Aurora
Title: Aurora
Author: ardvari
Rating: PG
Pairing: Sam/Jack
Disclaimer: Not mine.
A/N: Inspired by the recent burst of geomagnetic activity, and spending a night up to track the storm.
Aurora
He had been strangely giddy all day, puttering around the cabin to get it ready for winter. Unless their respective lives took pity on them, they probably wouldn’t be able to make it out here again until after Christmas, at which point neither of them would feel much like doing the things he was trying to get done now. He had chopped large quantities of wood all day, a sight she would have been able to appreciate more if she hadn’t had to watch it over top of her computer screen while it was running through yet another simulation.
The only way she had gotten two consecutive weeks off was because everyone knew she’d spend at least some of that time working, coming up with things to improve the Hammond, or humankind, or the galaxy.
Now she was almost done, would be able to forget about work for a couple of days (unless something went blatantly wrong), the fire in the fireplace threw dancing shadows along the walls, and Jack had left to get pizza because neither of them was big on cooking. Their combined efforts had recently culminated in an evening of charred steaks, macaroni and cheese, and ice cream. The kind of food every college student believed to be part of a balanced diet.
Pizza it was tonight, which meant that traces of vegetables did at least make an appearance, however small and insignificant in the grand scheme of things. There would undoubtedly be jokes again about her pineapples fraternizing with his mushrooms. The pineapples were something he’d never get over, not even if they lived to be a hundred years old.
Finally shutting down her laptop, she meandered into the kitchen, stretched her back, and set the table. While they ate their way through a variety of college foods they could at least do it at the table, on plates, like other people their age.
He came home with a gust of wind, making the fire shiver and struggle briefly before he kicked the door shut behind him.
“Honey, I’m home,” he called, his tone self-mocking.
She snorted, rolled her eyes, and took the pizza carton from him so he could pull his jacket off.
“Cold out there?” she asked, watching him kick off his shoes before he ran a hand through his hair.
“Wind’s cold. But this is Minnesota, it’ll be snowing here in a couple of weeks.”
He followed her into the kitchen, watched as she cut the pizza (because they never did it right at those pizza places) and dropped a couple of hot slices on his plate.
They always ate in silence, a comfortable silence that was interrupted only by warm smiles and eyes playing catch across the table. More often than not her feet found his beneath the table, tangling easily.
“So you’re done working for now?” he called to her later, doing dishes while she had just climbed out of the shower.
“Yep,” she answered, rubbing a towel through her hair on her way to the bedroom.
“Cool. Put some warm clothes on,” he said, making her pause in the doorway.
“Why?”
“Not tellin’ ya,” he grinned, taking in the sight of her just wrapped in a towel.
Her raised eyebrow managed to make him smirk even harder but he shook his head at her, shooing her off to get dressed.
When they were here, at home, she’d begun to wear his clothes almost exclusively. She slept in his shirts, wore his sweatpants, pulled on one of his sweaters if she was cold. His clothes were so much more comfortable than hers, bigger and well-worn and just simply Jack. Braiding her wet hair down her back, she walked back into the living room.
He was sitting in the spot she’d occupied all afternoon, a bottle of beer in his hand as he aimlessly zapped through the TV channels. Nothing seemed to catch his eye, not even the football game he stared at blankly for a couple of minutes before turning the TV off again.
Flopping down beside him, she tucked her legs up underneath herself and leaned against his side.
“So? What’re we doing?” she asked, one hand covering his, drawing lazy circles on the back of it.
It was already dark outside; the trees surrounding his pond pitch black against the inky sky. The wind made them bend, their long branches waving up and down gently.
“Just wanna show you something. Wait here,” he said, kissing her gently, a kiss that was short and yet deliciously sweet.
Slightly confused she watched him pull his shoes on. With a wink he grabbed his jacket off the hook, pushed open the glass doors to the porch and stepped out. She stayed on the couch as he disappeared into the night, shivering involuntarily when the cold air seeped into the room, stealing all the fire’s warmth.
“Okay, get your shoes and jacket, then close your eyes,” he called from outside, his flushed face appearing in the doorway again.
