REALIZATIONS

Part 1


Teal'c was meditating in his room on the base when he heard a sharp knock on the door. Knowing instantly who it was by the pattern of the knock, he summoned O’Neill into his room. Jack sat at the table looking at the Jaffa sitting on the floor, obviously meditating if the candles surrounding him were anything to go by.

"What is it I can do for you, O’Neill?" The deep satin voice rumbled, but the eyes remained closed.

"Just, you know, passing and thought I’d drop in," Jack said, rubbing his hands together nonchalantly. Teal'c cracked an eye open slightly then closed it once more.

"I see."

Jack watched the peaceful man on the floor then sighed loudly. Teal'c tilted his head as he looked at him. He said nothing but his eyes asked the question for him.

"Okay!" Jack sighed like he’d been interrogated. Throwing his hands over his head he got up and paced the room.

The calm man on the floor sensed the higher than normal agitation in his friend. "Perhaps you should learn to mediate to relieve some of your… anxiety."

Jack stopped mid-step. "The only way my anxiety will be relieved is if Daniel were to come home and relieve it for me!"

The large, bald head moved once more. "I see."

"Teal'c, I’m going to explode. You do realize this, don’t you?"

"You are a strong warrior, O’Neill. You will survive." The Jaffa tried to hide the humor in his voice at his agitated friend’s irrational outburst.

The colonel stopped his pacing once more then looked at him. "How long has it been now?" He asked with a defeated sigh.

"Almost four hours."

Jack groaned and rubbed his hands over his face as he left the room, mumbling a thanks to Teal'c as he shut the door. Closing his eyes slowly, the Jaffa couldn't’t help but smile. It was going to be a long few weeks.

*

After a hectic day at work, Jack was glad to be finally home.  He grabbed himself a beer from the fridge and sat in his living room, sighing as he reached for the remote control. He scanned through the stations rapidly, not really looking at the screen while a smile kissed his lips as he recalled a similar time that he and Daniel laid together on the sofa, the smaller man in front and leaning back against his chest. They were topless, but both wore jeans…..

Daniel reached for his can of soda and took a sip then he picked up the remote control. He, too, scanned through the stations, not really looking at any one channel long enough to know what was on.

"Pick a channel, Danny," Jack had said drolly. Daniel flipped through a few more channels.

"Give me that damn thing!" The older man said, snatching the device from Daniel’s hands.

"Jack!" The anthropologist snatched it back again.

"You’re surfing! You know how much I hate that!"  Jack groused, wrestling the black controller from the long fingers.

"Ouch! Jack! You’re hurting me!" Daniel said through a fit of laughter.

"I’ll hurt you in a minute if you don’t give me this damn…!" Jack fought with his lover so hard that they both slipped off the front of the sofa and landed on the floor - Jack still trapped underneath. Daniel squirmed until he was lying face down on Jack now and his arm stretched out for the remote that Jack held just out of reach.

Looking down at his trapped lover, Daniel grinned and Jack gave him a wink. Thinking he’d trick him into giving him the remote, Daniel kissed Jack gently on the chin then tip of his nose then full on the mouth. Jack seemed to buckle with the kiss, but as soon as Daniel’s hand covertly moved to steal the remote, Jack stuck his arm out once more, keeping the device from his lover’s reach. At the same time, he gripped the back of Daniel’s head, not allowing him to break the joined mouths as 'punishment' for using the kiss to trick him.

"Damn you!" Daniel mumbled though a laugh as he remained pressed against Jack’s mouth.

"Not nice!" Jack mumbled back before plunging his tongue into Daniel’s unsuspecting mouth. The younger man had groaned, wriggling his body over the colonel’s until his groin was pressing directly over his. His hands came up and cupped both cheeks lightly, the thumbs stroking the stubble. Daniel rubbed his smooth chest against the wiry hairs on Jack’s and he groaned again.

