Chapter Twenty-Six

"No mama! Daddy do it!" Elam insisted, shooing Vala away.

Vala raised her hands, as if surrendering, before placing them on her hips. "I'll have you know, young man, that wounds me deeply."

Elam didn't bat an eye. "Can daddy do it, please?"

She sighed dramatically. "Deeply wounded," she said again but didn't gain any sympathy from him. She sighed again and walked over to Daniel. "Your turn," she told him, taking a seat beside him.

"You okay?" he asked, worried, "Is it th – "

"Nothing's wrong," she interrupted, perturbed, "but apparently my skills at pushing our son on a swing is insufficiently grand compared to yours."

"Huh?"

"Elam wants you to push him," she explained in full, "Apparently I don't do it right or something," she pouted.

Daniel chuckled and kissed her head. "Don't worry, you're plenty good at other things," he teased, "I'll just be the best at pushing him on the swings."

"You better go before I hit you," she warned.

Daniel quickly sprung up from the park bench. "Love you," he kissed her before scurrying away.

"That's right, you better run!" she called after him.

It was their first time taking Elam to a park ever and he was loving it. They had only been there for like ten minutes, but the little boy had already fallen in love with it. After spending most of the day, well week, unpacking box after box, Elam's persistence had finally won out and they headed to the park a few blocks from their new house. Elam had been on Earth for just over five weeks and they still hadn't really taken him anywhere since he was free to leave the SGC. This was his first experience around other children but despite his parent's encouragement, he wasn't quite ready to leave their side. Daniel swore he would eventually and to give him time; she supposed he was right, they had only been there for a few minutes.

While Elam was worried about making friends, Vala knew he would be a natural with people; he was his father's son after all.

"Is this seat taken?" a woman asked Vala.

Vala looked away from her intense staring at her boys and smiled at the newcomer. She waved her hand to the empty. "Be my guest," she said and continued to watch Daniel as he pushed and taught Elam how to swing.

She still pouted inside; she had done the exact same thing, but Elam had insisted on Daniel doing it. What had she done wrong? How did Daniel do it differently or better?

"Checking out the new hottie on the block?" the woman asked, motioning to Daniel, "I've seen him go on runs, but this is the first time I've seen him here. Isn't he just so sexy?"

Vala hid a smile. Apparently, she hadn't seen Daniel kiss her. "He is at that," Vala agreed.

The woman held out her hand. "I don't believe we've met; I'm Olivia."

Vala shook her hand. "Vala," she replied in kind, "Not to sound judgmental, but do you actually have a child or do you just come here to check out the men?"

The woman laughed. "Honey, I have a kid, but I'm also divorced so I can look all I want," the woman, Olivia, replied, "and that fine specimen has to be one hell of a guy."

Vala didn't disagree but didn't want to spoil her fun. "Why is that?"

Olivia waved her hand around the park. "Do you see any other dads here? And it's Saturday!" she pointed out, "A man that takes time out of day to take his son to the park is worth something. It's more than my ex ever did."

Vala looked around the park and did notice that Daniel was the only male adult. "I hadn't noticed," she confessed and frowned, "but isn't this a military town or something?"

"Yeah, I guess," Olivia relented, "God, that kid is cute," she said offhandedly.

Vala smiled proudly and looked at her son. "He really is."

She watched her son and his father swing, the pair smiling and laughing, and it was a sight to behold. When Elam decided to jump from the swing while it was still going, he ended up falling on his hands and knees and it was all Vala could do not to jump and run to him. She only stayed seated since Daniel was at his side instantly and Elam wasn't crying. She watched as Daniel inspected Elam's hands and motioned in her direction.

Assuming he hurt himself, she grabbed her purse that Daniel called gigantic and pulled out a small first aid kit. She also had wipes, hand sanitizer, and snacks stuffed in there for Elam. As Elam headed for her, she grabbed what she would need.

"Oh, do you think he's okay?" Olivia asked, concerned.

"He's not crying, so that's a good sign," Vala said, distracted as she went through the first aid kit.

"What're you doing?" she asked, "You have a first aid kit in your purse. Why?"

"Mama! I hurted myself," Elam exclaimed as he got closer to her, holding up his hands as proof.

"I have it because I feared my son has his father's propensity for getting hurt," Vala replied to Olivia before focusing on Elam, "Let me see, darling."

He quickly closed the distance between them and offered her his hands. "I fell," he stated seriously.

"I saw; let's not do that again, alright?" she grabbed the disinfectant wipe, "Now, this is going to sting but only for a moment," she warned.

"I be brave," he declared but hissed when she wiped at the small abrasion, "Burns, mama."

