They stopped at the rest stop once more, but this time Jack put the leash
on Jaffer before the dog could jump out the door or the window. It was
beginning to get late, and he had a dinner date. He didn't have time for
Jaffer to make more new friends and mooch off them. Not unless he wanted to
end up eating take out pizza. Not that he didn't like pizza, but he wanted
something a little more exotic tonight.
He went straight home instead of heading back to the SGC, knowing that Sam would either be there or would have left him a note or a message letting him know if the others were up for dinner, or if they'd decided to do something else. It wasn't a rule that they had to spend time with him just because he wanted company, after all, and they did have their own lives to lead outside work.
His front door was locked, which meant Sam wasn't there. He and Jaffer walked in, and Jack turned on the answering machine and listened to the messages as he rummaged through his junk drawer looking for a pair of scissors. The first message was a wrong number. The second one was the same person, and Jack grinned when he heard the guy mutter a curse and yell something to someone who had been in the room with him about finding the right number before he drove this poor O'Neill guy crazy.
"C'mere, Jaffer," Jack said, walking over to the sofa with the scissors and sitting down.
Jaffer ambled over to him and Jack convinced him to sit still between his knees for a minute so he could cut the bandages off. As he was doing this, the next message came on the machine and this one was Sam. Jaffer looked around when he heard Sam's voice, but luckily he didn't squirm, since the blade of the scissors was right against the glossy hide.
"'Cassandra and Janet would love to have dinner with us, Jack. Teal'c and Daniel will come, but everyone's thinking that a home cooked meal might be nice, and were wondering if that was all right with you? Janet says she'll do the cooking, so we're all invited over to her house. Call and let me know what you want to do as soon as you get this, so I can let her know. Okay?'" Sam sounded inordinately cheerful, even on the machine, and Jack scowled as he ran his hands along Jaffer's sides once he got the bandages cut off. The stitches were still there, and would need to be removed, but they weren't holding anything together, now. The slashes the wicked knife had made were gone.
"Dinner out at Janet's tonight?" He asked his dog, holding the big head in his hands and smiling down at him. "You can see Cassie's dog, and Jack will be there if Teal'c is."
Jaffer's tail thumped the floor happily. He didn't care where he ate as long as he was with Jack.
He stood up and went over to make sure there weren't any more messages, but there weren't. He picked up the phone and called Carter's cell, thinking idly that he'd have to teach Jaffer to use the phone so he could do all the return calls.
Sam didn't answer her phone, so Jack left a message telling her that dinner was fine with him. Then he called Janet's house. No one answered there, either. Jack pulled his shirt off and tossed it on the back of the couch, then used the scissors on his bandages as he tried calling Daniel to see if the archeologist had any idea when dinner was.
The door opened just as he was pulling the bandages off, and Jack turned, with the phone still pressed against his cheek and ear as Jaffer launched himself towards the opening door with a low woof that told O'Neill that Jack was coming through the door before the big yellow lab came into sight. Jack wasn't the only one, though. Sam, Teal'c and Daniel all came through the door; Daniel carrying a large bag of groceries. Then came Hammond and Fraiser, and following them, holding another bag of groceries was Cassandra, who wrinkled her nose when she saw the bloody bandages all over the floor by Jack's feet.
"Ick."
"Hey Jack," Daniel grinned, looking over at Janet who was already walking over to O'Neill, her eyes already telling him he was in for a lecture for taking off his bandages without her permission.
"Hi..." Jack looked at Sam, puzzled. "I thought dinner was at Janet's?"
"Change of plans. I thought we could surprise you. Surprise." She leaned down to pet Jaffer, and noticed that his bandages were off as well. Then she realized that he didn't look as battered as he had earlier that day, and knelt for a closer look, just as Fraiser was running gentle fingers along O'Neill's side as well.
"Jack? He looks like his cuts are already healed...."
"He's not the only one," Janet said, taking Jack's left hand and looking at the place that Teal'c's yellow lab had slashed his wrist open. That was gone as well, although the stitches were still neatly in place. "How the hell...?"
"Ooooooo..." Cassie very rarely heard her mother swear.
