I don't know if the writers will touch on it in season 4 BUT
There's something about Yasammy that I haven't seen many people point in, in that both of them put the other on such a pedestal that when real life happened, it really added to the communication issues in their relationship.
Sammy has always been Yaz's number one cheerleader; she's always been convinced Yaz can do anything, until her PTSD. Yaz struggles with her PTSD for about 2 years before Brooklyn gets her into Dino Immersion Therapy, 14 months before the Chaos Theory Events. Yaz for 2 years wasn't the person Sammy built her up to be because everything was affected by her PTSD, and Sammy's decision to protect her could easily be seen as Sammy not believing Yaz can get better; suddenly, Yaz isn't the person Sammy always praised her of being. Even in her Flashback with Brooklynn, Yaz says she thinks the therapy would be good for "us" meaning her and Sammy. She thought of Sammy when she was deciding to go to Wyoming, it wasn't a selfish one-sided decision, she wanted to be a better person FOR SAMMY.
Then on the flip side, Yaz is always praising Sammy's strength, but then she leaves, and Sammy is alone and she's not dealing with being alone well and of course this isn't communicated to Yaz who thinks her girlfriend is fine because It's Sammy she's country strong and surely she's good because she hasn't told Yaz she's not and Yaz wouldn't suspect anything because her girlfriend can do anything, she's a strong woman who runs her own ranch. But Sammy's not as strong as Yaz's perception claims she is, thus more communication issues.
The thing of it is, they have to accept each other at their messiest. They have to believe in each other enough to know that they don't need to meet each other's expectations of the other all the time and that they can rely on each other even when they're hurting.
They don't have to be perfect for the other, they can be hurting or upset or angry or messy, and the other WILL STILL LOVE THEM FOR IT. That's the lesson both of them are missing. They need to know they can be weak with the other, they can be less than ideal, and the other person won't see them as less because of it.
Pairing: Tina/Sam (with maybe a tiny hint of Zeke/Tina of you squint).
Written by: @rikareena
A/N: THIS was all over the place, and I did like two solid revisions when I felt like the story was getting away from itself. But it's done. I'm sorry this is so long. I'm a huge Zekina shipper, but I also just love Sam and his chemistry with Tina. Their interaction in "Butt, Sweat, and Fears" makes it one of my favorite episodes, so that was the inspiration behind this. (And dedicated to @lamquur who also loves Sam/Tina).
As always, please forgive any typos.
Enjoy!
---------------
It hadn't escaped him that he'd found himself staring more and more at the short haired girl lately.
He'd been just mildly aware of her presence before. But somewhere between the cheese challenge and Chelsea's party, he found his attention inexplicably drawn to her.
She wasn't necessarily good at her classes, he realized, but she wasn't bad either. She was a solid C student, and one of the few who actually tried because she actually did care about her grades. She was also quick to help others, and, though a bit socially awkward, she always challenged herself to push beyond her comfort zone. She was nervous about public speaking, but loved volunteering for school activities like plays or being on the news. She was also a stickler for the rules, but also extremely empathetic and sympathetic to those who broke them--extending a hand to help them out and keep them out of trouble when she could.
She was also very humble compared to most of their peers, and fiercely protective of her friends and family--especially her family.
And...somewhere between the memory of her soft hands on his shoulders and his on her waist, along with her besting him as Cheese Master...Sam couldn't help but think that he wanted to get to know her more.
But apparently, he hadn't been as...discreet...with his observations as he thought.
"Ey! Sammity-Sim-Sam! What's shaking, bacon?!" He glanced up and saw Zeke waving at him as he and Jimmy Junior approached.
"Easy bud!" Zeke threw an arm over him, "We're just curious!"
Sam swallowed thickly. He knew Zeke and Jimmy Junior were in Tina's close-knit group of friends, and that she had a unique kinda on-again, off-again thing with Jimmy Junior. Annnd that Zeke was a big, tough guy who was Jimmy Junior's bestie. He didn't want to risk getting in either of their bad sides when it came to the girl. He wanted to stay as far away from potentially rocking that boat as possible.
Jimmy Junior and Zeke looked at each other before the taller boy shrugged.
"Alright. It's nothin' Told ya, Zeke. C'mon, let's get to class."
"Er, right behind ya J-Ju!" Zeke called. Then, he turned back to the antsy boy.
"Look Sam, just wanted ya ta know, mah boy J-Ju ain't always quick on the uptake, but the way ya been starin' at T lately has been pret-ty obvious--I'm just sayin'."
