Title: Family Moments
Season: Future
Spoilers: None
Pairing: Sam/Jack
Credit: Byrhthelm, for correcting my mistakes.
Disclaimer: I don't own Stargate SG-1 or any of its characters. No profit was made from this work and none will be sought. This is for entertainment purposes only.
A/N: It's just a little scene that appeared in my mind when I was trying to write something entirely different. I hope you're going to enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing!
He smiled down at his daughter, fast asleep against his chest, having dozed off just a couple of minutes after getting comfortable, even though she insisted that she wasn't tired and wanted to watch the game with him. He brushed a curl of blonde hair away from her face, tucking it behind her ear and just watched her sleep. He still couldn't believe that he had ever managed to create something so perfect as this little angel, although there were moments when he wondered if she even had anything from him at all. She was getting more and more like his wife every day and contrary to what a lot of people seemed to believe, he could see a lot of Sam in her personality, too.
Thinking about it now, it was difficult for him to believe that the first thing he felt, when Sam's words had truly registered and been processed in his mind, was being filled by a feeling of a boundless panic. She was pregnant. They were having a baby. In less than a year, their almost perfect little world would be turned upside down by a helpless, little human being, who would be completely dependent on him and his wife. It couldn't be happening.
It was one of the first things they had talked about when they eventually decided to give this relationship a chance. He remembered the conversation they had after Pete had proposed, when she was thinking about how children would influence her life, and he could only assume that she wanted to have them. He knew that he had to bring it up at some point, and sooner rather than later, because it was an important matter and he believed it to be essential for their relationship to work that she knew his attitude to the subject, especially that it was the opposite of hers. He loved kids and he would always think about the few years with Charlie as about the best period of his life, but after what happened to his son, he knew that he simply couldn't do it again. Even though he had managed to move on, he had never stopped thinking about the boy and he certainly never forgave himself for what happened to him. It might have been an accident, but one that he could have prevented and nobody would ever convince him otherwise. And while he really liked children, he didn't want to have his own because he didn't even know if he would be able to truly commit herself to the role of father again. He was afraid that he would be keeping any kids at distance for the fear that one day he may lose them and he knew that he wouldn't be able to recover from it again.
Much to his surprise, Sam was very accepting. What he was afraid of the most was that she wouldn't be willing to even try to understand his point of view and he would end up losing her. He really expected that she would be unhappy with it, that she would try to convince him to change his mind, but none of this happened. Instead, she just squeezed his hand and smiled, telling him that she was okay with it, although he could see a hint of sadness in her expression. It made him feel bad about being responsible for making her sacrifice a dream of being a mother, one of the most wonderful things that could happen in her life and a part of him would rather see her argue instead of so easily comply to his wishes, but he was still very grateful.
Yet, there she was, dropping this bombshell on him. For the shortest of seconds, a thought that perhaps she had done this deliberately crossed his mind, but he quickly pushed it away. No, she wouldn't do this to him. It was probably as big a surprise for her as it was for him, and she obviously didn't know what to think about it. In that moment, the only thing she could think about was how he was going to react and she was rather scared if the nervous expression on her face, the apprehensive look in her eyes and the way she was nibbling at her bottom lip could be any indication. He would probably feel the same way if it was him in her place.
He almost didn't hear her when she explained to him that she didn't know how it happened, that she made the doctor on the Hammond run the test three times because she simply couldn't be pregnant. It was only when she saw the baby on the monitor that she allowed herself to accept it, and she immediately started to freak out because of their agreement. It was only when she carefully mentioned that no matter what he said, she would keep and raise their daughter, because she had already started to love her and it was just a matter whether she would do it alone or together with him, that he snapped out of his little reverie and looked at her, his eyes wide at the implications of her words. He might have been freaking out because he didn't know if he could do it again and he was also way too old for this business, but it didn't even cross his mind that now, that this child actually came to exist, he could do anything but try his best to be the father it deserved to have.
Once he actually got used to this thought, he didn't regret it for even a second. There were aspects of Sam's pregnancy that he didn't enjoy, like her mood swings or cravings for the strangest of things at really ridiculous hours, but overall, he was really excited and couldn't wait till the baby was born. And then, finally, the moment arrived when he lay his eyes on his daughter for the first time, when she was placed in his arms and he knew that he was a goner. Sam claimed that their little girl had him wrapped around her little finger even before she was born, but it was in that moment that it truly hit him. Any doubts about whether or not he would be able to truly love her and be there for her vanished into thin air when she looked at him with those big blue eyes, already as curious as her mother's and he realized that he already loved her much more than he could even comprehend and he would do absolutely anything for her. Who would have thought, after all, that one day he would learn to do all sorts of different braids (even if not always successfully), play with dolls and be able to name every single Disney Princess and most of the other main characters from their movies as well as other, often very girlish movies and cartoons too (although it was probably easier to imagine him doing all that than Teal'c, who probably became an even bigger expert than him thanks to this little girl).
The only thing he couldn't understand was when did his daughter manage to grow up so much. It felt like just yesterday that he held this tiny bundle in his arms, and now she was a beautiful, lively little girl, whose presence was felt by everyone, wherever they went and was adored by one and all. He seriously dreaded the moment when she wouldn't be this cuddly munchkin anymore, and he didn't even want to think that it would come in barely a few more years. And even though he still thought about Charlie a lot, wishing the boy was there and could play the role of an older brother, he didn't feel guilty about having Grace like he had at first. A part of him knew that the fact that she was a girl and looked absolutely nothing like her half-brother helped a lot, but there hadn't been a moment when he compared the two, something he was also afraid of.
He looked up only when he heard the sound of a key being turned in the lock and a moment later his wife walked into the room in search of them. The living room was the first place she always checked when she got home so late and more often than not, the place they usually were, cuddled together on the couch. The only difference was that usually she found them both sleeping peacefully and she didn't think there was any sight in the world that she loved more. It always brought a smile to her face and made the pleasant warmth spread from her heart all over her body and she would just stand in the doorframe for a moment, feasting her eyes on it.
"Look, who remembered that it is good to come home every now and then," he whispered teasingly, when she walked up to them, leaning down to peck his lips and kiss their daughter's forehead.
"Don't say anything… I really thought that this lockdown would never end…" she sighed, heavily sitting down next to him and resting her head on his shoulder. At the moment, she didn't even have strength to go upstairs and take a shower, or even change out of her uniform. "And to think one of the main reasons why I accepted this position was because it would allow me to come back home every day…"
"And here I thought it was because of the promotion" he smiled, looking at the star adorning each of her shoulder boards. When the whole response he got to his teasing was a humming sound and a smile, he realized just how tired she was. "Still, you knew situations like this would happen sometimes. But being stuck a few days in the SGC is still better than being away for weeks or months at a time on the Hammond, don't you think?
"Yeah, true" she admitted and reached to the sleeping girl, carefully taking her from her father's arms and holding her against herself and absent-mindedly stroking her hair.
"Mommy…" mumbled Grace, opening her eyes for a moment. Sam felt a twinge in her heart at the sound of surprise in her daughter's voice and kissed the top of her head, while the girl snuggled even closer to her before dozing off again.
They sat in silence, enjoying a peaceful family moment. Jack couldn't help thinking how unbelievable it was that just ten years ago, he didn't think that he would ever settle down again and now he couldn't imagine his life without his two girls. He grinned, when he looked to the side and noticed that Sam was now asleep as well and regretted he didn't have a camera anywhere close to take a picture.
Yes, he must have done something extremely good in his life to deserve those two and even though it was hardly a cakewalk, he wouldn't hesitate doing it all again if only it was his reward.