FIC: Future Perfect by Cowardly Lion 1/2
Third and final installment of the m-preg trilogy "Future Tense". Rated R and clocking in at over 15,000 words, this is Set in Season 7. Jack and Daniel are an established couple. Janet is alive. Yay Janet! You don't need to read the previous stories before this, but if you'd like to, the first one is Future Imperfect and the second is Future Continuous.
Synopsis: Jack and Daniel bicker their way through Daniel's pregnancy.
Future Perfect
by Cowardly Lion
2nd Month
Colonel Jack O'Neill sighed.
As soon as SG-1 plus Doctor Fraiser returned from the fact finding mission to P98-J4D, Walter had passed along the order to report directly to the briefing room. The team had been quickly divested of weapons and packs by the supply staff that had been sent to meet them in the gate room. From there, Jack and his team had headed straight up the stairs and were now seated at the briefing room table.
Sam and Daniel had each scrounged up a pad of paper and a pen from God knows where and were busy making notes. Like Jack, Teal'c and Janet were lost in thought. Through the glass window, Jack could see General Hammond in his office using the red telephone. Hammond seemed to be doing more listening than talking, his frown growing more pronounced the longer the call went on.
Inwardly, Jack sighed. This wasn't his finest hour. Drumming his fingers on the table, Jack mentally tried to phrase his report as they waited for General Hammond since the bald truth wouldn't do.
"Well, you see, sir, Daniel and I got so totally wasted on alien goo that without realizing it we did the wild thing in public right on top of one of those DNA mix-master machines like Nirrti had. Yes sir, the machine was very active at the time which is why Daniel is now two months along with my love child. On a positive note, the crowd in the temple enjoyed our performance so much that they play tapes of it world wide. Continually. There's even a thriving souvenir business, which I'm sure has helped their economy along. Let's say we chalk that mission up as a win in the 'humanitarian aid' column!"
Oh yeah. Wouldn't that go over well? Jack figured his own fate was pretty well sealed because "don't ask, don't tell" obviously extended to "don't knock up your boyfriend", even if said boyfriend was a civilian. Jack just hoped they'd let him retire instead of kicking him out with a dishonorable discharge or, worst case scenario, bring him up on charges. Whatever happened to him, though, was secondary to how Daniel was handled. Regardless, Jack really hoped the grumpy look on Hammond's face wasn't an omen.
A few minutes passed before Hammond hung up the phone and joined them at the table. Before he even finished getting seated, he asked for Jack's report.
For the first time since his days as a raw young Lieutenant fresh out of the academy, Jack found himself tongue-tied in front of a superior officer. He stammered, wishing Daniel would jump in and help him, but Daniel was staring at his note pad. So was, Carter, so no help there. Teal'c was sitting back and watching the show.
After the longest thirty-seconds of Jack's life, Janet stepped into the breach, sounding smooth and professional.
"During their visit to the temple, Colonel O'Neill and Doctor Jackson were inadvertently exposed to extraordinarily high levels of a psychotropic substance used during the ritual in which they were participating."
God bless Fraiser, Jack thought.
"This impaired their cognitive abilities in much the same way as extreme inebriation would. Due to this impairment - ah - "
Janet stumbled a bit but Sam was right there to pick up the ball and run with it.
"Due to this impairment, the Colonel and Daniel were unable to identify the DNA manipulating device which had been built into the altar and dais on which the ritual took place and which was therefore nearly unrecognizable. Although the machine was active at the time of the ritual, the people there have no understanding of it or the technology it's composed of. There is no record of what settings were in place on the machine at that time."
And God bless Carter. Jack sent up thanks for her along with those for the doc.
"Even if we did have that information," said Janet regretfully, "it is extremely doubtful that Daniel's condition could be reversed in any way."
Hammond looked deflated. "Are you absolutely certain that there's nothing to be done?"
This time it was Daniel who replied. "We spoke to one of the Demarians who let us into the temple - "
"Omri," corrected Jack.
"What?"
"The folks on P98-J4D are the Omri."
"That's right." Daniel nodded at Jack then turned back to Hammond. "Anyway, as I was saying, one of the Demarians - "
"You did it again." Jack couldn't help himself. He had just corrected Daniel, but the man was still making the same mistake.
"Did what?"
"Said Demarian. The people on P98-J4D are the Omri." "
"Yes. They are." Daniel spoke slowly as if to someone with a limited intelligence.
"You keep saying Demarian."
"Because it was a Demarian that took us to the temple."
"No, Granny One Tooth and the Giant Bee took us to the temple."
"If you are referring to the elder, her son, and his family that met us at the gate, then yes, they accompanied us, but only to the city of Grebat." Daniel folded his arms across his chest. "Your point being?"
"My point, Daniel is that Granny, Jed and the rest of the Clampetts are Omri."
"I'm not disputing that." Daniel's voice rose in pitch.
"Well, you keep calling them Demarians." Jack's voice rose in volume as he said firmly, "Marietta is an Omri."
"Yes, yes - but Marliota, Acolyte of the second level of Tralan, is also a Demarian." Daniel was using his reasonable voice now, which meant that he thought Jack wasn't. Reasonable, that is.
"O'Neill." Teal'c's voice cut sharply across them. "As I recall from our initial briefing, the term Demarian refers to the priests and their ilk among the Omri."
"Yes!" Daniel flung one hand toward his team mate. "Thank you, Teal'c. Demarian is a collective term for anyone affiliated with the religious order on the planet whether they are priests, nuns, acolytes or anyone who serves them. Marliota was an acolyte therefore, he is a Demarian as well as an Omri."
"Well, maybe if you had said that to begin with, I would have known." Jack let his annoyance show.
"I did say that." Daniel was getting huffy. "I said it in the initial briefing."
"That was months ago and anyway, you must have mumbled that part because I missed it."
After investing all that time arguing, there was no way Jack was going to meekly back down now. Too bad he had forgotten about Daniel "Last Word" Jackson.
"Maybe if you spent your time listening instead of scribbling pornographic stick figures in the margins of your note pad -"
"Pfft!" Jack waved a hand dismissively. "Like I'm the only one who does that!"
"Enough!" barked Hammond.
On the other side of the briefing table, Sam hurriedly flipped her notepad over, her cheeks tinged a becoming pink.
"I get the picture, people." Hammond sighed. He spoke slowly, carefully choosing his words. "What I'm hearing is that I can safely say that Dr. Jackson's unique condition was brought about by his proximity to Colonel O'Neill in the presence of unknown alien technology that was activated without their knowledge."
With that, Jack breathed a sigh of relief. Worded that way, there was no breach of "don't ask, don't tell." Jack and Daniel should be safe from reprisals on that front.
Hammond stood. "You are all dismissed, but I want your written reports by the end of the day tomorrow." Returning to his office, he shut the door behind him and headed straight for the red phone.
Without another word, Jack and the others pushed away from the table and filed into the corridor. Once out of earshot of Hammond, Jack suggested they go to Janet's office so that she and Sam could repeat their description of events for the written reports. Crowding into Janet's small office, Teal'c and Jack stood, Janet sat at her desk, and Sam insisted that Daniel take the lone chair in front of the desk. Intending to sit on the corner of the desk, Sam pushed aside some files.
"Hey!" Sam exclaimed. "You bought a memorial plaque." She held it up for everyone to see. It was one of the souvenirs from the market on P98-J4D depicting Jack and Daniel's coupling at the temple. Luckily the picture on this plaque only showed their faces.
As one, Jack and Daniel exclaimed, "What?!"
"I wanted a memento, that's all," Janet explained. She snatched the item from Sam and stuffed it in a drawer. "How often do I get to go off world? Besides, maybe you should ask Sam about her new t-shirt."
When all heads turned to stare at her, Sam raised her chin defensively. "It was pretty and the picture doesn't show anything, um, naughty. Besides, like the Colonel said, the writing on it is an alien script so no one on Earth will know what it means."
Teal'c's deep voice rumbled around them. "I myself purchased two shirts, a ceramic mug, and one set of carved wooden figurines which the merchant assured me were accurate representations of specific moments from the recording of your coupling at the temple."
There was a stunned silence before Jack protested, "T-man, I'm begging you. Not the little statues. They've got our faces on them. Everyone will know it's me and Daniel and they'll see exactly what we were doing."
The Jaffa ruminated a moment then inclined his head. "Very well. You have my word that I shall view the figures only in private."
"Somehow I don't find that comforting," commented Daniel. He eyed the Jaffa speculatively. "At all."
Jack calculated the odds of wresting the wooden figures from Teal'c by force. Let's see, take one slightly over the hill Special Ops Colonel add one Large and Extra Muscley Jaffa in his prime, try to subtract one set of souvenirs and, yeah, pretty much zero chance of that happening. Still, he should at least offer. "Do you want me to make him hand them over?" he asked Daniel.
"No, no," was the hasty reply. "It's done now. I guess I'll have to accept it." Daniel looked intently at Teal'c, Sam, and Janet letting his disapproval show. "I'm just disappointed that each of you bought something when you know how Jack and I feel about them."
Shamefaced, Sam and Janet each dropped their gaze to the floor. Teal'c, however, calmly stared right back at Daniel.
"Perhaps," suggested Teal'c, "you should be certain that O'Neill's view of this matter truly is the same as yours before including him in that statement."
"Why?" Daniel asked cautiously, his gaze bouncing back and forth between Jack and Teal'c.
Teal'c said nothing, just raised one eyebrow. Jack could feel it pointing at him, accusing him with its arch and furrow. Crap. Teal'c was actually ratting him out. Then again, spreading the blame was a time honored tradition for taking the heat off of yourself. Just ask Janet. If the tables were turned, Jack would most likely have done the same and the gleam in Teal'c's eye suggested he knew that.
