After talking to Teal'c, Daniel returned to Sam's room ready to explain his absence. Luckily the others had already been shooed out my the nursing staff so Daniel only had to speak to Sam. She listened and understood. After that the days went by fast. Sam was released two days after little Jacob was born and Daniel was by her side, agreeing to stay with them until more permeant arrangements could be made.
From the day they brought the baby home life had never been the same. No one slept through the night. At first things went smoothly. Sam and Daniel took alternating turns getting up with little Jacob, but by the second week it was just Sam getting up with him. Daniel and Sam slept in two separate rooms, both being near the nursery.
Sam was a wreck and hadn't slept 3 strait hours for over a month. Jacob had colic and spent most of the night screaming. He would start at 6PM faithfully and scream until midnight when he fell asleep. Sam started to wonder what she had gotten herself into. Life had become something foreign to her. Sam woke up at the crack of dawn each morning after going to bed at midnight and waking up with him for a 3AM feeding. When he woke up in the morning, he was a different baby. She would feed him and he would go back to sleep for two hours while Daniel was getting ready for work, he had requested to be assigned back at the SGC but not on SG-1 due to the tension between him and Jack, and she was fixing breakfast.
The rest of the day was much better, but because she was so tired it was a blur. The baby was happy and would sleep on and off so Sam would go lay down and see if she could get some sleep to re-energize herself for the evening of screaming that she always knew would come. She needed that rest to make it through the night with the baby.
By the time Daniel would come home the baby was fussy and would only want his mother. He would scream on and off in her arms, but if his father took him he would scream constantly. Daniel felt like his own son didn't know him or even like him for that matter. Daniel would see how Jacob was during the day on the weekends and he could never believe that it was the same baby when the sun went down. During the day he was happy and easy going. At night he was anything but. A lot of times Daniel would leave for a couple of hours because he couldn't take it any longer. Life was not how anyone had pictured it. It was a mess. Sam was always tired and in a bad mood when it came to Daniel. Having a baby wasn't easy and it changed everything.
Sam had Jacob in her arms and was getting lunch for herself. Jacob was quiet as he usually was during the day. He was looking around at things and being an angel. The phone rang just as she was about to sit down at the table. She placed the baby in his chair that was sitting in the center of the table and picked up the phone."Hello?"
"Hi honey." The voice on the other end of the end said.
"Dad," Sam smiled.
"How are you?" The Elder Jacob asked his daughter.
"Tired. You?" Was Sam's reply.
"I'm fine," Jacob smiled on the other end which was located in General Hammond's office deep inside Cheyenne mountain. "I heard parenthood wasn't agreeing with you so I'm going to give you a little break. I'm coming to see you this weekend."
"What?" Was Sam's startled reply. She couldn't figure out how he found out.
"After talking to Jack, who was very livid during the conversation, I think it's time you took a little break. Don't feel like you have to entertain me. I'm coming to help you out." Was what Jacob said.
Sam smiled. "That sounds great."
"Good." Jacob was glad to know that his daughter wasn't refusing help like she usually did. He thought she must be desperate. "It's awfully quiet there."
"That's because it's day time. Call after the sun goes down and you'll think you reached hell." Sam said, sarcastically.
Jacob laughed. "It can't be that bad. You're exaggerating."
"Am I? Jake's screaming and Daniel comes home and does nothing. He won't even take the baby for me so I can eat. I have to eat with a screaming newborn in my arms. He goes to bed at 10PM and I get there around 1AM and wake up again at 3AM and then when I get up at 6AM, I'm up all day unless the baby let me take a nap which doesn't happen very often. Daniel does nothing. Sometimes he even has the nerve to leave. I can't leave at all. He never stays home so I can get a break."
Jacob listened to his daughter go on. He knew she needed it. "You never go out?"
"Never! And I don't know why he won't stay with the baby. It's like newborns scares him." Sam said with a confused tone of voice. "I just don't understand, Dad. When we were on Kemet Daniel was a completely different guy. He was happy and would do anything in regards to the baby. Now...Now I'm not even sure that he wants to be apart of this family anymore."
"I'll be there Friday morning. Saturday you can sleep in and go out somewhere with your husband." Jacob said quickly. He didn't know things had gotten this bad.