Fraiser gave Jack a piercing look, and he grinned. Despite the fact that he knew it would be fun to keep her wondering, he was aware that she would probably kill him if he didn't tell her soon. Teal'c walked over and looked at Jack's side, which made everyone else come over as well.
"Stop that."
It was bad enough having Janet examining him, he didn't need everyone else gawking, too.
"How did-?"
"Dotty Adams."
"She has a healing device of some sort?"
"Oh, no. She just touched me and concentrated, and poof! All gone. No pain, no cuts, no nothing."
"Wow."
"That's what I said."
"She did it to Jaffer, too?" Cassie asked, kneeling by the black lab, who started licking her face.
"Yup."
"Wow."
"She said it's a gift she has."
"I wonder if Shawn has it as well?"
"Probably not, or he would have used it, you'd think," Daniel said, running his finger along Jack's side.
"Stop that." Jack moved away from them, and reached down to pick up the bandages. "I'm going to go take a shower." There was a lot of dried blood caking his chest and side, and even though there wasn't any pain, it was still rather gory looking.
"We'll start dinner."
"Can I take Jaffer and Jack outside?" Cassie asked. She had a short enough attention span that while Jack's miracle cure was neat; she wanted to do something else besides dwell on it.
"Back yard." Jack said. It was fenced in.
"Before you shower, Sir, I think you might want to see this." She pulled a paper out of her pocket and handed it to him.
"What is it?" Jack asked, taking it from her. It looked like a crumbled up piece of paper that had been flattened smooth.
"Read it."
"'Jack. All clear. Jaffer wasn't needed. Shawn.'"
"Is this-?"
"It came through the Stargate about twenty minutes after you left, Colonel." Hammond told him, smiling.
"You were going to give Shawn Jaffer?" Daniel asked in disbelief. Jaffer meant everything to Jack, and everyone knew it.
"Well..." Jack looked down and read the note again, feeling the relief washing through him. There was no way this was a trick, since no one but Shawn knew that Jack had offered to give him the lab. "Of course not. I knew he was going to be fine." Before anyone could say anything else, Jack turned and headed down the hall, the note still firmly clutched in his hand, heading for a shower he desperately needed so he could enjoy the rest of the night with his friends. A night he could truly enjoy, since he knew now that everything really was okay.
~*~
Author's Note: We'll visit the future in the next chapter
He went straight home instead of heading back to the SGC, knowing that Sam would either be there or would have left him a note or a message letting him know if the others were up for dinner, or if they'd decided to do something else. It wasn't a rule that they had to spend time with him just because he wanted company, after all, and they did have their own lives to lead outside work.
His front door was locked, which meant Sam wasn't there. He and Jaffer walked in, and Jack turned on the answering machine and listened to the messages as he rummaged through his junk drawer looking for a pair of scissors. The first message was a wrong number. The second one was the same person, and Jack grinned when he heard the guy mutter a curse and yell something to someone who had been in the room with him about finding the right number before he drove this poor O'Neill guy crazy.
"C'mere, Jaffer," Jack said, walking over to the sofa with the scissors and sitting down.
Jaffer ambled over to him and Jack convinced him to sit still between his knees for a minute so he could cut the bandages off. As he was doing this, the next message came on the machine and this one was Sam. Jaffer looked around when he heard Sam's voice, but luckily he didn't squirm, since the blade of the scissors was right against the glossy hide.
"'Cassandra and Janet would love to have dinner with us, Jack. Teal'c and Daniel will come, but everyone's thinking that a home cooked meal might be nice, and were wondering if that was all right with you? Janet says she'll do the cooking, so we're all invited over to her house. Call and let me know what you want to do as soon as you get this, so I can let her know. Okay?'" Sam sounded inordinately cheerful, even on the machine, and Jack scowled as he ran his hands along Jaffer's sides once he got the bandages cut off. The stitches were still there, and would need to be removed, but they weren't holding anything together, now. The slashes the wicked knife had made were gone.
"Dinner out at Janet's tonight?" He asked his dog, holding the big head in his hands and smiling down at him. "You can see Cassie's dog, and Jack will be there if Teal'c is."
Jaffer's tail thumped the floor happily. He didn't care where he ate as long as he was with Jack.
