Mysterious Distance

Part 3

"I do not take advantage of drunken women, Carter. Get inside before I have you brought up on changes for conduct unbecoming an officer."

She just stood there. Drunk, lustful, and defiant.

Then the lust and defiance melted and she started to cry. And Jack had absolutely no idea of what to do with a crying and drunk Carter. Crying Carter just wasn't right. It had to be against the laws of nature. He'd only had to face her tears once and at the time he'd felt like crying himself. So he did the same thing he'd done that time. He opened his arms and said, "C'mere."

Sam dived into his arms. She buried her face into his flannel shirt and her arms slid around him under his jacket holding onto him desperately. She stood there crying into his arms for so long Jack's bad knee began to ache, so he walked her over to the couch. She settled onto his lap and proceeded to cry into his neck. Jack held onto her and rubbed his hands soothingly up and down her back.

Finally, Sam stops crying and Jack could only assume that she must be completely dehydrated by then. "Are you okay now?" he asks her quietly.

"No." she muttered and he felt her head shake against.

"You wanna tell me what's wrong?"

Another head shake. "No."

"Anything I can do to help?"

"Stay."

"Carter…" he began in warning.

"No. Just stay. Watch a movie with me or something. I don't wanna be alone."

"I can do that."

"Thank you."

She still continued to sit there in his lap with her face still hidden in his neck. "Why don't you go take a shower and put on your pajamas, get comfortable?" he suggested gently. "And I'll go pop some popcorn, okay?"

She nodded into his neck and then pushed herself to her feet.

---

When Sam came back into the living room, Jack had shed his jacket and shoes and was sitting on the couch with his feet propped up on the coffee table. Sam silently sat down next to him. Her hair was damp from her shower and she was wearing the flannel pajamas patterned with atomic symbols that Daniel had given her a last year for Christmas. She avoided looking at him and seemed a little embarrassed. He hoped she had sobered up some, but by the amount of tequila she had consumed he was sure she was still pretty drunk. He passed her a bowl of popcorn and was pleased to see her smile when she noticed that it was covered in melted butter. Just the way she liked it. "Thank you, sir," she said quietly.

"So what are we gonna watch?"

"Would you mind 'Singin' In The Rain'?" she asked a little shyly.

"No. Are you nuts? I love musicals."

She giggled a little bit at that. "You do not."

"Sure I do. What's my favorite movie?"

" 'The Wizard of Oz'."

"See. Besides wasn't I the one that finagled four tickets for 'The Producers' and convinced Hammond that Teal'c needed to experience Broadway and the Big Apple?" Jack asked as he got up. He dug through her DVDs a minute until he found 'Singin' In The Rain' and popped it in.

"Yes, sir," Sam said as she grinned at the memory. That had been the last SG-1 'field trip', just before Pete, Janet's death, the defeat of Anubis, and the promotions. It made her sad to think those days were over. So much had changed in the last year.

"Hey," he said and she looked up at him standing before her. "No more tears. I won't have you bawlin' through such a damn good movie. I won't be able to sing along."

"Please don't, sir." Sam couldn't help but smile as she wiped the remaining tears away. "Or you will have me crying."

"Whatcha tryin' to say?"

"Nothin'," she said around a mouthful of popcorn.

"Thought not." Jack settled down beside her and pressed play.

---

Jack awoke shortly after dawn. For one blissful beautiful moment, Jack was truly and completely happy.

Then he remembered what he had done.

---

"JACK!"

At Daniel's bellow Jack came racing out of his office and nearly fell over Siler who was working on some equipment nearby.

"JACK!"

"What?! Daniel, what are you yellin' about?"

BAAMM!

"Jack, you sonavabitch!"

Jack landed with a sickly thud of his head on the floor.

"You goddamned selfish bastard!"

Before Jack even had a chance to fathom what was going on, Daniel was on him again.

"You promised you'd look after her! You fucking bastard!"

"Doctor Jackson! Let the General go!" Siler attempted to pull Daniel off of Jack. "Doctor Jackson!"

CLACK! CLACK! CLACK! CLACK!

"Daniel Jackson, release O'Neill!"

Daniel blinked and looked up to see that he was surrounded by SFs with guns drawn, Siler holding his wrench as if he was about to wack him with it, and Teal'c glowering down at him.

Daniel allowed himself to be pulled off of Jack and dragged away.

"Ah, crap…" Jack mumbled trying to sit up, but the room started to spin so he laid back down.

"General O'Neill, are you all right?"

"No. And to think I was the one to encourage Daniel to start working out. Somebody wanna tell me what the hell that was about?"

"Doctor Jackson attacked you, sir."

"I got that part, Siler."

"Daniel Jackson seemed most displeased with you, O'Neill."

"Ya think?" Jack rubbed his jaw where Daniel's initial punch had hit.

"General, you need to come down to the infirmary," Dr. Brightman appeared at his side from nowhere.

"No. I need to talk to Daniel."

"General…"

Jack ignored the doctor and held out a hand to Teal'c. "C'mon, help me up. Let's go talk to Daniel."

---

TBC