One More Try by Betty Bokor
Sam/Daniel. Daniel has a heartbreaking secret and needs to share it with Sam.
Spoilers: All seasons, including 9 and 10.
Disclaimer: The Stargate original characters belong to MGM/Showtime, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Film Corp. This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

One More Try

Chapter 6

The week ahead was not so good. The SGC Medical Team concluded that it was not a normal occurrence for a woman to try to get pregnant immediately after the interruption of the contraceptive shots. Mostly everybody who planned a pregnancy had in mind to take the necessary time to achieve that goal. They even found that there were support groups to help couples cope with the wait and its hassles. Therefore, there were neither studies nor tests they could use to help Sam.

The next step was to produce a combination of hormonal treatments and other drugs that could aid her with the main two problems, the lack of ovulation and the thinning of her uterine walls. If the latter was not addressed, even if she conceived, the fertilized egg would not be able to attach to the unwelcoming walls. They knew fertility drugs would have to be included in the cocktail and they warned Sam and Daniel about the possible consequences. They both assented nonetheless.

Dr. Brightman, who had temporarily occupied Janet's position after her death while waiting for the official replacement, was put in charge of the team that would care for Sam. Brightman was a young and capable professional with a background in Gynecology and Obstetrics before joining the SGC. She was eager to work on Sam's case because she would have alien technology at her disposal to complement what was available on Earth. Perhaps she would achieve results that could be used later to help other women trying to conceive.

Dr. Lam was still in charge of Daniel's case. His tumor had her staggered. There was no rhyme or reason to its rate of growth. Though still small and not capable of causing too much damage to Daniel's abilities, it was clearly evolving and, undoubtedly, it was lethal. She could also see that Daniel was fairly depressed. It would have been a typical consequence of his condition, were it not for a few details she had been observing in her last tests. He was not depressed about knowing he was going to die soon; he had accepted that fact, showed no fear for his future, and moved on past it. There was something else that was worrying him and she could not grasp what. Her biggest concern was that, startling as it sounded, she could glimpse a connection between his emotional state and the behavior of his tumor. She was not willing to share her suspicions with others until she had evidence to the effect, but, since taking this new approach, all the data had started to make sense.

On Thursday afternoon, Teal'c went to see Daniel. SG-1 had retrieved an interesting tablet from the last planet they had checked for Ori presence. He had read some of it, but he had difficulty with some passages. This week SG-1 had been assigned an anthropologist, not a linguist, and the poor man had had no clue as to how to help them with the tablet.

When Teal'c reached Daniel's office, he was surprised because it was almost completely dark. He knew Daniel was inside because he would have never left the door open and the office unattended. Too many important documents and artifacts were stored there while he was using them.

He entered slowly, letting his eyes get used to the lack of light, until he distinguished Daniel's shape in a corner. He was sitting on the floor, with his back against the wall. He had his arms tight around his legs and he supported his forehead on his knees.

"Are you not well, DanielJackson?" Teal'c asked approaching him.

Daniel raised his head, startled. He sighed and answered, "Hey, Teal'c. Don't worry. I'm fine, just a little nauseous. The light was bothering me too much. I think my headache is back."

"I would not address the addition of all those symptoms as being fine, DanielJackson. I believe you should consult with Dr. Lam."

"Oh, no. I'm fine, seriously. It's just that Sergeant Matthews was here earlier and told me that Carl Rogers, you know, the linguist, had died in an accident during SG-7's last mission. I really appreciated him. He was a good man. I'm worried about his family. Three children…"

"Was that the moment when you started feeling ill?"

"What? Ah… oh, yeah. More or less."

"Then, if you are not willing to communicate this to your physician, I believe at least you should take some time off base to recuperate. I will aid you on this, DanielJackson. Prepare for leaving; I will inform Colonel Carter of your condition; she will take care of driving you home. Then, I will let General Landry know that you are both taking Friday off."

"Wow, Teal'c. It's just a little nausea. Besides, you came to talk about something else. What was it?"

"The reason that brought me here is secondary to your health. I have followed your advice in many occasions, my friend. I am confident that you will trust me this time." With that final remark, Teal'c turned around and left the office to go find Sam.

Daniel reluctantly got up and started gathering some papers and other materials. If he was going home, he was going to make sure he had enough to finish his work for the week.

Minutes later, Sam rushed into the office.

"How are you feeling? You still have nausea? Did you take any medications? Do you want me to call Carolyn? I'm sure she's still in her office-"

"Hey, hey, hey, hey… Sam. Stop," he said with his hands up. "I'm fine. I told Teal'c. It's nothing serious."

"Teal'c is right," she continued without listening. "You need to rest. We're going home. I'll take care of you. If I stay home with you, I'll be able to make sure that you rest and that you don't even think about working there."

He looked at her with a resigned expression and left all the papers he was holding back on the desk. They were right. He was very tired. He did want to go home.

Half an hour later they were at her house. Sam directed Daniel straight to her bed.

"This is more comfortable," she explained. "I'll go to the other room tonight."

"No, you can stay, if you want to."

"Okay. I will. First, I'm going to get some dinner ready."

Daniel stopped her. "Teal'c told me he had ordered food for us when he was making sure I followed his orders."

"Teal'c told you that in the parking lot?'

"Yes. The food will arrive soon. I quote 'A nutritious dish for a delicate palate'. I hope it's not sushi."

"Wow. I'm impressed."

"Yep."

"What do you want to do meanwhile? Rest a little?"

"Would you do something for me?"

"Anything." She thought it sounded a little desperate and added promptly. "Sure, I'll help you."

