We Love as One – Chapter 2

Disclaimer in Index

Daniel used the spare key that Sam had given him a long time ago to open the door to her house. He was worried about her. When he had called her last night, she hadn’t answered, Daniel wondered, and half-dreaded what she could have been doing. He knew she was upset and angry about Martouf.

It was the next day, Saturday, and it was noon. SG-1 was scheduled to have a briefing with the general at two o’clock or, Daniel rolled his eyes as he thought about military times, 1400 hours. He wanted to make sure that Sam was all right and ready to face the world, so to speak.

He quietly closed the door behind him and scanned the house of one of his best friends, looking for any signs of life. He saw the coat that Sam had worn yesterday and called out tentatively, “Sam?”

There was no response to his question and Daniel ventured further into Sam’s house. He stopped as he spotted Sam, still dressed in the clothes she had worn to work yesterday, lying curled up on her couch sleeping. He shook his head as the still opened champagne bottle made its presence clear on her coffee table. The fire had long since burned out.

What made Daniel’s heart swell with worry and sadness was the evident tear streaks present on Sam’s cheeks as she clutched a pillow to her head. He walked quietly over to her, pulling the quilt resting on the back of Sam’s couch over her gently.

He turned toward the kitchen and began to make some coffee. Hopefully, the smell would wake Sam up and put her in a better mood to talk. Taking the archaeology magazine he had stuffed in his pocket before leaving his apartment that morning, Daniel settled down on one of Sam’s stools at her kitchen counter to wait for his friend to wake.

A task, which took longer than Daniel had expected. He was on his second cup of coffee and well through his magazine when he heard a small groan from Sam followed by sluggish stirring. A minute later, Daniel saw Sam lift her blonde head and peer over the couch. He lifted the mug of coffee in his hand as a way of greeting and smiled.

“What time is it?” Sam groaned, rubbing her red and swollen eyes. She stretched languidly and winced as she heard cracks and pops, not to mention the aches that now made themselves known from dropping off in such an uncomfortable position.

“It’s almost one, Sam. We have a briefing at two. Better, hurry up and hop into the shower.” Daniel said nonchalantly as he watched Sam stand up and make a face as she picked up the champagne glass she had discarded earlier as well as the champagne bottle. She hobbled over to the kitchen counter and placed them there before grapping herself a cup and pouring coffee into it.

Daniel remained quiet as Sam gulped down the coffee, waiting until she satisfied herself to slow down before asking, “So are you going to tell me what happened last night?”

Sam turned from Daniel to refill her cup, shrugging her shoulders. “Nothing happened, Daniel. I left, went grocery shopping, came home, and proceeded to drown myself in misery. It’s nothing unusual; I’ve been doing it quite often in the past few months.” Sam said bitterly.

Daniel lowered his cup. “Well the next time you feel like moping, invite me over. It’s no fun when you’re by yourself.”

Sam faced Daniel with a raised eyebrow. “What happened to the ‘stop moping and move on’ speech of yours?”

Daniel shrugged and smiled kindly at her. “It’s obvious you’re hurting Sam and I know what that feels like. The last thing you want to hear is that speech of being strong and moving on. Right now, it’s clear that you don’t want to do either of those things, choosing instead to mope and be depressed. I can’t say that this is the healthiest thing for you, but hey, if it’s what you want to do, then fine. But I’m not going to let you do it alone, if I have to endure hours upon hours of seeing you cry and sink into misery, then so be it. It’ll be painful for me to watch, but I accept the job.”

Sam cracked a grin. “Okay, now you’re taking it too far. I’ll try to stop the depressed moping.” Sam sipped at her coffee, staring out of the window for a few minutes. She shook her head. “It’s just so hard, Daniel. I can’t help but think about him everyday.” Sam took a deep breath and looked Daniel in the eyes. “I loved him, Daniel. I realize that now. And I still love him. What makes this even worse is that I know that he’s still alive, if not in the walking, talking sense, but he’s in stasis. There’s still a chance to save him, Daniel, if only the Tok’ra would do something instead of looking at one of their own as a science experiment.”

Daniel nodded understandingly. “I can’t say I know exactly how you’re feeling, but I do know what it’s like to lose someone you love.” He said softly.

Sam just patted his shoulder and said, “We definitely are the poster children for misery, aren’t we?” She cleared her throat. “I’m going to take a quick shower, change, and we’ll head to the base, ok?”