When they had purchased the clothing for Narim, he and Sam went to the market for food. While in produce, Narim was amazed at the variety of fruits and vegetables available. He handled, smelled and tasted several fruits and veggies and loaded up the cart. Seeing this, Sam smiled and laughed.
"Hey, save room for the rest of the stuff." Sam said
"There's more? I am most anxious to sample whatever you eat daily." he said
They made their way through the market picking up various meats, soy substitutes, breads, snacks and ready made foods. Narim gave a disapproving look as Sam put the meat in the cart and addressed this.
"You eat the meat of animals?" he asked
"Some of us do. However, if you don't eat meat, then neither will I." she said as she steered the cart back to the meat section to return the items
She figured that the Tolans were vegetarians, given that they didn't have animals on Tolana. Truth be told, she didn't eat much meat anyway, so giving it up wouldn't be all that hard. When they were done at the market they headed home to unpack the day's purchases. While Narim stowed his clothing in the bureau and wardrobe in the guest room, Sam unpacked the groceries and put everything in it's place.
In his room, Narim was putting on some of the clothing that had just been purchased. He put on a pair of jeans, a t-shirt and the trainers that they had gotten that day. Emerging from his room and entering the kitchen, he cleared his throat to make his presence known. Sam turned round' and saw Narim in his new clothes. He turned around slowly so she could see how he looked and smiled when he saw the look on her face.
"How do I look. Do I blend in appropriately?" he asked
Looking him over, Sam noticed that he had quite a nice butt and a broad and muscular chest with some nice biceps. He looked great; more than that, he looked fantastic. His hair was perfect, as per usual, and he had shaved using the electric razor that had been purchased. He read the instructions and cleaned himself up. Though the humans were far less technologically advanced than the Tolans, Narim was learning quickly. He had a bit of trouble tying his shoes, but after a couple of tries with various knots, he succeeded with the "rabbit through the loop" technique. He was pleased that Sam seemed to like him in his new clothes and her comments furthered his happiness.
"You look great. Who would have known what lay beneath those loose fitting clothing that you normally wear. You're in very good shape." she said smiling
She wanted to say more but decorum and tact kept her words in her mouth. She wanted to say that she liked his nice broad chest and the way he looked in jeans and that his overall appearance was pleasing to the eye. Though he had just put the clothing on, she wanted to divest him of his garb and make mad, passionate love to him as she had wanted to do whenever they were in each other's presence. Sam's feelings for him went far deeper than she had let on because she didn't want jump to any conclusions or say or do anything that would be taken the wrong way or that she would regret later. However, years had passed since she'd seen him or heard from him but in all truth she had thought about him nearly on a daily basis. Even when she was with Pete, she held back because of her feelings for Narim; even though, at the time, she believed he was dead. If she were honest with herself she had been wishing and hoping beyond all hope that he had made it off the planet before the total destruction of Tolana. She waited for years, hoping for some sign that he was still alive and that he would find some way to contact her. She had nearly given up when he showed up in her bedroom. When she saw his face it was all she could do not to start crying tears of joy in seeing that he was alive and in good health.
Since the Stargate project had closed down Sam had been transferred to another part of the Air Force where she was actually working on deep space telemetry. Unbeknownst to Narim, this was the first day of a much needed two week vacation that Sam was taking. This proved advantageous to both of them. It would give Narim time to adjust himself to Earth customs and it would give her time to work on making him legal and bringing him up to speed on things that had happened since their last encounter.
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It was getting dark outside and as Sam made supper, Narim watched the tellie and flipped through the channels. He settled on The History Channel and leaned back into the couch as he became engrossed in a programme about the evolution of dinosaurs,
primitive man and humans as they were today.
In the kitchen Sam was making breaded eggplant with steamed veggies and some red wine to wash it down. When the table had been set and the food and drink were set out, she summoned Narim to the dining room table. They sat down and she watched as Narim savored every bite of his evening meal. When they were done, they left the plates on the table and brought their wine glasses and the bottle into the living room. They sat on the couch, a safe distance from each other and continued to watch the tellie.
Several hours later Sam woke up on the couch, but on her side; her head in Narim's lap with him running his fingers through her hair. She had to admit that it felt good, but slightly awkward. She could more than handle herself with the average man and not for one second thought that Narim would do anything untoward. He wasn't that sort of man; he was a gentleman. He would ask or make his intentions known before even attempting anything and even then, Sam got the distinct impression that he was a man that liked to take things slow and not rush into anything.
