A/N: Okay, i totally didn't notice this before when i did it, but i'd posted 56&7 together b/c that's how i got it back from my beta and didn't want to take the time to separate them, so when i put up ch. 58 i put it in 57, so it was never put out there for you guys to review or even read, so you can all go back and read that first, thanks!
The ride home between Jack and Nate was eerily silent as Nate tried to figure out what was going on in his guardian's head. Now he was just getting pissed off, and was about ready to explode when Jack pulled the truck over to the side of the road.
They sat for a moment, neither speaking. Jack drummed his fingers on the steering wheel as if he was thinking of what to say next, though those that knew him could tell it was part of his interrogation tactics.
Nate couldn't take it anymore.
"I'm sorry, Jack!" He threw his hands up and slapped his knees, turning in his seat to face the older man. "I'm sorry I didn't call. Cassie and I were talking and before I knew it, we were falling asleep on the bed. We didn't mean to, and I know I should have called. We didn't do anything. She thought I was a Goa'uld at first. We spent the night talking, and fighting, and she told me about her real parents. Jack, please don't be mad at her for this."
He huffed a breath and fell back against the seat, his head hitting the headrest hard.
Of course, all Jack heard was, "Didn't call… Cassie and I… asleep on the bed… Goa'uld… and fighting." His blood pressure was rapidly rising and he knew he needed to get to Janet's so they could put the kids and themselves out of their misery.
Jack restarted the truck without responding to Nate and headed on down the road towards the Fraisers'.
They pulled in the drive not ten minutes later and both men hopped silently out of the truck. Jack didn't knock on the Doc's front door, they were expecting him, and he grasped Nate's shoulder, leading him into the study. He closed the door behind the young man, not following him in, and left. Nate noticed Cassie sitting alone in the room, and sat himself in the chair next to her.
He turned slightly in the chair, and rested a hand softly on her knee, catching her attention.
"Hey," he whispered. "You okay?"
Cassie's head jerked up, her eyes widening as she saw he was really okay, and threw herself into his arms.
"He shot you, Nate!"
Nate ran soothing hands up and down her back, desperate to calm her. "Shh. I'm okay."
Cassie wiped her eyes, somewhat embarrassed at her outburst. In her own defense, it had been a very trying day. She pulled back out of Nate's arms and cleared her throat. "Has Jack said anything to you? I've been getting the silent treatment all day."
"Yeah, me too. I don't know what's going on."
The door behind them opened, causing both to jump and Levi snickered in Nate's head at his skittishness. Janet walked in, holding a few sheets of paper in her hands and sat down behind the desk in front of the teens. She didn't say anything right away.
"Dr. Fraiser?" Nate spoke up softly.
"Nathan." She set the paper down and folded her hands in front of her, glancing between the two before her. "I don't think the two of you quite realize the consequences of your actions last night."
She slid two pieces of paper in front of them and said, "We made a few calls today. Those are the phone records from the O'Neill's and our phones. However, that's not why you two are sitting here in front of me."
At that point, both Nate and Cassie realized that they'd end up talking to Jack as well, but were grateful Janet was their first torturer.
"I have never seen such foolish acts from two people with such level heads. I don't know what you two were thinking, but there were more ramifications than just a lot of wasted time looking for you, Nate. Colonel and Major O'Neill were very helpful last night in recording Sam's blood pressure and heart rate while all this was going on.
"Sam came dangerously close to having those children last night. I gave Major O'Neill certain parameters to make sure Sam stayed out of trouble and the two of you almost jeopardized that. This is a high risk pregnancy as it is with Sam's age, the fact that it's twins, and one of the baby's has a heart murmur. This is serious, you two."
Cassie and Nate both hung their heads in shame. Neither wanted anything to happen to Sam or the babies, especially Nate, since they were being kind enough to find his brother for him.
Janet sighed. "On another note, as a doctor, I'm relieved you didn't go any farther last night. There're too many diseases out there for either of you to be risking yourselves, not to mention pregnancy-"
"Mom!" Cassie turned bright red from embarrassment
"Cassandra, I don't think you understand the seriousness of this."
"Yes, I do! I already took all these classes in school. We didn't do anything."
"We know, Cass. You needed time to think this over, about the consequences of what you'd done. You're both bright kids. I don't want to see you have to give up on any of your dreams." Janet came around and sat on the edge of the desk, her hands folded in her lap.
"Dr. Fraiser, I only came by to talk to Cassie. I needed someone to talk to. I'm going on that mission tomorrow and I couldn't sleep last night. Levi says I was thinking too much. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry anybody. I just need to remember I'm not on my own anymore." He locked eyes with the doctor and let her see he meant what he said.
"Nate, we all like you, even Jack, though he probably won't tell you, but this was a warning. No more stunts like this. Jack was out driving in that storm last night, thinking the worst." Janet gave a soft smile at the two. Now that the worst was over, she didn't have to be the Napoleonic Power Monger the Colonel had branded her as.
