Disclaimer: I do not own "Supernatural"
Author's Note: Two for the price of one… because I made you wait so long…
It didn't surprise him to see her sitting up in bed, waiting for him. It was fitting he supposed—the day had begun with a conversation in bed, it might as well end that way.
They were both silent as he got ready for bed. She was already in her pajamas, her hair down around her face the way it had been this morning. This morning— it felt like a lifetime ago…
This morning… when he'd wanted a chance to try and now he had it.
Only a lamp illuminated the room and her hair seemed to glow around her; when he climbed in beside her she shifted into him and he pulled her close.
"Well?" he asked softly, after the silence had stretched for several minutes.
She chuckled against him, "I stared." She murmured, her voice muffled against his chest.
"Yeah, I noticed," he said wryly, his voice still hushed.
"He's..." she trailed off; Sam waited, tensing a little... waiting for her opinion, hoping it was good... because honestly, he could already feel himself getting defensive if it wasn't.
"... not what I expected." She finished, gently.
"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked, frowning in the dim room.
She pulled back to look into his face, a scowl firmly in place, "Don't get huffy with me, Sam. It's not like you ever told me anything about him. It would have been nice if you'd told me what to expect."
His eye brows shot to his hairline, "Huffy?" he asked, the defensiveness gone as suddenly as it had appeared, replaced now by amusement.
"You know what I mean. I'm not saying I don't like him... I think I do... or I will. He's... charming." She grinned suddenly, "And Kerrie was so spot on."
Sam blinked a moment, losing her train of thought. Jess tended to skip around with thoughts, jumping from one to another and back again.
He remembered then, the night Doug and Kerrie had run into Dean— the description his friend had offered of Dean to the other girls in the room... and he scowled.
"That's not funny."
"Absolutely golden, just like she said," Jess continued, her eyes teasing, "Golden eyes... it's astonishing really."
Sam rolled his eyes, "Just don't tell him, in case you didn't notice he's cocky enough."
"He is, isn't he?" she said grinning, "... but its... appealing somehow." She added.
Sam arched an eyebrow, reaching over her and flicking the lamp off, "Should I be worried, here?" He asked, drawing her close again as they stretched out in the darkness.
"That I'll fall prostrate at his feet?" she asked, then shrugged casually, as she snuggled closer to him, "Maybe... I already succumbed to his speechless effect."
Sam chuckled a little, "Don't encourage him." He warned, then sobered a little, "What actually happened with that..." he asked softly.
"I don't know..." she said softly, her voice contemplative, "I think it was just... he's different from you. I guess subconsciously I was expecting to see the same traits in him that I saw in you when we first met."
"Which were..."
"Fishing for compliments, Sammy?" she teased.
"Ugh," he moaned, squeezing his eyes shut, "… don't…"
She chuckled, "I think it's cute…"
"Uh-huh, he's doing it to bug me…" Sam complained, then arched an eyebrow, "You were saying?" he prodded her.
"Refusing to let it go, huh, counselor?"
"I'm just wondering…" he murmured, "... don't tell me if you don't want to."
Jess was silent for a moment, "I can almost hear you pouting…" she whispered, snuggling closer to him, "A bit more shyness and less of that charm, I think, is what I was expecting."
"Dean doesn't do shy."
She chuckled, "Yeah, I noticed."
"Kerrie wants to have a barbecue at the park tomorrow." She told him, moments later, just as he was relaxing into sleep. "She claims it'd be great day. Sunday. Great weather. And miraculously all our friends are available." Sarcasm dripped from the last few words.
Sam was shaking his head, "No. No. No way..."
"Sam—"
"Everybody needs to stay out of it."
"They're just curious."
"No, its not—"
"It's become a thing, Sam." Jess told him, she pushed herself away from him so she could looking into his face. He could make out her features in the darkness, "You're mister-laid-back-nothing-ruffles-my-feathers. You always have been. You take things with aplomb, nothing freaks you out…" she murmured.
The image of a Hellhound bearing down on him with bared fangs and bloodlust in its eyes flashed through Sam's mind...
… hard to top that on a college campus.
"… but you really freaked the guys out…" Jess continued, "When Jake talked to me he made it sound like you and your brother almost came to blows."
"We didn't." Sam interjected quickly, "Jake exaggerates."
"So you didn't stand in the middle of the street yelling obscenities at each other?" she asked archly.
Sam scowled, "Maybe, but… that's just… it's just the way we do things." He muttered, suddenly reluctant to talk about this.
He'd never had to explain his relationship with Dean to anyone and quite frankly, he didn't think he wanted to.
His relationship with Dean… just was. It just existed and he didn't feel the need to put an explanation behind it; didn't think he'd be able to if he tried.
Jess was silent for a long moment, seeming to read the sentiment in the air; she nodded slowly, lowering herself against his chest again.
"I'm just saying it freaked the guys to see you so freaked. I mean when the cool and collected friend loses it, it naturally upsets the hotheads." Jess continued, "And now everyone's curious…"
"Well too bad. No barbecue," Sam stated firmly, "I don't care if they're curious. I'm not going to parade my brother around so they can ooh and ah and satisfy their curiosity." He spat, still scowling, "I haven't seen Dean in a long time… I want to spend time him. Time without having a pack of intrusive stares following us around— time with just us." He finished.
There was silence for a moment, then Jess chuckled a little, "I'm not invited, then huh?"
Sam jerked a little; he'd been speaking almost to himself and realized suddenly how that had sounded.
He opened his mouth to smooth things over when Jess chuckled against him again, "It's okay, Sam. I get it. I do. I'd want to keep Jilly to myself too if I was in your situation. I told Ker that we'd see about the barbecue; that I'd call her tomorrow…"
Sam sighed, a smile tugging at his lips, "You like making me jump through hoops, don't ya?" he teased.
"It's a very cute side to you… this little brother side. I think I like it…" she murmured, "You're oozing the whole, he's-mine-and-I'm-not-sharing mentality—very four year old of you," she teased.
"Says the girl with the Smurfs on her pajamas."
"Shut-up, Sammy."
"Goodnight, Jessy." He taunted.
She laughed suddenly, taking him by surprise, "Oh god… that must have so sucked," she whispered, after a few seconds of silent laughter.
"What?"
"You're Sammy…" she whispered, her voice still full of amusement, "… and there's no equivalent for Dean…" she finished.
Sam scowled in the dark, "I'm glad you find that so amusing."
"Oh I do, baby, I do." She murmured, burying her head under his chin.
Sam rolled his eyes, but didn't say anything, just pulled her close and let the small smile bloom on his face; realizing that for tonight he had the best of both his world's under one roof.
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