"Thank you so much, Dad. But how did you get permission from the Tok'ra to stay an entire weekend on Earth?" Sam asked.
"How is the baby?" Jacob wanted to change the topic since he had to promise and threaten many things in order to be allowed to stay for so long.
"At the moment he's perfect angel. Jake, which is what Sam calls little Jacob when Daniel isn't around, is sitting in his baby seat looking at me." Sam knew what her father was doing so she dropped the subject and was thankful for his willingness to help.
"Adorable," Jacob smiled. "What does he look like now?" He had come to visit two weeks after the baby was born, but hadn't seen him since due to missions and such that he had been assigned. He was now 6 weeks old.
"I think he has his father's eyes, still no hair, but other than that he looks like a Carter."
"Uh oh." Jacob said, good heartedly.
"What?" Sam asked.
"He's gonna be a big boy and if he's anything like the rest of us Carters's he's going to have a stubborn streak a half a mile wide."
"For now he's the cutest thing you've ever seen in your life. He has the chubbiest little cheeks you've ever seen and they're perfect." Sam smiled, looking at her son.
"I can't wait to see him." Jacob said.
"I can't wait to sleep past 6AM." Replied Sam.
Jacob laughed. He remembered those days with a colicky baby well. But for him it was two babies. Sam and her brother Mark both had colic when they were babies. "Hang in there honey, and have a bed ready for me."
"I will. Thank you, Dad." Sam was thankful to have such a understanding father.
"No problem. I love you and tell little Jacob I love him. Oh and give him a kiss from me." Jacob said.
"I will. Love you." Sam hung up the phone and looked at the baby in front of her. "Mommy is so happy. Grandpa is gonna come and see us and help me for a few days. What do you think of that? Are you gonna smile for me?" Jake looked at her and a smile started to spread across his chubby face. He had just started to smile within the last couple of days. "Aw, you're such a good boy."
She leaned over and gave the child a kiss on the head. "That's from your grandpa." She then stood up to get her lunch.
Daniel came home a little after 6 and the baby was already screaming while Sam was walking around trying to calm him down. Daniel sat his things by the door and froze. This was a normal thing for him, coming home to a screaming baby. He felt the urge to run but, instead, stood frozen in place.
Sam looked at Daniel. "Eat your dinner because I have something for you to do after."
"Ok." Daniel's reply sounded forced.
Sam walked away with the baby and sat down on the couch. She had him laying on his stomach on her lap while she rubbed his back. It usually calmed him down for a while and it was working at the moment. Sam stood up and held the baby on her arm so he was resting on his stomach. She walked into the kitchen and saw Daniel putting his dishes in the sink.
Daniel looked at her and smiled. "Hi. He's calmed down?"
"For now." Sam sat down in the chair and placed the baby on her lap like she had him in the living room. "Dad called today. He's coming Friday to stay with us for the weekend."
"Really? How did he manage that? The Tok'ra aren't really understanding when it comes to Jacob taking leave." Daniel stated the obvious and wondered why he wasn't informed by General Hammond that Jacob was coming.
"Yes. He's gonna help me with the baby for a few days so I can get some rest." Sam's voice was tense and even when she spoke.
"That's nice of him." Still Daniel was confused to why Sam would need help with JD.
"Yes. How was your day. Daniel?" Sam asked. She asked the same thing every day and basicly knew what Daniel would say.
"Same as always. How was JD?" Daniel asked with a good amount of concern in his voice.
"Great until an hour ago." Sam snapped.
"I could hear him when I came in." Daniel eyed the boy for a moment then looked at Sam strangely.
Sam stood up and handed the baby to him. "He's all yours for a few hours. I'm going out."
"What?" Daniel said, panicked. He couldn't be alone with a baby that hated him. He didn't even know how to take care of him. He looked at the small child in his arms.
Sam walked toward the door with Daniel hot on her heals. "You heard me. I'm going out like you do and leaving you with a screaming baby. You can take care of a newborn. It isn't very hard and I won't be gone very long.
"Sam…" Panicked blue eyes, gazed, pleadingly at Sam. "Don't do this Sam." Daniel said.
