Summary: Jack had to do many things in his lifetime, but he never dreamed he would have to do this.
Disclaimer: Not mine. All recognizable characters etc. etc. etc. belong to somebody else! You give all the credit to MGM- Gekko- Double Secret. No money will ever be mine for any of this. My reward is just getting Jack and Sam together. You know I didn't intend to infringe. Gosh! TPTB should let Jack and Sam get a life! (Together-- Of course)
Thanks to PhDelicious for her great job Betaing this! She is terrific!
Warning: Childbirth, pain ahead. You may want to close your eyes!
Chapter 8
Ketra watched as Jack and Daniel tried to pull themselves together. She had never known men to be involved in the birthing process. She had no idea what Jack had planned to do to Samantha, but she knew she was not leaving them.
"Jack." Daniel's voice could barely be heard. "Just hurry before she comes too."
"Right." Jack made a small cut on both sides of Sam's opening, stretched around the very top of the baby's head. He tried to get his hands into Sam enough to grab hold.
Despite Daniel's assumption, Sam was awake and biting on her lip. Tears were streaming down her face. She tried to keep her eyes closed and concentrated on her breathing. She could feel another contraction coming and Jack's fingers poking into her flesh. It hurt almost as much as the last staff blast she had taken. Almost. She tried not to let the guys know she was awake. It was hard enough for them to do what they had to.
Jack could feel the baby squeezed in the birth canal. He was afraid that Sam's bones weren't spreading like they should. He remembered that the doctors had used some type of instrument to help with Charlie's birth. He couldn't remember what it was called, but he knew it had been used to help spread Sara's small boned frame. Maybe his babies had large heads!
When the contraction came and Sam pushed, Daniel held her as tightly as Jack had. The baby's head began to crown just a little. Jack cut a little deeper into Sam, so he could get more of his hands around the baby's head. He forced his way into her.
Sam screamed, and another contraction hit. Tears ran down Daniel's face. Ketra could not believe what she was seeing. The baby's head popped out with Jack's hands reaching to the base of her neck. It scared the daylights out of him. What next? He pulled the baby as gently as he could. Nothing happened. Another contraction hit Sam, and she pushed with all her might. The next thing he knew; he had the baby in his hands. He stared at it as if it were one of those things from the movie "Alien" that Teal'c liked so much.
"U -- Uh. Jack?" He finally looked away from the baby to Daniel. "Jack, do something. Is it breathing? Is it ok?"
Sam opened her eyes, and watched Jack's face. "What is it Jack?" She struggled to get the words out. He looked back at her.
"It's a girl, Sam," he said, his eyes twinkling.
"Is she's okay, Jack? That's what I meant. I don't care if it's a girl or boy," she said. He took his knife and cut the baby's umbilical cord, then he handed the baby to Ketra. She tied off the cord; and cleaned out the baby's mouth and made her cry. The sound of Grace's cry filled the tent and their hearts.
Jack reached for the surgical thread to sew Sam up. "Wait, Jack. You have to deliver the afterbirth," Daniel warned.
"The what?" Jack looked at him as if he were crazy.
"Just wait a minute, Jack. It should come with the next contraction. Sam, you have to push again," Daniel told her.
"And you know this how!? Spacemonkey?" Jack asked.
"I have delivered a baby or two," Daniel teased Jack.
"Yeah, two if I remember correctly," Jack bantered.
Sam felt the contraction start. She pushed hard. She felt something pass from her. It hurt. Jack tried to clean her as best he could.
"I hope this is over," she told them, taking deep breathes.
Taking the surgical thread and needle from the medical kit, Jack began to sew her up. He had no idea if he was doing this even half way right.
"Baby, I'm sorry. I know this is hurting you; but I think it will heal much faster." Jack could tell he had really caused a lot of damage. There was a lot of blood. He prayed that he could fix what he had done.
"God, Jack, just do it! Hurry up, damn it," Sam screeched through gritted teeth. She was trying to hold back her tears and screams, but having a difficult time.
All Jack could think was that if the baby was crying and Sam was bitching, then they were both alive. Things had gone so much better than he had first feared. Now, if he could keep her from getting an infection or bleeding to death!
Ketra had Grace cleaned up and swaddled in a clean soft blanket that Sam had woven just for her, before Jack finished the stitches. Ketra waited, watching what Jack was doing to Sam. She had never in her life seen such. Where did these people come from?
"The baby, Ketra? Is she alright?" Sam asked, when she could breathe enough to talk. Ketra placed the baby in Sam's arm and rested her little bottom on the bedding.
Sam smiled down at her beautiful baby girl. "Hey, sweetheart, Mommy has waited a lifetime for you," Sam cooed. Jack finished splashing the last of the surgical disinfectant onto the stitches.