The game was suddenly forgotten as Jack released the remote, hearing it fall to the rug above his head while he dropped his hand onto Daniel’s arched back. The younger man grounded their groins together, his legs parting to allow him to straddle the hips as he knelt back, sitting over Jack’s groin. Dark, passion-filled eyes stared up at him and Daniel tossed his head back, sending his long hair shimmering behind him. He lowered his eyes and looked directly into Jack’s eyes - then he smiled. Smiled, because he was wriggling the remote control in his hand now. Jack covered his eyes with his hand as he growled at himself for falling for that old trick.

"I tell you what," Daniel said, trailing the remote down Jack’s naked chest and over his soft stomach. His pink tongue darted out and swiped his lower lip and dimples appeared on his smooth cheeks.  He lifted  his eyes, but not his head, and suggested, "Let’s play a game."

Jack’s groin twitched nearly as much as his eyebrow did at that suggestive come-on.

"What game?" He asked, his voice a deep purr of arousal.

"If you can guess the next station I stop at, I have to remove my pants."

Jack’s smile grew larger. "And if I don’t?"

"You remove…" Daniel sucked back a loud breath then looked at the bulge within Jack’s tight jeans. Lifting his eyes to look into the dark pools once more, Daniel continued, his voice thick with lust, "you remove your pants."

"I like this game," Jack said with a wicked grin. Daniel’s eyes blinked slowly and he poked his tongue out to swipe along his own bottom lip.

"Let’s see who wins, shall we?"  The challenge was on between the lovers.

Jack lent up onto his elbows and turned to watch the television screen.

"You’ll stop at CNN," he said, not looking at Daniel. The man with the control flipped through the stations, stopping intentionally on CNN. Jack chuckled as he looked back at him.

"Oh, look at that!" Daniel sighed, slipping himself off Jack’s lap and standing over him, deliberately straddling his hips as he  unzipped his pants tantalizingly slowly. Their eyes connected as he shimmied the blue denim off, kicking the pants away before kneeling back over Jack’s lap wearing nothing but his tight white boxer shorts. Jack turned his face to the screen.

"What one now?"

"Seaspan." He shrugged. He was wrong - go figure! Daniel grinned as he knelt up high, allowing Jack the room to slip from between his thighs.   Then Daniel sat back on his heels once more and arched his throat as he looked up at the man standing before him, his eyes staring at the hands lowering the metal zip tooth by agonizing tooth.  Jack carelessly kicked the pants aside as he settled on the rug once more, sitting with his legs outstretched before him, his ankles crossed.  He lent back on outstretched arms and turned to look at Daniel, kneeling beside him. He looked at the remote control then up at Daniel. 

"A kid's show."

He was right. Daniel stood once more and, ever so slowly, slipped the boxers down his golden thighs.

"I win!" Jack smiled as he sat himself between the standing man’s ankles.

Daniel looked down at him and smiled. Cupping his hand under Jack’s jaw he asked, huskily, "what would you like as a reward?"

Jack inhaled deeply; the aroma of his lover filled his nostrils, making his head spin.

"I’m sure you know!" He said, then rubbed his face over the flaccid groin. Daniel twitched at the first touch, growing thicker and harder as Jack rubbed him lightly, soft groans echoed from the back of his throat.

The younger man’s fully erect shaft jutted across Jack’s cheek as he nuzzled his nose against the wiry curls then he turned his face, rubbing his parted lips - harmonica style - down the long thick muscle. Daniel moaned and his hands went into the short gray hair gripping at it fiercely as Jack covered the tip with his mouth and slowly swallowed it to the back of his throat.

While his mouth sucked and kissed the swollen muscle, his fingers ticked the tightening sacs, finding their way to the anus behind. Daniel’s legs shifted further apart as he used Jack as his balance. The colonel crawled up to his knees, still with Daniel’s cock in his mouth. He released the shaft long enough to wet his finger then he pressed through the tight ring, a little brutally.

Daniel moaned with utter pleasure. His legs began to weaken and his breath hitched as Jack struck at the hidden gland. The older man felt the reward against his tongue - the stalk inside his mouth swelled even more and the helmet twitched against his back teeth.

