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Title:Sometimes a Little Push is Needed
Author: elfcat255
Pairing: none yet really...*g*
Rating:PG
Spoilers: Umm it's AU Season 8
AN: from a prompt by![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
geonncannon...A little rewriting of history here, but... Season 8, pre-wedding to Pete, Vala and Janet throw Sam a bachelorette party that gets juuuust a little out of hand. Or a lot out hand. ;-D...I agonized over this one for a long time(you gave it to me in June!)since you hardly ever give me prompts for anything I wanted to do it justice...might not have gotten out of hand like you asked but I think it turned out nice.(I'm cursed to be fluffy it seems.)
AN2: Beta bysams_ceara
The low hum of many voices welcomed Sam Carter as she pushed open the commissary’s swinging door. She made her way to stand in the slow moving line of hungry personnel waiting for their lunches and peered over the selections offered, finally deciding on just a salad and her usual blue dessert treat, other than the mysterious hash-like substance that was the special for the day. After reaching the end of the line, she turned with tray in hand and glanced around the crowded room for a place to sit; a waving hand caught her attention and she eased through seated diners, making her way over to where two figures sat at a corner table.
“Hey you,” the doctor said with a smile, looking up at her friend. “This is a rare site, you actually eating lunch…on time,” she teased the tall blonde.
“Ha ha, Janet,” Sam replied as she set her tray down and pulled out the empty chair.
“Seriously, Sam, it’s nice to see you eating regularly for a change. As your friend and doctor, I’d hate to ground you for being anemic,” the auburn haired woman remarked as the blonde sat down.
“You forget to eat?” the other person seated with the doctor asked.
The blonde colonel rolled her eyes at the dark-haired alien seated across the table. “No, Vala, I do not forget to eat,” she stated and Janet made a disapproving noise. “Okay, sometimes I skip a few meals but I eat,” Sam added, glaring at the doctor.
Vala shook her head. “What with all this delicious food, how can you not eat all the time,” she commented while using her fork to swirl together what looked like the hash for today and some mashed potatoes.
Sam gave her a strange look. “If you think the food here is that great, then I hate to see what you used to eat,” the blonde said as she took a bite of her salad.
This comment launched an in-depth monolog from the dark-haired visitor on the varying foodstuffs she’d encountered on her travels throughout the galaxy. Both Sam and Janet glanced at one another and finally, with a small shake of her head, the doctor interrupted Vala’s rambling, “That sounds very interesting, Vala, maybe you could write up a report for me to file away sometime but I need to ask Sam a question.”
With a shrug of her shoulders Vala continued with her meal as Janet eyed the blonde. Sam was in the middle of putting a forkful of salad into her mouth and raised her eyebrows as she finished the bite. Once finished with chewing, she replied, “Ask away, Janet.”
“Have you and Pete set a date yet?” the doctor asked.
This made Vala lean in closer to the two women. “Oh, yes, when will the wedding be?” she asked as well.
Sam’s gaze narrowed as she eyed the two women staring at her and then shrugged her shoulders. “We haven’t decided yet. Why do the two of you want to know now?”
“I’ve been researching your planet’s customs and the good doctor here was explaining the concept of the groom’s bachelor party,” Vala remarked.
“I told her it was customary for the bride to have a get together also and we were just wondering when we should schedule it,” Janet said with a crooked grin.
Sam groaned and shook her head. “No, no parties. I hate them. Besides, who would I invite except for the two of you? Working here doesn’t exactly give me time to socialize off base,” she said, continuing to shake her head no.
“Well, then, why not just the three of us do something?” Janet asked and Vala quickly nodded her head.
“Oh, yes, just the three of us. They’ll let me leave the base if it’s with two such responsible individuals as yourselves,” the dark haired woman said with a huge smile.
Sam eyed the two women who were waiting intently for her to say something; finally, she threw up her hands and replied, “Fine, just the three of us then. Since we haven’t set a date for the wedding, let’s just have a girl’s night out and let that count as my bachelorette party.”
Vala clapped her hands together and said in an excited voice, “Oh, goodie!”
“Now that we’ve gotten you to agree to something, we need to decide on a night to get together then,“ Janet pointed out.
“How about two weeks from today, barring any missions or end of the world disasters,” Sam told them.
“Two weeks from today…it’s a date,” Janet remarked and pushed her chair back and stood up. “I need to get back to the infirmary,” she told them. “See you two later.”
Vala watched the doctor walk away from the table and noticed the look on Sam’s face as she, too, watched Janet. The doctor disappeared through the swinging doors and the blonde let out a small sigh. Vala’s eyebrows rose at this subtle sign and her suspicions of something more between the two woman grew; she asked Sam a question. “So, you and Janet have been friends for a long time right?” Sam nodded and Vala continued, “And you’ve helped her to raise her daughter correct?”
Sam nodded again. “I still am actually. Janet knows I’m there if she needs me,” the blonde replied.
“During all this time you’ve known each other, have either one of you admitted to your true feelings?” Vala asked out of the blue.
The blonde colonel was taking a drink of water when Vala asked this question and spewed the mouthful of liquid across the table. Coughing harshly, Sam glared at the dark haired alien who was wiping water from her shirt front with a napkin. “I don’t know what you’re talking about and I think you need to mind your own business, MalDoran,” the blonde said in a terse tone.
Vala smirked at the woman across from her and replied, “I’m only pointing out the obvious, Sam. Like the General says, ‘If it were a snake it would have bit you.’”
