Title: The New Guy
Author: Meushell
Disclaimer: If it's from the show, then it's not mine.
Summary: Mark meets the new guy in Sam's life, Martouf.
Rating: PG
Parings: Sam/Martouf (The summary told you that one. ::grins:: )

My sister has someone new in her life. Martouf. It's an interesting name. Dad first mentioned him years ago...said he was one of his traveling friends, so I always pictured Martouf as being Dad's age. I guess I was wrong. So...dad travels not with his children, but with people his children's age. O...kay.

"Mark, don't worry about it," my wife, Betty says. "Martouf is the one who has a reason to be nervous. He's meeting his girlfriend's brother."

I grin slightly, knowing she is trying to make me feel better. Martouf doesn't have anything to be worried about though. He's spent more time with my dad and sister than I have. My dad thinks highly of him, and this is a guy who's opinion of a man will drop as soon as the man shows any interest in Sam. Sam loves him. What does he have to be worried about? Nothing is going to change if I don't like him.

What is he like? Is he a younger version of dad? That's usually the type dad thinks highly of. Variant versions of him. That's what all his closest friends are like. That's why he and Sam get along better than he and I do.

I hear a car pull up and look out the window. There they are.

"Don't worry," Betty repeats.

"What if he doesn't like me?" If there was a category of people like my dad, most of the people in it wouldn't like me. Though to be fair, I probably wouldn't like most of them either.

My sister comes out of the driver's seat, walks around the car, and lets out a smiling man with brown hair. Never pictured him as someone who'd smile. They start heading to the door. I should probably get that.

Betty beats me to it. "Sam, hello." My wife and sister are hugging as I approach the doorway. Martouf is still smiling. Well, I have to admit, he doesn't look like a version of my dad, but he hasn't said anything, so I'll wait for judgment.

Sam gestures to Martouf and I. "Mark, this is Martouf. Martouf, this is Mark."

I put my hand out. "Hello Martouf."

He glances to my hand and the smile fades. It returns as he looks to me. "Hello."

He wouldn't even shake my hand. Now it's out there, and I look like an idiot. I start putting it down, but then hear Sam mutter, "Handshake."

Martouf quickly shakes my hand. By his expression I realize his earlier glance was in trying to remember how to respond to a hand being jabbed in his direction. "I have heard a great deal about you. Mostly from your father."

That could be good or bad. I don't know how to respond because I hardly know anything about him. I don't even know his last name. "Come in." I direct them to the couch. "Do you want anything to drink?"

Sam sits down. "A beer."

Martouf sits next to her. "Do you have water?"

"Yes." I go to the kitchen to get drinks for them, Betty, and myself. I return quickly and set them on coasters Betty has set out.

Sam looks around. "No kids?" She knows they usually have ran over and greeted her by this time.

"They are with their friends," I reply as I notice Martouf pick up an ice cube from his glass with interest. "Martouf, where are you from?"

He drops the ice. "What?"

"Well, the name and the accent." I'm horrible at identifying accents, though I'm really asking for other reasons.

"I have been told that is classified."

Damn. "So, how did you meet Sam?"

Martouf glances to her. "Sam met Jolinar, and...the Air Force came." He looks to Sam, then looks to me. "The Air Force wanted to trade with my people." He stops briefly, then starts over. "Samantha met Jolinar, who gave her information the Air Force had interest in. They came, with Samantha, to my people."

"What did they want to trade?"

Martouf's smile seems innocent. "I have been told that is also classified."

I chuckle. "Who is Jolinar?"

He glances down to this, giving an expression that makes me regret asking. "Jolinar was my wife..."

He was married before? Dad never mentioned this.

"She was killed," Martouf continues. "I learned about it from Samantha."

Now I do regret asking. "Uh...sorry." That sounded silly. "Dad never mentioned that." I'm kind of afraid to ask how he met Dad now.

Martouf sets his glass down. "Your father sympathized."

Now I feel worse. Wait. "He talked to you about my mom?"

Martouf looks a bit surprised by the question. "Yes." He glances to Sam. "Is that wrong?"

Sam looks to Martouf. "Our dad was less open before you met him."

I take a drink. "So, has Sam met your family?"

Martouf glances down. "No, they died before I met her."

Now I feel worse.

"How about a game?" Betty suggest to change the topic. Thank you, Betty. She starts getting up, and Sam offers to help her find a game.

I watch them leave and look back to Martouf. His expression seems to have changed. He looks more serious...and I think more arrogant. "Did you want to pick out a game?"

"I am certain Samantha will find a suitable game."

Definitely more arrogant. I realize something. "Did you just call Sam 'Samantha?'"

"I always have."

Surprised she lets anyone. "Why don't we pick out some snacks." I head to the kitchen, and he follows. "I don't know what you like." I pull out some bags of chips, pretzels, and trail mix.

Martouf looks at the bags as I get out bowls.

I add chips to one of the bowls. "Can you hand me the pretzels?"

He looks over the bags. "Which are the pretzels?"

The one that says "Pretzels" on them and is covered with pictures of pretzels. "The brown bag." He can't read?

He hands me the pretzels. "Jacob likes pretzels." His arrogance is gone. "I tried to make them for him once." He eats one from a bowl I poured them in. He frowns slightly. "I didn't make them right."

