Complications
by Maggie C.
EMAIL: va_1587@hotmail.com
SEASON/SPOILERS: Sometime in the future.
RATING: G
WARNINGS: None
CATEGORY: Dan/Jan, drama
SUMMARY: Come on, do you really think they'd do it the easy way? :)
DISCLAIMER: Stargate SG-1 and its characters belong to someone else.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Much thanks to my beta readers, Nic, Karen, and Lucy. :)
"You said what?" Sam asked incredulously.
"I said no, okay, I said no!" Janet yelled, pacing through Sam's kitchen.
"I don't believe it. Janet, why did you say no? What were you thinking?"
"I don't know, Sam." Janet collapsed into a chair. "I wanted to say yes,
but I just... I just couldn't!"
"Why not? Janet, he asked you to marry him! You two have been together for
almost two years." Sam stared at her. "God, Janet, you are still in love
with him, right? You do still love him."
"Of course I do!" Janet said, staring at Sam. "How the hell could you even
ask me that?"
Sam threw her hands up in the air. "You said no! Forgive me, but asking
whether you're still in love with the guy you turned down seems like a
logical question."
Janet slammed a hand on the tabletop. "Damn it, you're not helping, Sam!"
Sam sputtered for a moment, then closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
"Okay, okay, you're right. I am calm. I have it together." She looked at
Janet. "Now tell me why you said no when Daniel asked you to marry him."
Janet looked down at the tabletop. "I wanted to say yes." Sam bit her
tongue. "I did, I even started to, but... then I started thinking."
"About what?"
Janet closed her eyes. "It's stupid. I know it is. I knew it was stupid
when I was saying no."
"Janet, what were you thinking about?"
She met Sam's steady gaze for a second and then looked away, her fingers
picking at the edge of the tablecloth. "About Sha're."
Sam blinked. "Sha're's dead."
Janet looked at her in exasperation. "I know that."
"Sorry, Janet, I'm confused," Sam said. "What does Sha're have to do with
you turning Daniel down?"
She was silent for a minute. "I just started thinking about how much he
loved her. The way he looked for her, for so long..." she shook her head.
"I've never seen anything like it."
Sam could only look at her, her mind racing, trying to catch up to where
Janet's was. "Janet, I'm still confused. Sha're is gone, and Daniel loves
you now."
"Not as much as he loved her."
She said it so quietly Sam was sure she heard her wrong. "What? Janet, I-"
the phone cut her off. She sighed and answered the phone. "Hello?"
"Do you know what Janet did to Daniel?" Jack's angry voice came over the
phone line.
Oh goody. An irate colonel, the perfect compliment to an irrational friend.
"Actually, yeah, I do."
Jack paused. "She's there?"
"Yep."
"So you can't talk now."
"Nope."
"Great, just great. If she doesn't know already, tell her she's an idiot."
Sam rolled her eyes and sighed. "Oh, don't give me that. I know, Janet's
our friend too, but damn it, if you could see how Daniel's taking this..."
Sam shook her head. He didn't have to explain. Daniel gets hurt and Jack's
big-brother/protective instincts come out in full force. "Don't worry about
Daniel, Sam, I'll take care of him." Of course he would. "You deal with
Janet. I'll let you go now."
"Thanks, Jack," Sam said. "I'll call you later." They said their goodbyes
and hung up.
"How's Daniel?" Janet asked as soon as she was off the phone.
Sam sighed and shook her head. "How do you think?" Janet swallowed hard
and looked down at the table. "Janet, I just don't understand. Why won't
you marry Daniel?"
"I didn't want to hurt him, really, I didn't. He just doesn't love me as
much," she whispered. "He can't."
"He doesn't love you as much? As much as what?" Sam resisted the urge to
shake Janet. It wouldn't help.
"As much as he loved Sha're," Janet said, looking down at the table. "He
deserves to love someone that much again." She wiped at her eyes. "Once I
realized that, I heard myself saying no."
"Janet, how can you believe what you're saying?" Sam asked, staring at her.
"He loves you, Janet. Maybe you two have a different relationship than he
and Sha're did, but he loves you just as completely and just as passionately
as he did Sha're." Janet looked up and met her eyes. Sam smiled
reassuringly at her. "This is Daniel we're talking about, he doesn't do
things in half-measures. If he wasn't completely in love with you he would
never have asked you to marry him."
"But..."
Sam didn't even let her start to protest. "No, Janet, I know this. You
never saw them together. I did. When I went to Abydos, I saw them together.
I saw Sha're kiss Daniel, and he got the same shell-shocked look that he
gets when you kiss him, Janet. He loves you. He is happy with you. He
wants to be with you."
"Really?"
"Really," Sam said firmly.
Janet looked hopeful for a moment, then her face fell and she started
crying. "Oh, God, I'm an idiot."