"I know, darling," Vala said sympathetically and blew on the scrapes, "Shall I kiss it better?"

"Now, where have I heard those words before?" Daniel teased, coming up from behind Elam, and took a seat besides Vala.

"As I recall, you didn't take me up on the offer," she smirked and handed him the antibiotic ointment, "Open please."

Daniel grabbed the small package and did as asked. "What can I say? I was a fool back then," he handed her the ointment and grabbed a few band aids to open and be ready, "Won't make that mistake again."

"Assuming there will be a next time," she remarked, dabbing the ointment on the small scrapes. In all honesty, they weren't bad, but Elam had never been exposed to anything on Earth like this and Carolyn warned them to be careful and to take precautions if he did get hurt. "There! That's done, now let daddy put on the band aids are you're as good as new!" she said cheerfully.

"Can I have a snack?" Elam asked once he was all bandaged up.

Daniel snorted. "Yeah, definitely your son," he declared.

"He just has a good appetite!" she defended the two of them as she grabbed her bag, "Okay, what would you like?" she asked as she grabbed the wipes and handed them to Daniel.

"What're these for?" Daniel asked.

"Carolyn said his hands need to be cleaned before he eats if we're in public," she replied.

"Right, forgot about that," he admitted sheepishly.

"Can I have apple slices?" Elam asked as Daniel wiped his hands off.

Vala's hand stopped deep in her purse. "How about those fruit gummy things instead?" she suggested.

"No apples?"

"Afraid not," Vala gave him an apologetic look.

"What?" Daniel interjected, "I saw you cut up some before we left."

Vala held out the fruit snack to Elam. "Did I?" she feigned innocence.

Daniel shook his head incredulously. "You ate them," he accused, "First broccoli and now apples."

"The broccoli was a one-time thing!" she insisted.

Daniel ignored her. "Well, at least your cravings are on the healthier scale."

"I can guarantee that won't last," she shot back.

"Can I go play?" Elam interrupted.

Vala looked at him. "Finish your snack first," she instructed, "Your hands need to be clean while you eat."

Elam frowned but didn't argue. "To protect me from the germs?"

"Exactly," Vala confirmed.

"Germs won't kill him," Olivia butted in, "It can help strengthen his immune system."

Daniel finally noticed the woman on the other side of the long bench. "While that may be true for most kids, up until a week ago or so, he had a compromised immune system; it's still gaining strength."

"Oh," the woman said dumbly.

"What's that?" Elam asked, pointing to a playground toy.

Daniel looked over. "That's called a teeter totter."

"How's it work?"

Daniel smiled. "Want me to show you?" Elam nodded excitedly and Daniel chuckled. "C'mon, let's go," he grabbed the fruit snack wrapping and tossed it in the trashcan.

Once the boys were out of ear shot, Olivia started speaking, "I am so sorry; why didn't you stop me?"

Vala winced and gave her an apologetic look. "Sorry," she said sincerely, "I was just curious to see how other women here view him. He doesn't interact with many and the women where we work would never say what they thought about him in front of me or anything."

"No other woman has told you how lucky you are?" Olivia asked in surprise, "Like ever?"

Vala thought about it for a moment. "No, not that I recall," she admitted, "but until we started our relationship, everyone knew he was emotionally unavailable; I still thought he was until he told me he loved me."

"Awe," the woman cooed.

"Mama, look!" Elam called from the teeter totter.

She glanced over and gave her son a blinding smile.

"You'd think he's never seen a teeter totter before," Olivia commented.

Vala turned to her. "He hasn't," she smiled sadly, "It's his first time at any park."

"Really?" she asked in shock.

"Like Daniel said, up until a week ago, his immune system wasn't ready for the outside world," she explained, "He's been inside for most of his life."

"Wow," she said quietly and paused before asking hesitantly, "How sick was he, if you don't mind me asking?"

Vala hadn't stop to consider what they should tell people about Elam; the truth was obviously out, but there was no denying that certain things would draw people's attention. Perhaps she and Daniel should've discussed this before she had blurted out stuff, but it was too late now. "Up until a few weeks ago, he'd never been outside; what does that tell you?"

There was silence for a few moments. "I'm glad he's doing better," Olivia said earnestly, "and you guys look stronger than ever, which is rare when you have a sick kid. My husband bailed when things got too hard for him and it was nothing compared to having a sick child; you're lucky, you got a good one there."

"I know," Vala agreed softly, "I still can't believe my luck sometimes."

Someone suddenly sat down next to her and tapped her shoulder. "Vala, look," Daniel said, gesturing to their son.

