# # # # #
Pretending not to notice how long Sam cried, they all stood silently with her. Janet jumped in quickly when she gained Sam's attention.
"Sam. I think you need to know what is actually going on,"
she said simply. Sam nodded - opting to go without words. "Ok. Well.he was injured terribly when they brought him back. So much blood loss. One of the wounds damaged a lung. Punctured it. Badly. I know that you probably don't want to hear all this, but it's so you don't think that I'm just saying to shut off the LSS for no reason. There is this reason, and this reason only. His chance of survival.well, Sam I won't lie to you - it's slim to none. There is not much hope I'm afraid."
Left only with disbelief and pain in her heart, Sam nodded.
"I understand that. But I don't care. I don't give a damn how small the chance is he will make it. If there is a snowball's chance in hell that he will be ok, then I will not let you shut this machine off. Got it?"
# # # # #
During the few more weeks that passed following that day, Sam sat by the bed of a motionless man. He uttered no sound. He moved not at all. He appeared to be losing the last of the very little colour he had. From the simple picture itself, the situation seemed nothing but hopeless. There had been no changes over the few extra weeks he'd been given. A chance to live, and all that had been done was to throw it away. No appreciation shown. But everything is like that. When something wonderful is done, unbeknownst to the person it is done for, appreciation is not shown and then the one who did the good deed is indignant for their lack of recognition. Common as the situation is - it continues to be played in the lives of many. Some, over and over. This made the situation itself, only worse than it was to begin with. For in giving extra time to recover - and it not being used - made the pain of the ones concerned worse than ever it could want to be.
Sam's heart had no strength left in it. And what left was his. Belonged to him and always would. And yet that didn't make it any better. After those extra weeks had passed, and the changes were none, the inevitable situation revived itself. It came to the time when the elusive LSS was to be switched off. And this time, it was non-negotiable. Sam couldn't lawyer herself to getting her way this time. Janet made it clearer than clear. Crystal would have looked dirty compared to how clear she made it - that this time it had to be done. It was the best for all of them. The machine was to be switched off, and that was it. Then end of a life. They were going to end a life. And a significant one too, for Sam. It was more than just a life. More than the life of a friend or relative. More than a lover. It was her other half, and not in the pro-verb sense. It was literally her other half. He had the parts of her that mattered.
They belonged to him. Her heart. Her soul. Her lungs. The things that mattered - they were all his. Belonged to him. No one else held them, but him. And if this machine - this machine that was keeping the small flame of hope burning - was turned off, it would turn off Sam. Turn off her heart. Break down her lungs. Collapse her soul. There would be no more of her. She too would be turned off. The flame would be snuffed out, so neither life remained. Eyes filled with tears, she sat by the bed and prepared herself for the sadness of the ending of her lovers life.and her own. With tears trailing down her face, Janet unplugged the life-support machine from it's functioning. Sam cried out and threw her head down on the bed-side to cry. As she sniffed, she heard a beep. It repeated. And then again. Over and over. On going it went. She lifted her eyes, and turned them to her friend. Janet was busy looking over the machines, to make sure she hadn't imagine anything.
"Janet?"
Sam queried. Her friend turned to her - a smile, slowly creeping to her face.
"He's breathing," she replied simply.
"What do you mean? Wasn't he before as well?"
"Not on his own. The life-support was doing it for him. It's not now. It's switched off now and he's breathing."
"Does that mean.?" Sam stopped.
"It means he's breathing on his own. He's alive on his own Sam."
"He's ok! He's breathing! Thank you, thank you!"
she cried happily and leapt from seat to hug her friend. In the moment after, Daniel and Teal'c ran into the Infirmary.
"What is it? What's going on?"
Daniel queried impatiently - worried for his friends.
"Nothing! He's ok! He's breathing on his own Daniel!"
Sam exclaimed - overjoyed. Smiles overcame their faces and Daniel hugged Sam.
"That's great!"
"Had we not assured you that O'Neill would recover?"
Teal'c asked the rhetorical question she had expected to be thrown in by Daniel. He looked at his friend in astonishment as he raised his eyebrow in that oh-so-Teal'c way. The group smiled and Sam turned back to the only one between them who was unable to share in the new excitement. He still lay silently in his white, protective enclosure. She sat down in the chair beside the bed and held the hand closest to her firmly within her own. Planting a soft kiss on his cold skin, she took time to scrutinize his handsome, but oh so pale profile. Her friends watched in silence behind her.
"Get through this Jack. Make it. Don't leave me now. Not after everything that we've been through. We've been through too much together for you to leave me now. You're strong - you have to stay strong. Stay with me. Stay with me Jack,"
Sam whispered to him and with that, Daniel, Teal'c and Janet left them alone.
