A/N: Again, another apology about the amount that RL is interfering with
this, but I should have a computer to myself soon for a while and that will
mean LOTS more typing! Promise!
Thank you to suds for always having faith in me, especially concerning my Mozart! ;) I luv ya hun!
Ps I am not a perfectionist. I just like things done properly and done my way. G
Chapter Seventeen
Jack was bored.
He sighed, staring up at the roof of the infirmary.
Why on earth did Carter have to go and get herself shot? Why on earth did the two of them have to be linked? Why did this link between them make him feel dizzy and sick every time he got up out of the infirmary bed to take a walk around?
And why hadn't Carter woken up yet?
A week had almost gone by since their wonderful rescue from Shu's Might, and Carter still hadn't had the decency to open her eyes and say 'I'm fine, Sir, stop worrying' and then go back to sleep.
No, the selfish woman just had to sleep the whole time, didn't she?
Shifting on his bed so that his eyes could rest on Carter's still form, Jack sighed again.
Truth was, he was worried about her.
Doc Fraiser thought she would have woken up by now.
Dad had even tried the healing device on her, but it hadn't done anything.
"Morning Colonel," Fraiser greeted him, her heels clicking on the smooth floor.
"Morning," he returned half-heartedly, glancing at her quickly before letting his eyes rest on Carter again.
"How do you feel this morning, Sir?"
"The same as I've been feeling for the last three mornings," he sighed.
Fraiser frowned in concern, picking up Carter's clipboard to study the results. Silence settled between them, only broken by the steady bleeping of the machinery around them.
"She any better?" Jack asked hopefully, already knowing the answer.
Fraiser shook her head. "She's still the same, Colonel."
He sighed, flopping over onto his back again and staring up at the familiar patterns on the infirmary roof.
"Doc?"
"Yes Colonel?" Her answer was polite, but he could tell she'd picked up on the hesitancy on his voice.
"She is going to wake up, right?"
She sighed, and he heard the gentle click as she place clipboard back into its holder.
"Sir, I really don't know. When the two of you kept improving I thought it would be highly likely. Her improvement has been almost triple the rate I would have originally expected, but she seems to have stalled."
Her words confirmed everything Jack suspected. For the first couple of days he'd felt better and better every day, gaining his strength and appetite slowly.
And then improvement had come crashing to a halt.
He didn't say anything to Fraiser's answer - there wasn't really anything for him to say anyway.
"Her injuries were very severe, Colonel," Fraiser continued eventually, her voice soft.
Jack glanced across at her curiously.
"When I first saw her after you two arrived, I honestly doubted that she would survive. The amount of blood she'd lost. how the bullet had entered and what had entered with it. the internal damage. I was amazed she was still alive. Sir, I don't know how she's made it this far along and managed to recover so quickly, but I'm sure it has something to do with the tie between the two of you."
Jack shifted uneasily on his bed. While neither of them had discussed the link between himself and Carter other than on the first day when he'd woken up, they'd both known it was there. Fraiser always checking how he was improving and comparing it to Carter's improvement showed him that she seemed to grasp the odd link between the two of them, but they'd never spoken about it.
"What did the Goa'uld do, exactly?"
Jack sighed, closing his eyes. "I don't know. She. she said she made it so that we shared the same life force or something, but I have no idea what it means."
Dr. Fraiser sighed and nodded, a tired smile gracing her lips for a second. "Maybe we should concentrate on getting you better and hopefully that will push Sam into recovering again."
Jack nodded dutifully, but he doubted it would be that easy. He wasn't going to get any better until Carter got better, but he knew better than to try and dissuade Dr. Fraiser on a mission.
"I'll let you have some breakfast now, and I'll come back in a while to check on you two, okay?"
Again, Jack nodded his head dutifully, feeling like a little boy who was at home sick for the day.
Another brief smile and she clip-clopped silently out of the infirmary.
Jack glanced across at Carter again. She was still the same, her pale face calm and expressionless, her blue eyes hidden from the world behind her eyelids.
Glancing around guiltily, Jack sat up slowly in bed.
He missed Carter, he realised suddenly. He missed having her laughing and smiling at his jokes, teasing him hesitantly with her own sense of humour and clever comments.
The floor was cold and hard beneath his warm feet, soft from a week of bed rest.
Carter didn't stir as his fingers fluttered over her forehead, tracing the soft skin over her cheekbones and the stubborn line of her jaw.
"C'mon, Carter, you're too stubborn to give up now," he pleaded softly, taking her limp hand between his own.
