Plans
By ChappaEyeBrow
Summary: "Marriage is a partnership, Carter, not a chain of command."
No angst, no romance, just some good advice from a concerned friend. At least for now.
Spoilers: Chimera (S7), Affinity (S8), and I suppose spoilers for the spoilers for Threads (S8)!
Disclaimer: If they were mine, they'd be together by now. So, obviously I own no part of any franchise, company, etc.
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"Earth to Carter…"
She snapped out of her reverie and looked up with a small smile.
"Hi. What can I do for you, Sir?"
"I heard a rumor and I need confirmation. Hoping you can help me out."
Her brow furrowed. Rumor? She couldn't think of anything he wasn't already aware of, unless he was talking about the house…lost in thought, she looked up, her absent glance enough to tell him that she hadn't been focusing on what he was saying. He smirked, raised an eyebrow, and repeated himself.
"Cheesecake. New York style, with strawberry sauce on top…c'mon, Carter, I'm expected to keep up with all the latest commissary selections now, and new cake definitely qualifies. I need your expert opinion. I'm sure whatever that is you're working on," He waved his hand back and forth in the general direction of her computer, " …can wait. I don't recall asking you to save the planet yet this week, it's only Tuesday…"
Grinning, she stood up and ran both hands through her hair. "Sorry, Sir, I was a million miles away. Cake sounds great."
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She looked up from her fourth forkful. The General was giving a discourse on the merits of cheesecake toppings. "I'm a simple guy, you know…plain cheesecake is usually best, but I have to say, this strawberry sauce…"
She broke in.
"Would you say that I plan things out too much?"
"'Scuze me?"
"You've known me for a long time. Am I…you know…neurotic about planning? I mean, maybe it's a result of having to come up with every conceivable scenario before we go on missions. Or maybe it's the briefings, I mean, after all, we always brief, however - well, briefly - before we go anywhere, even if it is someplace we've been recently, and I never give it a second thought. I mean, it's normal to plan things out, right?"
He stared at her, surprised, not exactly sure where she was going with this. He shrugged in agreement.
"Nothing wrong with planning ahead, considering all the options. That's just practical."
"That's what I said."
"Carter?"
"Okay, let me ask you something. When two people are…involved, in any kind of," she seemed to struggle for the right word. "Relationship, doesn't it make sense that they would make decisions together about things that are important? Like, career choices, major purchases, changes in lifestyle?"
"Well, yes, it's been my experience that joint decision making is…productive. So, what's up?"
"Right before Pete asked me to marry him, he told me that he had requested a transfer here from Denver. I thought that was really sweet but I was kind of surprised that he didn't discuss it with me first - I mean, what if I had said no?"
'Yeah, what if,' O'Neill thought. If wishes were horses…
"And then yesterday," she said, a vague look of annoyance on her face, "He said he had a surprise for me."
He raised an eyebrow…"Ah. And you don't….like surprises?"
"Sir, he bought us a house. A house! For us to live in."
"Yes, that generally is what one does in a house…" he trailed off at the small glare she was directing towards him. Oops. Bad time to joke. Given the conversation, it was probably a bad time to be male, but that was another story entirely…
"Don't you find it a bit strange that he didn't consult me first? I mean, what if I don't like ranch-style houses? What if I don't like the neighborhood? The commute to work is okay, but what about my gym? My coffee shop? The park?" she bit the side of her lip, dug her fork into the cheesecake and lifted to her mouth. "I don't - I just - well, it would have been nice to have a choice, even if it was just to say 'Sure, honey, it's great!' before he made a down payment!" She put the fork down. "Am I making too big a deal about this? I mean, it's not like choosing what movie we're seeing…it's a house! With….rooms and, well, rooms."
O'Neill paused. He didn't want to piss her off - an annoyed Sam Carter wasn't what he needed right now. All personal feelings aside, he didn't like what he was hearing. Sam wasn't the kind of woman to be controlled by anyone, and that's what it sounded like Pete was trying to do, whether the man realized it or not. He took a breath and reminded himself to try to be objective.
"You want my honest opinion?" He glanced at her. She nodded. He took a sip of coffee, set the mug down, and looked directly into her eyes.
"Marriage is a partnership, Carter, not a chain of command. Any decisions that either person makes affects you both. Moving to be with someone that you care for, that's a big decision. Purchasing a house…well, that's huge. I mean, I know the job doesn't leave a lot of time for house-hunting, but that's definitely one decision where I think you'd want some say."
He paused.
She looked away and then back at him. "Why do I feel so angry about this?"
"Control, Carter. It's all about control. It's your life, and you've got a right to run it how you want and live where you like…" He paused, not wanting to mention Jonas Hanson - that might be crossing the line. He could insinuate, however, and hope she got the hint. He leaned over the table.
"Sam. You're a strong, independent person. You have convictions and opinions that you believe in. You're also a damned fine officer. But, you take enough orders inside this mountain. You shouldn't have to do it when you go home."
He looked at his watch, and stood up.
"I gotta run. I'll be in my office until...well, many more hours. Possibly days, in fact. Very important memos to write, people to avoid, cake to sample…"
"Sir? Thanks."
"Any time, Carter, any time. Just remember…"
She looked at him expectantly.
"Some decisions are more permanent than others." He said, and walked away.