So! I am officially turning this into a (very slow) series! I 've decided I love Jess and Sam, because I love Sam lots and... Well, that split-second where we see Jess made Sam cookies in the pilot totally broke my heart. Formerly Hidden Talent, but I never liked that title in the first place, and so I'm changing it. I don't like the new title much better, but it was that or, Sam Tries To Be Normal and Only Sort-Of Fails. Or, A Collection of Jess And Sam Moments, or something otherwise terrible or cheesy, or... You get the idea. If anyone has any ideas, I'm open.
This isn't a story, and it doesn't have to be read in order or anything - I doubt it will be in any sort of order. It's just the place where my Jess-and-Sam fics get to live. If they happen to entertain someone along the way, well, that's the hope!:D
First Chapter: Hidden Talent (It's still the same, I've only changed one word.)
...Sorry about the book of an intro... *looks sheepish*
Disclaimer: Sam and Jess aren't mine. Nor is Stanford.
"Damn," Jess muttered, digging her fingers around the bottom of her purse.
"You okay?" Asked Sam courteously, hovering over her shoulder.
She turned to face him. "Did I give you the car keys?"
He frowned. "I don't think so…" His fingers searched the pockets on his coat and jeans, but came up empty.
Jess blew a sigh between her lips, searching her own pockets without success. Sam moved around her, glancing at the ground under the nearby cars. "Do you think you dropped them in the restaurant?"
"Maybe." He followed her as she retraced their steps. They asked the waiter, who hadn't seen anything, and peered under the table and into the bathrooms. Resigned that the keys were not going to be found, they lingered in the waiting area.
Jess pulled her phone out of her purse. "Well, this is annoying," she muttered.
Sam caught her around the waist, pulling her backwards into him. He nuzzled into her hair and leaned down to press his cheek to hers. "Not really," he murmured. His breath tickled her neck, and she smiled, reaching up to touch his face.
Sam pulled away and spun her around to face him. "Come on. Maybe we locked them in the car by accident."
Jess rolled her eyes affectionately. "I'll have you know I've never locked my keys in the car in my life."
"There's a first time for everything, right?" He held open the door for her, and put an arm around her shoulders as they walked across the dark parking lot. She snuggled into his side, laughing as her body pushed his sideways a step.
They found their car and Sam released Jess to press his face to the closed window. He cupped his hands around his eyes, straining to see in the dim light provided by a lone streetlight.
"Um, I think you did drop them."
"They're not in there?"
Sam pulled away from the window with a smile and a sigh. "Oh, they're in there. Lying on the floor. I think they missed your pocket."
"Great," Jess sighed, leaning against the car. She reached for the pocket that held her phone. "Who do we call to get us out of this one?"
Sam shrugged, leaning back against the car next to her. "We could call someone to give us a ride, but that doesn't really help with the car, does it?"
Jess nodded. "I guess we'll have to get someone to come unlock it for us. I don't know how much they would charge, though… Sam?" She was looking at him with concern. An odd expression had come over his face, and he stared at the car with indecision. At the sound of his name, he looked up and smiled reassuringly.
"Hey, Jess, wait here a moment. I'll be right back."
She opened her mouth and straightened, but he was already jogging away towards the restaurant. She watched him go, and leaned back again against the car, tilting her head back to rest on the roof. She fingered her cell phone inside her pocket and waited.
Sam was back within a minute. He strode across the pavement with his head up, but in the dark she couldn't see his face. One hand was clenched around an object she couldn't make out.
"Sam? What're you doing?" She asked, calling across several meters of distance. He didn't answer, just gave her a wan smile as he reached her.
He was holding a coat hanger.
"Sam?" She asked, confused.
"Just… hang on a moment, okay Jess?"
She hesitated, but the strained tone in his voice made her think better of arguing. She obediently backed up a step, watching as he bent the coat hanger and wormed it through the space at the top of the driver's side window. He pushed it down, maneuvering the hooked end so it fell near the pin that kept the doors locked.
With the hanger, he caught the head of the pin and pulled. The lock clicked up.
Sam released the hanger, letting it dangle loose from the closed window. He reached out and opened the now unlocked door, and the hanger fell onto the seat.
Jess stared at him. "Is there something about your past you're not telling me?" Her voice was teasing, but there was a thread of genuine wonder.
Sam grinned at her, and if it had been lighter Jess would have noticed the sickly cast to his face. "You know I have an older brother. He wasn't always what you'd call an angel. I hung around him a lot. Picked up a few things."
Jess handed the hanger to Sam, picked up the keys from the floor, and slid into the seat. Sam went around to the passenger side. He tossed the ruined hanger in the backseat.
"Where'd you get a coat hanger anyways?" Jess commented curiously, following the movement.
"I stole it from the restaurant's coat closet. I figured the tip we left would be more than enough to pay to replace it." He grinned mischievously at her, and she returned the smile.
Jess started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. "So. Your brother steal a lot of cars?"
Sam let out a breath of laughter. "I don't think he ever stole one. Mostly he used his skills to break into his friend's cars and play practical jokes on them."
Jess giggled. "Your brother sounds like a fun guy. Maybe you should invite him to the next end-of-semester party. If he's anything like your stories, he'd be a riot."
Sam rolled his head along the headrest to regard Jess. She was focused on the road, her eyes sweeping back and forth, her expression neutral with concentration.
"I love you," Sam said, softly. She looked up at him, breaking her focus with a small smile.
"You don't need to break into a car to tell me that," she responded wryly, earning a light laugh from Sam. But her eyes were soft as she returned her attention to the road.
They pulled into a parking space outside Sam's dorm building. Jess turned off the engine and Sam reached for the door to get out.
"Sam?" He stopped, and looked back over at her, his eyes wide and curious. She grinned wickedly. "Next time, I'll be sure to lock us inside the car."
He grinned back, and leaned across his seat to kiss her, lightly. Then he opened his door and got out.
"Sam?"
He laughed, ducking his tall frame low to peer into the car through the open door. "You just don't want me to go, do you?" He teased.
She lay her head back on the headrest with an impish grin. "Maybe I don't."
"See you tomorrow, Jess," he told her laughingly. He blew her a kiss and shut the door.
Jess watched him until he disappeared inside the building. Then she sat and watched his building, as though he could somehow feel her brightness through the sullen walls.
She glanced at the tangle of wire forgotten on the backseat, and smiled. "I love you too, Sam," she whispered to the darkness.
