Disclaimer: Supernatural does not belong to me, unfortunately. The things I'd do to Sam... ahem.
Author's Note: They've made it to San Francisco now. This is set after Charmed has ended but not too long after. Few months at least. I never liked Christy but I liked Billie so she'll be in this. This chapter obviously foreshadows Sam/Billie, just so you know. (;

Chapter Two, Wooden Benches And Drunk Brothers

"Hey, boy, you feelin' alright over there?" Bobby called over to Sam who's head was staring down at his shoes. Dean turned his head to glance at him worriedly. Sam blinked a few times to get his vision back in focus and gave them both a curt nod.

"Yeah, yeah, fine," he said, with a wave of his hand. He ran a hand through his brown hair and walked a bit closer to the two older men. "So, what's the new threat of the day, eh?"

Bobby raised an eyebrow at how odd Sam was acting but shrugged it off as nothing and continued with what he was talking about. "Well, there seems to be actually two demons working together down in San Francisco. Not sure if it's anything too big, but I think they want to take out as many citizens as they can. Maybe trying to get to somebody else, I'm not sure, but s'worth checking out, I s'pose?"

Dean nodded and rubbed his hands together. "Yeah, I'd say so. Beats just hanging around waiting for something end-of-the-world to happen, eh, Sammy?"

Sam nodded. "Yup, right. So, we're on our way to San Francisco then, I guess. Thanks, Bobby."

"Sure thing. Whatever this thing is, boys, be careful," he gave them his fatherly warning and Sam and Dean grinned.

"Don't worry about a thing, Bobby. We'll take care of this son of a bitch. C'mon Sam, better get going."

"Take care, Bobby," Sam said giving him a wave goodbye as they left, heading back towards the Impala.

As they settled back into the car and were back on the main road, Dean was busy blasting his usual mullet rock and munching away on food that he had hidden in the glove compartment. "How do ya think Bobby hears about all this stuff anyway?"

Sam turned his head and gave him a look that said 'are you kidding me?' "A few years passed and you're asking this now?"

Dean glared at him, his mouth full of pie. "Hey, inquiring minds want to know." He extended his hand out to Sam. "Pie?"

Sam shook his head in disgust and turned his head back to stare out the window. Dean shrugged. "Suit yourself," he shoved the rest of the pie into his mouth, "More for me."

Sam was back in his thoughts for what felt like the hundredth time that day. His conversation slash confrontation with Uriel was still invading his mind. How he said that the only reason he was still alive was because he had been useful. But something else he had said was getting Sam thinking.

As for your brother, tell him that maybe he should climb off that high horse of his. Ask Dean what he remembers from Hell.

Yeah, easier said than done. He can't just blurt out, "Hey, Dean, how was Hell?" For all he knew, maybe Dean didn't remember a thing. That four months Dean was gone, Sam had fallen apart. He had gotten help from Ruby with his powers and had ultimately given up on trying to save his brother.

But he did want to know. It won't be that easy. He'd have to ease his way into asking him about it. When the time was right, he would.

He didn't know how long they had been driving but they never stopped. Somewhere along the line, Sam had dozed off against the window and woke up to a slap in the head. Sam groaned and pushed Dean's hand away. "Rise and shine, Sammy!" Dean's loud greeting entered his ears and he put his hands up against them, shutting his eyes tightly once more, trying to slip into sleep again.

"Oh, no you don't. Get up!" Dean reached out and ruffled Sam's hair, receiving another groan in response. "Fine, if you want to miss all these gorgeous west coast girls, then so be it."

Sam opened his eyes a bit and scrunched his face up in confusion. "What?" He willed himself into a sitting position. "I thought we were going to San Francisco?"

"We are. We're here. But I made a small pit stop first," Dean told him with a wide grin spread across his face. "You never know, that demon might be here so..."

"Where is 'here'?" Sam asked, lifting his head to look out the windshield. They were parked in front of what appeared to be a school. A college. "Is this SFSU?" Sam inquired, his vision adjusting to the sun outside.

Dean rolled his eyes at his brother's geeky side. He knew every school name just by a glance at it. "Yep. There's some kinda party or somethin' going on here," he said, pointing to a flyer hanging on the wall of the school next to them. "I say we check it out."

"Dean, c'mon, we don't even go here. How do you know they'll let us in?"

"Don't worry about it. Free admission. Which sometimes means free food, we're going."

He had said it with such finality that Sam groaned and complied, climbing out of the Impala and into the bright sun. As they crossed the grass and approached the school, there were quite a few groups of people entering the mess hall together. Dean poked his head in and whistled. Sam rolled his eyes. "Come on, Sammy!" He said, excitedly, tugging on his brother's shirt sleeve.

Sam shook himself free and shook his head, crossing his arms over his chest in a defiant manner. "No way, dude. You can go in if you want, I'll just wait out here."

Dean looked at him like he had two heads. "You serious? I know you're not all perverty or as good-looking as me but that never used to stop you before."

Sam choked back a laugh and turned it into a cough instead. "Dean, just go. It's fine. I'll keep watch out here in case anybody suspicious comes through."

"Good thinkin'. And I'll keep watch inside," Dean replied, entering the school. Sam watched from outside as he had already started chatting up someone. "Poor girl," he commented, with a shake of his head. He looked around the courtyard and found a bench nearby. Perfect. Maybe he can get some more sleep there. He settled down on the hard wood and leaned his head against the brick wall behind him. Uncomfortable. But it would have to do. Dean would probably be in there for hours.

Sam crossed his arms over his chest and tried to get as comfortable as you can on a wooden bench, and he closed his eyes, begging the inside of his eyelids for darkness again.

It was only for a moment until...

