Chapter 2: A Night of Comfort
For the longest time, Daniel and Sarah sat in the living room, just enjoying each other's company. They were sitting together on the couch, Sarah settled in Daniel's arms, taking advantage of the time, each reveling in their reunion in their own way. Daniel made a promise to himself that as long as he was living, he was going to make sure that Sarah was safe and that no one would ever hurt her again.
"Are you hungry, Daniel?"
"Yeah, I guess I am a little hungry." Daniel said as his stomach rumbled loudly, causing Sarah to laugh brightly.
"Good. I think I'll just go in the kitchen and make us some sandwiches for dinner."
"Okay. I'll give you a hand."
"Nope. Sorry. This is my department for this evening. You just stay right here and relax. I won't be long, I promise." Sarah whispered, gently pushing Daniel back on the couch as she kissed him.
Daniel sat there on the couch for a long moment, thinking about the situation that he was in and what he had just experienced.
"I can't believe that after the hell that Sarah has been through, the only thing she seems to be worried about is how exhausted I am. She's exactly the way I remember her. I'm just so grateful to have another chance at our relationship." Daniel thought to himself as he closed his eyes and allowed himself to relax.
Five minutes later, Sarah walked back into the living room with club sandwiches and some lemonade for them to have for dinner and smiled at the sight that greeted her. Daniel was dozing on the couch, having slid into slumber as he was thinking. Sarah walked over and placed the food and drinks down quietly on the coffee table before sitting down beside Daniel.
"Daniel? Do you still want some dinner?" Sarah whispered, shaking Daniel's shoulder gently.
"Hmm? Yeah. Sorry, I guess I must have dozed off for a minute. This looks great." Daniel yawned.
"I made us some club sandwiches and lemonade. Knowing you, you haven't eaten in over a day. You've got to be starving."
"You still know me better than I know myself don't you."
"I pride myself on that ability." Sarah beamed.
As they were eating their dinner, Daniel realized just how lucky he was to have Sarah back in his life again and to have three of the best friends anyone could ask for to help him make this all happen.
"You seem to be pretty deep in thought."
"Yeah. I was actually thinking about everything that has gone on over the past couple of days. It's because I'm so exhausted. When I get really overtired, my mind tends to wander on me. I guess that's what happens when you haven't had a good night's sleep in three days." Daniel said, closing his eyes.
"Well, it's over now and everything is fine. Hopefully tonight you'll sleep well. But for now, why don't we take in some television." Sarah suggested as she pulled Daniel against her to where his head was resting on her lap.
"That sounds like a pretty good idea. Let's see what we have good to watch."
After a few minutes of channel surfing, they finally decided on a variety show that they wanted to watch and took advantage of the opportunity to relax.
"I don't know if my lying down like this is the best idea at the moment."
"Why not?"
"Because I'm so exhausted that it's making me a little sleepy. I know this may sound a little strange but I'm almost afraid to fall asleep because I have this irrational fear that I'll wake up and this will all be a dream."
"It's okay. I can assure you, though, that this is no dream. I'm really here and right now, I can't think of anywhere else I would rather be. You already said you haven't slept well for the past few days and I can tell you're worn out. So just close your eyes and go to sleep for a little while. I promise that I'll be right here when you wake up." Sarah whispered soothingly as she ran her fingers through Daniel's hair in an attempt to relax him.
Given his recent poor sleep, it didn't take long for Daniel to begin feeling overwhelmed with sleepiness. He tried to distract himself from it but even this was a vain effort and eventually his eyes began growing heavy. To compound this was the fact that Sarah had begun humming a soft tune as she continued to gently massage his head. This was all so relaxing that after a few minutes, Daniel was overcome by his exhaustion, allowing his eyes to slide closed as he drifted into a very deep sleep that was mercifully dreamless.
Fifteen minutes later, Sarah pulled her attention away from the television and was greeted by the sound of soft, deep breathing. She smiled as she looked down and noticed that her efforts had been successful and Daniel was sleeping soundly with his head resting on her lap. As she carefully removed his glasses, Sarah could easily remember the numerous times she had come to check on him and found him sleeping on his desk, the victim of exhaustion. It was with this thought that Sarah realized just how calm and peaceful Daniel looked now as he slept. Then she turned her attention back to the television, soon becoming defeated by her own exhaustion as she leaned her head back against the couch and fell asleep as well.
