Jack lay in the infirmary, weak, half-asleep, but alive. Happier than he had been in far too long, in the knowledge that he was safe now.

"Do you need anything, sir?" Carter's voice. Carter was here. He smiled.

"Nah," he mumbled sleepily. "You go get some sleep."

"Okay, sir." She smiled softly at him, briefly laying a hand on his shoulder as he closed his eyes, preparing for rest. Carter turned to leave, but Jack's eyes suddenly flew open and he instinctively grabbed her hand. She spun around, face full of concern.

"Sir?!" His face was suddenly drawn, panicked, his eyes full of fear. It was a moment before he could speak; his throat was dry. He swallowed, hard.

"When I closed my eyes, all I could see was—the pain was—I was so close—" Carter cut him off, unable to bear the sight of his eyes darting from side to side, starting to brim with tears.

"Sir, it's okay—" Jack cleared his throat before she could finish, trying desperately to look slightly more authoritative.

"Actually, Carter," he began, forcing the tremor out of his voice, "I'd really appreciate it if you could stay a while. I don't think, uh… don't think I'll be able to sleep for a while." Although he'd managed a faint grin and a little of his usual levity, Carter knew him too well to be fooled by it; she could hear the note of pleading in his voice – knew that he was afraid.

"Of course, sir," she said, sitting down tentatively on the edge of the bed and giving the hand still grasping hers a gentle squeeze. Jack visibly relaxed when he saw that she was staying. Aside from the fact that he had missed her, and the rest of the team, terribly while he had been… away, he was genuinely scared of what he might dream. He had lived through it once, barely; and knew he could not do so again. He vaguely waved away her offer to ask Dr Fraiser to administer him a sedative; he wanted to put off the inevitable nightmares for as long as humanly possible.

"So, Carter," he began in an attempt at small talk. "What's been going on around here? Fill me in on all the juicy goss." Carter raised an eyebrow sceptically.

"The 'juicy goss', sir?"

"Yeah. Isn't that what you kids are calling it these days?" He grimaced slightly as he shifted position. Carter grinned.

"Whatever you say, sir. The truth is, nothing much out of the ordinary has been happening. General Hammond wanted to call off the search for you—" Jack's grip on her hand tightened slightly.

"What? That old bastard. I thought what we had was special." She knew that he was only half-joking.

"He didn't want to, sir, but it had been so long and we had no way of finding you—"

"But you did find me, Carter." She looked up to meet his eyes, full of warmth. "Thank you."

"I couldn't have done it without Jonas and Teal'c, sir. Very much a team effort." When he didn't look like he was going to say anything else, she cleared her throat apprehensively and continued. "Look, sir, I can't even begin to imagine what you went through out there—" A shiver of pain crossed his features. "—but, if you ever need to talk about anything, you know that I'm always here for you." He smiled warmly at her and looked for a moment as though he might cry. But then it passed; when he spoke again, his voice was soft and low.

"I know, Carter. You've always been there for me. Without you, I—" he broke off, dropping his eyes from hers and turning his head to look away. Let's just pretend I didn't say that, he thought, knowing it was futile. He tried to pull his hand away to cover his blunder, but she gripped it tightly. He looked back to her, at her piercing gaze and gentleness. She had settled herself more comfortably on the bed now, rather than just perching on the edge. She was in this for the long haul.

"You what, sir?" Her voice was tender, and for an instant he knew that he had to tell her. But then the moment passed, and he once again knew he could not. He sighed.

"Nothing, Carter. It doesn't matter." Carter's brow furrowed, but she didn't press the issue.

"So, how do you think Jonas is shaping up, sir?" Jack gratefully accepted her weak change of subject.

"Well, he's still a bit of a noob, but if he helped to save my ass then that's good enough for me. Has he found the balls to ask out that nurse yet?"

They talked for hours, long into the night, until Carter's eyelids were drooping and Jack barely had the strength to keep himself awake. Carter excused herself for the second time that evening, but as she stood up and stretched, Jack spoke once again.

"Carter, if I asked you to do something, not as your CO but as your friend, would you do it?" His voice was weary, tinged with nerves. He was taking a risk now. But when she responded, her voice was determined and her face resolute.

"Of course, sir. Anything."

"Could you…" He sighed. "Would you stay with me tonight? I'm just… I don't want to be alone." He knew that he was admitting defeat by giving in to his fear, and he was ashamed. Jack bowed his head, unable to meet her eyes, scared of her answer. But then he felt the springs in the mattress bend again, and hesitantly raised his gaze to find her back sitting on the narrow cot. The look on Carter's face was different to anything he'd seen on her before; she always had a guard up, even with him. Now, she had let it down and allowed him to see all at once the deep level of feeling she had for him. A fierce protectiveness; a caring warmth; and something else.

"Of course," she said softly, smiling as she retook his hand. "I'll stay as long as you need."