When no more tears came and Sam's breath finally steadied, she released her hold of Jack. As she stepped back, she took a moment to collect herself, her heart still racing. The warmth of his presence lingered, but she knew she needed to find her footing. It was time to face her boys, even if the chaos still buzzed around them.

"God, how am I going to tell the boys that daddy won't come back anymore?"

Jack placed his hand on the small of her back as a supportive gesture.

"They know, Sam. They just need you to confirm it. I'm sorry, but I talked to them. They had a lot of questions after seeing Pete today. I tried to prepare them for the inevitable, so they do understand."

"They told me that you spoke about Charlie to them. I know that couldn't have been easy for you. Thank you so much for sharing it with them, to help them understand."

"They lost an equally important person today. I lost my son and they lost their dad. I thought it was right to prepare them for what's coming. Although it will take time for them to fully understand. Do you want to tell them alone?"

"I think it's best if I do it alone."

He stopped to look at her closely, trying to find out if she's saying the truth or just was afraid to ask for help.

"Give me the car keys, I'll drive. Daniel and Teal'c took them home in my car."

She wordlessly handed him her keys and took a seat on the passenger side.

In Sam's driveway he killed the engine and waited before he got out. He waited for Sam to make the first step, because she's the one to decide the next step. He observed her. She was staring at her front door, fixating it. They saw movement inside the house shadows that passed the windows while the house was well lit.

Sam had opened her door already, but otherwise she didn't move an inch. He took her hand and squeezed it. She squeezed back. And that was what brought her to move. She got out of the car and was on her way inside her home, Jack always one step behind her, watching her back.

As soon as they were inside, the house was filled with soft voices.

Alex sat across from Daniel at the dining table, a chess board right in front of them. Teal'c on the other hand was reading Ben's favorite book to him, but when the boys saw their mother it did only take one moment before they landed in her arms.

Jack motioned Daniel to let them alone, Teal'c was already on his way into the kitchen where they were briefed by Jack.

To be able to hold them Sam sank down on the floor, Alex sitting between her legs and Ben on her thigh.

"Mom, is Daddy in heaven now?" Alex asked, unknowingly making it easier for their mom to confirm that their father was gone.

"Yes baby, he's in heaven now. Watching over us." As much as Sam fought against her tears this was a fight she'd lost. They started to flow as the innocent words of her son brought her back to reality.

"I will miss him so much, mommy." Ben said.

"We all will, Ben. We will miss him like hell. But there will be times when we can look back and laugh at all the funny things your dad did. We will look back and remember him as the lovely man he was. And other times we'll feel overwhelmed and sad, but that's normal and that's to be expected. Don't feel bad when you miss him and need to cry. There's no shame in crying, especially not if you miss someone."

"And what happens now?" Alex wanted to know.

"The funeral will be a week from now. And I have to tell uncle Mark and aunt Penny. They surely want to be there for it. Daniel, Teal'c and Jack will be here to help us too."

"Now that you're back home, will uncle Jack still stay here with us?"

"I'm not sure. We can ask him if you want to. I'm sure he's going to do what you're comfortable with."

"I want him to stay." Ben firmly told them and got up. The boys waited for Sam to stand up as well and together they walked into the kitchen where their friends were waiting.

Soon Ben was up on Jack's arm, Alex cuddled against Jack's leg.

"The boys wanted to know if you'd stay here tonight? I know they'd appreciate it."

"And you?" Jack wanted to know.

"It may be better not to be alone tonight."

Jack nodded. "Alright, I'll stay."

Sam turned towards the guys, inviting them to stay too, but they sensed it would be too many people right now. They promised to be there in the morning so that they can eat breakfast with them and afterwards help organize the funeral.

The boys asked Jack to tuck them in and he willingly agreed.

In the meantime Sam walked the others to the door, saying goodbye before she's going to call her brother.

Daniel lingered in the door frame while Teal'c had already said his goodbye.

"I just wanted to say how sorry I am for you, Sam. Don't hesitate to reach out, I'm here for you. I know how it feels to lose a spouse, so if you need anything, I'm just a phone call away."

She hugged him tightly before she kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you, that means a lot to me."

"You're welcome, Sam. We'll come over tomorrow to help organize everything."

He hugged her a last time before he joined Teal'c and headed home.

Sam heard Jack read a bedtime story and figured she had enough time to call Mark. He was taken aback by the news of his best friend's death, a wave of disbelief washing over him. He promised he and Penny would be there for the funeral. They would come without kids and told her they'd stay at a hotel so that she wouldn't have additional stress with hosting them.

When they hung up she heard Jack close the book and kiss her sons goodnight.

