~~-~~

Forever

~~-~~

"Hey, Daniel. Earth to Daniel!" Jack snapped his fingers near Daniel's ear. "You alive in there?"

The man barely stirred, a slight hitch in his breathing the only indication that Daniel had heard him at all.

"Come on, Daniel. Time to rise and shine." Jack tried again, shaking him roughly. The last few weeks had been hell, one mission after the other. If it wasn't for the fact that they wouldn't have any more down time between now and Sam's birthday, Jack would be right there with Daniel.

What he wouldn't give to crawl back under the covers and spend the day surrounded by Daniel. Surrounded by the musky scent of sun and sand and rain.

Jack ran his hand over the warm, firm line of back, shoulder, and neck, his purpose lost amid the display of bare flesh. He envied the way the sheet tangled around his legs and pooled at his lower back. Wanted, no, he needed to be the pillow Daniel had his arms wrapped around, as if it was the only thing holding him to this world.

Sleep smoothed the lines from the corners of Daniel's eyes. His hair fell forward, a sandy curtain over his face in the brightly-lit room. This was one of the few times that Jack had the pleasure of simply looking his fill, no pressure, no time limits, and no constraints by society. Just them.

It was the one thing Jack never got tired of doing; watching Daniel sleep. Perfect. That was the only word that came to mind. It seemed a sin to wake him, but they had a schedule to keep. Get in, get out, and be home by noon.

He sat on the edge of the bed patiently and waited for the world to register with Daniel. Jack knew eventually that Daniel would realize he was being watched and would awaken. It was like a sixth sense with the man. How many times had lain there holding Daniel in the mornings, watching him sleep, running his eyes over golden skin, only to return to Daniel's face and find amused blue eyes watching him as well? He'd already tried shaking Daniel awake several times, had turned on the radio for the morning news, showered, and dressed. Not even the smell of freshly brewed coffee had penetrated the realm of whatever dream world Daniel currently inhabited.

Jack tried shaking Daniel awake again. It didn't work; he just rolled over, mumbling incoherently, and fell back to sleep. A gentle caress across one stubble-coated cheek had even less effect, but Jack luxuriated in the feel. Touching Daniel was always special, something to savor, something that didn't come often...or often enough.

It would be so easy to fall prey to that temptation, give in to the need to touch Daniel, to hold him. Forever would be just about right and still might not be long enough. With a sigh of regret, Jack leaned forwards, breaking the moment, and shook him again.

"Come on, Daniel. Wakey, wakey." Jack brushed the hair off of Daniel's face, succumbing to the feel of warm skin beneath his palm again with a groan.

"Hmm...?"

Jack barely heard the muffled response, so quietly it was breathed. At least he was getting closer to breaking through to Wonderland. Daniel was waking up, slowly but surely.

"Er...Houston, I think we have a problem." Playfully, Jack imitated the squawk of a radio, finally getting a response from his lover. "Come on, time's a wasting." Jack tapped his watch as one blue eye finally opened.

"Jack, it's nine am." Daniel groaned as he glanced across at the clock. "The mall doesn't even open until 10:00 *and* it's Saturday." Daniel snuggled back down into the warm blankets, dragging Jack down next to him.

Laughing, Jack rolled over, pulling Daniel into his arms his eyes roaming everywhere over the handsome face. "Come on, Danny boy. I just want to get this done and over with. And then we can *both* go back to bed."

Groucho Marx had nothing on Jack O'Neill when he was determined to be ridiculous. One waggle of his eyebrow had Daniel hiding his face, trying to muffle a sound that somehow passed for agreement and laughter at the same time. With a quick kiss on Daniel's forehead, Jack pulled him into a sitting position before one thing led to another. If they started now, they'd never make it out the door.

"Come on, Daniel. Rise and shine."

"I'm awake. I'm awake." Jack let him go, but that was all Daniel was waiting for. He flopped back onto the bed, one arm thrown over his eyes to block out the sun.

