A/N: Yeah, I wrote it and then forgot to post it, how good am I? So it's more than a couple of days late.

Birthday Phone Call

Jess woke on the morning of her twentieth birthday to the sound of her boyfriend, Sam, on the phone in the other room. Now, Jess wouldn't usually consider herself a nosy person, but Sam had been quite conspicuously avoiding the subject of her birthday for some time now, so a semi-secretive phone call on the day itself? It was just begging to be listened in on. Anyway, it wasn't her fault the walls were paper thin, what was she going to do, hum over the noise?

"Yeah, everything's fine, just wanted to wish you happy birthday." Hang on, he was wishing someone happy birthday? Well, he wasn't leaving her a message on her phone because he was definitely getting answers from whoever was on the other end. Jess ran through a list of people who had birthdays on the same day as her, which was quick because there was no such list.

"Yes it is." Well, whoever it was, Sam knew them well. She could definitely hear the fondness in his voice.

"Dean, it's the twenty-fourth, believe me." Dean? His brother Dean? Perhaps she shouldn't listen in on the conversation, there might be a good reason Sam barely said anything about his family... Oh who was she kidding? She was far too curious and didn't have nearly enough self-control to stop listening now.

"Saturday." He had to tell his brother the day of the week? Well, that fitted with her theory that he was a bit of a drifter.

"You've got a calendar?" Sam sounded very surprised about that.

"What year is the calendar, Dean?" Whatever Dean said seemed to be exactly what Sam suspected and he laughed to himself, before emphatically exclaiming, "Yes!" Dean's reply caused Sam to sigh quite loudly.

"It's Sam," said Sam. He sounded like he'd said it a thousand times before, which Jess knew he had because he didn't like anyone calling him Sammy and that just encouraged people to call him Sammy. It had been going on longer than Jess had thought, then. She wondered if being called Sammy represented something to Sam that he didn't like.

"Whatever, Dean," and that was Dean's retort just brushed off by his, by the sound if it, long-suffering little brother. It was odd to think of Sam as 'little' in any sense of the word.

"You don't really want to know, do you?" Jess guessed that perhaps Dean had attempted to get up to date on Sam's life, which would probably take at least an hour if it was going to be done properly and it was too little too late as far as Jess was concerned. It was all very well for Dean to care when Sam phoned him to say happy birthday, but as far as Jess knew, Dean had never done anything to keep in contact.

"It's past eight!" and apparently Sam had been right, Dean hadn't really wanted to know, judging by the way the topic of conversation had changed. Was it really past eight? Jess glanced at the clock and it was. It felt much earlier.

"Hunting?" That wasn't a question of surprise, that was a question asked just to confirm Sam's suspicions.

"You get it?" Jess wondered vaguely what they were hunting. She didn't have a clue about hunting seasons and she wouldn't usually give it any more thought, except for the fact that Sam had said 'it' and not 'one' as though Dean would be going for a specific one of whatever it was he was hunting. Then again, perhaps she was just reading too much into his words.

"We? Is Dad there?" Jessica almost winced. Sam's dad was a volatile subject at the best of times. Jess had always had a burning curiosity about what Sam's dad could have possibly done to drive one son away so far, while keeping the other so close. She had theories, none of them were very sympathetic towards John Winchester.

"I didn't want to anyway, Dean, you remember what he-" Dean must have cut Sam off, which Jess had found was the most effective way of keeping him quiet. If Sam ever got enough momentum up he could keep going for days. Something Jess had learnt from experience and she had no doubts that Dean knew it too.

"Oh come on, you didn't even know it was your birthday till a minute ago!" and that was a volatile subject expertly dodged and perfectly diffused. Dean knew what he was doing.

"No, just wanted to say happy birthday." Sam's tone was light, Jess could almost see his smile as he spoke.

"You too, Dean, I mean it." The conversation was coming to a close so Jess threw off the covers, she hated staying in bed too long after she woke up.

"What?" Sam sounded honestly confused by whatever Dean had said. Dean explained and then Sam burst out with, "I was not getting all touchy-feely!" Jess had to cover her mouth to smother her giggling, Sam sounded so indignant.

"Dick, I was not." Again, Jess could imagine the fond smile gracing Sam's face, despite the words that would suggest otherwise.

"Yeah, ok." It sounded like the conversation was ending again so Jess carefully got up off the creaky bed.

"Bye, Dean." That was definitely the end of the conversation, but Jess waited a few seconds just in case Dean had come in with something else to say. He hadn't so Jess finally left the bedroom.

Sam was sitting near the door, staring at the phone in his hands. He looked up at Jess, smiling.

"Who was that?" she asked. Sam grinned at her.

"That would ruin the surprise, wouldn't it?" he said. Sometimes it unnerved Jess just how easy Sam found it to lie.

The End. Kinda.

But here, have both sides of the conversation:

"Hello? Who is this?"

"Hey, Dean."

"Sam?"

"Yeah."

"Sam? What're you calling for? Everything ok?"

"Yeah, everything's fine, just wanted to wish you happy birthday."

"Happy birthday? Dude, it isn't my birthday."

"Yes it is."

"No way, it's the twenty-second today, I checked."

"Dean, it's the twenty-fourth, believe me."

"What's the day today?"

"Saturday."

"Yeah, I got a calendar here. Saturday, it's the twenty-second."

"You've got a calendar?"

"The motel's got a calendar, whatever. Dude, it's the twenty-second."

"What year is the calendar, Dean?"

"...Well shit. It's my birthday today?"

"Yes!"

"And you called? Sammy, that's sweet, I'm touched."

"It's Sam."

"It's my birthday, I can call you what I want."

"Whatever, Dean."

"So, uh, how are things?"

"You don't really want to know, do you?"

"I want to know every sordid detail, Sam. As long as it takes less than ten minutes to tell, why the hell did you call so early?"

"It's past eight!"

"Yeah, and I only got into bed at five. And this is the first bed I've had in a week."

"Hunting?"

"Yeah, dude, what else?"

"You get it?"

"Of course we did! You think we'd be back in civilisation if we didn't?"

"We? Is Dad there?"

"Yeah, you ain't talking to him though, he's out like a light."

"I didn't want to anyway, Dean, you remember what he-"

"Shit, Sammy, don't. Not on my birthday, all right?"

"Oh come on, you didn't even know it was your birthday till a minute ago!"

"Yeah well... you got anything else to say? 'Cause I'm going on three hours sleep here and there isn't any coffee around."

"No, just wanted to say happy birthday."

"Well, ok then. You... you take care, Sammy."

"You too, Dean, I mean it."

"Jesus Christ Sam, you haven't turned into one of those sissy college boys have you?"

"What?"

"You were totally getting all touchy-feely on me there."

"I was not getting all touchy-feely!"

"Bitch, you so were."

"Dick, I was not."

"Yeah anyway, I'd love to lie here all day throwing insults at you but-"

"Yeah, ok."

"Bye, Sammy."

"Bye, Dean."