“Well, keep your observations to yourself, please,” Sam growled and rose from the table, leaving her half eaten lunch behind as she stalked away from the alien and her questions.
Vala watched her move away and then, with a grin and a shrug of her shoulders, pulled the tray left behind closer to her to begin eating the remains of Sam’s salad. She had two weeks to come up with a plan to make Sam realize the doctor was the one for her, not some police officer from Denver.
**
As the time of their night out approached Sam couldn’t help but grow more withdrawn from her female friends. Every time she was around Vala the woman peppered her with questions about Janet and her feelings and because of Vala’s nagging every time she was around the doctor she found it harder and harder to pretend she was just friends with the petite woman. Hiding her feelings towards Janet had become second nature to Sam but now the walls were beginning to crumble and she found it almost impossible not to stare all moon-eyed at the woman.
Right now she was headed towards Janet’s office to call off the girl’s night out because she just didn’t want the chance of making a fool of herself from blabbing uncontrollably because of tongue and nerves loosened by alcohol and knowing Vala, alcohol would be a part of the night. Stopping in the doorway of the doctor’s office, Sam watched as Janet wrote in a folder, working on one of the multitude of reports they all had to file daily. Shaking her head to snap her gaze away from the soft curve of Janet’s neck, Sam cleared her throat and the doctor’s head popped up at the noise.
“Hey, Sam. I was going to call you soon. I have a little itinerary made up for Friday night, thought I’d run it past you just to be on the safe side seeing that it’s your party and all,” Janet said as Sam walked into the room and sat in the chair positioned in front of the desk.
“About that…” Sam began but Janet cut her off.
“Now, I know you’re not one for public parties, so I thought we’d just stay at my house…I’d fix us all a really big meal and we’d just hang out. Maybe drink a little wine, watch some funny movies…you know, just relax,” the doctor said.
Sam gazed at the huge smile on Janet’s face and the little twinkle in the warm brown eyes and sighed. She couldn’t tell the doctor no. The woman was looking forward to this get-together. “Sounds like a good plan, Janet,” she replied.
“Good. Then you and Vala come over around six and bring sleep clothes; we’ll make it a slumber party,” Janet said. “I mean, if we drink you don’t need to be driving,” she added quickly.
“Ever the thoughtful one aren’t you, Jan?” Sam said with a small smile but secretly her brain was screaming, ‘Crap!’
The doctor shrugged her shoulders and replied, “Blame it on being a mother.” There was a moment of awkward silence and then Janet spoke again, “Was there a reason for you stopping by?”
“No, just wandering around while I waited on a simulation to run,” Sam replied and looking at her watch stood up. “It should be finished by now so I’ll catch up with you later,” she added and moved away from the desk then out the doorway in several quick strides.
Janet watched her go and sighed. Throwing this little party was turning into one of the hardest things she’d ever had to do. But it was the least she could do seeing that once Sam was married any chances she had of being with the brilliant woman would be dashed to the ground. Letting out another heavy sigh, Janet shook her head and then picked up her pen, back to finishing her reports.
**
Friday night rolled around and grudgingly Sam was on her way to Janet’s house accompanied by Vala. When they were a few minutes away from their destination, Sam pulled over to the curb, put the car in park and let the motor idle as she turned to face Vala.
“Listen, I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t badger me about Janet tonight. I will admit that I do have feelings for her but there’s no way she could feel the same and we’ll just leave it at that, all right?” Sam told the woman.
A small grin formed on Vala‘s face and she couldn’t help but chuckle. “Well, at least you’re admitting to it,” she remarked.
“I’m serious, Vala. It’s hard enough being around her as it is, just cut me some slack tonight, okay?" Sam asked, with a hint of begging in her tone.
The dark-haired alien tilted her head slightly and with a small nod replied, “Very well, Sam, I’ll stop hounding you, now that you’ve admitted to your feelings it just doesn’t seem as much fun to poke at you.” All of this was said with a smile but the whole time Vala was telling Sam this, she had her fingers crossed behind her back.
Sam eyed the woman next to her and with a small sigh nodded her head then put the car in gear, pulled away from the curb and they were on the way to Janet’s house once more.
**
When they pulled up in the driveway Sam saw Cassie sitting on the front steps. The teenager had a duffle bag sitting next to her and appeared to be waiting on someone. The two women exited the car and as they walked up the path to the house Sam called out, “Going somewhere, Cass?”
“You didn’t think I wanted to hang out with a bunch of adults on a Friday night did you, Sam?” the girl said with a laugh.
“Oh, come on, we’re not that bad,” Vala said to the girl as she climbed the steps.
“I’m sure your all just a barrel of laughs, but I’d rather spend the night at Sarah’s, thank you,” Cassie replied, grinning up at Sam.
Ruffling the teen’s hair, Sam walked past her and up the steps towards the door. “Fine then, be that way,” she returned along with a smirk at the girl. Sam motioned to Vala. “Come on, let’s get the party started.”
Cassie and Vala laughed loudly and Sam groaned, realizing what she’d said. “Come inside, Vala,” the blonde said.
“I think I’ll keep Cassie company while she waits. You go ahead and see how Janet’s preparations are coming along,” the woman returned with a grin at the blonde.
Sam mouthed, “Behave,” and opened the door, leaving Vala and Cassie alone on the porch as she entered the house.