Eyes narrowing, Daniel focused on Jack.
"Jaaaack?" The name was drawn out, inflection rising at the end. There was a warning implicit in the sound.
Double crap. That was the intonation which meant "I know you're up to something and if you 'fess up now I won't be nearly as pissed as I would be if I had to figure it out on my own, but either way, you're in trouble Mister." It was amazing what depth of meaning Daniel could pack into one prolonged syllable. Must be the linguist in him.
Jack made a big show of reluctance as he grudgingly admitted, "I picked up two of the shirts."
In fact he had gotten six shirts altogether - one of each design. Two of the shirts weren't that great looking, but he had gotten them anyway because he had wanted to complete the set. He'd give up those two to Daniel and make sure the other four were well hidden.
Daniel wasn't quite buying his story, suspicion clouding his eyes. Jack put on his best "Crap! You caught me!" pout and eventually Daniel subsided.
As the talk turned to wording for the reports, all Jack could think of was how very different their lives would be from here on in.
3rd month
The sound of retching woke Jack from a deep sleep. The door to the adjoining bathroom was ajar, a long narrow strip of dim grey light spilling out onto the carpet. Three strides had him gently pushing the door open to see Daniel sitting back on his heels in front of the commode, elbows on the seat, his head propped wearily in his hands. Daniel had both wrist bands, intended to quell nausea, in place. Judging by the sounds that woke Jack, the wristbands weren't able to cope with the increasing levels of hormones that were throwing Daniel's system out of whack.
"Hey." Jack spoke softly, trying not to startle Daniel.
Daniel didn't answer, but rose up to a kneeling position, and vomited.
Jack wet a washcloth with cold water, squeezed the excess from it, and folded it into a compress. When Daniel sat back, Jack flushed the toilet then gently wiped Daniel's face. He ended by laying the compress across his lover's forehead.
"Here. Hold this a second." Jack put Daniel's hand on the compress, then went to the medicine cabinet. Despite the gloom of the tiny nightlight, he easily found what he was looking for. Opening the box, he tore one of the suppositories out of the pack and peeled the foil down.
"I think it's time for those things Doc Fraiser gave you." Jack handed the suppository to Daniel. "Ah, do you need me to..."
"I'm not so out of it that I can't find my ass," Daniel snapped.
"I know." Jack kept his tone light. "Just thought I'd do the polite thing and offer." He rose to his feet. "Let me get you a glass of water to rinse out your mouth."
Backing out of the bathroom, he pulled the door almost closed. The water was a pretense to give Daniel his privacy since Jack could easily have filled the cup in the bathroom. Instead he wandered through the dark house to the kitchen.
By the time Jack returned, Daniel was on his feet in front of the sink washing his hands. He was hunched over and leaning heavily against the countertop, as though it was the only thing holding him up. After quickly setting the water glass on the counter, Jack grabbed a towel from the bar on the wall behind him and dried Daniel's hands.
Dropping the towel on the counter, Jack held the rim of the glass up to Daniel's mouth. Daniel tried to hold the glass himself, but his hand was too shaky. Together, he and Jack did a couple of rounds of rinse and spit before Jack dumped the remaining water down the drain. Setting aside the glass, Jack put an arm around Daniel and carefully maneuvered him back to bed. They moved at a snail's pace since Daniel had his eyes closed, couldn't stand up straight and kept swaying. Jack deliberately left the bathroom door wide open to take advantage of what little light there was.
As soon as he hit the mattress, Daniel rolled onto his side and curled up. Jack pulled the covers over him, tucking them in all around. Daniel still felt clammy, so Jack made sure the bedroom trash can was within Daniel's reach before climbing into bed and spooning up behind Daniel. After a moment, Jack rose up on one elbow so he could get a better view of Daniel and keep an eye on his condition.
“Earlier,” Jack said quietly, “I thought of a great name for him - Gordie Howe.”
That wasn't really true. This was all spur of the moment. Jack just needed something, anything, to distract Daniel long enough for the anti-nausea meds to kick in.
There was a long pause, then a slight wrinkle to Daniel's forehead. “Was that your grandfather on your mother’s side?” The words came out slowly and slightly slurred, but Daniel seemed interested.
“Gordie Howe, Dr. Jackson, is one of the greatest hockey players of all time, as I believe I have mentioned repeatedly.”
Very repeatedly, in fact. Jack knew that Daniel tended to tune out his sports talk just as he tuned out Daniel's archeology lectures, but still the names should have stuck with Daniel. It was a sign of how unwell he was that Daniel didn't place it right away. Jack used the same technique for grading the severity of Daniel's headaches.
“I thought the greatest hockey player was Wayne Gretzky.”
“Him too, but Gordie did it all first.” Good - all Daniel had needed was the context. Jack snapped his fingers as though something had just occurred to him. “Hey! That’s a great idea! We’ll put the two together and call him Gordie Wayne.”
“No! No sports figures." Daniel rolled his shoulder back, turning his head to look at Jack. "Besides, what if it’s a girl?”
“Easy - Gordina Waynette” teased Jack. There was no way he'd saddle a kid with such an outlandish name, but it was useful for getting a rise out of Daniel.
“Why do I suddenly hear banjo music?” was the sardonic reply. Lips pursed, Daniel pondered a moment. “If you want to name him after a famous person how about something classical, like Horace?”
“Are you nuts?” What the hell was his partner thinking? Jack hoped he was joking but you never knew with Daniel. “You wanna name him after a Goa’uld?”
“Not Horus - Horace." Turning onto his back, Daniel drew his knees up then used his hands to further emphasize the difference in the identical sounding names - a sure sign he was starting to feel better. "He was Roman poet, philosopher, and satirist.”
Jack ran weightless fingers over Daniel's arm, both to soothe and reconnoiter. Daniel didn't feel clammy anymore. His skin was warmer, and a little sticky from dried sweat. If Daniel was feeling better enough to get into a wacky name contest, Jack would be happy to oblige.
“That’s a great name - if you want our kid to get beaten up every day. You might as well slap a 'loser' sign on his back as you send him off to school," said Jack. "If you’re going to give him a sissy name at least pick out a guy that kicked ass, like Horatio. He held off the entire Etruscan army single handed at the bridge across the Tiber. Still had a sissy name, though.”
“Okay,” conceded Daniel. “I just…I don’t want to give him some ordinary name that 50 other kids in his class will have, alternate spellings not withstanding.”
Daniel sounded kind of down. Not good. Better jolly him out of it.
“Considering how he’s probably going to come out," Jack said, "I’ve got the perfect name for him.”
Mouth pursed, Daniel glared at him. Even in the murky glow from one far-off nightlight, Jack could tell it was an impressive glare. “We are NOT going call our child Hemorrhoid.”
“Hey - it’s good enough for the Asgard.” Jack felt something ease inside him at the demonstration of Daniel's acuteness. Sharp Daniel was a Daniel who felt fine.
“That’s Heimdall, and the answer is still no.”
“Tumor?”
“No!”
“Biopsy Result?”
“NO!”
“Sheesh, Daniel. No need to shout. I was just kidding.” Outwardly, Jack made faces, but it was good to see Daniel recovering.
“You’re not nearly as funny as you think you are, Jack.” Daniel shifted away from him.
“Fine. Just for that, we’re naming him Budge.” Trying not to smile, Jack waited for the explosion.
Daniel's eyes bugged out for a moment, then he relaxed and chuckled. "You're such an asshole," he said fondly.
Jack laughed with him. He knew Daniel would figure out what he was doing. "Yeah, but I'm your asshole." He kissed Daniel on the cheek and put an arm across his chest. "Now go to sleep."
"Thank you, Jack" murmured Daniel as he draped his arm over Jack's.
By way of reply, Jack put his face in the hollow of Daniel's neck and nuzzled until they fell asleep.
4th month
Jack was irked.
Not a lot, mind you, but definitely irked. He didn't mind listening to Daniel bitch constantly about the weight gain, slight as it was, now that the nausea had abated or about the 'beer belly' Daniel was getting. That's what a partner was for - to listen.
Jack didn't mind standing while Daniel got to sit on the comfy bed either. Jack had sat enough at his desk doing paperwork this morning so he was glad of a chance to stand. Besides Daniel was the patient so he deserved the comfy bed. He didn't even mind being here in the medical isolation room with Daniel since he wanted to be present when Janet gave Daniel his first ultrasound.
What really irked Jack was that because of the weight gain and the little pot belly, Daniel had been forced to go up a size or two in his pants - which meant that now he could wear Jack's pants. So, Jack's regular pants were Daniel's fat pants and wasn't that a kick in Jack's ego?
Jack was trying to be nonchalant about it, but since Daniel had rolled his eyes at Jack's choice of salad with no dressing and a glass of water for lunch, he probably wasn't being too successful.
"Okay, Daniel. You don't need to undress completely for this." Janet gave him a reassuring smile. "I just need to access your abdominal area for the ultrasound."
Lying back on the bed, Daniel unbuttoned his BDU pants. Sticking his thumbs under the waistband of his briefs, he shoved everything down to his hips then pulled his t-shirt up under his arms. Janet picked up a tube and squeezed a dollop of gel just above Daniel's pubic bone.
"Yow!" Daniel flinched, pulling his legs up as he exclaimed, "Warm the lube!"
The second he realized what he had said, Daniel looked embarrassed and flushed a mottled red.
Janet was amused. "When it goes here, Daniel, it's called gel or jelly."
