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sidTakes place early in Season 8
Summary: Jack invites Daniel out to dinner, but won't tell him why. Their waiter jumps to conclusions. *eg*
DINING "OUT"
Thursday morning
Daniel looked up from his cluttered desk to find Jack standing in the doorway of his office, watching him. Jack smiled and walked into the room.
"Hey, Daniel."
"Hey, Jack," Daniel replied, shuffling some papers off to one side, and marking his place in one of the books in front of him. "How’s the whole General thing going?"
"Eh," Jack screwed up his face. "Survived nearly a week of it. Must be doing something right."
"Well, yes, I suppose that’s possible," Daniel said dryly.
"Sure wish I knew what it was, though," Jack sighed.
Daniel looked at him fondly over the top of his glasses. "You’ll figure it out."
"Yeah, I guess." Jack just stood and watched for a few moments while Daniel dug a folder out of his desk, pulling out some papers and adding them to the chaos that was his desktop.
"So, what brings you by?"
"Got a question for you."
Daniel looked at Jack with raised eyebrows. "Telephone? Email? Send a minion?"
"Excuse me?"
"I just kind of had the impression that very important people like Generals didn’t make house calls."
With great dignity, albeit a twinkle in his eye, Jack replied, "Some things are too important to delegate. Gotta be done in person."
Daniel put down the pen he was holding and swiveled around in his chair to face his friend. "Okay, that got my attention."
Jack smirked. "I wanted to ask you, what are you doing next Tuesday?"
Daniel frowned. "Why, do you want to schedule a meeting? Don’t you know that you have a secretary to do those kinds of things?"
"Tuesday night. I meant Tuesday night."
"Oh. Um, nothing planned," Daniel answered, his face showing both his surprise and interest. "Why?" he added with a note of suspicion.
"I’m inviting you to have dinner with me," Jack said, gesturing broadly.
"Oh. You are?"
"Yes. Not only with me, but on me."
A smile crept slowly across Daniel’s face. "That salary increase burning a hole in your pocket, General?"
Jack sniffed haughtily and tried to look offended.
"This is Thursday morning," Daniel commented suddenly.
"Thanks for the newsflash," Jack answered, confused.
"No, I mean this is Thursday morning, and you just asked me to dinner next Tuesday."
"I….remember the conversation," Jack responded cautiously.
A mischievous light shone in Daniel’s eyes. "It seems to me that any dinner that’s planned that far in advance has all the earmarks of a date."
Jack stared at Daniel, blinked twice slowly, tilted his head and said, "You have to say yes, first."
"Oh, well, yes. Sure. Of course."
Jack beamed. "Sweet!"
"Is it some kind of special occasion, or something?" Daniel asked.
"Very much so," Jack answered, smiling broadly.
Daniel waited. Jack just smiled. "Am I allowed to know what it is?"
"Tell ya at dinner," Jack promised, and left Daniel’s office with a wave.
Daniel stared at the empty doorway for another minute, a faintly puzzled expression on his face. Then he shrugged, made a mental note to get more details later, and returned to creating chaos out of order.
~~
Thursday lunch
Sam had stopped by Daniel’s office to drag him away to lunch. For once he didn’t try to get out of it, or promise to meet her in a few minutes. It was almost as though he had been waiting for her. "Everything okay?" she asked as they walked to the commissary.
"Oh, fine," Daniel answered, and launched into an explanation of what he was working on. That really hadn’t been what she meant, but she let it pass. Daniel was sounding pretty normal, so it was probably nothing.
After they had gone through the line and chosen their food, with the usual snide comments about the quality of the selections available, Daniel led them to an empty, isolated table at the back of the room. Sam was more certain this time that something was up. She decided not to push.
Daniel asked Sam how her day was going, and gave every impression of listening to her answer. But she could see his faint frown, and the way he picked at his food. Very un-Daniel-like behavior, no matter how bad the food was on any given day. Sam cut her story short, and concentrated on her plate, giving Daniel the opportunity to speak up, whenever he was ready.
And finally he did. He laid down his fork and leaned across the table towards her. "Sam, do you know if there’s anything going on with Jack?"
"You’re kidding me, right?" Sam answered. "I mean, of course there is!"
"There is? Why don’t I know about it?"
"What are you talking about? You were at the ceremony!"