After the front door closed Vala sat down next to the teen on the steps and gave her a little nudge with her shoulder. “So, did you know that Sam is in love with your mother?” Vala asked with a knowing grin.
“What? Who told you that?” Cassie asked, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.
“Oh, come on, it’s so obvious when ever Sam is around the doctor. You’re telling me you haven’t noticed?” questioned Vala. “And to answer your question, Sam admitted it to me after I kept badgering her about it.”
Cassie thought for a few moments and finally nodded her head. “Yes, I’ve noticed and I think my Mom feels the same about Sam, actually, but they’ll never do anything about it. It’s the whole military thing, I think,” the teen remarked.
“Well, you can bet they’ll definitely never get together if Sam marries this Pete fellow,” Vala grumbled.
The two sat in silence for a few minutes and then Cassie looked at the older woman. “So, what do you have planned?”
Vala gave the teen a huge smile and began telling her what she was going to do that night to get the couple together finally.
**
While Vala told the teen about her plan outside, inside Sam had wandered into the kitchen where she found Janet busy putting the finishing touches on a tray of finger foods. “Hey, Sam. Where’s Vala?” the doctor said when she looked up and saw the blonde standing in the kitchen doorway.
Sam moved over to pour herself a glass of wine from the open bottle breathing on the countertop and took a sip before answering the doctor, “Outside with Cass, keeping her company until Sarah shows up.”
Janet nodded and moved to pick up the half full glass she’d poured earlier. Holding it towards Sam she asked, ”Freshen that up for me please. I’ve finished the snacks and the lasagna should be ready in another forty-five minutes, until then we’ll just be lazy.”
Sam topped off the glass from the bottle of red wine and then moved away from the doctor, sipping from her glass. “Sounds good, I’m going to pick out some movies for after dinner,” she said quickly and walked out of the kitchen.
With a confused look on her face, Janet watched the blonde walk away and shaking her head, followed after.
**
Several hours later, the dining room table was littered with dirty plates and a half empty pan of lasagna. Three empty bottles of wine also graced the table and the sounds of laughter could be heard from the living room where the women were finishing up a movie. The three where sprawled on Janet’s huge couch with Sam and Janet sitting suspiciously close to one another. In fact, as Vala poured the last of yet another bottle of wine into their glasses she caught Sam stopping herself from touching the back of the doctor’s neck. Hiding a smile she commented on the movie, “Your society sure has a funny sense of humor about weddings.”
“Runaway Bride isn’t the norm for wedding movies, Vala,” Janet told the alien as she leaned forward to accept her now full glass of wine. Leaning back, she let her weight settle against Sam’s side and felt the blonde draw in a sharp breath, which caused her to grin as she sipped from the glass.
“I just like Julia Roberts,” Sam remarked in a slightly slurred voice as she took a sip from her glass.
“You have a thing for redheads don’t you?” Vala asked mischievously.
Sam choked on the drink she was taking and coughed wine out her nose. Janet turned around quickly and thumped the blonde on the back. Gasping for air, Sam shot Vala an evil look and rose from the couch. “Excuse me,” she rasped and moved towards the bathroom.
Janet watched her run to the bathroom with a worried look on her face. She turned to look at Vala. “I should go check on her…shouldn’t I?” she asked the alien.
“Yes, one would think it would be a good idea,” Vala remarked, nodding her head.
Janet gave her an odd look but rose from the couch and followed after Sam.
Vala watched the doctor walk quickly down the hallway and enter the bathroom. She jumped up from the couch, ran to the dining room and grabbed one of the chairs. Hefting it, she made her way to the closed bathroom door. Jamming the back of the chair under the handle as quietly as possible, she then leaned against the wall and waited.
**
Inside the bathroom, Janet found the blonde leaning over the sink with the water running. Sam was wetting a bath cloth under the stream of water and looked up to see Janet standing behind her. “Hey, I’m sorry, I guess that last sip went down the wrong pipe,” she told the doctor with a small smile.
The smaller woman moved to stand beside Sam and took the wet cloth from her hand. She squeezed the excess water out and motioned for Sam to sit on the countertop. Doing as asked, the blonde sighed as Janet ran the cloth over her face. “I can do that, Janet.” she said softly.
Janet shrugged her shoulders. “Hush, it’s partially my fault for letting you drink so much anyway; now be still,” she ordered as Sam began to fidget. Sam complied and stilled her movements as the doctor finished her task.
Tossing the cloth into the hamper beside the shower, Janet remarked, “Okay, my work is done,” she said with a smile at the blonde. “I’ll see you back out in the living room; we still have another movie to watch.” Then Janet turned and moved towards the door. She grasped the knob then tried to open the door but it wouldn’t budge. Pushing on it, she still couldn’t make it open and turned back to Sam. “I think we have a problem,” she said.
Sam hopped off the counter and had to grab the wall as she swayed slightly. She took the two steps needed to reach the door and standing next to the doctor, tried to open it; even putting her shoulder against it and shoving failed. The blonde sobered up immediately and pounded on the door with her fist. “Vala! I don’t know what you did but this isn’t funny!” she yelled.
A muffled reply came back to her yelled comment, ”I have no clue what you’re talking about. I didn’t do anything.”
Janet added her voice into the conversation, “Vala, please open the door.”
“Not until the two of you talk things over,” the voice on the other side of the door replied.
Sam groaned and let her head thud against the door. Janet gave her a confused look. “What is she talking about, Sam?” the doctor asked.