Sam flinched, watching him over her stomach. "That's good, Jack. You better look really good. You may never get another chance." Daniel laughed until his eyes watered and Teal'c grinned bigger than either of them had ever seen. Relief caused them to release the tension that had lingered so long.
"Oh, baby! You'll forget all this! You can't resist ol' Jack for long!" Jack teased. He was so glad she was able to talk, much less joke around with him. He prepared a syringe with antibiotics and another with morphine. He knew Sam had to be hurting. He injected them into her thigh one at a time. She didn't flinch. He just hoped the drugs weren't too outdated to help.
"I don't know about that, Jack! Really! This wasn't the best time I've ever had. Janet, you are not. Get over here and look at your daughter! Didn't I tell you it was a girl?"
"You told me?! I'm the one who said it was a girl all along!"
Jack washed his hands with some of the antiseptic soap they saved for times such as this. He moved around the pallet to sit beside Sam and looked down at his daughter. He really looked at Grace for the first time. Her eyes were open and she was looking up at him with the bluest eyes Jack had ever seen.
"Sam, her eyes are even bluer than yours. God, she is so beautiful. Can I hold her?" "Of course, Jack, she's yours too." Sam giggled at him. Jack met her eyes and they seemed to get lost in each other for a long moment.
"I love you, Sam. I'm so proud of you. Look what you did. And to think, you only cursed at me a little bit." Jack smiled through tear stained eyes, his happiness evident.
They all laughed at him. He lifted the baby and placed her on his shoulder, rubbing her back in tiny circles. He kissed the side of her sweet little face. He looked back at Sam again, and said in the tiniest voice, "My daughter . ... My wife." He kissed her gently on her lips and kissed the top of Grace's little fuzzy blond head.
After a few minutes Ketra took the baby to make sure she was breathing normally. She checked Grace over, carefully listening to the sounds of her breathing. Ketra gently rocked the baby on her shoulder, and soon she was sleeping soundly. She laid Grace back against Sam's arm. Sam snuggled the baby close.
'She is beautiful. I love her so much already. How could such a tiny little baby damage the timeline?' Sam thought as the drugs made her sleepy. She just couldn't shake her fear of the unknown damage they were causing.
Jack noticed Sam was getting sleepy. He and Ketra helped her change to a clean dress and move onto a clean bedding pad that Teal'c had readied. Jack covered her with a soft woven blanket. Her eyes were drooping before they had her settled.
Daniel and Teal'c each held the baby. Daniel's eyes were bright with tears. "You did good! Sam! She's the most beautiful baby I've ever seen! I promise I'll always be here for her as if she was mine. I love you so much!" He held Sam's gaze. "I was so scared I was going to lose you!"
"Hey! None of that! Spacemonkey. She's fine. And by the way, she's my wife! Watch how you look at her!" Jack was only half teasing.
"She maybe your wife, but I still love her," Daniel said, smiling his widest smile at Jack. He lived to tease Jack. "Jack, you did a bang up job, didn't know you were a surgeon."
"Me either." Jack lowered his voice so Sam couldn't hear him. "I was terrified. I was so afraid cutting her wasn't gonna be enough!" Tears found their way back into Jack's eyes. "So afraid the bones were too close."
The day's emotional events were catching up with Jack. How close he came to losing his Sam or his baby or both! It made his heart beat fast.
"O'Neill, I offer my heartfelt congratulations on the birth of your first daughter and the success of the process. I am well pleased with little Grace." Teal'c, being Teal'c, didn't quite know how to express what was really in his heart.
Jack understood his message. He wasn't much better at it than Teal'c. He also knew how much Teal'c loved Sam. It was a toss up as to who, out of the three of them, loved her most. He would be forever grateful she had chosen him. He knew if his friends weren't so loyal, it would have been a contest for Sam's heart.
"Yeah, T. She's so pretty. Look at her cute little dimples, just like Sam's. Look at her eyes, bright as sunshine!" Jack continued her praises until Ketra spoke.
"I think you should let her rest with her mother. She is too small to handle too much." She was smiling at the guys, but her eyes showed that she meant what she had said.
Jack settled the baby in with Sam once again, between her breast and arm. Sam roused just enough to snuggle the baby closer. 'It looks so natural for Sam to hold little Gracie.' Jack thought.
Daniel and Teal'c left to walk Ketra back to her camp. Sam was so exhausted, before they were out of the tent she was sound asleep. Jack settled down beside Sam holding the baby, and just watched as Sam slept. He couldn't believe she was okay. He didn't know what he had ever done to deserve her love or this baby. He would be forever grateful for his second chance at life even if it was in the desert 5000 years in the past.
TBC
Chapter End Notes: Thanks for reading. Special thanks for reviewing. Your comments are really welcomed. It really helps Muse!