TITLE: WHEN THE WORLD HALTS - Chapter 6
AUTHOR: WITEZON
PARING: S/J friendship/romance
RATING: PG-13 or R (depending on how you feel about swearing)
DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything but what my mind thinks up.
SUMMARY: JACK CENTRIC - What happens when the universe is at stake,
Hammond is missing, and everything rests on Colonel O'Neill's shoulders.
6-HOURS LATER - 1900 HOURS
O'Neill sat in his office, getting the latest intel briefing from SG-4, who had returned a little worse for wear on their last mission. Daniel was also there as he had helped with the translations.
Finally, he dismissed them and sat in silence. Thor had returned to his ship, Garshaw and Aldwyn had returned to their current base of Tok'ra operations, and Bra'tac had returned to the Land of Light, but leaving one of his Jaffa. The Carters were someplace visiting.
He worked for another two hours, before Teal'c interrupted. "O'Neill, you need to eat and I need to eat. Let us go and have dinner."
Throwing down his pen, he rubbed his eyes, "God, I didn't realize how hungry I am. Let's go."
Inside the Commissary the noise was fierce as they entered the facility. "Jeez, Teal'c, look how busy it is."
They grabbed a tray and walked through the line picking out their food. At the end the Mess Officer stood, waiting for them. "Good evening, sir. I didn't know whether to send you something or if you were coming down for dinner."
"Sorry, Captain, I guess I should let you know when we've got this many people to feed. So, how's it going?"
Exhaling, "Well, sir, at first a bit tricky. We don't normally have this many people eating here, and we've been going strong for almost 3 hours."
Frowning, "I hope we've got enough food?"
Grinning, "Yes, sir. More than enough, plus we've got the NORAD commissary open, too. Now, just to find you somewhere to sit and eat."
O'Neill shrugged, "Don't worry. We'll find somewhere or go back to my office."
Hemmings, "Ah, sir, no disrespect, but it would be nice if you stayed here."
Sighing, "Understood, Captain. We'll stay if we can find a table."
Looking at Teal'c, "Do you see anything?"
Nodding, "There, where Major Carter is waving at us from the back of the room."
"Great. Thanks, Hemmings."
Once the room realized who he and the Jaffa were, they quieted down and watched them. O'Neill nodded at those who would meet his eyes. Finally, they got to the back of the room.
At the table were Carter, Daniel, Jacob, Ferretti, Stemke, Frasier, and Davis. "Hi kids, fancy meeting you here."
Jacob teased him, "So, you decided to crawl out of the paperwork cave, eh, Jack?"
"Yeah, me'n Teal'c were hungry. I had to make a command decision."
"Hey, Doc, I haven't seen you in awhile. How are things?"
"Well, General, you're not in the infirmary, so we're fine."
She took in his tired face. "Sir, you need to get some sleep. Can you break for the night?"
He wasn't tired, he was exhausted, with a headache. "I'm gonna try to find some time sooner or later, Doc."
Teal'c, Carter, and Daniel exchanged a glance. Sam would eventually track him down and get him back to his quarters.
0001 HOURS, O'NEILL'S OFFICE
KNOCK KNOCK
Teal'c opened the door. Exchanging a long look with Carter, he stepped out.
"Sir?"
Looking up, "Yeah, Carter?"
"Sir, you need to get to bed and so do I. I can't sleep until you do."
Frowning, "Oh, I guess we're still sharing?" His frown got deeper, "Don't you have a mission in the morning?"
Yeah, this was definitely the right tack to take, "Yes, sir. We roll out the gate at 0630. I'll need to get up at 0500 to get ready."
Rubbing his face, "Okay, let's go." She followed him out the door with Teal'c leading the way.
They ignored the looks they were getting from everyone and made their way to his quarters. Standing at his door was one of the SGC SFs and a SEAL.
"O'Neill, I will leave you and MajorCarter here. I also need to kel-nor- reem before tomorrow's mission."
Exhaling, "I'm sorry, guys. I didn't know the time. Go Teal'c. Rest, meditate, sleep, whatever. C'mon, Carter, let's get some sleep."
He didn't see her face redden at that comment, but neither the SF nor the SEAL blinked. O'Neill looked at the SF and nodded, "Night, Waller. He turned to the SEAL, "Good night SGT...?"