Sam smiled. "That was Jack's opinion." Janet seemed to be coming back to
her senses. At least she realized what a mistake she had made now.
"Sam, what am I going to do?"
Sam only had to think about it for a second. She got up and grabbed her
keys. "Come on."
Janet got up, confusion on her face. "Where are we going?"
"To Jack's, so you can talk to Daniel."
She froze. "What? No, I can't!"
"Oh, yes you can," Sam said, taking Janet's arm and guiding her outside.
"You can, and you will."
"But..." Janet protested, but allowed herself to be led out to Sam's car.
Sam started the car and pulled out of the driveway. "You have to tell him,
Janet."
"I can't," Janet said, choking back her tears.
She glanced at her and smiled. "Of course you can."
"But after what I did!"
"Janet, he loves you. You love him. It's that simple," Sam said.
Janet fell silent and they stayed that way all the way to Jack's. She
offered up no protests when Sam opened up her car door and led her to Jack's
front door. She considered running when Jack opened up the door and glared
at her, but Sam was behind her, she couldn't get away.
"She's here to talk to Daniel," she said. She and Jack locked eyes for a
moment, and then Jack nodded and looked back at her.
"He's in the living room," he said, stepping aside to let them in.
Sam had to give Janet a shove towards the living room to get her moving.
"We'll be in the kitchen," she said as she went to the kitchen, Jack
following her.
Janet paused before the entrance to Jack's living room, not wanting to see
Daniel yet. Not wanting to see how she had hurt him. She could still run.
Jack and Sam were in the kitchen; they couldn't stop her if she left now.
Although if she did, Jack would probably kill her if she so much as looked
at Daniel again. Oh, God. She leaned against the wall for support. She
could do this; she had to do this. She couldn't bear it if her own
stupidity took Daniel out of her life. Janet walked over to the entrance of
the living room and looked. Daniel was standing by the window, staring
outside with his arms wrapped around himself. She was glad she couldn't see
his face. God, why was this so hard? She just had to walk in the room and
talk to him. She couldn't ask him to forgive her if she didn't talk to him.
She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. She could do this. She had to do
this. "Daniel?" she said hesitantly, taking a step into the room. He
stiffened, but didn't turn around. "Daniel, please, can we talk?" Janet
was impressed with herself. Her voice was remarkably steady. She wondered
how long that would last.
"What's there to talk about?" he asked quietly.
Not long, at this rate. He wouldn't even look at her. Oh, God. "I need to
explain, to tell you why..."
"You don't have to explain," Daniel said, wrapping his arms tighter around
himself. His head was down, his chin almost to his chest. "I understand.
It's okay, I just..." he took a deep breath. "I thought you loved me."
Janet gasped. "Oh, God. Daniel, I do, I do love you." She walked forward
until she was just behind him. "That's not why I said no, Daniel, please
believe me, I love you so much, more than I've loved anyone." She bit her
lip and swallowed hard as Daniel turned around to look at her finally.
"Then why?" Daniel asked. "Why would you say no?"
Janet looked down. She couldn't bear to see the hurt on his face. She
took a deep breath to steady herself. "I was scared, and I was stupid."
She looked up at him hesitantly. "And I thought you deserved better."
"What?" Daniel asked, shocked.
Janet waved a hand in the air. "I thought you deserved to love someone the
way you had loved Sha're, and I didn't think that-"
Daniel stepped close and cupped her face in his hands, bringing Janet's
babbling to a halt. "Janet, I love you," he said, looking at her intently.
"I am completely and totally in love with you. My love for you is as strong
as the love I had for Sha're." Moisture built up in his eyes and Daniel
squeezed them shut against the tears. He opened them again and looked at
her. "How could you think that I didn't love you as much? How could you
not know?"
Janet shook her head. "I don't know, I just... I didn't think," she said,
her tears overcoming her. "I'm so sorry I hurt you," she whispered, her
head dropping down.
Daniel let his hands fall to her shoulders. "It hurt because I thought I
lost you, I thought you didn't love me," he said. "I love you, and I need
you, Janet. I need you in my life." She couldn't answer, she was crying
too hard. He pulled her close and held her tightly. "I thought I'd lost
you."
"I'm sorry," Janet said, her voice muffled against Daniel's shoulder. "I
need you too. I love you so much, Daniel. I'm so sorry, I'm such an
idiot."
Daniel rested his cheek against her head. He just held her for a few
minutes, trying to convince himself he wasn't dreaming. She was really
here; she really loved him. God, she was really here, and that empty place
inside him wasn't empty anymore. "I missed you," he said.
She laughed and pulled away from him so she could look up at him. "You
missed me? I wasn't gone that long."
Daniel's face stayed serious. "But I thought you were gone for good."