Jack deliberately didn't look at Daniel who was ignoring him in return. In the wake of an incident near the beginning of their relationship, those words had become a catchphrase between them. As embarrassing as Daniel's outburst was, Jack feared he'd laugh if he caught Daniel's eye and Daniel didn't seem at all inclined toward laughter at the moment.
Picking up the wand, Janet activated the ultrasound machine, and placed the wand low on Daniel's abdomen. For a while the room was silent as she moved the wand around, changing angles and locations until the fetus showed on the display. The image was made up of black, white and grey spots that from far away enough resolved into a picture of the baby who was showing them how the fetal position got its name. One hand was up by its face, the thumb in its mouth. A pulsating 'whoosh-whoosh' sound came from the speakers.
"What's that noise?" asked Daniel
"It's the baby's heartbeat."
Jack had spoken in unison with Janet. He remembered clearly the first time he had accompanied his ex-wife Sara to the doctor when she was pregnant with Charlie. Looking at the image of his child all those years ago was the moment he had first felt like a father. Although no one could ever take the place of the boy he had lost, Jack was starting to get excited about being a father again. He examined the image in front of him now, wondering if he was going to have another son. Hey! Was that - ?
"It's a boy!" exclaimed Jack as he pointed at the monitor. "And he's hung like a bear!"
Janet peered more closely at the image. "That's not - "
In his excitement, Jack cut her off, puffing up proudly. "He takes after his daddy," he boasted.
"Why, thank you, Jack." Daniel grinned at him. "I appreciate the compliment."
"What?" He gave Daniel a startled glance before turning back to the monitor. "No, I meant me."
Okay, so yeah, they had gotten the ruler out that one time and technically, Daniel was the better endowed but only by a quarter of an inch. In Jack's mind that qualified as a tie because anything under one half should be rounded down to the nearest number. Daniel insisted that since the ruler had markings delineating sixteenths of an inch, the standard of measurement should be exact. Jack proceeded to prove to him that size didn't matter - twice that night and once more the next morning.
"You said daddy," insisted Doctor Pedantic Jackson, "so that could be either of us and since I'm officially the one who's better - "
"Aht!" Jack raised a finger to stop him.
" - better equipped to handle the subject so to speak," Daniel gave him a wicked grin, "I think - "
Jack wiggled his eyebrows and pretended to tap a cigar, doing his best Groucho Marx impression. "I'll be happy to handle your subject for you, any day."
"Gentlemen!" interjected Janet. "And I use the term loosely." With her free hand on one hip, she gave them the eyeball that meant 'settle down' while simultaneously reminding them they were in her domain and under her rule. Since she was also suppressing a smile, that took some of the sting out of it.
Even so, they settled respectfully, giving her their complete attention.
Carefully keeping the wand aligned over Daniel's womb, Janet put her finger on the same spot on the image that Jack had pointed to "That is the umbilical cord."
"Oh." Daniel sounded disappointed.
Irrational as the feeling was, Jack understood because he felt disappointed, too. He tried to sound casual as he asked, "So, where's his penis?" Jack squinted at the screen, trying to sharpen the grainy image. Please, lord, don't let his boy be hung like a hamster.
Janet shook her head. "The way the fetus is positioned, we can't see that area."
"Shy, huh? Must be a girl then," Jack joked.
"You'll be getting regular ultrasounds from now on so there will be other opportunities to find out the gender." Janet included both men as she asked, "The real question is - do you want to know?"
Jack looked inquiringly at Daniel who looked inquiringly back at him. There was a silent round of "what do you think?" and "I don't know, what do you think?" and "Hey I asked you first" all played out in a twitch of an eyebrow, a twist of the mouth, a tilt of the head. Finally they reached a consensus, turning in unison to face Janet.
"I think," said Daniel, "we'd like to be surprised."
"Well, that would certainly be consistent with the pregnancy as a whole," Janet said wryly. "Okay, I'm going to record a few measurements, now."
Clicking sounds joined in with the whooshing as Janet worked. Jack and Daniel watched the baby on the monitor as it floated in the womb sucking its thumb. Daniel rubbed the edge of his belly with one hand, staying well clear of the ultrasound wand. He seemed pensive.
Janet put the wand aside, then cleaned the gel off of Daniel's abdomen. She made some notations in Daniel's chart, then pressed a few buttons on the ultrasound machine.
"I'll be putting copies of the ultrasound pictures in your file, plus I've printed an extra one for you to keep. Unfortunately, the printer is down the hallway, so if you'll wait here, I'll be back in a minute."
As Janet left, Daniel pulled his shirt down and his pants up. Sitting all the way up, he swung his feet over the side of the bed and fastened his pants. The ultrasound machine was directly in front of him with the last image of the fetus on the monitor, frozen there on display. Daniel stared at it, mesmerized as one hand crept onto his abdomen, gently cupping the area where it pouched out the most.
"This...this is real." Daniel spoke slowly as he stared at the fuzzy image on the screen. His words were half statement, half question.
"You've known that for awhile now." Jack spoke quietly as he put his hand on Daniel's shoulder, though he wasn't sure which of them he was trying to comfort.
"Yeah, but it didn't feel real until now. Seeing that picture, seeing the...the..." Daniel took a deep breath. "... fetus...it just..." He floundered to a stop.
"What did it feel like before this?" Concerned, Jack focused on Daniel.
"The flu." Daniel's voice was so soft that Jack could barely hear him. "A bad case of the flu that lingered." Leaning forward enough to touch the monitor with his other hand, Daniel splayed his fingers across the image, as though holding it.
Jack entwined his fingers with the hand Daniel still had on his belly. "And now?"
Eyes glued to the monitor, Daniel squeezed Jack's hand. "I'm - I'm having a baby." His voice was tinged with awe.
"Yeah. " Smiling, Jack squeezed back. "We are."
5th month
Immobile.
Stationary.
Fixed.
Jack had been doing his best statue imitation for nigh on five minutes. His view was blocked in here, but his ears strained for the slightest sound. He'd prefer to wait a few more minutes, but he was also cramping. He had been lurking in the tool shed when his hiding place had nearly been discovered. Caught mid-stride, Jack had instantly stilled knowing that motion and sound were the two things most likely to give him away. Unfortunately, most of his weight had been on his front leg at the time, keeping his calf muscle under constant tension. He had to move now or suffer the pangs of a severe charlie horse.
With glacial slowness, Jack shifted his weight, easing back until his body was supported equally by both legs. When there was no outside response to his movement, he risked exposure with a broader change of position, flexing and stretching his aching limbs. The shed was stifling hot but he didn't dare throw open the double doors or turn on the overhead fan since either action would be a dead giveaway.
But Jack needed relief from the sweltering interior. His shirt was soaked under the arms and around the neck and he'd been there less than an hour. Decision made, he headed for the door, his sneakers noiseless on the concrete floor. It took over a minute to turn the knob and open the door half an inch. He peered through the tiny opening, alert for anything out of place. The yard was peaceful. Calm. Deserted.
Good. No sign of his opponent.
A furtive sprint across the yard and Jack was on the deck by the side door to the house. After a few moments spent doing a little recon through the windows into his living room, he judged the coast to be clear, at least at this end of the house. He opened the door and hurried through the living room and down the hallway. If he could just make it to the basement. Sure it smelled kind of musty, but at least it was air conditioned and even a man on the run appreciated the creature comforts.
Jack had never dreamed the day would come when he'd be using his special ops skills to skulk though his own house. Especially since he was using them to avoid -
"Daniel!"
Shit! Jack jumped as Daniel suddenly popped into the hallway in front of him from the bedroom doorway. Jack had hoped he would be napping by now.
"Jack! There you are!" Daniel's extra large shirt was snug across his stomach. "I've been looking all over for you." Wiggling one eyebrow suggestively, he leered at Jack. "How 'bout it, flyboy?Wanna fool around?"
Jack's heart sank at the words. Oh God. This was just what he had been trying to avoid. Daniel was feeling frisky. Daniel had been feeling frisky for the last couple of weeks. Neither his ever expanding belly nor the increasingly frequent urge to pee had slowed him down. Sure, Daniel got tired more often, but a short nap did wonders to re-energize him, dammit. And between visits to the refrigerator and trips to the bathroom the only other thing he wanted to do was fuck.
A short time ago, things had been the other way around. A short time ago, Jack had been like a dog in heat, sniffing around Daniel every chance he got. He had been after Daniel like a bee to honey. A moth to a flame. Ants to a picnic. Jack had craved Daniel's body and the closeness - the interconnectedness - of sex. The mind-blowing orgasms had been the icing on the cake. There was nothing Jack had loved better than letting Daniel have his wicked way with him. In fact, Jack had actively and enthusiastically encouraged it.
That, however, was before the phrase "chaps my ass" had taken on such a literal meaning.
Daniel, pulled him into a full body hug, his hands firmly clamped to Jack's butt.
"Jesus, Daniel. Again!?" Jack put his arms up between them and pushed away, careful to keep his hands well clear of the baby.
Daniel frowned at him. "Oh come on, you're always after me."
"Seriously, Daniel, I don't think my ass can take any more."
Daniel's lush bottom lip stuck out in a pout as he let frustration overtake him. "Fine. Then suck me, fuck me, jerk me off, just DO something okay?"
Daniel rubbed his crotch against Jack's leg, reminding Jack of a spaniel that Jack had had when he was a boy that would hump the leg of every visitor to the house. The dog had been sent to live on his uncle's farm after what was thereafter referred to in the family as "that unfortunate visit from the Avon lady".
