Sam Carter felt close to tears as she heard the receptionist reply to her request for an immediate appointment. "Thursday!" she yelled down the phone line, "It's an emergency!"
"These things always are, my dear," stated the receptionist, coldly, "but Mr. Jones is on vacation and Mr. Andrews has to deal with all the patients. And we've had more than our fair share of emergencies this week. Two more days won't make any difference, you know. We'll see you on Thursday at 2:30."
The woman would make a good receptionist at a funeral parlour. Didn't she realise how much this was hurting. Not physically, but Sam would have been able to cope with that better than the raw emotional pain she was feeling at the moment. She washed her face again and put more makeup on. She looked awful, her eyes had gone all puffy with the crying. But she had a meeting this morning and she couldn't back out for this.
@~@~@~@~@~@~@
Colonel O'Neill nearly caught up with Sam as she made her way towards the briefing room. "Hey, Carter, did you get to finish that report? You know I need it for this meeting"
"No, Sir." She didn't turn round as she spoke, but hurried down the corridor. "Sorry, I had other things to organise." Her voice sounded odd, muffled, as if she was talking with her mouth shut. And she sounded upset.
"It's okay, Carter, it'll do later." He didn't think he had given the impression that he was mad with her. It was only a report. His reports were *usually* late.
O'Neill realised that she was unusually quiet in the briefing as well. Her answers were monosyllabic and she didn't look up from her hands which were folded on the table. He glanced at General Hammond. He was looking at Carter, then shifted his gaze to O'Neill. O'Neill gave a slight shrug of his shoulders. He didn't know what was the matter.
Hammond decided the meeting was going nowhere. "Okay, people, we'll reconvene on Thursday afternoon, 1400 hours. Dismissed." He wasn't really surprised that Sam Carter remained behind when everyone else left. "Major?"
"Won't be able to make Thursday afternoon, Sir," she whisper, "Medical appointment."
"Get Dr. Fraiser to change the time, Major." That was obvious, meetings with him took priority.
"Not with her, Sir. Outside. If I miss the appointment I may have to wait and I can't .... wait, Sir." Hammond had never seen Major Carter so upset. She was mumbling and almost in tears.
"Whatever is the matter, Major?" he said, gently, "I'm sure we'll be able to sort something out." He had only ever seen one woman this upset over a medical...Oh, no. It had been a young lieutenant who had got pregnant. AND the father was her CO! Hammond had to get Carter off base and get O'Neill in his office. This was all his fault. Still sounding concerned for her welfare he continued, "Look here, Major, go home. You're upset. I'll call you later."
Major Carter was surprised, she didn't expect that reaction from Hammond. She thought he would call her stupid or over emotional, but she didn't expect to get sent home. But he didn't sound angry. Maybe General Hammond was more understanding than she thought he would be.
@~@~@~@~@~@~@
Half an hour later in Hammond's office, Colonel O'Neill wasn't thinking that, though. Hammond was yelling at him at the top of his voice.
"I can't believe the two of you could be so damned foolish! Jack, what were you thinking of? First having a relationship with an officer under your command and now this!"
"Sir, I know that Carter and I are closer that the regulations strictly allow, but I wouldn't call it a relationship..."
"You can't wriggle out of this like that, Boy! You have to take responsibility for your actions!"
Boy, BOY! Hammond might call him 'son' occasionally, when he was feeling fatherly towards him, but he had never call O'Neill 'BOY' before!
"With all due respect, General, what actions are we talking about here?"
"Getting Major Carter pregnant, you idiot! What do you think we're talking about?" They would be able to hear him on the surface at this rate!
"Hold on, General, there is no way that I have gotten Carter pregnant!"
"Careful, were you?" The General's reply dripped with sarcasm.
"I've never even TOUCHED her, I was so careful!"
"What do you mean touched?" Hammond started to calm down.
"We never held hands, kissed, embraced, anything! I shook hands a couple of times and I may have pushed or pulled her a bit in a hostile situation. BUT I sure didn't have any sexual contact with her! I couldn't. WE couldn't. We're both bound by the regulations, Sir, and I'm shocked that you think that I would disregard those regulations so cavalierly."
"You don't mind about breaking most of the other regulations."
"True, but I can see the point of that particular regulation - it's essential in a combat situation.... And I don't want to do anything to endanger Major Carter's career."
"There appears to be a bigger danger to her career now, Jack."
"Yeah. Are you sure about this, General?"
"I'm breaking a confidence to tell you, but I guess it's already broken. She told me she can't make Thursday's meeting, due to an outside medical appointment that CAN'T wait. If she was ill, Janet would know. I can't think of anything else it could be, Jack. But if you aren't the father....."
"Yeah. I guess I don't have to worry so much about breaking those regulations, it wasn't gonna happen anyway." Hammond hadn't seen Jack looking quite so sad for a long time.
"I said I'd call, but I think a visit in person is appropriate here."
@~@~@~@~@~@~@
Sam Carter was surprised to see the General outside her door. She waved him in and lead him to the living room.
"Would you like a drink, Sir?" she muttered without opening her mouth.
"No, thank you, Major. I think we'd better just get down and sort this out." Carter looked puzzled, so Hammond continued, "Well, let's start at the beginning."
"I'm not sure telling you will..."
"I can make it an order."
"Okay, Sir." She was still mumbling. "I was about 12 years old, I had been having riding lessons for some time but I fell off a pony and ..."
Hammond held up his hand. "What has this got to do with you getting pregnant?"
"Pregnant, Sir? I'm not pregnant!"
"Then what's this all about?"
"I knocked a front tooth out when I was 12, Sir. Had a bridge put in. It's broken. I've made a emergency appointment at the dentist to repair it. But I look terrible! Look!" And she smiled at him .... With a huge gap between her teeth!