Janet's smile faded and she looked at him intently. "I made a mistake, but
I'm back now. I'm not going anywhere." He smiled slightly, but it didn't
quite reach his eyes. Janet swallowed, her nervousness coming back full
force. Did he still want to marry her? Would he ask again? No, he
wouldn't. Why would he, after being shot down once already? If anyone were
going to bring up the topic of marriage, it would have to be her. Oh, God.
How did guys get up the courage to do this, anyway? Janet leaned her head
against Daniel's chest. "Daniel?"
"Yeah?"
"You know, if the offer's still open- I mean, if you want to, then I... I
mean, I still-" Janet closed her eyes. She was making a mess of this.
"Marry me?" she asked quietly. When he didn't answer right away, she leaned
back and looked up at him uncertainly.
He looked at her hopefully. "Really?" Janet nodded, and Daniel's face
relaxed into a grin. "Yes. I would love to marry you."
Janet grinned back. "Good." Then her smile faded. "I'm sorry I didn't say
yes when you asked me."
Daniel shook his head. "Well, if you had wanted to be the one to ask, you
could have just said so," he teased. He smiled at her and shrugged. "It's
okay, really. Just think, years from now, it'll make a great story to
tell."
She smiled back at him. "I love you, you know that?"
He nodded. "And I love you." He bent down and kissed her then, softly and
tenderly.
When the kiss ended, Janet rested her head on Daniel's shoulder and smiled.
"Do you think we should give Jack back his living room now?"
Daniel pulled back and looked at her. "We probably should go and let him
know everything's okay."
"Yeah, he and Sam are probably dying of anticipation, wondering what we're
up to in here," Janet said.
"Sam's here?" Daniel asked.
Janet nodded. "She's the one who drove me here." She paused, embarrassed.
"She, uh, talked some sense into me."
"I'll have to thank her," Daniel said, kissing the top of Janet's forehead.
"Come on, let's go tell them." Taking hold of Janet's hand, he led the way
to the kitchen, where Jack and Sam were waiting anxiously and impatiently.
Sam smiled when she saw them, seeing their joined hands and relieved that
they had worked things out. Jack was a bit more cautious, looking at their
hands, then catching Daniel's eye. "Everything okay?"
Daniel nodded. "Yeah, Jack, everything's great," he said. He smiled and
glanced over at his fiancée. "Janet asked me to marry her." Janet blushed.
"I said yes."
Sam's smile widened into a grin and she went over and hugged them.
"Congratulations!" she said.
Jack relaxed and let himself join them in grinning like idiots. "Yeah,
congratulations. Oh, and Danny?" he said, catching his attention. "You
might want this." He pulled a box out of his pocket and tossed it at
Daniel.
Daniel let go of Janet's hand and fumbled for the box. He recovered and
held the box in one hand. "Thanks, Jack," he said, before turning to Janet
and opening the green velvet box and displaying the diamond and sapphire
ring inside. He took the ring out of the box and stuffed the box in his
pocket. Taking Janet's hand, he slipped the ring on her finger. She
looked at the ring, blinking back tears, and then looked up at him and
leaned forward for a kiss.
Sam's grin grew wider. Jack watched them for a minute in amusement and then
spoke up. "Okay, okay, that's enough of that," Jack said. "Go make out
somewhere else, you two." Daniel and Janet broke apart, needing a few
seconds to reorient themselves to reality. Jack shook his head and looked
at Sam. "And you, out of here too. My kitchen's not big enough for that
grin on your face."
Sam raised her eyebrows. "And yours isn't just as wide?"
"It's my kitchen," Jack retorted. He looked back at Daniel and Janet. "I
was serious, you know. Go home and celebrate."
Daniel tried to force a slightly hurt expression on his face and looked at
him. "You're taking back your offer for me to stay the night?"
Jack rolled his eyes. "No, I'm not, Daniel, you can stay." He pointed at
Janet. "But she can't."
"We're leaving," Daniel said quickly. Jack grinned and Sam laughed
outright.
Jack turned his attention back to Sam. "I was serious about you too,
Captain Grins-a-lot. Out of my kitchen."
"Hey!" Sam protested at the new nickname, but laughed along with Janet and
Daniel.
"We're leaving, Jack, we're leaving," Janet said, still giggling. She
pulled Daniel towards the door with the arm she had wrapped around his
waist. Sam went out of the kitchen ahead of them.
Just as they stepped out into the hall, Daniel extracted himself from
Janet's grasp and walked back to Jack. "Jack? Thanks."
Jack pulled him into a quick hug. "Anytime, Danny." Daniel returned the
hug, and then he broke away and went to Janet. He put a hand on the back of
her neck and walked outside with her. Jack followed them to the door and
stood there while they went to their cars. Janet went with Daniel, making
quick arrangements with Sam to pick up her car tomorrow. Jack watched them
pull out of his driveway and drive off before he finally shut his front
door, still grinning. Daniel was getting married. Jack shook his head.
"Guess I have to start planning the bachelor party."
********
The End.
********
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