His head was starting to pound and the room started tilting at crazy angles. He was going to fall over, Jack realised absently, squeezing her hand gently before letting go. And if he didn't get back to his own bed soon, Fraiser would have his ass kicked for getting up out of bed.
Jack was honestly going to get back into his own bed. His body had even started turning away from Carter and towards the warm bed he'd so stupidly vacated.
But the distance across the floor was so long and so cold, and Jack was tired, his head pounding a rhythm any decent drummer would be proud of.
He dropped into the chair next to Carter's bed unceremoniously, his fingers still resting over her hand.
Looks like Dad would have to find a new chair, Jack thought to himself before closing his eyes and resting his thrumming head on the crisp white sheets next to Carter's legs.
~o0o~
"Colonel O'Neill should be awake. He normally is this time of-"
Jacob raised an eyebrow, letting his tired gaze rest on the sight before them. "Obviously felt like a change in routine, hey Janet?" he smiled tiredly, but his lips twitched in concern and a tiny niggle anxiety bloomed in his stomach.
Janet Fraiser sighed, her heels clicking quickly over the floor to where the Colonel lay sleeping, half across his unconscious daughter.
"Colonel?" she asked quietly, touching his shoulder. The man didn't stir, his body inert beneath her gentle hands. "I'm going to have to move him, I don't think it's too good for Sam to have pressure on her abdomen at the moment." The words were light, but Jacob could hear the concern in her voice.
"I'll help," Jacob offered, and grasped Jack O'Neill's arm.
Between the two of them they managed to drag the limp man back to his bed and awkwardly roll him onto it, Janet puffing slightly with exertion.
"He's heavy," Jacob remarked ruefully, letting gazing down at the tension lines on Jack's face.
Janet nodded silently, turning her attention back to Sam.
With a final glance at Jack, Jacob also turned to Sam, his eyes stinging again with tears that threatened to spill over his lids as he gazed down at her still form.
"Any change?" he asked softly, lowering himself into the chair they'd just removed Jack out of. The plastic was hard and warm beneath him, refusing to allow him a comfortable seat.
Janet shook her head silently. "I'll be next door if you need anything." Her voice was all but a whisper, and Jacob glimpsed tears also swimming in her dark eyes that were ringed with exhaustion.
"You should get some rest, Janet," he said softly, smiling tiredly at her.
A brief smile touched her lips and she nodded curtly. "I will. You sit with Sam."
As the sound of her departure faded into distance, Jacob let his eyes rest on Sam's features again.
He was losing her, he acknowledged dully. Every day that she lay here, with her eyes closed and her breathing so light and regular she was slipping further and further away. The stillness of her hands as they rested gracefully on the white sheets was testimony to that. She had never been a fiddler, never given to fidgeting, but she'd always been busy. Always had her hands full of something: a pen, reading, working on the computer, examining. Even as a child she was always exploring, always observing.
And now she was lying here, so still and silent. So waxen.
He was losing her.
He sighed, letting his older, rough fingers brush gently over her small hands.
He was tired of this.
What does not make sense is O'Neill, Selmak's voice was soft and far away.
What do you mean? Jacob asked absently, his eyes tracing the bone structure so similar to his wife's.
There is most certainly a link between the Colonel and Samantha, we both agree on that. So why is Jack well and not getting sick? If Samantha was getting worse, he should also be deteriorating.
Jacob sighed, squeezing Sam's hand.
He's not getting any better either, Selmak.
While Jack is still alive, Jacob, so is Samantha.
And if Sam dies then we lose a good man.
~o0o~
Teal'c remained silent, observing as Daniel Jackson sat staring blankly at the paper before him on the desk. For the last hour, Daniel Jackson had been studying the same page without once moving his eyes. Teal'c deduced that Daniel Jackson was not concentrating.
"Do you require refreshment, Daniel Jackson?"
Daniel Jackson grunted, blinking in surprise as he turned startled blue eyes to Teal'c. "Wha.?"
"Coffee?" Teal'c asked again, observing the pallor of his friend's cheeks.
"Oh, no thanks, I'm fine."
Teal'c raised an eyebrow, watching Daniel Jackson carefully. "By starving yourself you will not reduce the guilt."
Daniel Jackson's gaze returned to Teal'c's with alarming alacrity.
"General Carter, Dr. Fraiser and myself have told you many times that you are not to blame for Major Carter's condition, Daniel Jackson. To shoulder the guilt for an accident is a sure way down the paths of sorrow."