This was a contingency Jack had planned for, fortunately. It was time to play his trump card. Jack picked up the steaming mug from the nightstand, took a sip, then leaned down and kissed Daniel full on the lips.

"Coffee..." It was a breathy benediction.

"Yep. What? You didn't really think I'd come unprepared, did you?"

A snort was his only answer as Daniel sat back up to take the steaming mug from Jack's hand. "You don't play fair."

"Nope."

Daniel eyed the sparkling eyes warily. "Something's up. What is it?"

Jack laughed, the happy sound filling the room. "Not yet, but it soon will be."

"Be serious, Jack."

"Only if I have to be."

Daniel rose from the bed on in one smooth move. He headed for the bathroom, his coffee clutched tightly in his hand. Jack followed along behind, appreciating the view. Maybe they could just relax for a while longer.

"No, Jack."

"*How* do you do that!?"

"Simple." Daniel paused at the door of the bathroom to turn and face Jack. "I know you." Daniel smirked as he closed the door.

"Damn." Jack snickered on his way to the kitchen, shaking his head at space monkeys and their apparent ability to read minds.

~~~

"So what are you...planning on getting...Sam?" Not quite stifling a yawn, Daniel sat down at the kitchen table.

"I have no idea. What are you getting her?" Jack handed Daniel his refilled cup, then sat down with one himself.

"Something. I haven't decided yet."

"Something?" Jack snorted. "I hear they're having a sale on that."

"I could her a subscription to Physicists Weekly." Daniel smacked his forehead lightly. "Oh, but I forgot. Someone got that for Sam last year."

"Yuck it up, Daniel, and see if you get any tonight."

Daniel leered. "Well I fully plan on you being too tired by tonight, so it's not a big loss."

Jack grinned and finished off his coffee. "I want something more original this time."

"And you want to be home by noon?" Daniel burst out laughing. "How do you plan on doing that?"

"That's why I'm dragging you along."

"Oh, I get it now. If Sam doesn't like whatever you get her, you can blame it on me."

"Yep. You got it." Jack grabbed his keys and opened the door. "Come on, let's get this show on the road."

Daniel sighed, and followed Jack. It was going to be a long day.

~~~

"Okay, how about this?" Jack held up a 'Property of Nike Athletic Department' sweatshirt. In bright green, no less.

"Jack?" Daniel rolled his eyes. "Has anyone ever told you that you have the worst taste in women's clothing?"

"A little pot calling the kettle black, Daniel?"

"What?"

"Those plaid shirts of yours."

"Hey, they're comfortable."

"Uh huh. Sure. So, not a good idea?"

"No." Daniel plucked the sweatshirt from Jack's hand, dropping it back in the bargain bin. "I don't think Sam's the type to be owned. Nor the Footlocker type."

"And how about you, Daniel?" Jack kept his face diverted as he searched through the clothing for something else that had caught his eye.

"What about me?"

"Are you the, ya know, the 'Property' type?" Jack held his prize up and turned to show it to Daniel, 'Property of the Jedi Training Academy'.

Daniel sighed. "Jack, focus. We're shopping for Sam."

Dragging Jack out by his arm, Daniel headed off in the direction of the Discovery Channel Store. "We might have better luck over there, don't you think?"

Jack didn't look too enthused at the store's prospects. "Oh come on, Daniel. Sam's surrounded by this science crap all day."

"Well, we might find something that would brighten up her office." Daniel shrugged.

"What? The planets? The sun? The moon? The stars?"

"Okay, bad idea." Daniel turned to find Jack swinging a snake in front of his face.

"A rubber snake hung in effigy?"

"Jack!" Daniel jumped back. "You know if I'd known you'd be this silly..."

"It was just a joke, Daniel."

"Not funny, Jack. Can't you be serious for five minutes? I thought you were the one who wanted to get back home by noon."

"How about clothes?"

"No."

