Do You Hear Me Calling - Part 2
By Tarra O'Neal
Email:
IrishLas413@msn.com
Status:
Complete
Category:
Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Romance
Pairings:
Sam/Jack
Spoilers:
Divide and Conquer
Season/Sequel Info: Season 4 / none
Rating:
PG (I'm no good at figuring ratings!)
Content Warnings: None
Summary: Sam gets sick on a mission.
Disclaimer:
Same as Part 1.
File Size: 41.2 KB
Archive: Here, on this site.
Author’s
Note: This story was
inspired by the song "When You Lie Next To
Me" by Kellie Coffey. Characters
thoughts and dreams are in italics
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"For cryin' out loud! What's taking them so long," Jack
muttered as he paced the limited confines of the hut.
"It has only been
forty-five minutes, O'Neill," Teal'c said from his standing position by
the entrance. He was watching Jack pace,
like it was a tennis tournament.
"Still, they should be back
by now. Carter needs help," he
stopped his pacing to look at Teal'c intently, but continued shortly
thereafter.
Not long after Daniel left, Jack
and Teal'c had tried to make Sam seem more comfortable. Her fever was rising
fast and she still hadn't made any indication of waking up. Jack was starting to get worried, though he
didn't voice his darkest thoughts.
"O'Neill, someone is
approaching. It appears to be
Aulin," Teal'c informed the concerned Colonel.
Aulin drew near the hut swiftly
and came to an abrupt halt as he was faced with the towering form of
Teal'c. Determined not to let the
"Colonel O'Neill, your
comrade has returned with help. They
have just now emerged from the Chau'pere," Aulin said barely able to
restrain from wringing his hands.
"What...oh...good,"
Jack said in mid-pace.
Aulin excused himself. He was never comfortable around ill
individuals.
Daniel was the first to reach
the hut. Dr. Janet Fraiser followed him through the entrance
in a flurry of motion, accompanied by an Airman
carrying medical equipment. She
deposited her medical bag beside her as she kneeled by Sam's still form. Janet removed a penlight from her bag and
checked Sam's pupils. They were glazed
over. No reaction from the light. She rummaged through her bag until she found
a thermometer.
Janet
placed the back of her hand against the drained pallor of Sam's forehead. She put the thermometer in Sam's mouth, and
sat back on her heals as she timed the passing seconds. When her watch beeped that time was up, she
withdrew the thin glass instrument from the dry, slack lips.
"Oh
my....!! She has a temp of 103.7°. That is the highest I have ever seen one
person display," Janet was taken aback.
She didn't want to alarm anyone, but this was serious. Brain damage could occur at 105° if immediate
actions were not taken.
Jack's
voice snapped her out of her reverie.
"So what can you do, Doc."
"I'm
going to give her a fever reducer. And
we need to keep her cool, without bringing the fever down too fast. That could cause her to go into a
seizure. We want to keep her as stable
as possible," Janet said as her gaze shifted between motionless Sam and
the fidgety Jack.
"First
of all I want this room cleared. As I am
unaware of what caused Sam's illness, I can't guarantee it isn't
contagious," Janet said shifting into Doctor Mode.
The
Airman that came with Janet exited with Daniel and Teal'c at Janet's
order. Only Jack remained behind.
"I'm
staying"
"Colonel,
it isn't a good idea for you to stay.
Since I don't know anything about this yet, I can't know what the
contagion qualities are of the virus, if that is what it is."
Crossing
his arms over his chest, Jack stood his ground.
"I'm
not going anywhere," he said, his face a blank mask.
"But
Colonel, I would highly advise...."
"You've
got my answer, and that's final."
"Very
well, Colonel. Make yourself
useful. We need to cool her down,"
Janet responded as she began organizing her supplies.
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Janet
with the help of Jack removed Sam's clothes.
Jack tried to stay as unattached as possible. It was difficult. I should have left when I had the
chance. No, I made the right decision,
he thought chastising himself for even thinking of the coward's way out.
The
medication Janet had given Sam had still shown no sign of reducing the
fever. Janet was beyond worried, but
refused to let Jack know it. Getting her
fears under control, she rechecked Sam's temperature. Waiting the allotted time for the reading to
register, she looked at Jack. His face
muscles were pulled tight, and his forehead was creased with worry lines.
The
timer beeped. She removed the
thermometer and brought it closer to read.
This was not good. Her fever was
rising. Jack must have seen her concern,
because he suddenly spoke.
"What
is it?"
When
she didn't say anything, he started to dread the results.
"It's worse isn't it," he asked softly.
