, but not that he'd be here."
"Oh, sorry." Daniel shrugged his shoulders, and picked up another box. As he left Sam's view, he grinned to himself.
Sam was glad to see Jack, but felt like all rational thought had flown out the window. Gathering herself together, she grabbed another box, and continued with her task.
As the last item was loaded into the truck, the cleaning company Sam had called to clean her apartment showed up. She gave the address and directions to her new house to Jack, and left him and Daniel arguing over who would drive. Sam showed the cleaners to her apartment, and they started their work. By the time she arrived back down stairs, the truck was gone, as was Daniel's and Cam's car. Teal'c was waiting patiently, in what she assumed to be Jack's rental car.
"O'Neill won the battle to drive the moving vehicle."
"Vala went with Daniel?"
"That was the agreement between Daniel Jackson and General Landry."
"Why did they allow her off base today?"
"Daniel Jackson persuaded General Landry to allow her to assist in your move, as there are several members of the SGC here to prevent her from doing anything that would jeopardize herself, of the SGC. She will not have much opportunity to interact with the population, and therefore will be of minimal risk. General Landry insisted that she stay with one member at all times."
"And he chose Daniel?"
"No. I believe it was Vala Mal Doran who decided Daniel Jackson to be the one to guard her."
Sam grinned broadly, sure that by the end of the day Daniel would be exhausted answering her every question, and making sure she didn't do anything Valaish.
Sam had given Daniel a spare key, so once she and Teal'c arrived, the truck was already in the process of being unloaded. Cam showed up shortly after they did bearing several bags of food and they all took the opportunity to rest on the deck at the back of the house.
After listening to Vala's never ending questions about everything from the trees to the garage, to every different insect that landed on, or near her, Teal'c made the first move to return to their task at hand. Jack offered his hand to Sam, and pulled her onto her feet.
"That's quite a yard, Carter."
"It's a little bigger than I wanted, but it'll be an incentive for me to come home." Sam didn't miss the use of her last name, and her heart sank into her stomach.
"It's an interesting design for a house. How old is it?"
"Uh, just over 10 years. There was a house here previously, but it was torn down to build this one."
"I'm surprised they didn't attach the garage to the house. There's enough room."
"I don't really mind. It's huge, that'll make up for it."
As Jack walked around to the front of the house, Sam willed herself to calm down. By using her last name, he had reminded her of the days when she had been his 2IC. Back when she could not allow her feelings to be known. Was this his way of telling her subtly that his feelings had changed?
By the day's end, all Sam's belongings where in the correct rooms, the furniture placed where she wanted it, and a good portion of the boxes unpacked. Teal'c had volunteered to set up her kitchen, Cam the living room, where he spent most of his time looking at the DVDs she owned. Vala had volunteered to do one of the guest rooms, and Jack had taken it upon himself to set up the TV and stereo system. That done, he promptly turned the channel to one showing a hockey game, and then proceeded to move the couch into a perfect viewing position. After relaxing for a few minutes, he helped Teal'c in the kitchen, with the volume on the TV loud enough that he could hear it. Daniel had disappeared, and Sam was setting up her bathroom, and bedroom.
About an hour after Daniel left, Sam heard her car in the alley through the open window. She ran as fast as she could down the stairs, and out to the garage. Daniel had gone to the SGC and retrieved her car for her. As soon as she finished checking for damage, she threw her arms around him, appreciating the kind gesture. His reasoning was that she had a week off, and could probably spend some of it on her car. She'd been itching to do so for a long time, but didn't have the room to do so at her old place.
It was past 2300 when Sam finally said goodbye to her friends, and sank onto the couch. The TV was showing the highlights of various games that day without the volume, and she turned it off, enjoying the silence. She had been amazed at how much had been accomplished that day, and ran through a mental list of what still needed to be done. The BBQ had been scheduled for 3 days after she had moved, to give her enough time to make her house presentable. Deciding to get an early start, she crawled into bed, and fell asleep not long after her head touched the pillow.
Jack drove himself back to Daniel's, and let himself in with the spare key. He figured he would have an hour to himself while Daniel returned Vala to the base. He unpacked his small bag in Daniel's guest room. That done, he opened a beer, and sat down in front of the TV. He didn't watch whatever was on, as his mind strayed to Sam. Why had he called her Carter? He had meant to say Sam, he knew that. Was it his subconscious telling him something? He doubted it. It was probably just old habit or something. He had watched for any kind of hint from her, and had found nothing all day, other than her initial surprise at his arrival. The door opened, yanking Jack out of his thoughts.
"Hey, there's beer in the fridge for you."