"Perfume?"

"No."

"Bath stuff?"

"No." Daniel glared. "Don't you know anything about Sam?"

Jack stopped in the middle of the store, staring out of the plate glass window. "I've got an idea."

"Why don't I like the sound of that?" This time it was Daniel's turn to be hauled out of a store. "Oh no, Jack. Not on your life. Do you have a death wish?"

Jack merely smiled and pulled Daniel into Spencer's.

"You do have a death wish!" Daniel tugged on his hand, trying to pull free.

"Relax, Daniel, live a little." The grin on Jack's face was *not* reassuring.

"If Sam in any way blames me for this farce I will kill you myself, Jack." Daniel poked Jack right in the chest.

"We've looked everywhere else; what have we got to lose?"

"Our heads?"

Jack attempted to look completely innocent. And damned if he didn't do a good job of it too. Daniel looked around. 'Well, it couldn't be that bad, could it?'

"Hey! Marvin the Martian!" Jack slipped his hands into a pair of slippers, waving them in Daniel's direction.

"What is it with you, Jack?"

"What? You don't think Sam's the cartoon type?"

"No, Jack. I don't."

Jack wandered past the poster section. "Who in the hell are the Backstreet Boys?"

"Don't ask me. I have no idea."

"Why did I bring you along again?"

"To keep you out of trouble and out of stores like this."

They past the jewelry counter. "I don't think so." Daniel pulled Jack away before he could even think of stopping to look. The further they went into the den of sin, the more nervous Daniel got. Jack couldn't really be serious, could he?

"Lava lamp?"

"Maybe..." Daniel stopped to look at the coffee mugs displayed on the wall while Jack moved further down the aisle.

"Hey Daniel?" Jack wiggled his eyebrows as he caught Daniel's attention. "You been doing some modeling on the side you want to tell me about?" Daniel turn three shades of red as the plastic penises began dancing at the sound of Jack's voice.

"No. And I think I've had enough fun for one day. We aren't going to find anything in here, so what do you say we call it quits?" Daniel pleaded, practically begging Jack to leave the store.

"But we haven't looked at the T-shirts yet."

Daniel groaned. 'Oh god, not again.'

"Hey look, Daniel. Something to go with Sam's bike." Jack held up a T-shirt. "0-Bitch in under 3 seconds."

"I don't think so, Jack. Not unless you plan on dying right on the spot."

"Yeah, you're right, suits Janet much better."

"How about this one instead?" Jack held it up. 'Don't mess with the occupant of this shirt, suffering PMS and knows how to use a gun.' All it took was a glare and the shirt was returned to the rack.

"No? Okay, last one..." Jack was grinning again. 'Property of Hugh Hefner Bunny Patrol.'

Daniel covered his face, rubbing hard at his eyes. "Why did I let you talk me into this again?"

"Because you owe me." Jack laughed and tugged on Daniel's arm, pulling him further toward the back. "Come on, I want to look at the rest of this stuff. It's been ages since I was in one of these stores."

"Fine." Daniel sighed, knowing a lost cause when he saw one. He trailed along after Jack as he picked up item after item, taking great delight in tormenting Daniel with each of them; sex toys, weird glow in the dark lubes, body paint.

"I think these are just about your size." Jack held up a pair of fuzzy handcuffs.

"I give up. Look, you do whatever. I'm going to be over by the door. Get me when you're ready to leave."