A deep, contented groan rumbled out of the standing man as he shifted to allow Jack even more access to his aching need. Jack slipped the shaft from his mouth again and inched forward to place himself between Daniel’s soft, tanned thighs. Then he struck at the tight opening, time after time with his tongue, sending waves through the highly charged man, who was still gripping Jack for support.

"Jack, I have to sit down…" Daniel gasped breathlessly.

Jack muttered, "I’ve the perfect place," as he laid back and pulled Daniel down by his thighs to kneel over him. The younger man fell to his knees heavily over Jack once more and their eyes met, a burning heat passed between them. Daniel scrambled for the underwear that Jack was wearing, pulling it to the side roughly to allow the trapped rod to poke out. Without a word he then lifted himself, positioned the weeping tip against his stretched opening and impaled himself onto Jack - both men crying out with the pleasure as Daniel sunk to the groin beneath him.

"Dear mother of…" Jack whispered as Daniel’s head fell forward, his hand coming to rest on the furry chest as he languidly lifted then impaled himself onto his lover, over and over.  Jack had the stamina of a race horse when it came to this position - and that was one of the best things about having sex this way - both men knew that.  So they remained there in the dwindling light, hands caressing, eyes feasting on features, gentle and loving smiles and whispers of love exchanged between them.  Jack grabbed one of Daniel's roving hands, bringing it to his lips to press a kiss onto the palm.  And Daniel kept hold of that hand, bringing it to his chest, guiding it across his tingling skin until Jack latched onto a sensitive nub of his own   volition - tugging and twisting on it lightly, enjoying the tightening around his shaft in response.  His fingertips glided across the slick skin of the heaving chest as Daniel began to weary, his finger nails lightly scratched a message onto the white surface.  He drew one large heart shape around Daniel's left nipple, then curled up and pressed a kiss onto the brown nub.  Daniel's hands cradled the gray head, and he bent to kiss the soft hair. 

Eventually, the older man felt himself tighten throughout his body. His legs twitched and his back and bottom started to tingle. He gripped Daniel’s waist, encouraging the man to continue when he grew tired from the incessant slow pumping.

"Not long.. baby…" Jack mumbled, seeing the sweat trickle down Daniel’s chest. He curled himself up and licked away the salty trail off his lover's smooth skin.

"Please…," Daniel’s voice was a harsh rasp. Their eyes locked once more and Jack reached up, gripping a fistful of long, brown hair to forcefully claim Daniel’s mouth.  Daniel couldn’t move, but he didn’t need to. He felt the twitching against his opening, could almost visualize the white semen as it gushed from the tiny opening, squirting through his insides and making him feel whole again.

They were trapped together as Jack shuddered throughout the rush, their lips pressed almost painfully against their teeth as Jack shivered and shook, finally collapsing onto the rug beneath him. The newly released man smooth his hand through his hair then wiped the back of his hand over his mouth. He smiled as he eased himself off the softened shaft, scooting his way along Jack’s chest until his own weeping tip poked the exhausted colonel under the chin. Jack laughed and so did Daniel.

"Give me a minute…"

"Minute?" Daniel laughed out his surprise, and impatience. 

"For some reason, that one really took it out of me!" Jack said tiredly, gripping Daniel’s soft butt in his hands.

The kneeling man wriggled his butt, his shaft bashing against Jack’s chin suggestively. "Well, we were at it for nearly an hour Jack!"

The colonel laughed wearily, "You do exaggerate, babe!"

With another deliberate poke under Jack's chin, Daniel murmured, "tell that to my knees and my thighs!"

"Best damn thighs in the world," Jack muttered, rubbing his hands over the sinewy legs. 

"No doubt due to the constant work-outs they get!" Daniel poked him again and again playfully then touched his hand to his own ass. "And my butt aches!"

Jack laughed loudly this time and opened his eyes.  Daniel pursed his lips and rolled his eyes as he rubbed the round cheek lightly.  "I'm talking muscle ache here!"

"Oh!" Jack said, trying to stifle the chuckle. "So, you'll be too sore and tired to..." He teased with a shrug of his shoulders. 