"I pumped some breast milk, it's in the refrigerator. I'm going." Sam grabbed her coat and purse and gave the baby a kiss. "Bye baby." Then she was out the door before Daniel could protest anymore.
Daniel was stunned. She had never done that before. He had never stayed alone with the baby and she had never been without the baby before. He looked at JD with wide eyes. "What just happened?" Jacob's lip started to quiver and then he started to scream again. "No, don't do that. I can't stand it when you do that. What's the matter? You have to tell me. I'm a doctor and I can't stand it when I can't deal with something that I don't understand." He talked and walked with his screaming newborn son for three hours. JD wouldn't stop screaming even for two minutes. Daniel didn't know what to do. He had never been left alone like that. He had this tiny baby in his arms that wouldn't stop screaming. He didn't know how his life ended up like that.
Sam came home at 9PM and already knew things weren't going well. She could hear her baby screaming from one of the other rooms.
Daniel raced to the door where his wife was. "Thank God you're home. He hasn't stopped screaming." He looked frazzled and ready to cry himself.
"It's always that way." Sam said evenly.
"No! Not like this." Daniel handed the baby over to her after she had her coat off. "I can't take anymore."
"Where are you going, Daniel?" Sam asked her husband.
"For a walk. I need to clear my head." Daniel had already grabbed his coat and was putting it on.
"What?" Sam asked, confused.
"Sam, he's been screaming. I was the only one home. I'm leaving. Goodnight." Was all that Daniel said.
Sam stood with her mouth open when the door shut. "What the hell?" She looked down at the baby. "I know honey. You don't like the night time. Mommy doesn't either." Sam bounced the baby for a few minutes while she fixed him a bottle of milk she had pumped earlier. "I know baby. I know you're mad. You don't like it at night. It's okay baby. Momma's here and nothing is gonna happed to you." He started to quiet down as she talked to him. "Did you miss me tonight? I missed you even though I knew you were here screaming" Sam gave the baby the bottle that she was preparing. That was what he wanted and he dozed off for a half an hour before waking up again. He wasn't nearly as bad when his mother was there as long as she held him close and talked to him.
Daniel walked into the house at 11PM and saw Sam sitting on the couch with the baby in her arms. He was asleep and she was starting to doze off but perked up when she saw her husband walk in. He knew he was in trouble, but there was no turning back now.
"Hi." Was the only thing Daniel could think to say.
"Come sit down," Sam said evenly.
Daniel sat down in the chair across from her and looked at her. "Sorry about tonight."
"You should be!" Sam said lowly. She didn't want to disturb the baby.
"I know!" Daniel was getting frustrated.
"Why the hell did you walk out like that?" Sam wanted answers and she wanted them now.
"I couldn't take it anymore." Was Daniels only reply as he looked down at his hands.
"Daniel, I'm left with this every night and there are a lot of nights that you leave me all alone. You don't do anything to help?" Sam needed to know the reason.
"Sam, he doesn't want me. He wants you. I can't do anything about that. I'm here on the weekends and I love to see that side of him, but I can't stand it at night." Daniel said.
"He's the same baby at night that he is during the day. He has colic. All we can do is comfort him." Sam was getting pissed at Daniel.
"I know, but I want to understand it. I'm a doctor. I have a need to understand things. You just don't understand." Daniel said.
Sam's eyes grew wide and looked like they were ready to throw fire. "I don't understand? My child is crying like he's hurting and there isn't a damn thing I can do about it! You don't think I want to fix that?"
"I do. Sam, I can't help it. I can't take this like you can. I never had any brothers or sisters growing up. Hell, I didn't even get along with kids my age because I'd rather be reading than playing." Daniel said. " Listen, I have to go to work in the morning. I'm going to bed." He had to end the conversation before he blew up at her. That wouldn't be good.
Sam rolled her eyes and didn't say anything else. She was mad and it wasn't the time to fight. The baby was asleep at 11PM and that was the earliest he had ever gone to sleep, and she didn't want to ruin that. She wanted him to stay that way for as long as possible.
Sam walked into her bedroom after having laid the baby in the bassinet which was located in the nursery. Then she laid down on her side and let the tears of frustration fall. Maybe Daniel didn't love her. Maybe she was kidding herself thinking that they could actually be family. She fell asleep with those thoughts.