"Ceremony?"
"Daniel. He was just promoted. Ring any bells?"
"Well, I know that! I just wondered if there wasn’t something else going on."
"Isn’t that enough? I mean he’s got tons of new duties and responsibilities on his shoulders."
Daniel snickered quietly. "Being ‘the man’".
Sam giggled at that. "So, if he seems a little frazzled or edgy, I wouldn’t give it another thought." She looked at Daniel carefully. "Did he say something that upset you?"
"No," Daniel answered, "no, strangely enough he seemed happy about something."
"Wow," Sam commented, "you really need to get a life."
Daniel gave her a dirty look, which changed into a startled glance over her shoulder.
Sam turned around but saw nothing out of the ordinary. When she turned back, Daniel was placidly eating her blue jello.
~~
The following Tuesday
Breakfast time
When Daniel arrived at the Mountain, he was in a very good mood. It was a beautiful day, he had woken up in a state of suppressed excitement, traffic had been cooperative on the drive in, the omens were all looking good.
He swung by Sam’s lab, finding Teal’c there with her. The three of them went to grab some breakfast. When their elevator arrived, the door slid open to reveal Jack and Walter. "Good morning, campers!" Jack said cheerily. Greetings were exchanged as SG-1 joined the two men. Daniel gave Jack a sunny smile. To his surprise, the General winked at him. Daniel’s eyebrows rose. Jack’s mouth twitched. He and Walter got off two floors further down, leaving SG-1 to pursue their quest for breakfast alone.
"Did the General seem awfully chipper to you guys?" Sam wanted to know.
"He did indeed," Teal’c concurred.
"I didn’t notice anything," Daniel lied. And then wondered why he had felt the need.
~~
Lunch time
Daniel, Teal’c and Sam were in the middle of their lunch together when Jack came out of the cafeteria line with a to-go box and drink in his hands. Spotting his ex-teammates, he walked over and stopped behind Daniel’s chair.
"Don’t eat too much," he warned. "Save some room for tonight."
Daniel jerked in surprise, sloshing his drink over his hand. He twisted his neck to give Jack a brief glare and then started mopping up with napkins from the container in the middle of the table.
"What’s tonight, sir?" Sam asked curiously. Jack just smiled and started to move away, but Daniel’s voice stopped him in his tracks.
"Jack’s taking me on a date."
Sam stared wide-eyed at Daniel, while Teal’c, mouth twitching, chose to watch Jack.
Jack bent over Daniel’s chair and remarked very casually, "You want to say that a little bit louder? Just to make sure everybody hears it?"
Daniel bit his lip and looked up at the other man out of the corner of his eyes.
Sam tried to keep a straight face. "I’d love to hear more, Daniel."
Jack stood up. "We’re having dinner together is all."
"Jack’s buying. He invited me last week," Daniel added.
Jack set his drink down on the table and bent over Daniel’s chair again, placing a heavy hand on his friend‘s shoulder. "Anything else you’d care to add, Dr. Jackson?"
Daniel turned his head to peek at Jack and saw the humor in his eyes. And saw something else, something that hadn’t registered earlier when they all met in the elevator. "And you got a haircut." Jack blinked in surprise. "It looks very nice," Daniel teased.
Jack straightened, running a hand through his hair self-consciously. "Well, my lunch is getting cold," he declared, picking up his drink. He glared at Carter, who was struggling not to laugh, then nudged Daniel’s shoulder. "I’ll pick you up at 1915 sharp." He started to walk away, and then turned back to add nonchalantly, "Oh, and wear a suit."
"A suit?"
"Yes, Daniel, a suit."
"Any preference?" Sam asked with a broad smile.
Jack gave her one last glare and walked away, smiling to himself. Leaving Daniel in the lion’s den, so to speak. Sometimes life was so good.
~~
Dinner time
Daniel had decided that Jack probably wasn’t kidding about the suit. So when his doorbell rang at precisely 7:15 he was all set to go, wearing his dark blue suit. He swung the door open to reveal Jack, very nattily attired himself in an expensive looking charcoal gray suit.
"Hey," Jack said, "you ready? You look ready."
"I’m ready," Daniel answered with a smile. He grabbed his keys, and followed Jack to his truck.