The taller blonde turned around and slowly slid down to sit on the floor then bowed her head across forearms resting on her raised knees. “Nothing, Janet; there’s nothing to talk about,” she said in a muffled voice.
Janet looked down at the woman seated on the floor and lowering her body to Sam’s level, tapped her on the shoulder. When the blonde raised her head the doctor remarked, ”If it was nothing, I don’t think she would have gone through all this trouble, Samantha.”
Sam’s eyes began to water as tears started to form and she quickly wiped a hand across her face. Janet grabbed that hand and held onto it. “Sam, is it something bad?” she asked.
“Oh, no, it’s not bad, just complicated, Janet,” the blonde replied, sniffling slightly.
“Then you can tell me. It’s what friends are for right?” Janet said with a smile.
Taking a deep breath, Sam stared up at the ceiling. It was amazing that she’d never noticed the intricate detail in the molding as many times she’d been in Janet’s house over the years. A throat clearing caused her to snap her head down and she blushed. “Sorry. Okay, I’ll tell you, Jan,” she replied.
Janet made herself comfortable on the floor next to Sam and then motioned for her to continue. The blonde took several deep breaths and began speaking, “I don’t think I could say what I’m about to say unless Vala hadn’t pestered me about it for the past two weeks and all that alcohol certainly has had a factor in it as well.” She gave Janet a small grin and continued, “All this wedding stuff has made me face a very important fact, one that I seemed to gloss over a lot.”
“What fact is that, Sam?” Janet asked.
Sam ducked her head and mumbled quickly, ”The fact that I’m in love with someone else, not Pete.”
The doctor’s eyes widened and she stared at Sam. “Did I hear you correctly? You’re in love with someone else? Why haven’t you told them? Why are you going through with this wedding if you don’t love Pete?” she asked in a rush of questions.
“Because I could never be with this person, even if I told them,” Sam said softly as a tear escaped from her eye.
“It’s Jack, isn’t it? Stupid regulations always mess up things,“ Janet muttered.
Sam shook her head quickly. “No, it’s not Jack or any of the other men on the base, Janet,” the blonde said.
“But you don’t socialize with many people off base, other than the guys and me and Cass. So who could it be?” the doctor asked in confusion.
Sam just stared at the smaller woman sitting across from her and it was like a light suddenly went off in Janet’s head. “Oh my,” she said softly and rose to her feet to begin pacing in the small area. “Me? You’re in love with me?” she asked in high voice. Sam’s voice eluded her and she just nodded her head in answer, watching as Janet wrung her hands together and turned circles in the small space. “But, Sam…” the doctor began and stopped herself to continue her nervous movements.
The blonde couldn’t take watching as Janet nervously fretted anymore. She rose from the floor and grabbed hold of the smaller woman by the shoulders, stopping her movements. “I can understand if this is a shock and I’m sorry but I didn’t plan on falling for you. Truthfully, if you ask me when it happened I don’t think I can tell you, Janet,“ Sam said as she gazed down at the doctor. “If you want me to stay away from you and Cass now I can understand that as well,” she added in a soft voice.
“Shut up, Sam,” Janet ordered and when the blonde gave her a confused look the doctor continued, “You are so exasperating at times. I have to pull teeth to get you to talk and now you won’t shut up or let me get a word in.”
Sam started to say something again and Janet stopped her by doing the only thing she could think of; she rose up on her tiptoes and planted a kiss on the blonde’s lips. For a second Sam didn’t react, then she gathered the smaller woman in her arms and returned the kiss with a passion she’d kept bottled up for what seemed like years. When the two finally parted, Janet gazed into blue eyes and remarked, “Now that was a kiss worth waiting years for.”
Blushing, Sam ducked her head and mumbled, “I can’t believe we just did that.”
“Well, if you’d gotten the nerve up sooner we could have done it before now,” Janet said wryly.
“What? Does that mean what I think it means?” Sam asked in amazement.
“I love you too, Samantha Carter. I have for a long time now,” admitted the doctor.
It felt as if a huge weight lifted from her body as Sam gave a loud whooping cry and picked the smaller woman up, turning them in a circle. She set Janet down and kissed her again, when they pulled back she grinned and remarked, “I need to make a phone call.”
The doctor smiled up at the taller woman and they both banged on the door at the same time. “Vala! You can open the door now, we’re finished talking!”
“Really?” Vala‘s voice asked from the other side.
“Yes, really, Vala, she told me the truth,” said Janet.
The couple heard a scraping noise and then the door opened up. Vala stood before them with a huge smile on her face. “I guess you’ll be needing this then?” she said, holding up the cordless phone. “Unless you want to do the whole runaway bride thing like in that movie,” she added.
“Give me that,” Sam grumbled but smiled at the dark-haired woman as she walked out of the bathroom and took the phone from Vala’s hand.
Janet followed behind her but only after giving Vala a tight hug. “Thank you,” she whispered next to the woman’s ear.
“You’re very welcome,” she replied and added, “I like happy endings.”
Janet let her go and went after Sam who was sitting on the couch dialing the phone. Vala watched as the doctor walked up to the couch and Sam held out her free hand which Janet grasped in her own. The doctor climbed over the back of the couch and nestled herself beside Sam to offer her support in the task she was about to perform. With a broad smile, the dark haired alien nodded her head. Her work was done now, everything was as it should be she thought then with a bounce in her step made her way towards the kitchen and the chocolate cake waiting there.