"No!" Daniel reached down onto his hands over Jack and poked his waiting erection into the soft stomach, the look in his blue eyes silently threatened the colonel for that suggestion. 

"Oh, okay then!" Jack laid back, and indicated with a flick of his fingers for Daniel to come closer.  The younger man laughed.

"You are just so romantic at times Jack!" He teased him as he shuffled along the body on his knees.

"You want romantic?" Jack asked then gave a 'sure' gesture.   "Daniel Jackson, get that huge hunk of manhood up here into my mouth this very instance!"

He looked up and saw the raised brow and skeptical look in his lover's eyes.   "That's an order!?"  He added, wondering if they were the magic words Daniel seemed to be waiting for. 

With an amused roll of the eyes, Daniel poked his lover under the chin once more.  "I think we need to work on your concept of romance!"

Jack grinned, the wickedest grin he could muster.  "Sure!  Afterwards!"    He rubbed his face over the hard erection then sighed deeply as he traced his tongue around the tip, turning what was already hard flesh into rock hard steel.   Daniel moaned softly as he closed his eyes.  Jack's concept of romance might leave a lot to be desired, but he could certainly give one hell of a headjob.  As Daniel leaned down onto his hands once more, his shaft sunk into the awaiting mouth, and Jack set to work, blowing his beloved's mind like never before!

Jack recalled vividly the deep throaty moan as Daniel pumped himself in and out of his hungry mouth that afternoon.  Jack had added to the sensation by pressing two fingers deep inside Daniel once more and striking his prostrate as he built up his speed. Matching his speed stoke for stroke, Jack soon had the younger man screaming out as he came, pouring himself down the eager throat. Jack recalled falling asleep with Daniel in front of the television that day. Wrapped in each other’s arms, they drifted off to a peaceful sleep but not before Daniel mumbled, "I won."

*

The ringing doorbell jolted Jack from his erotic memory, and made him away that his hand was now down his pants. Wincing from the exertion of getting up with such a hard on, Jack untucked his shirt, hoping to cover himself from the caller. He knew his face was flushed from arousal as he reached the door. Peering around it he saw who it was.

"Teal'c." He said, fully surprised.

"I hope you do not mind my coming unannounced, O’Neill."

Waving his hand around, Jack sighed, "I’ve told you a hundred times, you’re always welcomed here!"

Teal'c sniffed the air slightly, unnoticed by Jack as the officer headed to the kitchen to make them a cup of coffee. He was grateful for one thing. There was getting to be more space in his pants again. He moved with much more ease now as he readied the pot for the coffee.

*

Sam lifted the flap on her tent and looked out over the dusk-filled sky then she scanned the dunes in the near distance until she spotted what she was looking for.  Her eyes finally settled on a distant figure, sitting alone on a sand dune in the distance, the pink sunset behind him, silhouetting him like a picture postcard.   She picked up her cup of tea and then headed out to Daniel.

He was so deep in thought as she quietly walked up behind him that he didn’t even seem to hear her, not that she made much noise on the soft sand.  Something about the look in his eyes made her realize that he was in some far, far off place, and judging by the gentle smile on his face, he was not alone. She squatted, almost afraid to interrupt his quiet reverie. She looked down into her cup then brought it to her lips slowly as she looked up at him again, and noticed for the first time that he was wearing a gold band on his finger. She frowned, the cup paused just against her bottom lip. Tilting her head to the side a little she wondered if she should be interrupting. Turning to go as quietly as she came, Sam hoped he would’t realize she was there, but it was too late.

"Hey, where’re you going?" Daniel asked quietly. Sam stopped, a smile brushing her lips.

"You were.. well, busy." She shrugged. Daniel smiled congenially at his good friend then shrugged.

"Never too busy for you, you know that, Sam." He patted the sand next to him. She smiled then frowned. The gold band was gone. Had she imagined it in the twilight?

"You looked like you were deep in thought.." she said, settling onto the warm sand beside him. He nodded.