It was about midnight when Daniel next awoke. He looked around for a moment, slightly disoriented, before realizing he was in his living room and he must have fallen asleep on the couch. The television was still on and he wondered if Sarah was still watching it. Then he looked up and noticed that she had fallen asleep and had her head resting on the back of the couch. Daniel smiled at this as he slowly sat up, realizing how much Sarah looked like an angel as she was sleeping there. So different from the way she had looked several hours before when she was still overtaken by Osiris.
"Sarah. Wake up. It's late." Daniel whispered gently in Sarah's ear, shaking her shoulder lightly.
"Hmm. Daniel? I guess I fell asleep too." Sarah said sleepily as Daniel took her hand and helped her up off the couch.
"Yeah. We both need to go to bed and get a good night's sleep. Come on, I'll set up my guest room for you."
A few minutes later, Daniel had set up the bed in the guest room for Sarah, gave her a kiss and left her to get ready for bed. Once in his own room, Daniel took off his shirt and then lay down on his bed intending to think some things through for a little while. However, he was still so exhausted that he covered himself with the blankets and fell into a sound sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
An hour later, Sarah was still awake and trying to fall asleep. She couldn't help but think about all of the pain that she had caused because of what had happened to her. After a few more minutes, Sarah decided that she might as well go and check on Daniel.
Sarah approached Daniel's bedroom and quietly opened the door. She found him sleeping there just as she had expected but it made her feel better to know that she could no longer harm him as he slept. In fact, Daniel was sleeping so soundly that he hadn't even stirred when Sarah had entered the room and as she stood looking down on him. As she bent and placed a soft kiss on his forehead, however, Daniel opened his eyes and looked at her in confusion.
"Sarah?" Daniel muttered sleepily.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you. I just couldn't get to sleep and I thought I would come and check on you."
"It's okay. Are you all right?"
"I can't stop thinking about all of the things that I did and all of the people that I hurt over these past couple of years. The thing that is the most upsetting is the fact that I hurt you. I never meant to cause you pain and I am so sorry for that." Sarah whispered as she began to cry.
"Hey. Come here." Daniel said softly as he took Sarah's hand and eased her onto the bed to sit next to him, taking her in his arms. "Shh. It's okay. I know that you had no control over what you were doing. I've seen first hand what the Goa'uld can do to a person. I don't blame you at all and you shouldn't blame yourself for something that you couldn't control. What matters is that you're free now and nothing is ever going to hurt you again. I will keep you safe, Sarah. I promise."
"Will I ever stop feeling like this?"
"The feelings that you're having right now will go away in time. I've seen this before and you won't feel like this forever. But you're going to get through this. You have a lot of people that are going to do everything we can to assure that."
"Thank you. I feel much better now. I'm going to go back to my room and let you go back to sleep." Sarah smiled as she tried to stand up but Daniel grasped her arm and held her.
"I have a better idea. Why don't you stay here with me for a little while and let me hold you. That way I'll be able to make sure that you're okay." Daniel whispered. He then allowed Sarah to settle in and lay down beside her and held her in his arms.
Sarah rested in Daniel's arms and cherished the feeling of once again having his arms around her. It was at this point that she knew she was safe and no harm would come to her. With this knowledge, she snuggled closer against Daniel, closed her eyes and fell asleep with her head on his shoulder.
Daniel listened as Sarah's breathing grew deeper, a sure sign that she had fallen asleep. Turning carefully onto his side, he placed a gentle kiss on her cheek and adjusted the blanket over her. Daniel lay like this for a long time, just watching Sarah sleep and absorbing the knowledge that she was safe, until his own fatigue found him again and his eyes grew heavy. Then he rested his head on the soft pillow, allowed his eyes to slide closed and drifted back to his own dreamless oblivion. The last thought that Daniel had before his consciousness completely left him was that things really were going to be okay and for once, things seemed to be right in his world.