# # # # #
Pretending not to notice how long Sam cried, they all stood silently with her. Janet jumped in quickly when she gained Sam's attention.
"Sam. I think you need to know what is actually going on,"
she said simply. Sam nodded - opting to go without words. "Ok. Well.he was injured terribly when they brought him back. So much blood loss. One of the wounds damaged a lung. Punctured it. Badly. I know that you probably don't want to hear all this, but it's so you don't think that I'm just saying to shut off the LSS for no reason. There is this reason, and this reason only. His chance of survival.well, Sam I won't lie to you - it's slim to none. There is not much hope I'm afraid."
Left only with disbelief and pain in her heart, Sam nodded.
"I understand that. But I don't care. I don't give a damn how small the chance is he will make it. If there is a snowball's chance in hell that he will be ok, then I will not let you shut this machine off. Got it?"
# # # # #
During the few more weeks that passed following that day, Sam sat by the bed of a motionless man. He uttered no sound. He moved not at all. He appeared to be losing the last of the very little colour he had. From the simple picture itself, the situation seemed nothing but hopeless. There had been no changes over the few extra weeks he'd been given. A chance to live, and all that had been done was to throw it away. No appreciation shown. But everything is like that. When something wonderful is done, unbeknownst to the person it is done for, appreciation is not shown and then the one who did the good deed is indignant for their lack of recognition. Common as the situation is - it continues to be played in the lives of many. Some, over and over. This made the situation itself, only worse than it was to begin with. For in giving extra time to recover - and it not being used - made the pain of the ones concerned worse than ever it could want to be.
Sam's heart had no strength left in it. And what left was his. Belonged to him and always would. And yet that didn't make it any better. After those extra weeks had passed, and the changes were none, the inevitable situation revived itself. It came to the time when the elusive LSS was to be switched off. And this time, it was non-negotiable. Sam couldn't lawyer herself to getting her way this time. Janet made it clearer than clear. Crystal would have looked dirty compared to how clear she made it - that this time it had to be done. It was the best for all of them. The machine was to be switched off, and that was it. Then end of a life. They were going to end a life. And a significant one too, for Sam. It was more than just a life. More than the life of a friend or relative. More than a lover. It was her other half, and not in the pro-verb sense. It was literally her other half. He had the parts of her that mattered.
They belonged to him. Her heart. Her soul. Her lungs. The things that mattered - they were all his. Belonged to him. No one else held them, but him. And if this machine - this machine that was keeping the small flame of hope burning - was turned off, it would turn off Sam. Turn off her heart. Break down her lungs. Collapse her soul. There would be no more of her. She too would be turned off. The flame would be snuffed out, so neither life remained. Eyes filled with tears, she sat by the bed and prepared herself for the sadness of the ending of her lovers life.and her own. With tears trailing down her face, Janet unplugged the life-support machine from it's functioning. Sam cried out and threw her head down on the bed-side to cry. As she sniffed, she heard a beep. It repeated. And then again. Over and over. On going it went. She lifted her eyes, and turned them to her friend. Janet was busy looking over the machines, to make sure she hadn't imagine anything.
"Janet?"
Sam queried. Her friend turned to her - a smile, slowly creeping to her face.
"He's breathing," she replied simply.
"What do you mean? Wasn't he before as well?"
"Not on his own. The life-support was doing it for him. It's not now. It's switched off now and he's breathing."
"Does that mean.?" Sam stopped.
"It means he's breathing on his own. He's alive on his own Sam."
"He's ok! He's breathing! Thank you, thank you!"
she cried happily and leapt from seat to hug her friend. In the moment after, Daniel and Teal'c ran into the Infirmary.
"What is it? What's going on?"
Daniel queried impatiently - worried for his friends.
"Nothing! He's ok! He's breathing on his own Daniel!"
Sam exclaimed - overjoyed. Smiles overcame their faces and Daniel hugged Sam.
"That's great!"
"Had we not assured you that O'Neill would recover?"
Teal'c asked the rhetorical question she had expected to be thrown in by Daniel. He looked at his friend in astonishment as he raised his eyebrow in that oh-so-Teal'c way. The group smiled and Sam turned back to the only one between them who was unable to share in the new excitement. He still lay silently in his white, protective enclosure. She sat down in the chair beside the bed and held the hand closest to her firmly within her own. Planting a soft kiss on his cold skin, she took time to scrutinize his handsome, but oh so pale profile. Her friends watched in silence behind her.
"Get through this Jack. Make it. Don't leave me now. Not after everything that we've been through. We've been through too much together for you to leave me now. You're strong - you have to stay strong. Stay with me. Stay with me Jack,"
Sam whispered to him and with that, Daniel, Teal'c and Janet left them alone.
# # # # #