Daniel Jackson sighed, a bitter smile tugging at his lips. "You sound like Confucius."
"I have not met this Confucius."
A tired chuckle sounded from Daniel Jackson, and he pulled back from his desk, stretching long arms languidly as he rose to his feet. "He died a long time ago, but he's still very well known. I can lend you some books if you like."
Teal'c nodded his head in acceptance; stories and legends of Earth's history made for interesting reading and then further debate with Daniel Jackson.
"How's Jack?" Daniel Jackson enquired carefully, not moving from where he now stood.
"He is well," Teal'c answered, studying Daniel Jackson. "You have not been to see him, Daniel Jackson."
It wasn't an accusation or a question, and they both knew it. But Daniel Jackson felt guilt.
"I haven't had time, I've been busy."
"You have not been busy. You have been here observing the same page for an hour."
Daniel Jackson flushed awkwardly, his eyes flitting around the room guiltily.
Teal'c felt grave concern within him. The road Daniel Jackson was now treading was dangerous, fraught with peril and risk, and with guilt as his burden. Daniel Jackson was sure to lose his footing.
"Perhaps we should go talk to O'Neill."
Daniel Jackson coughed, shifting nervously. He did not want to see O'Neill, because to see O'Neill would mean seeing Major Carter, and Daniel Jackson was not yet ready to face her inert form.
"Tomorrow, Teal'c. I'll go tomorrow when he's awake. It's late now and I don't want to keep him from his rest."
Teal'c raised an eyebrow. Daniel Jackson had never before been concerned about the time; when he had something of importance to do, it was done. Now. the guilt was changing him.
"I will accompany you tomorrow morning, before O'Neill eats."
Daniel Jackson opened his mouth to protest, Teal'c could see the fear in his eyes. But if Daniel Jackson did not accept what had happened as an accident, and if he did not accept what had occurred, then there was nothing Teal'c could to do help him.
All Teal'c could do was lend him the support of a brother, and Teal'c would do that no matter what.
~o0o~
"You're up early," Janet commented, stealing a glance at Daniel as she balanced a tray on one hand and carried a clipboard in the other.
"We have come to see O'Neill," Teal'c explained, opening the infirmary door for her.
"Good. You can make sure he eats everything then and doesn't just give it to a nurse when I'm not looking."
Daniel didn't reply, his face pale and white and his fingers clenched nervously into fists. Janet hadn't seen Daniel at the infirmary since after the Colonel had woken up.
And the Colonel wasn't stupid, he knew why Daniel hadn't come, and he hadn't blamed it on Daniel either.
"He's probably awake already, usually is," she continued, leading the way to the Colonel's bed.
She was wrong though, Colonel O'Neill was still asleep, his face strangely pale.
"O'Neill is still sleeping," Teal'c stated, and Janet could hear the concern in his voice. The way the Colonel was lying, the paleness of his face and the strange stillness of his limbs.
"Hold this." The tray was thrust roughly at Daniel and she almost ran to the colonel's side.
"Janet?" Daniel's voice was strained and panicked.
"I need heart monitor here!" Janet yelled, listening frantically to the unsteady beat of O'Neill's heart. "His BP's dropping and he's not responding!"
"Dr. Jackson, if you'd like to move out here."
"What are his vitals?"
"He's too cold, we need to get him warmed up."
"His breathing's irregular."
"Someone check Major Carter!"
Janet pumped frantically at the Colonel's heart. "Come on, Colonel. Not now, not yet. Come on, dammit!"
"We're losing them both!"
"Shut up and pump!" Janet ordered, the bed jerking with her forceful compressions.
"I've got a heart beat and he's breathing!"
"He's stabilised."
Janet sat back, panting, a cold sweat sticking loose tendrils of hair to her damp forehead.
"I want them both under constant supervision. The slightest change.." Janet warned, climbing down warily from the bed.
The room seemed strangely silent and slow, as though time was distorted and everything was moving in slow motion.
"Dr. Fraiser?"
She blinked.
"Are you feeling okay, Ma'am?"
A weak smile, tired eyes barely crinkling at the corners. "Yeah, I was just worried."
She watched silently as the orderly left. She was almost alone, save for her ordered supervising nurses, and she stood at the foot of Sam's bed, gazing at the pale skin of her silent friend.
"Come on, Sam, you've got to pull through this."
The room was silent other than the constant, mechanical beeps echoing around the white walls.