For the longest time, Daniel and Sarah sat in the living room, just enjoying each other's company. They were sitting together on the couch, Sarah settled in Daniel's arms, taking advantage of the time, each reveling in their reunion in their own way. Daniel made a promise to himself that as long as he was living, he was going to make sure that Sarah was safe and that no one would ever hurt her again.
"Are you hungry, Daniel?"
"Yeah, I guess I am a little hungry." Daniel said as his stomach rumbled loudly, causing Sarah to laugh brightly.
"Good. I think I'll just go in the kitchen and make us some sandwiches for dinner."
"Okay. I'll give you a hand."
"Nope. Sorry. This is my department for this evening. You just stay right here and relax. I won't be long, I promise." Sarah whispered, gently pushing Daniel back on the couch as she kissed him.
Daniel sat there on the couch for a long moment, thinking about the situation that he was in and what he had just experienced.
"I can't believe that after the hell that Sarah has been through, the only thing she seems to be worried about is how exhausted I am. She's exactly the way I remember her. I'm just so grateful to have another chance at our relationship." Daniel thought to himself as he closed his eyes and allowed himself to relax.
Five minutes later, Sarah walked back into the living room with club sandwiches and some lemonade for them to have for dinner and smiled at the sight that greeted her. Daniel was dozing on the couch, having slid into slumber as he was thinking. Sarah walked over and placed the food and drinks down quietly on the coffee table before sitting down beside Daniel.
"Daniel? Do you still want some dinner?" Sarah whispered, shaking Daniel's shoulder gently.
"Hmm? Yeah. Sorry, I guess I must have dozed off for a minute. This looks great." Daniel yawned.
"I made us some club sandwiches and lemonade. Knowing you, you haven't eaten in over a day. You've got to be starving."
"You still know me better than I know myself don't you."
"I pride myself on that ability." Sarah beamed.
As they were eating their dinner, Daniel realized just how lucky he was to have Sarah back in his life again and to have three of the best friends anyone could ask for to help him make this all happen.
"You seem to be pretty deep in thought."
"Yeah. I was actually thinking about everything that has gone on over the past couple of days. It's because I'm so exhausted. When I get really overtired, my mind tends to wander on me. I guess that's what happens when you haven't had a good night's sleep in three days." Daniel said, closing his eyes.
"Well, it's over now and everything is fine. Hopefully tonight you'll sleep well. But for now, why don't we take in some television." Sarah suggested as she pulled Daniel against her to where his head was resting on her lap.
"That sounds like a pretty good idea. Let's see what we have good to watch."
After a few minutes of channel surfing, they finally decided on a variety show that they wanted to watch and took advantage of the opportunity to relax.
"I don't know if my lying down like this is the best idea at the moment."
"Why not?"
"Because I'm so exhausted that it's making me a little sleepy. I know this may sound a little strange but I'm almost afraid to fall asleep because I have this irrational fear that I'll wake up and this will all be a dream."
"It's okay. I can assure you, though, that this is no dream. I'm really here and right now, I can't think of anywhere else I would rather be. You already said you haven't slept well for the past few days and I can tell you're worn out. So just close your eyes and go to sleep for a little while. I promise that I'll be right here when you wake up." Sarah whispered soothingly as she ran her fingers through Daniel's hair in an attempt to relax him.
Given his recent poor sleep, it didn't take long for Daniel to begin feeling overwhelmed with sleepiness. He tried to distract himself from it but even this was a vain effort and eventually his eyes began growing heavy. To compound this was the fact that Sarah had begun humming a soft tune as she continued to gently massage his head. This was all so relaxing that after a few minutes, Daniel was overcome by his exhaustion, allowing his eyes to slide closed as he drifted into a very deep sleep that was mercifully dreamless.
Fifteen minutes later, Sarah pulled her attention away from the television and was greeted by the sound of soft, deep breathing. She smiled as she looked down and noticed that her efforts had been successful and Daniel was sleeping soundly with his head resting on her lap. As she carefully removed his glasses, Sarah could easily remember the numerous times she had come to check on him and found him sleeping on his desk, the victim of exhaustion. It was with this thought that Sarah realized just how calm and peaceful Daniel looked now as he slept. Then she turned her attention back to the television, soon becoming defeated by her own exhaustion as she leaned her head back against the couch and fell asleep as well.
