How Many Ways Can You Say I Love You?

Spacegypsy1

Romance/Daniel and Vala

Bits and pieces of Daniel's and Vala's possible confessions of love. No real story line, just little snippets of their confessions - totally unrelated - that could happen between our archeologist and space pirate! Adding more to this series.

Number Seven: Sometimes it takes a swift kick.

Daniel woke up in the infirmary, blurry eyed and hurting. After ten long years one would think you'd get used to this. What the hell happened? It must be late, the lights were dim and no one was hovering over him. Well that had to be a good sign. Couldn't be too bad if the team wasn't sitting around waiting to see if he was going to make it. Or… uh oh, what if they were in worse shape? What the hell happened? He tried to sit up for a look around but couldn't seem to muster the strength. All of Dr. Lam's whistles and bells started going off. The doctor appeared beside his bed as if instantaneously materialized. "What happened?" He thought he'd spoken but he didn't hear his voice make a sound.

Blinking, he made the effort to bring Carolyn Lam into focus. Her hand rested lightly on his shoulder, "Be still. You're fine." She was injecting something into his IV and all went fuzzy and then black.

When next he woke, something dark blocked his vision and ticked his nose. He blinked, wiggling his nose and blow out a puff of air to get the hair from his face. Vala popped up, mouth agape and eyes wide and staring at him. "Daniel! You're awake! I was just trying to get a closer look at your wound. It looks god awful, but Carolyn insists it's healing well. She went to get something, she'll be right back. Poor baby. It's just the most dreadful thing." Vala leaned again to peer at his neck.

"Wha…" His throat ached painfully and still no sound escaped him. He tried to lift a hand, but felt too weak. What he hell happened?

Someone was rubbing his foot at the end of the bed. The apparition was unfocused, but he recognized Sam.

He tried again to talk. Sam patted his foot. "Don't try to talk yet. Dr. Lam says it'll be a little while. Just relax."

Daniel lifted a hand, thumb to forefinger and wrote in the air. Vala blinked, frowned, then smiled and did a little silly wave. He scowled shaking his head no at her and she frowned again.

Again he tried to talk, but the pain was excruciating. His dull eyes shifted to Sam and back to Vala.

Vala moved away as Carolyn appeared, a sweet concerned smile on her lips. "Good to see you back amongst the living Dr. Jackson." She patted his shoulder. Carolyn turned away and his blurred vision lifted to the foot of his bed where Carolyn was looking, then back to the doctor who spoke to Sam. "The last X-rays looked good, Colonel, but it will be a while. Let him rest." Carolyn snapped the cap off a syringe and moved to inject his IV. Daniel kicked at his covers, shaking his head furiously. He kept trying to gesture writing but no one seemed to be paying attention. Carolyn eyed him curiously and relented. "Alright. We'll see how it goes without the pain meds. I'll get something set up so you can administer what you need with a push button."

Vala materialize on the other side of the bed, pad and pen in hand. "Daniel, why don't you try to write something?"

He rolled his eyes in exasperation and that made him dizzy. Squeezing his eyes shut a moment he waited for the lightheadedness to pass. All but snatching the pad and pen from her hand he managed to scribble 'What the hell happened' underlined repeatedly.

Vala read the message. "You were kicked by that ugly mule on PR5-430, right in the throat, not ten minutes after you stepped from the 'Gate. I told you not to go on that mission with SG-14. They have the most appalling record of getting into trouble. Even I know that! I'm not sure how they manage to stay alive! They're worse than we are. And who would have…."

Daniel kicked the covers like a child in tantrum and wrote 'Ha Ha' on the paper and returned it to her. Vala read it and passed it back. Sam hadn't moved from the foot of the bed and she was stroking his foot like a mother hen.

Fuming, he wrote large on the next page of the notebook, "Tell. Me. What. Happened!' and underlined it to the bottom of the page, and jabbed the message into Vala's stomach.

Sam squeezed his foot again, and he moved it from her grasp scowling in her direction.

Vala flipped the paper over and wrote in tiny perfect script. 'I told you, you were kicked by a mule. M-U-L-E'-underline, underline, underline. "Really, you were." She said handing it back to him.

Looking around he saw the unfocused image of Mitchell leaning over Sam's shoulder. Carolyn handed Vala Daniel's glasses and she carefully put them on him. "There. Better?"

