May 1984 - Sam

Rodney is being way sweeter than usual. It's our sixth month anniversary, and he bought me a teddy bear and flowers. And now we're having a fancy dinner. And he told me that his roommate is at his parents' for the weekend.

Do I want what he wants?

"Are you ok, Samantha?" he asks.

"What? Yeah, fine. Hey, do you know any blond jokes?" I ask.

"What?"

"Never mind."

"Sam, if you don't feel comfortable we can go to a restaurant or the dining center or something."

"Don't be ridiculous, you have this really nice dinner all made."

"Ordered in."

"Either way."

"But we don't have to do anything you don't want to do," he says, looking me in the eyes.

Damn, he's being sweet. So screw it. Or him. Or whatever.

May 1984 - Charlie

What is that sound?

Crap.

It's the phone.

I glance at the clock as I go to pick up the phone. 1 am. Not good. No good phone call comes at 1 am.

"Charlie!" Sam's voice sounds… excited? What the hell?

"Sam, are you ok?" I ask, panicking and sitting up.

"Yeah," she says, sounding puzzled.

I scrub my face with my hands, "'Cause it's 1 am."

"Crap! I forgot about the time difference, I'm so sorry, Charlie. I'll call you back in the morning."

"No way! I'm not going to be able to get back to sleep until you tell me what's going on!" I exclaim.

"Ah… Rodney and I broke up."

"What happened? Are you ok?"

"I think it would be more accurate to say that I broke up with him. It was our six month anniversary, and he was doing everything right. We were ah…"

I can practically hear the blush over the phone, "I'm not Jacob, Sam, you were making out."

"Right, but, ah… we were headed for more."

Her first time was Rodney McKay? Not sure if I can deal with teenage Sam having sex.

"But I stopped him!" she rushes on. "I mean I just realized that this wasn't right. That none of it was right. That he is not the one that I should be…"

"Kissing, Sam, we're going to go ahead and call it kissing."

"Right."

"So you didn't…?"

"Kiss? No."

Sigh of relief.

"Except you know Rodney and I actually kissed, I'm talking about KISSING."

"Right, got it Sam."

"So are we dating?"

"You and Rodney?"

"No you and I. I'm so sorry about before… I thought that maybe I just wanted you, because you were there. Easy. Effortless. And you deserved better than that. But that's not why I was with you. I love you, Charlie."

I don't know quite what to say.

"It's ok, Charlie, I know I don't deserve another chance. Sorry I woke you…"

"I love you, too, Samantha," I blurt out.

"Oh, so…"

"I applied to a grad school twenty minutes from you, for next year. Just in case."

"I know where all the good fast food is."

"Sounds like we have a date in a few weeks, after I graduate," I say.

"Can I come and see you graduate?"

"Sure, I know your parents will be thrilled to see you."

"I missed you, Charlie. I won't be that stupid again."

"You'd better not be," I whisper.

March 1985 - Sam

"Ready for a study date?" Charlie asks cheerfully.

"We should stop calling it that since we're studying different things," I say.

"It's been a really long time since we actually studied the same thing, anyway, Sam. It was only that once," he says with a grin.

"Right, and I appreciate you using your lunch break to help me study."

"No one I'd rather spend lunch with," he says handing me a bag of Chinese.

I open it up and see a cardboard box. "Is this a happy meal?" I ask him.

"I'm hoping; it definitely has a prize inside."

About once a week he gives me some present, so I'm not particularly surprised… at least until I open up the box. It's a ring. He's giving me a ring. "Charlie… this looks real!"

"It'd better."

"So, you're asking me… to marry you?" I stammer.

"If it's too soon, I can just take it. We can do this again. I know we're young."

"Yes!" I exclaim.

"Yes to the waiting?" he says uncertainly.

"No!"

"No to the proposal?" he says playfully.

"Charlie, I want to marry you!" I say.

"Are you sure?" he is trying to pass it off as a joke, but there is real insecurity in it.

"I've never been more sure of anything in my life," I assure him.

"When?" he asks.

"Next summer?" I ask.

He nods. "You want to talk specifics?" he asks.

"Like flowers?" I ask, because that is so not Charlie.

"No, like our future. What is our life together going to look like?" he says, smiling at me. I'm suddenly reminded that he's a lot more mature than me.

"I want to finish my doctorate degree even after we get married."

"Of course; and if you decide to join the Air Force like you've been considering, I'll move where you go. Even if you don't, you're still more likely to move than I am. Your career comes first," he says, taking my hand in his.

"You are every bit as important as I am."

"No way in hell, Samantha," he says, fiddling with my ring finger.

"You already know where we're moving, don't you?"

He smiles and nods, "House or apartment?"

"House?" I ask.

"Good, lots of room for…" he pauses nervously.

"Kids?" I ask.

He just looks at me hoping for an answer.

"I want kids. Not until I'm out of school, but I do want kids."

His grin is huge. "I'm going to try so hard to make you happy."

"You already have."

A Week Later - Jacob

The hardest part of having a genius daughter is having to give her up sooner than I normally would. It just about killed me when Sam moved away to go to college when she was only sixteen. I felt a little better when Charlie moved across the country to be near her. Of course, I hate the fact that she's got a boyfriend across the country from me. But it's Charlie, and he's like a son to me. If she has to be with someone it might as well be him.

And they are both coming home today. As they get off the plane, they're holding hands, oblivious to the fact that someone behind them is trying to walk past them.

"Oh, my god," Dot says, staring at their hands.

"They've been dating for a long time, we should expect them to be holding hands," I mutter.

"She's wearing a ring!"

"What?" I ask, stunned.

"They're getting married," Dot repeats.

"Dad!" Charlie says. He's called me that since he and Sam broke up the first time, but it's not ok now.

"General Carter," I correct.

He stops cold, confused.

"Dad, be nice to my fiancé," Sam says, like it's a big announcement.

"You're seventeen," I remind her.

"We're not getting married until next year," he says.

"You couldn't!" I exclaim.

"Not without parental permission, which I'd give in a second if you wanted it," Dot says.

I turn and give her a glare.

"Why are you acting like this, Dad? You love Charlie," Sam asks me, with a glare.

"You're…" I begin.

"You're his baby girl," Charlie says. "I get it, sir, and I don't want to do this without you. Let me know when you come around."

I'm stunned.

"You're not going to marry me?" Sammy says, with tears in her eyes.

"We're going to wait until General Carter is ok with it," he says.

"Oh hell, c'mere, son!" I say, pulling him into a hug. I can't be overprotective daddy when the boyfriend actually AGREES with me.