Author: elfcat255
Pairing: none yet really...*g*
Rating:PG
Spoilers: Umm it's AU Season 8
AN: from a prompt by
geonncannon...A little rewriting of history here, but... Season 8, pre-wedding to Pete, Vala and Janet throw Sam a bachelorette party that gets juuuust a little out of hand. Or a lot out hand. ;-D...I agonized over this one for a long time(you gave it to me in June!)since you hardly ever give me prompts for anything I wanted to do it justice...might not have gotten out of hand like you asked but I think it turned out nice.(I'm cursed to be fluffy it seems.)AN2: Beta by
sams_cearaThe low hum of many voices welcomed Sam Carter as she pushed open the commissary’s swinging door. She made her way to stand in the slow moving line of hungry personnel waiting for their lunches and peered over the selections offered, finally deciding on just a salad and her usual blue dessert treat, other than the mysterious hash-like substance that was the special for the day. After reaching the end of the line, she turned with tray in hand and glanced around the crowded room for a place to sit; a waving hand caught her attention and she eased through seated diners, making her way over to where two figures sat at a corner table.
“Hey you,” the doctor said with a smile, looking up at her friend. “This is a rare site, you actually eating lunch…on time,” she teased the tall blonde.
“Ha ha, Janet,” Sam replied as she set her tray down and pulled out the empty chair.
“Seriously, Sam, it’s nice to see you eating regularly for a change. As your friend and doctor, I’d hate to ground you for being anemic,” the auburn haired woman remarked as the blonde sat down.
“You forget to eat?” the other person seated with the doctor asked.
The blonde colonel rolled her eyes at the dark-haired alien seated across the table. “No, Vala, I do not forget to eat,” she stated and Janet made a disapproving noise. “Okay, sometimes I skip a few meals but I eat,” Sam added, glaring at the doctor.
Vala shook her head. “What with all this delicious food, how can you not eat all the time,” she commented while using her fork to swirl together what looked like the hash for today and some mashed potatoes.
Sam gave her a strange look. “If you think the food here is that great, then I hate to see what you used to eat,” the blonde said as she took a bite of her salad.
This comment launched an in-depth monolog from the dark-haired visitor on the varying foodstuffs she’d encountered on her travels throughout the galaxy. Both Sam and Janet glanced at one another and finally, with a small shake of her head, the doctor interrupted Vala’s rambling, “That sounds very interesting, Vala, maybe you could write up a report for me to file away sometime but I need to ask Sam a question.”
With a shrug of her shoulders Vala continued with her meal as Janet eyed the blonde. Sam was in the middle of putting a forkful of salad into her mouth and raised her eyebrows as she finished the bite. Once finished with chewing, she replied, “Ask away, Janet.”
“Have you and Pete set a date yet?” the doctor asked.
This made Vala lean in closer to the two women. “Oh, yes, when will the wedding be?” she asked as well.
Sam’s gaze narrowed as she eyed the two women staring at her and then shrugged her shoulders. “We haven’t decided yet. Why do the two of you want to know now?”
“I’ve been researching your planet’s customs and the good doctor here was explaining the concept of the groom’s bachelor party,” Vala remarked.
“I told her it was customary for the bride to have a get together also and we were just wondering when we should schedule it,” Janet said with a crooked grin.
Sam groaned and shook her head. “No, no parties. I hate them. Besides, who would I invite except for the two of you? Working here doesn’t exactly give me time to socialize off base,” she said, continuing to shake her head no.
“Well, then, why not just the three of us do something?” Janet asked and Vala quickly nodded her head.
“Oh, yes, just the three of us. They’ll let me leave the base if it’s with two such responsible individuals as yourselves,” the dark haired woman said with a huge smile.
Sam eyed the two women who were waiting intently for her to say something; finally, she threw up her hands and replied, “Fine, just the three of us then. Since we haven’t set a date for the wedding, let’s just have a girl’s night out and let that count as my bachelorette party.”
Vala clapped her hands together and said in an excited voice, “Oh, goodie!”
“Now that we’ve gotten you to agree to something, we need to decide on a night to get together then,“ Janet pointed out.
“How about two weeks from today, barring any missions or end of the world disasters,” Sam told them.
“Two weeks from today…it’s a date,” Janet remarked and pushed her chair back and stood up. “I need to get back to the infirmary,” she told them. “See you two later.”
Vala watched the doctor walk away from the table and noticed the look on Sam’s face as she, too, watched Janet. The doctor disappeared through the swinging doors and the blonde let out a small sigh. Vala’s eyebrows rose at this subtle sign and her suspicions of something more between the two woman grew; she asked Sam a question. “So, you and Janet have been friends for a long time right?” Sam nodded and Vala continued, “And you’ve helped her to raise her daughter correct?”
Sam nodded again. “I still am actually. Janet knows I’m there if she needs me,” the blonde replied.
“During all this time you’ve known each other, have either one of you admitted to your true feelings?” Vala asked out of the blue.
The blonde colonel was taking a drink of water when Vala asked this question and spewed the mouthful of liquid across the table. Coughing harshly, Sam glared at the dark haired alien who was wiping water from her shirt front with a napkin. “I don’t know what you’re talking about and I think you need to mind your own business, MalDoran,” the blonde said in a terse tone.
Vala smirked at the woman across from her and replied, “I’m only pointing out the obvious, Sam. Like the General says, ‘If it were a snake it would have bit you.’”
