6 - options

"Did you get to meet Team Four's latest addition today? I think her name is Rebecca. Rebecca Matthews." Jules asked, chopping up some tomatoes for the salad. It was a rare quiet evening when they both decided to cook dinner instead of ordering in. She loved the domestic feeling it gave her; a glimpse of what could be in the future if -when- Sam moved in permanently one day (it was definitely still too premature to even think about marriage).

"It's Rebekah actually, with a K," Sam corrected, kissing the back of her head as he moved passed her to turn on the stove. At Jules' questioning look, he explained, "Raf couldn't stop talking about her while we're patrolling. I wonder if he bribed Spike to do a full background check on her or what."

"Well, understandable, she's pretty," Jules shrugged, her mind carrying her back to this morning when Winnie introduced her to the woman Raf had been so attracted to. She was even taller than Natalie without wearing any heels, although her hair was raven dark instead of golden blonde. She was friendly, had that confident air about her without being too intimidating.

It was kind of strange. Jules still remembered the old days when she was the only female SRU in the building. Then Donna came along, after that came Leah, and now, Rebekah with a K. As the minority, Jules knew that they all should stick together; working in a testosterone fueled environment wasn't easy. Still, she couldn't completely dismiss the nagging feeling in the pit of stomach, one that kept whispering that she's not all that special after all.

"She's also a sniper," Jules added, recalling the sniper badge on Rebekah's uniform. Her own uniform still had the same emblem even though she couldn't remember the last time she had to be Sierra.

"Yeah?"

Jules set aside the neatly chopped tomatoes and started with the lettuce. She gnawed at her lip. "Have you ever, I don't know, thought about how easier your life would be if we're not dating?"

Sam apparently didn't think it was a serious question because he chuckled. "Been there, done that. Sure we have to get a bit creative, but I'm pretty sure my life is better when we're together," when he didn't get a retort he expected from her, he looked over his shoulder, his smile dimming. Her back was to him, but he could see the tense set of her shoulders. "Jules?"

Jules sighed and turned around to face him, wiping her hands on a tea towel. "I just- you know, sometimes people get so busy they forget that there are other… options."

Sam's eyebrows rose so high they nearly reached his hairline. "Is this your subtle way of telling me that you want to explore other options?"

"Do you?"

Sam's face remained stoic for a few more seconds before realization slowly dawned on him. Everything clicked into place - her seemingly casual remark about the new girl, the question, the nervousness in her eyes... Being with someone who didn't like to express her thoughts and feelings out loud like Jules, he had learned over the years to read her better. He was pleased to say that he was definitely better at it than he had been two and a half years ago.

He pushed himself off the island and moved until he stood before her. He tilted her chin up, waiting until her eyes met his. "Jules, I'm not dating you because we have a twelve hour shift five days a week and I get to see you everyday at work, which I'm not complaining, by the way," he paused, then released a dry laugh at the silliness of her suggestion. "I'm not dating you because it's convenient."

Jules felt her face flush crimson. It had sounded much better in her head. "I never doubted that. It's just, sometimes I can't help but thinking that maybe you want -deserve- to have a relationship, one that doesn't make you sneak around behind your friends' backs. We have such an emotionally and physically taxing job, I wouldn't blame you if you want to have a more simple, ideal relationship."

He leaned down, brushing his lips over her forehead. She seemed to have forgotten that he wasn't the only one doing the 'sneaking around', and his friends were hers too. "Jules, when we're broken up, believe me, I- I tried to move on, or borrowing your words, look at other options. There were a couple of rebounds, but neither went anywhere because deep down I guess I knew that what I felt -what I feel- for you, isn't about to go anywhere. Sure, there would have been no breaking the rules, but it wouldn't have been fair to anyone either. And that's not what I wanted; they were not who I wanted. Same as now. There could be a dozen of sniper chicks walking around SRU, but I only got my eyes on one of them."

Jules crinkled her nose, tugging at the front of his shirt. "Can we please forget this conversation ever happened and never talk about it again?"

The timer went off, signaling the cornbread was done. Sam chuckled and gave her a warm kiss. "Deal," he released her and walked back to the oven.

'Have you ever, I don't know, thought about how easier your life would be if we're not dating?' Sam shook his head. It genuinely baffled him that the idea even crossed her mind at all. Would have been offended if he couldn't see how serious she had been about it.

As soon as he pulled out the tray, her kitchen immediately smelled like his grandmother's. "And Sweeheart, just so you know, loving you is the easiest thing I've ever done in my life."

So much for keeping this under 500 words. Thanks for reading and reviewing! I miss Jam so much :(