After fifteen minutes of driving and desultory chitchat, Daniel asked, "Am I allowed to ask where we’re going?"
"David’s," Jack answered.
"Wow. That‘s…wow. I’m duly impressed."
"Well, we’re celebrating."
"Yes," Daniel pounced on that, "what exactly is it that we’re celebrating? If you don’t mind me asking?"
"I don’t mind at all."
Traffic noises outside the truck. Silence inside the truck.
"But you’re not going to tell me, are you?" Daniel shook his head in resignation.
"Nope." Jack looked insufferably pleased with himself. And way too handsome for his own good in that suit. Daniel tried to feel peeved, but failed miserably. He had been looking forward to this evening for days, and now that he knew their destination things were even better. And the mystery was close to being revealed. He could wait a little while longer. "Patience, Daniel," Jack echoed his thoughts with a chuckle. Daniel hid his smile by turning his head to look out the side window.
They arrived shortly at the restaurant and Jack handed over his keys to the valet parking attendant, and received a plastic numbered disk in return. Another restaurant employee held the front door open for them, and hoped that they would enjoy themselves. Daniel was enjoying himself already. Jack gave his name at the reservation desk, and they were immediately escorted to their table.
As he sat down, Daniel looked around the room with pleasure. Soft lighting, thick carpeting, solid furnishings, snowy white table linens. Even candles and flowers at each table. He looked across the table at Jack, who was also surveying the room. Probably doing a threat assessment, Daniel joked to himself. He wondered if Jack had had any idea of the romantic ambience of this place. Of course, for a first date, it was perfect. Daniel hastily hid a smile as Jack‘s eyes fell on him.
"Like it?"
Just then their waiter arrived, a slender redheaded man of about thirty who radiated an air of quiet competence. "Good evening, gentlemen," he greeted them both. He handed them their menus, and told them, "I’ll give you a few minutes to look these over, and then come back to answer any questions. The specials of the evening are on the card at the front of each menu. First, may I bring you something from the bar?"
"Champagne," Jack promptly said.
The waiter grinned at Daniel’s surprised and pleased expression. "Certainly, sir, I’ll bring the wine list immediately."
Daniel raised his eyebrows at Jack, who simply shrugged. "Why wait?"
"True," Daniel commented, "and champagne goes with everything."
Jack smiled and accepted the wine list from the waiter. "Don’t go away," he said, "this will only take a minute."
"Certainly, sir," the waiter replied, as he watched Daniel watching Jack.
"Bin 402," Jack ordered, closing the wine list and handing it back.
"Thank you, sir. I’ll have the wine steward bring that to you at once."
Jack looked at Daniel and rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "Food!" Both men opened their menus and began to study them in silence. Daniel closed his menu not long after opening it. Jack looked up at him in surprise.
"I’m not even going to look at the rest of it, I’m having the rack of lamb special. I can’t remember the last time I had lamb," Daniel said happily.
Just then the wine steward arrived and presented the bottle so that Jack could verify the label. Jack nodded his approval. Meanwhile their waiter had been placing champagne flutes on the table, while a third young man set up a bucket of ice on a tripod. Jack studied another page of the menu while the steward was uncorking the champagne. He set the menu aside when the man had poured a small sample of the sparkling wine into Jack’s glass.
Jack tasted the wine, noting Daniel’s eager expression as he watched. He smiled at Daniel, and told the steward, "Very nice." The steward nodded and filled Daniel’s glass, and then topped up Jack’s.
The champagne bottle was placed in the ice bucket, swaddled in a white napkin. "Enjoy your evening, gentlemen. Just let your server know if I can be of any further assistance to you." The steward left, and Jack and Daniel picked up their glasses.
"So, Jack, I assume you’re going to propose the toast, since I’m still in the dark here," Daniel gently nagged.
"We’re celebrating an anniversary," Jack hinted.
"We’re having an anniversary?" Daniel asked in surprise.
The waiter had materialized at their table again. "Would you like me to come back?" he asked with a grin.
Jack shook his head, putting his champagne flute back down. Daniel did the same, with a sigh.
"Would you care to start off with an appetizer tonight?"
"No, thank you," Jack answered, after an inquiring look at Daniel, "we’re ready to order."
