Chapter 3

Jack breezed into the infirmary, whistling tunelessly. He pulled up short when he saw Daniel and Carter sitting side by side on the gurney. She had one arm loosely draped around Daniel's waist as she talked softly to him. Daniel, shoulders hunched and arms wrapped around his body, looked as if he wished the floor would swallow him whole.

"Evening, campers. What's up?"

At the sound of his voice their heads whipped around with comical symmetry. Carter gave Daniel a little pat and stood.

"I was in the neighborhood, thought I'd stop by to visit Daniel before he left, see if he needed anything."

Daniel flushed, his voice edgy. "Has Janet finally finished briefing you? Can we get out of here now?"

Jack extended an arm toward the door. "Your chariot awaits."

He watched Daniel slide off the gurney, shoving his hands into his pockets when they itched to steady him. Daniel wobbled for only a moment before he flashed Carter a quick, tentative little smile.

"Thanks, Sam. For...um...for everything."

Daniel met her eyes only briefly before his skittered away. Interesting, Jack mused. What exactly had happened?

Not put off by Daniel's obvious discomfort, Sam leaned in and kissed his cheek. "My pleasure, Daniel. Remember what I said, okay?"

A quick dip of his head and Daniel turned toward the door. Jack plucked Carter's sleeve and, eyebrows raised, cocked his thumb at his friend's back. Sam gave a quick shake of her head. Not now.

"I'll give you a call later this week," Jack said aloud. "Maybe you and Teal'c can come by for pizza."

"Sounds good, sir."

Daniel was quiet in the elevator. Withdrawn. Stared at his shoes, wrapped up in that damn self-hug that made Jack want five minutes alone with each and every one of the adults who had failed him as a child. Starting with Nick. When Melbourne and Claire Jackson died, an overworked, understaffed child welfare system taught a bewildered, grieving Danny that he should rely on no one but himself. Though he spoke very little about his string of foster parents, the closed expression on his face and carefully neutral tone of voice told Jack all he needed to know.

When they were finally in the car, the SGC well behind them, Daniel dropped his head onto the seatback with a small sigh.

Jack's lips twitched. "Glad to be out, are we?"

"You have NO idea."

"Fraiser on your case?"

"I think I have more holes than a golf course. If I had to put up with one more of her...her..." His mouth hung open a moment as he groped unsuccessfully for the sharp, silver object. He snapped it shut and averted his face, staring out the window.

Jack couldn't decide whether to fill in the blank or let it lie. He ended up choosing the latter. "Thought we'd stop by your apartment so you can pack a bag, then head over to my place."

Daniel appeared fascinated by the passing scenery. When he spoke, Jack could barely make out the words above the engine's drone.

"Guess this time you got the short one."

Jack frowned, stealing quick glances at his friend in between watching the road. "What?"

"Just wondered how you got stuck with babysitting detail. Did you draw straws? Flip a coin? Or did Hammond make it an order?"

Ah, self-pity. Now that was something he understood. "Well, you see, we all wrote our names on little pieces of paper. Then George put them in a hat and--"

"Very funny."

"Ask a stupid question..." Jack huffed impatiently. "Look, I know this thing has you thrown for a loop, Daniel, but you're going to be fine. You've just hit a bump in the road, that's all."

Daniel ducked his chin to his chest. Jack could see his eyes glitter in the dim light from the dashboard. "It's an awful big bump, Jack."

"So? You're responsible for unlocking the Stargate, for making successful first contact with hundreds of worlds, hell, for saving this planet, more than once! This is doable, Daniel." He curled his fingers more tightly around the steering wheel. "And for the record, it was MY idea."

He watched from the corner of his eye until he saw Daniel get it. His friend swallowed, blinking hard. When he turned toward Jack a little of the tension had left his body.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

When they reached Daniel's apartment, he disappeared into the bedroom to pack. Jack roamed restlessly through the living room, fiddling with Daniel's eclectic collection of knick-knacks and resisting the urge to offer help. Eventually Daniel emerged, a duffel slung over his shoulder and a tentative smile on his lips.

Jack set down a small clay pot and rubbed his hands together. "Ready?"

"I think so. I--oh!" Daniel set down the bag and hurried over to his fish tank. Muttering under his breath, he shook food into the water, frowning when it was vigorously attacked by a swarm of hungry fish. "Sorry, guys." He looked over at Jack. "I'm surprised they all made it."

"It's been a rough few days for a lot of us."

Some of the wariness left Daniel's eyes. "Guess we're all survivors."

YES! Jack nearly shouted aloud. A breakthrough. "Got one of those feeder doohickeys for the next week or so?"

Daniel shook his head. "I'll call Mrs. Hennessey. She knows what to do; she always takes care of them when we're off-world."

"Well, make it so. I'm starving and there's some Chinese out there with my name on it."

Jack resumed prowling, knowing it was bugging the hell out of Daniel and loving it.

Daniel picked up the phone and punched buttons, head swiveling to keep Jack in view. "Ah, Jack, I really wish you wouldn't...Hello? Mrs. Hennessey?" He listened, brow creased for a moment. "Oh, I'm sorry. I must have the wrong number."