"Do I even need to be here for this?" Jack growled, cranky from the constant pestering. "You seem to be doing fine on your own. Just go beat off."
"Oh come on," whined Daniel. "Jerking off doesn't feel the same and you know it. YOU do it." Grabbing Jack's hand, Daniel held it against his crotch and pushed into it, already beginning to breathe harder.
"Oh fer cryin' out..."
Exasperated, Jack stuck his hand down Daniel's pants less for his lover's sake than for his own. Five minutes work now should buy him at least a couple of hours of quiet time and there was an NBA game starting in 15 minutes. Jack wanted to see every minute of the Bulls beating the snot out of the Pistons. Hopefully, Daniel wouldn't be pestering him again before the game was finished but if he did, he was getting another hand job since Jack wouldn't be able to see the TV if he blew Daniel. It might be basketball instead of hockey but there was no way he was going to miss a playoff game.
Daniel's breath gusted loudly in Jack's ear as he finished. Wiping his hand on Daniel's shirt tail, Jack gave him a quick peck on the lips and got a sweet smile in return.
"Love you, Jack."
"Love you too, Daniel. Now come on. We've got a game to watch."
Jack held Daniel's hand as they went to the living room, glad they still had that sense of togetherness that meant so much to him.
6th month
Jack cross-checked the diagram to the instructions, then looked at the crib in front of him. So far so good. The crib looked nothing like the smudged and useless diagrams, but it did look like a crib. He and Teal'c had already assembled the changing table and the cradle, now all that was left was the crib. Granted, the baby wouldn't need it right away, but since they were putting together the rest of the room they might as well get this done, too.
Daniel had planned to help piece everything together, but when Teal'c had arrived that morning, Sam and Janet had come with him and promptly hijacked Daniel. Even less of a shopper than Jack, Daniel had been dragged out the door in the iron clad grip of determined friends, his demeanor that of a man condemned. Teal'c and Jack had spent the last few hours chatting companionably in between bouts of cursing at incoherent instructions and illegible diagrams. During that same time, Daniel, God help him, had been at the mall. On a Saturday.
Putting down the reference material, Jack took swig of his drink. In deference to Daniel's dietary restrictions, Jack no longer had beer in the house. In a show of solidarity, his drink of choice was now the papaya mango juice blend that he'd always kept on hand for Teal'c. Jack grabbed a handful of bolts and the ratcheted hex-wrench. Teal'c held the last side of the crib in place while Jack installed the bolts.
Given the nature of their task, naturally their talk had centered around all things baby related. Adjusting his grip on the slats of the piece he was holding, Teal'c continued his reminiscence of his wife's pregnancy.
"As I recall there was an all too brief period of time approximately midway through gestation when Drey'ac's desires were greatly increased. Other than feeling our son move within her, that is my most fond memory of that time."
Jack grinned. "Oh yeah. Sara did the same thing when she was pregnant with Charlie. I tell ya, I couldn't wait to get home at night. It was over far too soon, but it sure was fun while it lasted."
"Have you encountered that same phenomenon with Daniel Jackson?"
Jack's smile faded away. "Yeah," he grunted.
Twisting the ratchet sharply, Jack over-tightened the bolt. He grabbed another bolt from the pile and used more force than necessary on that one too. Although he kept his eyes on the task in front of him, in his peripheral vision he could tell Teal'c was studying him. Crap. He should have plastered a smile on his face and pretended an unrelentingly horny Daniel was the best thing since sliced bread.
"Why is it that you are not enthused about the experience with Daniel Jackson?"
"Well, T, it turns out that there is such a thing as too much sex. Who knew?"
The last bolt snicked into place. They tested their work, raising and lowering the side of the crib several times to be sure everything slid smoothly.
"It is common knowledge among your closest associates that within the confines of your relationship with Daniel Jackson you are in fact a slut, O'Neill. An unrelenting horn dog. An insatiable sausage sniffer. A hose hound of epic proportions, a --"
"Whoa! Enough! I got the point," he said testily. To some degree, Jack was reluctant to open up, but he needed a confidante and he sure as hell wasn't going to complain to Daniel. "One word for you, T - chafing."
Both of Teal'cs eyebrows twitched. Oh it was subtle - the big man managed to stop them from swooping toward his hairline - but it was noticeable. "I must concede your point, O'Neill."
Jack couldn't quite believe he was having this conversation with anyone, much less Teal'c. Then again, of all people, Teal'c would be the least likely to judge.
"Yeah, well, one look at the poses in that souvenir figurine collection of me and Daniel should be enough to clue anyone in. Granted, those have it the other way around with Daniel...um..." Jack felt a rush of heat to his face. He just couldn't finish that sentence.
Teal'c nodded, but said, "I am afraid I am unable to view the collection."
"Well I didn't mean right now, but when you get back to the base, maybe...or not. Not works best for me," he grumbled.
Jack began to put his tools away while Teal'c gathered the instructions and other bits of debris from the carpet. Since they had been policing the area as they worked, final clean up took only moments. Standing in the middle of the room to admire their work, they each picked up their glass of juice.
"I meant that I am unable to view them at all," said Teal'c.
"What? Why?" Jack hoped they had somehow been obliterated. They better not have been lost. Or sold. Or given away.
"Several years ago, I repeatedly declined a second invitation to accompany you fishing. In response you suggested that I take up a hobby. I did." There was a wicked gleam in the big man's eye.
Jack frowned. He vaguely recalled the incident. "Okay, but what has that got to do with - " The expression on Teal'c's face was the closest Jack had ever seen to a smirk. Something clicked. Suddenly it was painfully obvious. "Son of a bitch." He swore with equal parts aggravation and admiration. "You've been winding us up all these years. Just pushing our buttons and watching us dance."
"It has been most amusing as well as incredibly simple. I believe the appropriate saying is, you are an easy target, O'Neill as is Daniel Jackson."
Jack probably should be upset over years of teasing but it had been so well done that he wasn't. "That's quite a feat, there, T-man," he admitted. "You played us like a couple of violins. A comment here and a comment there, and we're off on a tizzy." He raised his glass in a salute to the master prankster. "Well done."
Teal'c bowed from the neck to acknowledge the compliment.
"So, why are you coming clean now?"
"I have engaged in a new hobby."
"Oh? Some new martial art?" Jack raised his glass for a drink.
"The arrangement of vegetation, both harvested and viable, into aesthetically pleasing and situationally appropriate designs."
Jack coughed and sputtered. If only he hadn't been mid swallow when Teal'c said that.
"Are you all right, O'Neill?"
"Fine, fine." One last cough cleared his airway. "Florist, you say?"
"More specifically, floral designer."
"Uh-huh. And, ah, what brought that on?"
Before Teal'c could answer, Daniel's voice came floating down the hall.
"Guys? We're back!"
Jack could hear Sam and Janet chattering excitedly over a backdrop of rustling noises, all increasing in volume as the trio came down the hallway to the baby's room. Shopping bags came through the doorway first, followed by Daniel, more bags, Sam, yet more bags, and Janet. Whereas the women were still revved up over the experience, Daniel had that pursed lipped, narrow eyed look look which meant that he was cranky and tired and trying to hide it.
The bags all thumped into a group in the middle of the floor. The women headed straight for the furniture, exclaiming over the style. Jack headed straight for Daniel, putting a hand on his back.
"Your timing is impeccable, Daniel Jackson, as we have only just finished assembling the infant's furnishings."
A half-hearted "Yeah, great" was Daniel's only response to Teal'c's comment.
Jack guided his partner to the glider rocker in the corner and helped him get settled with his feet up on the ottoman. "Take a seat Daniel. Here, drink this," he said, pressing his half full glass of juice into Daniel's hand. Pitching his voice low enough that the others wouldn't hear, he asked, "So, was it as horrible as you feared?"
Daniel glanced over at the others to be sure they hadn't noticed Jack's comment, then replied in the same manner. "Honestly, it wasn't bad at all. Sam had some great ideas about baby-proofing the house and she and Janet both have excellent taste. Wait'll you see some of the outfits they got. And the bedding. And the toys. And room decorations. Frankly, the longer I thought about it today, the more I realized how lucky we are in our friends. I'm exceedingly grateful to them for helping us out like this." Daniel looked startled for a moment, then smiled wide. "Hey!" he called out to everyone. "Come quick! The baby's moving!"
Jack put his hand on Daniel's abdomen, feeling the flutter under his palm, then made way for the others. Sam was the last in line and the look of wonder on her face was priceless.
"Oh, wow, Daniel! That was awesome!" She gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Thank you. When my sister in law was pregnant, I was usually on the other side of the country. The few times I was around her, the movement always stopped before I could feel it."
"So, you're saying I'm your first?" quipped Daniel.
Everyone laughed, while Sam gave him a mischievious grin and retorted, "But hopefully not my last."
Janet picked up one of the shopping bags, waving it in the air as she smiled at Jack "So, are you ready to see what we managed to scrounge up?"
Everyone gathered around Daniel in his place of honor in the rocker. Jack sat on the floor to his left and Sam parked herself on the floor to his right. Teal'c helped unload the bags while Janet did her best "Vanna White, Spokesmodel" interpretation and the group fell into a party atmosphere. Daniel, now that he had had a chance to rest and refresh himself, quickly joined in the festive mood.
Watching Daniel and Sam laugh over something that happened at the mall today, Jack was reminded of their moniker from the earliest days of the program - The Wonder Twins. They didn't know it, but he was the one who had tagged them with that. It was good to see that years later, that connection was still there because friends like that were hard to come by.