"Not having a good time?"

Sam snapped his eyes open. The voice was feminine and not one he recognized. He tilted his head and noticed a girl with blonde hair standing a few feet in front of him. She seemed a bit bored, too.

"Nah, actually I haven't even been inside," he replied, "at all."

The girl tilted her head to the side. "Then what are you doing here?"

"My brother's in there," he sighed, "I'm playing big brother at the moment. What about you? All out of school spirit?"

The girl laughed. "No, that's not it. It's just weird -- being inside when everyone else is drinking."

"Ah," he nodded, "Surprisingly, I know that feeling. I'll most likely wind up the designated driver tonight." He was not looking forward to that.

The girl studied him slightly. "You don't go here, do you? I've never seen you around before."

"No, actually. My brother and I are just passing through... ah... job related stuff, you could say," he said, choosing his words carefully. He didn't want to let out more than she needed to know.

"Ah, I see," she replied and thank God she left it at that.

"I'm Sam," he grinned, holding his hand out to her.

"Billie," she nodded, shaking his head. "So, sounds like you're stuck here."

"Yup," he nodded with a sigh, "But at least now I've got company." He smiled at her.

"Yeah," she grinned back at him, "Yeah, you do."

Billie and Sam talked for a few good hours. Sam couldn't believe that Dean was still in there. He was probably drunk out of his mind, which is real good considering that they're on a demon hunt. Not. But it's not like he can tell Billie that now, can he?

"So, you say you guys were just passing through... Do you guys travel around often?" She asked, pulling her knees up to her chest.

Sam gave a nod. "Yeah, you could say it's a... family business. Hush hush stuff, y'know?"

"Oh?" Billie smirked, fully knowing there was more behind that. "I can't even get a hint?"

Sam smirked back at her. "Sorry. My brother would kill me if I said a word. And to be honest, I don't think you'd wanna know."

Billie just nodded, not pushing anymore. It was a secret. She understood secrets. She was keeping one from him, too, after all. She can't just blurt out to this seemingly normal guy that she's a witch. She wondered if she would ever meet someone who would fully accept her for who she was.

Billie rested her chin on her knee. "So, are you and your brother close?"

"Yeah, really close."

She smiled. Hearing that was nice and not totally unheard of to her. She knew the Halliwell sisters and they were closer than she'd ever seen in anyone. Their bond as sisters was incredible. They were lucky to have each other. All the memories she had of her sister weren't worth thinking of.

"That's nice," she replied.

Sam noticed the far away look in her eyes. He bent his head down to catch her gaze and he gave her a soft smile. "I take it you're an only child."

That struck a chord with Billie and her heart sunk. She just smiled sadly and shook her head. "More like orphan now."

Sam frowned. "Orphan? What do you mean?"

Billie just shook her head. "Forget it. Not important."

"Apparently, it is to you. Come on," he coaxed, "I'm a good listener."

Billie grinned up at him and slowly stood up. She held her hand out to him and pulled him onto his feet. "Come on, I wanna show you something."

Sam looked at her skeptically but followed closely behind her back into the dorm area. They walked down a few corridors and the school got Sam thinking of Stanford. They came to a stop outside what was apparently Billie's dorm room. He watched as she took out her key and unlocked the door in one swift movement. "After you."

Sam stepped inside and glanced around. It was decent sized, there were two beds nearby which meant she had a roommate, and a computer desk in the corner of the room. Posters littered the walls and there was a bathroom down further in the room.

"Cozy," Sam commented, following Billie and sitting down next to her on her bed.

She gave him a nod. "Thanks."

Sam noticed what she was holding in her hands and he peered over her shoulder for a better look. It was a framed photo of two little girls. One with darker hair and the other with blonde. The dark haired girl appeared to be the older of the two. Then it clicked.

"Your sister?" Sam guessed and Billie nodded as confirmation.

"Christy... she, uh," she paused and swallowed, "...died not too long ago."

Sam drew a breath. "I'm so sorry."

"Not only that but my parents were murdered earlier this year," she continued, the words obviously paining her.

Sam just shook his head disbelievingly. "Wow, Billie, I'm so sorry," he sympathized. "But I know what it feels like to lose people you love."

She looked over at him curiously. "My mother and girlfriend were killed a few years ago and my dad died not too long ago. One or two years."

"I'm sorry," came her reply and Sam just shook his head.

"Thanks but it's okay. It's been me and Dean ever since. I don't know what I'd do without him." His words were the truth.

"And you're lucky that you have him. All I have are a few really good friends that I tend to mooch off of but they like me anyway," she replied with a slight laugh.

"Well, you can add me to that list of really good friends," he assured her with a smile. She smiled back and nodded, flicking her bangs out of her eyes. She set the picture back on the nightstand and leaned back.

"I'm glad I met you," she told him, "You're not like most guys."

Sam tensed slightly for a minute -- as if she knew more about him than he was saying -- but he relaxed almost instantly and gave her a grin. "I take it that's a good thing?"

"It's a pretty good thing," she nodded, returning his smile.

"Maybe I should go find Dean then," he sighed, glancing at the clock in Billie's room. "Trust me on this, you do not want to run into a drunk and possibly horny Dean." He got a laugh out of Billie on that.

"Alright," she replied, standing up and Sam followed suit. "Well, it was nice meeting you Sam," she told him and her tone was serious, her eyes glistening, "Really."

"It was really nice meeting you, too," he responded by leaning down and quickly kissing her cheek. He could've sworn he heard her breath hitch. "Maybe we'll run into each other again."

"Yeah, maybe..."

Sam backed his way out of the room and smiled at her, giving her a wave before turning the corner on a hunt for his drunken older brother.