“Well, keep your observations to yourself, please,” Sam growled and rose from the table, leaving her half eaten lunch behind as she stalked away from the alien and her questions.
Vala watched her move away and then, with a grin and a shrug of her shoulders, pulled the tray left behind closer to her to begin eating the remains of Sam’s salad. She had two weeks to come up with a plan to make Sam realize the doctor was the one for her, not some police officer from Denver.
**
As the time of their night out approached Sam couldn’t help but grow more withdrawn from her female friends. Every time she was around Vala the woman peppered her with questions about Janet and her feelings and because of Vala’s nagging every time she was around the doctor she found it harder and harder to pretend she was just friends with the petite woman. Hiding her feelings towards Janet had become second nature to Sam but now the walls were beginning to crumble and she found it almost impossible not to stare all moon-eyed at the woman.
Right now she was headed towards Janet’s office to call off the girl’s night out because she just didn’t want the chance of making a fool of herself from blabbing uncontrollably because of tongue and nerves loosened by alcohol and knowing Vala, alcohol would be a part of the night. Stopping in the doorway of the doctor’s office, Sam watched as Janet wrote in a folder, working on one of the multitude of reports they all had to file daily. Shaking her head to snap her gaze away from the soft curve of Janet’s neck, Sam cleared her throat and the doctor’s head popped up at the noise.
“Hey, Sam. I was going to call you soon. I have a little itinerary made up for Friday night, thought I’d run it past you just to be on the safe side seeing that it’s your party and all,” Janet said as Sam walked into the room and sat in the chair positioned in front of the desk.
“About that…” Sam began but Janet cut her off.
“Now, I know you’re not one for public parties, so I thought we’d just stay at my house…I’d fix us all a really big meal and we’d just hang out. Maybe drink a little wine, watch some funny movies…you know, just relax,” the doctor said.
Sam gazed at the huge smile on Janet’s face and the little twinkle in the warm brown eyes and sighed. She couldn’t tell the doctor no. The woman was looking forward to this get-together. “Sounds like a good plan, Janet,” she replied.
“Good. Then you and Vala come over around six and bring sleep clothes; we’ll make it a slumber party,” Janet said. “I mean, if we drink you don’t need to be driving,” she added quickly.
“Ever the thoughtful one aren’t you, Jan?” Sam said with a small smile but secretly her brain was screaming, ‘Crap!’
The doctor shrugged her shoulders and replied, “Blame it on being a mother.” There was a moment of awkward silence and then Janet spoke again, “Was there a reason for you stopping by?”
“No, just wandering around while I waited on a simulation to run,” Sam replied and looking at her watch stood up. “It should be finished by now so I’ll catch up with you later,” she added and moved away from the desk then out the doorway in several quick strides.
Janet watched her go and sighed. Throwing this little party was turning into one of the hardest things she’d ever had to do. But it was the least she could do seeing that once Sam was married any chances she had of being with the brilliant woman would be dashed to the ground. Letting out another heavy sigh, Janet shook her head and then picked up her pen, back to finishing her reports.
**
Friday night rolled around and grudgingly Sam was on her way to Janet’s house accompanied by Vala. When they were a few minutes away from their destination, Sam pulled over to the curb, put the car in park and let the motor idle as she turned to face Vala.
“Listen, I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t badger me about Janet tonight. I will admit that I do have feelings for her but there’s no way she could feel the same and we’ll just leave it at that, all right?” Sam told the woman.
A small grin formed on Vala‘s face and she couldn’t help but chuckle. “Well, at least you’re admitting to it,” she remarked.
“I’m serious, Vala. It’s hard enough being around her as it is, just cut me some slack tonight, okay?" Sam asked, with a hint of begging in her tone.
The dark-haired alien tilted her head slightly and with a small nod replied, “Very well, Sam, I’ll stop hounding you, now that you’ve admitted to your feelings it just doesn’t seem as much fun to poke at you.” All of this was said with a smile but the whole time Vala was telling Sam this, she had her fingers crossed behind her back.
Sam eyed the woman next to her and with a small sigh nodded her head then put the car in gear, pulled away from the curb and they were on the way to Janet’s house once more.
**
When they pulled up in the driveway Sam saw Cassie sitting on the front steps. The teenager had a duffle bag sitting next to her and appeared to be waiting on someone. The two women exited the car and as they walked up the path to the house Sam called out, “Going somewhere, Cass?”
“You didn’t think I wanted to hang out with a bunch of adults on a Friday night did you, Sam?” the girl said with a laugh.
“Oh, come on, we’re not that bad,” Vala said to the girl as she climbed the steps.
“I’m sure your all just a barrel of laughs, but I’d rather spend the night at Sarah’s, thank you,” Cassie replied, grinning up at Sam.
Ruffling the teen’s hair, Sam walked past her and up the steps towards the door. “Fine then, be that way,” she returned along with a smirk at the girl. Sam motioned to Vala. “Come on, let’s get the party started.”
Cassie and Vala laughed loudly and Sam groaned, realizing what she’d said. “Come inside, Vala,” the blonde said.
“I think I’ll keep Cassie company while she waits. You go ahead and see how Janet’s preparations are coming along,” the woman returned with a grin at the blonde.
Sam mouthed, “Behave,” and opened the door, leaving Vala and Cassie alone on the porch as she entered the house.