"I was trying to work out why you and I are here," he said, lifting his cup of cold coffee to his lips and sipping at it.

"It’s a dig.. and," she lifted her hand to indicate to him, "you’re an archaeologist." She smiled, her answer reminded her of something Jack might have retorted. 

Daniel laughed softly, it reminded him of the conversation he’d had with Jack. //They’re getting the best…// Jack had said.

"They needed the best-" Sam continued, unaware she’d lost his attention. Daniel blinked as he tilted his face to look at her in the growing dim.

"Thanks." He smiled shyly, causing her to laugh gently.

"You really don’t believe we all think you’re a genius, do you?

He shook his head as he laughed louder this time. "Please, don’t start!"

She chuckled, her white teeth showing through her cheeky smile.  Colonel Holland regarded Daniel as some kind of Guru, confessing to having every paper the young archaeologist ever wrote and published right up to the last one he published two years ago.  He was amazed and delighted to discover that the US Military had secured the talents of such a man, even more so when he realized he'd get the opportunity to work with the Icon. He confessed, with a slight blush to his cheeks, to being over joyed at the opportunity to discuss Daniel's thoughts and theories with him in person, and he admitted to having attended nearly all of Daniel’s lectures -before his sudden disappearance.   Daniel had remembered him, which had thrilled the fan immensely, and now Sam took great delight in teasing her bashful companion repeatedly about him.

"Where is he, anyway?" Daniel looked around, turning to face the camp better. Sam shrugged as she sipped her drink.

"Probably out carving a Daniel Monument out of rock." She chuckled, badly hiding her large grin behind her cup. Daniel looked at her with steely eyes then sighed, groaning loudly as he rested back on outstretched arms behind him.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're enjoying this so much," he mumbled then looked at her as she blurted out in a loud laugh.  He sighed as he sat up, taking another gulp of cold coffee and Sam screwed her nose up.

"You like drinking cold coffee?" She questioned him.

He looked at it and shrugged. "I buy cartons of iced coffee at home," then he lifted his cup in a salute, "here - I make it."

She shook her head and laughed at him once more as he downed the remaining contents of the cup then shuddered, pulling a face and sticking his tongue out in disgust.  Over the past week she'd grown a little closer to him, and started seeing him through different eyes - especially through the eyes of her tent-mate. 

Sam shared the tent with Captain Avtek, second in command, much like herself, but on this team.  Avtek was a pretty woman, short brown hair cut in a man's style which suited her elfish features well.  She wasn't tall, probably not much taller than Dr Fraiser was, but she was strong.  Wire and muscle, Sam thought as she watched the woman strip to her vest and underwear each night before climbing into her bed.  They were not 'close' but one night she really surprised Sam. She cast her novel aside, hugged her knees to her chest and asked Sam about her relationship with Daniel Jackson.  

Uh-oh, she told herself, Another fan for the Dr Jackson club! It was not hard to see why people were becoming so taken with the good-looking archaeologist though as Avtek explained that night; he was sincere, honest, truly good looking and extremely intelligent with a passion for his lost wife that set most of the hearts fluttering on the base.  The younger officer had shrugged and added quite casually, "who the hell wouldn't find that attractive?" before she settled down to sleep, leaving Sam sitting in her bed, pondering that thought.  Did she find that attractive?  She had to admit, Daniel was pretty amazing on this dig - one of the first up in the morning, one of the last to come in for dinner at night.  If Sam didn't know his incredible hunger for this kind of thing, she might have thought he was trying to throw himself into his work - to forget about what he left behind on earth.  What - or rather - who!  Sam looked at the officer tucked into her bed, turned from her now.  Did she know that Daniel probably wasn't so eager to find that lost wife anymore...?

Sam was pulled from her thoughts as Captain Hessing approached them from the camp.   Her smile grew even wider, which Daniel noted casually, then he flicked his eyes up to the good looking officer before him.

"Daniel, we’ve got something here we’d like your opinion on," he said, handing a small artifact to the archaeologist.