"R-really?"
"Well, yeah! You ain't exactly been subtle."
"O-oh....uh...I-I'm sorry?"
Zeke shrugged, "Ain't nothin' ta apologize for. Ya ain't done nothin' wrong. And yer honestly ain't the only one to be snagged under that girl's spell."
"H-huh?"
"Yeah! Who could blame ya? Tina's super sweet; it's why a lotta guys end up smitten' wit'er one way or another. Jordan, Henry, Josh, and o'course J-Ju on occassion."
"O-oh...t-t-they do?" Sam looked down, before cutting his eyes around to Tina out of his peripheral. To be honest, he wasn't surprised that other guys had also been taking by her uniqueness. "B-but I'm not....I mean, I don't wanna....I-I don't...um...like, like-like her or anything...um, I just...she just... "
"Ohhhhhh. Okay, okay, okay, I read ya! Look, if ya wanna like, at least get ta know her more, I can still help ya out."
Sam blinked at him.
"Wha-wha--? Er...oh, I-I-I mean, I w-why?"
Zeke shrugged, "Why not? Look, Sam. Just listen ta me, and you'll be part'o the Kid Krew in no time!"
"K-Kid Krew?"
"Lil' name for our group. T came up with it. You'll love it!"
"I-I dunno Zeke..."
"You'll love it! You'll love it!" Zeke called, just as the bell rang. "Just meet me at the front after school! Don't be late!"
Sam stared after the boy and sighed.
So much for staying under the radar.
----
When the bell rang to signal the end of the school day, Sam found himself mindlessly trekking toward the doors to exit the building. To be honest, he had forgotten about Zeke's request to tag up, until he heard someone enthusiastically calling his name once he stepped outside.
"SAM! EY SAM! WE'RE OVER HERE!" he cringed....suddenly remembering what he thought he'd successfully forgotten. The boy paused, but then kept walking, thinking maybe he could play off having not heard his extrovert classmate.
"SAM! YO, CAN YOU HEAR ME?! HELLO! OVER HERE!"....nope, couldn't ignore that even if he tried. Sam sighed as he rolled his eyes and took a deep breath. Maybe...maybe he could wiggle his way out of this somehow.
As he turned around, his eyes grew wide as he noticed Zeke wasn't alone. There was also Jimmy Junior, and Tammy, and Jocelyn, and....
Tina.
And for some reason, even as he approached, his eyes kept being drawn back to her. She smiled at him softly.
"Hey Sam!"
"Uh...h-h-hi...um..."
"Ew! This is who we were waiting for?! I thought it was someone cool!"
"Ugh! He is cool, Tammy! Or did you forget he was the Cheese Maaster who totally trumped your butt and made it to the finals? We BOTH did." Tina snapped back with a smirk. Sam found himself blushing, even as Zeke also vouched for him,
"Alright, everyone chill. He's cool, he's cool!"
He just stood there, feeling a bit overwhelmed, until Tina moved to stand next to him, putting her hand on his mid-back. A simple gesture, she must've noticed how anxious he was, and he visibly relaxed at her touch.
"So, what's the plan for today anyway, aside from tolerating this loser?"
"Tammy, be nice!" Jocelyn pouted.
"Well, I was thinking we could hang out at Tina's family's place."
At this, Tammy made a face.
"What? Wait, my place? Why?!" Tina asked.
"Ugh, yeah, why?! Tina's family restaurant will smells all fried and gross, like Tina."
"It's cause they cook fried food, Tim-Tam, duh! It ain't gonna smell like roses!" Zeke rolled his eyes, "And, I dunno, maybe we can help Mr. B out a bit or somethin', what do ya'll think?"
"You just wanna cook with him again," Jimmy Junior said smugly as he cut his eyes around to his friend.
Zeke shrugged, "Maybe! Guilty as charged!"
"Oh! That'll be fun! And Mr. B will be so happy to see us, Team Home-Ec-sturaunt! Yay!" Jocelyn said, giddily clasping her hands together.
"So, whaddya say T-Bird?!"
Tina paused in thought.
"Well, dad's not one to pass up free labor. It should be fine, I guess."
"Alright, let's do this!" Zeke said, punching the air.
With that, the group started walking, and Zeke looked to back at the boy, who was trailing behind everyone else pretty slowly.
"You okay, Sam?"
For a while he didn't answer.
