Author's Note: First off, Happy Valentine's Day! Hope you're having fun on this day. Secondly, this is your Valentine's Day Gift, since I can't send you all flowers or chocolate or something. I hope this is a fair enough substitute. Please R/R, I'll take that over flowers any day.

Summary: What happens when you mix the NID with a deadly virus? And how will a simple kiss between Jack and Sam change their relationship?

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Chapter Thirteen:

It Was Only a Matter of Time

**P3X-9294**

Stepping through the 'gate, the smell of dead and rotting corpses his Jack's nostrils. Looking down, he saw the Jaffa Tanik and his Jaffa had killed. He had seen them on the MALP but it was different when you saw them up close.

"Strange that they didn't replace their dead," Jack mumbled, his thoughts not earlier discussed.

As Jack and the rest of his team moved toward where they knew the rings to be, Daniel spoke up by saying, "We just have to infect one person, right?"

"Yea."

"Good. The less time we're up there, the better," Jack stated, an unnerving feeling settling in the pit of his stomach.

"Yes, s-" Sam stopped, just like the rest of her team, when she saw the five dead Jaffa.

"What is it?" Janet asked, oblivious to their previous mission's details.

"None of them show external signs that they died from weaponry. At least three should," Sam told her.

Moving in closer, Janet pulled out her gloves and drew blood from three of the five Jaffa, Sam doing the other two to save time. Collecting the blood samples and putting them in her pack, she turned and addressed Jack when she said, "More of them might have been killed by this."

"What do you think it was?"

Janet looked him straight in the eye when she said, "Jesse's virus. It's the only thing that explains it. Just like at the Alpha Cite, he must have spread it here."

"Then we should be safe?"

Janet nodded and said, "We should take a look around anyway, see if any of them are still alive to tell us what happened."

"Right. Come on." Stepping between the trees, Janet, Daniel, and then Sam followed Jack's lead before the rings surrounded them, transporting the team up to the ship.

**SGC, Infirmary**

Jesse's checks had begun to turn red and puffy as he continued to sit and stare at the man he considered to be is grandfather. He was doing better, that much was certain. Jesse could see that his brow was no longer covered with so much sweat and his dreams were not as distorted and disturbed.

The nurse came often and took his temperature, checked his vitals, and everything but, never once, did she shoo him away or tell him to go somewhere else. No one did. They all let him be, knowing that it was something he wouldn't take lightly.

After hours of waiting, Jacob finally opened his blurry eyes, his mind reaching consciousness. He looked around cautiously, as if trying to recall where he was. When he moved his head slowly to the right, he looked to his left where Jesse was seated.

"Hey," he whispered with a faint smile, his voice hushed and scratchy.

"Hi," Jesse responded, warily.

"How long you been there?" His question was slurred but understandable.

"Not long," Jesse said, not wishing him to know the truth of how he had waited there for hours upon hours, hoping and praying for the best.

Jacob nodded and turned his head back so his eyes were looking up at the ceiling. Slowly, his eyes closed and Jesse knew he had begun to rest again. This time- hopefully- not as long as the first.

**SGC, Briefing Room (Three Hours Later)**

"There's no doubt about it, General," Janet stated, diving into the topic of the debriefing. "What killed Horus and his Jaffa was definably the virus Jesse spread to the Rebel Jaffa. Not the Tok'ra's synthetic version. We weren't even about the release it when we came upon the first few Jaffa."

"Could it spread from the dead bodies?" The General asked.

"I'm not positive. It is possible," Janet informed him.

"Then have a Hazmat team sent there to burn the bodies," he ordered. "Later, I want a SG team to secure the ship."

"Yes, sir," Jack mumbled, more out of habit than actual obedience.

"I think it's safe to assume that this virus is uncontrollable. Even an innocent maneuver like that could cause some devastating results if not planned carefully," Sam acknowledged.

The three Tok'ra sitting around the table, Jacob, Krote, and Terrel, blended in with SG-1. With an agreeing nod, Jacob added his own side, "It would be highly devastating if mixed with the Tok'ra population. With all of our operatives out there, if one of the System Lord's ships were infected, it could easily spread through our own ranks. Not to mention the Rebel Jaffa's."

"That it true, but is the risk not worth the outcome?" Krote asked, her voice neutral yet siding with herself.