~o0o~
Thanks for the reviews and feedback and for sticking with it for so long!
sharim
Thank you to suds for always having faith in me, especially concerning my Mozart! ;) I luv ya hun!
Ps I am not a perfectionist. I just like things done properly and done my way. G
Chapter Seventeen
Jack was bored.
He sighed, staring up at the roof of the infirmary.
Why on earth did Carter have to go and get herself shot? Why on earth did the two of them have to be linked? Why did this link between them make him feel dizzy and sick every time he got up out of the infirmary bed to take a walk around?
And why hadn't Carter woken up yet?
A week had almost gone by since their wonderful rescue from Shu's Might, and Carter still hadn't had the decency to open her eyes and say 'I'm fine, Sir, stop worrying' and then go back to sleep.
No, the selfish woman just had to sleep the whole time, didn't she?
Shifting on his bed so that his eyes could rest on Carter's still form, Jack sighed again.
Truth was, he was worried about her.
Doc Fraiser thought she would have woken up by now.
Dad had even tried the healing device on her, but it hadn't done anything.
"Morning Colonel," Fraiser greeted him, her heels clicking on the smooth floor.
"Morning," he returned half-heartedly, glancing at her quickly before letting his eyes rest on Carter again.
"How do you feel this morning, Sir?"
"The same as I've been feeling for the last three mornings," he sighed.
Fraiser frowned in concern, picking up Carter's clipboard to study the results. Silence settled between them, only broken by the steady bleeping of the machinery around them.
"She any better?" Jack asked hopefully, already knowing the answer.
Fraiser shook her head. "She's still the same, Colonel."
He sighed, flopping over onto his back again and staring up at the familiar patterns on the infirmary roof.
"Doc?"
"Yes Colonel?" Her answer was polite, but he could tell she'd picked up on the hesitancy on his voice.
"She is going to wake up, right?"
She sighed, and he heard the gentle click as she place clipboard back into its holder.
"Sir, I really don't know. When the two of you kept improving I thought it would be highly likely. Her improvement has been almost triple the rate I would have originally expected, but she seems to have stalled."
Her words confirmed everything Jack suspected. For the first couple of days he'd felt better and better every day, gaining his strength and appetite slowly.
And then improvement had come crashing to a halt.
He didn't say anything to Fraiser's answer - there wasn't really anything for him to say anyway.
"Her injuries were very severe, Colonel," Fraiser continued eventually, her voice soft.
Jack glanced across at her curiously.
"When I first saw her after you two arrived, I honestly doubted that she would survive. The amount of blood she'd lost. how the bullet had entered and what had entered with it. the internal damage. I was amazed she was still alive. Sir, I don't know how she's made it this far along and managed to recover so quickly, but I'm sure it has something to do with the tie between the two of you."
Jack shifted uneasily on his bed. While neither of them had discussed the link between himself and Carter other than on the first day when he'd woken up, they'd both known it was there. Fraiser always checking how he was improving and comparing it to Carter's improvement showed him that she seemed to grasp the odd link between the two of them, but they'd never spoken about it.
"What did the Goa'uld do, exactly?"
Jack sighed, closing his eyes. "I don't know. She. she said she made it so that we shared the same life force or something, but I have no idea what it means."
Dr. Fraiser sighed and nodded, a tired smile gracing her lips for a second. "Maybe we should concentrate on getting you better and hopefully that will push Sam into recovering again."
Jack nodded dutifully, but he doubted it would be that easy. He wasn't going to get any better until Carter got better, but he knew better than to try and dissuade Dr. Fraiser on a mission.
"I'll let you have some breakfast now, and I'll come back in a while to check on you two, okay?"
Again, Jack nodded his head dutifully, feeling like a little boy who was at home sick for the day.
Another brief smile and she clip-clopped silently out of the infirmary.
Jack glanced across at Carter again. She was still the same, her pale face calm and expressionless, her blue eyes hidden from the world behind her eyelids.
Glancing around guiltily, Jack sat up slowly in bed.
He missed Carter, he realised suddenly. He missed having her laughing and smiling at his jokes, teasing him hesitantly with her own sense of humour and clever comments.
The floor was cold and hard beneath his warm feet, soft from a week of bed rest.
Carter didn't stir as his fingers fluttered over her forehead, tracing the soft skin over her cheekbones and the stubborn line of her jaw.
"C'mon, Carter, you're too stubborn to give up now," he pleaded softly, taking her limp hand between his own.