"....... Zeke, I-I don't understand. Why are you doing this? What's the point?" he asked, feeling utterly confused. "I-I shouldn't be here....with you guys."
Zeke blinked at him, then smiled before slowing down to walk more in step with the shyer boy.
"Look, you may not know it, but T's actually pretty fond of you."
"W-wha--huh?" the boy stared and Zeke with eyes wide in shock.
"Well yeah! After Chelsea's party all she talked about was how you helped her with her little....er, wardrobe mishap. I mean, she wouldn't give us details but, said you made things lot less stressful for her that night."
"Wait....s-she did?... Huh, it's more like she helped me but..." he trailed off.
" ...My point is, she likes you. And well, I just think she'd be happy for the chance to get ta know ya a bit more...like you would be."
"B-but, Why do YOU care? W-why are you helping me?"
Zeke shrugged, "I'unno, just 'cause I guess. I think you two would hit it off! Sometimes Tina ain't all too keen on doin' what the rest of us are into but, I think you'll be a good lil' add-on to our circle 'o friends for her. Ya'll kinda favor each other, ta me anyway."
"Y-you think so?"
"Sure! Anyway, I just wanted ta help I guess." Zeke shrugged. "If any of the rest of us are ever not around, she can talk ta you at least, ya know? Seems like your company would be good fer her."
Sam stared and Zeke for a moment, the wheels in his head turning. He found his gaze shifting between Zeke and Tina himself.
....Huh...so that was the Tina Belcher spell he had been talking about before ....Made sense. Sam figured no one was really immune to it, not even those who were in her closer circle.
Zeke then patted his shoulder, "Anyway! Here's a tip! If ya stick to these three things you're in a safe zone with T: Just remember Horses, Zombies, and Butts. The girl is notorious for her love of the posterior!" Zeke snickered.
Sam felt his face go red as he remembered how anxious Tina was about getting "Upper Butt" action at Chelsea's party....so he shouldn't have been surprised.
"B-but, what if it doesn't work and I bore her...o-or she finds me annoying?"
"Geeze, you really are a tightly wound bundle o' nerves huh? Try bein' a glass-half-full kinda guy 'n just live in the moment, man! It's gonna be fine!" Zeke said, patting the boy's shoulder.
Sam bit his lip as he turned to stare at Tina again, just as Zeke shifted his stride to walk closer to her and Jimmy Junior--more specifically to get the latter in a headlock and give him a noogie--at which Tina laughed.
Glass half-full, huh?
Yeah....he could try that.
----------
About 15 minutes later found them all at Bob's Burgers. Tina and Sam sat across from each other against the wall in one booth. Zeke had pretty much immediately beelined for the kitchen (Bob was thrilled to see him). Jocelyn was hot on his tail, along with Jimmy Junior. Tammy sat at the counter on her phone, desperately wanting to leave but staying for Jocelyn's sake.
"Uh...I can help you guys too, if you want," Tina said, standing up as she called out to the kitchen.
"Naw, we got it covered, T-Bird! Don'tcha worry your pretty little head about it girl, just relax!"
"Yeah Tina, you get to have fun here all the time! Let us have some!" Jocelyn added.
"Even if Mr. B. can't pay us for it," J-Ju said dryly, to which Bob gave a noncommital "hmm."
"Oookay, then I guess I'm not on shift today," Tina laughed, sitting back down. She looked over at Sam worriedly as he ripped a napkin into smaller and smaller pieces. "You okay Sam? I know this isn't really your kinda scene--with all these people. You can leave if you want."
"Oh! Uh...n-n-no...it's..erm...fine," he swallowed thickly before coughing. Tina blinked at him.
"Okay. Soo ...um..." Break the ice...she had to break the ice somehow. "How'd you do on the math test?"
"Huh? Oh. Uh....I got a B."
"Oh, cool. Cool. I got a D+. Not my best work buuuut, to be fair, I blame it on those dang variables. Math is a place for numbers, not letters, am I right? Haha!"
He cracked a small smile.
"Heh! You're funny, Tina."
"I am?"
"Yeah. I-I'm not....so much. I wish I c-could be and j-joke more like you but, I g-get all self-conscious and anxious and..."
"Uh, hello! Did you forget about Miss Sweaty Butt with a Side of Cat Poop over here?" she pointed to herself and he snorted with laughter at that.
"Oh god! I-I'm sorry, sorry! I-I know that was a r-rough n-night for you!"
