Disclaimer: See every other chapter ever posted here.
A/N: Nope, not much here today, just an apology for taking a while with this one.
A Family Holiday
Sam
"Come on Sam, this is not the morning to sleep in! It's Christmas! Time for presents!"
Sam groaned and rolled over in the small lumpy bed.
God! He's as bad as a two year old!
"Grow up Mark. You rarely get up before noon. Couldn't you at least let me sleep til 7? Everything will still be there in an hour or two. The sun's not even up."
"Oh fine, spoilsport."
Mark pouted and headed out of the room.
"You could always go wake Mom and Dad."
Sam tossed at his retreating back. She could practically hear his eyes roll. She flopped back on the bed and tried to fall back to sleep.
Great! Now I'm actually awake. Well I can't exactly go let Mark know that he won…how to kill time?
As she leaned over to search for the book she knew she'd brought with her to her grandparents' house, she caught sight of Cupid sitting on her bedside table and an image of Jack as he'd been on Saturday, a goofy grin plaster on his face had her pausing to stifle a quick giggle.
oOo Flashback oOo
They'd been at the mall for almost two hours and Jack was beginning to get antsy. For the first hour he'd been good, helping Sam pick out the perfect video game, DVD, and CD for Mark. He'd gotten bored while she'd finished picking out the prefect gift for Cassie. Now they were in Spencer's so Sam could pick out a gag gift for Jonas.
"How bout this?"
Sam looked over to where Jack was holding up a corset and panty set in fire red pleather with black trim.
"I don't think it comes in Jonas's size Jack."
"What about Cassie's size?"
"Ja-ack! Didn't need to think about that! Besides," Sam said as she looked through the rack, "I think this one's much prettier."
Sam held up a tank top with matching boy shorts in pale blue. The bottom of the tank and most of the shorts were made of a sheer mesh material. Jack's eye darkened and widened as he took in the outfit.
"In your dreams pal," Sam murmured in his ear as she put the set back. "I'm going to go look at the key chains. Entertain yourself for a few minutes, will you."
oOo
Sam looked around the store for Jack. She'd finished picking out the perfect snarky keychain for Jonas and she was ready to go. Noting that he was browsing through the holiday display at the front of the store Sam made an impulse decision and headed over to the cashier. After she'd made her purchase and stuffed the new bag inside the old one, she walked over to Jack, who stood with his back to her.
"Ready to go Jack?"
"Just a second. What do you think of this as part of my Christmas Eve outfit?"
He placed a set of antlers on his head and turned around expectantly. Sam began to laugh. He had on a fake red nose to compliment the antlers and a gigantic grin.
"I'm not sure Pastor Peter would approve. It would be rather distracting."
Eventually she convinced him to put the costume pieces away and they headed out of the store.
oOo End Flashback oOo
That was a fun day. Actually it was a fun weekend. I love coming here for Christmas, but I wish Jack was here too. I wonder what he's doing now. Probably sleeping, like I should be. Stupid brother!
Jack
Jack was thrashing back and forth in his bed, caught in the grip of a not so pleasant dream.
oOo Jack's Dream oOo
They were under fire, from the front and off to his left, a dense forest behind them and ridgeline off to his right. Sam, Daniel, and T were crouched alongside him behind a fallen log.
"So much for friendly natives. Darn Snakeheads! Fall back to the Stargate. T, you take point."
Snakeheads? Stargate?
"Carter, you're with Daniel. I'll be right behind you."
Carter?
His friends took off running while Jack returned fire. After he'd counted to 10 he went after them. Before long he'd caught up with Sam who'd stopped to cover his retreat. He grabbed her arm, yanking her along with him as he passed. Sam hadn't been prepared for this and she stumbled, tripping both of them. Jack began a long string of mental curses as they toppled down into the ravine below them. He tried to roll so that he landed underneath Sam, but by the time they reached the bottom they were laying alongside each other both seriously banged up.
Crap! What the Hell is going on here?
Jack sat up slowly, one hand pressed to his forehead, and looked around. The ravine was narrow, with steep, rocky sides and a small stream trickling under Sam, who lay a few feet away unmoving. He rolled to his knees and crawled, wincing in pain, over to Sam. He turned her onto her back and leaned over to check her pulse and breathing before running his hands over her to check for broken bones. Her pulse was weak and her breaths were shallow, but nothing seemed broken.
"Carter…Carter…wake up! We need to move. We're too exposed here. Carter! Carter!"
Why am I calling her Carter? She's still not moving! This can't be good.
"Samantha…Sam."