His head was starting to pound and the room started tilting at crazy angles. He was going to fall over, Jack realised absently, squeezing her hand gently before letting go. And if he didn't get back to his own bed soon, Fraiser would have his ass kicked for getting up out of bed.
Jack was honestly going to get back into his own bed. His body had even started turning away from Carter and towards the warm bed he'd so stupidly vacated.
But the distance across the floor was so long and so cold, and Jack was tired, his head pounding a rhythm any decent drummer would be proud of.
He dropped into the chair next to Carter's bed unceremoniously, his fingers still resting over her hand.
Looks like Dad would have to find a new chair, Jack thought to himself before closing his eyes and resting his thrumming head on the crisp white sheets next to Carter's legs.
~o0o~
"Colonel O'Neill should be awake. He normally is this time of-"
Jacob raised an eyebrow, letting his tired gaze rest on the sight before them. "Obviously felt like a change in routine, hey Janet?" he smiled tiredly, but his lips twitched in concern and a tiny niggle anxiety bloomed in his stomach.
Janet Fraiser sighed, her heels clicking quickly over the floor to where the Colonel lay sleeping, half across his unconscious daughter.
"Colonel?" she asked quietly, touching his shoulder. The man didn't stir, his body inert beneath her gentle hands. "I'm going to have to move him, I don't think it's too good for Sam to have pressure on her abdomen at the moment." The words were light, but Jacob could hear the concern in her voice.
"I'll help," Jacob offered, and grasped Jack O'Neill's arm.
Between the two of them they managed to drag the limp man back to his bed and awkwardly roll him onto it, Janet puffing slightly with exertion.
"He's heavy," Jacob remarked ruefully, letting gazing down at the tension lines on Jack's face.
Janet nodded silently, turning her attention back to Sam.
With a final glance at Jack, Jacob also turned to Sam, his eyes stinging again with tears that threatened to spill over his lids as he gazed down at her still form.
"Any change?" he asked softly, lowering himself into the chair they'd just removed Jack out of. The plastic was hard and warm beneath him, refusing to allow him a comfortable seat.
Janet shook her head silently. "I'll be next door if you need anything." Her voice was all but a whisper, and Jacob glimpsed tears also swimming in her dark eyes that were ringed with exhaustion.
"You should get some rest, Janet," he said softly, smiling tiredly at her.
A brief smile touched her lips and she nodded curtly. "I will. You sit with Sam."
As the sound of her departure faded into distance, Jacob let his eyes rest on Sam's features again.
He was losing her, he acknowledged dully. Every day that she lay here, with her eyes closed and her breathing so light and regular she was slipping further and further away. The stillness of her hands as they rested gracefully on the white sheets was testimony to that. She had never been a fiddler, never given to fidgeting, but she'd always been busy. Always had her hands full of something: a pen, reading, working on the computer, examining. Even as a child she was always exploring, always observing.
And now she was lying here, so still and silent. So waxen.
He was losing her.
He sighed, letting his older, rough fingers brush gently over her small hands.
He was tired of this.
What does not make sense is O'Neill, Selmak's voice was soft and far away.
What do you mean? Jacob asked absently, his eyes tracing the bone structure so similar to his wife's.
There is most certainly a link between the Colonel and Samantha, we both agree on that. So why is Jack well and not getting sick? If Samantha was getting worse, he should also be deteriorating.
Jacob sighed, squeezing Sam's hand.
He's not getting any better either, Selmak.
While Jack is still alive, Jacob, so is Samantha.
And if Sam dies then we lose a good man.
~o0o~
Teal'c remained silent, observing as Daniel Jackson sat staring blankly at the paper before him on the desk. For the last hour, Daniel Jackson had been studying the same page without once moving his eyes. Teal'c deduced that Daniel Jackson was not concentrating.
"Do you require refreshment, Daniel Jackson?"
Daniel Jackson grunted, blinking in surprise as he turned startled blue eyes to Teal'c. "Wha.?"
"Coffee?" Teal'c asked again, observing the pallor of his friend's cheeks.
"Oh, no thanks, I'm fine."
Teal'c raised an eyebrow, watching Daniel Jackson carefully. "By starving yourself you will not reduce the guilt."
Daniel Jackson's gaze returned to Teal'c's with alarming alacrity.
"General Carter, Dr. Fraiser and myself have told you many times that you are not to blame for Major Carter's condition, Daniel Jackson. To shoulder the guilt for an accident is a sure way down the paths of sorrow."