"What will you have this evening, sir?" the waiter asked Daniel. Daniel ordered the rack of lamb, and then they went through the usual litany of choices regarding soups, salads, starches and so forth. "Thank you, sir," the waiter said, and turned to Jack. "And you, sir?"
"Filet mignon and lobster. Medium rare."
"Oooh," Daniel moaned. The waiter bit his lip to keep from laughing.
Jack told Daniel, "If you’re very good, I’ll share."
"I’ll be good," Daniel promised, eyes gleaming.
Jack finished placing his order, and the waiter left them.
"So, where were we?" Jack teased. Daniel picked up his glass of champagne. "Oh, yeah, that." Jack hesitated. His eyes grew serious. "It’s been a year, Daniel."
Daniel licked his lips. "A year?"
"Since Vis Uban. Since we found you." Jack cleared his throat. "Happy anniversary, Daniel."
Daniel’s blue eyes stared into Jack’s brown ones. He raised his glass, and touched it to Jack’s, and the two men drank.
Daniel smiled at Jack shyly, and looked down at the tablecloth. "I knew it had been about a year, but I didn’t know the exact date."
"It’s one I’m never going to forget," Jack told him simply. Daniel began fiddling with his silverware. Jack reached across the table and stopped him, covering Daniel’s hand with his own. Daniel looked up at him, blushing faintly.
"It’s the day I found out that you were alive. That I could stop wondering if I would ever see you again. And that you weren’t just taking a break from being all glowy. You were real and solid…."
Jack’s voice broke off. Daniel turned his hand over underneath Jack’s so that he could grasp it. Jack gave his hand a tight squeeze, and smiled, blinking back moisture from his eyes. Daniel’s own eyes glittered as he said with a small smile, "And then I went and ruined it all by calling you Jim."
Jack gave a short bark of laughter. And the waiter arrived with their soups. "I’m sorry, my timing is usually better than this," he apologized. Jack gave Daniel’s hand one last squeeze, and released it.
"No problem."
The next few minutes were devoted to the delicious soups, oxtail for Jack and cream of chestnut for Daniel, and the equally delicious champagne. The waiter returned to remove the empty soup plates, and he refilled their wine glasses as well. "Your entrees should be ready in just a minute," he promised. "Is there anything else I can get you?"
"No, thanks." Daniel smiled up at him radiantly, and the waiter blinked, nodded, and hurried away to the kitchen to report the latest news from the table with the gorgeous couple.
Daniel raised his freshly filled champagne flute and said, "I’d like to offer another toast."
Jack raised both his glass and his eyebrows.
"Here’s to doing this again next year. But about two weeks earlier. And I’ll buy." He smiled somewhat shakily at Jack’s puzzled face. "After all, I just got you back."
"Ah!" Jack exclaimed. "From the deep-freeze."
"It’s a day I’ll never forget," Daniel said quietly.
Jack’s smirk vanished, and he said sincerely, "Thank you, Danny."
They touched glasses, and drank. Their waiter stood ten feet away and waited, smiling. When their glasses were lowered, he brought their food.
The two men dug in with healthy appetites. When the waiter came over to ask how everything was, Daniel was stretching his fork across the table to dip some of the lobster that Jack had shared with him into the drawn butter. The waiter shifted a few things around on the table and moved the butter closer to Daniel. Daniel’s amused gaze met Jack’s not-so-amused glare. "Thank you very much," Daniel quickly told the waiter before Jack could open his mouth.
Jack attacked his filet with the steak knife, grumbling, "Who ordered the lobster, anyway?"
"Did I thank you for sharing, Jack?" Daniel asked in a soothing tone of voice.
Jack looked up at him, and they both burst out laughing.
"Pass your bread plate, and I’ll give you some lamb," Daniel offered.
"And mint sauce?" Jack asked sternly.
"Yes, General. And mint sauce!"
Their redheaded waiter stood on the other side of the room, watching with one of his fellow servers. "Aren’t they absolutely adorable?" he asked his friend, as he watched Daniel filling Jack’s bread plate.
"Wish I was waiting on them," his companion moaned, eyes riveted to Jack. "It’s so romantic."
"Bet they’ll share a dessert."
"Nah, the young one will order it, and the silver-haired god will steal bites."
"Same difference!" And their waiter came to fill their wine glasses once more, draining the bottle, and taking it and the ice bucket away, leaving the empty tripod for his next trip.