Jack snorted and continued looking around. He'd given up on getting Sam something a long time ago. Daniel just hadn't figured it out yet. Jack wandered back to body paint and flavored oils. 'What I could do with these and one willing body.'

~~~

Irritated, Daniel muttered a litany of possible retributions as he paced back and forth, waiting for Jack. The man had warped sense of humor that he found extremely annoying at the best of times. Daniel dodged the midday shoppers as he marched across the walkway, trying to work out his frustrations and get back on track. On his way back across the tile flooring again, he caught sight of Jack at the counter bantering casually with the clerk. Maybe it was something in the tilt of his head, or the dimmer light of the store, but Daniel couldn't help but see the joy that literally surrounded Jack. It held him in thrall.

It was like falling in love with Jack all over again.

There wasn't any one thing that Daniel could quite put his finger on. He just liked being with Jack, talking to him, playing chess with him, and even drinking the occasional beer because it was something Jack liked to do...at a hockey game of all places.

A loud banging startled Daniel from his reverie. Near the door a young teenage boy stood pounding on some contraption, cursing. Since he was going in the direction anyway, Daniel wandered over to the boy.

"Problem?"

The youth eyed Daniel warily and shook the machine. "No, man, I'll do it myself."

A second later, a clang sounded as the item finally broke free. The boy holding his prize up for inspection. "See?"

Daniel shrugged, already more interested in the machine itself. 'Make Your Own Dogtags, Only $5!' He snorted, 'What wouldn't they do to make a buck these days.'

A man in full para-military gear modeled a set of standard dogtags but the machine also had several pictures of other types. One that caught his eye and made him laugh.

"Girls? Want to stake your claim and let encroaching females know this one is taken? Give your male a 'If lost return to Jane Doe' one.

The lost puppy routine. Oh did that bring back fond memories...

Daniel being the lost puppy, of course, and trying to find his legs once again after that fiasco that was PX392K. Between the storms, his injuries, and his mind still working it's way through the shock of surviving, it was a wonder Daniel could walk at all.

Oh, but he tried. The whole thing had nearly been a disaster. If it hadn't been for Jack...Jack who never strayed further than five inches away, he would have back in the hospital.

The first time he had tried to negotiate his way into Jack's house, insisting all the while he was fine, one of his crutches caught on the door and Daniel nearly tumbled to the ground. Jack caught him, as he had dozen of times, but that one time was special.

Leaning heavily on him, Daniel caught his breath, weary not only from the walk but also from his recent brush with death. Feeling better, he pulled away only to find that he and Jack had somehow gotten their dogtags tangled up together.

Daniel had struggled to untangle them, but it only made it worse and in the end, Jack had to take his off, leaving a long chain trailing from Daniel's neck.

"You look good in leash."

Daniel had snorted, shuffled to the sofa, and collapsed.

"One day you'll have one of your own, Jack. And the female that owns you to go with it."

"Been there.." Jack chuckled.

~~~

Daniel shook himself from his reverie...

No, Jack wasn't the property of any female, just Daniel's. The Property of Daniel Jackson...that had a nice ring to it. Daniel stuck money in the machine.

~~~

A whisper of breath stole across Daniel's neck just before a husky, 'Boo' was uttered near his ear. Chuckling, Daniel leaned back into Jack. "So, is Sam going to kill us or did your self preservation instincts finally kick in?"

"Oh, no, this isn't for Sam. We'll think of something later."

"Then what's in the bag?"

"You'll have to wait until we get home." Laughing as he put the shopping bag behind his back, Jack peered over Daniel's shoulder. "Whatcha doing?"

"Um..nothing." Daniel innocenly placed his hand over the display.

"Then why are you hiding it?"

"It's a surprise." A tiny clank hit the bin. Daniel reaching out to grab it before Jack could get a look.

"Come on, Daniel. Give."

"You tell me what you got in the bag and I'll show you."

With a quick lecherous glance, Jack pulled out a bottle of scented oil. "Think you could do something with this?"

"Oh yeah. Better yet, *you* could do something with it."

"I like the sound of that. So tell me, what'd ya have?"

Daniel snickered and handed over the tiny bit of tin.

Laughing, Jack reached for the machine. "Hey, how's this thing work?"

Daniel smirked. "Put money in it."

"Gee, Daniel. I would never have figured that out on my own."

"Just follow the instructions on the screen." Daniel tried to get a good look at what Jack was going to write. "So what are you going to put on yours...One Colonel in need of a good home?"

"You're going to pay for that later."

"Right."

"Bite me." Jack ignored him and put money into the machine, shouldering Daniel out of the way when he tried to see what he was typing again. A few seconds later, the sound of tin hitting the tray signaled the machine was finished.

"What? Can't wait until you get home."

Pointed, Jack ignored him and concentrated on keeping Daniel from seeing what he was doing. "Sweet." Jack made another for good measure. Pocketing them both, Jack turned back to Daniel. "Ready to blow this Popsicle stand?"

"So what's on it?"

Sauntering out of the mall, Jack innocently jingled his pockets. "That's for me to know and," Jack looked pointedly at Daniel "*you* to find out."

"Oh, come on, Jack!" Daniel trailed him, grumbling the entire way back to the car.