Focused on the foot of the bed he saw Teal'c standing near the door and Mitchell still peeking over Sam's shoulder. "Hey, Jackson. You took one hell of a wallop. But I hear you're gonna to be okay. Can't talk." Mitchell laughed. "Now there's a novelty. Dr. Jackson without words." He laughed playfully and thumped Daniel on a toe. "I got a ton of paperwork to do, glad you're healin', see ya buddy." Mitchell gave Sam a little shoulder hug before he left.

Teal'c took Mitchell's place beside Sam. "I too, am happy to see you are awake and healing DanielJackson. I will leave you to your rest and return later." He waited, looking at Sam.

"I'll be back," Sam didn't seem to be able to say more, she came to the side of the bed, leaned in and kissed his forehead. Looking up she frowned at Vala. "Vala, you need your rest. You've been here for two days, he's fine. Come on. You can come back later. He needs to rest."

Vala unhappily nodded in acquiescence. She kissed Daniel's lips and he frowned at her and with sad smile looking back, she left with Sam and Teal'c.

He had a vague memory of the incident, and more of hearing Vala chatter on and on at him all the time he was semi-conscious. That, he remembered now, had been like a lifeline and he smiled and drifted off to sleep.

A nurse had come in and hooked up the med device, removed his glasses, checked his wound and left him alone. Daniel had relented to the pain meds later when his throat had begun hurt, but unable to sleep he drifted in and out. Sometime in the middle of the night, Vala sneaked back into the infirmary. Relaxed and painless with the meds he wasn't able to respond to her, but he was happy to have her presence there and finally slept peacefully when he'd felt her head settle against his arm and her hand wrapped softly around his.

Later, her voice waft over him as he returned to semi-consciousness. "Darling, I know you can't hear me, but I was so scared when they brought you back. You could hardly breathe and I was frightened. That awful animal almost crushed your windpile..wind.. something… breathing apparatus there in your lovely throat. You know, I love your throat, it is by far the most kissable neck I have ever encountered. And believe me, I have encountered a... well, that's all in the past. I'm not that person anymore. I know you don't think that. Be, really it's true." She sighed sadly. "And what would I do without you, Daniel?" He felt her tears on his arm where her head lay on the crook of his elbow. He wanted to stroke her hair, tell her how much he appreciated her concern for him, but he couldn't seem to gather the strength. Unable to speak, he'd listened to her soothing voice, amazed at how much he had come to care for her.

"I love you, Daniel." She fell asleep against his arm.

When the nurse arrived later to check him, he was wide awake. Smiling she went to wake Vala and Daniel raised his other hand in a stop gesture and shook his head. With an understanding nod, the nurse performed her duties, whispering to him as not to wake Vala. "Need anything Dr. Jackson?" She asked finished with her duties. He shook his head slowly with a smile and she left them alone.

Daniel gazed at the dark head of Vala Mal Doran that lay lovingly on his arm. His eyes unexpectedly stung with moisture and he blinked to alleviate the unwanted emotion there. That mule had either kicked him senseless or kicked some sense into him. Whichever, he was suddenly filled with a desire and longing he'd thought he would never feel again. His eyes fluttered, and unable to remain awake he slept dreaming of Vala.

Carolyn's hand lightly touched Vala's back. Vala sat up and smiled at the doctor. Carolyn checked her patient carefully and instructed her nurse to change the bandage while he slept soundly. "You really should go get some rest. He's doing really well. We'll run some tests and x-rays later today, but he's healing quickly and he will be able to speak again. Not to worry, Vala."

Sitting back against her chair, Vala watched the pained expressions that moved across his face as the nurse removed the bandage and redressed the wound and left.

Vala hadn't slept a wink through the rest of the night. When the doctor arrived around five in the morning she stopped beside Vala, arms folded and watching her patient. "He's fine. Go get some sleep. Please. I don't need you ending up in here from exhaustion."

"I'll stay. I need to be here." Vala seemed to plead.

"Alright. Try not to wake him. And at least get some rest. There's an empty bed right over there you can use. That's doctor's orders." Carolyn insisted.

"I will. I promise." Vala smiled wanly and returned her gaze to Daniel.

Later, still sitting up, Vala's head nodded off in sleep several times only to jerk up back into wakefulness. Daniel moaned moving around, rustling the sheets; one hand went to his throat. She jumped up and took the hand, gently placing it back on the bed beside him. When he relaxed and seemed to slept peacefully again, she looked around the quiet and otherwise empty room, bit at her lip and decision made, she crawled onto the bed, settled against his body, head on his chest, arm wrapped across him and whispered, "I love you," kissing his chest.

Sleepily, he wrapped an arm around her, his mouth, close to her ear, and managed a hoarse whisper, more breath then words, "I love you, too."