"I'm sure yours were fine."

"They were not the correct shape, size, or flavor." He looks a bit disappointed. He speaks as we head back to the living room. "Perhaps Samantha and I can pick up pretzels for him before I leave."

"Does anyone else call Sam 'Samantha?'" I know that's her name, but it sounds strange for someone to actually use it.

"Yes," he answers as he puts a couple bowls on the table. "Malek and Aldwin have called her that. Has Jacob mentioned them to you?" His eyes look up slightly, as if the answers are on the ceiling. "Selmak refers to her as such every once in a while, usually Sam though, sometimes Sammy."

I chuckle to that. "I always thought Sam only allowed Dad to get away with that one."

"She gets it from your father. I don't think she ever uses it when Samantha is around though. Calling her by her first name is recent. She used to call her by her rank and last name."

Not sure how to respond to that. Selmak is female. Dad has mentioned her, but I somehow thought she was always male. I try to remember if Dad ever actually said one way or another. I don't think he did. Selmak is female...and picks up names for others from my dad. "They must be close then...Selmak and my dad."

Martouf eats another pretzel. "Yes."

Just how close are they?

Sam and Betty return with games. After what I realized in the kitchen, I take notice that the possible games are where one doesn't have to read. We end up playing poker, using red and blue chips in place of money. Martouf turns out to be a very good player. He credits my dad for teaching him.

"Do you bet anything real when you play him?" Betty asks.

"We bet chores," Martouf answers, "for when we are traveling."

Sam smiles to this. "You in chore debt right now?"

He adds a red chip. "Not currently."

The sound of running up the porch tells me that one of my kids is home. My daughter, Tina, bursts through the door, not even slowed by it. "Aunt Sammmmmmmm!" She runs over to her aunt and pounces with a hug, accidentally knocking most of Sam's poker chips, and some of Martouf's, off the table in the process.

She looks around. "No Grandpa?"

Though Sam visits without dad, half the time he comes with. Sam brings Tina up on her lap. "No, he couldn't come today."

Tina giggles, then realizes there is a strange man in the house. She looks to Martouf. "Who are you?"

"Martouf," he answers.

"Hi, I'm Tina!" she exclaims. "Are you the one dating my aunt?"

"Yes," he answers.

Tina squeals as she looks to Sam. "He's your boyfriend," she singsongs.

I'm a bit surprised this doesn't embarrass Martouf. He grins slightly, as he quickly picks the chips off the floor. "I heard you have one too."

My daughter squeals again, and her face reddens. Soon though she is chattering about it. "It's just a boy in my class. He's really cute, but we don't get to talk. We will someday, and when we grown up, we're going to get married!" She bounces a bit in Sam's lap. "Are you and Aunt Sam going to get married?"

I cringe slightly. Their relationship is, from what I hear, very new. The m-word could scare him off, especially since he lost his last wife.

He finishes picking up chips, not making much of a response to the question. "I do not know."

"There was one guy she almost married, but he wasn't good enough for her."

"Tina," I scold. I'm surprised that she even knows this.

She turns to me. "But that's what Grandpa said."

Sam looks embarrassed now. Martouf looked surprised at first, but he seems to recover. I guess he didn't know about Jonas. "I don't think your grandfather meant for you to repeat it."

Tina blushes. "Yeah, he probably didn't realize I heard him say it."

I have a good idea of what conversation between Dad and I that she overheard.

Sam starts braiding Tina's hair, with some difficultly since Tina is a bit too close to her for that. Tina looks at Sam's cards.

Outside is the sound of a bike dropping, followed by my son's voice yelling out, "Is that Aunt Sam's car?!" He comes running in.

Sam looks to him. "Hi Tom."

He hugs her, partly shoving Tina out of the way to do so, then looks to Martouf. "Hi?"

"Hello, I am Martouf."

"What kind of name is that?"

"Tom, apologize," Betty quickly scolds.

"Sorry." He eats some pretzels. "I remember Grandpa mentioning you a few times. I thought you were his age."

Martouf smiles. "Not quite."

"Didn't he say you used to be a farmer?"

I kind of remember that...now that Tom has mentioned it.

"I was..." He seems unsure on whether or not to add to that.

"What did you farm?"

"Vegetables, but that was a long time ago. I've had different jobs since then." His tone implies he doesn't want to be talking about this.

Betty again comes to the rescue. "Will you two be staying for dinner?"

Sam looks to her. "Sorry, but we need to be going."

My kids "Awww."

Martouf gets up after Sam does. He's still smiling. "It was a pleasure meeting you." He smiles a lot.

I go to the kitchen briefly and come back with an unopened bag of pretzels. "You can give this to my dad."

He smiles more. "Thank you."

We all start heading towards the door, then to the car.

Tom remembers his bike on site and goes to put it away. Tina runs up ahead and tags the car. She doesn't say anything, but I know inside her head are the words, "I won."

Sam hugs everyone goodbye. Martouf gets hugged by Tina. Then I watch them drive away.

"See, that wasn't so bad." Betty says after the kids have gone back into the house.

"He seems nice, good for Sam...but I don't think we're getting his full story."

Betty nods, probably having noticed the same things I did. "As long as Sam knows it."

I nod before heading back into the house. "I'm sure she does."

The End