Daniel turned it over in his hands several times, feeling the weight of the object, then he pushed up and headed back to camp with it without saying another word to either of them.  Sam frowned at her strange friend, then looked up at Hessing and shrugged.   He held his hand out to her, helping her to her feet and as she rose, she reached for Daniel's journal then dusted herself down.  She tucked the journal under her arm before joining Hessing in the long trek back to the campsite.

"So, how are you enjoying your stay here, Captain?" The tall, green eyed officer tried to make conversation.

"It's certainly been interesting.  What with the soil samples we took the other day and.."  She faltered when he gave a soft cough and dropped his chin to his chest.  She frowned, not sure if she should continue or not.  Then, with a slightly embarrassed laugh, she dug her hands into her pockets and said, "I'm having a really good time. How about you?"

His smile broadened now as he turned his green eyes onto her.  "So am I."

They both nodded then they fell into a semi-awkward silence which lasted until they reached the tent township they had created in the valley.  Both were secretly relieved to have made it back to the camp without any further embarrassing moments or silence.  Sam berated herself for feeling tongue tied.  She was always at her best when she had a battle to win or a theory to prove, not when there was someone interested in just 'her' and not her scientific opinion.  Hessing had been obvious in his interest in the pretty blonde Captain, often joining her at dinner in the mess tent, or walking beside her when they took short expeditions to gather soil samples.  When in the group they had no trouble relating, bouncing jokes and witty repartee between them easily, especially with Daniel as well, but when they were alone, both seems at a lost to keep the conversation going.  Sam, typically, thought it was because he wasn't interested in her, but knew her own awkwardness stemmed from a very real attraction to the older officer.

*

They both seemed to know, without discussing it, where the archaeologist would be.   Sam found Daniel inside the artifacts tent, his arms crossed over his body, his brow furrowed as he concentrated on the small statue in front of him. She gingerly placed her hand on his back as she stepped up to him, at the same time she slid his journal onto the bench beside the artifact.  He looked over his shoulder at her, both unaware the Hessing was watching the interaction with interest.

"What is it?"

"Interesting," Daniel muttered and Sam shrugged. That figured. But How? and Why?

"See these-" Daniel went on to clarify his cryptic statement as if hearing her thoughts. She followed his finger to the markings on the top of the statue then she frowned and leaned closer to it.

"Isn’t that..?" She turned her curious blue eyes to him. Wordlessly he arched a brow and shrugged, wetting his pink lips quickly.  She pulled a face and looked back at the statue again, trying to confirm her suspicions even more with careful scrutiny.

*

Jack sat in his chair, a beer balancing on his knee while he flicked absently through the television channels, his mind as blank as his stare was.  The weekend - it turned out - had been harder to bear than the week was.  At least at work he had things to distract his mind, even though at the time he cursed them, now he wished for a distraction.  The whole house reeked of Daniel, his shirts were in the hamper, his cup abandoned in the cupboard, his side of the bed horribly, horribly empty and cold!   After a futile attempt to distract his mind with other things that evening,   Jack switched off the unit and slumped back in his chair, tugging at his eyebrow with his thumb and forefinger as he slowly brought the bottle to his lips and took a sip.   Groaning at his own depression, he got up and placed the beer onto the coffee table then he stepped his long legs across the table to head over to the stereo unit.

He squatted, his long finger trailing down his tower of CD’s until it stopped on the one he was looking for. He lifted it out and flipped it open, removing the disc. Catching his own reflection in the shiny silver surface he was surprised his eyes looked quite so red - he didn’t realize he’d been that  upset, but there were no tears on his cheek, just sad, red-rimmed eyes staring back at him from the reflection. He sighed heavily.

"That’s what you get for falling in love, Jacky-Boy," he mumbled to himself as he straightened up, his knees clicking as he did.  He sighed again and a small smile played on his lips as he recalled Daniel telling him often that he should be careful of his knees. Absently reaching down to rub one knee with his left hand, Jack pressed his CD player open and dropped the disc into it, sliding it shut again with a gentle push. He picked up the remote and headed back to his chair. Scanning through the tracks he stopped when he’d reached the right one.  The soft strains of Mike Stipe's voice filled Jack’s living room, adding to the atmosphere of lonesomeness.