She was looking forward to doing the same and entered the kids room as Jack exited. Sam sat down on Alex's bed and Ben joined them. Cuddled up on the bed Sam drew strength out of the contact with her children. When they had fallen asleep on her she kissed them goodnight and tucked them into their beds.

Feeling slightly dizzy she tried to remember when was the last time she had eaten something.

She was met by Jack in front of the boys room where he had waited for her.

Seeing her waver he instantly was there to steady her. His arm flew around her waist and her cold fingers wrapped around his biceps.

"Wow there, careful! Are you feeling alright? I mean physically."

Her other hand touched her forehead, trying to massage away her headaches.

"No, I'm not feeling too well to be honest. But I haven't eaten properly in days. I think this might catch up with me."

"Although you might want to be alone right now, I won't let you go to bed unless you've eaten at least a bit. Let me see what I can come up with. Do you rather want sandwiches or pasta? Both shouldn't take long."

"Heaven sent you, do you know that? I'd go with the sandwiches. I've got the feeling that I can't keep a hot meal with me right now. And I do appreciate your company, don't ever think otherwise. I'm so thankful for everything you're doing for us right now!"

"I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. So sandwiches it is. Do you want to sit down in the living room and I'll bring it there?"

"If it's okay for you I'll come to the kitchen, I'm not ready to be alone with my thoughts."

She took a seat at the kitchen counter and watched Jack working in her yellow painted kitchen.

Sam was more nibbling on the sandwich than really eating it, but in the end she managed to eat at least one.

Jack told her to go to bed, he'd clean up the kitchen and retreat to the guest room himself.

"Good night, Sam. I'm just a few steps away if you need me."

Silently, she stepped closer to him, drawn by an invisible thread of comfort and familiarity. She nestled into his embrace, a sense of safety enveloped her like a warm blanket. She rested her head against his chest, listening to the gentle rhythm of his heartbeat—a steady, reassuring sound that began to ease the tension coiling within her. His chin rested softly atop her head, creating an intimate cocoon around them, blurring the boundaries of their bodies until it felt as if they were two parts of a single whole. In that moment, the world outside faded away, leaving only the soothing presence of each other, grounding them in an unspoken understanding.

Back in her bedroom she changed into shorts and a tank top, lying down at her side of the king size bed. She turned to lie on her left side watching the empty pillow next to her. Her hand ran gently over the spot where Pete used to sleep and his body had left an imprint in the mattress.

She took the pillow and hugged it closely, Pete's scent was still in the air. It was only then, alone in her safe place where nobody could see her, that she collapsed.

She cried soundly, letting her emotions flow. Angry with the world that had taken her husband and left her kids without a father.

The first one to wake from a nightmare was Ben, with his eyes still half closed he climbed into bed with Sam who had woken from the noises in the next room. She tried to calm him down and it didn't take long for the toddler to go back to sleep. Sam however wasn't able to sleep anymore, she watched her sleeping son, who's face resembled that of his father so much.

Not an hour later she heard her oldest son toss and turn in his bed before he finally got up. Her door was just ajar and she waited for the familiar squeal that came when the door was opened, but it didn't squeal. She heard footsteps pass her door and another one was opened, the door to her guest room.

Sitting up in bed she prepared to get up and get Alex when she heard him whisper with Jack, who was already wide awake.

"Hey sport, couldn't sleep?" Jack's voice was quiet. Alex shook his head as he approached his uncle, who had already sat up.

"I woke up and was crying. I think it was a nightmare uncle Jack, but I can't remember what it was about."

"You want to go and see if your mom is awake?" Jack wanted to know.

"No, Ben is not in his bed and I think he's with mom. I don't want to bother them. Can I stay with you tonight?"

Jack's heart filled with love for the little boy, he was overwhelmed that Alex trusted him to be a safe place for him.

In the other room Sam shed a few tears. Equally overwhelmed and thankful to have Jack as support for her and her sons.

Jack woke up again as the sun began to rise. He checked, but Alex was still sound asleep. He got up and wondered what sound had woken him up. There it was again and he went to Sam's room to see if he could help. He found Ben lying on his back in the middle of the bed and smiled. Is it possible to love those kids even more?

The noises came from the bathroom and when he opened the door he found Sam on the floor in front of the toilet with her back against the bathtub, it was obvious that she'd thrown up. She was sweating and shaking. Jack wetted a washcloth and kneeled down before her, carefully placing the cold wet cloth on her forehead.

Only then she realized that she wasn't alone anymore. Her deep blue eyes showed a mix of exhaustion and desperation.

He held his hand out to help her up and she gladly took it.

"Come on, back to bed with you. You look awful. Have you even got some sleep tonight?"

"Not much. Ben came over at two o'clock and afterwards sleep wouldn't come for me."

"Yeah, I heard him. Is he okay?"

