...I'm Gonna Get You....
A/N: You can't comprehend how pleased I was to receive all your reviews for this new revamped version of the story and it really lightened my day to hear that you all enjoyed it. I adore writing and it gives me some purpose when I know there are people who want to read my work.
x x x x x x x
"Now situations, girl
They often change
Sometimes for the good"
She swung her briefcase down onto the floor as she walked into the house, dropping her keys on the kitchen counter as she recited the list of activities she had over the weekend; she had a conference call with her fellow lecturers on Saturday night, evidently none of whom had lives and on Sunday she was planning a nice trip to the park with the dog.
Sipping some cold milk from the refrigerator remembering that her doctor had told her about her lack of calcium, she skimmed the world events in The New York Times that she bought at the filling station. Turning to wash the glass, she noticed a mug by the sink, holding down a scrap of notepaper.
To the best mommy in the whole wide world (and all the universe)
Can I go to Little League tomorrow? Please please please please!
Thankyou very much,
Tom
She smiled at the effort her son had evidently put into the small note, hearts and kisses surrounding the words and the pleading carried over to the back of the notepaper. Tom had petitioned her for months about attending Little League, and she'd been dubious about the event, suspicious of the parents trying to live vicariously through their children. But she couldn't deny that when she saw Tom play with his friends, he definitely had an affinity for the sport. Smiling to herself as she heard Tom's footsteps behind her, she turned round as he launched himself at her, seemingly with a sixth sense for when he had persuaded his mother to his thinking.
"So can I go?" His words were muffled against her top where his head was pressed against her waist, his arms encircling her in the tightest hug he could manage.
She rolled her eyes, "You can go...." She held out her hand as her son began to run around the kitchen cheering, "There are conditions though."
He nodded as though that was expected, "What are they?" Tom asked, moving to stand next to her, gripping her hand in his own and swinging them.
"You'll tidy your room every Sunday, you won't be eating any junk food at school and I don't want you giving Claire any trouble. Is that understood?" Tom nodded with a beaming smile reminscent of her own in happier times, "And I'm coming to watch you whenever you play." She added, ruffling his still soft blonde hair with an affectionate grin.
"I wouldn't play without you there mommy," He looked up to her as though it was the most obvious thing in the world, squeezing her hand tenderly. As he ran off through the door to tell his friends of his victory, saying goodbye with a quick wave, Sam gazed through the window to the back yard, steeling herself against the tears that were springing in her eyes. She laid her hands on the edge of the counter to steady herself, breathing deeply to try to counteract the tightening in her chest, around her heart. She still hadn't told Tom of his father's intentions for custody, the letter still hiding underneath her son's pictures of their dog, and electricity bills and reminders of faculty meetings. In her childhood, she used to hide the occasional bad report from her father underneath her pillow as if somehow it would go away.
It never did.
x x x x x x x
Cars surrounded the small field in the outskirts of Colorado Springs, families milling about as boys and girls ran towards a gathering of outfitted fellow players. Tom jumped out of the car instantly and Sam had to call him back as she locked her Volvo, hoping that it would remain unscathed amongst the unruly dogs and playful children that seemed to populate the Hillman Grange Baseball Field.
"Are you going to stay the full two hours?" Tom asked, dodging round a group of adults discussing some questionable tactics. He held the baseball glove in his hand firmly, looking slightly defensive around the more experienced players on the team, but Sam was confident he'd warm up when his friends arrived.
"Of course I will Tom," She reassured him, pulling her sunglasses from her eyes as she laid a hand on her son's shoulder as they walked towards the grouping of young children seemingly Tom's age, "Wouldn't miss your first practice for the world."
And that was the truth. Her assistant at the Academy had been fuming when she'd decided to take the day off, and delay her paperwork that was already mounting after Tom's week off ill from school which she'd insisted she'd look after him. Sam had readily explained to her assistant that she was her boss and therefore wielded the power to sack said assistant. After that little reminder, she had receieved no frantic calls to her cellphone, and was planning to watch a very nervous Tom without any interruptions. Her son needed her support and she wasn't going to let him down.
A young boy approached them, his brown hair glinting in the late afternoon sun. In Sam's eyes, he had a similarity to her own son, most likely through the uniform they both wore and the innocent look in their eyes. Tom seemed to know the kid, and so allowed him to run over to his friend, and the pair both began talking animatedly, much to Sam's amusement.
"Mom, this is Charlie," Tom turned to Sam, allowing her to put a name to the face and she smiled warmly at the boy who seemed far more outgoing than Tom, "He's in my class at school. His dad coaches the team..."
