DreaJackman@hotmail.com [http://dreajackman.cjb.net]

Obelisk

by

Drea Jackman

Lightening blazed across the sky and broke it into a thousand different pieces. Shattered fragments were cast in darkness between every illuminating crack as each strike forked off in all directions. It was a dark and cloudy night. Rain continued to pour from the heavens as a thunderstorm raged throughout.

The University's Museum of Archaeology was bathed in complete shadow, a darkness that would have been absolute if not for the occasional flash of lightening forcing it back into retreat against a white wash of light. In the black of the night engulfing it, the museum's great obelisk, a replica of the original found in Cairo, towered at the far end of the gardens and reached up as if trying to touch the storm itself.

Another bolt of lightening splashed it's bright white glow across the gardens and reflected in the great windows of the Archaeology building. Daniel stood behind the pane of glass in the great window of the building's foyer. All the people there, with the exception of a few security guards, had all gone home for the night. Only Daniel and Isabel had remained to finish up some work they had been keen to finish. Now it was time to call it a night and the storm above didn't look as if it had any intentions of letting up.

"Doesn't look like it's gonna let up anytime soon," Daniel said with a sigh.

Isabel approached him from behind looking between Daniel and the storm outside.

"You're not afraid of getting a little wet are you?"

Daniel glanced back over his shoulder, not missing the playful hint in her tone.

"I take it you're perfectly okay with the idea of drowning on your way home?" he asked equaling her tone.

They had become friends over the past few weeks, but Daniel, being Daniel, was reluctant to push himself on her and make the first move. Isabel wasn't obnoxiously full of herself the way he had found some girls to be. She was just confident in all the good ways possible. But, it was that confidence he found so misleading.

Sometimes he could give in to the notion of wishful thinking. Isabel had been thinking of him the way he had about her, but she was just as shy as he was about it. It was a fantasy he enjoyed privately, but he recognised it as just that, pure fantasy. A girl with her kind of confidence wouldn't hesitate in letting a guy know when she was interested in him, would she? In truth, Daniel had no idea.

Isabel felt strangely energized by his response. It mirrored her playful nature and when Daniel warmed to her confidence it warmed her too. She tilted her head to one side slightly and raised an eyebrow under his scrutiny. With a simple shrug she crossed the rest of the distance between them and pushed the book she had been holding into his chest. His hands automatically came up to catch it, taking it from her as she opened the doors and stepped outside into the still sheltered landing at the front of the building.


"It's only a little water," she sighed and left him inside.

Daniel's eyes grew wide as he realised what she was in all probability, most likely to do. Spontaneity was not something she was lacking in at all. Quickly setting the book aside he followed her out of the building, but was too late to stop her from leaving the cover of the doorway.

"Izzy!" he yelled after her as she walked out into the gardens a few feet away and twirled around under the downpour of rain.

"Come join me!"

"You're insane!"

Isabel was distracted and the storm no longer held all of her attention. Had he just called her insane? Him? Daniel Jackson, with all his flaky tendencies, had just dared to call her insane? Hardly something he was going to get away with for very long.

Daniel caught the predatory look in her eyes the second she turned to face him. Momentarily his attention was lost to the way her clothes now clung to her body. Jeans completely soaked through as the pastel blue, short-sleeved top she was wearing had become skin tight. He was only human, but the fire flickering in her eyes was enough to drive him to distraction and prevent him from enjoying the view any further.

"Don't even think about it," Daniel called in warning over the rainfall.

"Too late," she smiled.

Before Daniel could back up any further and get behind the protection the building's great front doors offered, Isabel was already making her way back up the steps towards him. Her smile was seductively intent and Daniel's mind raced as he tried to think of a way out of his predicament. Perhaps he really did want to be caught, for that would easily explain his mind's lack of participation in coherent thoughts of escape.

"You're lookin' a little dry there Danny."

Danny. He hadn't been called that in years, at least not by anyone who'd mattered much. It had been an honour saved for his childhood and special occasions that occurred since. Isabel had only taken it in use with her playful banter because it worked with the tone she was using. Pet names really hadn't entered her head at the time although if she really thought about it, she'd probably be perfectly happy with it.

"Surprisingly dry," he said, voice filled with dread.

Isabel stopped on the last step and extended her left hand. Daniel looked at it expectantly.

"I won't hurt you."

Don't make promises you can't keep,' he thought as he imagined the rejection and the heartbreak in his immediate future.

"You promise?"

His words weren't simply referring to her treatment of him in her impending act of revenge for the comment he'd made in good humour, but of feelings he was certain she couldn't possibly return.

Isabel looked at him for a few seconds. There was something different about the way he'd asked the question, something more to it than she could see. It was unusual for him to keep anything from her, for in the months they'd been friends, he'd been very open and honest with her. The same could be said of her to a certain extent. Still, he'd tell her if and when he felt ready, of that she was sure so she faced him with a deadly seriousness if only for the few seconds it took her to answer his question.

"I promise."

Daniel reluctantly slid his hand into hers and watched the smile on her face grow as he felt her hand tighten around his in a strong grip. Before he knew it, she was dragging him down the steps of the Archaeology building and out into the rain. He felt himself smile at her eagerness to partake in something so childish. Of course, then he had to question his own sanity as he allowed her to drag him into it too. He soon found himself echoing her laughter with his own. Her excitement and happiness was as infectious as her laughter.