“What on Earth…” she muttered, doing as she was told before finally coming to stand just inside the glass doors.
She furrowed her brow, her eyes full of questions as she looked up at him expectantly. He shook his head, running his index finger along her eyebrows and down her eyelids.
“Trust me,” he whispered, kissing her again before he made sure her eyes were really closed.
Lacing his fingers through hers, he walked backwards, guiding her out onto the porch, down the few narrow steps and over to the dock. She followed him without hesitating, knowing exactly that he wouldn’t let her fall. The kind of trust she put in this man, and the kind of trust she got in return, was almost uncanny sometimes and she wasn’t sure which one of them that fact scared more sometimes.
He stopped on the dock, pulling her closer until he could rest his hands on her hips.
“Open your eyes.”
She did, blinking tentatively, searching his face before she looked higher, her eyes lighting up at the sight that greeted her.
Long ribbons of green and purple unraveled across the sky, the stars glowing just beyond. The lights seemed to be dancing, twisting and turning. They flowed like water, appeared static for a moment before moving on, rippling with energy.
While she turned in his arms, following the lights, staring up in childlike fascination, he watched her. Those were the moments he loved the most, the moments in which she was awed by something, her face full of wonder, her mind for once not trying to solve three intergalactic problems at once. He pulled her back against him, resting his chin on her shoulder while she continued to watch the lights dance above them. Her hands came to rest on his where he’d clasped them over her stomach.
“They’re amazing. How did you know?” she finally asked.
“Checked online,” he shrugged, making her giggle.
“Solar wind?”
“Nope, coronal mass ejection,” he supplied proudly, feeling her nod against his cheek.
She sighed contently, turning around in his arms again so she could wrap her arms around his neck.
“Thank you, Jack,” she said softly, her voice full of emotion.
“For what?”
“For showing me… this. All of this,” she smiled, knowing he’d get what she meant, that there was so much more to be grateful for than jus the northern lights.
“Right back at ya,” he whispered, cupping her face and kissing her again, deeply this time and with all the time in the universe.
Author: ardvari
Rating: PG
Pairing: Sam/Jack
Disclaimer: Not mine.
A/N: Inspired by the recent burst of geomagnetic activity, and spending a night up to track the storm.
Aurora
He had been strangely giddy all day, puttering around the cabin to get it ready for winter. Unless their respective lives took pity on them, they probably wouldn’t be able to make it out here again until after Christmas, at which point neither of them would feel much like doing the things he was trying to get done now. He had chopped large quantities of wood all day, a sight she would have been able to appreciate more if she hadn’t had to watch it over top of her computer screen while it was running through yet another simulation.
The only way she had gotten two consecutive weeks off was because everyone knew she’d spend at least some of that time working, coming up with things to improve the Hammond, or humankind, or the galaxy.
Now she was almost done, would be able to forget about work for a couple of days (unless something went blatantly wrong), the fire in the fireplace threw dancing shadows along the walls, and Jack had left to get pizza because neither of them was big on cooking. Their combined efforts had recently culminated in an evening of charred steaks, macaroni and cheese, and ice cream. The kind of food every college student believed to be part of a balanced diet.
Pizza it was tonight, which meant that traces of vegetables did at least make an appearance, however small and insignificant in the grand scheme of things. There would undoubtedly be jokes again about her pineapples fraternizing with his mushrooms. The pineapples were something he’d never get over, not even if they lived to be a hundred years old.
Finally shutting down her laptop, she meandered into the kitchen, stretched her back, and set the table. While they ate their way through a variety of college foods they could at least do it at the table, on plates, like other people their age.
He came home with a gust of wind, making the fire shiver and struggle briefly before he kicked the door shut behind him.
“Honey, I’m home,” he called, his tone self-mocking.
She snorted, rolled her eyes, and took the pizza carton from him so he could pull his jacket off.
“Cold out there?” she asked, watching him kick off his shoes before he ran a hand through his hair.
“Wind’s cold. But this is Minnesota, it’ll be snowing here in a couple of weeks.”