Daniel Jackson sighed, a bitter smile tugging at his lips. "You sound like Confucius."
"I have not met this Confucius."
A tired chuckle sounded from Daniel Jackson, and he pulled back from his desk, stretching long arms languidly as he rose to his feet. "He died a long time ago, but he's still very well known. I can lend you some books if you like."
Teal'c nodded his head in acceptance; stories and legends of Earth's history made for interesting reading and then further debate with Daniel Jackson.
"How's Jack?" Daniel Jackson enquired carefully, not moving from where he now stood.
"He is well," Teal'c answered, studying Daniel Jackson. "You have not been to see him, Daniel Jackson."
It wasn't an accusation or a question, and they both knew it. But Daniel Jackson felt guilt.
"I haven't had time, I've been busy."
"You have not been busy. You have been here observing the same page for an hour."
Daniel Jackson flushed awkwardly, his eyes flitting around the room guiltily.
Teal'c felt grave concern within him. The road Daniel Jackson was now treading was dangerous, fraught with peril and risk, and with guilt as his burden. Daniel Jackson was sure to lose his footing.
"Perhaps we should go talk to O'Neill."
Daniel Jackson coughed, shifting nervously. He did not want to see O'Neill, because to see O'Neill would mean seeing Major Carter, and Daniel Jackson was not yet ready to face her inert form.
"Tomorrow, Teal'c. I'll go tomorrow when he's awake. It's late now and I don't want to keep him from his rest."
Teal'c raised an eyebrow. Daniel Jackson had never before been concerned about the time; when he had something of importance to do, it was done. Now. the guilt was changing him.
"I will accompany you tomorrow morning, before O'Neill eats."
Daniel Jackson opened his mouth to protest, Teal'c could see the fear in his eyes. But if Daniel Jackson did not accept what had happened as an accident, and if he did not accept what had occurred, then there was nothing Teal'c could to do help him.
All Teal'c could do was lend him the support of a brother, and Teal'c would do that no matter what.
~o0o~
"You're up early," Janet commented, stealing a glance at Daniel as she balanced a tray on one hand and carried a clipboard in the other.
"We have come to see O'Neill," Teal'c explained, opening the infirmary door for her.
"Good. You can make sure he eats everything then and doesn't just give it to a nurse when I'm not looking."
Daniel didn't reply, his face pale and white and his fingers clenched nervously into fists. Janet hadn't seen Daniel at the infirmary since after the Colonel had woken up.
And the Colonel wasn't stupid, he knew why Daniel hadn't come, and he hadn't blamed it on Daniel either.
"He's probably awake already, usually is," she continued, leading the way to the Colonel's bed.
She was wrong though, Colonel O'Neill was still asleep, his face strangely pale.
"O'Neill is still sleeping," Teal'c stated, and Janet could hear the concern in his voice. The way the Colonel was lying, the paleness of his face and the strange stillness of his limbs.
"Hold this." The tray was thrust roughly at Daniel and she almost ran to the colonel's side.
"Janet?" Daniel's voice was strained and panicked.
"I need heart monitor here!" Janet yelled, listening frantically to the unsteady beat of O'Neill's heart. "His BP's dropping and he's not responding!"
"Dr. Jackson, if you'd like to move out here."
"What are his vitals?"
"He's too cold, we need to get him warmed up."
"His breathing's irregular."
"Someone check Major Carter!"
Janet pumped frantically at the Colonel's heart. "Come on, Colonel. Not now, not yet. Come on, dammit!"
"We're losing them both!"
"Shut up and pump!" Janet ordered, the bed jerking with her forceful compressions.
"I've got a heart beat and he's breathing!"
"He's stabilised."
Janet sat back, panting, a cold sweat sticking loose tendrils of hair to her damp forehead.
"I want them both under constant supervision. The slightest change.." Janet warned, climbing down warily from the bed.
The room seemed strangely silent and slow, as though time was distorted and everything was moving in slow motion.
"Dr. Fraiser?"
She blinked.
"Are you feeling okay, Ma'am?"
A weak smile, tired eyes barely crinkling at the corners. "Yeah, I was just worried."
She watched silently as the orderly left. She was almost alone, save for her ordered supervising nurses, and she stood at the foot of Sam's bed, gazing at the pale skin of her silent friend.
"Come on, Sam, you've got to pull through this."
The room was silent other than the constant, mechanical beeps echoing around the white walls.
~o0o~
Thanks for the reviews and feedback and for sticking with it for so long!
sharim