He stood up and went over to make sure there weren't any more messages, but there weren't. He picked up the phone and called Carter's cell, thinking idly that he'd have to teach Jaffer to use the phone so he could do all the return calls.
Sam didn't answer her phone, so Jack left a message telling her that dinner was fine with him. Then he called Janet's house. No one answered there, either. Jack pulled his shirt off and tossed it on the back of the couch, then used the scissors on his bandages as he tried calling Daniel to see if the archeologist had any idea when dinner was.
The door opened just as he was pulling the bandages off, and Jack turned, with the phone still pressed against his cheek and ear as Jaffer launched himself towards the opening door with a low woof that told O'Neill that Jack was coming through the door before the big yellow lab came into sight. Jack wasn't the only one, though. Sam, Teal'c and Daniel all came through the door; Daniel carrying a large bag of groceries. Then came Hammond and Fraiser, and following them, holding another bag of groceries was Cassandra, who wrinkled her nose when she saw the bloody bandages all over the floor by Jack's feet.
"Ick."
"Hey Jack," Daniel grinned, looking over at Janet who was already walking over to O'Neill, her eyes already telling him he was in for a lecture for taking off his bandages without her permission.
"Hi..." Jack looked at Sam, puzzled. "I thought dinner was at Janet's?"
"Change of plans. I thought we could surprise you. Surprise." She leaned down to pet Jaffer, and noticed that his bandages were off as well. Then she realized that he didn't look as battered as he had earlier that day, and knelt for a closer look, just as Fraiser was running gentle fingers along O'Neill's side as well.
"Jack? He looks like his cuts are already healed...."
"He's not the only one," Janet said, taking Jack's left hand and looking at the place that Teal'c's yellow lab had slashed his wrist open. That was gone as well, although the stitches were still neatly in place. "How the hell...?"
"Ooooooo..." Cassie very rarely heard her mother swear.
Fraiser gave Jack a piercing look, and he grinned. Despite the fact that he knew it would be fun to keep her wondering, he was aware that she would probably kill him if he didn't tell her soon. Teal'c walked over and looked at Jack's side, which made everyone else come over as well.
"Stop that."
It was bad enough having Janet examining him, he didn't need everyone else gawking, too.
"How did-?"
"Dotty Adams."
"She has a healing device of some sort?"
"Oh, no. She just touched me and concentrated, and poof! All gone. No pain, no cuts, no nothing."
"Wow."
"That's what I said."
"She did it to Jaffer, too?" Cassie asked, kneeling by the black lab, who started licking her face.
"Yup."
"Wow."
"She said it's a gift she has."
"I wonder if Shawn has it as well?"
"Probably not, or he would have used it, you'd think," Daniel said, running his finger along Jack's side.
"Stop that." Jack moved away from them, and reached down to pick up the bandages. "I'm going to go take a shower." There was a lot of dried blood caking his chest and side, and even though there wasn't any pain, it was still rather gory looking.
"We'll start dinner."
"Can I take Jaffer and Jack outside?" Cassie asked. She had a short enough attention span that while Jack's miracle cure was neat; she wanted to do something else besides dwell on it.
"Back yard." Jack said. It was fenced in.
"Before you shower, Sir, I think you might want to see this." She pulled a paper out of her pocket and handed it to him.
"What is it?" Jack asked, taking it from her. It looked like a crumbled up piece of paper that had been flattened smooth.
"Read it."
"'Jack. All clear. Jaffer wasn't needed. Shawn.'"
"Is this-?"
"It came through the Stargate about twenty minutes after you left, Colonel." Hammond told him, smiling.
"You were going to give Shawn Jaffer?" Daniel asked in disbelief. Jaffer meant everything to Jack, and everyone knew it.
"Well..." Jack looked down and read the note again, feeling the relief washing through him. There was no way this was a trick, since no one but Shawn knew that Jack had offered to give him the lab. "Of course not. I knew he was going to be fine." Before anyone could say anything else, Jack turned and headed down the hall, the note still firmly clutched in his hand, heading for a shower he desperately needed so he could enjoy the rest of the night with his friends. A night he could truly enjoy, since he knew now that everything really was okay.
~*~
Author's Note: We'll visit the future in the next chapter