Author's Notes: Happy Thanksgiving!
Let me know what you think!
o0o
Dancing in the Rain
It all started with one simple movie.
If he'd known what Vala's level of obsession would become, he may have been able to stop it. What started out as simply a romantic film became a full blown craze. Daniel honestly hadn't thought about it at the time – he was more curious as to why she was watching a classic like Sense and Sensibility. He never pegged Vala as a Jane Austin fan, but he knew Sam was, and figured she got suckered Vala into watching it. Only Vala seemed to actually enjoy it, which led to all the Austin movies before spiraling to other period pieces, such as Wives & Daughters, North & South, and Little Women, but her favorites had one common theme.
Loves scenes in the rain.
It became her kryptonite. It wasn't long before he was forced to watch all her favorite rain scenes and listen to her squeal how romantic they were. When he didn't show the same enthusiasm as her, she purposefully scoured the internet for movies with love rain scenes, and that's how he found himself watching Sweet Home Alabama and The Notebook while listening to Vala go on how they were like the characters. He didn't mind as much when she brought out classics like Breakfast at Tiffany's and Singing in the Rain.
Ironically, it had been raining outside when they watched Gene Kelly dance and sing on the TV screen, prompting Vala to beg Daniel to go outside and dance with her. "I'll be so romantic!" she argued when he denied her.
"How is getting soaking wet romantic?" He glared at the rain falling outside. "We're not some movie, you know. We can express love in different ways other than screaming and fighting before kissing in the rain."
Vala moaned in frustration. "I just had to fall in love with the least romantic person on the planet," she grumbled.
He arched an eyebrow. "You told me you loved me for the first time with a mouth full of spaghetti," he reminded her dryly.
Her eyes narrowed but she remained silent.
When it became apparent her love for rain scenes wasn't going anywhere, he stopped trying to dissuade her – not that he ever had any real success in that area before. He became more interested in knowing why she loved them so much. After knowing Vala for years, he'd never seen this side of her, and was curious as to why it was coming out and what could've possibly triggered it. Was it just that she enjoyed it or was there something deeper he was missing?
But then he remembered, she'd never been in a real relationship before. She had never really been given the opportunity for one before. She had missed out on so much because of life circumstances. She'd been denied a lot. She'd been given the bare basics in a relationship, and he went and denied her a simple romantic gesture to which she probably never experienced before.
Damn it.
Before he went and did something ridiculous, Daniel asked Sam if he was reading too much into it. He hadn't expected her answer.
"You do realize you're like her own personal version of a fairy tale, right?" she grinned widely at his stunned face. "Not exactly prince charming who saves the day and sweeps her off her feet but in a real way."
"Real how?"
"You gave her a chance and acceptance when no one else would. You gave her a home when she'd been denied one. You love her for exactly who she is and not for who you want her to be or what she pretended to be. You see her." She squeezed his shoulder. "You love her unconditionally, and it's all she's ever wanted."
He started planning then.
Well, there wasn't much planning involved. He bought a ring the next day – something he knew was perfect for Vala without being too tacky or gaudy. After that, all he had to do was wait for the rain.
Which refused to come.
Apparently the state of Colorado was experiencing a dry spout. He stalked the weather reports like a mad man to the point where people were beginning to question whether or not he was Daniel Jackson or actually Jonas Quinn. What made it worse was the fact that every planet they went to experienced the same thing.
Fuck the Universe. It was conspiring against him.
To say he was frustrated was an understatement, and it was spilling over to where everyone could see it. Vala tried several times to ask him what the issue was, but he always blew her off – not very tactfully either, but he'd be damned if he ruined the surprise. She deserved her romantic moment, damnit!
It was three months – three months – until it finally happened.
"Where are you?"
There was a pause. "Well, hello to you too, Daniel," Sam's snarky tone floated across the phone.
Daniel sighed in frustration. "I don't have time for this, Sam." He fled his house and jogged to his car. "Where'd you and Vala go?"
"Is everything okay?"
He gripped the wheel as he sped out of his driveway. "Everything's fine. I just need to know where you guys are." His hand went to the small box in his right pocket to ensure it was there. "If you don't tell me, I'm gonna have someone at the SGC track your transmitters."
There was another small pause before she sighed in resignation and gave what he wanted.
"Great, meet at out front in ten." He didn't give her a chance to respond before he hung up and stepped on the gas.
It was a miracle a cop didn't pull him over.
Sam and Vala were waiting under the awning as he drove up and instead of parking his car like a normal human being, he stopped it right in front of them. He'd been waiting to do this for months and he was done waiting.
"Darling, what's wrong?" Vala asked in concern as he stalked towards her. He didn't answer and just grabbed her arm. "Daniel, what're you doi–ahh!" she squealed when he yanked her into the downpour happening. She tugged at her arm, but he refused to release her. "Daniel Jackson, what the fuck is wrong with you?" she scolded.
"You love those rain love scenes, and you deserve one," he blurted out and grabbed both her hands. "You've never had a typical, normal experience with love. No one has ever put you first or made you feel special, and you deserve that. You deserve to have a special moment like this."
The rain had fully soaked them at this point, but he swore he could see the tears in her eyes. "So, you dragged me out into the pouring rain because of my favorite scenes in movies?"
Daniel chuckled. "No, I did it because I've been waiting three goddamn months for it to rain." His hand slipped into his pocket and pulled the hidden item. "I did it because I love you."
Vala gasped as he fell to his knee. "Daniel, what's happening?"
He took her left hand. "What's happening is I wanna wake up to you every morning. I wanna dance in the rain with you every chance I get," she laughed at the memory. When he opened the ring box, her hand covered her mouth. "I wanna spend every day of the rest of my life with you. Vala Mal Doran, will you marry me?"
Daniel heard her sniff and wipe away tears in vain – water was still pouring down her face. Vala fell to her knees in front of him and grabbed his face. "I want all that too," her voice was hard to hear over the rain but he caught it. "I would love nothing more than to be your wife. Yes, I'll marry you."
He surged forward the second the words were out and kissed her. He wrapped her in his arms before he stood and swung her around in circles, eliciting peels of squeals. "I love you," he murmured, resting his forehead against hers.
Vala kissed his lips. "I love you too."
He pulled away briefly to slip the ring on her finger before offering her his hand. At her inquiring look, he asked. "Can I have this dance?"
She laughed and looked around them. "You're insane," she told him fondly as she brushed away wet strands. "And one day, I'm going to tease you relentlessly for making me look like a drowned cat on the day of our engagement…but for now, yes. I'd love to dance."
Daniel wrapped an arm around her waist and brought her closer.
Vala put her arm around his shoulder. "Did you really wait three months for it to rain?" she asked over the roar of the rain.
"Yeah," he grumbled. "It sucked, but you deserve this moment. I've regretted not dancing with you in the rain when you asked."
Her arm tightened. "Well, let's dance now, shall we?"
So, they danced in the rain like a pair of lunatics like no one was watching.
The End.