"Dad!" The boy shouted, and a man appeared apparently out of nowhere, walking towards them and Sam's eyes diverted from the young boy to who she presumed was his father. His hair was ruffled in a way that made Sam want to run her hands through it, and eyes that were seemed to capture her as if she had reverted back to high school and falling at the feet of the quarterback. She smiled at him, nervously eyeing him as he approached, "This is my dad Jack." Charlie introduced the pair, and he leant forward to shake Sam's hand.
"Sam Carter," She introduced herself, "I'm Tom's mom."
Jack looked towards the boy at Sam's side with a smile, "Jack O'Neill. And on behalf of the team, I'd like to say thankyou for letting Tom to play for the team," His eyes drifted back towards Sam's, "He's an impressive player."
"Yeah, I've heard," Sam smiled in appreciation as Tom's confidence seemed to get a boost from his Coach's support. She leant towards her son, "You and Charlie want to go and join your friends?" She indicated towards a growing group of players by the fence of the field, "I'll catch up with you later," She kissed his forehead, and he rolled his eyes at her, causing a smirk from Charlie's father as she straightened up, watching the boys run to their friends.
"I meant that you know," Jack subtly moved towards her, "Tom is one heck of a player."
"Really?" Sam smiled, pride rising in her, "I always thought he played well but I figured it was probably just me being his mother..."
"No, he's impressive," Jack told her, as they leant against the tree trunk, shading themselves from the unusually hot weather, "Got a hell of a throw on him."
Sam smiled, watching Tom with his friends. A sense of sadness crept over her as she thought of losing the closeness she'd developed with her son, losing her son completely to his father. A father that had barely contacted him in his six years of life. She'd rationalised that the courts would unlikely side with Jonas, but doubt still plagued her abilities as a mother. She had a suspicion they always would. "Is Tom's father coming to watch?" Jack asked, looking towards the growing crowds of parents, "It's just a practice but I'm not sure how many good seats will be left..."
Sam shook her head, cutting him off, "Tom's father isn't coming," She said quietly, "They're...not in contact."
Jack looked uncomfortably down to the grass beneath his feet, "I didn't mean to pry..."
"Don't worry," She smiled at him, resting her hand on his arm in reassurance, "You weren't to know how much of a mess my life is." At those words, Jack's eyes distinctly widened and she smiled sympathetically in response, "Don't worry, I won't regale you with stories of my disastrous past."
Jack couldn't help but think that he didn't care what he was telling her, just as long as he could carry on listening to her.
x x x x x x x x
"I don't know what it is but I just want to get to know you"
"How did I do mom?" Sam could hear the question before Tom arrived, bounding towards her with his glove still gripped in his hand, Charlie running behind him, "How did I do?"
Sam leant down to pick her son up in her arms in a gesture that he would normally shun in public, but embraced her without shame in front of his friends like many of the other players had done, "You did fantastic," She whispered in his ear, "You were the best player on the team." Sam told him, putting him back down on the dusty ground, "Did you have a good time?"
"The best!" He smiled, looking towards Charlie who was chatting animatedly with his father, "Charlie said that Stevie and Tobey from school play too..." Sam knew Stevie and Tobey were sensible if slightly hyperactive boys from across town, and that Tom had warmed to them as soon as he'd met them.
"Well that sounds great..." She smiled, smoothing down his hair as he removed his helmet, "So I guess I'll be driving you here again next week then...?" She said, making the comment sound as casual as possible. It took her son only a millisecond before he realised the implication.
"You're coming to watch again?" He asked, his face exhibiting happiness at the prospect.
"Why not?" She smiled, her eyes glancing subtly at Jack who seemed to be watching her intently.
"What about work?" He asked, moving to join Charlie and Jack, "Thought you were supposed to have meetings..." He said slightly glumly, having learnt that meetings meant his mom would be away for the day, and he'd be left with his nanny Claire and a few videos.
"Cancelled them. For a long time." She replied, "You'll have to cope with me at your games for a while yet."
"Really?" His eyes widened, looking towards Charlie with a smile, "Mom normally has meetings at the Academy..." He explained to his friend as the two seemed to move apart from their parents, chatting together comfortably.
"Academy?" Jack questioned aa he overheard Tom's words, trying to squeeze all the information from Sam that he could.
She nodded, "I lecture Advanced Astrophysics at the Air Force Academy. Do you know it?"
A smile of recognition appeared on Jack O'Neill's face before it turned into a chuckle, "Uh, yeah, I do actually," He ran a lazy hand through his hair, "I'm an Air Force Colonel actually...semi-retired," He added, "I do a little consulting work for them."
