Ch 2
Carter wearily let herself into her quarters and headed for her chair without turning on the lights. She was so familiar with the tiny room that she could navigate it easily even in pitch black. She sat down in the chair to take off her boots and several things happened at once.
The chair, which had learned how to move, screamed. She screamed and almost slid off of the moving chair onto the ground but the chair grabbed her around the waist to keep her from falling, at which point she realized it wasn't a chair at all.
"Sir, what the hell are you doing?" she hissed, getting up angrily and flicking on the desk light.
They both blinked at the sudden light, even though it was dim, and then looked at each other.
"I was waiting to see what time you decided to obey my order and go to bed," he replied finally, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world for him to be doing.
She blushed suddenly, registering the similarity to the dream she had just had.
"I must have fallen asleep waiting... this chair is not very comfortable, you know," he said accusingly, as if she had asked him to sit around waiting for her.
"Sorry, sir. I lost track of time."
He stood up yawning and stretched, then said, "All right, Carter. Just don't let it happen again."
"Yes sir," she said, grateful that he was about to leave.
It was so weird having this conversation in her tiny room while only minutes before she had been dreaming about... things she definitely shouldn't be thinking about either awake or asleep.
As he brushed past her he distinctly muttered, "Yes, sir, my ass."
"Sir?" she countered as his hand was on the knob to leave.
"Oh, just expressing my opinion that your last statement was a load of crap, Major," he said with a grin. His expression softened a bit and he continued, "Seriously, Carter. You look like you need some rest."
"Yes, sir."
He nodded to himself and left, shutting the door quietly behind him. Carter groaned and sat down in the chair to take off her boots. It had been a very strange night.