Breathe

All she could do was think about the science behind drowning at this moment.

Maybe not such a good idea.

Especially when one was holding their breath, trapped in a flooding mothership, less than 2 and a half minutes from death.

Stop it!

She looked over at Jack... he'd stripped off his outer clothing just like she had.

He had closed his eyes, relaxed his body, he almost looked like he was sleeping.

Or dead.

She mentally smashed the little voice in her head into a tiny box.

She should do the same. Try to relax. Conserve oxygen.

She closed her eyes and floated.

It was kind of relaxing.

Until her lungs started to burn.

Just relax, you have plenty of oxygen in your blood.

Oh, there was the optimistic science voice.

A minute ticked by.

Her lungs were on fire now... she desperately wanted to take a breath. But she couldn't.

And then suddenly there was a rough grip on her t-shirt. She turned towards the Colonel, shocked at the look on his face.

He was terrified.

He grabbed her roughly and before she knew what was happening, he'd pressed his mouth over hers.

Instantly, she knew what he was going to do.

She didn't want it... didn't want his air. Didn't want his life.

But her lungs burned for it.

She felt him adjust his lips, getting a good seal before carefully releasing his air into her.

She inhaled slowly, carefully, only taking a tiny amount.

Until it was over.

He had no more left to give her, and as soon as it started, it was done. His grip on her head loosened, and Sam felt her heartbeat speed up involuntarily. He was out of air!

Her CO pulled away from her, still holding on to her.

She watched his chest frantically as he drifted away from her slightly, fingers still tangled limply in her shirt- and then she watched in horror as he relaxed fully and took a breath.

In that split second, his eyes flew open in sheer panic, he grabbed her with the strength of about six Jaffa, and began pulling her towards him.

And then.. she noticed the water level dropping. With her last burst of strength, she shoved Jack upwards, and watched as he broke the surface.

She forced herself to follow, despite the black spots flooding her vision.

She felt the air hit her face and gasped for air. She forced herself to slow down- to take deep, steady breaths.

Sam turned towards her CO after the immediate need was satisfied- only to find him... gone.

She dove under the water again- he was floating limpy just a few feet under the surface.

Grabbing him roughly, she drug him to the surface, as the water level continued to drop. She wrapped an arm around his chest and pulled his face above the water.

"Hold on, sir. Just hold on..."

A second later, she was able to touch the floor. The water receded quickly after that and Carter was suddenly struggling under the dead weight of her CO.

She laid him flat on his back, and checked for breathing... he wasn't.

He's not breathing!

What the hell was she supposed to do next? Where had her training disappeared to?

She laid one hand on his forehead and the other cupped under his chin. Mouth-to-mouth. That's what he needed.

She was shaking- from the cold, from shock, surely. She had to do something.

If she could just remember how...

She looked down at his limp body again and quickly pressed her mouth to his, the knowledge flooding back in a rush.

Tilt his head back, pinch his nose, breathe steadily- not too much. Watch his chest, release, repeat.

She barely got the first breath in him before he was bucking against her, deep spasms racking his chest.

Her training fully engaged now, Carter shoved him onto his side as water poured from his mouth and nose.

His whole body contracted inwards, as he took his first breath, immediately followed by the expulsion of more water and his stomach contents.

She held him on his side, allowing him to cough and gag, trying to clear his lungs.

Finally, he started breathing easily, relaxing into her hands. She allowed him to turn onto his back, and gave him a weak, shaky smile when he looked up at her.

"You okay?" She asked, louder than she had intended to.

He nodded.

"Uh huh," he said, voice hoarse.

"Can you stand?"

He nodded again.

"Gimme a minute."

Carter slowly pushed herself to standing, surprised at how weak and shaky she was.

It's just the adrenaline, her science voice reminded her.

I know. But I have almost drowned before. And I've done CPR before. It's never... felt like this...

...That's because it was Jack this time...

Carter looked over at her CO, just as he was getting to his knees. She reached out and helped him to standing, allowing him to lean on her while he got his bearings.

She grabbed his belt and started to slowly walk them out of the now-opened door.