Tina shrugged, "Eh, I've had worse. So has my family. Did I tell you about the time my dad got stuck to the toilet seat?"
"For reals? Yikes."
"Yeah, and you shoulda seen the seat."
And Sam snickered again. Tina beamed. "There it is."
"What?"
"You were so tense earlier, I was worried you were constipated or something. But you seem like you're warming up now."
He blushed, "Yeah well...I guess you're easy to talk to, T...er....Tina."
"It's okay, you can call me T."
As they fell into light conversation, a few more patrons came in, and the kids began to work on taking their orders. Zeke made his way over to Tina and Sam.
"Alright! A'fore I getchall's order, how ya'll two peas in a pod doin' over here?"
"Oh! Uh...good, Zeke." Sam said, palms suddenly feeling sweaty again.
"I see you guys haven't burned down my dad's kitchen yet, that's good."
"Yep! As long as we come outta this with no property damage to yer old man's kitchen, I'm callin' it a win!" he said with a wink. He then turned back to Sam. "Soooo, you uh, ask her about going to the 'Butts of No Return' movie yet?"
Sam blinked in surprise.
"T-the what?!" What was he talking about?
"Yeah, it's comin' out next week! It's about a buncha zombies who get their butts cut off!"
Sam paled at this, his face getting visibly whiter. Tina's eyes grew wide,
"Uh...I, don't think that's his thing...but, how did you know about it?"
"Oh! Uh...heard ya talkin' about it by the water fountain."
Tina raised an eyebrow at him, but smirked, "You eavesdrop now, Zeke?"
"Tina, please--I'm tryin' ta work! Stop distractin' me!" Zeke said, putting down their drinks before whipping out his notepad to take their order. It was then that Sam noticed Jocelyn writing on the "Burger of the Day" board.
"Hmm...what's the Burger of the Day for today, anyway?" Sam asked. Zeke's face dropped,
"I don't recommend it."
"But what is it?"
Zeke sighed in agitation, "The Cheese-Burglar....which...ironically, is a burger without cheese."
.....crickets.
Tina tolted her head skeptically, "Huh."
"I know, right? Jocelyn came up with it so, let's....just be supportive" he rolled his eyes.
Sam smiled and looked at Tina, "Whaddya think, Tina. You're the burger expert. May be worth a try?"
And Tina stared at him...and it dawned on her that he was going to order it to make Joeclyn happy. She grinned and nodded in agreement. Zeke sighed again but wrote down the rest of their selections and left... but not before leaning over to whisper, "Remember, Zombies, Horses, and butts!" to Sam, who flushed red in embarrassment and shoved him away.
Tina frowned in confusion.
"What was that all about?"
"Er nothing, nothing! D-don't worry about it, heh! Ahem." He coughed, immediately taking a sip of his water again.
"Oh...well...uh, that was nice of you...ordering the Burger of the Day for Jocelyn."
"What? No, I..."
"Yeah, you're always doing stuff like that. A guy's pencil fell on the floor in math and he thought he lost it, but you slipped him yours without making a big fuss, and didn't even ask for it back. Missy was sitting in the back of the room in History class last week but realized she needed to get to the bathroom because...well, reasons. And you gave her your jacket as a cover while you distracted everyone so they wouldn't see her stain on her pants when she left. You even helped a fourth grader tie his shoe so he wouldn't trip the other day."
Sam blinked at Tina in shock and awe.
"You....noticed all those things?"
"Well, yeah. I thought it was sweet." She said. He blushed again and looked down, playing with his fingers. He had to take a shot!
"Um...T-Tina would you...want to...maybe, perhaps go to that movie...w-w-with me? T-the one Zeke was talking about. I mean, y-you don't have to if y-you don't want to. O-of course you wouldn't want to, why would you? Ugh, but I just thought...ergh...."
She held up her hands, "Woah! Woah! Sam, slow down! Take a breath! I'd be down for catching a movie with you, but we don't have to see that one, ya know."
"Huh?"
"Yeah, I know my affinity for butts and zombies can be a bit much for people. ...not sure how Zeke honed in that but..." she muttered, to which she and Sam glanced at Zeke helping Bob hustle in the kitchen.
"But we can totally see something else. I wouldn't want you to be uncomfortable."
"R-r-really?"
"Yeah!"
"I-I mean, but if you really want to see that one, I don't mind--"
"No, trust me. I'd rather not go into crazy Tina mode over zombies and butts in front of you."
"I don't think it'd be that bad."