"Jack's waiting for you two."
She ushered them out to the den where Jack had been waiting patiently. Nate and Cassie stood until waved for them to take a seat. Janet left quietly and Jack scootched forward in his seat to face the two teenagers before him. There was no emotion on his face, and Nate had seen that look on enough CO's to know it usually wasn't good.
Jack's voice was low as he spoke. "Janet's told you we almost had to take Sam to the hospital last night?"
They both nodded their heads, neither wanting to look Jack in the eyes.
"What's gotten into you, Cass?" Jack threw up his hands in frustration. He ran his hands threw his hair, gripping the strands at the back. "I can't believe this!"
He turned to Nate and shoved his finger in his face. "You should have called us! Sam was worried about you. We take our responsibility as your guardians seriously, Nathan."
Nate swallowed and shifted uncomfortably.
"She's fifteen!"
"We weren't doing anything, Jack!" Nate growled defensively.
"Jack, he's only two years older than me. I'm not going to stay a timid little girl forever."
He knew that, of course, but "De Nile" ain't just a river in Egypt, either.
"I know what really happened, Cassie, I saw the tag, and I'm sorry you had to drag that out, but I don't understand why none of you, Levi included, didn't bother to call us. We needed to know what was going on. Nate, you're not on your own anymore. There are people who care about you."
Cassie squeezed Nate's knee, an action that didn't go unnoticed by Jack. He sighed internally, and let himself acknowledge the fledgling relationship between the two. In all honesty, he preferred Cassie was with someone he knew, but if anything happened tomorrow, the girl would be crushed.
Jack felt deflated and knew the two had suffered enough during the day. He was getting soft in his old age. Oh, man, what did that say about how he'd handle Neal or the twins?
"You know we're not as upset with you guys as we let on, right?"
"You SHOT me!"
Jack stifled a laugh. "That was only to make a point. You two needed time to think about what had happened. The Doc was livid when she found the two of you, but once it had been pointed out that you were both clothed, she calmed down a little bit. I just want to know the two of you will never pull anything like this again?"
By this time, Cassie had tears running down her cheeks. "That was so mean, Jack. I hated seeing the looks in your eyes. Mom looked so disappointed."
Cassie got up and walked over to Jack, settling down next to him, almost in his lap. She wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in his neck. "I'm sorry."
Jack put his arms around her in a return hug and rested one hand on her head. "I know you are, sweetie, but I think it's your mom you should be telling this to."
Cassie nodded and left the room, squeezing Nate's shoulder as she went.
The two men sat in silence momentarily, until Nate looked up to see Jack staring at him. "I really like her, Jack. She told me about Hanka, and her parents. It was something special, that she trusted me enough to tell me about that. She knows about Levi, and once she knew he wasn't Goa'uld she didn't shy away from me. This could be something special."
"And after we come home, you'll take that entrance exam, and go off to West Point in the fall. What then? She'll only be a Junior in High School."
"I'll see her when I come home on breaks and over the summer."
"And when she goes to college?"
"I'll fly out to see her, wherever she goes."
"You're a young man, Nate. How's she gonna feel if you suddenly find that you can't hold off any longer and jump into bed with some local girl?"
Nate's head dropped as Levi took over. "Nathan is hurt that you would even think he could do something like that. I find it offensive that you think I would let him."
"Yeah well, you didn't do too great a job of making him do the right thing here," Jack responded with a slight sneer.
"For the first time, Nathan allowed himself to grieve for his family. I saw that as far more important than taking control of his body to call you. After he had fallen asleep, I attempted to leave the room, but could not move without waking Cassandra. I felt the two of them deserved this rest."
Jack understood what Levi was saying, and he'd felt some of that the night before when they'd decided to let the couple sleep in blissful ignorance. "Just don't let him do anything like this again."
"Of course not, Colonel."
Nate came back at that point, slightly embarrassed at what Levi had told the man. Jack knew exactly what Nate was feeling, having been that age many years before. "C'mon, Sam's holding dinner for us."
Nate and Jack stood up simultaneously and left the Fraiser's, heading home for their last night on Earth before they went off to try and save their favorite planet.
A/N: Okay, i'm not happy with this chapter AT ALL, i had an idea of what i wanted, and then i got in a fight with my fiance' and then in the middle of that, his PARKED car was hit by this old guy who was a former cop, and so we kinda got involved in trying to separate the cars that were pretty much stuck together. so by the time ry actually went home and i started finishing this chapter, the idea completely left my mind. Nate and Jack just didn't want to fight, as much as i wanted them to. if i can find the idea floating somewhere in my messy room, then maybe i'll rewrite the chapter, maybe later they'll wanna fight. hehehe. well tell me what you guys thought about it, please?