It was about midnight when Daniel next awoke. He looked around for a moment, slightly disoriented, before realizing he was in his living room and he must have fallen asleep on the couch. The television was still on and he wondered if Sarah was still watching it. Then he looked up and noticed that she had fallen asleep and had her head resting on the back of the couch. Daniel smiled at this as he slowly sat up, realizing how much Sarah looked like an angel as she was sleeping there. So different from the way she had looked several hours before when she was still overtaken by Osiris.
"Sarah. Wake up. It's late." Daniel whispered gently in Sarah's ear, shaking her shoulder lightly.
"Hmm. Daniel? I guess I fell asleep too." Sarah said sleepily as Daniel took her hand and helped her up off the couch.
"Yeah. We both need to go to bed and get a good night's sleep. Come on, I'll set up my guest room for you."
A few minutes later, Daniel had set up the bed in the guest room for Sarah, gave her a kiss and left her to get ready for bed. Once in his own room, Daniel took off his shirt and then lay down on his bed intending to think some things through for a little while. However, he was still so exhausted that he covered himself with the blankets and fell into a sound sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
An hour later, Sarah was still awake and trying to fall asleep. She couldn't help but think about all of the pain that she had caused because of what had happened to her. After a few more minutes, Sarah decided that she might as well go and check on Daniel.
Sarah approached Daniel's bedroom and quietly opened the door. She found him sleeping there just as she had expected but it made her feel better to know that she could no longer harm him as he slept. In fact, Daniel was sleeping so soundly that he hadn't even stirred when Sarah had entered the room and as she stood looking down on him. As she bent and placed a soft kiss on his forehead, however, Daniel opened his eyes and looked at her in confusion.
"Sarah?" Daniel muttered sleepily.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you. I just couldn't get to sleep and I thought I would come and check on you."
"It's okay. Are you all right?"
"I can't stop thinking about all of the things that I did and all of the people that I hurt over these past couple of years. The thing that is the most upsetting is the fact that I hurt you. I never meant to cause you pain and I am so sorry for that." Sarah whispered as she began to cry.
"Hey. Come here." Daniel said softly as he took Sarah's hand and eased her onto the bed to sit next to him, taking her in his arms. "Shh. It's okay. I know that you had no control over what you were doing. I've seen first hand what the Goa'uld can do to a person. I don't blame you at all and you shouldn't blame yourself for something that you couldn't control. What matters is that you're free now and nothing is ever going to hurt you again. I will keep you safe, Sarah. I promise."
"Will I ever stop feeling like this?"
"The feelings that you're having right now will go away in time. I've seen this before and you won't feel like this forever. But you're going to get through this. You have a lot of people that are going to do everything we can to assure that."
"Thank you. I feel much better now. I'm going to go back to my room and let you go back to sleep." Sarah smiled as she tried to stand up but Daniel grasped her arm and held her.
"I have a better idea. Why don't you stay here with me for a little while and let me hold you. That way I'll be able to make sure that you're okay." Daniel whispered. He then allowed Sarah to settle in and lay down beside her and held her in his arms.
Sarah rested in Daniel's arms and cherished the feeling of once again having his arms around her. It was at this point that she knew she was safe and no harm would come to her. With this knowledge, she snuggled closer against Daniel, closed her eyes and fell asleep with her head on his shoulder.
Daniel listened as Sarah's breathing grew deeper, a sure sign that she had fallen asleep. Turning carefully onto his side, he placed a gentle kiss on her cheek and adjusted the blanket over her. Daniel lay like this for a long time, just watching Sarah sleep and absorbing the knowledge that she was safe, until his own fatigue found him again and his eyes grew heavy. Then he rested his head on the soft pillow, allowed his eyes to slide closed and drifted back to his own dreamless oblivion. The last thought that Daniel had before his consciousness completely left him was that things really were going to be okay and for once, things seemed to be right in his world.