She opened her eyes, rolled over onto her back and looked up at him. He smiled down at her and took note of the time on the clock on the dvd player. It was around midnight and as she made to stand up she wobbled a bit but Narim caught her arm, escorted her to her bedroom and helped her into bed. As she settled in, she looked at him and issued an invitation for him to join her, with the understanding that they were just sleeping for company. To this, he agreed. He sat on the other side of her bed and removed his socks, shoes, and jeans. Not wanting to scare her off, he kept his t-shirt on as well as his boxer/briefs.
He climbed under the covers and lay on his back as Sam scooted up beside him, resting her head on his chest. He draped his free arm around her shoulder and listened to her breathe as she fell back to sleep. For himself, he lay awake for several hours, just taking in the feeling of her body in such close contact with his. He was remembering his final thoughts as he watched Sam running to the Stargate all those years back. He promised himself that if he ever saw her again he would ask her to enter into a union of the soul with him; essentially a marriage. Now knowing that they shared some of the same feelings, Narim was fairly confident that she would agree. However, he'd wait a while so that they could grow more accustomed to each other before he'd ask her. All those years without her and all those years rebuilding his civilization, she was never far from his thoughts, as he had one of those emotion devices to keep him company. Nearly every night he'd "feel" her before he went to sleep and he'd "feel" her again when he woke.
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When he woke the following morning he and Sam were on their sides, spooned up against each other. He liked this position for sleeping as it allowed full body contact and he could smell her shampoo and the general aroma that emanated from her. She had a smell about her that he couldn't quite place, but he knew it and looked forward to it every time he got word that SG1 would be visiting Tolana. He noticed that his heart would race, his palms would sweat and his vision would focus intently. He fell in love with her the very first time he saw her when his planet had turned volcanic. And then in the infirmary, when he saw her again, he thought she was the most beautiful creature he'd ever seen and from that point on she was in his mind always; almost to the point where he was unable to perform his duties effectively.
In his society it was custom to get to know another person before beginning carnal relations and oftentimes couples would wait until they married to "share" each other. Narim was still pure and to be honest, he was saving himself for Sam. As he was unaccustomed to human relations, he had no idea that Sam was not pure; he just assumed. In his mind it would be a beautiful ceremony. Typically when two people enter into a union of the soul there is a third person who presides over the ceremony and explains what is expected of each other in regard to the union. This would prove to be difficult because of the nature of Narim's arrival and no one on Earth was familiar with Tolan customs. He supposed he would have to make do with an Earth representative and hope that their customs would be similar in this particular situation.
Sam was slowly waking up and felt Narim's arm draped over her abdomen and squeezed gently. She shifted in place and slowly lifted his arm so she could use the bathroom. She did her business, washed her hands and brushed her teeth before returning to bed. As soon as she climbed back under the covers Narim got up and used the bathroom, himself. He did the same things that Sam did and returned to bed with fresh breath. They lay in bed for a while just talking about their current situation and his predicament. As they talked they were face to face and Sam got lost in Narim's eyes. The colour of them; a kind of green/brown and his hair was still perfect. Now, here was a man that didn't suffer from bed head. They were in the middle of discussing what they would do that day when Narim reached out and gently stroked her cheek. She began to blush as he moved closer until his lips were mere inches from hers. She made the first move when she gently touched her lips to his in a soft and gentle kiss that eventually became decidedly more passionate as the moments passed by. Eventually they began to physically explore each other's bodies in slow and deliberate caresses. Narim was careful to avoid the problem areas as was Sam. He loved how smooth her skin was and the little goose bumps that emerged when he ran his finger tips up and down her spine. For her, she loved his broad chest and lightly scratched his chest hair with her fingernails. This made Narim squirm, as he was ticklish. Sam laughed as she continued to run her fingers through his chest hair as Narim squirmed. She climbed on top of him and continued her blissful torture and found out that he was also ticklish on his ribs and around his nonexistent love handles. With all the wriggling around, Sam leaned in and looked into his eyes and saw that they had darkened. She leaned in and gave him another kiss that lasted for several moments, but Narim put a stop to things before they went any further.
"We shouldn't do this." he managed
"Why not?" she asked, still tickling him
"Because our customs are fairly clear. We don't usually engage in relations until a union of the soul has been performed. Then we consummate our union." he explained
"You mean to tell me that you've never been with a woman?"
"That is correct. I decided to wait until I found the right one. The one I want to spend the rest of my life with." he went on
"Union of the soul; is that like a marriage? Two people enter into a spiritual contract to love, honour and share the rest of their lives together." she explained
"That's correct. I am saving myself; staying pure until I enter into a union." he explained
"And you want that union with me?"
"Correct."