"All right. On the top drawer of the dresser, in my room, there's a blue box. It's heavy. Would you mind bringing it?"

"No problem. Be back in a minute." She left the room smiling, but she was worried. He looked pale and fragile. A few minutes later, she went back into her room carrying the blue box. It was not too big, but it was heavy. It was covered in a thin layer of velvet.

Daniel was already in bed. "Ah, the Jackson treasures!" he joked as he received the box and deposited it on top of the bed. "Seriously," he added when he caught Sam dismissive smile. "These belonged to my mother, and some to my grandmothers, and many other women in the family before that. I'm the only one left. I got them all." Sam sat down on the other side of the box and looked at what he was pointing. "It's a miracle I still have them, after so many times that I've been… gone."

"They're beautiful," Sam whispered.

"Yes, they are. There are not many big pieces. They are mostly things that can be worn in many occasions; some have historical value," he smiled, "and some are for special moments. I've been thinking about giving these earrings to Cassie. Maybe this medal, too. What do you think?"

"I think she would love them. They're her style; you know her so well."

"I hope so. If… if I don't see her soon, would you make sure she gets them?"

"Sure, but it will be better if you do it. She'll like that. When is she coming?"

"She promised to come next week, after she's done with a set of exams."

"That's good."

"Yes." He made a little pause and continued, "The rest is for you."

"I'm sorry?" She said shocked.

"I said that everything else in the box is for you."

"No, I couldn't do that."

"Do you expect me to wear them?" he asked as he tried a necklace on his neck, smiling.

"No," she said smiling too, "although that doesn't look so badly on you."

He laughed and dropped the necklace to hold her hand. "I'm serious, Sam. I know you don't wear jewelry when you're on duty, but there are special occasions when you could use them. There's no other person in the world that I'd desire to have them."

"Thank you, Daniel," she said with tears in her eyes.

"There's only one more thing that I'm going to take out."

"Take everything you want to take."

"No. That's not what I mean. You'll get these too. I just want to tell you something. These," he said opening a little black sac, "these are my parents' wedding rings," he put them on the bed, "and this one is my mother's engagement ring. She had long thin fingers, just like you."

"It's extraordinary," Sam said as she looked at the ring.

"Very simple, the way she liked things. One diamond on a platinum band. That's all."

"She had exquisite taste," Sam added.

"Yes." He looked at the ring longingly and put it on the bed with the other two. Then, he held her hands. "I'm sure you have other expectations for this next moment, but there's not much I can do to better it. I've been thinking that we should get married." Sam looked at him with a shocked expression. "I know, I know. Just for the books…" She rapidly lowered her eyes so that he could not read the pain in them. "I want you and the baby to have the chance to take my name. I'm not trying to impose it on you. I thought perhaps it would help you when you get pregnant," he looked at her hands, "and the baby when he goes to school."

She was astonished by his confidence. He was certain that she would get pregnant and he was already imagining their child going to school. She was about to answer when he got out of bed and knelt on the floor.

"Let's do it properly." He looked directly in her eyes, smiled, and said, "From my heart, Sam. Would you, Colonel Doctor Samantha Carter, bestow on me the honor of becoming my wife?"

Sam's smile broadened and the tears came back to her eyes. She knelt on the floor in front of Daniel and hugged him tightly while she whispered in his ear, "Yes, I will. Always. Everything you ask."

They were both caught up in the emotion of the moment when the bell rang. They reluctantly broke apart and Sam helped Daniel back to bed; she tucked him in, and said, "It must be dinner. I'm going to get it."

"Wait! One more thing," he told her. He stretched his arm, grabbed her left hand and put his mother's ring on her finger. "That's it. Now, you can go."

Dinner was delicious. They were both flabbergasted that Teal'c had gotten to know Earth food so well. After finishing the meal, they called to thank him. He was happy that his selection had been successful.

They had turned on the TV during dinner to lighten up the mood. They were both highly emotionally charged and they needed a pause. When the show they were watching finished, they turned it off and they sat on bed together. Sam leaned on Daniel's shoulder and he put his arm around her. They were feeling very comfortable and Daniel saw the opportunity to coax Sam into telling him what her teenage dreams for her wedding had been. She described how she had always wanted a ceremony like the one her parents had. Her father was stationed in Germany at that time and he had no hope of coming back to America any time soon. Her mother traveled to his base with a very small group of family members and some of their closest friends. They held the ceremony at the base. They did not get a honeymoon because they had spent their savings on buying plane tickets for the guests. The result had been certainly better.

While Sam was talking, Daniel was planning. He could arrange most of it and put together a wedding at their base. He knew that Sam had been raised Catholic and decided to enlist the help of the chaplain to get all the paperwork in order and find a priest with the right clearance. The only problem would be to get such clearance for Sam's brother, Mark. He would have to work on it.

"Would it be too soon if we get married next week?" Daniel asked. He knew it was sudden but he was running short on time. "I will take care of the big problems. You can be in charge of the details; I don't know anything about dresses and tuxedos, invitations or souvenirs. Those things. If I get the place, the priest, the menu, and the music, can you take care of the rest?"

Sam felt overwhelmed for a second, but then she understood Daniel's hurry. She was military. She knew how to organize fast and efficiently. "Yes, next week is fine. Tomorrow we'll make a list of duties and we'll assign them. We can enlist the help of some of our friends."

Daniel smiled at how fast she had taken command of the situation. They talked for a little while longer and then they went to sleep, still holding each other. Sam felt relieved. He was looking far better than when they got home.

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