"It's 104°, and she's dropped into a coma," Janet
said. She lifted her eyes and looked
right into the shockingly frightened ones of the Colonel. "I don't know what else to do. The medication isn't working and I can't give
her another dose for another couple of hours.
It's up to Sam now. All we can do is make her
more comfortable."
They
adjusted Sam's blankets and dabbed her face with a cool, wet cloth. Janet, needing to stretch her legs and get a
breath of fresh air, stepped out of the hut.
Jack watched her go, but soon his gaze returned to Sam's deathly still
form.
"Carter. If you can hear me, you have to fight
this," he said next to her ear.
He'd
heard that people in comas could hear what was going on around them. Maybe there was some truth to that.
"You
know Carter; you still haven't gone fishing with me. I know once you got out in that fresh,
mountain air with only the birds for company, you'd love it. Just imagine.
The water is so clean and clear that you can almost see the bottom of
the lake."
He
went on talking about anything and everything he could think of. Anything to keep her in the
grips of reality.
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She
was sitting on a dock in the middle of nowhere.
Mountains surrounded her on all sides; the water before her glistened in
the mid-day sun. She held a fishing pole
in her hands. Her feet were dangling in
the cool water.
This
was wonderful.
Jack was out on a small fishing boat about
twenty meters from her. He smiled and
waved at her with the hand that was free of the fishing pole. Her heart skipped a beat.
All
of a sudden the fishing pole dropped out of her hands and she drifted farther
from the dock. She tried to move forward
but she couldn't move her legs.
Jack
was back fishing.
She
called out his name, but he didn't hear her.
She yelled again. Why couldn't he
hear her?
The
light dissipated, and she was engulfed in darkness again.
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Janet
returned to the hut, somewhat refreshed.
That is until she caught sight of Sam again. Her heart plummeted. She tried all she knew to do. Nothing was effective. She was at a dead end.
She
stepped around Jack's still sitting form.
He had long ago shed his jacket and vest and was down to his t-shirt.
She handed him the fresh canteen of water she had retrieved. He accepted it unconsciously. He took a sip
of it, recapped it, and set it aside.
When
she had reentered to hut, she had failed to notice that he was talking to
Sam. Not just to her, but it was
as if he was talking with her. He
was telling her stories, of his exploits, if you could call them that. She smiled to herself.
Janet
glanced at her watch and noticed she still had another, hour and a half before
she could administer the next dose of medication. Deciding that the Colonel had everything
under control, she left the hut to wait out the time.
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Jack
sighed. Is this working? Can she even hear me? I can't stand seeing her like this. She was supposed to be up and about and
spouting techno-babble at him. Not lying there looking fragile and vulnerable. He had never felt so helpless in all his
life.
Okay,
O'Neill. You can't be thinking this
way. Keep talking to her. Something's bound to break through.
"You
ever play hockey, Sam," he discarded with the "Carter" quite a
while ago.
"Yeah,
okay it's a rough sport, but it is the most exhilarating you'll ever do. Flying down the ice with a
stick in your hand. Elbowing
anyone that gets in your way, to deliver the puck to the net......."
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She
was gliding.
A cool breeze passed her as
she skated around on the ice.
She looked down and saw she had a hockey stick
in her hands. She was automatically
shifting the puck back and forth. She
lifted her gaze and saw the goalie at the far end of the rink.
It was Teal'c.
He fit the part. He could be
really intimidating when he wanted to.
She looked around to find her team mates. Where were they? She needed help. Someone was gaining on her. The other skater pulled around her and
attempted to steal the puck.
I
don't think so, buddy.
She
cold-cocked him in the chin with her elbow and he went flying.
Was
that....?
Oops,
sorry Daniel!
Back to the matter at hand. Where was her team mates. Any team mate.
Suddenly
another skater joined her on her right skating in sequence with her.
It was Jack.
He gave her a signal to pass the puck to
him. With a swift, but gauged smack to
the puck, he received it expertly.
He increased
his speed, and raced down to the goal end of the rink. He skidded to a halt, shortly before reaching
the goal. He drew back his stick and hit
the puck straight into the net.
She
could hear it as it whizzed past Teal'c's head.
Woohoo!!!
They
won.
She
practically flew down to the end of the rink.
Jack
gathered her up in his arms when she reached him, and swung her around with him
excitedly.
What
was happening?
Something
was pulling her out of his arms.
He
had a heartrending look on his face. He
indicated for her to return.
She
was trying. Why couldn't she go back to
him?
No, not the darkness again. Anything but the darkness.
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