Sam beamed, watching his every movement, "Maybe you sat in on one of my lectures?"
He shook his head in amusement, "I really can't see that."
"Why not?" She asked with an intrigued smile, moving to lean against the wire fence, turning her body towards Jack who was at her side.
"Advanced Astrophysics doesn't really sound like something I'd remotely understand..." He grinned at her, eliciting a laugh in response.
"You should pop in though..." She told him, "You seem like the kind of guy who'd pick up on it pretty quickly."
"I doubt it," He replied, "But I might sit in soon though. I hear the lecturer's pretty captivating..."
x x x x x x x
"You actually said that?" Kawalsky laughed gruffly, sipping the beer before turning to his friend, "With lines like that it's beyond me how you got Sara to marry you..."
"She divorced me pretty soon afterwards remember?" Jack paused with a sigh, fiddling with the beermat on the bar, "There's just something different about this one Charlie..."
"If she's the same Dr Carter I think you're talking about, then no wonder you're sweet on her," Charlie smiled wistfully, "Most of the me at the Academy are drooling over that woman."
"Really?" Jack sounded disappointed; she was bound to have had hundreds of better offers, if she wasn't already seeing someone anyway; a woman like her must have been snapped up immediately. And if not, he was not match to the MIT educated lecturers at the Academy, some of whom seemingly actually had lives.
"You like her a lot don't you?" Charlie noticed the inflection in his friend's voice, "As far as I know she's not dating anyone..."
"Is that a subtle hint to suggest I should ask her out?"
Kawalsky nodded enthusiastically while sipping his beer, "Why not? What have you got to lose? So she might reject you, but its not like you'll see her again..."
"Not till next Little League when her kid plays," Jack cut miserably in but his friend ignored the interruption.
"But she might say yes, and you'll either decide she's nothing like you thought, or she's more amazing than you thought."
"It'll definitely be the latter, although I'm not sure if its possible." Jack grinned, placing his bottle of beer down onto the bar as Charlie began to ramble about a brunette who had caught his eye on the other side of the bar and Jack tried to work out a way to ask Dr Samantha Carter out on a date...
x x x x x x x x x
In the end, he hadn't needed to think of an approach. Their respective sons had done it for them.
Pulling up to the last house on Westbrake Drive, he stopped in front next to a bounding Old English Sheepdog that Charlie scrambled out of the car to stroke, petting its head with a beaming smile, "Can we get one daddy?" He turned round to ask as Sam and Tom made an appearance down the garden step. He smiled in greeting to her, and receieved one in reply.
"We'll have to talk about it..."He said, neither a yes nor a no. If he was honest, he'd been wanting to get a dog mainly because he felt that an animal companion would be good for his son without his mother around.
"I warn you, they're incredibly clumsy..."Sam spoke with a smile as Charlie and Tom hugged the dog in turns, "Alfie's a right terror...anything expensive or important seems to end on the floor whenever he's around."
Jack grinned as he watched Charlie play affectionately with Alfie, "Well I think it'll be difficult to separate those two from each other..."He indicated towards the pair.
"Don't give me any ideas!" Sam rolled her eyes, "I love the old thing, but he's certainly destroyed my house..."Leaning down, she tapped Tom on the shoulder, "Do you two want to take Alfie inside to try and teach him some tricks?"
The pair instantly ran indoors, enthused with the suggestion, running up the stairs to the second storey, with their parents following close behind as the skies began to open over Colorado Springs. Shaking off the few droplets of rain he'd managed to catch on his coat, Jack hung it up on the rack next to the door, before following Sam towards the kitchen.
"Coffee?" She called back, taking two mugs from the cabinet regardlessly.
"Love one," He replied as he journeyed through the front room, books covering the walls with Tom's drawing stuck to any available space. A few family pictures adorned the kitchen, and he smiled fondly at a photo displaying a younger Sam with Tom as a little baby, sleeping in her arms, "How old was he there?"
Sam moved towards the photo Jack was gesturing at after turning on the kettle, "He must have been about three months there," She laughed, "It feels like yesterday that he was that age. Time passes so quickly."
"Tell me about it. Keep forgettting that Charlie's not a baby anymore," Jack sighed, "Its difficult to remember that he's allowed to play with his friends on his own without me watching him twenty four hours."
Sam leaned back against the counter, "I dread to think what I'm going to be like when he gets to high school." She smiled wistfully, "I guess the only consolation is that I didn't have a girl; I'd be panicking already about what boys she'd be dating once she got to sixteen."