"You seem to be slowing down there, Daniel," Jack pointed out.
"Yeah, I’m getting pretty full."
"Could that be because you ate half my lobster?" Jack insinuated. He had about half of his filet left, which he planned to take home with him.
"You kept offering it to me!" Daniel said indignantly.
Their waiter came back for the tripod. "Would you gentlemen care to see our dessert menu?"
Daniel eyed the waiter, and Jack eyed Daniel. "Go ahead and bring it," Jack said. "And a couple of to-go boxes while you’re at it."
"We’ll wrap these up for you in the kitchen, sir," the waiter told him, abandoning the tripod and picking up their dinner plates. "I’ll bring that dessert menu in just a minute," he told Daniel with a smile.
The two men sat contentedly sipping champagne until he returned. He handed Daniel the dessert menu, and took away the tripod.
"Ohhh!"
"Daniel, I think you’re drooling."
"Jack, they have a flourless chocolate cake. I’ve had that once before, and it was to die for!" Daniel’s eyes were gleaming.
"You the same guy who was so full a minute ago?"
Daniel waved one hand dismissively. "That was….full of lamb. This is chocolate."
"Pardon my ignorance."
The waiter was back, with their foil-wrapped leftovers, which he set down in front of their respective owners. Daniel’s package was shaped like a swan. Jack’s wasn’t shaped like anything except half of a filet mignon. "Did you decide on a dessert, sir?" he asked. Daniel pointed with his finger, speechless with happy anticipation. "An excellent choice. That comes with a small glass of raspberry lambic, which is a fruit-flavored beer. Very wonderful with this dessert. I’ll have that out for you shortly."
Both men finished off their champagne. "Did you want to order an after-dinner drink, Jack?"
"Nah, I’ll just drink your beer. You’ve probably had enough to drink anyway," Jack teased.
Daniel gave him a stony stare, and then giggled. "You could be right."
"Happens every once in a while," Jack said complacently.
"I can share," Daniel offered kindly.
"You’re very good to me, Daniel," Jack said solemnly.
"I’m just gonna go…" Daniel pointed towards the foyer. "Be right back."
"I’ll be right here."
Just after Daniel departed, the waiter arrived with the dessert. He had brought two forks, and two glasses of lambic. Jack looked at him with raised eyebrows. "The extra fork is just in case. And the glass of lambic is on me."
"It is? Thank you," Jack said with obvious surprise.
"I’ve enjoyed waiting on you and your friend tonight. It’s been a real pleasure," the waiter told Jack sincerely. He added with a small grin, "I think your friend is absolutely gorgeous."
Jack grinned back, unsurprised. He had spotted the waiter’s attraction towards Daniel some time ago.
"You’re a very lucky man. I always go for the blue-eyed ones, too." He nodded his head at Jack as if to indicate that they were in perfect agreement. Jack sat up a little straighter in his chair, and opened his mouth. "Oh, here comes your friend. Enjoy your dessert!"
And then the waiter was gone, and Daniel was sliding back into his chair, eyeing the dessert with pleasure. "Oh, good, two forks. You have got to try this, Jack." Daniel sank his fork into the rich, dense chocolate treat, and brought a bite up to his mouth. His eyes closed in ecstasy. "Oh, god, Jack," he moaned. "This is fantastic!"
Jack stared at him, open-mouthed. Daniel’s eyes shot open. "Gotta try the lambic with it," he reminded himself. He picked up the small glass, and brought it up to his nose, sniffing at it. "Ummm! Smells great!" He tasted it, holding it in his mouth and rolling it around on his tongue before finally swallowing it. "Oh, that’s so nice," he sighed.
Their waiter watched from across the room with his friend from earlier. "Look, he can’t take his eyes off him. Who can blame him? What Gorgeous is doing to that dessert is downright pornographic!"
His friend snickered. "Once Handsome digs in, we may have to throw cold water on the two of them."
"Or wind up in serious violation of the health code!" Both waiters quickly escaped to the kitchen, where they burst out laughing.
"Jack, aren’t you going to try some?" Daniel actually looked hurt at the idea. He was getting fairly tipsy now.