"Abrahams, sir."
Nodding, "Night, Abrahams." They went in his quarters. Once inside he slowly looked around.
Puzzled, Carter asked, "Sir, are you looking for something?" "Just seeing if Dad was here, waiting to jump out at me."
Chuckling, "No, sir. He's on his Teltac. He asked Thor if he would bring it to Earth for him. You should have seen the wide eyes when he ringed up in the gate room."
"Ah, man, I missed it." He threw himself on his bed, with his knees hanging off.
Gesturing with his hand, "Go, Carter, get ready for bed since you have to be up early."
She was back out in less than 5 minutes. He was still laying there.
"All yours, sir."
He waited a second, "Carter, does this mean you're gonna be staying with me for however long this takes?"
Staring at her cot as she turned back the blankets, "Well, if you don't mind, sir, I'd kinda like to stay."
Another pause, then he propped himself up on his elbows to look at her. "No, Sam, I don't mind at all."
She glanced up at him, hearing the seriousness of his tone. He continued, "In fact, one day, hopefully very soon, I'd like this to be permanent."
Tilting her head in query, but meeting his gaze steadily, "Permanent? As in the same room or the same bed?"
His gaze was intense, "Both, but not just the room or the bed. I want to have you in my life, Sam, permanently. I care, actually quite a lot, for you."
He saw her swallow, but she didn't back away from him, "I care a lot about you, too, Jack, and I'd like to have you in my life, permanently."
Smiling, "Good. That's really good, Sam.
They continued to stare at each other, the intensity escalating.
'Oh, yeah.' O'Neill released a long breath, then said in a low, rumbling voice, "Sam, I'm really wantin' to come over there right now. Or better yet, you here."
'Oh, yeah,' Sam thought she had never heard his voice sound as sexy as it did right then. "That sounds like another really good idea, Jack."
KNOCK KNOCK
O'Neill rolled his eyes, and called out, "Yeah?"
A muffled voiced, "Sir, its MAJ Ferretti, I'm sorry to bother you, but I need to talk to you."
She heard him whisper out, "Great." Louder, "Okay, I'll be right out."
Looking at Sam, the intensity between them had decreased slightly. "Carter, get some sleep. I'll try to be quiet when I get back in."
She smiled at him. "What?"
"That sounds so...homey, sir."
"Night, Sam," shaking his head, he grinned as he walked out the door.
He closed the door and looked at Ferretti, "Okay, Lou, what's so important that I can't get to bed?"
Staring at him, "Sir, I need to show you something."
Sighing, "Yeah, sure." Feeling the headache pounding behind his eyes, "But let's stop by the Infirmary first."
Sympathetically, Lou asked, "I betcha you got a hell of headache, sir."
"Not takin' that bet, Lou."
He nodded at his security team, and Waller led off with Abrahams following. A medic looked up at their entrance and immediately went to get Dr. Frazier.
She quickly walked back in, "General, I've been expecting you."
With a small grin, "Yeah, Doc?"
"Yes, sir. I thought out that you had a headache at dinner tonight. How bad is it, sir?"
Rubbing his eyes again, he didn't think before he spoke, "Oh, probably enough that I would have kept Carter up all night tossing and turning."
In the sudden silence, he said, "Hell." He looked around the room and everyone looked away.
Ferretti and Frazier exchanged an amused look, then she said, "Sir, if you would just sit here, I'll take a quick look and give you something for the pain. How about sleeping?"
Pointing his thumb at Ferretti, "The Major decided I didn't need any sleep tonight." Ferretti rolled his eyes.
As O'Neill went to sit down, he turned to his security team, "Sergeants? If its possible, I'd like to have someone at my quarters all the time. Would you take care of that?"
Waller and Abrahams nodded, and Waller said, "Sure, sir. We'll get it done," as Abrahams spoke into the mike on this collar.
Janet came back and quickly examined him, then handed him some pills. "Sir, these should help with the headache. Just don't operate any heavy machinery."
With a teasing look, "Wouldn't dream of it, Doc. Thanks." He turned back, "Get some sleep, Janet."
With a small smile she nodded, "You, too, sir."
