First Floor Garage, Tuesday Evening

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

Dressed in a pair of old denim overalls and t-shirt, Sam sat on the floor next to her motorcycle/swoop bike, surrounded by many, many scavenged, rigged, and purchased parts, her tool box, and the schematics, which she'd reclaimed from the Danger Room Shop once the garage renovations were complete.

Today was all about the power source. Gasoline and combustion engines were so very twentieth century.



[ooc: Post is open!]

Comments

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

"But you'll do something else," he pointed out. "And I'm interested in it because you're interested it." The gear in one hand, and the rag in the other, he bumped his shoulder against Sam's as he started to clean. "But I'm kind of enjoying it for its own sake. Why did you think I wouldn't be interested?"

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

"Because most people aren't?" She said, taking her goggles off and setting them down.

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

"But I'm not most people." Jack pulled his own goggles off and glanced sideways at her, still cleaning the gear.

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

"No, you're definitely not most people," Sam leaned over, kissing him lightly. "Thank goodness."

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

Jack grinned when she kissed him and returned it with interest. "Thanks." He suddenly remembered his conversation with D'anna on Saturday night and may have looked the tiniest bit sheepish. "Umm, there might be a thing I have to tell you about. Which I hope won't make you mad."

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

"What?" She asked, looking around the workbench for the right size screwdriver.

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

"I joined in that speed dating thing at Caritas on Saturday night. I didn't think it was a big deal, it was basically just organised flirting and free entertainment, but D'anna said I should have told you." Jack concentrated on making the gear in his hands shine, and really hoped whatever Sam was looking for wasn't something she would be inclined to use on him.

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

"Oh." Sam wasn't sure how she felt about that. "Um, yeah, it would have been nice to have been told."

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

"Crap," he muttered, then sighed and put down the gear, turning his stool to face her. "Sorry. I didn't think it was important. Does it make it any better that I told Tex I was taken, two of them already knew, Edmund was horrified that he got paired with a man, and the other one didn't even make it to that stage?"

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

"In the grand scheme of things, it's not that important," Sam said, playing with a flange, "but what you said to Tex makes a difference."

She sighed, and tossed the part to the table. "I don't want to be your jailer, Jack. If you want to see other people, I'm not going to stop you. I just want to know."

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

"But I don't want to see other people, at least not right now." He raked a frustrated hand through his hair, leaving traces of grease. "Which, yeah, is bizarre, but there you go. It was just a bit of harmless fun, a few drinks, some flirting, a fair amount of snickering at the flailing. But I should have told you." Shoulders slumping just a bit, he picked up the gear and started fiddling with it. "I need a handbook, or a manual, or something," he muttered as he stared at his hands.

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

Sam smirked a little at the grease in Jack's hair. "People will be able to tell you've been hanging out with me. You're a mess," she snickered, "and there is no handbook. Just...if you're in doubt? Say something, okay?"

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

"Okay." Jack looked up at her and a grin slowly appeared. "And hey, that can only improve my reputation."

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

"What can?"

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

"People thinking I've been hanging out with you." Grease be damned, he lifted one hand to touch the side of her face, brushing his simgle clean finger along the edge of her cheek. "Because Sam Carter is a woman of impeccable taste."

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

"Funny, I don't remember hearing that," she laughed.

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

Sam's laughter prompted Jack to laughter of his own as he picked up another gear to clean. "People don't spread it around, I think thet don't want you to get a big head. But I figured it out on my own."

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

"Well, I'm sure that choosing you had nothing to do with you feeling that way?" Sam teased, taking the clean gear and fitting it into position.

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

"It might have," he conceded smugly. "But only a little bit."

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

"Uh huh," Sam elbowed him, not convinced.

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

"You don't believe me," he said sadly. "I'm hurt." But he didn't look it, eyes sparkling as he poked her in the ribs. "What can I possibly do to convince you of the esteem, no, the awe, I hold you in?"

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

"You don't need to convince me, Jack," she swatted his hand away.

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

"Pity." He swapped the clean gear for another dirty part and started rubbing it. "I was kind of looking forward to it."

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

"Promises, promises," she said, fitting the clean gear into place. And then watching as it popped out. "Darn it."

[anextimeagent.livejournal.com]

"My shower has our names on it when we're finished here, and I always keep my promises." Jack frowned at the space where the gear had so briefly been. "Okay, why did that happen? Too small? Or the wrong shape?"