" Yes, it was just an emotionally exhausting day for us all."

"Alex came to me around 4 o'clock. We managed to get a bit more sleep than you. He's still out cold."

"I've heard him, I was ready to come and get him, but I heard you two talk. It was you who he needed so I stayed here. Sorry for eavesdropping."

"That's okay, you want to make sure they're both as okay as they can be. Go back to bed Sam, I'll bring you some crackers. Your stomach needs something to do. I'm surprised there even is something to throw up, you've eaten far too little. Maybe that's the whole problem here."

"Crackers sound good. I never imagined my body would react like this in such a situation. I mean we've had so many times where we dealt with death and some very stressful situations, but this feels so much more. I'm so exhausted."

"That was to be expected, Sam. When Charlie died, I was sick for weeks. As soon as I thought about what happened I found myself in the bathroom again. We'll get through this. It will get easier after the funeral. I promise."

He brought her crackers to bed and started with breakfast in case the boys would wake up soon.

Around noon Daniel and Teal'c joined them. Sam had an appointment to organize everything for the funeral. Daniel accompanied her while Jack and Teal'c stayed home to play with Alex and Ben.

A few days later Sam and Jack were sitting in the living room, both reading a book. The kids are already asleep. Jack had watched Sam closely for the last few days and even now he was observing her. She had gotten up three times already. Everytime shedding a layer of clothes, squirming uncomfortably in her seat. It wasn't overly warm inside but she seems to feel hot. She'd done this every day and Jack worried a little that this could be something more than just stress related.

She threw up everyday and was trying to hide that she got dizzy spells, but he hadn't been in black ops for nothing, he recognized it. And when she got up a fourth time to open the window, Jack put his book down and looked at her openly. She sat back down on the couch and sighed. Suddenly he had a feeling that this indeed was more than just stress and exhaustion. He leaned towards her, turning her attention to him.

"Sam, I know this is all hard on you, but do you really think this is stress related?"

"No, I don't think so." He raises his eyebrow.

"So you know what's going on with you?" he asked carefully.

"As if this all isn't enough I'm going to start menopause and I'm just not ready for this."

Jack choked, this wasn't exactly what he thought about.

"Sam I know you're getting older, we all do. But you're not old enough to start menopause, are you?"

"I have all the symptoms. I don't sleep too well and I'm awfully emotional, even before Pete died, I get hot flashes a few times a day, I'm more tired than I'm used to and I wanted to spare you all the glory details, but if you must know my breasts are tense and I had just weird spotting last week instead of my period."

He smiled because she looked embarrassed and in his opinion she was completely on the wrong track.

"Well, I know those symptoms. Have seen you having them before. I don't think you're starting menopause."

Now she was confused.

"What do you mean Jack?"

"Like around five and 4 years ago."

And suddenly it hit her. "No! That can't be."

"You mean it can't 'be' or 'can't' be?"

"Jack, that can't be happening right now. I mean, it's...it is possible, I believe. But I can't be pregnant, I just lost my husband, I have two young kids to take care of, how am I supposed to go through another pregnancy with all that's happening."

Tears instantly welled up in her eyes and Jack scooted closer, laying his arms around her.

"How about we try to find out if it's what we're thinking? If you want I'm going to the store and grab a pregnancy test, so we can be sure."

Shocked, she nodded and looked in his comforting brown eyes.

"Thank you."

He rushed to the next grocery store, thanking God that it's still open. He grabbed a few different packs of pregnancy tests. Maybe only one could give a false result. The cashier grinned at him when he saw how nervous Jack was while paying for the tests.

In other circumstances Jack might have found it funnier, but he was indeed nervous. What would another pregnancy mean for Sam? She clearly hadn't planned on it. She was still dealing with her husband's death and navigating her new life as a single mom. On the drive home Jack took a wrong turn twice, obviously nervous.

He once gave her a promise: Always. And if she was really pregnant he'd do everything to help. The President would have his resignation on his desk soon, he already told Jack he wouldn't prefer this outcome, but would finally not stand in Jack's way towards retirement.

Back home Sam opened the door for him and he could see that she'd been crying. Still the bag in his hands he pulled her into his arms.

"No matter the result of this, Sam. I'm here for you."

She took the bag and headed to the bathroom. Meanwhile Jack was making two cups of tea. Coffee would definitely be the worst idea right now. He just put the cups down when she joined him. She had four different types of tests in her hand and placed them neatly on the couch table in front of them.

"Ten minutes." Was all she said when she took a seat beside Jack. The clock on the wall ticked louder than before. Sam chewed her bottom lip nervously, Jack was surprised that she didn't draw blood already. He reached out and took her hand in his. They sat beside each other like this until the time was up.

Together they leaned forward, staring at four plastic sticks that all showed the same result.