Jack juggled something that looked like a hackey sack, amused by the way Daniel's eyes tracked it back and forth. "Problem?"

"Yes. I mean no. I mean, I just... Jack, would you please cut it out?"

Jack set down his new toy and held both hands up. "Okay, okay. Not gettin' any younger here, Daniel."

"Well, if you weren't distracting me..."

Jack smirked, pleased with himself. He'd take a pissy Daniel to a quiet, somber Daniel any day of the week.

"Hello? Who is this?...I...I'm trying to...to...reach Dorothy Hennessey."

Jack's smile faded as he listened.

"Number? I...um...598-2627. Oh, I...S..Sorry."

Daniel pressed his finger over the disconnect button. Rather than hang up the receiver, however, he stood frozen, staring at the keypad.

"Daniel?" Jack circled around to stand beside his friend.

"I...I...hit the right numbers, Jack, I know I did. 598-2627. Why isn't it working?"

"You probably just went too fast. Dial it again. Slowly."

Daniel bit his lip; nodded. Jack watched closely as one long finger began tapping buttons. 5...9...3--"

"Hold it."

Daniel stopped, finger poised over the key. "Why?"

"You dialed wrong."

"No I didn't."

"Yes, you did."

Daniel clenched his jaw. "No. I. Didn't."

Jack held onto his temper. "Daniel, look at your finger. There isn't even a 3 in the number you're dialing."

Daniel stared at Jack for a long moment before slowly dropping his gaze. His breath caught and his hand began trembling. "No, that's...Jack, that's not...that's eight. Isn't it?"

A chill ran up Jack's spine and he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He called on every bit of his military training, suppressing his own fear so Daniel would not detect how rattled he felt.

"No, Daniel, that's three. Eight is this one." He gently moved the finger to the correct button. "Remember?"

Daniel snatched his hand away and backed up, folding his arms tightly around his chest. "Of course I do. I just...I got a little mixed up, that's all. You...you were distracting me."

Jack nodded, feeling as if he were speaking to a frightened child. "Sorry. My fault for messing with your head. Tell you what--I'll call her. It's the least I can do after giving you a hard time."

Daniel looked away, throat working. "Okay."

Jack pressed the correct numbers, chatting with a friendly, slightly deaf old lady while tracking Daniel's every move. After scrutinizing each stroke of Jack's finger on the keypad, Daniel had retreated to the far side of the room, where he paced back and forth with short, jerky strides.

Jack hung up the phone. "Done. You ready to go?"

Daniel stilled, but made no move toward him. Head bowed, he muttered something to his feet.

"What?"

He snapped his head up. "I said, she had to tie my fucking shoes!"

Jack blinked. He recognized the signs. The high, shaky voice, the profanity...Daniel was a breath from losing it, big time. He felt his way carefully, like treading on thin ice. "Who did? Fraiser?"

Daniel shook his head. "No. Sam."

So that's what he'd interrupted back in the infirmary. Jack slipped his hands in his pockets and sauntered closer.

"You know, there's worse things than having a beautiful woman willing to help you."

He knew it was the wrong approach the moment the words left his lips. Daniel flushed and his eyes turned to steel. "Go to hell, Jack." He stomped past, headed who knows where, but Jack grabbed hold of his arm and held on.

"Daniel."

"Let *go* of me." Daniel tried to shrug free.

Jack tightened his fingers. "Daniel, I'm... That was a stupid thing to say, okay? You know I'm no good at this."

Daniel's body remained rigid, but he stopped pulling away. "Yeah. I noticed."

Satisfied he'd regained Daniel's attention, Jack turned him loose. "All I'm saying is that you have people who care about you, Danny. And you don't have to be embarrassed or ashamed when we want to help you. We're a team, for cryin' out loud, we watch each other's sixes. If this time it means letting Carter tie your shoes..." He shrugged.

"It's not that...um, that...simple, Jack." Daniel scrubbed his fingers through his hair until the short, spiky strands stood on end. He dropped his hands to his sides and looked away. "*I* have to take care of me. It's what I know."

Jack swallowed, his throat tight. Seeing not the man before him, but a small, bewildered eight-year-old boy. "C'mere."

When Daniel stared blankly at him, he palmed the nape of his friend's neck, guiding him over to the couch. Daniel sat, frowning when Jack claimed the coffee table opposite rather than the cushion beside him. Both eyebrows shot up when Jack pulled his sneakered foot onto his lap and untied the laces.

"Jack?"

"Okay, there's a couple different ways to do this, but I'm going with the single-loop method, for now. I'm pretty sure that's how you tied them before, and it's probably best to stick with what's familiar."

He risked a brief glance up, gauging Daniel's reaction. Daniel was gaping at him, wide blue eyes blurred with tears. Jack quickly looked back at his own hands. "You paying attention? 'Cause there's gonna be a quiz in a minute."

"I..." Daniel made a sniffling sound, then his voice grew steady. "Yes. Go ahead. Slowly, please."

Jack patted the foot and smiled. "You got it."

Continued in Chapter 4