"Yeah, sure." Jack picked up his fork and gingerly scraped a tiny piece off. He swiftly put it in his mouth before Daniel could notice how small it was. "Good stuff," he agreed, following it up with a swallow of the raspberry lambic. Okay, that was just decadent. "Wow," he said in surprise.
"Isn’t it wonderful?" Daniel’s entire face was shining with happiness, and pleasure in sharing this experience with his friend.
"Yeah. Yeah, it is." Jack threw caution to the winds and took a large forkful this time. His eyes closed, just like Daniel’s had earlier. He hastily opened them, looking quickly at Daniel only to find his eyes shut, and his mouth curved in a dreamy smile. Jack took another swallow of the lambic. Daniel opened his eyes and did the same.
Jack was starting to see the humor in all of this. Now that he had had a few minutes to get over the initial shock. He considered whether or not to tell Daniel what the waiter had said. Oh, not here in the restaurant! That would be asking for trouble. Maybe in the truck on the way back to Daniel’s house.
The dessert had been demolished. Daniel was scraping at the plate, determined to get every last atom of chocolaty goodness. Their smiling waiter appeared. "Are you gentlemen ready for your bill?"
"Yes, we definitely are," Jack told him. The waiter handed him the small leather folder, and promised to be back in a few minutes. Jack opened the folder and surveyed the damage. Well, he knew going in that it was going to be expensive. He looked at Daniel’s happy, relaxed face and knew that it was worth every penny, and then some. He put his credit card in the folder, and closed it, setting it on the edge of the table.
"I had a really nice time, Jack." Daniel smiled at his friend beatifically.
"So did I," Jack said, returning the smile.
"And we have a date for next year. Don’t forget." Daniel waggled his finger in Jack’s general direction.
"I won’t forget. I’m not letting you off the hook that easy."
Daniel giggled. The waiter, who had just arrived to pick up the folder with Jack’s credit card, smiled at him fondly. "Did you enjoy your anniversary?" he asked.
Jack braced himself. Who knew where this was headed?
"Yes, I did." Daniel nodded his head emphatically. "This is a very nice restaurant. Very nice," he repeated.
"Thank you sir, I’m glad you had a good time," the waiter told him sincerely. He turned to Jack. "I’ll have this back for you to sign in just a moment, sir."
"Thanks," Jack said.
Daniel leaned across the table a little. "Jack," he confided, "I’m drunk."
"Really? I couldn’t tell," Jack said innocently.
Daniel blinked at him owlishly. "I think you’re lying to me, Jack."
"Ya got me," Jack confessed readily.
Daniel was giggling again when the waiter brought the credit card receipt for Jack to sign. The waiter looked at Jack with a big smile, and said, "Enjoy the rest of your evening, sir."
Jack froze for a second. He knew exactly what this guy meant by that, and he so didn’t want to go there. He relaxed again. This would all seem very funny in the morning. "Thank you." The waiter left with one last fond look at Daniel.
Jack quickly calculated a generous tip. The service had been excellent, and the waiter had been polite to a fault. Jack wasn’t going to penalize the guy for jumping to the wrong conclusion. He totaled up the receipt, and signed it, tucking it into the folder with the pen, and putting his card back into his wallet along with his copy of the receipt.
He looked across the table at Daniel, who was swaying ever so slightly. "Ready to go?"
"Okay." When Daniel slid out of his chair, Jack was right there to steady him if he needed it. "I’m all right. At least until the fresh air hits me. Isn’t that what they say?"
"That’s what I’ve heard. Of course, I have no actual experience of the phenomenon in question."
Daniel gave Jack a concerned look. "Are you okay to drive, Jack?"
"Yes, Daniel. I wouldn’t risk precious cargo if I wasn’t." Jack gently took his friend’s elbow and escorted him towards the exit. Daniel’s footsteps were very deliberate, and surprisingly steady. The door was held open for them once again, with the wish that they would "Come again soon." Jack handed his numbered disk to the valet parking attendant, and dug some singles out of his wallet for a tip. Bills exchanged, Daniel safely and easily stowed in the passenger seat, and all seatbelts fastened, Jack headed for Daniel’s house.
Daniel’s head lolled back against the headrest. "This was a lot of fun."
"Glad you had a good time," Jack told him. "You gonna have a headache in the morning?"
"I’ll take something before I go to bed. I’ll be fine," Daniel replied drowsily.