He followed her into the kitchen, watched as she cut the pizza (because they never did it right at those pizza places) and dropped a couple of hot slices on his plate.
They always ate in silence, a comfortable silence that was interrupted only by warm smiles and eyes playing catch across the table. More often than not her feet found his beneath the table, tangling easily.
“So you’re done working for now?” he called to her later, doing dishes while she had just climbed out of the shower.
“Yep,” she answered, rubbing a towel through her hair on her way to the bedroom.
“Cool. Put some warm clothes on,” he said, making her pause in the doorway.
“Why?”
“Not tellin’ ya,” he grinned, taking in the sight of her just wrapped in a towel.
Her raised eyebrow managed to make him smirk even harder but he shook his head at her, shooing her off to get dressed.
When they were here, at home, she’d begun to wear his clothes almost exclusively. She slept in his shirts, wore his sweatpants, pulled on one of his sweaters if she was cold. His clothes were so much more comfortable than hers, bigger and well-worn and just simply Jack. Braiding her wet hair down her back, she walked back into the living room.
He was sitting in the spot she’d occupied all afternoon, a bottle of beer in his hand as he aimlessly zapped through the TV channels. Nothing seemed to catch his eye, not even the football game he stared at blankly for a couple of minutes before turning the TV off again.
Flopping down beside him, she tucked her legs up underneath herself and leaned against his side.
“So? What’re we doing?” she asked, one hand covering his, drawing lazy circles on the back of it.
It was already dark outside; the trees surrounding his pond pitch black against the inky sky. The wind made them bend, their long branches waving up and down gently.
“Just wanna show you something. Wait here,” he said, kissing her gently, a kiss that was short and yet deliciously sweet.
Slightly confused she watched him pull his shoes on. With a wink he grabbed his jacket off the hook, pushed open the glass doors to the porch and stepped out. She stayed on the couch as he disappeared into the night, shivering involuntarily when the cold air seeped into the room, stealing all the fire’s warmth.
“Okay, get your shoes and jacket, then close your eyes,” he called from outside, his flushed face appearing in the doorway again.
“What on Earth…” she muttered, doing as she was told before finally coming to stand just inside the glass doors.
She furrowed her brow, her eyes full of questions as she looked up at him expectantly. He shook his head, running his index finger along her eyebrows and down her eyelids.
“Trust me,” he whispered, kissing her again before he made sure her eyes were really closed.
Lacing his fingers through hers, he walked backwards, guiding her out onto the porch, down the few narrow steps and over to the dock. She followed him without hesitating, knowing exactly that he wouldn’t let her fall. The kind of trust she put in this man, and the kind of trust she got in return, was almost uncanny sometimes and she wasn’t sure which one of them that fact scared more sometimes.
He stopped on the dock, pulling her closer until he could rest his hands on her hips.
“Open your eyes.”
She did, blinking tentatively, searching his face before she looked higher, her eyes lighting up at the sight that greeted her.
Long ribbons of green and purple unraveled across the sky, the stars glowing just beyond. The lights seemed to be dancing, twisting and turning. They flowed like water, appeared static for a moment before moving on, rippling with energy.
While she turned in his arms, following the lights, staring up in childlike fascination, he watched her. Those were the moments he loved the most, the moments in which she was awed by something, her face full of wonder, her mind for once not trying to solve three intergalactic problems at once. He pulled her back against him, resting his chin on her shoulder while she continued to watch the lights dance above them. Her hands came to rest on his where he’d clasped them over her stomach.
“They’re amazing. How did you know?” she finally asked.
“Checked online,” he shrugged, making her giggle.
“Solar wind?”
“Nope, coronal mass ejection,” he supplied proudly, feeling her nod against his cheek.
She sighed contently, turning around in his arms again so she could wrap her arms around his neck.
“Thank you, Jack,” she said softly, her voice full of emotion.
“For what?”
“For showing me… this. All of this,” she smiled, knowing he’d get what she meant, that there was so much more to be grateful for than jus the northern lights.
“Right back at ya,” he whispered, cupping her face and kissing her again, deeply this time and with all the time in the universe.