*Keep him safe while he’s gone.. *

A deep, shuddering sigh escaped Jack then he reached forward to pick up his drink and he stopped as a tear dripped onto the glass table top. He frowned and brought his finger up to smear the wet stain, watching the way the dim light reflected in its surface.   He flung himself back against the chair, both hands coming up to cover his face as he groaned loudly.

"For crying out loud, Jack pull yourself together…" he chided himself, sniffing loudly as he roughly brushed the tears from his cheek.

*Keep him safe while he’s gone..*

"Oh.. Christ!" Jack sniffed again, getting up and pacing the room.

"Come on, O’Neill, you don’t do this kind of thing…" He tried to remind himself, but as much as his mind wanted to control his feelings, his heart seemed to be winning.

He ran the back of his hand across his cheek again, surprised by the wetness there once more. Frustration started boiling within him, and he wasn’t sure what he was angry at.. him - for being emotional, or Daniel for making him love him, or at Hammond for sending him away….

"Christ!" He yelled abruptly, the loud voice seeming to echo through the empty house.

Jack spun around on the spot and then he hopped up the steps to go down to his room. Once inside the room he stopped, unsure why he was there. He felt the anger boiling within him again.

"You know," he told himself shakily, "you are allowed to be upset. You really are, Jacky! Your lover has gone for a month!  That's four weeks, or 31 days, or God only knows how many hours! And you've still got three goddamn weeks to go!"

He pulled his drawer open and pulled out the photo album buried deeply in there. He backed up onto the edge of the bed and flipped it open, his face immediately broke into a smile as he saw Daniel’s blue eyes staring back at him from the pages.

*

Daniel was restless in his sleep.  He shifted on the cot, his hair knotting at the back of his head as he tried to force his eyes to remain closed in some perverse expectation that by doing that he would eventually drift off to sleep.

It didn't work.  Instead, he felt the faint twinge of a headache build within his tight shoulders and eye muscles.   He rolled his eyes, the muscles actually aching at that simply movement.

He inhaled a long, slow, deep breath, exhaling it to the count of 5.  He repeated that, then exhaled to the count of 7.  His arms went limp across his body, his legs felt a little heavier, his shoulders sank into the bed beneath him.  Again he sucked in a deep breath, then exhaled to the count of ten.  His breathing was slow and rhythmic.  He laid there motionless.

Suddenly his eyes sprung opened, staring out into the blackness of his private tent.   Who the hell was he kidding? He was as far from sleep as he was from Jack.   Fidgeting until he now came to rest on his left shoulder, he fumbled for his glasses on the trunk beside him, then  pulled them on before hitting the light on his watch.  It was just on 4 am.  With a heavy sigh he flung himself onto his back again as he tried to work out what Jack would be doing. He calculated 6.5 hours from the time and wondered what Jack was doing at 9:30 on a Sunday evening on earth.  Probably watching the television, or reading.  Perhaps he was already asleep.. unlike Daniel.. in preparation for a new working week. 

*

Jack rolled onto his side on the bed, pulling his knees up to his chest -feeling the wetness now coating his stomach.  It wasn’t the same, without Daniel.  Nothing was. He tried to imagine the long fingers over the top of his hand as he gently worked himself up; imagine the soft breath against his own face as Daniel would whisper sweet nothings in his ear; imagine the feel of the tongue as it trailed up his neck, behind his ear then the gentle nibble on his ear and lobe. But no imagination could portray the real sensation of having Daniel there while he got himself off.

Jack reached up and grabbed his absent lover’s pillow, tucking it under his head as he let himself drift off to sleep, amidst photos of his beloved on the bed with him.

*

Daniel sighed and rolled onto his side, tucking his lumpy pillow under his head once more.  He closed his eyes, inhaling deeply to the count of five, then exhaling slowly.  Inhaling .. exhaling...  inhaling....  and soon, sleep finally overcame him.

 


 

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