~~~

"What do you want for dinner?" The muffled voice filtered down the hallway to the bathroom.

Daniel stuck his head out of the shower. "Food!"

"Real helpful there, Daniel." Jack leaned against doorjamb.

"Well, what did you expect?" Daniel spoke over the sound of the shower spray.

"Some help." Jack replied with mirth.

"Well, what do we have in the fridge?"

"Not much. Some steaks."

"Any vegetables?"

"I could probably make a salad."

"So...go barbecue." Daniel shoed Jack out of the bathroom as he began to towel off. "I'm hungry."

Jack snorted. "Yes, Master..."

Daniel flicked the towel towards Jack's butt. "And don't you forget it."

Laughing, Jack headed back toward the kitchen.

Daniel dressed, tossing on some slacks and a sweater. It was just his luck that some teenager had walked right into him just as he was leaving the mall. Soda everywhere. All over him, the floor and the poor kid as well. But did Jack get splashed? Nope. Not one drop. It wasn't fair.

Digging through the closet, Daniel grabbed his things, getting everything ready for work for tomorrow. They had a five a.m. mission ship out time. The end of the weekend loomed quickly before him. There just never seemed to be enough time. Packing his bag with extra clothes, he grabbed his dogtags. They felt different. Off.

Oh no...he didn't. He did.

"Very funny, Jack." An affectionate smile graced Daniel's face, taking the sharpness from his words.

Jack looked up from the grill and laughed when he saw the dogtags in Daniel's hand.

"I couldn't help myself. I figured fair was fair."

"Cute joke."

"Well, uh, no."

"No?"

"No. Listen, Daniel. You mean a lot to me. But the line of business we're in..." Jack faltered; he was never really good at this emotional crap.

"Yeah?"

Jack pulled his own tags from inside his T-shirt. "Look at them." Jack held his dogtags out to Daniel.

Daniel wasn't sure if it was the earnest expression or serious tone that pulled him closer to Jack. Slowly he reached out, lifting the tags from Jack's hand, the warmth of his fingers sending a shock through his own.

'Property of Daniel Jackson.'

"This is how much you mean to me. I can't...always say it out loud or wear a ring or any of that other crap that people do when they commit themselves to each other..."

Smiling, Daniel held up his hand and stopped Jack's little speech. "I get it."

"You get it?"

"Yeah I get it." Daniel pulled Jack close. His forehead rested against Jack's and he let his eyes say what his mouth could not. I love you too.

"Yeah...me too."

"So..."

"Uh...lets eat. The steaks are going to burn." Jack brushed his hand over Daniel's check before heading back for the grill.

Daniel stood there for several seconds, still awed by the sight of this special man. Who belonged to him. To whom he belonged. It even said so on his dogtags. Hiding in plain sight. Commitment, trust, love. Everything and all things. Something that said, I belong to someone, *with* someone. And well, Jack *was* right, once in a while.

'Property of Jack O'Neill.'

Somehow it just all seemed right. Even if it all had started as a joke, it was still the truth. Jack belonged to him, and well...he belonged right here, by Jack's side.

~~~

The End