Jack nodded, "I think I'd be the typical overbearing father, and scare away any potential suitors."
Sam smiled as she poured the coffees, "Here we are making boys sound a much easier deal...." She paused, "So how are you and Charlie since we last saw you on Saturday?"
Jack nodded, "We're good. Charlie's been pestering me since we left Little League to come over here so he can play with Tom."
A sigh of relief emanated from Sam's lips, "Thank God it's not just me. Tom's been constantly asking if they can play together even though they see each other every day at school. Kids huh?"
"Mmm..." He didn't want to mention that that morning he'd slightly suggested that if Charlie asked to play with Tom again, he'd telephone Sam and see what they could do, "They're certainly a crazy species. So how was your week at the Academy? Turn any laws of physics on their heads?" He asked with a small smile.
Sam paused, then a look of recognition appeared across her face, "You heard about that huh?"
Jack shrugged with a grin, "Maybe. I mentioned to someone that I'd met you, and he proceeded to tell me about all the scientific assumptions you'd smashed to pieces."
Sam knew she should have been proud of her work and what she'd achieved, but at that moment she couldn't see past the fact that Jack O'Neill had mentioned to someone that he'd met her. It wasn't as if he'd declared undying love, but she'd obviously made some sort of impression, "Yeah, well, its all in a days work."
"Modest to a fault then?" He asked, his gaze catching her own.
"Something like that," She smiled in response, staring into his eyes and wondering whether she was acting more like the high school version of herself rather than a sensible thirtysomething mother.
x x x x x x x x x x
They spent the next few months in the same routine; on Saturday mornings the boys would play together whilst Sam and Jack had "grown up conversation" in the kitchen before taking the boys to Little League where Sam would sit in the dugout with Jack, cheering on Tom who would constantly look to her for support. On Sundays, the location would alternate between the two houses, but the boys would rent a video and Sam would edge closer to Jack on the couch before having dinner and watching the sports roundup on the television as the boys began dozing from their full stomachs.
That Saturday morning was different as Sam rose from her bed, squinting at the bright light in the hall and stumbling towards the kitchen to make herself a coffee, and tidy herself up before Jack came round with Charlie. Sliding to the door, she gathered the post and walked back to the kitchen with her eyes half closed, her tiredness due to a full day of lectures on the Friday, and then a late-night conversation with her brother in San Diego where her father was recuperating from cancer.
Setting the various letters and bills on the counter, she poured herself a coffee and sat down on a barstool to browse through them before chucking away the inevitable junk mail. The first two were bills for water and cable, and the third was a letter from her friend Janet Fraiser telling her about a young girl she'd adopted after getting rid of her husband Bill. She smiled at reading her college friend's words and promised to ring her that night after Jack and Charlie had gone home. But the fourth letter she frowned at, the corporate symbol looking remarkably similar to that of her lawyer's. Suddenly the significance dawned on her, and she gripped her stomach as vomit threatened to rise. She'd been so busy she'd almost forgotten that Jonas' official petition for custody would be arriving any day.
She closed her eyes in pain as she tried to steady her breathing, not daring to open the letter; she knew the contents yet it would make it seem so much more real when she saw it on paper. It would make everything Jonas was planning to do so much more abhorrent.
Taking the plunge, she ripped open the envelope leaving the letter folded up on the counter where she could only read To Dr Carter. She was almost one hundred percent sure that if she read any further she end up sobbing her heart out before running to the toilet to throw up.
Carefully unfurling the letter, her eyes dragged across the words and she doubled over, almost in pain as she came to the end, reaching for the phone and dialling number one on her speed dial.
"Jack?" She whispered, "Its Sam, can you get over here?"
x x x x x x x x
Jack raced up the path, barely remembering to lock his Jeep as he unlocked the door with the key he'd exchanged with her, and walking into her house. He saw a blonde tuft of hair over the top of the counter and ran into the kitchen as she looked up into his eyes, a look displayed there that was unrecognisable to him.
"Sam? Are you OK?" He asked desperately, wondering why he was here. He'd picked up the phone to a hoarse Samantha Carter whose seven words caused a sense of worry within him as he dashed from his home to hers.
"Jonas-" She began and Jack realised what must have been contained in the letter. Sam had recently told him of the battle between the one devoted parent, and the other frequently absent over who should care for Tom. The ensuing legal battle that Sam's lawyer had told her was inevitable seemed like hell for both she and Tom. It made him grateful for his rather amicable divorce with Sara.
"He did it?" Jack walked towards her but he was surprised when she shook her head, "What do you mean?"