"Yeah, thanks Daniel." Jack held up the opened bottle.
"Figured you'd be in bed by now, time difference an' all."
"I'm not that old yet. Besides, I'm not tired yet. Got anything to eat? I'm starving."
"Pizza?"
"Sure, sounds great. Vala was a tad excited today." Jack followed Daniel into the kitchen.
"At least she cheered up. That's all I wanted."
"Wasn't expecting to see Cam helping Sam though."
"He knew that we were helping her, and offered his assistance. Sam was grateful for his help, especially as she didn't know you were coming." Daniel eyed Jack, looking for any kind of response.
"I wasn't sure I could make it."
"You told me you could. Why didn't you mention anything to her?"
"I didn't know how she'd react, alright." Daniel could hear a hint of frustration in Jack's voice.
"What were you thinking? She'd tell you to leave?" Daniel tried to sound sarcastic, but failed.
"Maybe." Jack took the last swig of his beer, and grabbed another.
"She'd never do that."
"Didn't she kick you out of her place two weeks ago?"
"That was different, and she didn't kick me out. Jack, what's going on between you two?"
"I don't know yet."
"You should talk to her, before the BBQ. Get things out in the open."
"Yeah, maybe. Pizza done yet?"
"A few more minutes. Jack, she won't tell me what she's been thinking, and I haven't asked, but I don't think you should just leave it."
"I know."
"What are you going to say?"
"Daniel, just drop it, please. I don't want to talk about it."
Daniel changed the subject, and once the pizza was eaten, he cleared up the kitchen, and headed to bed. Jack stayed on the couch, beer in one hand, remote in the other.
The next day, Daniel was called into the SGC, as a team stranded off world were in need of his assistance on a translation. Jack woke just after 1100 to find a note on the fridge, stating where Daniel was, and he wasn't sure when he'd be back. After showering, shaving, and making some breakfast, Jack decided to drive over to Sam's. Once there, he sat in his car, running over in his mind what he wanted to say. At the last moment, he started the car and drove off, cursing himself for doing so. He drove around Colorado Springs, checking on his old house, and stopping at the park. He wandered around for a while, before deciding to go back to Daniel's. On his way back, his phone rang. It was Daniel, apologizing, but he had to stay on the base for the night. Jack offered to go in and help, but Daniel insisted he stay at his house, and go talk to Sam.
Instead, Jack ordered in, and spent the night on the couch, with the TV, falling asleep there once again.
When Jack woke up the following morning, he dialed the SGC to find out how long Daniel would be. He ended up talking to General Landry, who explained that Daniel had to go help another team, trapped in some sort of temple. They did not have an estimated return time. Jack felt like throwing his phone across the room. Sam's BBQ was tomorrow, so that meant he needed to talk to her today. He had all sorts of ideas of what to say, but they varied from blurting out what he thought, and taking the time to see what she thought first, but he didn't want to go over there until he had some sort of plan.
He didn't start driving to her house until 1700, still with no particular plan in mind. He parked the rental, pulled the keys out of the ignition, and suppressed the urge to hit his head on the steering wheel. After sitting there for what felt like hours, he climbed out, choosing to wing it. That usually worked reasonably well, and as he didn't have any better ideas right now, that was the only way this was going to get done. He rang the doorbell several times, and peered through the windows. No sign of Sam inside the house. He wandered around towards the back yard, and heard music coming from the garage.
He opened the side door cautiously, and grinned at what he saw. Sam was swaying to the loud music while she worked on the engine of her car. He coughed, and she still didn't turn towards him. It wasn't until the song ended that she noticed him there.
"Uh, hi."
"Hi Sam. What'cha doin?"
"Working on my car."
"I can see that. You've got oil and grease all over you." Sam wiped her arm over her forehead, adding another streak of oil to her face.
"Yeah, well. It's easier to shower than to try to stay clean." As she spoke, Sam willed her hands to stop trembling. He took a few tentative steps inside the garage.
"Roomy in here. Got plenty of space to work." He guessed he was going with the 'seeing what she thought' option.
"Yeah, it's great. Once the car's fixed up, gonna have to get a bike to fill the space."
"Sounds good."
"I hesitate to ask, but what are you doing here?"
"Uh, just stopped by to say hi. Daniel's off world, so I've not got anything else to do."
"Oh. Well, come in, um take a seat." Sam could feel a tension in the air, but wasn't sure what was causing it. She bent back over the engine and started fiddling around. She could feel him close by, and jumped when his spoke.
"What're you doin'?"
"Uh, just trying to replace some of the older, worn out parts. I meant to do it for a while, but breaking my leg kinda put a hold on those plans."
