Just Jules

Disclaimer: Dun dun dun… if Flashpoint were mine, you guys would have seen Sam's bedroom and the color of his coverlet at least once (or thrice), and which side of the bed Jules'd pick.

:: This is probably one of a few rare cases where the title inspires the story, instead of me writing something then wrecking my brain out for a title. Takes place at the end of Scorpio. I assume that's the infamous The Goose.

SEVEN MORE DAYS, PEOPLE! SEVEN! A WEEK! So you lovely writers out there, please write (a lot of) something so that time will fly faster :)

"Okay, so it's really not Julia?" Sam asked again, turning his chair so that he could see her face more clearly. He wasn't one to hit on his teammates –it certainly did help that most, if not all of his previous comrades had been males- and he was aware of the consequences for being emotionally involved with them. After everything he had gone through, he knew about risking lives better than most people.

But this particular woman had intrigued him; someone who would have never passed as a poster child for a lady sniper.

Sam didn't think saying it out loud would be the smartest thing he could do.

Jules chuckled, her nose wrinkled up in a way he had come to adore. "Seriously, Sam. Don't you know when to give it up?"

"Giving up isn't in my nature, and sometimes, it could get people killed in my line of work."

Jules sent him a look. "Ours, you mean. You're a part of our team now, remember?"

Sam grinned. Our team. He liked the sound of that. "Juliet? Juliette? With double t's?"

"You never answered my question as well," she put down her bottle and turned her chair sideways to face him. Then she dropped the loaded question. "Why?"

For a brief nanosecond, the impulse to confide himself in her hit him like a tidal wave that he had to take a long sip of his now semi-cold drink to shake it off. Jules was still looking at him, intently.

"Why am I being so persistent?" Sam dodged the question, watching her eyes narrow. "More often that not, curiosity kills this cat. Or you'd rather have me ask you something else like what your number is?"

"2166, that's my badge number," Jules answered at once. He saw the corner of her lips twitch before a smile graced her feature and he was glad that she didn't press him on the issue. "Sam, that's for Samuel?"

"Certainly can't be Samantha."

"Smart-ass."

"Julie?" Sam tried one more time, feeling his patience shriveling. The curiosity was there, but for some reasons he couldn't explain, he wanted her to tell him even though there were more than enough people in the room who would be more than happy to answer the question.

And he simply loved to push her buttons.

"If I guess correctly, will you even tell me that I'm right?"

"Maybe."

"And if I do guess it right, you'll let me buy you a drink?"

"Trying to get me drunk will get you nowhere."

"Is that a yes?"

"No."

"But you didn't say no either."

"Yes."

"So it is a yes."

"No!" Jules snorted and Sam found himself unable to look away. Her cheeks were flushed from the beers and –hopefully- their banter and her eyes seemed to sparkle even brighter. He gripped his bottle tighter, mentally pummeling the urge to push back a loose bang that had fallen across her eyes. "You really are something, aren't you?"

"I'm trying to be modest." Sam was grinning from ear to ear.

"Just Jules, Sam," she finally said. "Call me Jules, everybody does that. Just Jules."

Sam ignored her. "Are you sure it's not-"

"Julianna Callaghan, is that you?"

Startled, Sam looked up and saw a middle-aged woman strut towards their table. Jules swore under her breath, disgruntled. She gave him a murderous look that shut his mouth from making any sharp remarks. The older woman was practically pulling her out of her seat and into a big hug.

For a moment the two were talking – more like Jules listening while the other woman chatting animatedly—and when 'Cathy' finally left, Sam was having a hard time to contain his smile, especially after listening to the load of new information, sitting where he was.

His favorite had got to be the 'I still remember your father had to chase you around the house to put some clothes on you! Time sure does fly!' comment.

Priceless.

Judging from Jules' firm grip around her bottle, he knew she was trying just as hard not to punch the lady on the face. She looked so uncomfortable and while it made him feel bad, it wasn't enough to make him stop. "Julianna? With two L's?"

Jules shifted in her seat. She was flushing a pretty shade of pink and he liked the color on her just fine. "Just Jules, Sam, remember?"

"Like Juliana of the Netherlands?"

"I'm Canadian." She replied dryly.

"They named an asteroid after her, you know."

Jules scoffed. "I think I can live just fine knowing nobody is naming a rock after my name."

"Does this mean I can buy you a drink now?" Sam tested the water once again. "Julianna?"

"That was cheating," Jules pointed out with a glare that strangely made him feel giddy, like he was a decade younger. He knew it wasn't the beer because he barely even touched his third one. "And no, even if my dearest old chatty neighbor didn't ruin it for you, 'cos you're obviously having fun, and you were still correct, you can't buy me anything."

Okay, he would let this slide, for now. As he had told Jules, the words give up were simply not in his dictionary.

Now what? He shouldn't, he really shouldn't, but he could. They're going to be working together from now on anyway, there would be plenty of time in the future for him to redeem himself.

"So… about your father chasing you aro-"

Jules got up so abruptly that she almost knocked down both of their drinks. She exhaled a deep breath to keep her composure and boy, was he relieved that she didn't carry her gun. "I'm going to check on Ed."

And just like that, she was gone.

Sam let out a full belly laugh. It was humanly impossible for the laughter to be contained any longer.

"Whoa, Sam, you look like the cat that just got the cream," Spike commented, sliding into the seat Jules had vacated. "Care to share with the class?"

His laughter died down to mild chuckles. That was one way to set an impression, not one he would have preferred, but it was definitely something.

Yeah, Jules, he was something, for sure.

"Nah," Sam grinned, amused. "Just Jules."

Hope you enjoy this! Oh, by the way, do you guys have theories about the future of JAM? I'd like to hear from you. Breaking up again isn't an option, transferring to another team is also not an option, and clearly, staying together is also not an option. Whataya think?