After the front door closed Vala sat down next to the teen on the steps and gave her a little nudge with her shoulder. “So, did you know that Sam is in love with your mother?” Vala asked with a knowing grin.
“What? Who told you that?” Cassie asked, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.
“Oh, come on, it’s so obvious when ever Sam is around the doctor. You’re telling me you haven’t noticed?” questioned Vala. “And to answer your question, Sam admitted it to me after I kept badgering her about it.”
Cassie thought for a few moments and finally nodded her head. “Yes, I’ve noticed and I think my Mom feels the same about Sam, actually, but they’ll never do anything about it. It’s the whole military thing, I think,” the teen remarked.
“Well, you can bet they’ll definitely never get together if Sam marries this Pete fellow,” Vala grumbled.
The two sat in silence for a few minutes and then Cassie looked at the older woman. “So, what do you have planned?”
Vala gave the teen a huge smile and began telling her what she was going to do that night to get the couple together finally.
**
While Vala told the teen about her plan outside, inside Sam had wandered into the kitchen where she found Janet busy putting the finishing touches on a tray of finger foods. “Hey, Sam. Where’s Vala?” the doctor said when she looked up and saw the blonde standing in the kitchen doorway.
Sam moved over to pour herself a glass of wine from the open bottle breathing on the countertop and took a sip before answering the doctor, “Outside with Cass, keeping her company until Sarah shows up.”
Janet nodded and moved to pick up the half full glass she’d poured earlier. Holding it towards Sam she asked, ”Freshen that up for me please. I’ve finished the snacks and the lasagna should be ready in another forty-five minutes, until then we’ll just be lazy.”
Sam topped off the glass from the bottle of red wine and then moved away from the doctor, sipping from her glass. “Sounds good, I’m going to pick out some movies for after dinner,” she said quickly and walked out of the kitchen.
With a confused look on her face, Janet watched the blonde walk away and shaking her head, followed after.
**
Several hours later, the dining room table was littered with dirty plates and a half empty pan of lasagna. Three empty bottles of wine also graced the table and the sounds of laughter could be heard from the living room where the women were finishing up a movie. The three where sprawled on Janet’s huge couch with Sam and Janet sitting suspiciously close to one another. In fact, as Vala poured the last of yet another bottle of wine into their glasses she caught Sam stopping herself from touching the back of the doctor’s neck. Hiding a smile she commented on the movie, “Your society sure has a funny sense of humor about weddings.”
“Runaway Bride isn’t the norm for wedding movies, Vala,” Janet told the alien as she leaned forward to accept her now full glass of wine. Leaning back, she let her weight settle against Sam’s side and felt the blonde draw in a sharp breath, which caused her to grin as she sipped from the glass.
“I just like Julia Roberts,” Sam remarked in a slightly slurred voice as she took a sip from her glass.
“You have a thing for redheads don’t you?” Vala asked mischievously.
Sam choked on the drink she was taking and coughed wine out her nose. Janet turned around quickly and thumped the blonde on the back. Gasping for air, Sam shot Vala an evil look and rose from the couch. “Excuse me,” she rasped and moved towards the bathroom.
Janet watched her run to the bathroom with a worried look on her face. She turned to look at Vala. “I should go check on her…shouldn’t I?” she asked the alien.
“Yes, one would think it would be a good idea,” Vala remarked, nodding her head.
Janet gave her an odd look but rose from the couch and followed after Sam.
Vala watched the doctor walk quickly down the hallway and enter the bathroom. She jumped up from the couch, ran to the dining room and grabbed one of the chairs. Hefting it, she made her way to the closed bathroom door. Jamming the back of the chair under the handle as quietly as possible, she then leaned against the wall and waited.
**
Inside the bathroom, Janet found the blonde leaning over the sink with the water running. Sam was wetting a bath cloth under the stream of water and looked up to see Janet standing behind her. “Hey, I’m sorry, I guess that last sip went down the wrong pipe,” she told the doctor with a small smile.
The smaller woman moved to stand beside Sam and took the wet cloth from her hand. She squeezed the excess water out and motioned for Sam to sit on the countertop. Doing as asked, the blonde sighed as Janet ran the cloth over her face. “I can do that, Janet.” she said softly.
Janet shrugged her shoulders. “Hush, it’s partially my fault for letting you drink so much anyway; now be still,” she ordered as Sam began to fidget. Sam complied and stilled her movements as the doctor finished her task.
Tossing the cloth into the hamper beside the shower, Janet remarked, “Okay, my work is done,” she said with a smile at the blonde. “I’ll see you back out in the living room; we still have another movie to watch.” Then Janet turned and moved towards the door. She grasped the knob then tried to open the door but it wouldn’t budge. Pushing on it, she still couldn’t make it open and turned back to Sam. “I think we have a problem,” she said.
Sam hopped off the counter and had to grab the wall as she swayed slightly. She took the two steps needed to reach the door and standing next to the doctor, tried to open it; even putting her shoulder against it and shoving failed. The blonde sobered up immediately and pounded on the door with her fist. “Vala! I don’t know what you did but this isn’t funny!” she yelled.
A muffled reply came back to her yelled comment, ”I have no clue what you’re talking about. I didn’t do anything.”
Janet added her voice into the conversation, “Vala, please open the door.”
“Not until the two of you talk things over,” the voice on the other side of the door replied.
Sam groaned and let her head thud against the door. Janet gave her a confused look. “What is she talking about, Sam?” the doctor asked.