Lou led him to the secure conference room, where another guard stood. Opening the door, O'Neill found Maybourne waiting in the room.
CONTINUED IN CHAP 7 (Thank you to everyone who has emailed me. W)
6-HOURS LATER - 1900 HOURS
O'Neill sat in his office, getting the latest intel briefing from SG-4, who had returned a little worse for wear on their last mission. Daniel was also there as he had helped with the translations.
Finally, he dismissed them and sat in silence. Thor had returned to his ship, Garshaw and Aldwyn had returned to their current base of Tok'ra operations, and Bra'tac had returned to the Land of Light, but leaving one of his Jaffa. The Carters were someplace visiting.
He worked for another two hours, before Teal'c interrupted. "O'Neill, you need to eat and I need to eat. Let us go and have dinner."
Throwing down his pen, he rubbed his eyes, "God, I didn't realize how hungry I am. Let's go."
Inside the Commissary the noise was fierce as they entered the facility. "Jeez, Teal'c, look how busy it is."
They grabbed a tray and walked through the line picking out their food. At the end the Mess Officer stood, waiting for them. "Good evening, sir. I didn't know whether to send you something or if you were coming down for dinner."
"Sorry, Captain, I guess I should let you know when we've got this many people to feed. So, how's it going?"
Exhaling, "Well, sir, at first a bit tricky. We don't normally have this many people eating here, and we've been going strong for almost 3 hours."
Frowning, "I hope we've got enough food?"
Grinning, "Yes, sir. More than enough, plus we've got the NORAD commissary open, too. Now, just to find you somewhere to sit and eat."
O'Neill shrugged, "Don't worry. We'll find somewhere or go back to my office."
Hemmings, "Ah, sir, no disrespect, but it would be nice if you stayed here."
Sighing, "Understood, Captain. We'll stay if we can find a table."
Looking at Teal'c, "Do you see anything?"
Nodding, "There, where Major Carter is waving at us from the back of the room."
"Great. Thanks, Hemmings."
Once the room realized who he and the Jaffa were, they quieted down and watched them. O'Neill nodded at those who would meet his eyes. Finally, they got to the back of the room.
At the table were Carter, Daniel, Jacob, Ferretti, Stemke, Frasier, and Davis. "Hi kids, fancy meeting you here."
Jacob teased him, "So, you decided to crawl out of the paperwork cave, eh, Jack?"
"Yeah, me'n Teal'c were hungry. I had to make a command decision."
"Hey, Doc, I haven't seen you in awhile. How are things?"
"Well, General, you're not in the infirmary, so we're fine."
She took in his tired face. "Sir, you need to get some sleep. Can you break for the night?"
He wasn't tired, he was exhausted, with a headache. "I'm gonna try to find some time sooner or later, Doc."
Teal'c, Carter, and Daniel exchanged a glance. Sam would eventually track him down and get him back to his quarters.
0001 HOURS, O'NEILL'S OFFICE
KNOCK KNOCK
Teal'c opened the door. Exchanging a long look with Carter, he stepped out.
"Sir?"
Looking up, "Yeah, Carter?"
"Sir, you need to get to bed and so do I. I can't sleep until you do."
Frowning, "Oh, I guess we're still sharing?" His frown got deeper, "Don't you have a mission in the morning?"
Yeah, this was definitely the right tack to take, "Yes, sir. We roll out the gate at 0630. I'll need to get up at 0500 to get ready."
Rubbing his face, "Okay, let's go." She followed him out the door with Teal'c leading the way.
They ignored the looks they were getting from everyone and made their way to his quarters. Standing at his door was one of the SGC SFs and a SEAL.
"O'Neill, I will leave you and MajorCarter here. I also need to kel-nor- reem before tomorrow's mission."
Exhaling, "I'm sorry, guys. I didn't know the time. Go Teal'c. Rest, meditate, sleep, whatever. C'mon, Carter, let's get some sleep."
He didn't see her face redden at that comment, but neither the SF nor the SEAL blinked. O'Neill looked at the SF and nodded, "Night, Waller. He turned to the SEAL, "Good night SGT...?"
"Abrahams, sir."
Nodding, "Night, Abrahams." They went in his quarters. Once inside he slowly looked around.