Jack drove in silence for a few minutes. Then he heard humming sounds coming from Daniel’s side of the truck. He laughed, and said, "You are really feeling no pain."
Daniel didn’t bother to raise his head, just turned it lazily sideways to look at Jack. "Why would I be feeling any pain? I’ve just had a very successful first date."
Jack laughed again, stealing a sideways glance at his friend before returning his attention to the road. "You only say it’s successful because eating chocolate is an orgasmic experience for you."
Daniel giggled. "Was it good for you, Jack?"
"Yes, Danny, very good." Jack wondered if this would be good time to tell Daniel about what the waiter had said.
"You know, Jack," Daniel said with the air of one making a discovery, "I think our waiter had kind of a crush on me."
The truck swerved. Jack quickly pulled over to the curb and dissolved into howls of laughter. When he finally got himself under control, Daniel said in an aggrieved tone, "I don’t think it’s that funny."
"No, no," Jack choked out, "you hit the nail right on the head. That’s not why I was laughing."
"Why were you laughing, then?"
Jack laid his head back and turned it sideways so that he was comfortably looking Daniel right in the eye. "When you went to the can, he told me he thought you were absolutely gorgeous."
"He did? Really?" At Jack’s nod, Daniel smiled. "That was nice of him."
"It gets better," Jack teased.
"Tell me!"
"He told me I was a lucky guy."
"Because?"
"Think about it, Daniel."
Jack watched his tipsy friend struggle to get his genius brain working. Suddenly Daniel’s eyes widened, and he shot bolt upright. "Oh my god!" he cried with delight. "He thought we were a couple!"
"Celebrating our anniversary," Jack reminded him, laughing.
"Holding hands! We were holding hands!" Daniel reached over and hit Jack on the shoulder.
Both men laughed helplessly, until Daniel finally collapsed back on his seat and declared, "Too much laughing, I‘m exhausted!"
Jack patted him on the knee, and said, "You‘ll be home in five minutes." He took the truck out of park, and pulled back onto the street. Minutes later he was parking in front of Daniel‘s house.
"You want to come in?" Daniel invited. "I could make some coffee."
"No, thanks, I won‘t stay," Jack declined. But then he opened his door, and climbed out of the truck, walking around to the passenger side to open Daniel‘s door.
"Change your mind?" Daniel laughed.
"Nope," Jack grinned, "but I always see my dates to their front door."
"Ah!"
Jack held Daniel‘s arm as they gently weaved their way up the front sidewalk. Daniel got out his keys, and joked, "I‘ve been breathing that fresh air, I guess." It took him three tries to get the key in the lock, which started him giggling again. Jack leaned against the house, smiling fondly.
Daniel opened his door with a flourish. "Sure you don‘t want to come in?"
"Nah, you should get to bed, and I should get home."
"Okay," Daniel replied. "So is this the point in the evening where you try for a good night kiss?" He waggled his eyebrows suggestively.
Jack looked at him in total horror. "On the first date? Are you nuts?"
While Daniel was still laughing at that, Jack stepped forward and took him into his arms for a hug. He thought about that moment a year earlier, when he had found Daniel against all odds, only to discover that Daniel didn’t recognize any of them, didn’t want anything to do with them. He would have given anything to hug Daniel then. He squeezed tightly, and felt Daniel’s hand patting his back
Jack dropped his arms and stepped back. Daniel, flushed from happiness, the wine, and the hug, smiled at him and said, "Good night, Jack. Thanks again, for everything."
"’Night, Danny. See you in the morning." Jack turned with a wave, and headed for his truck. Once he had the truck started, he looked back at Daniel, still standing in his doorway. They waved at each other, and Daniel disappeared inside, the front door closing behind him. Jack put the truck in gear and set out for home, smiling.
On the way, while stopped at a red light, Jack had a horrifying thought. Carter was going to want to hear all about their ‘date’. She would be pressing Daniel for details. Teal’c would probably be in on it, too. Or she would tell him everything later. Either way, Jack was dead meat. He was never going to live this down. He groaned loudly.
The light changed to green, and Jack continued on his way. Eventually, the smile returned to his face. It had been worth every penny, and would be worth every embarrassing moment to come. Having Daniel back in his life was priceless.
THE END