As Jack watched Teal'c acting as straight-man to Janet's showmanship, and Sam proudly displaying the practical items she had selected, he knew that Daniel was right about how lucky he and Jack were. But Daniel was off on one thing. These weren't just friends.
This? This was family.
continued in part 2
Synopsis: Jack and Daniel bicker their way through Daniel's pregnancy.
Future Perfect
by Cowardly Lion
2nd Month
Colonel Jack O'Neill sighed.
As soon as SG-1 plus Doctor Fraiser returned from the fact finding mission to P98-J4D, Walter had passed along the order to report directly to the briefing room. The team had been quickly divested of weapons and packs by the supply staff that had been sent to meet them in the gate room. From there, Jack and his team had headed straight up the stairs and were now seated at the briefing room table.
Sam and Daniel had each scrounged up a pad of paper and a pen from God knows where and were busy making notes. Like Jack, Teal'c and Janet were lost in thought. Through the glass window, Jack could see General Hammond in his office using the red telephone. Hammond seemed to be doing more listening than talking, his frown growing more pronounced the longer the call went on.
Inwardly, Jack sighed. This wasn't his finest hour. Drumming his fingers on the table, Jack mentally tried to phrase his report as they waited for General Hammond since the bald truth wouldn't do.
"Well, you see, sir, Daniel and I got so totally wasted on alien goo that without realizing it we did the wild thing in public right on top of one of those DNA mix-master machines like Nirrti had. Yes sir, the machine was very active at the time which is why Daniel is now two months along with my love child. On a positive note, the crowd in the temple enjoyed our performance so much that they play tapes of it world wide. Continually. There's even a thriving souvenir business, which I'm sure has helped their economy along. Let's say we chalk that mission up as a win in the 'humanitarian aid' column!"
Oh yeah. Wouldn't that go over well? Jack figured his own fate was pretty well sealed because "don't ask, don't tell" obviously extended to "don't knock up your boyfriend", even if said boyfriend was a civilian. Jack just hoped they'd let him retire instead of kicking him out with a dishonorable discharge or, worst case scenario, bring him up on charges. Whatever happened to him, though, was secondary to how Daniel was handled. Regardless, Jack really hoped the grumpy look on Hammond's face wasn't an omen.
A few minutes passed before Hammond hung up the phone and joined them at the table. Before he even finished getting seated, he asked for Jack's report.
For the first time since his days as a raw young Lieutenant fresh out of the academy, Jack found himself tongue-tied in front of a superior officer. He stammered, wishing Daniel would jump in and help him, but Daniel was staring at his note pad. So was, Carter, so no help there. Teal'c was sitting back and watching the show.
After the longest thirty-seconds of Jack's life, Janet stepped into the breach, sounding smooth and professional.
"During their visit to the temple, Colonel O'Neill and Doctor Jackson were inadvertently exposed to extraordinarily high levels of a psychotropic substance used during the ritual in which they were participating."
God bless Fraiser, Jack thought.
"This impaired their cognitive abilities in much the same way as extreme inebriation would. Due to this impairment - ah - "
Janet stumbled a bit but Sam was right there to pick up the ball and run with it.
"Due to this impairment, the Colonel and Daniel were unable to identify the DNA manipulating device which had been built into the altar and dais on which the ritual took place and which was therefore nearly unrecognizable. Although the machine was active at the time of the ritual, the people there have no understanding of it or the technology it's composed of. There is no record of what settings were in place on the machine at that time."
And God bless Carter. Jack sent up thanks for her along with those for the doc.
"Even if we did have that information," said Janet regretfully, "it is extremely doubtful that Daniel's condition could be reversed in any way."
Hammond looked deflated. "Are you absolutely certain that there's nothing to be done?"
This time it was Daniel who replied. "We spoke to one of the Demarians who let us into the temple - "
"Omri," corrected Jack.
"What?"
"The folks on P98-J4D are the Omri."
"That's right." Daniel nodded at Jack then turned back to Hammond. "Anyway, as I was saying, one of the Demarians - "
"You did it again." Jack couldn't help himself. He had just corrected Daniel, but the man was still making the same mistake.
"Did what?"
"Said Demarian. The people on P98-J4D are the Omri." "
"Yes. They are." Daniel spoke slowly as if to someone with a limited intelligence.
"You keep saying Demarian."
"Because it was a Demarian that took us to the temple."
"No, Granny One Tooth and the Giant Bee took us to the temple."
"If you are referring to the elder, her son, and his family that met us at the gate, then yes, they accompanied us, but only to the city of Grebat." Daniel folded his arms across his chest. "Your point being?"
"My point, Daniel is that Granny, Jed and the rest of the Clampetts are Omri."
"I'm not disputing that." Daniel's voice rose in pitch.
"Well, you keep calling them Demarians." Jack's voice rose in volume as he said firmly, "Marietta is an Omri."
"Yes, yes - but Marliota, Acolyte of the second level of Tralan, is also a Demarian." Daniel was using his reasonable voice now, which meant that he thought Jack wasn't. Reasonable, that is.
"O'Neill." Teal'c's voice cut sharply across them. "As I recall from our initial briefing, the term Demarian refers to the priests and their ilk among the Omri."
"Yes!" Daniel flung one hand toward his team mate. "Thank you, Teal'c. Demarian is a collective term for anyone affiliated with the religious order on the planet whether they are priests, nuns, acolytes or anyone who serves them. Marliota was an acolyte therefore, he is a Demarian as well as an Omri."
"Well, maybe if you had said that to begin with, I would have known." Jack let his annoyance show.
"I did say that." Daniel was getting huffy. "I said it in the initial briefing."
"That was months ago and anyway, you must have mumbled that part because I missed it."
After investing all that time arguing, there was no way Jack was going to meekly back down now. Too bad he had forgotten about Daniel "Last Word" Jackson.
"Maybe if you spent your time listening instead of scribbling pornographic stick figures in the margins of your note pad -"
"Pfft!" Jack waved a hand dismissively. "Like I'm the only one who does that!"
"Enough!" barked Hammond.
On the other side of the briefing table, Sam hurriedly flipped her notepad over, her cheeks tinged a becoming pink.
"I get the picture, people." Hammond sighed. He spoke slowly, carefully choosing his words. "What I'm hearing is that I can safely say that Dr. Jackson's unique condition was brought about by his proximity to Colonel O'Neill in the presence of unknown alien technology that was activated without their knowledge."
With that, Jack breathed a sigh of relief. Worded that way, there was no breach of "don't ask, don't tell." Jack and Daniel should be safe from reprisals on that front.
Hammond stood. "You are all dismissed, but I want your written reports by the end of the day tomorrow." Returning to his office, he shut the door behind him and headed straight for the red phone.
Without another word, Jack and the others pushed away from the table and filed into the corridor. Once out of earshot of Hammond, Jack suggested they go to Janet's office so that she and Sam could repeat their description of events for the written reports. Crowding into Janet's small office, Teal'c and Jack stood, Janet sat at her desk, and Sam insisted that Daniel take the lone chair in front of the desk. Intending to sit on the corner of the desk, Sam pushed aside some files.
"Hey!" Sam exclaimed. "You bought a memorial plaque." She held it up for everyone to see. It was one of the souvenirs from the market on P98-J4D depicting Jack and Daniel's coupling at the temple. Luckily the picture on this plaque only showed their faces.
As one, Jack and Daniel exclaimed, "What?!"
"I wanted a memento, that's all," Janet explained. She snatched the item from Sam and stuffed it in a drawer. "How often do I get to go off world? Besides, maybe you should ask Sam about her new t-shirt."
When all heads turned to stare at her, Sam raised her chin defensively. "It was pretty and the picture doesn't show anything, um, naughty. Besides, like the Colonel said, the writing on it is an alien script so no one on Earth will know what it means."
Teal'c's deep voice rumbled around them. "I myself purchased two shirts, a ceramic mug, and one set of carved wooden figurines which the merchant assured me were accurate representations of specific moments from the recording of your coupling at the temple."
There was a stunned silence before Jack protested, "T-man, I'm begging you. Not the little statues. They've got our faces on them. Everyone will know it's me and Daniel and they'll see exactly what we were doing."
The Jaffa ruminated a moment then inclined his head. "Very well. You have my word that I shall view the figures only in private."
"Somehow I don't find that comforting," commented Daniel. He eyed the Jaffa speculatively. "At all."
Jack calculated the odds of wresting the wooden figures from Teal'c by force. Let's see, take one slightly over the hill Special Ops Colonel add one Large and Extra Muscley Jaffa in his prime, try to subtract one set of souvenirs and, yeah, pretty much zero chance of that happening. Still, he should at least offer. "Do you want me to make him hand them over?" he asked Daniel.
"No, no," was the hasty reply. "It's done now. I guess I'll have to accept it." Daniel looked intently at Teal'c, Sam, and Janet letting his disapproval show. "I'm just disappointed that each of you bought something when you know how Jack and I feel about them."
Shamefaced, Sam and Janet each dropped their gaze to the floor. Teal'c, however, calmly stared right back at Daniel.
"Perhaps," suggested Teal'c, "you should be certain that O'Neill's view of this matter truly is the same as yours before including him in that statement."
"Why?" Daniel asked cautiously, his gaze bouncing back and forth between Jack and Teal'c.
Teal'c said nothing, just raised one eyebrow. Jack could feel it pointing at him, accusing him with its arch and furrow. Crap. Teal'c was actually ratting him out. Then again, spreading the blame was a time honored tradition for taking the heat off of yourself. Just ask Janet. If the tables were turned, Jack would most likely have done the same and the gleam in Teal'c's eye suggested he knew that.