"....Aw....you're sweet."
"Hehe, thanks."
Another beat.
"Did Zeke tell you to try to win me over with butts and zombies or something?"
"K-kinda? I think that was his attempt at a save earlier," Sam said, rubbing the back of his head.
Tina smiled, then reached out and put her hand on top of Sam's.
"Sam, there's no need to try so hard."
"Huh?"
"Just be you. I already like you. You don't have to win me over or anything."
"R-r-really? O-oh, I t-thought....u-um..." he furrowed his brows before taking a breath and looking Tina straight in the eyes. "Um...okay. T-Tina, t-there's actually this ninja film I wanted to see and...i-if you're cool with it, would you want to watch it with me?"
"Ooh! A ninja movie? Sure, that sounds like it could be awesome!"
"Y-yeah? Yeah! T-to be honest, watching ninja films is how I improved my throwing technique," he said, relaxing a bit more.
"Really? Oh, I can see that! My dad and Louise likes those Hawk and Chick films."
"I love those too!"
"Yeah? We've got the whole collection! You can maybe come by and watch sometimes if you want."
"That's awesome! And I'll bring some of my ninja films too!"
"Ugh!" At this, Tammy stood and made her way to the kitchen.
"Tammy? What are you doing back here?" Jimmy Junior asked from the fries basket as she entered.
"Ugh, dork-flirting at 12 o'clock!"
"What-what?" Jocelyn asked, bustling to poke her head out the door.
"Guys, c'mon. Focus or the food's gonna burn." Bob said.
"Just a sec, Mr. B!" Zeke said, following Jocelyn.
"Yeah, it's disgusting."
The four teens peeked out of the kitchen door.
"Oh my god, what are you talking about Tammy?! They're too cute! Aww, dork love!" Jocelyn said.
"Pft, not that cute."
"Jealous J-Ju?"
"No!"
"I didn't know he had a thing for her."
"He doesn't, Jocelyn! He said so!"
"Breathe, J-Ju!"
....at all this, Bob couldn't help but overhear. He subtly leaned over and took a peek at his daughter and her new friend out the kitchen window. Huh. He hadn't seen this boy before but....he seemed pretty mild-mannered and shy. ....A calm to her usual chaos....he could just be welcome change to balance out her friend group.
Soon, Jocelyn brought out their burgers while Zeke brought out thee rest of their food order. The two winked at the teens before walking back to the kitchen, Jocelyn giggling the entire time and Zeke shushing her, telling her to chill. And as the door to the kitchen swung open again, they caught Jimmy Junior giving them the stink eye.
Tina and Sam blinked in confusion.
"What was that about?" Sam asked.
"Who knows. ...Hey Sam?"
"Yeah, Tina?"
"I'm glad you swung by. You can come by any time, I'd love to hang out with you more, ya know...with or without the Kid Krew," she said.
Sam beamed, holding up his soft drink for cheers,
"Thanks T, and same here. I-I'll be happy to hang out with you more too.....and the others......sometimes, I-I still need to pace myself, ya know." he said. Tina beamed.
"I gotcha," she said, clinking her glasses with his.
...And not for the first time, Sam thought this shift in his social life would be a good way for him to get out of his comfort zone. And the bonus was that having Tina Belcher by his side to help him guide the way, he just knew, would make it all the more worthwhile.
they were so damn passive aggressive, like, okay, I know that things change but if you don't talk to her, how does she know how you feel you know.
But like, if we see this from Sammys point of view from season 1, like, Yazmina was pulling away from her, like, can you imagine how she must have felt.
Like 'I love Yasmina so much, but she's ignoring me and she's pulling away from me and I don't know why, and she;s being so distant. I don't know what to do. I love Yazmina, but what if she doesn't feel the same about me anymore, she doesn't want to talk to me anymore, what if her love faded, I am giving so much into this relationship, but she's just...not there anymore. I love Yasmina so much, but what if she doesn't feel the same', Like can you even imagine the heartbreak Sammy was going through??
And I get that Yaz needed her space but like, did she even tell Sammy what was going on?? NO.
All this passive aggressive crap, like cant you just talk to eachother bitch.
And poor Yazmina, like she was trying to talk to Sammy, but Sammy was just pushing her away. She thought that they made a promise to eachother. But I guess that was just words huh Sammy? Was it just words?
I guess we'll never know, BECAUSE EVEN THOUGH YAZ IS TRYING TO TALK TO SAMMY, Sammys just distancing.