"How long till you're up and running again?"
"Running?"
"As in, up and around." Sam couldn't help but smile at his obvious nervousness.
"Less than a month, depending on the physio."
"Ah. You need help?"
"With the physio?" Sam was confused with Jack's question.
"No, with the car. I've got a few hours to spare."
"Uh, sure. Can you hold this?" Sam pointed out the piece she wanted Jack to hold in place as she turned to grab the tool from the bench. She bent over the engine, and as she turned the wrench, her elbow hit the metal bar holding up the hood. It crashed down on both their heads, causing Sam to fall to the ground, as Jack grabbed the back of his head.
"Damn."
"Sorry Jack."
"Hey, not your fault."
"I did hit the bar holding the hood up." Sam was also holding her head in her hands.
"Yeah, well, let's not think about that. You ok?"
"Think so. You?"
"Fine, I think. Gonna have one hell of a lump tomorrow."
"I'm really sorry Jack."
"C'mere. Where'd it hit you." Sam pointed towards the top of her head, and stayed seated while Jack lightly ran his fingers through her hair. She shivered at his touch.
"No blood. You cold? Maybe you should go inside."
"No. I'm fine. Just like you. A bump on the head, nothing to worry about." Jack was amused as he watched Sam babble, and helped her to her feet.
"That's what friends are for, to worry about each other."
"Uh, huh."
"And to fight with each other." Sam's face fell at Jack's comment. "Sam, I meant it as a joke."
"It's just that we've done so much disagreeing and arguing lately."
"Well, how about we change that. Get things figured out, once and for all." The words rushed out of him, and he almost clapped his hand over his mouth to stop them.
"Here? Now?" Sam wasn't sure she was ready to admit what she had been mulling over, the past few weeks.
"Sure, why not? Unless you don't want to?"
"Uh, no. You're probably right, we should get it all out in the open, sooner rather than later." Sam's emotions were too close to the surface for her to be comfortable at that moment, but she knew they had to have this conversation at some point.
"Ok, how bout we go inside before it gets dark out here." Jack got to his feet and turned towards the door. He turned when he heard her voice.
"Jack, can I ask you a question?"
"Sure, shoot."
"Why did you come to the lab when it exploded?" Sam was still curious as to his reason, despite what Daniel had told her. She wanted to find out exactly what he had been thinking, as maybe it would help her now.
"There was a Goa'uld running around."
"The SGC could've taken care of it."
"I was closer than they were."
"Didn't the Prometheus transport you all there anyways?"
"Uh, yeah."
"So you would've done it for anyone?" Sam subconciously took a step towards him. They were now standing less than two feet apart.
"If I could, probably." Jack didn't back away from her.
"That's your honest answer?" Jack could see she wasn't angry, just curious.
"You asked Daniel the same question. He told me. He also told me that you were surprised at the answer."
"Well, given that we weren't really speaking then, I was a little shocked that you would come to rescue me."
"Sam, no matter what, I will always be there for you."
Jack watched as her eyes changed expression. From curiosity, to understanding, to realisation.
"It was you." Sam whispered the words.
"Me what?"
"Semper. Always. You wrote that on my cast." A wave of emotion swept over Sam, filling every corner of her heart.
"Yes, I did." Jack's voice dropped to Sam's volume.
"Why didn't you write it so I could recognise the writing."
"I didn't know how'd you react."
"Jack..."
He couldn't resist any longer as he saw her eyes begin to fill with moisture, and pulled her to him. He held her tight, a feeling of pure contentment flowing through every part of his being. He felt her shoulders shake as she cried into his shirt, and held her as though he would never let go.
They stood there, together, as the light faded. When he felt Sam shiver, he pulled away, and grinned at her.
"What?"
"Well, I think it's time to go in, nice as this is. You're getting cold, and you'll probably want to wash your face."
"Wash my face?"
"Yeah, you've got streaks of black here, and here." Jack traced the marks with his finger, and Sam shivered again, this time not from the cold.
"Uh, Jack. Your shirt." Jack looked at the shoulder, and there were traces of the marks from her face. He grinned, knowing that the shirt was a small sacrifice to pay for what had just happened between them.
"One less thing to wash later. C'mon, let's go inside."
He opened the door for Sam, and she locked it behind her. Once in the house, Sam ran upstairs to change, and clean up, while Jack rummaged around in her cupboards for the coffee. As he heard the shower stop, he poured two cups, and took a seat on the couch. She sat on the opposite end of the couch, and smiled at him when he handed her a cup of coffee.
"So."
"Warmer?"
"Yes. Cleaner too."
