If he hadn't been over six foot, Jessica would have thought he was in high school. Dark hair fell in his eyes when he moved his head masking the hazel eyes behind. Jessica thought he looked almost like an out of place child when she first saw him but as he approached her, tagging behind her friend Brady, she realized just how huge he really was.

She pretended that she hadn't been watching him as they neared; trying to engage in the other girls' conversation in an attempt to avoid the inevitable confrontation.

Granted, Jessica thought he was somewhat attractive and that his weary smile seamed genuine, but she had had enough experience with boys to formulate her belief that they all had the same motives when it came to women. She didn't need another one to deal with - she was only four weeks into her first semester at Stanford and had more after her then she could turn down at once.

"Jessica!"

She turned, pretending she hadn't seen them walk up, and smiled in an attempt to not look disappointed that the boys were now going to follow her for the rest of the party.

"Hey Brady." She smiled in an attempt to look pleased to see her friend and his companion.

She barely kept herself from glaring at the short, blonde boy looked her up and down slowly before continuing.

"Well, you look fine as ever, Jessie." He winked at her. She'd only known Brady for a few weeks, but he'd been one of her first friends at Stanford considering the fact that she was a freshman. Brady was a sophomore and had showed her around the nursing program when she had arrived so she felt almost indebted to his friendship... that didn't change the fact that she hated the way he looked at her.

The only response she let herself give him for his lewd behavior was no response at all. She simply tried to nonchalantly pull her skirt further down, and pull her hair in front of her.

"Oh, so, anyways," Brady continued, motioning to the giant of a man behind him. "This is Samuel Winchester, he's one of my buddies so I thought I'd introduce you two."

Jessica smiled wearily. "Nice to meet you, I'm Jessica."

Jessica hadn't dared look at Brady's friend in the face since they had approached and now as she did, she was shocked by his monstrous height and the much more prominent features that defined this, 'Samuel'.

Her new estimate of his height was about 6' 4", standing well over most of the party's occupants. He was built and strong, seeming to dwarf his companion in height and build. His face was long, chiseled and defined around high cheek bones and deep-set, hazel eyes. Dark brown hair framed his face and fell in his eyes as he looked away from her gaze.

She felt extremely awkward as she suddenly realized that he had looked away because she was staring at him.

She took another sip of her drink realizing for the first time since she had been introduced to Samuel that Brady was actually still talking.

"...So, I'm gonna go get Holley. Jessie, will you watch him for me?"

Before she could answer, Brady was already pushing back through the crowd, leaving Samuel with her.

"I'm so sorry he interrupted your conversation, I didn't know he was going to do that..." Samuel spoke up once their mutual friend was out of ear shot.

Jessica noticed a worried smile playing at the corner of his smile and realized as she heard his soft voice that he was actually shy. She wouldn't have pegged him as such with a build of an athlete and had expected him to have mannerisms of such.

She grinned, trying to make him feel less awkward then he obviously already did. She glanced over her shoulder, but her girlfriends had left sometime during Brady's interruption.

Turning back to her new charge, she shrugged. "I didn't really know them anyways. Don't worry about it, Samuel."

Thrusting his hands into the pockets of his oversized Carhart, the boy cleared his throat.

"It's Sam." He then added quickly with a mumble. "If that's okay."

She couldn't help but laugh and he looked at her with obvious worry.

"Sam, you don't have to ask if it's okay for someone to call you by the name you prefer."

He shuffled his feet with a sheepish smile, as his somewhat of a snub nose wrinkled a little.

"Yeah, that sounded a little dumb, huh?" he admitted avoiding her eyes in embarrassment.

Worried that she had made him feel dumb, she shook her head.

"No it's fine! I hate the name Jessie, so, I get it."

"What do you like?" Sam asked in all sincerity.

Jessica thought for a moment. She hadn't had to answer this question for these first four weeks she'd been at Stanford, Brady had always introduced her and when she had introduced herself she'd always said Jessica, but now she actually considered.

"Jess," she admitted, finally feeling good to leave the name her dad had always called her and the childhood Jessie that she detested.

Sam nodded, "I'll remember that."

Silence followed and she felt the awkwardness of first meetings again. She thought that this Sam seemed like a good guy, but the fact that he was friends with Brady proved otherwise.

"How do you know Brady?"

The question was sudden, taking her off guard.

"Oh," she thought, "I, ah, met him in my Biology class."

Sam knit his brow, "He made it sound like you had known him for a lot longer."

Jessica gave a wry chuckle to this prospect. "He would. Did you come to school with him?"

It was Sam's turn to grin. "Ah, no. I met him yesterday, actually. He introduced himself out of the blue and then had me come tonight, I don't know."

She didn't know why, but suddenly she felt her chest lighten and a sigh of relief left her lips. Why she was relieved that he wasn't Brady's friend was beyond her comprehension but she found it so much easier to look him in the eye.

"Well, don't get to know him too well, he's kind of a jerk." she warned in all earnest.

Sam's eyebrows bent up in concern and she could have sworn he looked worried as he eyed her.

"Yeah, I caught that. Is he not your boyfriend?"

Jessica practically choked on her Coke. "No. Not in a thousand years."

Sam's frown deepened as he nodded slowly. "Are you okay, then? Because he seemed like he... was..."

Jessica grinned at this stranger's deep-set, genuine concern for her safety. She wondered what kind of childhood he'd had to immediately think that she was in danger because of one college boy's inappropriate behavior.

"No, Sam, I'm fine he's all talk, I'm used to it."

"Just because you are used to it, doesn't make it right."

Jessica stared at him in pure shock until his eyes morphed from concerned to questioning of her stare.

"Where did you come from, Sam Winchester?"

Obviously not understanding the tone of her reverent question, he replied automatically.

"Lawrence Kansas, Miss."

Her laugh made him question what he had said out of instinct and he eyed her skeptically.

"There are no men like you here."

He shuffled and shook his head, "There's plenty of pre-law students..."

"But even the pre-law students don't really care about the right. Your parents must have raised you good."

She was surprised by a sarcastic chuckle. "Now that's a long story."

Jessica set her solo cup down and eyed the rest of the moronic college party kids. She hadn't wanted to come to the party anyways, she had only come because Brady said he would introduce her to more people in the med program and she had consented.

"Ya know what?" Jessica eyed his casual smile. "I don't even what to be here, so I've got a lot of time tonight for that story."

He shook his head. "You wouldn't believe me even if I told you..."

Standing and walking towards the door, him at her side, she grinned up at him.

"Try me."

But she never saw his saddened smile as he shook his head.