Jack whispered in her ear, brushing a strand of damp hair off her forehead. She shifted slightly into his hand and mumbled unintelligibly. Breathing a small sigh of relief Jack looked around them again. This time he spotted an overhang several yards upstream from their current position, at a bend in the ravine. He struggled to his feet, stifling groans of pain. Jack bent down and hefted Sam's limp form into his arms. He staggered across the rocky terrain towards the small cave. When he reached his goal he sank down with his back to the wall trying to ignore the shooting pain in his knees. He tucked Sam's head under his chin, cradling her body against his chest.
"We're going to be okay Sam. I just need to …"
Exhaustion took over as adrenaline fled and Jack passed out with Sam in his arms.
oOo
"Wake up sleepy head."
Jack stirred at the hand rocking his shoulder.
"I know you're a tired, over-worked, college student, but it's after 10 am on Christmas. Time to get up."
"I'm up…I'm up. Happy Mom?"
"If you're not downstairs in ten minutes I'm sending your father up, mister."
Jack groaned and pushed himself to a sitting position.
What was that dream? What does that all seem so familiar? Calling Samantha, Carter…being in charge of her and Danny and T…Stargate? Why this? Why now? What happened to good old fashioned wet dreams? Of course if I'd been having that dream it would have been damn awkward for Mom. With my luck she would've woken me up at exactly the wrong moment and I'd have been screaming 'Samantha'. I'm not sure I'd have been able to go downstairs after that. Too late to go back to sleep now. Time to go see what reality brings.
Sam
"Awe! Thanks Mark!"
Sam had just finished unwrapping a teddy bear with incredibly soft fur, proudly sporting a T-shirt with his college's logo emblazoned across the chest.
"Well I figured sine you seem to have made up your mind about where you were going already I'd just be the first to welcome you to the club."
"This better not jinx it! I've barely even sent in my application."
"Like they'd let in a dimwit like me and not my geeked out little sis…."
"You said it…not me!"
"Now children…must you do this this morning? The banter is cute, but I haven't even had my coffee yet."
"Sorry Mom. Why don't you open this while Mark gets your coffee?"
God I've missed this….Where did that come from? How can I miss this? My family? I'm still living at home. Weird.
As Mark walked to the kitchen Sam popped up from her seat on the floor and stole his seat on the couch, curling up next to her grandfather. Sam watched her family interact around her smiling and dreaming about one day sharing something like this with Jack.
oOo Sam's dream oOo
It was spring, just barely. The temperature was just warm enough for them to be sitting outside without jackets and they were taking advantage of it. Sam looked over at the man sitting next to her on the small dock, a fishing pole in the water. His hair had gone grey and his face had aged over the years, but he remained incredibly handsome to her. There were slight bags under his eyes as if he'd just begun to relax/recover from a very stressful situation. They sat close together, not quite touching, without talking, a silent understanding between people who had spent so long together.
"We should have done this years ago."
"Yes, well, let's not dwell."
A noise from the cabin behind them caused Sam to turn her head slightly. Danny and T were coming around the corner of the cabin carrying a large camping cooler between them.
"Catch anything yet Jack?"
"Nope. All quiet here."
"I believe you are wasting you time O'Neill. There are no fish in this place."
"Not the point T. Not the point at all."
As if to contradict them all a solitary fish jumped in the pond.
"Close enough."
Danny grabbed some beers out of the cooler and carried them out onto the dock. Sam took one and smiled at Jack as he took the other. The foursome sat in comfortable silence as the sun set over the lake.
oOo
Interesting. Where did Danny and T come from? I know Jack considers them good friends, but family? I would have though we'd have kids by that point in our lives. I wonder if cabins like that exist. It seems like the perfect vacation spot. Maybe some day…
The word 'always' whispered through Sam's mind in Jack's voice, causing her to start slightly. She straightened on the couch, returned to the familiar scene of her grandparents' house filled with her family on Christmas, and smiled knowing that whatever happened she'd always have the people in front of her to support her.
A/N2: Okay so this note's a little longer. I wanted people to come into this chapter with an open mind. So this is not what I originally intended when I sat down to write the chapter, but it is what came out. So I figured I'd put it up, especially since I couldn't get Sam and Jack to cooperate when I tried to rewrite. I guess I've made my decision about where I'm going at the end of this fic. Adult angst coming soon, well as soon as I get through 'The Holidays' anyways. If this gets totally flamed I may consider a third attempt at writing this chapter, but until then I'm going to continue with what I've got. Happy Easter to all who celebrate.