"Coffee alright?"
"It's prefect. Thanks Jack."
"You're welcome."
An uncomfortable silence surrounded the two, as Jack started fiddling with the remote in his hand, and Sam burried her nose in the cup. Sam was the one to break the silence as she put her now empty cup, on the coffee table.
"We're inside now, where it's warm, and light. Shall we continue what we started in the garage?" She waited for his reaction, hoping he wouldn't back out.
Jack spluttered into his coffee, his mind focused on the affectionate moment they had just shared, and not the conversation that had started it all.
"You ok?"
"Yeah. Sorry, went down the wrong pipe." Jack firmly placed his cup on the table, next to Sam's.
"We left off somewhere about getting it all out in the open."
"So we did. Look, Sam, I really don't want to have some kind of discussion that Daniel would be proud of. You know me, I'm not that kind of guy. I'll only embarrass both of us, and somehow screw up what I'm trying to say. I came over to talk to you, well, to ask you something."
"Ask away."
"How 'bout we forget what has happened, start fresh."
"Like put the past months behind us?"
"Yeah. But one thing, I'm sorry I didn't stay in touch. I should've and none of this wierdness would've happened."
"You can't blame yourself. I played a part too."
"Well, maybe, a small part." Jack grinned cheekily at her.
"I'm sorry to, sorry for all the hurt I caused you. I didn't think you cared anymore..."
"I do Sam, in some way, I always did."
Sam stopped looking at her hands, and turned her eyes to his face. He wore an expression which she had only seen glimpses of, many, many years ago. As soon as she saw the look in his eyes, she had the answer to what she had been asking herself. She moved out of his embrace, reluctantly.
"Jack, what I said to you in your office..."
"Ah, not another word. That was in the past, and if I remember correctly, we agreed to forget all that."
"But..." Jack placed a finger over her lips, to quiet her.
"I know."
"You do?" Sam wondered if he knew exactly what she was refering to.
"Now, I do." Jack placed each hand on one side of her neck, and for one fleeting moment, Sam thought he was going to kiss her.
"So where do we go from here?" He didn't move his hands, and his eyes never strayed from hers.
"Wherever you want to go."
"I don't want to go anywhere. I want us to go somewhere."
"Are you sure?" Jack wanted her to be absolute in her decision, as he didn't think he could ever turn back if they continued the way they were going.
"Yes. I'm positive."
Jack leaned in towards her, and they both jumped apart as his cell phone rang shrilly from his coat, which was slung over a chair in the kitchen. Jack cursed, and ran into the kitchen, as it was the SGC calling. Sam relaxed on the couch, her mind processing what had just happened, and what had been about to occur, between them. She was so lost in her thoughts, that she didn't hear Jack re enter the living room.
"Daniel." Jack practically fell onto the couch, and tossing his phone onto a nearby chair.
"He's back?"
"Yeah, something about getting back much earlier than he expected. Wanted to know if there what I was up to."
"Oh."
"Told him I was busy." Jack glanced sideways at Sam, who had moved back to the other end of the couch.
"Jack, I...I don't know, erm, well, it's just that..."
"Sam, don't worry, we'll take this at whatever pace is comfortable for both of us. That is what you were trying to say, right?" Sam let out a small laugh at his awkwardness as he looked at her hopefully.
"Yes. Thank you Jack."
"So, how 'bout we watch a movie. Got anything good?"
"Well, unless Cam took them all home with him, I'm sure we can find something."
Once a movie was settled upon, the two settled down to watch, Jack's arm around Sam's shoulders. After the movie ended, Jack left, promising to be early for the BBQ the following day. As Sam got ready for bed, she pulled the cast out of the closet, and traced his word with her finger. She glanced at Daniel's Ancient signiture, and suddenly the last word made sense.
'Not all that was lost, can never be found.
Open your eyes, and look around.'
She had opened her eyes, and taken a good look around. Now what she saw, was Jack. Sam reflected on the past few hours, thinking that something amazing was about to begin. As she fell asleep, one lingering thought stayed in her mind. There was no one like him.
AN:Well folks, here's the end of Non Est Ei Similis. To all of you who reviewed so far, thank you for your ideas, encouragement, comments, and criticism. All are appreciated greatly. A giant gold star to Skiergal, who guessed the meaning of the title, 'There is no one like him.' I have decided to split this up into another story, following the new relationship between Sam and Jack, and to continue the story of the Goa'uld. If you would like me to continue, or if you have any comment about this story, there's a lovely little blue button just below that you can use to let me know (lol). The tentative title for the next part, is 'Si Vis Amari, Ama.'