Vala's head snapped in her son's direction and she felt her heart melt. "He made a friend?" she asked, getting a little teary eyed.

"Yeah," he confirmed softly, "the little boy just walked up to Elam and asked if Elam wanted to play with him and it took like two seconds before our son agreed."

"See, I told you," Vala boasted, "He's your son, bound to make friends wherever he goes."

"I don't know about that, but I'm glad he's finally making friends," he told her quietly.

"Me too," she whispered back, giving his hand a squeeze.

"So," he started cheerfully, "why are you lucky?" he asked.

"Oh, I was just telling your wife how lucky she is to have such an amazing husband," Olivia interjected, "they're hard to come by these days."

"Oh, we're n – "

"I'm actually the lucky one," Daniel interrupted Vala and smiled at her, "I don't think any other woman could put up with me and my ways."

"You make it sound like you're so much worse than you really are," Vala argued.

"You've got Elam reminding me to eat when you're not around," he pointed out, "It usually takes you or him to pull me from my work or else I'd stay lost in it."

She hummed. "Well, when you put it like that, you are pretty damn lucky to have me," she teased lightly.

Daniel wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer. "You're the best damn thing to ever happen to me."

"Really?" she asked, uncertain, "Better than our job? Better than Sha're?" she knew she shouldn't have said that and instantly regretted it. "Fuck, don't answer that. I think my brain is going irrational and possessive again."

Daniel was quiet for a moment, thinking.

"Well, that's my cue to leave," Olivia interrupted the tense silence and stood, "Vala, I hope to see you here again and maybe we can set up play dates for the kids and give your son another friend."

Vala smiled tightly at the women. "That would be lovely, thank you."

"See you around," she waved and walked towards the mass of playing children.

The silence wasn't gonna go anywhere for a while so Vala decided to break it. "Daniel, I'm sorry," she whispered, looking at the ground, "I don't know why I asked that and it was unfair and unkind of me to, so just forget it."

"I can't," he told her quietly, "and I'm not sure how to answer."

"Don't," she implored.

"One could argue that the Stargate was the best thing to ever happen to me because it gave me you," he continued, "Without it, we would've never acquired the knowledge and technology to have built the Prometheus, meaning we wouldn't have met. So maybe it was at one time, but now you are."

"Without the 'gate, you wouldn't have met Sha're either," she gingerly said and turned to him, "You don't have to pretend she wasn't special to you or anything like that. I want to feel like you can talk about her; she's partially responsible for making you who you are today, the man I love."

Daniel grabbed her hand, interlacing their fingers. "You're right; without the 'gate, I wouldn't have met her and gone through all of that," he conceded, "I won't deny at one point in my life, I thought she was the best thing to happen to me, and she was, but she's not here anymore – you are. I won't pretend that I didn't love her with everything I had, but I was a different man back then, so young and naïve. I'm not that man anymore; I've grown and matured in so many ways, more than I could ever imagine, and I now love people differently."

"How so?" she hesitantly asked.

He smiled softly at her. "It takes longer for me to love someone, to admit it to myself, and I just don't feel that for anyone, but when I do, I love deeper," he leaned forward and rested his head against hers, "The love I feel for you is stronger than I've ever felt for anyone; the intensity is so power that it, quite frankly, terrifies me, and I think it's why I fought it for so long."

"And here I thought I was the only one who was petrified," Vala mumbled and met his gaze, "How could loving me terrify you so?"

Daniel pulled back slightly so he could look at her better. "I already told you that you could so easily destroy me and there's a reason I fought my feelings for you so hard," he began, "I've just only gotten to the place where I could see myself caring about someone and risk getting hurt again, but I never considered that person being you."

"Because I could hurt you beyond repair?" she guessed.

"Exactly," he confirmed softly, "I told myself it wouldn't work because we were so different and opposite from each other; I told myself your flirting, sexual thing you do was just your way at having a laugh at my expense, but it was all just excuses, a way to keep myself safe, and had I not heard the you from the other timeline said, I probably would've missed out on the greatest thing to have ever walked into my life. I don't think I have ever loved someone the way I love you and I'm sure I never will."

Vala couldn't help it; she closed the small space between them and kissed him hard. Daniel immediately returned it, bringing her closer to him, and ran his hands through her hair. It didn't last long since a child's cry rang out, making them break apart to ensure it wasn't their child, and when it wasn't, Vala rested her head against his chest. "I've never loved anyone the way I love you and I know I never will either. You're my Daniel and you're it for me."

"And you're my Vala, my space pirate, and fruitcake," he stated softly, "and you're it for me too."