"Not if there's no one but us left to enjoy it," Jack shot back at her.

"Your point is well taken, Colonel. Until effective safety measures can be taken, there will be no more spread of the material on purpose. We will continue to work with it, however; attempt to find a solution to the problem," Terrel said.

"Then, at least, let me give you our… cure for it. They may not be identical strains, but it's something to work with," Janet offered, rising from her chair just as the two Tok'ra were.

"That would be most appreciated," he said with a charming smile. "Thank-you for your hospitality." With a bow of the head, he followed Janet out of the room after she had gained silent approval from the General.

By then, almost the entire table had stood in understanding that they were leaving. Jacob, who had regained his strength and had opted to go back with them, moved away from the table, following Krote to the control room.

"That went well," Jack whispered to Sam. She just smiled and nodded.

"I'm… going to go say good-bye to my dad."

"Yea." When Sam had turned her back and began walking away, Jack called out, "Hey, you will be joining us for dinner, right?"

The childish gleam in his eyes, only Sam would recognize, compelled her to agree. With only a knowing smile and a nod of the head, she turned back around and continued on her way to bid farewell to her father. Jack beamed as he shook his head and walked out of the room.

But Daniel, he merely watched from a safe distance. The General had dismissed himself to his office once the Tok'ra had left, leaving Daniel and Teal'c there. Daniel had always been aware of a fondness and deep affection- perhaps attraction- between the two. But, ever since the appearance of Jesse, things between them seemed to change. To grow almost. Now he would watch their flirting and not see two good friends but…

Daniel stopped his train of thought. It was a good way to overestimate things like that. It was nothing, he repeated to himself. Looking over at Teal'c, he noticed a faint smile lingering on his lips. One that told of his wisdom after eighty years of existence. One that said there was something more there than any of them were ready to admit.

**Jack's House, Dining Room**

"I've got the dishes," Jack announced as he stood, beating Sam to it.

"Then I'll help," Sam said, her voice daring him to say no. Sam had insisted on at least doing the dishes after Jack had cooked, but he wasn't about to let her. With a grin on both faces, the two cleared the table and moved into the kitchen.

Jesse smiled, even laughed a bit, at his parents' behavior. It was true that his parents were constantly flirting and kissing and all, but, for some reason, it was different when they did it. He couldn't put his finger on why, but that didn't matter.

Standing up, Jesse moved to the kitchen door and saw his parents close to a water fight with the spray and soap bubble. Laughing at their childish behavior, he got their attention. When they turned their heads, both wearing a large smile, he announced, "I'll be up in my room. Don't kill each other or anything while I'm gone." This earned him a spray of water from his father and a giggle from his mother.

After calming down a bit, Sam was able to actually clean most of the dish and hand them over to Jack to be rinsed and dried. After handing him the last dish, he pulled out the spray and began cleaning it.

"If you even think about spraying me…"

"You'll what?" Jack asked, pointing the object at her.

"Don't even." Sam began backing away from the sink in order to keep as much water off of her, but wound up hitting a counter. Jack took a couple steps closer to her, sprayer in hand. He stopped a mere step away only because the sprayer couldn't go any farther.

"Jack, I will kill you," Sam said, in vain to stop the glint in his eyes that she knew meant he would spray her.

"Ok." Surprisingly enough, he put the sprayer down and let it coil back into the sink. But he didn't move away. For some reason, he had meant to but it never happened. Instead, against his mind's best judgment, he moved closer.

Both Sam and Jack's smiles had disappeared. Their breathing had quickened and their hearts were pounding against their chest. As Jack leaned in closer to Sam, she could feel his hot breath against her face.

No matter how much her mind screamed that they shouldn't. That she shouldn't. Her body leaned in closer to him, brought their lips a mere inch apart. Then they touched.

At first, the kiss was hesitant, almost fearful of the other's reaction. Sam's hand found its way to Jack's neck and pulled him closer to her, deepening the kiss. With that, the kiss turned more curious. Their lips parted, allowing their tongues to explore.

The world had begun to disappear around them, their minds focused only on the other person. Hearing nothing but their hearts pounding, the pair never noticed Jesse in the doorway, watching on with a smile before turning and leaving, his question forgotten.

When Jesse had came back downstairs after waiting twenty minutes or so, he could feel the tension between the two. He had forgotten through his happiness for them how strict the regulations against their getting together were. It was right to assume that they would be a bit uncomfortable.

