~ 5 ~

The rain continued to pound on the roof loudly and the fire heated the room nicely. Jack began to doze. As he slept, his mind went back to the bank of the river.

He watched Carter drag his body onto the bank and lean over him. This was quite surreal. He felt a pull on his body, willing him away, but he couldn't leave. He had to stay.

Sam leant over his body, fear written all over her face.

"No, no, no! Come on Sir!" She yelled, frantically shaking his body and checking if he was breathing. She looked so afraid. He'd hardly ever seen her so panicked.

Sam began CPR on his lifeless body. The pull Jack felt grew stronger, but he couldn't bring himself to give into it.

"Not yet. I'm not ready..." Jack whispered as he watched Sam compressing his chest.

"No Jack, don't do this! This isn't fair! I need you, don't do this!" She cried. Jack's eyebrows furrowed. She needed him? What did that mean?

"I'm here Sam!" Jack pleaded. He was growing as desperate as she was. He could read every emotion in her face. It startled Jack; shook him to the core. She leant in and breathed more air into his lungs and his body jumped beneath her.

"Sir!" Sam shook him awake and Jack abruptly returned to the land of the living. His eyes found hers and he cringed at sharp contrast to what he had just dreamed. She had one hand on his cheek, but as soon as she was convinced he was alright, her hand dropped away. He missed it instantly.

"Carter?"

"You fell asleep, Sir. My clothes are pretty much dry and the water is starting to cool."

"Oh... right." Jack tried to hold her gaze, but she looked away. Sam left him to go to the other room. When she returned, she was back in her own uniform, with his draped over her arm. Jack carefully hauled himself out of the tub and stood in front of the fire. Carter waited silently, scanning his body for any other injuries she may have missed. The fact that he was wet and almost naked did not escape her, though she appeared not to care. When his skin had dried, he turned to Sam. She offered him his clothes.

"Be warned: I'm going to have to go commando," Jack reached for his pants and shirt, pleased to see the corner of her mouth rise.

"I figured you would, Sir," She replied quietly and steeped aside so he could move into the other room.

Changing out of his wet shorts and into his warm clothes was a challenge, since he only had only good arm. But, he managed to complete the task. Sam walked in at the last minute, just as Jack began to do up his shirt. She deposited the first aid supplies on the bed – which was basically a big wooden box and lots of thick, dusty blankets on top – and came to his rescue in the futile struggle with the plastic buttons.

She rolled her eyes when Jack huffed in frustration.

"What would you do without me?" She teased. Jack knew he would be dead and floating down a rapid river if it weren't for Sam. He watched her pensively and Sam seemed to be on the same train of thought. Her smile disappeared and she quickly began creating a sling for his arm.

"Let me know where it's most comfortable," She said quietly. Sam raised his bent arm up in the sling, tightening it slowly.

"There," Jack stopped her. When she tied it off, he relaxed his arm and it fell comfortably into the material.

"Oh, bugger..." Sam slumped and frowned. "... Should have put the antiseptic cream on first."

"It's alright. Do it in the morning." Jack waved her off.

"Well, let me take a look at your head," She didn't wait for an answer and cupped his face, pulling it towards her and looking intently at his forehead.

"All still in there?" He mumbled. She released his head.

"Thankfully," She nodded, placing her hands on her hips. It became apparent to both during that very second, there were only a few inches separating them. Knowing this was not the time, nor place, Jack placed a hand gently on her waist to move around her. Sam flinched and drew a sharp breath.

"Carter?" Jack asked, suddenly alarmed by her reaction.

"It's nothing, Sir," Sam pushed past him and made a dash for the front door.

"Sam!" Jack called, swiftly following her outside.

It was the first time he had looked outside the cabin. The primitive structure was actually built into the side of the mountain. There was four paces worth of flat rock and then the mountain dropped over three hundred feet down to the raging river below. The roof over hung the flat rock, providing adequate shelter to sit outside as the rain continued to fall. The sunset cast a glow over the clouds, creating a golden blanket over the range.

"How the hell did we get up here?" He asked, leaning forward to look down. Sam stood to one side, her arms wrapped gingerly around her chest as she stared out into the rain. Jack turned to her and it dawned on him: she had brought him up here.

"Carter!" He needed her to tell him it was true. Otherwise he couldn't believe it. "How the hell did you get us up here? I would have a problem dragging you up here by myself, let alone the other way around."

"I carried you..." She mumbled. Jack took a step towards her, wondering if he had heard correctly.

"You carried me?" Jack repeated, suddenly short of breath.

"More or less," Sam shrugged one shoulder. She was rubbing her collar bone beneath her shirt.

"Sam, there's no way you could-" Jack began.

"I did," Sam interrupted. Jack noticed the skin under her hand. There was a purple tinge as the base of her neck.

"At what cost?" Jack lifted a hand to her shirt. She turned her head away. "Carter... Let me see."

Sam seemed on the brink of tears, but did as requested and began to unbutton her shirt.

As she revealed more skin, the more Jack's horror grew. Sam pulled the garment off her shoulders to expose the violent bruise that ran from her hip all the way up her body, and around her arm, connecting with a bruise that covered the right side of her back. She was wearing her bra, but it was sitting loosely on her chest. It definitely looked uncomfortable. The bruise itself was not just a light shade of blue, but a deep angry purple that betrayed how hard she had impacted with the river rocks.

"Good god!" Jack groaned in shock. He let his fingertips touch her ribs, and Sam recoiled from his touch. What had she gone through? He was breathless from the weight of the realisation. He couldn't even comprehend what she had endured. She looked like she'd taken on four men with clubs.

"Sam. You carried me up the face of a mountain. You walked upstream and downstream all afternoon... with this?"

"...and a rolled ankle..." She added quietly. Jack fought off a wave of dizziness. He suspected his face was riddled with emotions.

"Carter...I, I can't..." Jack stuttered. He was stunned.

"Don't worry about me, Sir. My only concern was you." She wouldn't look him in the eye.

"I know. I heard you." Jack admitted. Sam's eyes snapped to his.

"What?" She breathed, the colour draining from her face for the second time.

"You wouldn't let me go. You said you needed me." Jack recalled from his unusual dream. Sam closed her mouth tightly and began to shift her weight. Holy crap, he was right!

"I wasn't ready to let you go. No..." Sam finally met his eye and he was heartbroken to find she had built up that wall that protected her. She went to push past him again, but he caught her hand. Her body snapped back to Jack. She dared to look up at him.

Her face was within only a few inches of his. The world suddenly became much smaller and the air seemed to thicken.

Jack wanted to kiss her. He really did. At the very least to thank her; though it would never be enough. Who was he kidding? He wanted to kiss her because he didn't want her to spend another second wondering how he felt about her. She amazed him. Every single day. But this, this just opened his eyes to a world he had been denying them.

Jack leant in until his lips were only a breath from hers. But he stopped.

That was it. That was what she had meant by the water. It was what he had meant in his dream. It became so clear. There was so much they weren't saying. Jack pulled back and searched her eyes.

"I had no idea..." Jack realised.

~ SJ ~

Sorry, still more angst to come. Reviews will be loved. A lot. Hint hint, nudge nudge.