"These things always are, my dear," stated the receptionist, coldly, "but Mr. Jones is on vacation and Mr. Andrews has to deal with all the patients. And we've had more than our fair share of emergencies this week. Two more days won't make any difference, you know. We'll see you on Thursday at 2:30."
The woman would make a good receptionist at a funeral parlour. Didn't she realise how much this was hurting. Not physically, but Sam would have been able to cope with that better than the raw emotional pain she was feeling at the moment. She washed her face again and put more makeup on. She looked awful, her eyes had gone all puffy with the crying. But she had a meeting this morning and she couldn't back out for this.
@~@~@~@~@~@~@
Colonel O'Neill nearly caught up with Sam as she made her way towards the briefing room. "Hey, Carter, did you get to finish that report? You know I need it for this meeting"
"No, Sir." She didn't turn round as she spoke, but hurried down the corridor. "Sorry, I had other things to organise." Her voice sounded odd, muffled, as if she was talking with her mouth shut. And she sounded upset.
"It's okay, Carter, it'll do later." He didn't think he had given the impression that he was mad with her. It was only a report. His reports were *usually* late.
O'Neill realised that she was unusually quiet in the briefing as well. Her answers were monosyllabic and she didn't look up from her hands which were folded on the table. He glanced at General Hammond. He was looking at Carter, then shifted his gaze to O'Neill. O'Neill gave a slight shrug of his shoulders. He didn't know what was the matter.
Hammond decided the meeting was going nowhere. "Okay, people, we'll reconvene on Thursday afternoon, 1400 hours. Dismissed." He wasn't really surprised that Sam Carter remained behind when everyone else left. "Major?"
"Won't be able to make Thursday afternoon, Sir," she whisper, "Medical appointment."
"Get Dr. Fraiser to change the time, Major." That was obvious, meetings with him took priority.
"Not with her, Sir. Outside. If I miss the appointment I may have to wait and I can't .... wait, Sir." Hammond had never seen Major Carter so upset. She was mumbling and almost in tears.
"Whatever is the matter, Major?" he said, gently, "I'm sure we'll be able to sort something out." He had only ever seen one woman this upset over a medical...Oh, no. It had been a young lieutenant who had got pregnant. AND the father was her CO! Hammond had to get Carter off base and get O'Neill in his office. This was all his fault. Still sounding concerned for her welfare he continued, "Look here, Major, go home. You're upset. I'll call you later."
Major Carter was surprised, she didn't expect that reaction from Hammond. She thought he would call her stupid or over emotional, but she didn't expect to get sent home. But he didn't sound angry. Maybe General Hammond was more understanding than she thought he would be.
@~@~@~@~@~@~@
Half an hour later in Hammond's office, Colonel O'Neill wasn't thinking that, though. Hammond was yelling at him at the top of his voice.
"I can't believe the two of you could be so damned foolish! Jack, what were you thinking of? First having a relationship with an officer under your command and now this!"
"Sir, I know that Carter and I are closer that the regulations strictly allow, but I wouldn't call it a relationship..."
"You can't wriggle out of this like that, Boy! You have to take responsibility for your actions!"
Boy, BOY! Hammond might call him 'son' occasionally, when he was feeling fatherly towards him, but he had never call O'Neill 'BOY' before!
"With all due respect, General, what actions are we talking about here?"
"Getting Major Carter pregnant, you idiot! What do you think we're talking about?" They would be able to hear him on the surface at this rate!
"Hold on, General, there is no way that I have gotten Carter pregnant!"
"Careful, were you?" The General's reply dripped with sarcasm.
"I've never even TOUCHED her, I was so careful!"
"What do you mean touched?" Hammond started to calm down.
"We never held hands, kissed, embraced, anything! I shook hands a couple of times and I may have pushed or pulled her a bit in a hostile situation. BUT I sure didn't have any sexual contact with her! I couldn't. WE couldn't. We're both bound by the regulations, Sir, and I'm shocked that you think that I would disregard those regulations so cavalierly."
"You don't mind about breaking most of the other regulations."
"True, but I can see the point of that particular regulation - it's essential in a combat situation.... And I don't want to do anything to endanger Major Carter's career."
"There appears to be a bigger danger to her career now, Jack."
"Yeah. Are you sure about this, General?"
"I'm breaking a confidence to tell you, but I guess it's already broken. She told me she can't make Thursday's meeting, due to an outside medical appointment that CAN'T wait. If she was ill, Janet would know. I can't think of anything else it could be, Jack. But if you aren't the father....."
"Yeah. I guess I don't have to worry so much about breaking those regulations, it wasn't gonna happen anyway." Hammond hadn't seen Jack looking quite so sad for a long time.
"I said I'd call, but I think a visit in person is appropriate here."
@~@~@~@~@~@~@
Sam Carter was surprised to see the General outside her door. She waved him in and lead him to the living room.
"Would you like a drink, Sir?" she muttered without opening her mouth.
"No, thank you, Major. I think we'd better just get down and sort this out." Carter looked puzzled, so Hammond continued, "Well, let's start at the beginning."
"I'm not sure telling you will..."
"I can make it an order."
"Okay, Sir." She was still mumbling. "I was about 12 years old, I had been having riding lessons for some time but I fell off a pony and ..."
Hammond held up his hand. "What has this got to do with you getting pregnant?"
"Pregnant, Sir? I'm not pregnant!"
"Then what's this all about?"
"I knocked a front tooth out when I was 12, Sir. Had a bridge put in. It's broken. I've made a emergency appointment at the dentist to repair it. But I look terrible! Look!" And she smiled at him .... With a huge gap between her teeth!