"Hi, Jesse. Do you want to stay here the night or… or go home with Sam?" Jack asked, hearing his descent down the stairs.

"Uh, I don't mind. Who ever wants to take me to school tomorrow," Jesse said with a shrug, feigning innocents over what had occurred earlier.

"I will, Jesse. Come on, we should go. It's getting late."

Jesse nodded and gave a quick smile at his father. "See ya tomorrow."

"Ya, kid." Messing up his already disheveled hair, he bid him good-bye. "Carter."

"Sir."

Jesse winced at the use of their military nicknames. After their silly agreement at the first dinner together, he hadn't heard them use those names in some time. Trying not to show this, he merely opened the door and waited for Sam to exit first.

Behind them, Jack closer the door with a sigh. He was ready to kill himself. His back leaning up against the door, he banged his head against it, reminding himself of how stupid that stunt had been. Thinking back to those last few minutes, he was ready to kill himself.

His mind screamed that he shouldn't. That they shouldn't. But Sam leaned her body closer to him. With their lips a mere inch apart, their faces continued to move closer until they touched.

At first, he was hesitant, he wasn't sure how she would take it. But then her hand wrapped around his neck and pulled him closer to her, deepening the kiss. Her lips parted, allowing his tongue to explore. He couldn't stop himself.

His hands moved to her sides, holding her even closer to him. Though tempted to roam- to feel her body- Jack managed to control at least that urge. Just as Sam seemed to. Her hand never left his neck, only her other hand joined the first.

Jack would never know what made him do what he did next. Maybe it was his conscious after all. Maybe his mind was finally able to catch up to his body. Perhaps it was the pure and simple need for oxygen. Or, maybe, it was something he would never know about. But he broke off the kiss. Moving his lips away from hers, he rested his forehead on hers as they both fought to control their breathing.

Looking into her eyes, he could see the same doubt and uncertainty about what had just happened. The same fear he knew was now rocking his entire core. They could never go back nor could they ever move forward. Just an unwanted stall. Limbo, if you will.

Despite himself, Jack smiled. They had kissed before, technically. He had kissed one of her counterpoints in another reality and her in one of the loops he had been in just as she had kissed him when she was under the influence of an alien virus but it was never like this. This was his Sam in real time so that she would remember. Maybe, in some way, that was good. Maybe it wasn't. At that moment, he was only sure of one thing: that nothing would ever be the same.

**SGC, Sam's Lab**

Sam starred down at her computer, none of the words registering in her mind. The large words seemed just out of her reach at that moment. She was still too shaken up about the whole kiss the previous night to think. To feel.

Sam's feelings for Jack had always caught her at a loss. She knew she felt strongly for him and cared deeply but love… love was not something she gave herself the luxury of thinking about when it came to the Colonel.

A knock at her door brought her mind back down to Earth. Out of habit, she called out to the person to enter without looking away from her computer screen. The footsteps alerted her to the fact that it was, indeed, Jack. Most likely coming to talk to her about the other night.

Reluctantly, she turned when he said, "Hey, Carter. Can we talk about… about last night."

She had hoped to have longer to process all of that longer but, she knew, with everything going on in her life and Jesse and how closely they had to work together, time was another luxury she didn't get to think about either.

With a slight shake of the head, she looked up in his chocolate brown eyes and said, almost pleading, "Not now. Not… here." Jack nodded, understanding. It was too soon for her. Hell, it was too soon for him but he knew they needed to talk.

For a time, they stayed quiet. Neither knowing what to say or how to say it. Suddenly, Sam's phone rang, making both jump a little.

Sam stood and walked past the Colonel, trying hard not to touch him, before picking up her phone. "Carter."

"Major, I need you and SG-1 up here in the briefing room, now! If you can find the Colonel, bring him with you," General Hammond's voice said, hurriedly, over the phone before he promptly hung up without even giving Carter the opportunity to agree.

"Who was that?"

"The General. He said to report to the briefing room." Carter didn't look at him. Instead she started for the door. But Jack was quicker. He stopped her by stepping in front of her retreating form. "Please move. We don't have time to talk now."

Jack noticed that she didn't look up at him and decided to correct that. Putting two fingers underneath her chin, he made her look up at him. "Just tell me that we'll be ok."