Eyes narrowing, Daniel focused on Jack.
"Jaaaack?" The name was drawn out, inflection rising at the end. There was a warning implicit in the sound.
Double crap. That was the intonation which meant "I know you're up to something and if you 'fess up now I won't be nearly as pissed as I would be if I had to figure it out on my own, but either way, you're in trouble Mister." It was amazing what depth of meaning Daniel could pack into one prolonged syllable. Must be the linguist in him.
Jack made a big show of reluctance as he grudgingly admitted, "I picked up two of the shirts."
In fact he had gotten six shirts altogether - one of each design. Two of the shirts weren't that great looking, but he had gotten them anyway because he had wanted to complete the set. He'd give up those two to Daniel and make sure the other four were well hidden.
Daniel wasn't quite buying his story, suspicion clouding his eyes. Jack put on his best "Crap! You caught me!" pout and eventually Daniel subsided.
As the talk turned to wording for the reports, all Jack could think of was how very different their lives would be from here on in.
3rd month
The sound of retching woke Jack from a deep sleep. The door to the adjoining bathroom was ajar, a long narrow strip of dim grey light spilling out onto the carpet. Three strides had him gently pushing the door open to see Daniel sitting back on his heels in front of the commode, elbows on the seat, his head propped wearily in his hands. Daniel had both wrist bands, intended to quell nausea, in place. Judging by the sounds that woke Jack, the wristbands weren't able to cope with the increasing levels of hormones that were throwing Daniel's system out of whack.
"Hey." Jack spoke softly, trying not to startle Daniel.
Daniel didn't answer, but rose up to a kneeling position, and vomited.
Jack wet a washcloth with cold water, squeezed the excess from it, and folded it into a compress. When Daniel sat back, Jack flushed the toilet then gently wiped Daniel's face. He ended by laying the compress across his lover's forehead.
"Here. Hold this a second." Jack put Daniel's hand on the compress, then went to the medicine cabinet. Despite the gloom of the tiny nightlight, he easily found what he was looking for. Opening the box, he tore one of the suppositories out of the pack and peeled the foil down.
"I think it's time for those things Doc Fraiser gave you." Jack handed the suppository to Daniel. "Ah, do you need me to..."
"I'm not so out of it that I can't find my ass," Daniel snapped.
"I know." Jack kept his tone light. "Just thought I'd do the polite thing and offer." He rose to his feet. "Let me get you a glass of water to rinse out your mouth."
Backing out of the bathroom, he pulled the door almost closed. The water was a pretense to give Daniel his privacy since Jack could easily have filled the cup in the bathroom. Instead he wandered through the dark house to the kitchen.
By the time Jack returned, Daniel was on his feet in front of the sink washing his hands. He was hunched over and leaning heavily against the countertop, as though it was the only thing holding him up. After quickly setting the water glass on the counter, Jack grabbed a towel from the bar on the wall behind him and dried Daniel's hands.
Dropping the towel on the counter, Jack held the rim of the glass up to Daniel's mouth. Daniel tried to hold the glass himself, but his hand was too shaky. Together, he and Jack did a couple of rounds of rinse and spit before Jack dumped the remaining water down the drain. Setting aside the glass, Jack put an arm around Daniel and carefully maneuvered him back to bed. They moved at a snail's pace since Daniel had his eyes closed, couldn't stand up straight and kept swaying. Jack deliberately left the bathroom door wide open to take advantage of what little light there was.
As soon as he hit the mattress, Daniel rolled onto his side and curled up. Jack pulled the covers over him, tucking them in all around. Daniel still felt clammy, so Jack made sure the bedroom trash can was within Daniel's reach before climbing into bed and spooning up behind Daniel. After a moment, Jack rose up on one elbow so he could get a better view of Daniel and keep an eye on his condition.
“Earlier,” Jack said quietly, “I thought of a great name for him - Gordie Howe.”
That wasn't really true. This was all spur of the moment. Jack just needed something, anything, to distract Daniel long enough for the anti-nausea meds to kick in.
There was a long pause, then a slight wrinkle to Daniel's forehead. “Was that your grandfather on your mother’s side?” The words came out slowly and slightly slurred, but Daniel seemed interested.
“Gordie Howe, Dr. Jackson, is one of the greatest hockey players of all time, as I believe I have mentioned repeatedly.”
Very repeatedly, in fact. Jack knew that Daniel tended to tune out his sports talk just as he tuned out Daniel's archeology lectures, but still the names should have stuck with Daniel. It was a sign of how unwell he was that Daniel didn't place it right away. Jack used the same technique for grading the severity of Daniel's headaches.
“I thought the greatest hockey player was Wayne Gretzky.”
“Him too, but Gordie did it all first.” Good - all Daniel had needed was the context. Jack snapped his fingers as though something had just occurred to him. “Hey! That’s a great idea! We’ll put the two together and call him Gordie Wayne.”
“No! No sports figures." Daniel rolled his shoulder back, turning his head to look at Jack. "Besides, what if it’s a girl?”
“Easy - Gordina Waynette” teased Jack. There was no way he'd saddle a kid with such an outlandish name, but it was useful for getting a rise out of Daniel.
“Why do I suddenly hear banjo music?” was the sardonic reply. Lips pursed, Daniel pondered a moment. “If you want to name him after a famous person how about something classical, like Horace?”
“Are you nuts?” What the hell was his partner thinking? Jack hoped he was joking but you never knew with Daniel. “You wanna name him after a Goa’uld?”
“Not Horus - Horace." Turning onto his back, Daniel drew his knees up then used his hands to further emphasize the difference in the identical sounding names - a sure sign he was starting to feel better. "He was Roman poet, philosopher, and satirist.”
Jack ran weightless fingers over Daniel's arm, both to soothe and reconnoiter. Daniel didn't feel clammy anymore. His skin was warmer, and a little sticky from dried sweat. If Daniel was feeling better enough to get into a wacky name contest, Jack would be happy to oblige.
“That’s a great name - if you want our kid to get beaten up every day. You might as well slap a 'loser' sign on his back as you send him off to school," said Jack. "If you’re going to give him a sissy name at least pick out a guy that kicked ass, like Horatio. He held off the entire Etruscan army single handed at the bridge across the Tiber. Still had a sissy name, though.”
“Okay,” conceded Daniel. “I just…I don’t want to give him some ordinary name that 50 other kids in his class will have, alternate spellings not withstanding.”
Daniel sounded kind of down. Not good. Better jolly him out of it.
“Considering how he’s probably going to come out," Jack said, "I’ve got the perfect name for him.”
Mouth pursed, Daniel glared at him. Even in the murky glow from one far-off nightlight, Jack could tell it was an impressive glare. “We are NOT going call our child Hemorrhoid.”
“Hey - it’s good enough for the Asgard.” Jack felt something ease inside him at the demonstration of Daniel's acuteness. Sharp Daniel was a Daniel who felt fine.
“That’s Heimdall, and the answer is still no.”
“Tumor?”
“No!”
“Biopsy Result?”
“NO!”
“Sheesh, Daniel. No need to shout. I was just kidding.” Outwardly, Jack made faces, but it was good to see Daniel recovering.
“You’re not nearly as funny as you think you are, Jack.” Daniel shifted away from him.
“Fine. Just for that, we’re naming him Budge.” Trying not to smile, Jack waited for the explosion.
Daniel's eyes bugged out for a moment, then he relaxed and chuckled. "You're such an asshole," he said fondly.
Jack laughed with him. He knew Daniel would figure out what he was doing. "Yeah, but I'm your asshole." He kissed Daniel on the cheek and put an arm across his chest. "Now go to sleep."
"Thank you, Jack" murmured Daniel as he draped his arm over Jack's.
By way of reply, Jack put his face in the hollow of Daniel's neck and nuzzled until they fell asleep.
4th month
Jack was irked.
Not a lot, mind you, but definitely irked. He didn't mind listening to Daniel bitch constantly about the weight gain, slight as it was, now that the nausea had abated or about the 'beer belly' Daniel was getting. That's what a partner was for - to listen.
Jack didn't mind standing while Daniel got to sit on the comfy bed either. Jack had sat enough at his desk doing paperwork this morning so he was glad of a chance to stand. Besides Daniel was the patient so he deserved the comfy bed. He didn't even mind being here in the medical isolation room with Daniel since he wanted to be present when Janet gave Daniel his first ultrasound.
What really irked Jack was that because of the weight gain and the little pot belly, Daniel had been forced to go up a size or two in his pants - which meant that now he could wear Jack's pants. So, Jack's regular pants were Daniel's fat pants and wasn't that a kick in Jack's ego?
Jack was trying to be nonchalant about it, but since Daniel had rolled his eyes at Jack's choice of salad with no dressing and a glass of water for lunch, he probably wasn't being too successful.
"Okay, Daniel. You don't need to undress completely for this." Janet gave him a reassuring smile. "I just need to access your abdominal area for the ultrasound."
Lying back on the bed, Daniel unbuttoned his BDU pants. Sticking his thumbs under the waistband of his briefs, he shoved everything down to his hips then pulled his t-shirt up under his arms. Janet picked up a tube and squeezed a dollop of gel just above Daniel's pubic bone.
"Yow!" Daniel flinched, pulling his legs up as he exclaimed, "Warm the lube!"
The second he realized what he had said, Daniel looked embarrassed and flushed a mottled red.
Janet was amused. "When it goes here, Daniel, it's called gel or jelly."
Jack deliberately didn't look at Daniel who was ignoring him in return. In the wake of an incident near the beginning of their relationship, those words had become a catchphrase between them. As embarrassing as Daniel's outburst was, Jack feared he'd laugh if he caught Daniel's eye and Daniel didn't seem at all inclined toward laughter at the moment.