The pair continued their tour of the Archaeology Gardens hand in hand. Isabel led the way for the most part, only letting Daniel take over when she had laughed herself out. It was then his turn to drag her off in any given direction. They toured a great many of the University's great statues and outdoor displays that way until Isabel tugged Daniel in the direction of the great Obelisk at the far end of the gardens.

As they both came to a halt in front of the obelisk, their laughter had all but died down completely. They stood there in silence, only their ragged breath audible against the fierce backdrop of the overhead storm. The giant obelisk towered over them and reached up into the night, all it's markings obscured by shadow until the fleeting flash of lightening in the distance was enough to make them appear briefly.

"Admit it," Isabel said between gasps for air. "That was fun."

"Okay," Daniel admitted. "That was... fun."

Isabel looked up at Daniel as he stood before her and couldn't help the slight gasp that escaped her lips. She couldn't help it. She was keenly aware that she found Daniel cute at the best of times, but as he stood before her now, soaked through, he looked much more appealing than usual. She had to pause to wonder if that was possible.

Daniel was soaked through completely. His glasses were spattered with rain and much of his field of view obscured by the longer strands of hair that hung limply over his eyes and clung to his forehead. From what he could see, Isabel was in much the same state. Her usually golden hair fell about her shoulders in much darker blonde strands, some of which clung to her face and hung in her eyes.

Isabel looked him over slowly as she brushed her hair back from her eyes. Even the clothes Daniel had been wearing were now seductively clingy. His blue jeans were now dark with water. The dark green shirt he was wearing over a simple white T-shirt hung against him, framing every underlying curve and contour with perfect definition. Her eyes travelled back up to his and she felt drawn to act in the silence surrounding them, for the storm was long forgotten.

Against the deafening downpour which cast them into a bubble of imagined silence and serenity, they gazed at each other. Isabel smiled the smile that Daniel found himself thinking of when she wasn't around before it slipped from her features altogether. An inquisitive look of exploration took over her features as she reached up to brush the sodden hair from his eyes. Before she made contact, she hesitated momentarily, but Daniel mirrored her actions, pushing both their hesitations aside.

Daniel stood still as he felt her fingers slide gently through his hair. Being much taller than her, he subconsciously leaned closer. As he felt her fingertips brush against his forehead when she swept the wet strands of hair back from his eyes. He was powerless to move, his focus caught completely on the rain trailing over her cheeks, her mouth and her lips. They had him hypnotised and without being fully aware of it, he gently brushed a strand of hair back from her cheek and let his fingertips rest there.

Isabel stared at him indirectly, his eyes still hidden from view behind streaked and spattered glasses. She watched the rain water ebb and flow over his features, gently down his cheeks, over his jawline and down his neck to where it met the cotton of his T-shirt. She let her fingertips trace the outline of his jaw in much the same way he had just done with hers and felt herself leaning towards him as her eyes began to drift closed.

Seeing Isabel cross a little more of the distance between them, Daniel finally closed it completely. His lips crossed hers gently in a tender kiss, their first. He was curious, his inquisitive nature still managing to get the best of him even in what had been their present situation. Now their situation was different from that of thirty seconds previous. A kiss could change everything. A few seconds later it was broken as they both leaned back and opened their eyes to the each other.

"Daniel?" Isabel asked quietly.

"Yeah?" he breathed and Isabel could hear the timid edge in his voice.

"Are you okay?"

Before he could answer, he felt her reach up and gently slide his glasses up off his face to rest them on top of his head. His eyes bore straight down into hers, everything she could have asked of him in that moment answered at a glance. Their bright blue glow was all but hidden by the darkness emanating from the black of their centre. She brought her hands down to rest against the broad sweep of his chest and waited as his eyes searched hers.

"Yeah," he finally answered. "I'm fine."

Isabel felt his hands slip down over her arms and settle on the small of her back, holding her close.

"You?"

She felt herself daring to smile slightly at his apparently stunned response. The image of a deer caught in headlights came to mind and she pushed it away almost immediately and managed to conceal the amusement it brought her. She found herself answering his question confidently in her head. If he was fine with what they'd just done, she was definitely happy with it.

"Yeah," she whispered.

Slowly, Isabel leaned up and placed a soft kiss on his lips. As she made to lean back she felt his arms tighten around her and pull her up against his chest. Without another moments hesitation, Daniel returned her feelings ten fold in a kiss that both shocked and surprised her.

Daniel couldn't believe his own boldness as he drew her into the kiss. Isabel had a way of bringing certain things out in him, good things, things he hadn't realised he was capable of. So with the newfound confidence he found within, he made sure she knew exactly how she made him feel. To his surprise and satisfaction, she showed him the same in return.

Finally the kiss was broken and Daniel leaned his forehead against Isabel's with a soft sigh. He felt her shiver slightly against him and backed off to look her over. She finally leaned back and slid her hand down into his and gave it a soft squeeze.

"Think we should head home?" he asked.

Isabel's eyes never left his as her face became deadly serious. Sighing softly to herself she nodded. Despite the innocence of his question, she understood exactly what home' would mean for them that night. Tugging lightly on his hand, she turned away from him to face the path leading through the gardens as did he. They walked the rest of the way home like that, still blissfully unaware of the rain as the storm above finally began to subside.

End

A/N: Flashback taken from upcoming story, working title Here I Am'. Please don't hate Isabel any, she really is a decent character once you get to know her, lol. And this fic is heavy with the Danny-angst... gimme a chance? Pwease? In all honesty, I'd really appreciate your reviews/comments/critique since this is my first real venture into the realms of SG-1 in written fic. Thanks. :)