Sam heard the pleading in his voice. Unsure as to how she could answer, she merely said, "I don't know if we will." With that she maneuvered herself around him and out of the room. With a defeated sigh, Jack slammed his fist on the table and followed her out.

**Colorado Springs Middle School, Social Studies Class**

"I didn't get to see you this weekend," Alyssa whispered to him as they worked together on their World War Two worksheet.

Jesse gave a weak smile and replied, "I'm sorry about that. I… had to visit my grandfather. He wasn't feeling well."

"I'm sorry."

"No, he's feeling a lot better now. Back on his feet and everything. I guess you could say he's a quick healer," Jesse said, telling her the story yet nothing at all.

"That's good. I would hate to hear that something happened to him."

"Yea, but he's tough. Even been through a lot," Jesse told her with a sad nod. A memory of them as children, her comforting him after he told her the news of his grandfather's death, returning to him. "We should finish this."

"Right. Ok, 'which countries made up the Allied Powers'?" Alyssa read, looking at him for the answer.

"Uh, Great Britain, America, Russia, and… uh… I don't remember," Jesse said, thinking back to what his class had talked about considering they had been a few weeks ahead of this reality.

"France."

"Right," Jesse scolded himself for not remembering as Alyssa and he wrote down the answer. "The next question is… 'How did the U.S stay neutral while helping the Allies'?"

"President Roosevelt asked congress to adjust neutrality laws. They had Britain buy weapons in cash and send them back to their country in their own ships. And… the U.S. gave some of their destroyers on lease to Britain," Alyssa answered.

"It's not fair, you were here when we went over this stuff," Jesse complained quietly as he wrote down her answer.

"You'll get it. It's not that hard."

"Easy for you to say." Alyssa smiled but didn't encourage him any further than that.

**SGC, Briefing Room**

When Sam walked into the room, she could easily guess what had caused the General's urgency. Two men, both dressed in black suits, sat at the briefing table- their mere demeanor enough to put you on guard.

Chancing a glance at Jack, she saw his distant, unfocused look on his face, one she knew she had caused. He was purposely distancing himself from her as if thinking it was what she wanted. But, at that point, she had no idea what she wanted.

Bowing her head in guilt, she sank into her seat all the while wishing she could just disappear in the material for a few hours. Just to think and get away from everything for a while- if not to get away from her aggravating life.

But that didn't seem to be what was about to happen. When Jack plopped down into the seat next to her, she heard Daniel and Teal'c enter the room and the General's office door open. With little enthusiasm, she stood and saluted the man she had more respect for than she did for any other person (SG-1 excluded).

"Have a seat," he said, gruffly, as he took his own seat at the front of the table. "SG-1, this is Major Green and Captain Bennett, NID." Those three simple letters immediately brought all of SG-1 to attention and put them on their guards.

"What does the NID want with us today?" Jack joked, his sarcasm not as pronounced as his anger was.

"We know of your little… virus you and the Tok'ra are working on," Major Green stated, his voice simple yet mysterious.

"And your point?" Jack countered again.

"My point is, you- alone and without orders- had it declared illegal to produce. Without even notifying us of its existence," Green explained.

"I didn't know that we answered to you now. I thought we still reported to the President and the Air Force. Maybe if you give your phone number, I'll call you on all of my missions to make sure I'm doing it right." Again, Jack seemed to be acting like a jerk, letting his emotions run wild and aiming them at the NID officers.

Ignoring Jack's sarcasm and quips, Green continued and said, "We want the virus or the kid. It's your choice, but we're getting one, trust me." Standing, as if to leave, he finished with, "And trust me, if you say no to both, you may never find the child." With those last words, he and Captain Bennett left the room and, presumably, the building.

Green's words were enough to snap Jack out of his self-pity. Suddenly realizing what he had meant, Jack confirmed, "They're going to take Jesse. Sir-?"

"Go!" General Hammond said without even letting him finish his question. Without thought, Jack and Sam were out of their chairs and racing through the halls to get to an elevator while Teal'c and Daniel followed a few paces behind.

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Well, I guess I'll just leave you there… I can't wait to see what happens! *jumps up at down like a four-year-old* What will happen next? R/R and tell what you think… same about the kiss… what do you think about that? Kinda worked out nicely with Valentine's Day and everything, trust me it wasn't planned in the slightest.