Picking up the wand, Janet activated the ultrasound machine, and placed the wand low on Daniel's abdomen. For a while the room was silent as she moved the wand around, changing angles and locations until the fetus showed on the display. The image was made up of black, white and grey spots that from far away enough resolved into a picture of the baby who was showing them how the fetal position got its name. One hand was up by its face, the thumb in its mouth. A pulsating 'whoosh-whoosh' sound came from the speakers.
"What's that noise?" asked Daniel
"It's the baby's heartbeat."
Jack had spoken in unison with Janet. He remembered clearly the first time he had accompanied his ex-wife Sara to the doctor when she was pregnant with Charlie. Looking at the image of his child all those years ago was the moment he had first felt like a father. Although no one could ever take the place of the boy he had lost, Jack was starting to get excited about being a father again. He examined the image in front of him now, wondering if he was going to have another son. Hey! Was that - ?
"It's a boy!" exclaimed Jack as he pointed at the monitor. "And he's hung like a bear!"
Janet peered more closely at the image. "That's not - "
In his excitement, Jack cut her off, puffing up proudly. "He takes after his daddy," he boasted.
"Why, thank you, Jack." Daniel grinned at him. "I appreciate the compliment."
"What?" He gave Daniel a startled glance before turning back to the monitor. "No, I meant me."
Okay, so yeah, they had gotten the ruler out that one time and technically, Daniel was the better endowed but only by a quarter of an inch. In Jack's mind that qualified as a tie because anything under one half should be rounded down to the nearest number. Daniel insisted that since the ruler had markings delineating sixteenths of an inch, the standard of measurement should be exact. Jack proceeded to prove to him that size didn't matter - twice that night and once more the next morning.
"You said daddy," insisted Doctor Pedantic Jackson, "so that could be either of us and since I'm officially the one who's better - "
"Aht!" Jack raised a finger to stop him.
" - better equipped to handle the subject so to speak," Daniel gave him a wicked grin, "I think - "
Jack wiggled his eyebrows and pretended to tap a cigar, doing his best Groucho Marx impression. "I'll be happy to handle your subject for you, any day."
"Gentlemen!" interjected Janet. "And I use the term loosely." With her free hand on one hip, she gave them the eyeball that meant 'settle down' while simultaneously reminding them they were in her domain and under her rule. Since she was also suppressing a smile, that took some of the sting out of it.
Even so, they settled respectfully, giving her their complete attention.
Carefully keeping the wand aligned over Daniel's womb, Janet put her finger on the same spot on the image that Jack had pointed to "That is the umbilical cord."
"Oh." Daniel sounded disappointed.
Irrational as the feeling was, Jack understood because he felt disappointed, too. He tried to sound casual as he asked, "So, where's his penis?" Jack squinted at the screen, trying to sharpen the grainy image. Please, lord, don't let his boy be hung like a hamster.
Janet shook her head. "The way the fetus is positioned, we can't see that area."
"Shy, huh? Must be a girl then," Jack joked.
"You'll be getting regular ultrasounds from now on so there will be other opportunities to find out the gender." Janet included both men as she asked, "The real question is - do you want to know?"
Jack looked inquiringly at Daniel who looked inquiringly back at him. There was a silent round of "what do you think?" and "I don't know, what do you think?" and "Hey I asked you first" all played out in a twitch of an eyebrow, a twist of the mouth, a tilt of the head. Finally they reached a consensus, turning in unison to face Janet.
"I think," said Daniel, "we'd like to be surprised."
"Well, that would certainly be consistent with the pregnancy as a whole," Janet said wryly. "Okay, I'm going to record a few measurements, now."
Clicking sounds joined in with the whooshing as Janet worked. Jack and Daniel watched the baby on the monitor as it floated in the womb sucking its thumb. Daniel rubbed the edge of his belly with one hand, staying well clear of the ultrasound wand. He seemed pensive.
Janet put the wand aside, then cleaned the gel off of Daniel's abdomen. She made some notations in Daniel's chart, then pressed a few buttons on the ultrasound machine.
"I'll be putting copies of the ultrasound pictures in your file, plus I've printed an extra one for you to keep. Unfortunately, the printer is down the hallway, so if you'll wait here, I'll be back in a minute."
As Janet left, Daniel pulled his shirt down and his pants up. Sitting all the way up, he swung his feet over the side of the bed and fastened his pants. The ultrasound machine was directly in front of him with the last image of the fetus on the monitor, frozen there on display. Daniel stared at it, mesmerized as one hand crept onto his abdomen, gently cupping the area where it pouched out the most.
"This...this is real." Daniel spoke slowly as he stared at the fuzzy image on the screen. His words were half statement, half question.
"You've known that for awhile now." Jack spoke quietly as he put his hand on Daniel's shoulder, though he wasn't sure which of them he was trying to comfort.
"Yeah, but it didn't feel real until now. Seeing that picture, seeing the...the..." Daniel took a deep breath. "... fetus...it just..." He floundered to a stop.
"What did it feel like before this?" Concerned, Jack focused on Daniel.
"The flu." Daniel's voice was so soft that Jack could barely hear him. "A bad case of the flu that lingered." Leaning forward enough to touch the monitor with his other hand, Daniel splayed his fingers across the image, as though holding it.
Jack entwined his fingers with the hand Daniel still had on his belly. "And now?"
Eyes glued to the monitor, Daniel squeezed Jack's hand. "I'm - I'm having a baby." His voice was tinged with awe.
"Yeah. " Smiling, Jack squeezed back. "We are."
5th month
Immobile.
Stationary.
Fixed.
Jack had been doing his best statue imitation for nigh on five minutes. His view was blocked in here, but his ears strained for the slightest sound. He'd prefer to wait a few more minutes, but he was also cramping. He had been lurking in the tool shed when his hiding place had nearly been discovered. Caught mid-stride, Jack had instantly stilled knowing that motion and sound were the two things most likely to give him away. Unfortunately, most of his weight had been on his front leg at the time, keeping his calf muscle under constant tension. He had to move now or suffer the pangs of a severe charlie horse.
With glacial slowness, Jack shifted his weight, easing back until his body was supported equally by both legs. When there was no outside response to his movement, he risked exposure with a broader change of position, flexing and stretching his aching limbs. The shed was stifling hot but he didn't dare throw open the double doors or turn on the overhead fan since either action would be a dead giveaway.
But Jack needed relief from the sweltering interior. His shirt was soaked under the arms and around the neck and he'd been there less than an hour. Decision made, he headed for the door, his sneakers noiseless on the concrete floor. It took over a minute to turn the knob and open the door half an inch. He peered through the tiny opening, alert for anything out of place. The yard was peaceful. Calm. Deserted.
Good. No sign of his opponent.
A furtive sprint across the yard and Jack was on the deck by the side door to the house. After a few moments spent doing a little recon through the windows into his living room, he judged the coast to be clear, at least at this end of the house. He opened the door and hurried through the living room and down the hallway. If he could just make it to the basement. Sure it smelled kind of musty, but at least it was air conditioned and even a man on the run appreciated the creature comforts.
Jack had never dreamed the day would come when he'd be using his special ops skills to skulk though his own house. Especially since he was using them to avoid -
"Daniel!"
Shit! Jack jumped as Daniel suddenly popped into the hallway in front of him from the bedroom doorway. Jack had hoped he would be napping by now.
"Jack! There you are!" Daniel's extra large shirt was snug across his stomach. "I've been looking all over for you." Wiggling one eyebrow suggestively, he leered at Jack. "How 'bout it, flyboy?Wanna fool around?"
Jack's heart sank at the words. Oh God. This was just what he had been trying to avoid. Daniel was feeling frisky. Daniel had been feeling frisky for the last couple of weeks. Neither his ever expanding belly nor the increasingly frequent urge to pee had slowed him down. Sure, Daniel got tired more often, but a short nap did wonders to re-energize him, dammit. And between visits to the refrigerator and trips to the bathroom the only other thing he wanted to do was fuck.
A short time ago, things had been the other way around. A short time ago, Jack had been like a dog in heat, sniffing around Daniel every chance he got. He had been after Daniel like a bee to honey. A moth to a flame. Ants to a picnic. Jack had craved Daniel's body and the closeness - the interconnectedness - of sex. The mind-blowing orgasms had been the icing on the cake. There was nothing Jack had loved better than letting Daniel have his wicked way with him. In fact, Jack had actively and enthusiastically encouraged it.
That, however, was before the phrase "chaps my ass" had taken on such a literal meaning.
Daniel, pulled him into a full body hug, his hands firmly clamped to Jack's butt.
"Jesus, Daniel. Again!?" Jack put his arms up between them and pushed away, careful to keep his hands well clear of the baby.
Daniel frowned at him. "Oh come on, you're always after me."
"Seriously, Daniel, I don't think my ass can take any more."
Daniel's lush bottom lip stuck out in a pout as he let frustration overtake him. "Fine. Then suck me, fuck me, jerk me off, just DO something okay?"
Daniel rubbed his crotch against Jack's leg, reminding Jack of a spaniel that Jack had had when he was a boy that would hump the leg of every visitor to the house. The dog had been sent to live on his uncle's farm after what was thereafter referred to in the family as "that unfortunate visit from the Avon lady".
"Do I even need to be here for this?" Jack growled, cranky from the constant pestering. "You seem to be doing fine on your own. Just go beat off."