The taller blonde turned around and slowly slid down to sit on the floor then bowed her head across forearms resting on her raised knees. “Nothing, Janet; there’s nothing to talk about,” she said in a muffled voice.
Janet looked down at the woman seated on the floor and lowering her body to Sam’s level, tapped her on the shoulder. When the blonde raised her head the doctor remarked, ”If it was nothing, I don’t think she would have gone through all this trouble, Samantha.”
Sam’s eyes began to water as tears started to form and she quickly wiped a hand across her face. Janet grabbed that hand and held onto it. “Sam, is it something bad?” she asked.
“Oh, no, it’s not bad, just complicated, Janet,” the blonde replied, sniffling slightly.
“Then you can tell me. It’s what friends are for right?” Janet said with a smile.
Taking a deep breath, Sam stared up at the ceiling. It was amazing that she’d never noticed the intricate detail in the molding as many times she’d been in Janet’s house over the years. A throat clearing caused her to snap her head down and she blushed. “Sorry. Okay, I’ll tell you, Jan,” she replied.
Janet made herself comfortable on the floor next to Sam and then motioned for her to continue. The blonde took several deep breaths and began speaking, “I don’t think I could say what I’m about to say unless Vala hadn’t pestered me about it for the past two weeks and all that alcohol certainly has had a factor in it as well.” She gave Janet a small grin and continued, “All this wedding stuff has made me face a very important fact, one that I seemed to gloss over a lot.”
“What fact is that, Sam?” Janet asked.
Sam ducked her head and mumbled quickly, ”The fact that I’m in love with someone else, not Pete.”
The doctor’s eyes widened and she stared at Sam. “Did I hear you correctly? You’re in love with someone else? Why haven’t you told them? Why are you going through with this wedding if you don’t love Pete?” she asked in a rush of questions.
“Because I could never be with this person, even if I told them,” Sam said softly as a tear escaped from her eye.
“It’s Jack, isn’t it? Stupid regulations always mess up things,“ Janet muttered.
Sam shook her head quickly. “No, it’s not Jack or any of the other men on the base, Janet,” the blonde said.
“But you don’t socialize with many people off base, other than the guys and me and Cass. So who could it be?” the doctor asked in confusion.
Sam just stared at the smaller woman sitting across from her and it was like a light suddenly went off in Janet’s head. “Oh my,” she said softly and rose to her feet to begin pacing in the small area. “Me? You’re in love with me?” she asked in high voice. Sam’s voice eluded her and she just nodded her head in answer, watching as Janet wrung her hands together and turned circles in the small space. “But, Sam…” the doctor began and stopped herself to continue her nervous movements.
The blonde couldn’t take watching as Janet nervously fretted anymore. She rose from the floor and grabbed hold of the smaller woman by the shoulders, stopping her movements. “I can understand if this is a shock and I’m sorry but I didn’t plan on falling for you. Truthfully, if you ask me when it happened I don’t think I can tell you, Janet,“ Sam said as she gazed down at the doctor. “If you want me to stay away from you and Cass now I can understand that as well,” she added in a soft voice.
“Shut up, Sam,” Janet ordered and when the blonde gave her a confused look the doctor continued, “You are so exasperating at times. I have to pull teeth to get you to talk and now you won’t shut up or let me get a word in.”
Sam started to say something again and Janet stopped her by doing the only thing she could think of; she rose up on her tiptoes and planted a kiss on the blonde’s lips. For a second Sam didn’t react, then she gathered the smaller woman in her arms and returned the kiss with a passion she’d kept bottled up for what seemed like years. When the two finally parted, Janet gazed into blue eyes and remarked, “Now that was a kiss worth waiting years for.”
Blushing, Sam ducked her head and mumbled, “I can’t believe we just did that.”
“Well, if you’d gotten the nerve up sooner we could have done it before now,” Janet said wryly.
“What? Does that mean what I think it means?” Sam asked in amazement.
“I love you too, Samantha Carter. I have for a long time now,” admitted the doctor.
It felt as if a huge weight lifted from her body as Sam gave a loud whooping cry and picked the smaller woman up, turning them in a circle. She set Janet down and kissed her again, when they pulled back she grinned and remarked, “I need to make a phone call.”
The doctor smiled up at the taller woman and they both banged on the door at the same time. “Vala! You can open the door now, we’re finished talking!”
“Really?” Vala‘s voice asked from the other side.
“Yes, really, Vala, she told me the truth,” said Janet.
The couple heard a scraping noise and then the door opened up. Vala stood before them with a huge smile on her face. “I guess you’ll be needing this then?” she said, holding up the cordless phone. “Unless you want to do the whole runaway bride thing like in that movie,” she added.
“Give me that,” Sam grumbled but smiled at the dark-haired woman as she walked out of the bathroom and took the phone from Vala’s hand.
Janet followed behind her but only after giving Vala a tight hug. “Thank you,” she whispered next to the woman’s ear.
“You’re very welcome,” she replied and added, “I like happy endings.”
Janet let her go and went after Sam who was sitting on the couch dialing the phone. Vala watched as the doctor walked up to the couch and Sam held out her free hand which Janet grasped in her own. The doctor climbed over the back of the couch and nestled herself beside Sam to offer her support in the task she was about to perform. With a broad smile, the dark haired alien nodded her head. Her work was done now, everything was as it should be she thought then with a bounce in her step made her way towards the kitchen and the chocolate cake waiting there.