Puzzled, Carter asked, "Sir, are you looking for something?" "Just seeing if Dad was here, waiting to jump out at me."
Chuckling, "No, sir. He's on his Teltac. He asked Thor if he would bring it to Earth for him. You should have seen the wide eyes when he ringed up in the gate room."
"Ah, man, I missed it." He threw himself on his bed, with his knees hanging off.
Gesturing with his hand, "Go, Carter, get ready for bed since you have to be up early."
She was back out in less than 5 minutes. He was still laying there.
"All yours, sir."
He waited a second, "Carter, does this mean you're gonna be staying with me for however long this takes?"
Staring at her cot as she turned back the blankets, "Well, if you don't mind, sir, I'd kinda like to stay."
Another pause, then he propped himself up on his elbows to look at her. "No, Sam, I don't mind at all."
She glanced up at him, hearing the seriousness of his tone. He continued, "In fact, one day, hopefully very soon, I'd like this to be permanent."
Tilting her head in query, but meeting his gaze steadily, "Permanent? As in the same room or the same bed?"
His gaze was intense, "Both, but not just the room or the bed. I want to have you in my life, Sam, permanently. I care, actually quite a lot, for you."
He saw her swallow, but she didn't back away from him, "I care a lot about you, too, Jack, and I'd like to have you in my life, permanently."
Smiling, "Good. That's really good, Sam.
They continued to stare at each other, the intensity escalating.
'Oh, yeah.' O'Neill released a long breath, then said in a low, rumbling voice, "Sam, I'm really wantin' to come over there right now. Or better yet, you here."
'Oh, yeah,' Sam thought she had never heard his voice sound as sexy as it did right then. "That sounds like another really good idea, Jack."
KNOCK KNOCK
O'Neill rolled his eyes, and called out, "Yeah?"
A muffled voiced, "Sir, its MAJ Ferretti, I'm sorry to bother you, but I need to talk to you."
She heard him whisper out, "Great." Louder, "Okay, I'll be right out."
Looking at Sam, the intensity between them had decreased slightly. "Carter, get some sleep. I'll try to be quiet when I get back in."
She smiled at him. "What?"
"That sounds so...homey, sir."
"Night, Sam," shaking his head, he grinned as he walked out the door.
He closed the door and looked at Ferretti, "Okay, Lou, what's so important that I can't get to bed?"
Staring at him, "Sir, I need to show you something."
Sighing, "Yeah, sure." Feeling the headache pounding behind his eyes, "But let's stop by the Infirmary first."
Sympathetically, Lou asked, "I betcha you got a hell of headache, sir."
"Not takin' that bet, Lou."
He nodded at his security team, and Waller led off with Abrahams following. A medic looked up at their entrance and immediately went to get Dr. Frazier.
She quickly walked back in, "General, I've been expecting you."
With a small grin, "Yeah, Doc?"
"Yes, sir. I thought out that you had a headache at dinner tonight. How bad is it, sir?"
Rubbing his eyes again, he didn't think before he spoke, "Oh, probably enough that I would have kept Carter up all night tossing and turning."
In the sudden silence, he said, "Hell." He looked around the room and everyone looked away.
Ferretti and Frazier exchanged an amused look, then she said, "Sir, if you would just sit here, I'll take a quick look and give you something for the pain. How about sleeping?"
Pointing his thumb at Ferretti, "The Major decided I didn't need any sleep tonight." Ferretti rolled his eyes.
As O'Neill went to sit down, he turned to his security team, "Sergeants? If its possible, I'd like to have someone at my quarters all the time. Would you take care of that?"
Waller and Abrahams nodded, and Waller said, "Sure, sir. We'll get it done," as Abrahams spoke into the mike on this collar.
Janet came back and quickly examined him, then handed him some pills. "Sir, these should help with the headache. Just don't operate any heavy machinery."
With a teasing look, "Wouldn't dream of it, Doc. Thanks." He turned back, "Get some sleep, Janet."
With a small smile she nodded, "You, too, sir."
Lou led him to the secure conference room, where another guard stood. Opening the door, O'Neill found Maybourne waiting in the room.
CONTINUED IN CHAP 7 (Thank you to everyone who has emailed me. W)