"Oh come on," whined Daniel. "Jerking off doesn't feel the same and you know it. YOU do it." Grabbing Jack's hand, Daniel held it against his crotch and pushed into it, already beginning to breathe harder.
"Oh fer cryin' out..."
Exasperated, Jack stuck his hand down Daniel's pants less for his lover's sake than for his own. Five minutes work now should buy him at least a couple of hours of quiet time and there was an NBA game starting in 15 minutes. Jack wanted to see every minute of the Bulls beating the snot out of the Pistons. Hopefully, Daniel wouldn't be pestering him again before the game was finished but if he did, he was getting another hand job since Jack wouldn't be able to see the TV if he blew Daniel. It might be basketball instead of hockey but there was no way he was going to miss a playoff game.
Daniel's breath gusted loudly in Jack's ear as he finished. Wiping his hand on Daniel's shirt tail, Jack gave him a quick peck on the lips and got a sweet smile in return.
"Love you, Jack."
"Love you too, Daniel. Now come on. We've got a game to watch."
Jack held Daniel's hand as they went to the living room, glad they still had that sense of togetherness that meant so much to him.
6th month
Jack cross-checked the diagram to the instructions, then looked at the crib in front of him. So far so good. The crib looked nothing like the smudged and useless diagrams, but it did look like a crib. He and Teal'c had already assembled the changing table and the cradle, now all that was left was the crib. Granted, the baby wouldn't need it right away, but since they were putting together the rest of the room they might as well get this done, too.
Daniel had planned to help piece everything together, but when Teal'c had arrived that morning, Sam and Janet had come with him and promptly hijacked Daniel. Even less of a shopper than Jack, Daniel had been dragged out the door in the iron clad grip of determined friends, his demeanor that of a man condemned. Teal'c and Jack had spent the last few hours chatting companionably in between bouts of cursing at incoherent instructions and illegible diagrams. During that same time, Daniel, God help him, had been at the mall. On a Saturday.
Putting down the reference material, Jack took swig of his drink. In deference to Daniel's dietary restrictions, Jack no longer had beer in the house. In a show of solidarity, his drink of choice was now the papaya mango juice blend that he'd always kept on hand for Teal'c. Jack grabbed a handful of bolts and the ratcheted hex-wrench. Teal'c held the last side of the crib in place while Jack installed the bolts.
Given the nature of their task, naturally their talk had centered around all things baby related. Adjusting his grip on the slats of the piece he was holding, Teal'c continued his reminiscence of his wife's pregnancy.
"As I recall there was an all too brief period of time approximately midway through gestation when Drey'ac's desires were greatly increased. Other than feeling our son move within her, that is my most fond memory of that time."
Jack grinned. "Oh yeah. Sara did the same thing when she was pregnant with Charlie. I tell ya, I couldn't wait to get home at night. It was over far too soon, but it sure was fun while it lasted."
"Have you encountered that same phenomenon with Daniel Jackson?"
Jack's smile faded away. "Yeah," he grunted.
Twisting the ratchet sharply, Jack over-tightened the bolt. He grabbed another bolt from the pile and used more force than necessary on that one too. Although he kept his eyes on the task in front of him, in his peripheral vision he could tell Teal'c was studying him. Crap. He should have plastered a smile on his face and pretended an unrelentingly horny Daniel was the best thing since sliced bread.
"Why is it that you are not enthused about the experience with Daniel Jackson?"
"Well, T, it turns out that there is such a thing as too much sex. Who knew?"
The last bolt snicked into place. They tested their work, raising and lowering the side of the crib several times to be sure everything slid smoothly.
"It is common knowledge among your closest associates that within the confines of your relationship with Daniel Jackson you are in fact a slut, O'Neill. An unrelenting horn dog. An insatiable sausage sniffer. A hose hound of epic proportions, a --"
"Whoa! Enough! I got the point," he said testily. To some degree, Jack was reluctant to open up, but he needed a confidante and he sure as hell wasn't going to complain to Daniel. "One word for you, T - chafing."
Both of Teal'cs eyebrows twitched. Oh it was subtle - the big man managed to stop them from swooping toward his hairline - but it was noticeable. "I must concede your point, O'Neill."
Jack couldn't quite believe he was having this conversation with anyone, much less Teal'c. Then again, of all people, Teal'c would be the least likely to judge.
"Yeah, well, one look at the poses in that souvenir figurine collection of me and Daniel should be enough to clue anyone in. Granted, those have it the other way around with Daniel...um..." Jack felt a rush of heat to his face. He just couldn't finish that sentence.
Teal'c nodded, but said, "I am afraid I am unable to view the collection."
"Well I didn't mean right now, but when you get back to the base, maybe...or not. Not works best for me," he grumbled.
Jack began to put his tools away while Teal'c gathered the instructions and other bits of debris from the carpet. Since they had been policing the area as they worked, final clean up took only moments. Standing in the middle of the room to admire their work, they each picked up their glass of juice.
"I meant that I am unable to view them at all," said Teal'c.
"What? Why?" Jack hoped they had somehow been obliterated. They better not have been lost. Or sold. Or given away.
"Several years ago, I repeatedly declined a second invitation to accompany you fishing. In response you suggested that I take up a hobby. I did." There was a wicked gleam in the big man's eye.
Jack frowned. He vaguely recalled the incident. "Okay, but what has that got to do with - " The expression on Teal'c's face was the closest Jack had ever seen to a smirk. Something clicked. Suddenly it was painfully obvious. "Son of a bitch." He swore with equal parts aggravation and admiration. "You've been winding us up all these years. Just pushing our buttons and watching us dance."
"It has been most amusing as well as incredibly simple. I believe the appropriate saying is, you are an easy target, O'Neill as is Daniel Jackson."
Jack probably should be upset over years of teasing but it had been so well done that he wasn't. "That's quite a feat, there, T-man," he admitted. "You played us like a couple of violins. A comment here and a comment there, and we're off on a tizzy." He raised his glass in a salute to the master prankster. "Well done."
Teal'c bowed from the neck to acknowledge the compliment.
"So, why are you coming clean now?"
"I have engaged in a new hobby."
"Oh? Some new martial art?" Jack raised his glass for a drink.
"The arrangement of vegetation, both harvested and viable, into aesthetically pleasing and situationally appropriate designs."
Jack coughed and sputtered. If only he hadn't been mid swallow when Teal'c said that.
"Are you all right, O'Neill?"
"Fine, fine." One last cough cleared his airway. "Florist, you say?"
"More specifically, floral designer."
"Uh-huh. And, ah, what brought that on?"
Before Teal'c could answer, Daniel's voice came floating down the hall.
"Guys? We're back!"
Jack could hear Sam and Janet chattering excitedly over a backdrop of rustling noises, all increasing in volume as the trio came down the hallway to the baby's room. Shopping bags came through the doorway first, followed by Daniel, more bags, Sam, yet more bags, and Janet. Whereas the women were still revved up over the experience, Daniel had that pursed lipped, narrow eyed look look which meant that he was cranky and tired and trying to hide it.
The bags all thumped into a group in the middle of the floor. The women headed straight for the furniture, exclaiming over the style. Jack headed straight for Daniel, putting a hand on his back.
"Your timing is impeccable, Daniel Jackson, as we have only just finished assembling the infant's furnishings."
A half-hearted "Yeah, great" was Daniel's only response to Teal'c's comment.
Jack guided his partner to the glider rocker in the corner and helped him get settled with his feet up on the ottoman. "Take a seat Daniel. Here, drink this," he said, pressing his half full glass of juice into Daniel's hand. Pitching his voice low enough that the others wouldn't hear, he asked, "So, was it as horrible as you feared?"
Daniel glanced over at the others to be sure they hadn't noticed Jack's comment, then replied in the same manner. "Honestly, it wasn't bad at all. Sam had some great ideas about baby-proofing the house and she and Janet both have excellent taste. Wait'll you see some of the outfits they got. And the bedding. And the toys. And room decorations. Frankly, the longer I thought about it today, the more I realized how lucky we are in our friends. I'm exceedingly grateful to them for helping us out like this." Daniel looked startled for a moment, then smiled wide. "Hey!" he called out to everyone. "Come quick! The baby's moving!"
Jack put his hand on Daniel's abdomen, feeling the flutter under his palm, then made way for the others. Sam was the last in line and the look of wonder on her face was priceless.
"Oh, wow, Daniel! That was awesome!" She gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Thank you. When my sister in law was pregnant, I was usually on the other side of the country. The few times I was around her, the movement always stopped before I could feel it."
"So, you're saying I'm your first?" quipped Daniel.
Everyone laughed, while Sam gave him a mischievious grin and retorted, "But hopefully not my last."
Janet picked up one of the shopping bags, waving it in the air as she smiled at Jack "So, are you ready to see what we managed to scrounge up?"
Everyone gathered around Daniel in his place of honor in the rocker. Jack sat on the floor to his left and Sam parked herself on the floor to his right. Teal'c helped unload the bags while Janet did her best "Vanna White, Spokesmodel" interpretation and the group fell into a party atmosphere. Daniel, now that he had had a chance to rest and refresh himself, quickly joined in the festive mood.
Watching Daniel and Sam laugh over something that happened at the mall today, Jack was reminded of their moniker from the earliest days of the program - The Wonder Twins. They didn't know it, but he was the one who had tagged them with that. It was good to see that years later, that connection was still there because friends like that were hard to come by.
As Jack watched Teal'c acting as straight-man to Janet's showmanship, and Sam proudly displaying the practical items she had selected, he knew that Daniel was right about how lucky he and Jack were. But Daniel was off on one thing. These weren't just friends.
This? This was family.
continued in part 2