"He withdrew his request for custody..." She whispered, almost unable to believe it herself, "My attorney was trying to contact me all week but couldn't get hold of me...."
She rose from the stool, standing in front of him by only a few centimetres and a watery smile broke out on her face, "Tom's staying with me..." She beamed, wiping a few tears from her cheeks as the reality set in. Jack moved forward to wrap his arms around her, and she did the same, her body instantly relaxing in his embrace.
"I told you everything would be fine..." He whispered in her ear, and she pulled back with a shy smile, gazing into his eyes.
"Yes, you did." She said simply, his hands rubbing the small of her back and she wondered if she could stay with him forever, "You did.." She rested her forehead on his own, and relief flooded her mind as he opened himself to her gesture. Slowly she rubbed her nose with his, beginning an "Eskimo" style kiss before their lips met softly but quickly turning into a passionate embrace. Her hands rested around his neck, and his own shaped her waist and she was sure she'd never felt so wanted in her life. Even after her years with Jonas and the love that she thought he'd been, he'd never shown her such feeling through one kiss.
They both pulled back reluctantly through lack of oxygen and smiled at each other dopily, and Sam moved her head to his shoulder. "That was...."
"Unexpected?"
"Good." She amended, placing a light kiss on his neck. "It was better than good."
"I was thinking exactly the same thing."
x x x x x x x x x
"Bernstein's Principle of flight as you can see..." She pointed to the blackboard marked with various equations, "...is not perfect. We can find many instances whereupon it would not function as Bernstein intended some of which we have explored today." Looking to the clock with a sigh, she decided to wrap up her lecture as she could tell her students were itching to leave the stuffy auditorium where she taught her "Astrophysics 101" as some had nicknamed it, "I think thats enough for today," She told her class who collectively sighed in relief, "I want you all to research Bernstein's other theories and be prepared to present them to the class."
She watched as they all left and the noise in the lecture hall fell to zero and she watched admiringly as her last "student" walked down the steps with a grin on his face.
"So you came to one of my lectures after all?" She grinned, as he approached her with a shrug.
"Turns out I know even less about astrophysics than I thought ." He told her, backing her up against the desk predatorily.
"Really?" She lifted herself to sit on the edge of the table as he stood between her slightly open legs, reaching his lips gently. But before anything could get really interesting she heard the lecture hall door creak open and the pair jumped apart as she looked towards a worried second year student who was evidently nervous about receiving the wrath of a lecturer who she'd interrupted in a private moment.
"I-I-I'm sorry..." She stuttered as she looked from her to her companion with a blush rising on her face, "I-I-I'll go..." She made a start back towards the door but Sam took pity on the anxious girl and ushered her back to the desk where Jack stood with his hands in his pockets and a smirk on his face.
"What is it you wanted help with Milly?" Sam asked, finally remembering the girl's name.
"Well Doctor Carter...I-I-I mean, Doctor O'Neill..." She corrected herself, smiling awkwardly at Jack, "I was wondering if you could give me some pointers on...." She began reciting an essay question that another physics professor had assigned her.
"I'll be waiting in the car," Jack signalled towards the door as Milly paused for a few seconds.
Sam smiled as she watched him leave, turning back to her student who was getting progressively more anxious about her likelihood of failing the course.
x x x x x x x x
After ten minutes of calming the girl, Sam clambered into the car, putting her suitcase in the footwell as she fastened her seatbelt. Planting a kiss on the cheek of her husband, she turned round to look at the two ten year olds sitting in the back seats. "How are my boys?" She asked with a smile as they drove from the Academy carpark.
"We're good mom," Tom answered and Charlie nodded enthusiastically in reply, "Dad says he's taking us to get a friend for Alfie..."
"Did he now?" Sam rolled her eyes as Jack wordlessly pleaded his case, but noticing the look of excitement on both Charlie's and Tom's faces, she obviously couldn't get them to wait for tomorrow, "Well let's hope they've got some at the store for us..."
"Thanks mom!" The boys chorused, turning back to each other to discuss what name they'd choose for the dog, trying to decide between Bart, Homer and Krusty.
Turning on the radio to some soft Jazz that Jack liked so much, Sam settled into her seat, "So why did you come to some boring lecturer talk about astrophysics?" She asked with a smile.
Jack shrugged as he kept his eyes on the road, "I'm not sure really but I did hear the lecturer was pretty captivating..."
Sam blushed, as she moved her hand to rest on Jack's knee, squeezing it as they drove. Sam had heard her "student" was pretty captivating too...
Possibly continued with "I'm Gonna Get You, Get You..."